South Africa's govt will decide by year-end on a plan to keep its flag carrier from collapsing and is considering the option of a strategic partner to help turn around the troubled airline, the country's transport minister said. South Africa is looking for sustainable solutions to rescue the airline and is studying the right model for taking on a partner, Blade Nzimande said. An investor or aviation partner has long been touted as the solution to South African Airways' financial crisis but no candidates have been yet officially revealed. The cash-strapped airline has been propped up by repeated govt bailouts to continue operations and has recorded 7 consecutive years of losses. It aims to return to profitability by 2021 through a turnaround plan that includes cutting jobs and routes. <br/>
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ANA has concluded there was no engine failure following a Jan 17 incident in which both engines on a Boeing 787-8 shut down after it landed at Japan Osaka International. ANA flight NH985 was arriving from Tokyo Haneda Airport. After touching down on the runway and deploying the thrust reversers to slow the aircraft, pilots noticed that both Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines had shut down. The 787 completed rolling out and came to a stop about 8,000 ft. down the runway. The carrier said it conducted a thorough investigation of the aircraft and found no engine failure. It did not assign responsibility for the cause of the shutdown. “Following a safe landing in Osaka, an appropriate safeguard system on the 787 was activated properly on both engines, triggering the discontinuation of the thrust,” ANA said. <br/>
United Continental is dropping the fee to watch DirecTV live television and films on jets equipped with the service. Free television will now be available on 211 of United’s Boeing single-aisle 737s, United said Wednesday. Like most of its rivals, the airline also offers free streamed content across its fleet even as many carriers continue to provide seat-back video screens. United’s decision is part of a push to improve its cabin offerings at a time when US travellers have grown increasingly accustomed to free in-flight entertainment. United previously charged US$5.99 for flights of less than 2 hours and $7.99 for longer. The TV service was free in first class. United’s satellite television dates to 2009 before the merger of United and Continental. <br/>
Airlines canceled hundreds of flights at Chicago’s airports as a brutal cold snap struck the Midwest Wednesday. But some flights were still taking off and carriers said they were taking steps to help employees working outside deal with dangerously cold temperatures. As of Wednesday afternoon, 1,519 flights arriving and departing at O’Hare International and 328 at Midway Airport had been canceled. United Airlines canceled about 500 flights out of O’Hare Wednesday and Thursday, or about 80% of scheduled flights. American Airlines had canceled 75 Wednesday flights as of Tuesday evening. To help ramp workers who have to be outside handle the cold, United said it would bring in employees typically stationed at other airports so it could set up rotating shifts and minimise time spent in freezing temperatures <br/>
SIA recently expanded its codeshare with JetBlue on flights out of New York John F. Kennedy International, while also deploying the regionally configured Airbus A350-900s on flights to Brisbane. The carrier said that its expanded codeshares with JetBlue started Jan 15. SIA also confirmed that it has been deploying the regionally configured A350-900 on the Singapore-Brisbane route since Jan 7. This aircraft replaced the A350 configured for long-haul operations. The regional A350s are configured with 303 seats in 2 classes: 40 in business and 263 in economy. To date, only 2 have been delivered . Flight tracking sites indicate that the aircraft are now utilised on flights from Singapore to Adelaide, Brisbane, Jakarta, and Kuala Lumpur. <br/>