general

The pandemic-pummeled airlines are retooling for 2021, trying to keep industry jobs on life support while strategically streamlining and dangling rock-bottom rates in the hopes customers return. From Boeing to bailouts, the aviation industry had one of its worst years in 2020, a radical comedown after a run of profits right up to coronavirus lockdowns. “Airlines were operating at the pace of a record earnings year, through the third week of February — then went over a cliff, like Thelma and Louise, when the pandemic struck,” said Bob Mann, airline industry analyst with New York-based consulting firm R.W. Mann & Company. Passenger volume fell from over 2m daily at the beginning of March to a bottom of about 90,000 in mid-April, according to TSA checkpoint statistics, as stay-at-home orders and travel restrictions hit. While it is too early to tell what impact Christmas travel will have on coronavirus infection rates, experts fear an additional spike, as was recorded after Thanksgiving travel. Economic recovery for airlines and other in-person industries hinges on a health recovery, and trying to put the latter before the former ultimately risks both. “Air travel gives people hope,” said Helane Becker, airline analyst for Cowen, “but you can’t travel if nothing is open.” Internationally, some carriers see opportunity in the crisis. Michael O’Leary, the outspoken CEO of discount Irish carrier Ryanair, said his airline could snap up routes and airport slots abandoned by some of his rivals. Story has more.<br/>

The number of people killed in plane crashes grew in 2020 despite the dramatic slump in the number of aviation passengers in the pandemic. A total of 318 people were killed in commercial aviation accidents in 2020, an increase of 25 deaths compared with 2019, figures from the Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre in Hamburg show. That was the case despite the overall number of fatal accidents involving planes falling from 27 in 2019 to just nine in 2020. This is because the majority of the fatalities, or 86 per cent, can be attributed to two accidents: the shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger plane in Iran in January and the crash of a Pakistani commercial airliner in Karachi in May. A total of 176 people were killed in the Tehran crash, for which Iran ultimately admitted "unintentional" responsibility. The crash of the Pakistani Airbus A320 into a residential area in Karachi killed 97 people on board and one on the ground. The international industry association IATA estimates that flight activity plummeted up to 70% over the whole of 2020 in some regions.<br/>

The US TSA said it screened 1.28m passengers on Sunday at US airports, the highest number since mid-March, when the coronavirus pandemic slashed travel demand. The number of US air travelers is still about 50% lower than the same date last year, but Sunday was the sixth day in the last 10 that volume surpassed 1m. The rise comes despite public health officials urging Americans to avoid holiday travel this year as coronavirus cases have jumped. Over the last 10 days, about 10.2m people have been screened at US airports, compared to nearly 25m over the same period last year.<br/>

The FAA said Monday it would reform how it certifies new airplanes in line with legislation passed by Congress after two fatal Boeing 737 MAX crashes that killed 346 people. Lawmakers approved sweeping reforms in legislation signed into law Sunday by U.S. President Donald Trump that boosts FAA oversight of aircraft manufacturers, requires disclosure of critical safety information and provide new whistleblower protections. The FAA said it “will work to implement the changes as directed by Congress. The FAA is committed to continuous advancement of aviation safety and improving our organization, processes, and culture.” Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican who chairs the Commerce Committee, said in an opinion piece Monday the law “will take steps to protect against manufacturers placing undue pressure on employees during the certification process.” Wicker added the law “should help restore the safety culture in the FAA.”<br/>

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has for the first time issued greenhouse gas standards for new aircraft which, it argues, will ensure “international consistency” and give US manufacturers a “level playing field” with foreign competitors. The government environmental regulator says on 23 December that the rule will “ensure control of GHG emissions, maintain international uniformity of airplane standards, and allow US manufacturers of covered airplanes to remain competitive in the global marketplace.” The rule mirrors ICAO’s standards and recommended practices for certification of aircraft CO2 emissions, announced in 2017. It limits the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O) commercial airliners and business jets can emit beginning in 2028. “We anticipate US manufacturers would be at a significant disadvantage if the US failed to adopt standards that are harmonized with the ICAO standards for CO2 emissions,” the agency adds. The matching standards will “help ensure international consistency and acceptance of US manufactured airplanes worldwide.” Aviation regulator FAA says it welcomes the announcement, adding that US manufacturers can now be sure that they are competing fairly against those in other countries.<br/>

The US FAA Monday said it is issuing long-awaited rules to allow for small drones to fly over people and at night, a significant step toward their use for widespread commercial deliveries. The FAA is also requiring remote identification of most drones, which are formally known as unmanned aerial vehicles, to address security concerns. “The new rules make way for the further integration of drones into our airspace by addressing safety and security concerns,” said FAA Administrator Steve Dickson. “They get us closer to the day when we will more routinely see drone operations such as the delivery of packages.” The race has been on for companies to create drone fleets to speed deliveries. For at night operations, FAA said drone must be equipped with anti-collision lights. The final rules allow operations over moving vehicles in some circumstances. Remote ID is required for all drones weighing 0.55 lbs or more, but is required for smaller drones under certain circumstances like flights over open-air assemblies. One change in the final rule requires that those small drones cannot have any exposed rotating parts that would lacerate human skin. The final Remote ID rule eliminates the requirement that drones be connected to the internet to transmit location data; the final rule requires drones to broadcasts remote ID messages via radio frequency broadcast.<br/>

Beijing will test all airport staff in the wake of continuous locally-transmitted COVID-19 cases in the Chinese capital. Beijing reported seven more domestic cases on Tuesday, all coming from Shunyi district, bringing the total confirmed cases in the city to 20 since mid-December. The city has two major airports - Beijing Capital International Airport and Beijing Daxing International Airport. The leading anti-epidemic group from the Beijing Municipal government said the tests will cover all people working at airports. The two airports are operating normally. Before entering the terminal, staff are required to wear masks and have their QR health code checked. Beijing Capital International Airport's official website said it offered over 730,000 jobs. Before the city announced testing on all airport staff, mass tests were being conducted on all residents in Shunyi district. More than 900,000 tested negative as of Monday afternoon. Chaoyang district also tested nearly 400,000 people. All results came back negative. Beijing has entered a state of emergency, officials stressed. While officials urged areas in the capital to conduct tests, they also prompted high-risk people to get vaccinated.<br/>

The number of passengers flying with Russian airlines in November fell 47.9% year-on-year to 4.67m, the aviation authority said Monday. Rosaviatsia added that passenger traffic had fallen 46.2% in year-on-year terms between January and November to 64.14m people. Russia grounded international flights earlier this year because of the coronavirus pandemic but has since resumed certain routes.<br/>