European regulators have approved half of the state aid pledged to Air Baltic by the Latvian state earlier this year. The Latvian government – which is the carrier’s majority shareholder – agreed on a E90m equity injection into Air Baltic in August to “compensate the losses caused by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and to support overcoming the economic crisis”, the airline says. Some E45m of that intended investment has been approved by the EC, Air Baltic says on 22 December, with the rest of the equity “still subject to the approval”. It does not indicate when a decision can be expected on the remaining portion. “The support of our majority shareholder to overcome the crisis reflects the recognition of the positive impact Air Baltic has on the economy,” says Air Baltic CE Martin Gauss. “The European Commission has concluded that the Covid-19 pandemic qualifies as such an exceptional occurrence that exceptional interventions by member states to compensate for the damages linked to it are justified.”<br/>
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Ryanair has warned its losses this year could be more than double what it feared and has slashed flying schedules in response to the rapid spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant and travel restrictions across Europe. The low-cost carrier on Wednesday issued guidance forecasting losses for the financial year ending in March to rise from between E100m and E200m to a range of E250m-E450m. In a sign of the uncertainty facing the industry, Ryanair also warned the new forecast was “hugely sensitive to any further positive or negative Covid news flow”. The sudden emergence of the variant has “notably weakened close-in Christmas and New Year bookings”, Ryanair said in a statement. The warning is the most detailed information yet on how travel bans have hit bookings across what is normally a busy period for European airlines. Industry executives had been hoping that the worst of the crisis was well behind them and celebrated the steady easing since the summer of most travel restrictions, including expensive testing. Instead, the outlook has again darkened nearly two years into the crisis for aviation. Ryanair pointed in particular to the decisions by French and German governments to ban most travellers from the UK, and the suspension of all EU flights to and from Morocco. In response, the airline said it expected to carry fewer passengers than forecast in December, and cut its January flying schedules by 33 per cent. Taken together, Ryanair said it expected to carry “just under” 100m passengers in its financial year, down from its previous guidance of above 100m. The airline has not yet decided whether to cut flight plans for February and March, but said it would revisit its schedules “as more scientific information becomes available”.<br/>
Wizz Air will increase its presence in the UK after agreeing to buy takeoff and landing slots from Norwegian Air Shuttle at London’s Gatwick hub. Budapest-based Wizz will acquire 15 daily slot pairs at Gatwick, where operations are restricted by a single runway, allowing it to increase its number of jets there from four to five, according to a statement on Wednesday. While no sale value for the slots was given, DNB Bank ASA estimates that they are worth 300 million-400 million Norwegian krone ($34m-$45m) at current prices. The selling price was likely in line with that estimate, analyst Ole Martin Westgaard said in a note. The slots may have been worth almost 10 times that amount before the coronavirus pandemic upended air travel, according to DNB. Norwegian Air said earlier it sold the excess slots at the London airport following a decision earlier this year to exit long-haul flying. The slots could have been taken away without compensation had they not been offloaded, the carrier said. Boosting flights in Britain will bring Wizz a bigger share of Europe’s largest low-cost aviation market and help it take on rivals EasyJet, which counts Gatwick as its biggest base, and Ryanair. Wizz CEO Jozsef Varadi has been demanding that the UK return to rules compelling airlines to surrender slots unless they utilize 80% of them after the requirement was watered down at the height of the coronavirus crisis.<br/>
Indian start-up carrier Akasa Air has unveiled its branding as it continues preparations to launch flights next summer. Plans for Akasa first emerged from one of its backers, Indian billionaire Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, in August. The airline in October said it had secured a no-objection certification from the country’s aviation regulator and the following month disclosed an order for 72 Boeing 737 Max aircraft at the Dubai air show. The carrier has now unveiled its livery and branding, including its ‘Rising A’ symbol and the tagline, ‘It’s Your Sky’. Akasa CE Vinay Dube says: “Translating our purpose to serve every traveller with an innovative yet simple alternative required a modern and confident symbol. The Akasa Air brand identity encapsulates the collective spirit of flying and the individual pursuit of dreams for each of us.”<br/>