The UN aviation agency's planned scheme for offsetting emissions from international flights will supplement, not replace, the EU carbon market, the EU's transport commissioner said Monday. With the UN planning a 2021 launch of CORSIA, its global scheme to help airlines offset their carbon emissions, some EU lawmakers and environmental groups want assurances that the EC will not remove aviation from the EU emissions trading system. "CORSIA will not put the ETS at stake. It will not replace the ETS. It will complement the ETS," Transport Commissioner Adina Valean told lawmakers on Monday. Flights between European countries are currently covered by the EU carbon market, which requires airlines to buy permits to cover some emissions from these trips. The UN aviation agency ICAO wants the EU to remove these flights from its carbon market so that CORSIA can be the only market-based measure tackling international aviation emissions. The EC has yet to lay out how the two systems will co-exist. Valean said the EC would assess the best way for countries to comply with both "EU and international obligations".<br/>
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Boeing's CE said it was "most likely" that a major US airline will go out of business due to the massive damage of the coronavirus pandemic on the aviation industry. "It's most likely," Boeing CEO David Calhoun responded when an NBC journalist asked him if a major US carrier will go under. Calhoun's answer, released in a clip on Monday, is part of a longer interview that will be broadcast Tuesday. "You know something will happen in September," Calhoun said. "Traffic levels will not be back to a 100%, they won't even be back to 25." Boeing itself is suffering as the global air transport industry is brought to its knees by travel restrictions and confinement measures aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19. "Maybe by the end of the year we approach 50 (%), so there will definitively be adjustments that have to be made on the part of the airlines," Calhoun added.<br/>
US airlines are grappling with one outcome of the deep schedule cuts they’ve made in response to near-zero travel demand: Many of the flights that remain are starting to fill up, complicating social distancing guidelines and angering some passengers. While carrier traffic is still down about 90% from typical levels, not everyone has stopped flying. More than 215,000 people traversed US security checkpoints last Friday, the highest total since March 25, according to the TSA. As air travel gradually returns in the pandemic era, airlines will face a fraught choice: Continue onboard social distancing by limiting cabin occupancy and increasing scheduled flights, or keep the number of trips in line with demand, which could lead to more crowded planes but also financially benefit cash-strapped carriers. “There may be a mismatch of expectations — nobody promised a private jet,” said Samuel Engel, head of the aviation group at consultant ICF. “With all the pictures of empty planes, passengers might have gotten the impression that it was a guarantee. In practice, most planes are running with light loads, but that doesn’t mean every one is.” Given the airlines’ swift slide from profitability into survival mode, expect to see many middle seats filled — barring regulatory mandates that they be left unoccupied. These days, an increasing number of passengers are complaining on social media about full cabins — and how close fellow travellers are sitting — even though most commercial aircraft are still flying with loads that are far below normal. <br/>
Just a few weeks ago, people were posting photos and stories on social media of virtually empty flights, relishing in personalized service and not having to worry about social-distancing. Now, some travellers are complaining about the opposite, flying on planes that are surprisingly full. They are frustrated that airlines aren’t doing more to space people out or limit the number of passengers. Even though most flights are generally empty, some continue to fly at or near capacity. Take the United flight from Newark to San Francisco that Ethan Weiss, a doctor from California, wrote about on Twitter on Saturday in a series of messages that were widely shared. “This is the last time I’ll be flying again for a very long time,” he wrote, after posting a photograph of a full plane cabin. On that flight, only 25 of the 166 available seats were empty, according to United. But the carrier said that the vast majority of its flights — 85% — were less than half full. Starting next week through June, United said, it will “do our best” to notify customers about a day in advance if they are booked on a flight that is more than 70% full. Those with concerns can book a different flight or receive a travel credit. Story has details about why some planes are so full, who is flying and more.<br/>
The Spanish government is pushing for a European-wide response to shore up the airline industry so that carriers face a “level playing field,” according to the country’s economy minister. “All these large carriers are not one nationality or another, they are European carriers. And that’s why we are strongly defending that we would provide a level playing field and, with different sorts of support, provide a similar level of funding and similar level of credibility and strength to the different operators so that we do not create competition problems at the end of the day,” Economy Minister Nadia Calvino said. Different carriers entered into the crisis in disparate financial situations, some with stronger balance sheets than others, and therefore might require different levels of support, she added.<br/>
EU airlines and travel companies should offer vouchers for flights and holidays cancelled due to the coronavirus that are valid for at least 12 months, the EC says in recommendations to help revive travel and tourism in Europe. The recommendations, due to be presented on Wednesday, seek to make vouchers attractive to passengers who may otherwise demand full refunds. EU member states have urged the EU’s executive body to suspend rules forcing airlines to offer full refunds for cancelled flights because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The EU recommendations fall short of suspending the refund rules, but appear to offer a compromise in a bid to help cash-drained airlines and travel companies. The Commission will also recommend that vouchers are covered by member states against insolvency, according to the document. The vouchers should also offer the same services and route - in case of a flight - and travel conditions as the original booking. "Subject to availability and irrespective of any fare or price difference, carriers should ensure that vouchers allow passengers to travel on the same route under the same service conditions as detailed in the original booking; organisers should ensure that vouchers allow travellers to book a package travel contract with the same type of services or of equivalent quality as the terminated package," the document says.<br/>
Aviation bosses have torn into Boris Johnson’s plan to impose a 14-day quarantine on people arriving in Britain, warning that it risks worsening the economic impact of Covid-19. In a letter signed by the CEs of easyJet, Heathrow and Gatwick, the industry voiced “collective and serious concern and frustration” and demanded a meeting with the prime minister. It questioned the scientific basis of the quarantine plan, cast doubt on whether it could be enforced and said industry representatives had not been consulted on the proposals before they were announced. “An open-ended quarantine, with no set end date, will make an already critical situation for UK aviation, and all the businesses we support, even worse,” the bosses wrote. “People will simply choose not to travel to and from the UK, at the same time as economies in Europe and around the world begin opening up their borders and removing their own quarantines, making the UK aviation sector unable to compete.” The letter was sent on Monday after the government published a 50-page document outlining its Covid-19 recovery strategy. International travellers will be required to stay in state-arranged accommodation if they cannot show where they plan to self-isolate. People arriving from the Republic of Ireland and France will be exempted from this. The sector is still hoping for some form of bailout to help it survive the crisis.<br/>
India is considering allowing some domestic flights to resume on May 18 or earlier as the government looks to reopen a key part of the economy and provide relief to airlines, which have not been able to fly since March because of a nationwide lockdown, according to people familiar with the matter. The Ministry of Civil Aviation is in talks with airlines, travel agents and the federal home ministry about the move, the people said, asking not to be identified because the deliberations aren't public. A decision may come on Monday, they said, adding that PM Narendra Modi is meeting with state chief ministers this afternoon.<br/>
Singapore’s Changi Airport has been named the world’s best airport for the eighth consecutive year. Skytrax announced Monday the winners of the World Airport Awards 2020 which, like years previous, is dominated by airports in Asia and Europe. Though planes for the most part have been grounded by the pandemic and airports stand largely empty, Skytrax decided to release the winners of their annual awards “...to bring some cheer into the airport industry in these difficult times.” The original awards ceremony was scheduled for April 1. Changi Airport has long been considered the gold standard in airports thanks to features like orchid and butterfly gardens and a rooftop pool. But last year, the airport widened the gap with its competitors with the opening of Jewel Changi Airport, a glass complex that includes a living rainforest, indoor walking trails and the world’s tallest indoor waterfall, which stands 40 meters. Story has Top Ten list.<br/>
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said on Monday it will halve the budget for its problematic passenger jet project to Y60b for the year ending next March. The decision on the midsize SpaceJet comes as the company's bottom line takes a beating from the coronavirus pandemic. "We will proceed with the project at an appropriate scale while taking into account the difficult circumstances the group faces," Mitsubishi Heavy President and CEO Seiji Izumisawa said. MHI also said that development work for the 70-seat version of the SpaceJet, designed for the US market, will be suspended until further notice. Plans for the 70-seater will be reconsidered during the suspension, Izumisawa said. The most recent timeline for delivery was set around calendar 2023.<br/>