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The large-scale government intervention in airlines triggered by the coronavirus crisis will hold back sector consolidation for up to five years, the head of global industry body IATA predicted on Wednesday. Alexandre de Juniac, the IATA’s outgoing director general, made the comments as the organisation called for a new round of subsidies to weather the COVID-19 pandemic. “Governments have taken big stakes in many of their national airlines, so it will be difficult for them to sell this asset to any foreign actor and explain that to the taxpayer,” De Juniac said. “It will be a factor that will prevent consolidation in the coming three to five years.” Airline tie-ups already faced obstacles before the crisis, including ownership rules linked to bilateral aviation treaties. That has not prevented the emergence of multinationals such as IAG, Lufthansa and Air France-KLM that preserve national carriers within their group structures.<br/>

Global airline industry body IATA called on governments to stimulate travel to help airlines recover from the coronavirus crisis, saying that the industry needed additional relief measures. “I urge governments to consider stimulus measures,” said IATA DG Alexandre de Juniac on Wednesday. Governments have so far provided $225b to help airlines, providing direct aid, wage subsidies, tax relief and loans. The DG said airlines did not need more debt. He said subsidising tickets could be one way for governments to help the sector.<br/>

Global airlines must adopt tougher rules on reducing carbon emissions once flying restarts after the coronavirus crisis, the head of the industry’s trade body has warned. The IATA is in talks with its members, nearly 300 carriers around the world, over new climate change pledges, CE Alexandre de Juniac said. An ambitious pledge to commit to net zero carbon emissions by 2050 may form part of a declaration at the trade body’s annual meeting in June, de Juniac said. This would mark a bold step up from the industry’s current targets, set in 2009, that include halving 2005 emissions by 2050 and carbon neutral growth after 2020. “The crisis has not diverted us from sticking to these commitments and we have not changed anything, but we think that we should probably go further, so we are working on that.” Although de Juniac cautioned there was no guarantee carriers would reach agreement on net zero carbon emissions, he said the need for action had grown over the past decade. “That is a point on which everybody is working . . . but we have still to work on that.” Story has more.<br/>

The aviation industry’s flagship carbon offsetting system risks being ineffective, poorly enforced and “undermining” the EU’s climate policies, according to an unpublished report written for the EC. The highly critical analysis was commissioned ahead of key decisions this summer on aviation in the EU’s regulated carbon market. The report said the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (Corsia) was “unlikely to materially alter the direct climate impact associated with air travel” and may offer little better than a scenario “in which international aviation emissions remain unregulated”.  The commission is expected to propose in June how aviation industry emissions should be mitigated, including whether to include international flights in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. The ETS limits the volume of greenhouse gases that heavy polluters can emit and requires them to buy tradeable allowances to cover their output The report, dated September 2020, was drawn up by several aviation and climate consultancy groups chosen by the commission, and obtained by campaign group Transport & Environment under a freedom of information request. It said that a reliance on Corsia, rather than an expansion of the scope of the ETS, risked “weakening current EU climate policies”. <br/>

Just as airlines start to emerge from their biggest slump on record, the industry is facing a new headache: a rapid rise in fuel prices. Escalating fuel costs will create a dilemma for carriers who unwound hedges that proved costly when demand suddenly disappeared when the coronavirus hit last year, said John Grant, senior analyst at OAG, which tracks aviation trends. “It’s more than a concern,” given that the fuel bill is the one of airlines’ biggest and most unpredictable costs, he said. Global capacity remains just above half of pre-pandemic levels, with the domestic US market a bright spot for growth, according to OAG. Carriers are going to have to re-evaluate capacity plans because rising fuel prices require fuller flights to break even, said Brendan Sobie, a consultant at Sobie Aviation. Demand for jet fuel and kerosene is expected to take until 2024 to recover to pre-pandemic levels, according to the International Energy Agency. Still, oil prices -- which underlie jet-fuel pricing -- have skyrocketed from below $20 a barrel at the height of lockdown last year to near $70 as the demand outlook improves with the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines and output cuts from OPEC+ members tighten supply. Crude is up almost 34% this year.<br/>

Airlines with planes idled by the pandemic are cutting costs by delaying some maintenance tasks like changing life vests, testing oxygen bottles and checking emergency exits under COVID-19 waivers from airplane manufacturers and regulators. The move allows airlines to stop the clock on a category of parts that would otherwise need checks or pass their "use-by" date without leaving the ground because of the huge number of planes parked during the pandemic. In special guidance to airlines, Airbus, Boeing, Brazil's Embraer and turboprop manufacturer ATR say there is no risk to safety because the work will be done before the planes return to the skies. But there are concerns that delays could trigger commercial disputes between airlines and their lessors and financiers if they breach contractual maintenance agreements. "I think there is going to be some argument," said Phil Seymour, president of aviation intelligence and advisory firm IBA. Delayed checks also mean it will take longer to reactivate planes. Story has more.<br/>

Airlines have reported more than 500 cases involving unruly passengers since late December, and most started with passengers who refused to wear a face mask, federal officials said Wednesday. The FAA said it is reviewing more than 450 of the cases and has started enforcement action against about 20 people. The FAA reported the figures shortly after it extended a “zero-tolerance” policy against unruly people on airline flights. The agency said that under the policy, passengers who disrupt or threaten the safety of a flight could face fines and jail time. “The number of cases we’re seeing is still far too high, and it tells us urgent action continues to be required,” FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson said. The tougher enforcement stance was due to expire at the end of this month, but the FAA announced Monday that it will stay in place as long as airline passengers are required to wear face masks. The FAA is seeking civil penalties against at least four passengers. The agency announced two new cases on Wednesday.<br/>

The FAA said Wednesday that it will inspect four of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner planes itself, rather than delegating that work to Boeing, after production issues surfaced last year. “The FAA is taking a number of corrective actions to address Boeing 787 production issues,” the agency said. “One of the actions is retaining the authority to issue airworthiness certificates for four 787 aircraft. The FAA can retain the authority to issue airworthiness certificates for additional 787 aircraft if we see the need.” The increased scrutiny of the Dreamliners comes four months after the FAA lifted a 20-month flight ban on Boeing’s best-selling 737 Max, which the regulator grounded in March 2019 after two deadly crashes in five months. The FAA also retained its authority to sign off on Max planes that Boeing produced since the grounding. Boeing disclosed issues with some seams on the aircraft in September.<br/>

Travel spending by Americans plunged by 42%, or $492b, in 2020, according to a report by an industry group, amid social, travel and business restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of COVID-19. The US Travel Association said the industry shed 5.6m direct and indirect jobs last year, and the decline in travel dragged down total economic output to $1.5t, from 2019’s $2.6t. US tax revenue collected from travel plummeted by $57b in 2020. “While the gradual progress of vaccinations has provided hope that a turnaround may be on the horizon, it is still unclear when travel demand will be able to fully rebound on its own,” said US Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow.<br/>

A woman with a history of being a "serial stowaway" and sneaking on flights was arrested at Chicago O'Hare International Airport after police were tipped off by her ankle bracelet, officials said Wednesday. Marilyn Hartman, 69, was already awaiting sentencing for trying to sneak on a commercial craft when her GPS ankle bracelet went off at about noon on Tuesday, according to a statement from the Cook County Sheriff's Office. The alarm indicated Hartman was outside "the residential facility where she" had been mandated to stay, the statement said. After Hartman didn't pick up her phone, authorities said they spotted the ankle bracelet headed toward O’Hare. She arrived at Terminal 1 at about 1:38 p.m. CT and an "alarm siren was activated on Hartman’s device" leading to her arrest by Chicago police before she could "enter any secure areas," the sheriff said.<br/>

The European commission has unveiled a “digital green certificate” that could allow EU citizens who have been vaccinated, tested negative or recovered from Covid-19 to travel more freely within the bloc this summer. The plan would also allow southern states such as Spain, Greece and Portugal, whose economies are most reliant on tourism, to make bilateral arrangements with non-EU members – including Britain – providing the deals are approved by the commission. “We aim to help member states reinstate the freedom of movement in a safe, responsible and trusted manner,” the EC president, Ursula von der Leyen, said as the scheme was unveiled on Wednesday. The digital document, containing a QR code and carried on a mobile phone, has deliberately not been called a “vaccine passport” because some member states felt that would discriminate against those who had not yet been offered a shot. Commission officials have been at at pains to stress it should be considered as a common framework to help national governments manage intra-bloc travel as vaccination programmes advance and restrictions gradually ease.<br/>

Britain is reviewing the idea of vaccine certificates to allow access to travel, hospitality and entertainment and discussing the best way to proceed in terms of fairness, said business minister Kwarsi Kwarteng. P&O Cruises said on Tuesday that it would only accept as passengers those who have had both doses of the vaccine for its trips around the UK this summer, sparking a fresh debate on the issue. When asked about the fairness of companies requiring proof of vaccination to grant entry and what the government’s stance was on the matter, Kwarteng said it was under review. “We are discussing what the best way to proceed is,” Kwarteng said.<br/>

Israel’s government announced on Wednesday a long-awaited bailout of its airlines to help them weather the coronavirus crisis and maintain operations in the midst of a year-long halt to international travel. As part of a financial assistance program overseen by the finance ministry, the government will buy $210m-worth of flight tickets in advance from flag carrier El Al and its low fare subsidiary Sun Dor. The tickets are for the airline security personnel posted at airports that its carriers will fly to over the next 20 years, the finance ministry said in a statement. The sum will stay the same even if security requirements change. The government plans to offer ticket purchase arrangements to other Israeli airlines that fly Israeli aviation security personnel in the coming days, the ministry said.<br/>

Aircraft leasing giant AerCap’s acquisition of rival GECAS will reduce competition in the aircraft market, the head of global airline industry body IATA warned on Wednesday. “We understand that the situation of the leasing companies is difficult,” IATA Director General Alexandre de Juniac said. “But combining the two to have a big player (in) a very dominant situation is not good news for us.” The world’s two largest aircraft lessors announced plans last week to combine. Analysts have said the deal could attract scrutiny from antitrust regulators.<br/>

Deliveries of turboprop aircraft built by Franco-Italian manufacturer ATR plunged to an 18-year low last year as regional airlines bear the brunt of the coronavirus crisis, company figures showed on Wednesday. CE Stefano Bortoli said deliveries fell to 10 aircraft in 2020, compared with 68 reported for 2019, while new orders shrank to 6 from 52 published a year earlier. ATR, jointly owned by planemaker Airbus and Italian aerospace group Leonardo, aims to double deliveries in 2021. “It will take a few years to get back to 2019 levels,” Bortoli told a news conference. After cancellations, ATR posted three net orders in 2020, down from 48 in 2019. ATR swung to a E138m loss in 2020 from a profit of E106m a year earlier, according to Airbus data. Domestic routes, where turboprops are more efficient than jets on short hops, are widely expected to lead the recovery from the industry’s worst meltdown, ATR said. For now, a glut of second-hand aircraft and the weak balance sheets of regional buyers are weighing on demand for turboprops.<br/>

Global airline body IATA said it had postponed its annual meeting to October from June this year as it believed that it was important” to demonstrate the value of meeting in person”. The meeting will now be held on October 3-5 in Boston in the United States, with the date pushed back because IATA does not believe that borders will be sufficiently open in June to allow such a gathering.<br/>