Ryanair may not receive any 737 MAX aircraft from Boeing (BA.N) in time for its summer season due to European delays in testing the grounded jets, CE Michael O’Leary said. O’Leary said Tuesday that testing in Europe was running behind the US schedule due to the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) wanting to be seen as independent from US regulators, meaning the model was likely to remain grounded in the region until April or May. Ryanair estimates the issue is costing it at least E100m a year. A trimmed passenger traffic forecast from the low-cost carrier last week was still based on 10 MAX deliveries by June, down from previously reduced expectations of 20 and the 60 originally scheduled. “We’re still looking to meet with Boeing in mid-early January,” O’Leary said. “We expect the MAX to be back flying in early January, particularly in North America. We think it could be a bit slower in Europe because the EASA seems to be dragging their heels a little bit. Maybe ten (MAX), maybe none, maybe 15, in advance of summer 2020. The critical thing for us is that the aircraft returns to service... The implications for the next 12 months are that we will be short of our original fleet growth aspirations.”<br/>
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A group of Frontier Airlines pilots and flight attendants filed two lawsuits on Tuesday claiming the company discriminated against them during pregnancy and while breastfeeding. The lawsuits said the eight women “found themselves faced with mounting obstacles once they became pregnant that forced them to make impossible choices between their families and their livelihood,” The Denver Post reported. The women said Frontier forced them onto unpaid leave during their pregnancies and did not make it possible for them to pump breast milk while working. “Frontier’s failure to account for Plaintiff’s needs related to pregnancy and breastfeeding caused them to suffer serious penalties, both at and outside of work, simply because they had children,” according to the lawsuits, which were filed in federal court by a New York law firm, the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Colorado and the Women’s Rights Project of the ACLU Foundation. The Denver-based airline denied the allegations, saying in a statement that it has “strong policies in place in support of pregnant and lactating mothers.” “Frontier offers a number of accommodations for pregnant and lactating pilots and flight attendants within the bounds of protecting public safety, which is always our top priority,” the statement said.<br/>
The Canadian Transportation Agency said on Tuesday Onex Corp will need to amend its by-laws to meet the country’s ownership rules related to its proposed C$3.5b buyout deal of Canada’s second-largest carrier WestJet Airlines. The agency has sought the amendment to Onex’s by-laws to ensure that matters related to WestJet are voted where a majority of Canadian directors are present. WestJet said it is in the process of reviewing the determination. Air Canada had challenged Onex Corp's proposed acquisition of WestJet Airlines, on grounds that the deal may not meet the country's ownership rules. Air Canada had argued that the likely presence of Onex co-investors such as foreign wealth funds and carriers, and “the opaque nature” of the deal to buy WestJet through company subsidiary Kestrel Bidco, will make it harder to ensure compliance with ownership laws. Under Canada’s Transportation Act, carriers must be Canadian and controlled by Canadians in order to hold a domestic license. Shareholders of WestJet Airlines in July voted in favor of the Onex deal.<br/>
El Al is to operate at least three non-stop services to Melbourne over the course of April-May next year, as part of a test of ultra-long-haul operations. The airline’s reservations system reveals that it will start operating the LY87 service from Tel Aviv to the Australian city on 2 April 2020. El Al will use Boeing 787-9s on the route. Its 787-9 fleet is configured with 282 seats. It has scheduled another similar service, under the same flight number, for 23 April and a third on 14 May. El Al lists the duration of the flights as 16h 15min. The airline is offering basic fares of $973 to $1,143. The airline had indicated towards the end of November that it planned to test a non-stop Melbourne route with 787s.<br/>
Jetstar has cancelled 108 flights between Friday and Sunday in preparation for pilots and ground staff to walk off the job. About 5% of passengers due to fly on the weekend will not be able to travel on the day of their booking because of the pilot strike, while most passengers flying on Friday will be put onto other flights, the airline said. The budget airline says 80% of flights will operate as scheduled on the weekend, with other services to be rescheduled, consolidated, operated with larger aircraft, and have passengers moved onto Qantas flights. Australian Federation of Air Pilots members, who make up around 80 per cent of Jetstar's mainline pilots, will walk off the job for four hours on Saturday and Sunday amid stalled wage negotiations.<br/>Jetstar boss Gareth Evans said: "We know the union's actions are creating uncertainty for travellers. "We remain committed to reaching a new agreement to support the great work our people do every day, but not at any cost." On top of the dispute with pilots, 250 Jetstar baggage handlers and ground crew will hold two two-hour stop-work meetings at various times on Friday at Sydney, Melbourne, Avalon, Brisbane, Cairns and Adelaide airports, prompting 18 flight cancellations.<br/>
An Irish court on Tuesday withdrew a ban on reporting a reference to Ryanair’s profit after tax target for the airline’s 2020 financial year contained in a 2018 share option scheme after the airline said the order was not needed. A lawyer representing former Ryanair Chief Operating Officer Peter Bellew last Thursday asked CE Michael O’Leary if it was accurate that a 2018 share option scheme contained a profit-after-tax target for the 12 months to March, 31 2020 of E1.75b. O’Leary replied that the information was commercially sensitive and should not be released to the court. His lawyer then asked the judge to impose a ban on reporting the figure, which was lifted on Tuesday. “I will vacate the order,” said Judge Senan Allen. Ryanair, which has been forced to cut its passenger growth rate due to delays in the delivery of the Boeing 737 MAX, on Nov. 4 said it expected to post profit after tax of between E800 and 900m in its 2020 financial year.<br/>