A lawyer for US Airways told jurors that Sabre Holdings Corp. cost it $299.3 million in overcharges and lost profits, at the start of an antitrust trial in Manhattan. US Airways sued Sabre in 2011 claiming it charged inflated fees for its computerized reservation services, avoided competing over prices and blocked competitors from entering the market. The airline is seeking reimbursement for its claimed losses, which can be tripled under U.S. antitrust law. “This case is about abuse of power and greed by a monopolist,” the airline’s lawyer R. Paul Yetter told jurors. “Sabre was was abusing its monopoly power and it was doing it to cash in on monopoly profits.” Sabre says it acted lawfully and fairly in a competitive marketplace. “Sabre is not a monopoly,” the company’s lawyer, Patrick Fitzgerald, said. “And Sabre is successful because it offers a great product that meets customers’ needs.” He called the airline’s attempt to repudiate past contracts “a money grab after the fact.”<br/>
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Mexico’s Volaris is aiming international flights to Los Angeles from the new Felipe Angeles International Airport north of Mexico City, which could make it the first national carrier to start an overseas route from the airport. The route between AIFA and Los Angeles International Airport will be an addition to the airline’s current flights from Mexico City International Airport, the company said on Thursday. Volaris said it requested for the flight authorization on April 7 and expects to start operations in December this year. The route’s commencement, however, will rely on Mexico recovering its Category 1 air safety rating with the US FAA, Volaris said. The US aviation authority in May 2021 had downgraded the country to a Category 2 rating — the lowest. That barred Mexican carriers from adding new US flights and limited the ability of airlines to carry out marketing agreements with one another. The FAA and AIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment. <br/>
Eswatini — Africa’s last absolute monarchy — is set to launch a flag-carrier airline almost a quarter of a century after the previous one ceased operations in the country formerly known as Swaziland. Eswatini Air will fly from national capital Mbabane to cities such as Johannesburg and Cape Town in neighbouring SA, starting later in 2022, said Qiniso Dhlamini, CEO of holding company Royal Eswatini National Airways Corporation. The state-owned company has bought two Embraer SA 145 regional jets to kick-start services, which are being painted in a livery including a logo featuring a bateleur eagle. Eswatini Air will boost connectivity in the region after the grounding of SA’s Mango, which is in bankruptcy protection and awaiting government funds. The capacity shortage was exposed in March when Comair, operator of low-cost Kulula and local British Airways flights, was suspended for five days amid safety concerns, leading to rocketing prices and chaos at airports. The new carrier succeeds Royal Swazi National Airways, which ceased flying in 1999. Flights to Mbabane have since been operated by a joint venture between the government and SA’s Airlink, a partnership that has now been disbanded. <br/>