Ryanair is continuing to plan for a “hard Brexit,” by limiting the voting rights of non-EU shareholders and setting up a UK air operator’s certificate, which should be granted by the end of 2018. “We remain concerned about the prospect of a hard Brexit. If there isn’t a hard Brexit—if there’s an extensive or long transition period—that suits us fine, but I think we must prepare for a hard Brexit, in either March 2019, or in Jan 2021,” Ryanair CE Michael O’Leary said. O’Leary said he is “cautiously optimistic” that an 18-month transition period will be agreed from March 2019 through to the end of 2020, where the rules effectively remain the same, but in the meantime Ryanair will seek to restrict the voting rights of non-EU shareholders to comply with EU ownership and control restrictions. <br/>
unaligned
The US govt has added Airbus A340 VIP operator Dena Airways to a list of sanctioned Iranian carriers and targeted 31 aircraft used by 4 other Iranian airlines for new sanctions. Anyone who has a business relationship with any of the 5 carriers – including Mahan Air, Caspian Airlines, Meraj Air and Pouya Air – are at risk of violating the sanctions, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said May 24th. The sanctions cover a variety of services, including logistics, maintenance, catering, codeshare agreement, distribution, ticketing, marketing and freight forwarding, OFAC says. The actions come 2 weeks after the US govt decided to withdraw from a 3-year-old agreement with Iran and 5 other countries. <br/>
Germania Group has established an entry-into-service process for the Airbus A320neos, which will join the fleet in January 2020. Germania CE Karsten Balke said the investment and fleet standardisation represents the most extensive modernisation program in the airline’s history. In July 2016, Germania ordered 25 180-seat Airbus A320neos, with 15 options, in a deal valued at US$2.7b. The carrier selected Pratt & Whitney’s geared turbofan engines to power the A320neos. With A320neo fleet, Germania is counting on a 15% reduction in fuel consumption per seat and is estimating a reduction in maintenance costs by more than 5%. Together with its Swiss affiliated company Germania Flug and Bulgarian Eagle, the airline operates 36 aircraft. <br/>
WestJet Airlines pilots who fly for the company’s budget carrier Swoop will now be unionised, a concession which resolves a key obstacle in a labour dispute with the airline, a negotiator with ALPA said. Friday night, WestJet and its pilots averted a possible strike by approving a settlement process to reach a first contract, with any disputed issues to be resolved through binding arbitration. A first contract is expected in June, said Rob McFadyen, chairman of the carrier’s ALPA master executive council. Pilots who fly for Swoop will now be covered under the same contract as their WestJet mainline counterparts, a demand by the union, which had accused the carrier of outsourcing, he said. It was not yet clear, however, whether Swoop and WestJet’s mainline pilots would have the same salaries. <br/>
South African regional airline SA Express was forced to stop operations May 24 after the Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) suspended its air operator's certificate, citing safety concerns. SA Express’ aircraft maintenance organisation approvals and certificate of airworthiness for 9 of its 21 aircraft were also suspended. SA Express will have to reapply and be issued with relevant approvals for its AOC, aircraft maintenance organisation and certificates of airworthiness for the grounded aircraft. “The decision to revoke the airlines permits comes after SACAA conducted an audit at the airline and its maintenance organisation in the past several days, which uncovered severe cases of non-compliance that pose serious safety risks,” SACAA said. <br/>