general

Major airlines are pressing the United States government on its decision not to move quickly to relax COVID-19 restrictions that block travelers who have been in much of Europe and elsewhere even as other countries began to ease prohibitions. On Monday, the heads of several major airlines as well as the CE of Heathrow Airport and industry group the US Travel Association will hold a virtual news conference to push for removal of travel restrictions between the US and the UK. On hand will be the CEOs of American Airlines, IAG unit British Airways, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and JetBlue Airways Corp. The airline CEOs on May 11 had called for a summit between U.S. officials, UK officials, and airlines to discuss how to "expeditiously reopen transatlantic travel."<br/>Since March 2020, the United States has barred nearly all non-U.S. citizens who have been in the UK within the last 14 days from entering the country. Most U.S. travelers visiting the UK must quarantine for 10 days upon arrival. Airline and administration officials say no change is expected in the near term but add it is possible the restrictions could be removed as early as July 4 or thereabouts, but they caution no decisions have been made.<br/>

The latest sign of air travel returning to normal is the two words being repeated at most of the nation's major airlines: Help wanted. The three largest US carriers — American, United and Delta — have announced they are currently hiring or will do so before the end of the year. Southwest, which cut less of its staff during the pandemic than its three larger rivals, said it is preparing its own hiring process as well. "I think the current carriers are eager to get as many flights back in the air as possible," said Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants. The labor group expects the number of flight attendants on the job to rise from 80,000 today to 100,000 within two years. "At the beginning of 2020, all [of the airlines] said they'd be hiring thousands," Nelson said. "Really what we're doing is catching back up where we're supposed to be." The hiring initiatives come sooner than many expected. "I would say it's somewhat surprising that they're talking about it now, but it's certainly an indication of the confidence there will be a substantial recovery by the year's end," said Philip Baggaley, chief credit analyst for airlines at Standard & Poor's.<br/>

Hawaii Gov. David Ige said Friday that the state will drop its quarantine and COVID-19 testing requirements for travelers once 70% of the state's population has been vaccinated against the disease. Hawaii will also lift its requirement that people wear masks indoors once that level has been reached, he said. The state Department of Health website said 59% of Hawaii's population has had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 52% finished their dosing regimen. The state is using its figures, and not those provided by the CDC, to calculate thresholds for lifting restrictions. Health Department Director Dr. Libby Char said that's because Hawaii's numbers are more accurate. She said it appears the CDC has been counting some of Hawaii's doses twice. Right now, travelers arriving from out of state must spend 10 days in quarantine or, to bypass that quarantine, they must show proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken before departure for the islands. Once 60% of Hawaii's population is vaccinated, Ige said, the state will allow travelers to bypass a quarantine requirement as long as they can prove they were vaccinated in the US. Restrictions on travel between the islands will open up before that.<br/>

The UK and US should urgently implement reciprocal quarantine-free travel to boost the economic recovery from the pandemic, according to a prominent British business leader. “Opening up the US corridor is imperative as soon as possible,” said Karan Bilimoria, president of the Confederation of British Industry, which represents 190,000 businesses in the UK. The rapid vaccine rollout in both countries means “it should happen as soon as we can,” he said Friday. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to discuss the issue with US President Joe Biden at the G-7 summit in Cornwall, England next week, and officials on both sides of the Atlantic have been in talks. Yet the UK tightened its border rules this week by imposing quarantine on travelers from Portugal, disrupting holidaymakers’ plans and slamming the travel industry. More than half of Britain’s adult population has now received two doses of a coronavirus vaccine, while about 40% of the population in the US is fully vaccinated. Nevertheless, the UK continues to be cautious on travel due to fears that new Covid-19 mutations could prove resistant to vaccines. At the same time, the British government is under significant pressure from the airline industry to ease travel restrictions after more than a year of Covid-19 rules has brought the sector to its knees. <br/>

Airlines in the US and Canada are pressing Justin Trudeau’s government for a plan to allow more flights, after a Canadian advisory panel said it’s time to loosen Covid-19 restrictions at the border. The government should “clearly spell out how and when we will restart air travel between Canada and the US, with the objective of releasing the plan prior to June 21,” the National Airlines Council of Canada and Airlines for America said in a joint letter Friday to three Canadian cabinet ministers. Airlines For America represents major carriers including American Airlines Group and Southwest as well as cargo shippers FedEx and UPS. Last week, an advisory body set up by Trudeau’s government said it’s safe to begin relaxing rules in place for most of the pandemic that have decimated travel between the two countries. Right now, most people entering Canada have to endure a 14-day quarantine, and those arriving through airports are supposed to spend as much as three days in an approved hotel while they wait for test results -- though hundreds have opted to skip the hotels and pay fines instead. The advisory group said fully-vaccinated travelers should be exempt from both quarantine and pre-departure virus tests and Canada should drop the hotel quarantine entirely. Trudeau, however, has yet to outline a timeline for reopening, other than to say it will depend on cases and vaccination levels. About 60% of Canada’s population has received one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. Just 6% have received two shots, but with vaccine supplies improving, the government has said all eligible Canadians will be able to be fully vaccinated by September.<br/>

The EU will seal off its skies and runways to Belarusian airlines as of Saturday in response to the forced diversion of a Ryanair flight and detention of a dissident journalist and his girlfriend last month. The 27 countries are obliged “to deny permission to land in, take off from or overfly their territories to any aircraft operated by Belarusian air carriers”, the bloc announced on Friday after member states envoys in Brussels formally signed off the move. Belarusian journalist Roman Protasevich and his girlfriend Sofia Sapega were on board a commercial flight between EU countries Greece and Lithuania that was diverted to Minsk soon before it reached Vilnius after an alleged bomb threat. No bomb was found, but both were detained. The bloc slammed the act as an affront to both air safety and freedom of the press. The EU has also called on all EU-based carriers to avoid flying over Belarusian territory. The IATA condemned Minsk's behaviour but also criticised the EU. “Two wrongs do not make a right. Politics should never interfere with the safe operation of aircraft and politicians should never use aviation safety as a cover to pursue political or diplomatic agendas,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s DG.<br/>

The German government is backing an extension of EU carbon pricing that will end free carbon permits for airlines, putting pressure on the UK to put in place a similar package to meet climate targets. The EC will propose a dozen climate policies on 14 July, each designed to slash greenhouse gases faster in line with an EU goal to cut net emissions by 55% by 2030 from 1990 levels. The package will include reforms to the EU carbon market and a border levy to impose CO2 costs on imported goods. All the policies will need approval from EU governments and the European parliament. Boris Johnson has pledged to give details of how the UK will meet climate targets ahead of the Cop26 conference in Glasgow this year. Ministers are concerned that the costs of transition arrangements to reduce emissions 78% by 2035 will dramatically force up the cost of fuel for transportation, including flying, potentially prompting protests and a backbench rebellion by Tory MPs. According to a document seen by Reuters, Germany backed the commission’s plan to impose CO2 prices on transport and heating in buildings through a separate system to the EU’s existing carbon market. “The long-term goal should be to have a uniform cross-sector carbon price in the EU,” the document said. The carbon market forces factories, power plants and airlines to buy permits when they pollute in the EU. Industry and airlines get some for free, shielding them from carbon prices that have soared to record highs this year. Story has more.<br/>

British tourists scrambled to leave Portugal over the weekend in order to beat a Tuesday deadline for a new quarantine imposed by the British government on those returning from Portugal over concerns about a dangerous virus variant. Britain had recently put Portugal, one of the most popular destinations for British tourists, and 12 other countries and territories with low coronavirus caseloads on a “green list,” allowing visitors coming from Britain to avoid a quarantine period upon returning from those locations. Britons fatigued by a miserable winter and a four-month national lockdown had just begun flocking to Portugal, because most of the other green-listed places were either not accepting tourists or were not already favored destinations. The process still involved several forms and PCR virus tests, whose costs can total hundreds of dollars. The decision Thursday to reintroduce restrictions was heavily criticized by British travel operators and opposition politicians. But the government defended the move as a health-safety requirement to help Britain fight a new coronavirus variant that was first detected in India, known now as the Delta variant. Britain’s switch of travel rules for Portugal prompted thousands of British tourists to pay extra to rebook early return flights. BA and other airlines added flight capacity to help bring them home. The latest quarantine decision came less than a week after thousands of English soccer fans had visited Porto, in northern Portugal, to watch the final of the Champions League, with no quarantine restriction.<br/>

Morocco will reopen its airports and ports to international passenger traffic from June 15, both for its own citizens and foreign nationals, the foreign ministry said on Sunday. All travellers will be admitted into the country if they have been vaccinated against COVID-19 or had a negative PCR test, the ministry said. Nationals of countries where the coronavirus is surging or those lacking reliable data will have to provide a special permit to enter Morocco and have a negative test, it said. Morocco has last month eased a set of restrictive measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic, allowing cinemas and theatres to re-open as it continues its vaccination campaign. <br/>

As nations begin cautiously to reopen borders closed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Asean and the EU have agreed to a landmark aviation agreement, the first region-to-region pact of its kind, that will allow for more flights between them. Under the Asean-EU Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement, airlines from the 37 member countries within Asean and the European Union will be able to fly any number of services between both regions. They will also be able to fly up to 14 weekly passenger services, and any number of cargo services via and beyond to any third country. This could lead to more non-stop flights between Singapore and major European hubs, creating more competition between airlines and thus cheaper fares on such routes, said an expert. Singapore's Ministry of Transport (MOT) on Friday said the agreement would improve air connectivity between Asean and Europe, and facilitate exchanges between people and businesses. "This will help support economic development in both regions as we work towards recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic," said MOT.<br/>

China’s state-led development model is making it increasingly difficult to attract foreign investment and secure advanced technology for its commercial aviation industry, analysts have warned. The country’s medium and long-term economic plans include ambitious targets for the global expansion of its aviation and aerospace industries, but so far, the state-directed model, which relies on subsidies for domestic firms and technology transfers, has not made a significant impact. The C919, a single-aisle passenger jet made by the state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China that Beijing hopes will compete globally with Airbus and Boeing, relies heavily on foreign imported components, in particular those made by US companies. But China’s success in using acquired technology has made many Western firms cautious about doing business if technology transfers are involved. Scott W Harold, a senior political scientist at the Rand Corporation, said it was becoming more difficult for China to acquire the key technology it needed in exchange for market access after a number of state-owned firms pushed their one-time partners out of the Chinese market after acquiring their technology. “I think China continues to need to import technology and capital. It’s having a harder time doing it,” Harold said. The impact of US government restrictions on technology exports are also being felt. In March, the Zhejiang branch of the National Development and Reform Commission highlighted the restrictions as a major hurdle during a public consultation on the latest five-year plan. Story has more.<br/>

It has been more than a year since Captain Dejphon Poolpun last took to the skies. The Thai Airways pilot has not received any flying allowance at all, while his basic salary was cut as the company suffered billions of losses. The hiatus in flying has meant a complete change in his lifestyle. These days, he spends much of his time in the kitchen of his Bangkok home, where he bakes tray after tray of brownies for his online shop Flying Sweets. Due to the pandemic, he lost 60% of his salary as a pilot. Across the region, many pilots and flight attendants have been laid off, while others are forced to take substantial pay cuts. Many had to supplement their income by selling food or other goods. Meanwhile, airlines continue to suffer losses, forcing companies to downsize their fleet and employees and make drastic changes to their business strategies. Thai Airways, for example, had to file a business reorganisation petition to the country’s Central Bankruptcy Court. Meanwhile, others like Malaysia Airlines and Garuda Indonesia have been engaged in negotiation processes with airplane leasing firms and creditors to restructure their loans. The pandemic has caused a massive drop in the number of passengers worldwide and carriers from the region have not been spared. Story has more on Southeast Asia.<br/>

Airlines are planning for the same number of business-class travelers as before the pandemic struck, according to the boss of Airbus, suggesting the human touch is here to stay in global trade. Even if companies want to fly less to reduce pollution, they’re afraid of missing out when it comes to meeting clients and suppliers, the plane maker’s Chief Executive Officer Guillaume Faury told Swiss newspaper NZZ am Sonntag, citing discussions with airlines. “If they no longer meet their customers, but the competitors do, then they are at a competitive disadvantage,” Faury said. “Do without business trips? That does not work.” The airline industry has suffered severe strain during the pandemic as flight bans kept tourists and business executives grounded. Airbus maintained a brisk pace of jet deliveries in May, and its tally for the first five months of the year is well ahead of the same tally for 2020. That’s an indication of why the Toulouse, France-based company is optimistic about an eventual recovery in demand. “One thing is clear to me is that people want to fly again. Hardly more, but probably also no less than before the pandemic,” Faury said. Above all, he said, people want to “fly better” and in future passengers will not book economy but opt for premium economy or even business class.<br/>