A rebound in global airline capacity should accelerate in the second half of next year, but trans-Atlantic traffic likely won’t return to pre-pandemic levels until 2023, according to an aviation consulting firm. Additionally, airfares are poised to rise significantly next year, owing to higher costs from labor and addressing environmental issues, “plus the need for airlines to rebuild their balance sheets,” said Richard Evans, a senior consultant at Cirium. The UK firm released its 2022 aviation forecast on Wednesday. Airlines borrowed heavily in 2020 to withstand the downturn from the Covid-19 pandemic, with traffic declining more than 80% in most markets. Globally, Cirium predicts that airline capacity as measured by seat miles per kilometer will rise 47% next year, putting the industry back at its 2015 levels for the year. For North America, the company forecasts a 37% increase in 2022, due to the large US domestic recovery already under way this year. Global airline capacity is ending this year 31% below 2019, Cirium said, though domestic markets in China and the US have surpassed pre-pandemic levels. One large unknown factor for next year is the impact of coronavirus variants and whether governments will re-impose broad border closures, which would reduce global airline capacity and passenger flows. Cirium said the industry is better positioned than in 2020 because of the widespread availability of vaccines and boosters.<br/>
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US lawmakers urged major airlines to back mandatory training for flight crew members to address violent incidents amid a record number of disruptive onboard incidents. The FAA said Wednesday it has received a record 5,779 unruly passenger reports this year, including 4,156 incidents related to a requirement passengers wear masks to guard against the coronavirus pandemic. The FAA, which has pledged a "zero-tolerance" approach, said last month it had referred 37 unruly passengers to the FBI for potential criminal prosecution. The FAA has initiated 1,054 investigations and 325 enforcement actions. On Wednesday, House of Representatives Homeland Security chair Bennie Thompson and Transportation and Infrastructure chair Peter DeFazio and two key subcommittee chairs sent letters to the CEOs of American Airlines, Delta, United and Southwest urging them to require crew members to attend the TSA's Crew Member Self Defense Training Program. The lawmakers want to ensure "they are equipped with the necessary skills to deter and mitigate dangerous situations as unruly passenger behavior spikes across the country." They want airlines to provide crewmembers with paid time, travel and accommodations to participate in the training led by federal air marshals. TSA resumed offering its free self-defense program in July after pausing the course due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the lawmakers noted. American Airlines said on Wednesday it holds "the safety of our frontline team members as our highest priority, and we appreciate these lawmakers' commitment to helping protect it. We are reviewing the letter."<br/>
Aviation and telecom groups said Wednesday they will share data to help resolve safety concerns related to new 5G wireless service, which Verizon Communications and AT&T are slated to roll out on Jan. 5. “We are pleased that after productive discussions we will be working together to share the available data from all parties to identify the specific areas of concern for aviation,” wireless trade group CTIA, Airlines for America and the Aerospace Industries Association said in a joint statement. The FAA last month raised concerns that the 5G service could interfere with aircraft radio altimeters. Earlier this month it issued an order that could prohibit pilots from using radio altimeters to land when visibility is low. The CTIA has said the service upgrade would not interfere with those altimeters and has noted that other countries have rolled out 5G without issues. “The FAA is encouraged that avionics manufacturers and wireless companies are taking steps to test how dozens of radio altimeters will perform in the high-powered 5G environment envisioned for the United States,” the agency said. Airline executives last week warned of costly flight disruptions due to the problem. Such flight cancellations, if they were to occur, would come as the industry is looking to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. “If we go back to decades-old procedures and technology for flying airplanes, cancel thousands of flights per day ... it will be a catastrophic failure of government,” United CEO Scott Kirby told reporters after a Senate hearing on Dec. 15. The CEOs of Boeing and Airbus on Monday wrote to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to support a delay to the 5G rollout and proposed limiting cellular transmissions near airports where those radio altimeters would be used. The FCC did not comment on a potential delay to the rollout but said: “We remain optimistic that we will resolve outstanding issues to launch 5G to meet the country’s evolving needs.”<br/>
Airbus is on track to meet its 600-jet delivery goal for 2021, according to people familiar with the situation, though holdups with the handover of some wide-body aircraft have complicated the issue. As of mid-December the European planemaker had shipped around half of the 82 jets it must deliver this month to meet the full-year goal, according to one of the people, who asked not to be named discussing production matters. The push has been hindered by snags involving completed twin-aisle A350s not yet accepted by airlines. Russia’s Aeroflot postponed the handover of two because traffic levels aren’t sufficient, a spokesman said, while some China-bound planes are said to be on hold and may ship in coming days. Ethiopian Airlines Group said it will take two jets this month under a revised plan. Airbus faces what’s become an annual scramble to accelerate build rates in order to meet one of its main metrics, though this year the push may be especially challenging as suppliers struggle to lift parts production after shuttering factories at the height of the coronavirus crisis. Some airline customers have also pushed back deliveries to preserve cash while they await a recovery in long-haul travel demand.<br/>