general

Airlines canceled more than 900 flights in and out of US airports on Wednesday, a sign of continuing stress for the industry and travelers ahead of the New Year’s holiday weekend. The problems began to mount the day before Christmas as carriers contended with staffing shortages driven by the fast-spreading Omicron variant of the coronavirus, as well as foul winter weather. Cancellations peaked on Sunday, when more than 1,500 flights to, from or within the United States — more than 6 percent of scheduled flights — were scrubbed, according to FlightAware. On Tuesday, airlines canceled nearly 1,300 flights, led by United Airlines, which grounded about 6% of its trips, and Delta, which canceled 4% of its schedule. The cancellations come during one of the busiest times for air travel and as the industry hopes to resume profitability after two brutal years for travel. More than 13 million people have been screened at airport security checkpoints over the past week, according to the TSA, down about 18% from a similar period in 2019. But while airline disruptions have grabbed headlines this year, the industry is on track to end the year with fewer cancellations as a share of scheduled flights than in 2019, according to FlightAware data.<br/>

Aircraft makers feared the coronavirus pandemic would deal them and the buyers of their jets, the airlines and leasing groups, a near-mortal blow. Eighteen months on, passengers have returned — but mostly on short-haul routes. As passenger demand nears or even matches pre-pandemic levels on shorter journeys where smaller, single-aisle jets are used, long-haul traffic remains subdued with many of the big wide-body planes that fly the intercontinental routes still sitting idle. With more than 1,400 of these twin-aisle jets still in storage in aircraft hangars at the start of December, according to data from aviation consultancy Cirium, the timing of a recovery in the wide-body market remains uncertain. Although the numbers are down from the peak of the pandemic in March 2020 when about 3,586 twin-aisles were in storage, it is still almost 30% of the current fleet as airlines have been slow to bring these planes back into service. It is a sharp contrast to pre-pandemic times when some executives say there were too many larger aircraft after a decade of strong production and deliveries. Story has more.<br/>

Dubai Airport is carrying out random PCR tests on arrival for some flights as part of efforts to limit the spread of Covid-19. Screening on arrival is already mandatory on Emirates flights from more than 50 countries, including Brazil, India, Pakistan and Russia. But authorities have confirmed additional testing is being carried out on flights not included on this list. "PCR tests are mandatory for the flights mentioned on Emirates' website,” said a Dubai Media Office statement. “However, as part of the extra precautionary measures, Dubai Airport may conduct random tests upon arrival for certain flights." Residents returning to Dubai in recent days posted on social media about how they had been asked to complete PCR tests on arrival at Dubai International from the UK, which is not on the list of countries from which a swab on arrival is compulsory.<br/>

India’s airlines and airports have been asked by the government to play Indian music in a bid to promote the country’s culture. In a letter marked to airlines and airport operators on 27 December, the federal government’s Civil Aviation Ministry wrote: “Music played by most of the airlines across the globe is quintessential of the country to which the airline belongs: for example, jazz in American airlines or Mozart in Austrian airlines and Arab music in an airline from the Middle East. But, Indian airlines seldom play Indian music in the flight...our music has a rich heritage and culture and it is one of the many things every Indian has a reason for [being] truly proud.” Currently, airlines and airports play instrumental piped music. The move comes a week after the Indian Council for Cultural Research (ICCR), an autonomous body under the Ministry of External Affairs, asked civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia to promote Indian music on flights. In its letter to airlines and airport authorities, the civil aviation ministry acknowledged the ICCR’s request. “It is extremely unfortunate that most airlines in India, both private and government-owned, as well as both domestic and international, seldom, if at all, play Indian music. Our music mirrors our rich heritage and culture and it is one of the many things every Indian has a reason to be truly proud of,” the letter had said.<br/>

Almost two decades since Concorde retired, interest around supersonic travel has been picking up pace, and several super-fast planes are under development. Airlines seem interested: United has already committed itself to offering supersonic routes as early as 2029. But what about hypersonic travel, which happens at speeds of Mach 5 -- five times the speed of sound -- and above? That would get an aircraft from New York to London in just 90 minutes, compared to about three hours for Concorde, and between six to seven hours for a regular passenger jet. Is it even possible? Hermeus, an Atlanta-based startup whose goal is to develop hypersonic aircraft, believes so. It's already testing a new type of engine it says will eventually be capable of reaching Mach 5 (over 3,000 mph). The engine is designed for a small, unmanned hypersonic aircraft Hermeus is currently creating for the US Air Force, but scaled to a bigger size, it will be able to power a passenger plane. That passenger plane is a long way away -- Hermeus hopes to get it in the air for the first test flight before the decade is out, in 2029 -- but because its technology has to be built almost entirely from the ground up, the company is already planning it out. For a start, it will be much smaller than current airliners and even Concorde, which had a capacity of around 100 passengers. Story has more.<br/>