Fastjet said Wednesday it is in talks to sell its Zimbabwean operations to a consortium led by its biggest shareholder Solenta Aviation for $8m, a deal which could help the South African low-cost carrier stay alive until 2021. The company, whose shares plummeted 32% to a record low after the announcement, said it was also in talks with some of its major shareholders for a cash call. Fastjet said if the restructuring plans do not pan out by the end of February, the Africa-focussed company would not be able to continue trading as a going concern. The proposals come after Fastjet lost its CEO Nico Bezuidenhout - a turnaround specialist - to South Africa’s Mango Airlines in July. Bezuidenhout had been instrumental in reviving Fastjet’s fortunes and shore up its dwindling cash pile, as it was saved from going under after striking a deal to raise funds late last year. The company was also forced to divest operations in Tanzania, its home market, after battling tough trading conditions there. Fastjet, which has operations in Zimbabwe and South Africa, said it continues to be loss making and is currently expecting a loss after tax of around $7m to $8m for 2019, compared with a loss of $65m a year earlier. The company cited persistent volatility and uncertainty in the Zimbabwean market for the shortcoming.<br/>
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Fastjet said Wednesday it is in talks to sell its Zimbabwean operations to a consortium led by its biggest shareholder Solenta Aviation for $8m, a deal which could help the South African low-cost carrier stay alive until 2021. The company, whose shares plummeted 32% to a record low after the announcement, said it was also in talks with some of its major shareholders for a cash call. Fastjet said if the restructuring plans do not pan out by the end of February, the Africa-focussed company would not be able to continue trading as a going concern. The proposals come after Fastjet lost its Chief Executive Officer Nico Bezuidenhout - a turnaround specialist - to South Africa’s Mango Airlines in July. Bezuidenhout had been instrumental in reviving Fastjet’s fortunes and shore up its dwindling cash pile, as it was saved from going under after striking a deal to raise funds late last year. The company was also forced to divest operations in Tanzania, its home market, after battling tough trading conditions there. Fastjet, which has operations in Zimbabwe and South Africa, said it continues to be loss making and is currently expecting a loss after tax of around $7m to $8m for 2019, compared with a loss of $65m a year earlier.<br/>
Norwegian Air is ending flights from Copenhagen and Stockholm to the US and Thailand due to weak demand and technical problems affecting the engines on its Boeing 787 Dreamliners, it said Wednesday. Flights between Oslo and the US would continue, while routes between Norway and Thailand were under review, it said, the latest initiative to cut costs and restore profits after rapid expansion left the carrier weighed down by debt. “Scandinavia isn’t big enough to maintain intercontinental flights from Oslo, Stockholm and Copenhagen,” Senior Vice President Commercial Matthew Wood said. Norwegian’s shares were down 2.2% at 1310 GMT, although shares in Nordic rival SAS, which has direct flights from Stockholm and Copenhagen to the United States, rose 2.7%. Norwegian has shaken up the transatlantic travel market with low fares, challenging major transatlantic carriers such as BA. But its profitability has suffered.<br/>
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) issued a formal safety recommendation to Indonesia AirAsia, asking that it review its pre-flight safety briefing and safety information card. This follows a pressurisation incident that took place on 15 October 2017, involving one of the carrier’s Airbus A320s, which returned to Perth after take-off. The aircraft, registered PK-AXD, was carrying 146 passengers and six crew members on board, and was bound for Denpasar. As it was climbing through 25,000ft, the pilots noticed repeated fault messages from the aircraft pressurisation system. However, when the crew accessed the flight management system’s pressure page, the fault cleared. As the A320 continued its climb, the master caution activated for opening of the cabin pressure system safety valve. The flight crew, which reported feeling discomfort, took over control of the pressurisation system manually, and attempted to reduce the cabin pressure climb rate. The warning signal for high cabin altitude then flashed intermittently for about 10 minutes, during which the flight crew decided to request to make an emergency descent to 22,000 feet, citing pressurisation issues. They later amended it to 10,000 feet. As the aircraft made its descent, the cabin crew noticed that the cabin oxygen masks had not been deployed, and reported this to the flight crew, which then manually did so. The aircraft later reached its intended cruising altitude and proceeded to land at Perth. No injuries or damage to aircraft were recorded. Story has more.<br/>
El Al is to test a service to the Australian city of Melbourne using Boeing 787s. The airline says the trial flights will commence "in a few months", but it has not elaborated on the plans. El Al disclosed its intention as it unveiled third-quarter financial results. The distance to Melbourne from its Tel Aviv base is some 7,400nm but this great-circle route is unlikely to be available to the Israeli operator as it would pass through Saudi Arabian airspace. El Al is not permitted to cross Saudi Arabia, a restriction highlighted last year after Air India started operating Tel Aviv services without such a limitation. Its operation to Mumbai follows a route south along the Red Sea which would add a further 400-500nm to the Melbourne sector. Boeing puts the 787-9's range at 7,530nm. The Israeli carrier has a fleet of 12 Boeing 787-9s and is preparing to receive the first of four 787-8s. It has not indicated the likely route for the Melbourne service, nor whether the aircraft might need to be payload-limited.<br/>