American Airlines Group said Wednesday it would require all its customers over two-years old to wear face coverings at airports and on board, starting July 29. The airline's new policy will require customers to wear a face covering in all airport areas from the time they enter their departure airport and not remove it until they exit their arrival airport, it said. Customers who refuse to comply with the company’s policy may be barred from future travel for the duration of the face covering requirement, it added.<br/>
oneworld
Qatar Airways is seeking at least $5b from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt for stopping it from using their airspace. The airline started four international investment arbitrations that “seek redress for the blockading states’ actions to remove Qatar Airways from their markets and to forbid the airline from flying over their airspace,” according to a statement Wednesday. The Saudi-led bloc cut diplomatic, trade and transport links with Qatar in 2017, accusing the gas-rich country of maintaining close ties with Iran and supporting terrorism. Qatar denies the charges. Efforts to resolve the feud between important US allies in the Gulf have been unsuccessful. This month, Qatar won a legal round when the International Court of Justice said the ICAO has jurisdiction to oversee negotiations over a reopening of the airspace. Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said then that he believes ICAO will rule in Qatar’s favour. He couldn’t offer a prediction on when his company’s planes will be able to resume flying over the quartet’s territory. UAE’s ministry of foreign affairs declined to comment on the arbitration demand, referring to a previous statement in which it said the court ruling was limited to procedural issues and “didn’t consider the merits of the case.”<br/>
UK pilots' union BALPA is recommending that its 4,300 members accept BA's proposal of about 20% reduced pay and voluntary severance to limit the amount of forced job cuts, the union said Wednesday. British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) said as many as 270 pilots could be laid off but it expects voluntary mitigation measures to continue to reduce this number. Earlier this year, BA was seeking to lay off a quarter of its pilots hurt by the coronavirus, according to a letter sent to their union. Global curbs imposed to fight the pandemic have slammed air travel, placing the future of many airline companies in doubt. "It is hugely disappointing that during our extensive negotiations British Airways would not accept the full package of mitigations we put forward which would have avoided any job losses at all, and at no cost to BA," the union said. Under the agreement, pilot pay cuts will start at 20% and will be reduced to 8% over the next two years, then further reduced toward zero over the longer term. The 4,300 BA pilots will need to accept voluntary part time working, severance, and external secondments. About 300 pilots will be employed as holding pool on a reduced pay and will return to flying as demand picks up. BA confirmed it reached an agreement with the union, adding BALPA is now balloting its members. The ballot will close on July 30.<br/>
Spain's Industry minister Reyes Maroto said Wednesday that IAG member Iberia and Spain's Air Europa should look into the advantages and disadvantages of their plan to merge that was announced before coronavirus-hit airlines worldwide. "It is up to them to assess pros and cons (...) we will accompany them", she said. In June, the CEO of International Consolidated Airlines Group said that the company was reviewing its planned E1b acquisition of Air Europa because of the harsh economic climate caused by COVID-19.<br/>
A Qantas pilot operating the carrier’s final Boeing 747 flight decided to mark the occasion by “drawing” a picture in the sky. Using the flight path as a canvas, the pilot charted a route that produced the outline of the distinctive Qantas logo. It’s possible to see the shape created by the unique flight path using a flight tracking site such as FlightRadar24. The jet was on its way to a “plane graveyard” in California’s Mojave Desert, where aircraft go when they’re retired. Setting off from Sydney on 22 July, flight QF7474 made the kangaroo-inspired shape before continuing on to Los Angeles. It will then be transported to the Mojave Desert and stripped for parts. The flight’s co-pilot, Greg Fitzgerald, told ABC Breakfast: “Everybody in Australia, everybody in the world knows the shape of the 747. It’s like Aeroplane Jelly and Vegemite – it’s always been there. We don’t know life without the 747.”<br/>