general

The number of airliners in service has plunged since the start of the year amid fresh coronavirus restrictions, strangling off a partial recovery seen in the latter half of 2020, figures from Cirium show. The slump is most pronounced for deployments of single-aisle aircraft, which fell below 8,800 on Feb. 5, a drop of almost 15% compared with Jan. 3, when the highest number saw action since last spring’s initial lockdowns. Wide-body usage slumped 14% from a Dec. 19 peak, though bigger aircraft remain comparatively far less popular, with just half the number in service compared with pre-pandemic levels as long-haul travel remains largely out of bounds. Cirium estimates that a return to 2019 demand levels could take until 2025, depending on the pace of vaccinations and the crisis’s economic impact.<br/>

Five industry associations have joined forces to propose a plan for European aviation to reach net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050. The Destination 2050 – A Route to Net Zero European Aviation report outlines commitments that the region’s airlines, airports, aerospace manufacturers and air navigation service providers are willing to make towards that goal. “Crucially, we now need policy-makers and regulators to align with us,” said ACI Europe DG Olivier Jankovic. The report’s proposals cover four key areas: aircraft and engine technologies; sustainable aviation fuels; economic measures; and air traffic management (ATM) and aircraft operations. While the recommendations focus on the EU, the UK and the European Free Trade Area, Thomas Reynaert, the managing director of Airlines for Europe (A4E), points out that there would be many benefits – economic and otherwise – to Europe taking a global lead on the issue. <br/>

A US House committee on Thursday approved a proposal to give airlines another $14b in payroll assistance as part of a broader COVID-19 relief package that is working its way through Congress. It would be the third round of support for the pandemic-hit industry. American Airlines and United Airlines have warned of some 27,000 furloughs without an extension of the current package that expires on April 1. The House of Representatives Financial Services Committee on a 29-24 vote approved the $14b for airlines and $1b for contractors to cover payroll through September. The funds will be included in the $1.9t COVID-19 relief bill proposed by President Joe Biden, whose initial plan did not include new money for airlines. <br/>

The White House is holding a meeting with major airline executives on Friday amid industry uproar over the possibility of testing domestic travelers for coronavirus, multiple sources say. The virtual meeting is among the first the new administration has held with airlines, financially crippled by the pandemic and wary of new travel restrictions that could wreak further havoc. Confusion over potential restrictions has shifted into high gear in recent days, as rumors spread about measures under consideration for domestic travel -- as well as how they might affect particular states whose economies depend on travel and tourism. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg exacerbated the alarm this week when he said in an interview that the CDC was considering implementing a domestic travel testing requirement. The aviation industry was caught off guard and sent spinning, according to two sources familiar with the industry's reaction. While the airlines and various groups are usually briefed on major policy rollouts, they were blindsided by the potential new restrictions they insist will eviscerate what little demand for travel remains during the pandemic. Despite the public backlash, one administration official familiar with the discussions said that requiring Covid-19 testing before travel, as well as issuing travel advisories for certain US destinations -- are still some of the options under consideration, which could make for a contentious meeting Friday.<br/>

Airlines have issued a fresh round of waivers for Thursday and Friday travel ahead of a winter storm targeting a region that stretches from Texas to the mid-Atlantic. Cities in the path of the ice storm include Little Rock, Arkansas; Jonesboro, Arkansas; Paducah, Kentucky; and Lexington, Kentucky, weather.com said. Further northeast, multiple rounds of light snow will fall from the Ohio Valley and central Appalachians to the mid-Atlantic through Friday, the weather service said. The highest snowfall totals of 6 to 12 inches will be found across the mountains of far western Maryland and West Virginia. American, Delta, JetBlue, Southwest and United have all issued waivers to prevent passengers and planes from becoming stranded. The destinations covered, travel dates and other fine print vary by airline and are likely to change with the storms' projected path and severity. <br/>

With most of its population soon to be inoculated against Covid-19, Israel is making deals that would let its citizens visit Greece and a handful of other tourist-hungry countries -- a trend that illustrates the growing global debate over the rules of travel in the post-pandemic era. About two-thirds of eligible Israelis have already had a first shot of vaccine, as the country administers doses at by far the highest rate anywhere. On Monday, the government announced a deal with Greece on mutual recognition of jabs, allowing for eventual quarantine-free travel. The Foreign Affairs Ministry says it’s discussing similar agreements with Cyprus and the Seychelles. While many countries plan to open their borders to people who can show a negative Covid test taken shortly before flying, Israel is also proposing “vaccination certificates as an enabler for the movement of people between countries,” said Ilan Fluss, head of the ministry’s economic bureau. “It’s obviously safer than testing.” Those certificates may be a precursor to the “vaccine passports” some countries are planning as they seek to revive their battered tourism sectors. But many leaders have been less than enthusiastic about requiring proof of vaccination for travel, saying any such system would be unfair and possibly ineffective. “The risk is we get different approaches in different places,” said John Strickland, who runs London-based airline advisory firm JLS Consulting. The WHO says it’s unclear whether inoculated people can infect others even if they remain asymptomatic. <br/>

The EU prolonged pandemic-induced regulatory relief for airlines, only partially reimposing a requirement that they use their airport slots when a 12-month waiver ends next month. The bloc will make airlines take up at least 25% of their takeoff and landing positions during the summer season or risk losing them the following year, down from a normal 80% level. The new regime will run from March 28 through October, according to legislation approved Thursday. The new law replaces the EU’s full suspension of the “use-it-or-lose-it” slot rule to help airlines as border closures and lockdown restrictions wiped out travel. Air traffic in Europe has tumbled over the past 11 months and was down more than 60% in January compared with a year earlier. The waiver was put in place to avoid a scenario in which empty planes fly routes just so operators can retain their slots, which are worth millions of dollars. The EU last suspended the rule in 2009 as a result of the financial crisis. The effective threshold for airlines this summer will vary carrier to carrier, depending on whether they opt to return slots and if so how many. The minimum 25% level would result from carriers being allowed to return half of their slots and being required to use at least half of the remaining ones.<br/>

London’s Heathrow airport urged the British government to set out a strategy for resuming flights following a tightening of travel curbs that it says has essentially shut down travel. Requiring two Covid-19 tests for all arrivals, along with 10 days of quarantine that some must spend in a hotel, means the UK border is “effectively closed,” Heathrow said Thursday. CEO John Holland-Kaye said the airport is working with the government “to try to ensure this complex scheme is workable.” He called for Prime Minister Boris Johnson to set out a plan for the safe restart of international travel when the government presents its road map for easing the latest lockdown on Feb. 22. While all airlines and airports have taken a battering in the coronavirus crisis, Heathrow has suffered more than most, with long-haul markets expected to remain shuttered for months. Passenger volumes at what was previously Europe’s busiest hub fell 89% in January, with February expected to be even more challenging, according to the airport.<br/>

A turboprop design is gaining momentum within Airbus as the solution to its challenge of developing a hydrogen jet by 2035, according to people familiar with the matter. The propeller plane would carry around 100 passengers for about 1,000 nautical miles -- roughly the distance between Rome and Dublin. It’s seen as the option most capable of meeting Airbus’ aggressive goal of introducing a zero-emission plane by the middle of the next decade, said the people, who asked not to be named because a formal decision is still several years away. Airbus unveiled three design concepts including the turboprop last September, when it said it would focus on hydrogen technology to tackle the problem of growing carbon-dioxide emissions. While no final decision has been made on which design to take forward, the company is beginning to evaluate the potential of each proposal, the people said. The other two designs are for a 200-seat blended wing, which Airbus has already said it’s unlikely to pursue first due to the challenges of certification, and a more-familiar-looking turbofan approach, which could fly more than 2,000 nautical miles -- about two-thirds as far as the company’s mainstay A320 single-aisle jets. A turboprop plane, while easier to develop, would address a smaller market -- it could make most hops between European cities, for example, but not fly trans-Atlantic routes or coast-to-coast in the US. <br/>

The Learjet luxury aircraft made famous by Frank Sinatra and immortalized in songs by Pink Floyd and Carly Simon is going away. Bombardier, the Canadian company that makes the plane, said Thursday that it would stop building the plane at the end of the year — more than half-a-century after it was introduced — as it shifts attention to its more profitable and larger Challenger and Global aircraft. The move comes after Bombardier exited the business of making planes for airlines last year and completed the sale of its rail unit last month, all part of an effort to return to profitability with a more singular focus on private aircraft. “With our strategic repositioning now complete, we are very excited to embark on our journey as a pure-play business jet company,” said Éric Martel, Bombardier’s CE. The company also announced plans to cut 1,600 jobs, or about 10% of its work force. Bombardier said Thursday that it lost $568m last year and hoped to cut costs by more than $400m by 2023. The Learjet decision comes just months after the company announced the first delivery of the plane’s latest model, the Learjet 75 Liberty.<br/>

Paris airports operator Groupe ADP is to work on a new development plan for Charles de Gaulle airport after the French government scrapped its existing Terminal 4 project. French ministers had in the summer indicated the plan to develop the additional capacity was being reviewed given the predictions for a slow return in air travel following the pandemic. Now it has confirmed it is shelving the project, both on capacity and environmental grounds. “The government has asked [Groupe] ADP to abandon its project and present it with a new one, more consistent with its objectives of combating climate change and protecting the environment,” French minister for ecological transition Barbara Pompili tells Le Monde. Group ADP confirms the government has asked it to present a new development project for the French hub. Group ADP CE Augustin de Romanet says: ”Air travel must accelerate its energy transition. We must draw the proper conclusions from this in our future projects. Following the state’s decision to request Groupe ADP to abandon the current Terminal 4 project, as well as to submit a new project for the evolution of the Paris Charles de Gaulle platform, Groupe ADP is engaging in a period of reflection on the airport’s future concerns.”<br/>