general

UN aviation experts are again discussing toughening emissions standards for commercial aircraft, less than six years before a previously agreed clampdown takes effect. Support for a new emissions standard could put pressure on planemakers, which need years to adapt to rule changes due to long production cycles, to cease producing their least efficient models, two sources familiar with the talks said. Experts from the US and some European countries backed tougher emissions standards during a virtual gathering of the ICAO group this week, according to working papers and sources. One of the sources said ICAO's Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) agreed on Thursday to draft new standards for civil aircraft, as part of broader efforts through 2025 to update rules for aircraft noise and emissions. But it remains unclear when the proposed standards for commercial aircraft, such as those made by planemakers Boeingand Airbus, would be drafted and take effect, and how stringent they would be, the source said. "It's a real struggle to see it all getting done by 2025," the source said. The meeting comes as ICAO is seeking broad agreement this fall on a long-term climate goal amid differences between Europe and China and growing pressure for aviation to curb emissions.<br/>

A coalition of labor unions representing tens of thousands of airline industry workers urged the Justice Department to step up its prosecutions of unruly passengers on Thursday. In a letter to Attorney General Merrick B. Garland, the group asked the department to pursue and prioritize prosecutions of people who assault passenger service agents, many of whom have been attacked at airport gates, ticket and reservation areas and other airport locations during the pandemic. The request comes at a turbulent time for the airline industry, which began to see a spike early last year in violent and disruptive passengers who have refused to follow Covid protocols and attempted to interfere with flight crew. “The department has not meaningfully pursued federal penalties against individuals who assault or interfere with passenger service agents,” the letter said. It was signed by six labor organizations, including the AFL-CIO’s Transportation Trades Department, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Greg Regan, the president of the AFL-CIO’s Transportation Trades Department, said he was pleased to see the Justice Department take some steps to address the rise in violent incidents aboard planes, but that more work needed to be done in response to assaults against passenger service agents. “When you see this sort of widespread violence and abuse toward transportation professionals, this is where leadership from the federal government is vital,” Regan said. The Justice Department declined to comment on the letter Thursday. The department said in November it would prioritize the prosecution of federal crimes on commercial aircraft, but many airline and airport workers have still been unsatisfied with the federal government’s pace of action. There have been 499 unruly passenger reports since the beginning of the year, but only 80 cases have been referred to the FBI for criminal review as of Feb. 15, according to data from the Federal Aviation Administration. In 2021, there were 5,981 unruly passenger reports.<br/>

The next head of the US FAA will face challenges overseeing Boeing and a series of reforms mandated by Congress in the wake of two fatal 737 MAX crashes. The job opened late Wednesday when the FAA announced administrator Steve Dickson, 64, would resign effective March 31, about halfway through his five-year term. Among those mentioned by congressional and industry officials as potential replacements are former pilots C B "Sully" Sullenberger and Lee Moak. Sullenberger, the current US representative on the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), rose to fame in 2009 when he safely landed an Airbus A320 on New York's Hudson River after hitting a flock of geese - known as the "Miracle on the Hudson" flight. Moak, a former president of the Air Line Pilots Association, is currently a member of the US Postal Board of Governors. Dickson headed the FAA as it oversaw a comprehensive review of the then-grounded Boeing 737 MAX. He took a hard line, warning in late 2019 that Boeing was pursuing "a return-to-service schedule that is not realistic." Dickson even piloted the plane in September 2020 for a test flight before approving its return that included extensive training and software updates. The best-selling, single-aisle airplane was grounded for 20 months after two crashes killed 346 people in the space of five months, returning to service in late 2020. Congress approved sweeping legislation in December that year, boosting the FAA's oversight of aircraft manufacturers, requiring disclosure of critical safety information and providing new whistleblower protections. Senate Commerce Committee chair Maria Cantwell said in a statement on Thursday "there is much work still to do to maintain America’s leadership in aviation- implementing congressionally-mandated safety reforms, training a workforce skilled in advanced technology, and furthering aerospace research and development."<br/>

The head of the US FAA who is leaving halfway through his five-year term said on Thursday that he was not pressured by the White House to resign. FAA Administrator Steve Dickson, a pilot and former Delta executive who was tapped for the job by President Donald Trump in 2019, told a small group of reporters he had decided to leave effective March 31 because of family reasons. Asked if Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg or the White House had pressured him to step down, Dickson said no, "in fact, they asked me to stay." Dickson, 64, held up a photo of his family on his cell phone when asked why he is departing. "It's been a tough couple years for my family. I just need to go home," he said. "I am very proud of what we've done at the agency the last couple years to reinvigorate the safety culture." Dickson faced criticism from people inside the Biden administration over a 5G aviation standoff. Airline CEOs on Jan. 17 warned of a "catastrophic" aviation crisis that could have grounded almost all traffic because of the 5G deployment. A White House official told Reuters in an email it was "not true, unequivocally, that (the White House) or anyone asked him to resign. Over anything." Buttigieg praised Dickson's tenure in a statement on Wednesday. "Steve has been the FAA’s steady and skilled captain, and his tenure has been marked by steadfast commitment to the FAA’s safety mission," he said.<br/>

Paris airports operator Groupe ADP expects passenger numbers across its network to be between 70% and 80% of 2019 levels this year and to recover to pre-crisis highs between 2023 and 2024. The operator handled 160m passengers across its airports in 2021, around 45% of pre-pandemic levels. Just over a quarter of these passengers, 41.9 million, came through its two Paris airports, Charles de Gaulle and Orly. That represents 39% of 2019 passenger levels. ADP’s overall traffic performance was aided by a stronger performance across its interests in Indian and Turkish airports – all of which returned to at least half pre-crisis levels last year. ADP CE Augustin de Romanet says: ”The recovery in activity over the second half of the year has enabled the group to stabilise its cash position between mid-July and December 2021. For 2022, traffic group is expected between 70% and 80% of the 2019 level, and Paris airport traffic between 65% and 75% of the 2019 level. The EBITDA margin should be between 30% and 35% and net income should be positive for the year 2022.” The group posted an operating loss of E248m in 2021 – a marked improvement on losses of nearly E1.2b in 2020. ADP sees group traffic recovering to pre-pandemic levels between 2023-24, though it is still projecting a later recovery timeframe for its Paris airports. “The level of traffic reached in 2019 should be recovered between 2024 and 2026 and exceeded from 2026 onwards,” it says. Comprising almost three-quarters of its passenger levels in 2021, de Romanet flags the continued development of its international activities. “In particular the acquisition of Almaty airport, which contributes significantly to improve the group’s EBITDA in 2021 and the gain of the Antalya concession for a further 25 years. Several international assets have been subjects of extensions of concession periods and debt restructurings,” he says.<br/>

PM Fumio Kishida said Thursday that Japan will allow new entries of foreign nationals who are entering the nation for reasons other than tourism, such as foreign students and business travelers, starting March as part of an exit strategy of the sixth wave. “We are gradually walking toward the exit of the sixth wave,” Kishida said in a news conference. “We need to start preparing for the next phase, in stages.” The decision comes following growing calls from universities, business leaders and even members of the ruling party to ease entry restrictions, and concern over the economic and reputational costs of banning entry. Kishida also said he will shorten the quarantine period for all arrivals who have received booster shots to three days. People arriving from some countries where the outbreak is under control may be exempted from quarantine entirely. The daily cap on the number of people allowed to enter Japan will be raised from 3,500 to 5,000 — which will still be the toughest entry restrictions in place among the Group of Seven developed countries. “It is just the first step. I will continue considering how much we can ease measures” on border restrictions, said Kishida.<br/>

Europe’s Airbus predicted 720 plane deliveries and higher profits in 2022 after core operating profit almost trebled last year on a partial recovery in jet deliveries and higher defense and helicopter earnings during the pandemic. Europe’s largest aerospace group also restarted its dividend for the first time in two years after swinging to a record net profit of E4.213b, boosted by the halting of its A380 superjumbo and a reversal of some Covid-19 charges. Airbus said it would propose a dividend of E1.5 a share. The group’s widely watched adjusted operating profit soared to E4.865b from 1.706 billion a year earlier as revenues rose 4% to 52.149b. For 2022, Airbus predicted a core profit of E5.5b. For Q4, Airbus posted E1.496b of adjusted operating income on revenues of 16.994b. Analysts were on average expecting comparable income of 1.364 billion euros on revenues of 16.878 billion, according to a company-compiled consensus. Airbus reaffirmed plans to raise production of its best-selling A320neo family. Net cash rose more than 75% to E7.6b, compared with a pre-crisis level of 12.5b.<br/>

Aviation could face substantial challenges if it’s unable to decarbonize in a timely manner, according to the CEO of Airbus, who added that hydrogen planes represent the “ultimate solution” for the mid and long term. Rosanna Lockwood on Thursday, Guillaume Faury — who was speaking after his firm reported earnings earlier in the day — said aviation would “potentially face significant hurdles if we don’t manage to decarbonize at the right pace.” The environmental footprint of aviation is significant, with the World Wildlife Fund describing it as “one of the fastest-growing sources of the greenhouse gas emissions driving global climate change.” The WWF also says air travel is “currently the most carbon intensive activity an individual can make.” Faury laid out a number of areas Airbus was focusing on. These included ensuring planes burned less fuel and emitted less carbon dioxide. In addition, the aircraft the firm was delivering now had a certified capacity for 50% sustainable aviation fuel in their tanks. “We need to see the SAF industry moving forwards, being developed, being grown to serve airlines and to be able to use that capacity of 50% of SAF,” he said, referring to the sustainable aviation fuel industry. “We’ll go to 100% by the end of the decade.” The above represented a “very important part of what we’re doing” Faury said. “The next one is looking at the mid-term and long-term future to bring to the market the hydrogen plane because this is really the ultimate solution,” he said, noting that a lot of engineering, research and capital commitments would be required. In Sept. 2020, Airbus released details of three “hybrid-hydrogen” concept planes, saying they could enter service by the year 2035. The same month saw a hydrogen fuel-cell plane capable of carrying passengers complete its maiden flight. While there is excitement in some quarters about hydrogen planes and their ability to potentially reduce aviation’s environmental footprint, a considerable amount of work needs to be done to commercialize the technology and roll it out on a large scale.<br/>

As a depleted Singapore Airshow winds down, delegates reported growing optimism as the hard-hit Asian aerospace market begins to recover despite emerging concerns around labour shortages, rising costs and supply chain challenges. Organisers had estimated attendance of more than 13,000 ahead of the four-day show - still a shadow of previous years - but attendees said that even on Tuesday (Feb 15), the busiest day, only a few thousand people appeared to be at the show. Final numbers are yet to be compiled, organisers said. Still, repeat visitors such as Eric Noel, an executive at a flight training centre in Arizona, said the atmosphere was livelier than the last show in February 2020, when late exhibitor dropouts due to the emergence of COVID-19 left empty spaces and half-finished booths, giving an eerie feel to the display hall at a time of significant market uncertainty. Attendees at the show on Thursday ventured outside into the scorching midday sun to watch the final set of flying displays, including a flyby of a US B-52 bomber, a design that first flew in the 1950s. This year's show was the largest event of any kind in Singapore since the start of the pandemic, though the low turnout was a prime example of the devastating effect that strict health and border controls have had on the aviation industry over the last two years. Yet there is optimism about a reopening in Asia, with host country Singapore on Wednesday announcing an opening to quarantine travel from more countries after an initial pause when the Omicron variant emerged late last year. "People want to get back face to face because we have all figured out Zoom is fine, but it doesn't really make it happen," Domhnal Slattery, CE of aircraft lessor Avolon, said at the show. His firm on Wednesday signed a deal to lease at least 100 flying taxis to AirAsia Aviation Group, which aims to launch an air ridesharing business in Southeast Asia. With passenger travel down during the pandemic, Asian airlines have relied on the cargo market for survival, and freight was the star of the show in terms of major deals.<br/>

As flying electric taxis and hydrogen fuel take center stage at the Singapore Airshow, Boeing Co.’s plan to clean up aviation is far less revolutionary. Rather than banking on new technology and different propulsion systems, the Chicago-based company is pushing a solution that will limit disruption to its mainstay plane-making business: Run the aircraft on sustainable aviation fuel. “You don’t have to change the airplane, you don’t have to change the airport infrastructure,” Sheila Remes, Boeing’s vice president of environmental sustainability, said in an interview in Singapore, where she was attending the show. “It’s available now so you don’t have a whole amount of infrastructure and complexity that needs to be added into the system.” Boeing’s focus on SAF, as it’s known, sets it apart from the more openly ambitious Airbus SE. The European rival aims to put a hydrogen-powered aircraft into the skies by 2035. At this week’s Singapore Airshow, Airbus agreed to explore the potential for a hub in the city to store hydrogen and deliver it to jets. Remes said the current shortcomings of alternative technologies mean sustainable fuel will be aviation’s most-powerful decarbonization tool for years to come. The range of electric aircraft will be limited unless there’s “gigantic battery technology improvement,” she said. And while Boeing is exploring how hydrogen might be integrated into commercial aircraft, Remes said it’s “going to be hard.”<br/>

Regardless of any changes that Boeing made to the 737 Max, regardless of the clearance the revised plane received from the FAA in late 2020, “Downfall: The Case Against Boeing” leaves the impression that its entire existence is a mistake: that it was cobbled together for the wrong reasons, to boost short-term stock gains and to avoid the time and costs of engineering a new, non-737 plane. The problems of the Max, and how its flawed design was implicated in the crashes of flights on Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines, killing hundreds, have been well-aired, and this documentary, directed by Rory Kennedy (“Last Days in Vietnam”), does not break news or break ground cinematically. (We don’t need to see filler footage of a reporter making calls.) But it is likely to leave viewers shaken, and it is always comprehensible, even in sequences that illustrate what the pilots saw in the cockpit. As the movie explains, in the first crash they were put in the position of having seconds to beat back a system that Boeing had never told pilots was on the aircraft. “Downfall” features interviewees who have gotten lost or abstracted in all the coverage, including the wife of the Lion Air captain, family members of the passenger victims and former Boeing employees. “How many times have you heard companies say, ‘We’re committed to excellence, we’re committed to safety, we’re committed to our customers’?” asks Andy Pasztor, who reported on the story for The Wall Street Journal, in summation. His verdict: “We should be skeptical.”<br/>

The head of Chorus Aviation says he expects flying activity will move closer to pre-pandemic levels in Q2, despite being thrown off course by the Omicron variant over the past two months. CEO Joe Randell said Thursday that use of aircraft on Air Canada regional routes could reach 87% between April and June as demand rises in step with easing travel restrictions and COVID-19 anxieties. Chorus, which provides regional service for the country's largest carrier and and leases planes across the globe, said Air Canada plane use is on track to reach 60% of the 2019 level in the current quarter. That's after ending the year at 76%, which sat at the bottom end of the company's guidance in the fall. "The fourth quarter was going well, etc. And then Omicron struck," Randell told analysts. “While there is a drop in the first quarter as a result of Omicron, I think there's reason to believe that now things are going to pick back up and we're going to get to where we were pre-Omicron and plus," Randell said. The expectations mark a slight scale-down from enthusiastic predictions three months ago, when Randell said a return to full operations by late in the second quarter "could be very achievable." Some of Chorus’s 17 plane-leasing clients remain in a financial hole, resulting in cash collection of 83% last quarter — an improvement from 77% in Q3, as more carriers find their footing.<br/>