When it came time to land at San Francisco on July 7, 2017, the pilots of an Air Canada jet could not recall a critical piece of information buried on page eight of a 27-page briefing package: the closure of one of the airport’s two runways. Mistaking the runway they were cleared to land on for the one that was closed, the fatigued pilots chose the wrong reference point and lined up to land on a parallel taxiway instead. They came within seconds of colliding with four planes. More than three years later, a global campaign has been launched to improve aviation safety by reducing the kind of information overload experienced by the pilots of Air Canada 759. The reform of the more than century-old system of Notices to Airmen (NOTAMs) - originally modelled after Notices to Mariners - is part of a wider push to make aviation simpler, particularly in the wake of two Boeing 737 MAX crashes. For long-haul flights, there can be up to 200 pages of NOTAMs for pilots to review on paper or an iPad, many of them as irrelevant as general bird hazard warnings, grass-cutting at airports or low-altitude construction obstacles relevant only to helicopters and light planes. For decades, such standardised bulletins issued by national air navigation authorities – part of a global safety regime managed by countries through the United Nations’ aviation agency - have helped to keep aviation safe. But the industry has grown so large that the noise created by redundant warnings is increasingly seen as a hazard. Story has more.<br/>
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The FAA and US DoT will pay $43.8m to settle a longrunning age-discrimination lawsuit claiming the agencies unlawfully outsourced thousands of flight service specialists’ jobs to Lockheed Martin Corp, according to a court filing on Wednesday. The FAA, DOT, and lawyers for the class of former flight service specialists from Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll and Gilbert Employment Law announced the deal in a filing in Washington, DC, federal court. The agencies denied wrongdoing.<br/>
The ferocious surge in new coronavirus cases that has turned India into the global pandemic hotspot has also reversed one of the airline industry’s biggest travel comebacks. Carriers in India had reached 87% of their pre-pandemic seat capacity through early April, based on a Bloomberg analysis of data from flight tracker OAG. That progress has now unraveled as the surge in infections led to a pullback in domestic flights, which make up the vast majority of the market. As of the start of this week, capacity had fallen to 71% of 2019 levels, a 16 percentage-point drop over three weeks, the data show. Further eroding demand is a move by nations including Singapore, Australia, the UK and the United Arab Emirates to impose restrictions on visitors from India. Using weekly OAG data, Bloomberg has built a flight tracker to monitor the pulse of the global air-travel comeback. The latest update shows continued progress in China, while plans to increase capacity in the U.S. and Europe haven't yet taken hold. With operators still canceling flights from India, the number of seats offered globally may have fallen slightly from last week.<br/>
The ferocious surge in new coronavirus cases that has turned India into the global pandemic hotspot has also reversed one of the airline industry’s biggest travel comebacks. Carriers in India had reached 87% of their pre-pandemic seat capacity through early April, based on a Bloomberg analysis of data from flight tracker OAG. That progress has now unravelled as the surge in infections led to a pullback in domestic flights, which make up the vast majority of the market. As of the start of this week, capacity had fallen to 71% of 2019 levels, a 16 percentage-point drop over three weeks, the data showed. Further eroding demand is a move by nations including Singapore, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates to impose restrictions on visitors from India. Using weekly OAG data, Bloomberg has built a flight tracker to monitor the pulse of the global air-travel comeback. The latest update showed continued progress in China, while plans to increase capacity in the United States and Europe haven’t yet taken hold. With operators still cancelling flights from India, the number of seats offered globally may have fallen slightly from last week. India’s expansive domestic network made it one of the world’s fastest-growing countries for aviation before the recent Covid-19 outbreak. Short-haul carriers such as IndiGo propelled India to the world’s third-largest market. And earlier on in the pandemic, the South Asian country of 1.4b people won plaudits for enforcing strict social distancing rules that lowered the infection rate. But now, the country’s public health system is being overwhelmed by an aggressive surge in cases, with daily infections exceeding 300,000.<br/>
China's aviation regulator will slightly relax suspension rules on international flights due to Covid-19 as it seeks to facilitate more flexible capacity arrangement for airlines, it said on Wednesday. Airlines can now choose to cap the load factor on a flight, or percentage of seats filled, to no more than 40% for four weeks if more than five but less than 10 passengers on a previous flight test positive for Covid-19 after arriving in China, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) said. Previously, such flights would have to be suspended for two weeks. The new rules would be effective since May 1, CAAC added. "The move is to better meet the needs of normalisation of China's epidemic prevention and control efforts, and to facilitate capacity arrangements by airlines and travel plans by passengers on the basis of equal control measures on imported (Covid) risks," the CAAC said. China has drastically cut international flights since March last year to allay concerns over infections brought by arriving passengers. A so-called "Five One" policy allows mainland carriers to fly just one flight a week on one route to any country and foreign airlines to operate just one flight a week to China.<br/>
Britain plans to use a National Health Service phone app as its COVID-19 ‘vaccine passport’ certificate that will allow its population to travel internationally this summer, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said on Wednesday. Countries around the world are looking at a host of options that will serve as proof of COVID-19 vaccinations to allow travel, though airports, border agencies and airlines are worried there will be no clear global standard that will be accepted at all borders. So-called vaccine passports could range from a digital certificate with a scannable QR code in the European Union, to a National Health Service (NHS) phone app in the United Kingdom, or a humble piece of paper in some other countries. Besides concerns over issuance, forgery and the repeated failure of government-backed technology projects, it was still unclear how such documents would be received by notoriously zealous border guards across the world. “In terms of vaccine certification, I can confirm... it will be an NHS app that is used for people when they book appointments with the NHS and so on to be able to show that you’ve had a vaccine or that you’ve had testing,” Transport Secretary Shapps said.<br/>
Airlines have been hit with 630 fines for failing to check Covid paperwork on arrival back into the UK, new figures show. All international passengers into the UK must present a negative Covid-19 test taken within a 72-hour period, as well as a passenger locator form (PLF) and proof of booked tests. Passengers arriving without these face a GBP500 fine. They also must quarantine for 10 days, either at home or, if arriving from a ‘red list’ country, in a quarantine hotel. Airlines are obliged to check passengers have the correct documentation before boarding the plane to England. Figures from the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority show that it has issued 630 fines since 11 February 2021 to airlines who fly passengers without the right documents. However, Home Office figures show that more than 12,000 people have been caught for arriving at the UK border without the right documents. Airlines face fines of GBP2,000 for each passenger who does not have proof of a negative Covid test and the same amount for passengers without a completed PLF, which should also include the correct test booking reference number for hotel quarantine or post-arrival testing. The volume of paperwork has contributed to long border queues at UK airports.<br/>
Spain has warned that it will only welcome British holidaymakers back to its resorts if the UK offers the same deal to its tourists. Spain is preparing to open its borders to British holidaymakers in June provided they have a digital vaccine certificate or a negative Covid test result. But the tourism ministry said that the UK must "accept the same terms for Spanish travellers who go to the UK". Spain is looking to create its own version of the EU's proposed digital green certificate to show vaccination status or test results, with plans to trial the technology at 46 airports next month. It is thought unlikely that Spain will be on the UK Government's safe "green list" for quarantine-free travel from May 17, when the ban on foreign travel is due to be lifted, but the moves show that opening up to holidays will require bilateral negotiations and the need for digital Covid status certificates. Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, on Wednesday confirmed that the NHS app will be English holidaymakers' vaccine passport, with the first trips using it within a month. Shapps said the app, which automatically links to an individual's medical records will be used as a certificate for international travel to show they are vaccinated, have a negative Covid test or immunity from having had the virus.<br/>
The Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) has cut its passenger traffic projection for the year, citing the resurgence in coronavirus cases, as well as a general uncertainty surrounding recovery. In its latest forecast, MAVCOM says Malaysian passenger traffic for the year is expected to contract up to 29% year on year, translating to between 18.9 to 20.6m passengers. This compares to an earlier forecast — issued at the end of 2020 — which stated that traffic would rebound this year, to between 51.7 and 53.3m passengers. The agency notes that in the first three months of the year, only 1.7m passengers flew, representing a 91% decline year on year. This, says MAVCOM, “could signal significantly lower passenger traffic numbers for the rest of the year”. It expects air travel demand to be impacted for the rest of year, especially as Malaysia battles a fresh surge in coronavirus cases, prompting the federal government to impose domestic travel restrictions.<br/>
Cambodia is studying the feasibility of allowing vaccinated tourists from low-risk markets to enter the country by Q4. Tourism minister Thong Khon said his ministry will work with provincial authorities and the vaccination commission to vaccinate locals and tourism providers, according to a 27 April update on the ministry’s website. It will also work with destination service providers to ensure that destinations can safely receive vaccinated tourists. The update, however, does not state if vaccinated tourists will be subject to 14-day quarantines. The tourism minister states: “We are working hard towards receiving international tourists, especially vaccinated tourists, in the fourth quarter of 2021.” Border management efforts will also be strengthened to allow travel between provinces, he adds. The move will be the first phase of a tourism reopening plan, which is part of a tourism recovery roadmap spanning 2021-2025 approved on 30 March.<br/>
Boeing on Wednesday confirmed a halt on 737 MAX deliveries after electrical problems re-grounded part of the fleet, and voiced concerns over a surging pandemic in India and US-China political tensions. Reuters reported on April 16 that Boeing stopped delivering its cash cow single-aisle 737 MAX after the electrical grounding problem - months after the plane returned to service following a lengthy safety ban. The US FAA issued a new airworthiness directive Wednesday requiring a fix before the jets resume flight. The FAA said last week the issue impacts 109 airline planes worldwide but Boeing did not immediately say how many additional undelivered planes must be fixed.<br/>
US regulators are ordering airlines to fix a manufacturing flaw on electrical components on Boeing 737 Max jets that had idled more than 100 of the planes around to world. Repairs to address the “unsafe condition” will cost about $155,000 to fix the 71 planes in operation in the US, the FAA said Wednesday in a notice. Airlines voluntarily grounded the planes while awaiting guidance from Boeing. Bonding that is essential to grounding electrical components could have caused engine anti-ice protection and other functions to fail, the FAA said in what is known as an airworthiness directive, providing new details about the problem. “The FAA is issuing this AD to prevent loss of critical functions and/or multiple simultaneous flight deck effects, which may prevent continued safe flight and landing,” the agency said in the directive, which it posted to a government website in advance of it appearing in the Federal Register on Friday. In addition to the planes in service needing the repairs, there are several hundred jets built since 2019 and currently in storage that will also have to be fixed. Most nations are expected to follow the FAA’s lead and adopt the directive for their carriers. “We fully support the FAA’s directive to address electrical issues identified in certain locations in the flight deck of select 737 Max airplanes,” Boeing said.<br/>
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost $561m in the first three months of the year as it emerged from its prolonged 737 Max crisis and contended with new problems related to the 787 Dreamliner jet. Revenue fell 10% to $15.2b compared with the same period last year. But, like his counterparts at major airlines, Dave Calhoun, Boeing’s CE, struck an optimistic tone. “While the global pandemic continues to challenge the overall market environment, we view 2021 as a key inflection point for our industry as vaccine distribution accelerates and we work together across government and industry to help enable a robust recovery,” he said. In an investor presentation, Boeing said it continued to expect the recovery to take years to unfold, with passenger traffic unlikely to return to 2019 levels until 2023 or 2024. It also said its financial results for this year “hinge” on a recovery in the commercial airplane market. At the end of March, the company had a backlog of more than 4,000 commercial airplane orders, valued at $283b. Its defense and space backlog was valued at $61b. The company’s results were weighed down by quality concerns with the 787, though deliveries of the plane resumed at the end of the quarter “following comprehensive reviews,” Boeing said. The company also suffered a $318m charge related to development of the next Air Force One, which was affected by a pandemic slowdown and problems with a key supplier, which Boeing recently sued.<br/>