Global airlines blasted governments on Wednesday for worsening the Omicron scare through snap border measures and "rip-off" virus testing regimes, and urged politicians to let travellers make their own decisions based on scientific data. Willie Walsh, DG of the IATA, predicted "knee-jerk" border restrictions resulting from the coronavirus variant would ease soon, but it was too early to say whether holiday travel would be disrupted. "We can't shut down everything when a new variant appears," Walsh told a news briefing, adding hasty travel bans had penalised countries like South Africa for reporting findings. However, he predicted the latest health emergency would be short-lived and said it would not impact IATA forecasts which predict a return of air travel to pre-crisis levels from 2024. Walsh said competition authorities should investigate the prices charged for COVID-19 tests which in some cases bore no relation to their true cost. Britain's competition watchdog said in August it would help the government take action against COVID-19 testing companies if it found they were breaching consumer law, amid concerns about the price and reliability of PCR travel tests in the country. "I hope governments and competition regulators step in and stop consumers being ripped off," Walsh said. "I do think we need to understand how that has happened and where all the money (has) gone."<br/>
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Canada’s ban on travelers from southern African countries and its refusal to recognize these countries’ PCR tests, aimed at preventing the spread of the coronavirus Omicron variant, is an obstacle for Canadians heading home and increasing international pressure to reverse the measures. Canada, the United States, the UK and other countries have enacted Africa-specific travel bans even as Omicron is detected in more than 50 countries around the world. Few countries have imposed Omicron restrictions similar to Canada’s requirement that travelers from 10 southern African countries get PCR tests in a third country before coming to Canada. In the face of travel snarls and accusations that these measures are punitive and lack evidence, Canada is under pressure to reverse them. The head of the World Health Organization, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, called actions barring southern African countries “disappointing” and “dismaying” in a tweet Sunday. Two UN agencies pleaded on Tuesday for bans to be imposed only as a last resort in response to new variants. Canada’s ban caught travelers, including the junior women’s field hockey team, off guard. Some complained of mixed messaging from government agencies. Richard Saunders, a Canadian politics professor who had been doing fieldwork in Zimbabwe and South Africa, was desperate to return home last week.<br/>
More than half of Iran's fleet of civilian aircraft is grounded due to a lack of spare parts, the deputy head of the country's airlines association has said. "The number of inactive planes in Iran has risen to more than 170... as a result of missing spare parts, particularly motors," Alireza Barkhor said in an interview with state news agency IRNA. The shortage represented more than half of the civilian aircraft in the sanctions-hit country, he said in an interview this week. "If this trend continues, we will see even more planes grounded in the near future," Barkhor was quoted as saying. "We hope that one of the priorities of the government will be helping to finance airlines so that they are able to provide the spare parts to refurbish the grounded planes," he added. According to the Iranian economic daily Financial Tribune, national carrier IranAir currently operates a fleet of 39 planes, the majority of them Airbus jets. Iran's economy has struggled under sanctions that were lifted after a landmark nuclear deal in 2015 but reimposed again after the US withdrew from the pact in 2018. In 2016, following the lifting of sanctions, Iran concluded deals to purchase 100 Airbus jets, 80 Boeing planes and 40 ATR aircraft.<br/>
Australia’s competition regulator on Thursday approved a A$23.6b ($16.92b) takeover of Sydney Airport Holdings, bringing one of the country’s biggest buyouts closer to fruition. Sydney Airport last month agreed to be bought out by Sydney Aviation Alliance (SAA), comprising IFM Investors, QSuper, AustralianSuper and US-based Global Infrastructure Partners. An assessment of cross-ownership between Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide airports found limited competition, making it unlikely for any one consortium member to gain control of an airport, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said on Thursday. The deal was unlikely to lessen competition as a result, the ACCC said. It also did not demand IFM divest its stakes in Australian airports. IFM has stakes in nine airports across the country, including a more than 25% share in Melbourne and a 20% interest in Brisbane.<br/>
Nordic Aviation Capital is planning to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this month to carry out its restructuring plan, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The aircraft lessor has shored up support from its largest creditors to implement the plan, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. Major creditors have also agreed to provide financing to help fund Nordic Aviation’s operations through bankruptcy, the people said. A representative for Nordic Aviation declined to comment. Under a previous agreement with its biggest creditor groups, Nordic Aviation said it would convert “a substantial amount” of the group’s debt into equity and raise a $300 million equity rights offering and a $200m revolver. Debt holders led by Silver Point Capital and Sculptor Capital Management are set to take control of the aircraft lessor, Bloomberg reported. The company remains on track to raise $500m of new money, one of the people said. Chapter 11 allows a firm to continue operating while it works out a plan to repay its debts. Founded in Denmark in 1990, Nordic Aviation leases almost 500 aircraft to about 70 airline customers around the world. As of June 2020, it had around $5.7b of debt. Like many of its peers, the company has struggled to contend with the slowdown in air travel amid the pandemic. <br/>