Ryanair canceled around 400 flights in Europe, most of them in Germany, as pilots in 5 countries staged strikes as long-running tensions between the LCC and its workforce come to a head. Pilots in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden and Ireland followed calls by their respective unions, which was coordinated to maximise pressure on the airline, although demands differ by country. Ryanair operates around 2,000 flights per day in the summer. Following the largest ever pilot strike at the carrier, union representatives made clear they are prepared to sustain a long dispute and that further walkouts even at short notice will follow if management does not come up with new offers. In Germany, both pay and conditions are subject of negotiations. <br/>
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Ryanair’s worsening spat with pilots and cabin crew has created confusion among panicked customers as they race to salvage travel plans disrupted by strikes. Travellers holding tickets from affected airports told of an online race to find alternative journeys with the airline or switch to rival carriers, only to see prices spiralling higher as hundreds of others chased the same seats. Some succeeded in securing new flights, only to be told by Ryanair that their original departures would still operate, leaving them with a hefty bill for a trip they’d never make. And for others the walkouts have brought heartache as long-anticipated journeys are canceled and loved ones left disappointed. The airline said the majority of affected passengers have been accommodated on its other flights and that all were informed as early as possible. <br/>
An Alaska Air Group employee stole a turboprop airliner from Seattle-Tacoma International Friday night before crashing it on a nearby island, authorities and the company said. The carrier said it believed a ground-service agent employed by Alaska affiliate Horizon Air took the plane and that no passengers or crew were on board other than that person. The plane was taken from a maintenance area at around 8 pm PDT and wasn’t scheduled for a passenger flight, according to the company. Controllers tried to reassure, persuade and instruct the single pilot, at various times, to avoid populated areas and try to land the aircraft, according to unofficial air-traffic control audio. At one point, the pilot worried about how quickly the turboprop was burning fuel. <br/>
Norwegian Air Shuttle is operating a single Airbus A380 from wet-lease specialist Hi Fly through Aug 23 on its London Gatwick-New York JFK services to fill in for temporarily out-of-service Boeing 787s as they undergo Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engine inspections. A Norwegian spokesperson declined to give specific numbers of 787s undergoing inspections, but confirmed the A380 will be used on the New York route to “avoid cancellations of our flights to JFK.” The A380 is a former SIA aircraft equipped with 471 seats: 12 in first class, 60 in business and 399 in economy. The spokesperson said because it is peak season on the New York route, Norwegian has been able to sell all A380 seats as flights are running on full capacity. Norwegian has become the first LCC to operate the A380 on scheduled flights. <br/>
Emirates airline expects a single-digit percentage increase in its US capacity in 2018, a company executive said Friday, as sales rebound after travel restrictions imposed by the Trump administration weakened demand from the Middle East early last year. Matt Schmid, senior VP, Emirates North America, said that travel demand to and from the US is back at levels from before January 2017. Emirates has already increased the number of flights on some US routes it had reduced in spring 2017 after US govt travel restrictions weakened demand. "Now we are really back on track," he said. "Demand is extremely strong again." The carrier is also adding capacity in Canada, expanding its A380 service to the country's largest city, Toronto, effective Aug 18. Schmid said Toronto has one of the airline network's highest seat load factors. <br/>