US regional carrier Republic Airways has filed for an exemption to pilot aeronautical experience requirements set by the FAA, in an effort to alleviate the pilot shortage. The Indianapolis, Indiana-based airline, which flies regional routes for American Airlines, Delta and United , wrote in a 15 April application to the Department of Transportation (DOT) that its rigorous selection process and structured pilot training programme make it comparable to a military pilot education. Therefore, its pilots would be highly-qualified to earn what’s known as a “Restricted Air Transport Pilot” (R-ATP) certificate with about half of the flight time usually required for civilians pilots to begin flying for commercial operators. “The requested exemption would allow selected civilian pilots who complete the rigorous Republic R-ATP programme to apply … for an airline transport pilot certificate concurrently with a multi-engine airplane type rating with a minimum of 750 hours of total flight time as a pilot,” Republic writes. Military pilots aiming for a commercial aviation career only need 750h of total flight time to qualify for an airline job. Most other candidates require 1,500h. Collecting those hours is expensive and time consuming, creating a bottleneck in availability of new pilots that is not easily solved, say critics. Republic says in its application that once students are accepted into its programme they follow a “highly structured training curriculum where they train as a full-time employee”. “Within the programme, students will complete courses in advanced airline academics, complete command experience, receive a Republic mentor and complete supplemental advanced aviation training to help them better prepare for a career as an airline pilot,” the filing says. “To uphold the rigour of the training, students will be assessed and are required to pass multiple knowledge and skill validation gates throughout the programme life cycle. Failure to pass any gate will result in the student to be transitioned out of the Republic R-ATP Program and continue through the standard ATP pathway.”<br/>
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US regional carrier Mesa Airlines continues to suffer from pilot attrition, leading it to a $42.8m loss Q2 of fiscal 2022. That compares to a $5.7m profit in the same quarter one year earlier, the Phoenix-based carrier says on 9 May. “While demand for our product remains strong, our financial results this quarter reflect the ongoing challenge of heightened pilot attrition,” says CE Jonathan Ornstein. “While not entirely unexpected, this quarter was clearly very disappointing.” The results compare unfavourably to one year earlier because the prior period’s earnings were buoyed by coronavirus-driven government payroll support, Mesa says. Mesa flies regional jets for United Airlines and American Airlines, and Boeing 737 Freighters for DHL. The airline flew 65,613 block hours during the three months ending on 31 March, a 11.3% decrease from the same quarter last year, and 23.7% fewer than in December 2021. Revenue for the three months was $123m, a 27% increase over the $97.3m reported in the year-ago period. “In January, our operational and financial performance was significantly impacted by Covid-related higher pilot absence rates, which have since subsided,” Ornstein adds. ”We remain focused on taking steps to address pilot attrition, including increased hiring, simulator capacity and training capabilities, which has been exacerbated by the industry-wide pilot shortage.” Smaller regional carriers like Mesa have suffered most from the dearth of qualified cockpit crew since Covid-19 caused a sudden disruption to the industry two years ago. About 6,000 mostly senior pilots retired early or took extended leaves, as airlines shed aircraft and slimmed down staff to deal with the slump. Now, younger pilots are replacing them, with large carriers heavily recruiting from the regionals, which fly shorter routes with smaller aircraft, and which pay pilots less than do legacy carriers. The result is a hole in regional carriers’ human resource plans, Ornstein says.<br/>
Brazil’s Azul reported sharply higher revenue during the first quarter of 2022 as corporate travel increases and the company’s logistics business thrives. The Sao Paulo-based carrier says on 9 May it is now flying to 151 cities, 35 more than in pre-pandemic 2019, and planning to add more destinations. “Over time, the growth from these new destinations will add considerable demand to our network, reinforcing our growth strategy,” says CE John Rodgerson. “We ended the quarter with nine consecutive months of strong and improving leisure demand, while we saw corporate bookings accelerating rapidly, allowing us to raise fares to offset rising fuel prices.” The company’s operating revenue in the first quarter was R$3.2b ($630m), up almost 75% from the same three months last year, and 26% more than in Q1 in pre-pandemic 2019. It was the second consecutive quarter with net revenue exceeding pre-pandemic levels, even with the impact of the Omicron variant in the early part of the period, Azul says. Costs also rose, to R$3.1b, compared to R$2b in Q1 2021. That 53% gain primarily results from a 57% increase in jet fuel prices and a capacity increase of more than 26%, the carrier says.<br/>
The lone survivor of a 2009 passenger plane crash in the Indian Ocean that killed 152 people sat in the front row of a Paris courtroom Monday at the opening of the trial of the Yemeni airline which operated the flight. Bahia Bakari, who has called her survival “a miracle,” sat in silence as the victims’ names were read out at the start of the proceedings in a room heavy with emotion. At just 12 years old, Bakari clung to floating debris from the plane for 11 hours in the sea before being rescued. Now 25, she recently told France 3 television she would attend the trial with both “apprehension” and “relief.” The trial is needed to “finally know the truth,” said Bakari, who lost her mother in the crash. Yemen’s main airline, Yemenia, has been charged with “manslaughter and unintentional injuries” in the case. It has denied responsibility. The 2009 Yemenia flight left from Paris before picking up other passengers in the southern French city of Marseille. It made a stopover in Sanaa, Yemen, where 142 passengers and 11 crew members boarded another plane to continue to Moroni, the Comoros capital. During the landing in strong winds, the aging Airbus A310 crashed about 15 kilometers off the Comorian coast on June 30, 2009.<br/>
El Al has had an eventful month, but not necessarily in a good way. Labor union trouble, flight cancellations and consumer watchdog reports have stacked up against the airline since the beginning of April, and the company is still experiencing turbulence. Last week, the airline was forced to withdraw from Israel’s annual Independence Day flyover due to a dispute between its maintenance workers’ and pilots’ labor unions. On the morning of the holiday, El Al’s mechanics walked away from their posts in a coordinated act of defiance. “We regret that El Al was unable to attend the flyover for Israel’s 74th Independence Day. This is a severe incident,” said El Al. According to the maintenance workers’ union, the walkout was taken to protest the cancellation of 11 flights in recent days, which they blamed on the airline’s pilots. “If the pilots can take part in the flyover, they can staff the flights,” the union said. The canceled flights were due to “operational reasons beyond [El Al’s] control,” said El Al in a statement, noting that “with the help of all labor unions and across all sectors,” the company was working to resume services. The canceled flights caused logistical issues for many passengers who only learned of their cancellation a few hours before scheduled takeoff, according to a report in Israel Hayom. Customers found themselves stranded without any means of reaching customer service. Story has more. <br/>
State-owned Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) could return to profitability this year or next, CEO Ibrahim Koshy said on Monday at the Arabian Travel Market trade fair in Dubai. This is earlier than the comapany's previous expectation of a returning to profitability in 2024, Koshy said, adding that travel has picked up faster than anticipated and is 83% recovered from pre-pandemic levels.<br/>
Saudi Arabian Airlines, known as Saudia, expects the first deliveries from a 73-jet order in December, Chief Executive Ibrahim Koshy told an industry event in Dubai on Monday. Financing for the order was secured last year, Koshy said. "There's delays at both Boeing and Airbus, but there will be deliveries starting in December 22," he said on the sidelines of the event. "Additional orders - we have not announced them yet - but it is in the pipeline for this year. We have a fleet plan which has been revised and it's an ongoing thing, so I can't say how many. But Saudia is planning for major expansion to meet the demands for Saudi Arabia," he added.<br/>
flydubai has recorded an exceptional performance in Q1 of 2022, operating 19,000 flights carrying 2.35m passengers, marking a 114% increase in passenger numbers in Q1 2021. In addition, flydubai has seen an increase in demand for connecting traffic with 43% of passengers connecting on to the carrier’s network compared to 28% for the same period last year. Demand for travel in Business Class continues to grow across the network, Europe saw an increase to 51% in 2022 up from 39% in 2021. Ghaith Al Ghaith, CEO at flydubai, said: “Dubai has demonstrated its ability to successfully overcome the various challenges presented by the pandemic and continues to thrive. We have continued our growth in 2022 capitalising on the tremendous results we reported for 2021. We have seen the number of passengers carried in the first quarter of this year more than double compared to the previous couple of years as we welcomed the world during Expo Dubai 2020, connected underserved markets to Dubai and added more frequencies around the network.”<br/>
Akasa Air aims to launch commercial operations by the end of July, as it focuses on linking tier-2 cities across India with a fleet of over 70 aircraft by its fifth year, CEO Vinay Dube has told the Indian financial news broadcaster CNBC TV18 in an interview. Having placed an order with Boeing last November for seventy-two B737-8 and B737-8-200 MAX jets, it expects to take the first delivery by early June, Dube said, adding that the well-financed start-up had already enlisted 150 pilots and 120 cabin crew. Akasa Air, which had previously targeted a commercial launch date of June, has received all regulatory approvals barring an air operator’s certificate (AOC) permit, the CE said. “We expect our first aircraft to be delivered in mid-June and expect commercial operations in late July,” he said, as quoted by financial news site Moneycontrol. “We need to get the delivery of our first aircraft before we can get the air operator’s permit. It is a very rigorous process and we anticipate getting that in late June and will then, on the basis of that, start operations in late July,” he elaborated. Asked about routes, Dube said the airline would start from India's biggest (“metropolitan”) cities and then shift its focus to tier-2 cities.<br/>