Star Alliance has been named Airline Alliance of the Year at the Air Transport Awards for the fourth consecutive time. The Air Transport Awards recognise excellence and innovation in various categories of the global aviation sector. A panel of aviation industry experts selected Star Alliance in recognition of its exceptional contribution to the future of air travel. Winners were announced on February 10 at an award ceremony held in Ekali, Greece. Accepting the accolade, Jeffrey Goh CEO Star Alliance commented: “Star Alliance is truly honoured to be a repeat winner of the prestigious Air Transport Award. Continued recognition of this nature is testament to our innovative spirit and our shared commitment in improving the customer experience. This award encourages us as we collectively emerge from the deepest crisis our industry has ever encountered.” Established in 2012, Air Transport Awards are the only international prizes that award all the main categories of the air transport industry. Dr Kostas Iatrou, President of the Air Transport Awards said: "This year we award Star Alliance as the Alliance of the Year for its unwavering commitment to make flight travel a truly customer friendly experience on all levels and phases by adopting innovation, sustainability and working to provide constantly improving digital easy-to-use services. Star Alliance members have once more proven their commitment to well-being of their passengers by adopting the highest Diamond Health Safety level in APEX Health Safety.”<br/>
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Star Alliance has been named Airline Alliance of the Year at the Air Transport Awards for the fourth<br/>consecutive time. The Air Transport Awards recognise excellence and innovation in various categories of the global aviation sector. A panel of aviation industry experts selected Star Alliance in recognition of its exceptional contribution to the future of air travel. Winners were announced on February 10 at an award ceremony held in Ekali, Greece. Accepting the accolade, Jeffrey Goh, CEO Star Alliance, commented: “Star Alliance is truly honoured to be a repeat winner of the prestigious Air Transport Award. Continued recognition of this nature is testament to our innovative spirit and our shared commitment in improving the customer experience. This award encourages us as we collectively emerge from the deepest crisis our industry has ever encountered.” Dr Kostas Iatrou, President of the Air Transport Awards, said: "This year we award Star Alliance as the Alliance of the Year for its unwavering commitment to make flight travel a truly customer friendly experience on all levels and phases by adopting innovation, sustainability and working to provide constantly improving digital easy-to-use services. Star Alliance members have once more proven their commitment to well-being of their passengers by adopting the highest Diamond Health Safety level in APEX Health Safety.”<br/>
Turkish Airlines has advertised in the Super Bowl almost as many times (6) as Tom Brady has rings (7), and this Sunday’s Big Game spot about the connectivity of the airline’s route network, “making far feel close, bringing there to here,” is a standout winner. “Pangea,” the 30-second spot — with costs for these ads estimated in the $6-$7m range — will air in the second quarter in 136 countries. It’s part of a global advertising campaign that Turkish Airlines kicked off Thursday. The Turkish Airlines ad in Super Bowl LVI might be said to have two main characters in that actor Morgan Freeman is the sole narrator, but the visual effects, including computer-generated animated images of separated land masses and continents reuniting, reverting to their supposed supercontinent status during the Pangea era, should get equal billing. Story has more. <br/>
Kenya authorized Ethiopian Airlines Group and Qatar Airways to deploy additional cargo flights to meet extra demand for flowers for Valentine’s Day. Ethiopia’s national carrier was granted 24 flights and the Qatari airline was allowed five “extra ad-hoc flights” between the end of January and mid-February to ease freight constraints facing Kenyan flower producers, according to Gilbert Kibe, director general of the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority. The additional flights complement existing capacity by licensed carriers including Kenya Airways, he said. The Feb. 14 holiday accounts for about 50% of Kenya’s annual cut flower shipments and there isn’t sufficient belly space on passenger flights, which normally account for about half of shipments, according to Clement Tulezi, CEO at lobby group Kenya Flower Council. Kenya’s flower industry is the largest exporter of blooms to Europe. It sells about 70% of its flowers to the region through Amsterdam. Weekly freight demand is about 5,200 tons during the Valentine’s Day season, but capacity—even with the additional freighters—will be 3,000 tons, leaving flower producers with a shortfall of more than 2,000 tons, Tulezi said. Cargo space constraints and doubling of airfreight charges to an average of $5.70 per kilogram threaten to dampen spirits for farmers given the strong demand and higher prices for roses. Freight costs averaged $2.40 per kilogram last year, Tulezi said.<br/>
Singapore's civil aviation authority and state-investor Temasek will support the city-state's flagship carrier Singapore Airlines in buying sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from top U.S. oil producer Exxon Mobil Corp for use in flights, the parties said on Friday. Its use is expected to reduce about 2,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions during the one-year pilot program starting from Q3 this year. The carrier will use the blended SAF from Exxon Mobil in its planes and Scoot flights. The fuel will comprise 1.25 million litres of neat SAF, supplied by Finnish oil refiner Neste Oyj, mixed with refined jet fuel at Exxon Mobil's facilities in Singapore, the parties said. SAF generally produces up to 70% less carbon than fossil fuels and is being looked at as a way of making flying more environmentally friendly prior to the introduction of carbon-intensive hybrid, electric or hydrogen airplanes.<br/>
Singapore Airlines has resumed recruitment of cabin crew, ending a hiring freeze over the past two years as the Covid-19 pandemic decimated air travel around the world, Channel News Asia reported on Saturday. The resumption of hiring for cabin crew comes as travel to and from the city-state recovers and countries around the world ease travel restrictions following an increase in vaccination rates against the disease. “Most of our pilots and cabin crew have returned to active duty with SIA,” Channel News Asia reported, citing a statement from the carrier. The airline plans to increase its capacity “in a calibrated manner” as travel demand picks up, it added. Singapore’s government has initiated vaccinated travel corridors with dozens of countries, helping the carrier’s group load factor rise to 46.5% in December from 13.7% the previous year. In September 2020, the company eliminated about 4,300 jobs, or 20% of its workforce, as the coronavirus outbreak devastated the aviation industry. The carrier has raised S$21.6b ($16b) in additional liquidity since April 2020 to help cover expenses and survive the pandemic.<br/>
When air travel picks up after the Covid-19 pandemic, passengers of SIA can look forward to flying on board a new fleet of aircraft with brand-new cabin concepts. SIA is waiting to take delivery of the 31 Boeing 777-9 aeroplanes that it had ordered to replace the earlier-generation large widebody aircraft. On Sunday, the airline's vice-president of product innovation, Ng Yung Han, told the media about some of the new cabin features that passengers can expect. He was speaking on board a Boeing 777-9 flight-test plane, which will be making its Asian debut during the Singapore Airshow 2022, where it will be involved in an aerial demonstration. The Boeing 777-9 has a seating capacity of around 400, depending on configuration, and a range of nearly 14,000km. SIA purchased the first batch of the aircraft in 2017, and the airline began developing cabin concepts in 2018, taking in feedback from customers, Ng said. "The pandemic has given us more time to revisit and reiterate some of the concepts we have. We have conducted more sessions with our customers, Boeing, our designers, as well as our seat manufacturers," he added. "The outcome is a more robust and thoughtful design." The design includes a "quantum leap" in first class from that of the current fleet. It will be more spacious and have several suite-like features that will be more exclusive and private, Ng said. Companion travel in first class will also be developed to go beyond just couple-seating and double beds.<br/>
Air New Zealand is helping to bring in tens of millions of Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) to support Aotearoa's COVID-19 response over the coming months. The airline is operating nine charter flights through to February 20, and Air NZ's General Manager Cargo Anna Palairet says there are plenty more in the works. "Operating these charter flights was a no-brainer. There is a real urgency to bring Rapid Antigen Tests into New Zealand, and we're proud to be playing our part in getting them here. It's truly been a fantastic team effort between Air NZ Ministry of Health and the freight forwarders," she said. "We've been operating charters for RAT kits since December, but things are really ramping up now. In addition to charters, we've also been making use of capacity on commercial flights. Where we've got space, we're using it for RATs. While we are constrained by available aircraft and operating crew for charter flights, having our 777-300 back in action from last week will help to increase cargo capacity across the network. "We know the demand is there, and our teams are doing everything they can to try and fulfil it." Air NZ has seen its cargo business skyrocket over the past two years, with an estimated 200 million tonnes of product carried since 2020.<br/>