The chiefs of majors US airlines converged on the White House Thursday to advocate for another round of federal support to avert thousands of impending layoffs. "There's enormous bipartisan support for an extension of the payroll program which would keep those people employed," American Airlines CE Doug Parker said ahead of a meeting with White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. "The only problem we have is we do not have a vehicle for getting it done," he added. American is among the US carriers that have warned of significant job cuts from October 1 without another round of funding. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly signaled strong support for airlines, and a measure to provide additional aid has garnered bipartisan support on Capitol Hill. Yet the prospects for aid remain clouded by a fight between Democrats and Republicans on a broader stimulus bill that has dragged on for weeks. Parker was joined at the White House by the chiefs of United, Delta, Southwest and lobbying group Airlines for America.<br/>
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Giving US airlines $25b in aid over the next six months could save more than 30,000 jobs, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said Thursday after meeting with the companies’ top executives, suggesting lawmakers approve a separate assistance package for the struggling corporations. Congress has been deadlocked over approving another round of economic stimulus to blunt the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. But with the first $25b in aid to airlines due to run out this month, Meadows said that President Donald Trump would support lawmakers passing a standalone bill to help the companies.<br/>
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought plenty of changes to airports, from sanitizing stations to mandatory mask wearing. But San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has decided that instead of adding something it'll take something away -- noise. The new "quiet airport" plan aims to reduce noise throughout SFO by 40%. Step one is making announcements about specific flights boarding or being delayed only at the relevant gate instead of the entire terminal. "We've invested a great deal in making the airport experience at SFO more relaxing and enjoyable," Airport Director Ivar C. Satero said. Satero added that the noise-reduction program had been in the works before the pandemic. However, the timing coincides with the September 1 reopening of SFO's international terminal, which had been closed since April 1. Overall, reps for the airport say that "more than 90 minutes of unnecessary announcements have been eliminated each day." Next on the list is reducing the noise made by automated features in the airport, like escalators and moving walkways. In addition to reducing noise pollution, the airport has made moves to reduce the more common forms of pollution. Airport officials announced their intention to make SFO the world's first zero-waste airport by 2021 and banned the sale of single-use plastic water bottles anywhere in the building.<br/>
Italy is gearing up to offer “Covid-free” flights thanks to rapid testing. The scheme makes use of 30-minute swab tests to ensure all travellers have tested negative for coronavirus before boarding their flight. Initially being trialled at Rome’s Fiumicino airport on two daily Alitalia services to Milan, the initiative is the first in Europe to introduce rapid testing for departing passengers. If successful, the pilot will be rolled out across other flights in an attempt to help boost the struggling aviation industry. Fiumicino’s management company ADR is aiming to use 30-minute tests, administered free-of-charge to passengers, to improve customer confidence. “On those flights you know the person next to you is negative,” said Marco Troncone, ADR CE. “The rapid tests are now based on a nasal swab but saliva tests are coming in the future, making it as easy as going through the x-ray.” Those who test positive will not be allowed to travel, but will undergo a traditional swab test to confirm the result and receive a voucher for a future flight. They may also be required to quarantine in the city. Passengers who test negative will be required to wear masks throughout the flight as a precaution. Different swab tests vary when it comes to accuracy, with false negatives ranging from 2 to 37%. The airport hopes to forge agreements with other popular destinations which are able to implement similar testing-on-departure schemes, with New York being the next key target.<br/>
The Irish government on Thursday tightened its COVID-19 travel restrictions by imposing quarantines on travellers from major holiday markets Italy and Greece, angering the country's dominant airlines Ryanair and Aer Lingus. Aer Lingus said it was concerned by the fact the government had repeatedly indicated in recent weeks it planned to adopt a more liberal European Commission proposal, but instead cut back the number of countries exempt from quarantine. Ireland had initially waived quarantine for travellers from countries with lower COVID-19 rates, but as its 14-day infection rate surged to above 50 cases per 100,000, the government said only places half that rate would be exempt. The move came as the head of Ireland's COVID-19 modelling group on Wednesday warned of "exponential growth" without new restrictions. The new "Green List", which goes into effect on Monday, allows travellers arriving from just seven countries to avoid quarantine: Cyprus, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. The Commission envisages the removal of travel restrictions on countries with 14-day infection rates of under 50 per 100,000. Irish PM has promised to implement the EU rules once they are officially approved on Oct. 13. "The 'green list' announced today does not represent a step towards alignment with the European Commission’s free movement proposal," Aer Lingus said.<br/>
US accident investigators who last year urged broad reforms of aircraft certification after two deadly crashes of Boeing’s 737 Max have endorsed fixes for the jet proposed last month by the FAA. A letter this week from NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt said safety reviews by the regulators and proposed changes to pilot procedures had followed the NTSB’s recommendations. The letter said that proposed pilot-procedure changes “are generally consistent with the intent” of the NTSB’s recommendation. Expanded FAA safety assessments in the process were also “positive progress” on meeting a separate recommendation issued by the safety board. The letter is significant because the NTSB is an independent agency and has been critical of the FAA’s oversight of the Max. Investigators from the NTSB participated in probes of both crashes that led to the grounding of Boeing’s best-selling plane in March 2019. The FAA will review the comments filed in the case before deciding on whether to formally approve a set of fixes to the plane so that the grounding order can be lifted. Comments are due by Monday. The NTSB, which has no regulatory power and can only urge government agencies and industry to adopt safety improvements, issued seven recommendations on the Max on Sept. 26, 2019.<br/>
The CDC relaxed coronavirus screening guidelines for international travelers entering the US this week but the IATA says it will take at least three years for international airline travel to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. “It's a very challenging situation right now,” IATA’s Regional VP for the Americas Peter Cerda said. “The forecast that we have is about $84b collectively on a global scale in terms of losses.” North American carriers are estimated to lose close to $24b this year after making $17b in 2019 according to IATA. “We're hoping for domestic service to recover in about 2023 timeframe, but it is going to be a challenging period of time,” Cerda says. Analysts at Raymond James recently surveyed 661 people to gauge how they expect to change their travel plans due to COVID-19. The results indicate that of the 65% of people who plan to travel in the next year, 58% will only go somewhere they can reach by car and 54% said they would look to travel to less crowded areas. Trends like this are one of the reasons Cerda says, “International transport is going to be the last segment of travel that we're going to see recuperate.”<br/>
Although most capital projects are on hold due to COVID-19, Wellington Airport has started major work on its runway. This resurfacing work is required approximately every 10-12 years when the runway’s asphalt surface reaches the end of its design life. Nick Petkov, Head of Airfield Development and Delivery at Wellington Airport, said: “The resurfacing work was originally scheduled for the 2021/2022 summer. However, due to the absence of late-night international flights resulting from COVID-19, we are taking the opportunity to bring this work forward by a number of months. Doing this gives us a longer overnight working window, enabling us to complete the work more efficiently, in approximately four months rather than six, subject to weather. Fewer disruptions to the work will also enable us to efficiently deliver a higher quality product at a reduced cost, with fewer noise disruptions to our local community”.<br/>