An industry association representing the world’s airlines is mulling more ambitious climate change targets in a “rethink” of its environmental policy as part of a wider effort to convince the aviation industry to adopt even greener goals, its outgoing boss has disclosed. IATA chief Alexandre de Juniac – whose tenure has been marked by the long-term crisis of climate change, as well as the more immediate one presented by Covid-19 – pledged changes on both fronts, including taking lessons from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic to apply to the next one. The departing head hinted at a new industry target for carbon neutrality after the successful implementation of a cap on emissions through a so-called carbon offsetting and reduction scheme for international aviation, or CORSIA. De Juniac said a “very strong rethink” of IATA’s environment policy was under way amid increased public and political pressure, but would be completed by his successor following his departure from the industry group’s top job at the end of the month after 4½ years at the helm.<br/>
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Airlines are upgrading the importance of once marginal destinations as they redraw route maps to focus on flights where demand remains strongest in the aftermath of Covid-19. Despite travel restrictions in some regions, people have still been travelling to visit family or friends scattered across the world, airline executives say, offering a resilient stream of income. With leisure and business travel plunging on key transatlantic routes, carriers such as Virgin Atlantic have been tapping into demand for flights from the UK’s south Asian diaspora to places such as Pakistan and India. The British airline has also reported strong demand for its flights to Lagos in Nigeria. These routes have been up to 90% full, double the current industry average load factor. It is a contrast to the jet-setting image the company has cultivated in flying passengers across the Atlantic to New York and sunny winter destinations such as Florida. Before the pandemic, the carrier relied heavily on long-haul routes to the US, which was one of its most profitable, accounting for up to 70% of the carrier’s seating capacity. But, with US borders shut for much of the past year and the current ban on international holiday travel in the UK, the airline has had to rip up its business model. “We completely had to change our ways of working, be more agile and grab the opportunities that are there,” said Rikke Christensen, who runs network planning at Virgin Atlantic.<br/>
As the US vaccination rollout has sped up, so, too, have requests for vaxications. “We have seen a 25% increase in travel inquiries since the first round of vaccinations became available,” says Leah Smith, president of Denver-based Tafari Travel. “Pretty much weekly, I am getting emails from clients saying they just got their first vaccination and are ready to plan the next two years of travel... It’s not uncommon to get up to four trip requests in one email... “Many clients aren’t even waiting for the second round to book a trip.” And they aren’t going to visit their grandkids, says Brooke Lavery, a partner at the high-end travel consultancy Local Foreigner. “People who normally take five to seven trips a year and for whom travel has been a lifestyle for decades are doing celebration trips,” she says. The movement may be premature. The CDC has delayed its release of updated Covid-safety guidelines for Americans who’ve been fully vaccinated. To date, the organization has continued encouraging the inoculated among us to wear masks, continue to social distance, and avoid crowds. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the president’s chief medical adviser and director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has publicly expressed caution around post-vaccination travels, given the possibility of spreading the virus along the way.<br/>
The number of Boeing 737 Max jets back in service has now topped 100 as airlines in the US, Brazil and Europe add more flights with the re-certified jet. More than 1,300 flights were logged in the week through March 3, with American Airlines Group Inc. operating almost 400 flights, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium. Brazilian carrier Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes, which was the first to restart services with the Max in December, had the highest utilization with its eight aircraft flying almost 11 hours a day, Cirium said. Regulators around the world have followed the US FAA in clearing the Max to resume flying after two fatal crashes led to its grounding in March 2019. China was the first country to impose a ban after the second crash killed 157 people in Ethiopia. The Asian country has yet to approve the jet’s return, with regulators saying that they still had safety concerns. Boeing has also resumed Max deliveries after inventories built up during the suspension. United this week expanded an existing order by 25 planes. Prior to the 2019 grounding, about 360 Max jets were in service around the world, according to Cirium.<br/>
Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun was awarded $21m in total compensation for his work last year, but he gave up $3.6min salary and bonuses after the coronavirus pandemic hit and devastated the industry. He took just $269,231 of his $1.4m salary for the year. The majority of Calhoun’s pay package, disclosed when he became CEO in January 2020, is made up of equity that vests over time and is based on company performance targets and other metrics. Calhoun was named CEO after Boeing’s board ousted former Chief Executive Dennis Muilenburg over his handling of two deadly crashes of the Boeing 737 Max, the company’s bestselling airplane. Calhoun’s appointment came just before the Covid-19 pandemic shook the global economy, hitting the aviation industry especially hard. Boeing reported a record annual loss for last year of nearly $12b as cancellations outpaced new sales of jetliners, prompting thousands of job cuts. Calhoun’s total compensation includes awards that were disclosed when he took the job last January, including about $7m worth of stock if the company hits milestones including returning the 737 Max to service, entry into service of the long-delayed 777X, and other goals, but those shares haven’t vested.<br/>
General Electric is nearing a $30b-plus deal to combine its aircraft-leasing business with Ireland’s AerCap Holdings, the WSJ reported on Sunday citing people familiar with the matter. Details of how the deal would be structured was not immediately known, but an announcement is expected Monday, assuming the talks don’t fall apart, the WSJ said. The unit, known as GE Capital Aviation Services, or GECAS, is one of the world’s biggest jet-leasing companies and leases passenger aircraft made by companies including Boeing Co and Airbus SE . It owns, services or has on order about 1,650 aircraft, according to its website.<br/>
Dassault Aviation took a step closer on Friday to refreshing its line-up of business jets, saying the first flight of its Falcon 6X was imminent and promising details of a new Future Falcon aircraft in “months or even weeks”. The two initiatives are crucial if Dassault is to maintain its grip on the corporate jet market after a development setback, but shares in the French planemaker stumbled as it predicted lower deliveries for the existing Falcon series in 2021. CE Eric Trappier said the maiden flight of the Pratt & Whitney-powered Falcon 6X would be announced in days. It replaces the Falcon 5X, which was cancelled in 2017 when France’s Safran failed to develop a new engine on time. The first example of the large-cabin jet will be delivered at the end of 2022, he said.<br/>
The French billionaire and politician Olivier Dassault has died in a helicopter crash in Normandy. The 69-year-old rightwing MP was the grandson of Marcel Dassault, who founded the aircraft manufacturing company Dassault Aviation. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, paid tribute to Dassault, tweeting that he “loved France”. The helicopter transporting Dassault crashed shortly after taking off from the Normandy coastal resort of Deauville, where the tycoon had a holiday home, at about 6pm on Sunday. The cause of the crash, in which the pilot was also killed, was not immediately known. The French air accident investigation bureau (BEA) reported that the aircraft, an Aérospatiale AS350 Écureuil, had crashed “on take off” from a private ground. The BEA has opened an inquiry and said it was dispatching five investigators to the scene.<br/>