United is moving flight crews away from downtown hotels across the country this week in anticipation of potential election unrest. United sent an urgent message to flight attendants on Friday about the changes. "As we approach the 2020 presidential election, there is a possibility of renewed protest activity," the alert from inflight administration says. "We are taking precautionary measures to ensure your safety and suitable rest are met." The airline said it will move crews out of downtown hotels to airport hotels in "specific cities due to potential disruptions that could impact layovers at these locations." Affected cities include Seattle, Washington, Denver, Chicago, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Portland, Ore. The switch began Monday and is expected to last a week, the airline told employees. United said it also plans to move its flight network operations center to a backup facility outside downtown Chicago to ensure its operations stay on track in the wake of any protests. United's major competitors would not detail their plans, if any, to adjust crew hotels this week, but all said flight crew security is top of mind.<br/>
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Six Lufthansa Boeing 747-400s landed at Twente Airport, a small Dutch air hub in the northeast of the country, back in the summer -- but then were stranded for months. The aircraft were taken out of service due to the airline's reduced flight schedule in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and arrived at Twente over the course of June and July. As soon as the planes landed on the airport's tarmac, they were rumored to be heading for demolition. Sure enough, five of the six aircraft were later sold to aircraft recycling firm GE Aviation Materials, based at Mojave Airport in California. But there was a catch -- the Netherland's Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) forbade the planes from leaving Twente. So commenced a complex negotiation process, with the stalemate eventually resolved last Thursday. Prior to this resolution, the ILT said that the planes couldn't depart because Twente Airport didn't have the right safety certificate. At Twente, larger jets -- like Boeing 747s -- are currently permitted to land for purposes of demolition, but can't take off. Tiny Twente Airport is home to just one runway. Previously used for both civil and military aviation, the airport has been for commercial use only since 2007, also describing itself online as "the ideal location for business aviation." There's also an on-site dismantling firm -- Aircraft End-of-Life Solutions (AELS), which has scrapped jets previously owned by airlines including KLM and Lufthansa. "The airport's infrastructure is momentarily not suitable for the takeoff of larger and heavier aircrafts," an ILT spokesperson said last Wednesday. "Nor has the aerodrome operator requested for permission to deviate from the international safety rules. This can pose security risks." Lufthansa said that when the airline landed the six Boeing 747s back in the summer, larger jets were permitted to take off for non-commercial and storage reasons. The dispute was set to be resolved in court with a lawsuit between ILT and Technology Base, the airport hub, but a compromise was reached: The ILT granted "a one-off exception" allowing the airplanes to leave. The ILT said there were are some safety requirements that must be met -- namely that the 747s carry "little fuel" and that the "aircraft must be light."<br/>
The pandemic has dealt a body blow to India's airlines, which had already been battling a broken pricing model and a domestic slowdown. "I have sold my house and moved into a small apartment because I could no longer afford to pay my home loan," says a former pilot. The 38-year-old, who used to work for the state-run Air India, said he and his relatives were constantly harassed by the bank when he began defaulting on his payments. There was a time when flying for Air India was a lucrative career. In 2011, senior pilots were earning as much as 10m rupees which, at the current exchange rate, amounts to more than $135,000 or £103,000. But the country's flagship carrier is now bankrupt. It has been looking for a buyer for years - a prospect that has dimmed amid the pandemic, reportedly forcing the government to even consider wiping the airline's $3.3b debt-tag from the deal. Air India is not the only one in trouble. Indian aviation - once a promising industry with aspirational jobs - has been floundering in recent years. Seven airlines, including Jet Airways, India's oldest private carrier that was often hailed as a success story, shut shop in the past decade. And now Covid-19 is threatening the rest, compounding the effect of years of high fuel prices, heavy taxes, low demand and cut-throat competition. India currently has eight carriers, with Indigo leading the market. Air Deccan was the only airline which was forced to suspend operations in April, putting all its staff on leave without pay until further notice. "Indian airlines are very precariously placed," says Kapil Kaul, South Asia CEO of CAPA - Centre for Aviation, an industry organisation. Story has more.<br/>
Demand has been overwhelming for behind-the-scenes tours of the Singapore Airlines (SIA) Training Centre after bookings opened on Sunday, the national carrier said. More than 6,800 bookings were received and registrations were closed after nine hours due to "overwhelming demand", SIA said Sunday evening. Bookings opened at 10am on Sunday and closed at 7pm. Up to five people can be registered under one booking. Those who have secured a slot for the Inside Singapore Airlines tours will be able to tour the training facility in Upper Changi on one of four days over the last two weekends of November. There is a maximum capacity of 500 customers on each day. The tours are part of a trio of initiatives launched by SIA to engage its customers even as Covid-19 has sharply reduced the number of flights the national carrier can operate.<br/>
SIA announced Tuesday it had established a new arm that would offer training programmes for external businesses and organisations in the broad areas of service excellence, operational excellence, organisational innovation and digital transformation. The Singapore Airlines Academy will leverage the "wide range of globally recognised skills and competencies that exists within SIA, which have enabled the airline to establish a pre-eminent position in a highly competitive industry", the national carrier said. "It will also tap on the decades of experience that has been accumulated by SIA staff," it added. Among the programmes offered are Service Mindfulness and Awareness, Effective Communication and Professional Image, which targets frontline staff and covers topics such as practising appropriate self-grooming techniques. Training packages will be customisable to meet the requirements of individual companies and organisations. The courses will be conducted by SIA trainers, who are certified instructors and facilitators with practical frontline experience, said the airline. “SIA receives many requests from organisations wanting to know how we have attained our reputation for industry-leading service and operational excellence, and to better understand how we achieved our successful digital transformation," said Vanessa Ng, senior vice-president for human resources.<br/>
EgyptAir Holding Company Chairman Mohamed Roshdy Zakaria said Thursday that the IATA has again granted EgyptAir Company for Ground Services the certificate of Safety Auditors for Ground Operation (ISAGO) without mentioning any notices. Zakaria's remarks were made at a ceremony to announce IATA‘s decision in the presence of a galaxy of senior EgyptAir officials. He extended thanks to all the company staff for the efforts they have exerted to reach this result after IATA’s inspection of the company’s ground services. Zakaria also praised the human cadres in the company and their competitive spirit which enables them to operate in various work conditions.<br/>