United Airlines said Tuesday that 593 of its employees are facing termination for failing to comply with its Covid-19 vaccination policy, one of the strictest mandates for inoculation from a US company. More than 96% of United’s 67,000-person US workforce complied with the vaccine requirement. The deadline to upload proof of inoculation, or the first shot if receiving a two-dose vaccine, was late Monday. Roughly 2,000 United employees sought exemptions from the mandate, which the airline announced this summer, for religious or medical reasons. The Chicago-based airline had said staff to whom it grants such exemptions will be placed on temporary unpaid leave. “And we know for some, that decision was a reluctant one. But there’s no doubt in our minds that some of you will have avoided a future hospital stay — or even death — because you got vaccinated,” United’s CEO, Scott Kirby, and the company’s president, Brett Hart, told employees in a note Tuesday. Unvaccinated employees without exemptions face termination, though that process could take weeks. “This was an incredibly difficult decision but keeping our team safe has always been our first priority,” United’s Kirby and Hart said. Staff that didn’t upload a proof of vaccine spanned various work groups, such as pilots, flight attendants and mechanics, a spokesman said, declining to provide more detail. However, a United spokesman said the company is willing to work with some unvaccinated employees during the termination process if they change their mind about getting inoculated. The carrier isn’t expecting operational problems because of terminations, the spokesman added. Employees fired for not getting vaccinated would be terminated on the grounds of violating a company safety policy, which could make them ineligible for unemployment benefits.<br/>
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United expanded its reach to southern African destinations like Madagascar, Mozambique and Victoria Falls, inking a code-share agreement with a growing local carrier. The deal with closely held SA Airlink Pty Ltd. adds connections to more than 40 African locations for travelers from the US. It’s the latest sign of a reopening of international travel in the region following the coronavirus pandemic. “United continues to demonstrate our commitment to Africa, starting three brand-new flights to the continent this year alone,” Patrick Quayle, VP of international network and alliances at United, said Tuesday. Airlink is bidding to fill a void left by national carrier South African Airways, which recently emerged from bankruptcy proceedings and is flying to limited destinations. Airlink, known before the pandemic as a way to get from Johannesburg to small towns dotted around the country, signed a similar deal with Gulf giant Emirates in August. <br/>
It hasn't been a great year for airlines, thanks to Covid's impact on the aviation industry, but for one Middle East carrier it's just got a lot better. Qatar Airways has taken the top spot in the latest ranking of the world's best airlines by Skytrax, a review body that also produces a hotly anticipated annual list of best airports. The Doha-based airline latest accolade follows on the heels of its earlier win at this year's AirlineRatings.com awards. Skytrax World Airline Awards are voted for by travelers via a customer survey, which this time ran from September 2019 to July 2021. Travelers were asked about the performance and quality of more than 350 global airlines. Number two on Skytrax's list went to Singapore Airlines, while ANA All Nippon Airways came in at number three. This is Qatar Airways sixth time winning the Skytrax top prize. This year it was also awarded World's Best Business Class, World's Best Business Class Seat, Best Airline in the Middle East, World's Best Business Class Airline Lounge and Best Business Class Onboard Catering. "It is clear that Qatar Airways has maintained its high standards of innovation and service standards, both in more normal times and through the current global pandemic," said Skytrax CEO Edward Plaisted. Rounding out Skytrax's top five are Emirates and Japan Airlines. Second place Singapore Airlines was also crowned Best Airline in Asia, and won for Best Cabin Crew, World's Best First Class, World's Best First Class Seat and Best Economy Class Onboard Catering. Third place ANA Al Nippon Airways was also recognized as home of the World's Cleanest Airline Cabins, World's Best Airport Services, Best Airline Staff in Asia and Best First Class Lounge in Asia.<br/>
Demand for transatlantic flights has jumped since the United States announced plans last week to reopen to fully vaccinated travellers from countries including most of Europe, German airline Lufthansa said Tuesday. On some days last week, bookings for transatlantic flights were up threefold from the week before, with demand on some routes nearing pre-crisis levels, it said in a statement. The United States said last week it would reopen in November to air travellers from 33 countries including China, India, Brazil and most of Europe who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. For the large traditional European airline players, such as IAG, Lufthansa and Air France-KLM, the decision represents a chance to recover the transatlantic routes that are key to their profits. Lufthansa said bookings for December flights to the United States reached pre-crisis levels last week.<br/>
Funds managing nearly $30t in assets called on Wednesday for 1,600 of the world's most polluting companies to "urgently" set science-based emissions reduction targets. The 220 investors, including Fidelity International and Amundi, said they had written to CEOs of firms they invest in demanding targets that would help cap global warming at no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial levels by 2050. Their call comes just over a month before world leaders meet in Britain for the latest round of global climate talks, with all countries challenged to set tougher targets as the impacts of climate change become more pronounced. The group said that the companies in question collectively account for 11.9 gigatons of so-called Scope 1 and 2 emissions, those tied to their operations, which totalled more than the EU and US combined. It said Hyundai Motor Company, chemicals company BASF and Lufthansa were among those approached. A Lufthansa spokesperson pointed to the airline's commitment to be net zero by 2050, and halve its net carbon emissions and be carbon neutral in its ground operations by 2030.<br/>
South African Airways and Kenya Airways have signed a cooperation agreement with a long-term view to create a pan-African airline group, the two companies said on Tuesday. “It is not a merger but a partnership that seeks to re-organise KQ and SAA assets into an ecosystem that will make the South African and Kenyan aviation sector more competitive,” Kenya Airways said. SAA said that the pact did not preclude either firm from pursuing commercial cooperation with other carriers and said collaborating would help contain costs. State-owned SAA restarted domestic flights last week and this week launches a scaled-down international service to five African capitals, after its longstanding financial woes were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.<br/>
Air New Zealand customers booking domestic fares will see some changes from Wednesday as the airline tweaks its fare structure. The national carrier is offered “greater flexibility”, according to Chief Customer and Sales Officer Leanne Geraghty. ”When we first introduced the fare options, flexibility and choice were some of the main drivers. Today, that’s still important and with ongoing uncertainty due to Covid-19, we wanted to give customers the option to buy more flexibility should they want it,” said Geraghty. Story has details of new structure.<br/>