Cockpit crew representatives are backing efforts to overhaul of the NOTAM system this year, claiming that the repository of aeronautical information has become cluttered, inefficient and burdensome. Some 1.7m NOTAMs were published in 2020. Even though this was a 5% reduction on the previous year, as a result of the air transport crisis, the number amounted to a seven-fold increase in NOTAMs over the past two decades, according to ICAO. It adds that about 35,000 remain active on any given day. ICAO is to launch a global campaign for NOTAM improvement on 8 April, intended to relieve some of the pressure on those having to handle and absorb the information. “It is not uncommon for a pre-flight briefing package supporting a long-haul international flight to contain more than 100 pages of NOTAM information,” says the organisation. “Findings have shown that 20% of these will be old NOTAMs, exceeding their three-month applicability period.”<br/>
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Websites of several major airlines were down briefly on Monday due to an issue with Google software that provides price and flight information for these websites. Websites for American Airlines, Delta and United showed error messages when users looked up flights Monday afternoon but were operating normally after about two hours. “Earlier today, a data error impacted our flight shopping software, which prevented airline partners, as well as Google Flights, from showing fare information,” Google said. “We’ve implemented a fix and the issue has now been mitigated. We’ll continue to monitor to ensure this is fully resolved.” “Delta.com and the Fly Delta app are functioning normally after experiencing an issue this afternoon that made it difficult for customers to purchase flights on delta.com, the Fly Delta app, and through our Reservations Call Center,” Delta said. “The issue was caused by the failure of technology provided to Delta and multiple airlines by Google. We apologize for any inconvenience this caused.”<br/>
US airlines are bringing back more pilots as they prepare for an expected travel rebound. Delta said Monday that it recalled all of its 1,713 idled pilots on April 1, before staffing shortages contributed to about 100 flight cancellations Sunday. About 400 will be trained in time to start flying again this summer, the company said. Southwest, meanwhile, said 209 pilots will return from voluntary leave on June 1. The pilot recalls show how US airlines are stepping up efforts to prepare for a potentially busy summer as more people receive Covid-19 vaccinations. <br/>
A new report from consulting firm Oliver Wyman predicts US domestic air travel will fully recover by early next year. The company’s Airline Economic Analysis 2020-2021, published on 5 April, says air travel’s post-coronavirus recovery is moving more quickly than expected, as economic measures and the nationwide vaccine roll-out continue gaining traction. Domestic travel will normalise by 2022, with business and international travel to return to pre-Covid levels one year later. Early in the pandemic, aviation experts had feared the downturn would last five years or more. “A year ago, we would have thought that a full domestic recovery in this timeframe for the US was almost impossible, but the combination of pent-up demand, economic stimulus and access to vaccines is making a difference,” says Tom Stalnaker, Oliver Wyman’s global aviation practice leader. “We are still far from a full recovery for the overall industry, but we expect some of the airlines to start turning cash-flow positive in a matter of months, particularly in the US.”<br/>
The US FAA has followed Brazil’s lead in requiring US carriers to address a landing gear issue affecting more than 300 US-registered Embraer 135 and ERJ145 regional jets. An FAA airworthiness directive (AD) released on 5 April will require US operators to complete actions detailed in a Brazilian AD that took effect in February. The orders require airlines to inspect and potentially replace components on ERJ135 and ERJ145 landing gear – specifically, lower side arms and side arm struts. “This AD was prompted by a report involving disconnection of a side arm strut from the right” main landing gear, says the FAA. The “side arm strut lower bearing was installed inverted”. “Further inspections found more instances of inverted installations on other airplanes, as well as other improper installations,” the FAA adds in regulatory papers. The incorrect installations occurred while ERJs were undergoing a maintenance task at a specific aftermarket service shop, according to a person familiar with the matter. The issue is not widespread, but rather limited to a small number of aircraft, all being ERJ145s.<br/>
British PM Boris Johnson said Monday it was too soon to say whether international summer holidays can go ahead this year, a remark suggesting a planned reopening of outbound travel could be pushed back beyond May 17. Britons are among Europe’s highest spending tourists so the fortunes of the continent’s summer season and the travel industry, hit hard by restrictions imposed on travel because of the COVID-19 pandemic, will depend on when tourists can return to the beaches, cafes and tavernas of southern Europe. Asked about summer holidays, Johnson said he did not want the virus to be reimported into the United Kingdom from other countries so it was not possible to give more clarity as the global situation was evolving so fast. “Obviously we are hopeful that we can get going from May 17th, but I do not wish to give hostages to fortune or to underestimate the difficulties that we are seeing in some of the destination countries that people might want to go to,” he said.<br/>
Singapore will next month accept visitors who use a mobile travel pass containing digital certificates for Covid-19 tests and vaccines, its aviation regulator said on Monday, becoming one of the first countries to adopt the initiative. Singapore will accept the IATA mobile travel pass for pre-departure checks, where travelers can get clearance to fly to and enter Singapore by showing a smartphone application containing their data from accredited laboratories. The pass was successfully tested by Singapore Airlines. More than 20 carriers, including Emirates, Qatar Airways and Malaysia Airlines, are also testing the pass. “The success of our joint efforts will make IATA’s partnership with the government of Singapore a model for others to follow,” IATA director general Willie Walsh said.<br/>
Bangladesh has imposed a ban on passengers flights from European countries, except Britain, as well as 12 other countries, while having grounded all domestic air transport in the wake of a new week-long COVID-19 lockdown effective April 5 through April 12, 2021, due to increasing infections and deaths. The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) in a NOTAM on April 4 confirmed that starting “0600L (0500Z) on April 5, 2021, until 2359L (2259Z) on April 11, 2021, all scheduled/non-scheduled domestic passenger flights and charter flights of helicopter/general aviation will remain suspended. However, medevac, humanitarian/ relief and corporate flights are out of the purview of this restriction. Standard disinfection, sanitization and social distancing procedure for passenger, crew, equipment and aircraft (inflight or on ground) shall strictly to be maintained/ followed for such flights”. Domestic Bangladeshi operators include Biman Bangladesh Airlines, NovoAir, and US-Bangla Airlines.<br/>
Covid-19 vaccines are being sought for 20,000 frontline personnel in the aviation industry with the country set to reopen to foreign visitors, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) says. The CAAT said there is an urgent need for people in the aviation sector to be vaccinated against Covid-19 before international travel resumes. A request specifying the amount of vaccine needed has been submitted to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA). CAAT office director Suthipong Kongpool said the authority estimates about 20,000 people, including pilots, cabin attendants and ground service staff, will need jabs. The CAAT has scheduled a meeting for Thursday to assess the aviation industry's readiness to return to full operations when the country reopens its borders and dealing with overseas visitors arriving in the kingdom without having gone through quarantine. Clear steps will be laid out to serve visitors when the tourism industry returns to normal, Suthipong said.<br/>