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Aegean Airlines, Greece's largest carrier, reported a smaller loss in Q1 compared to the same period a year earlier, as passenger traffic recovered from pandemic travel restrictions. Aegean, a member of the Star Alliance airlines group, reported a net loss of E38.5m in the January-to-March period compared to a loss of E44.5min Q1 2021. Sales nearly tripled to E120.8m. CE Dimitris Gerogiannis said the airline managed to shrink its loss in Q1 despite the doubling of fuel costs compared to 2019 and the prevalence of the Omicron variant. "The summer season is showing an especially strong momentum in pre-bookings as well as in higher load factors which are nearing pre-pandemic levels," he said. The airline flew 1.5m passengers in Q1, with its load factor - a key industry measure of filled seats - improving to 66.1% from 47.5% in the same period last year. Aegean said it will continue to add capacity and new routes during the summer season, both at home and abroad, and will stick to its investment plan, expecting the delivery of 12 more new Airbus 321 and 320neo jets this year. The company's cash reserves at the end of March stood at E458.8m, the airline said.<br/>

Croatia Airlines is gearing up for the start of the height of the 2022 summer season with the carrier to station two aircraft in Split, shift several routes previously operated out of Zagreb and increase frequencies on a number of services from the country’s second largest city. From its main base in Zagreb, the airline will restore 2019 summer frequencies to several destinations. These include Amsterdam, Copenhagen, London Heathrow, Paris, Rome, Sarajevo, and Zurich, as well as its domestic flights. None of the destinations will be operating above pre-Covid levels from Zagreb. The airline plans to return to the Middle East with the resumption of a one weekly service from the Croatian capital to Tel Aviv starting June 3. Although the route has been added to the Global Distribution System, tickets are currently not on sale. Compared to the pre-pandemic period, Croatia Airlines will be operating eleven fewer destinations from its main hub. The Croatian carrier will maintain 21 destinations out of Split this summer. <br/>

Korean Air is facing hurdles in acquiring the cash-strapped air carrier Asiana Airlines as it awaits clearance from at least four regions the EU, the US, Japan, and China. The EU’s regulatory body, considered one of the biggest obstacles in the airline’s bid as it has been getting tougher over business mergers, recently asked Korean low-cost carriers T’way Air and Air Premia for their opinion on the merger between South Korea’s two biggest air carriers, according to sources in the aviation industry on Thursday. T’way Air and Air Premia were asked about their financial capabilities, whether they had large aircraft, long-distance route operations capabilities and opinions on market changes after the merger. Both of them are known to have responded that they are planning to open new routes to Europe when the merger between Korean Air and Asiana Airlines takes place. T’way Air is expected to review new routes to Paris and Rome, and Air Premia to Germany and London as these locations show high travel demand. T’way Air has also been preparing large aircraft such as A330-300 to start long-distance international flights. Air Premia recently acquired a Boeing 787-9, an aircraft that can fly to western Europe, and transportation rights from Incheon to Germany from the Transport Ministry last month. Korean Air has been undergoing a preconsultation procedure with the EU since January 2021, which is when the company is required to submit related documents before the official merger review process. The national flag carrier is likely to have proposed to the EU’s regulatory body to give up some of its transportation rights in certain regions and other adjustments to prevent monopoly in the aviation industry.<br/>

Air India will move to Amadeus passenger service system (PSS) from June 1st in an attempt to improve the process of its flight scheduling, ticket reservation, e-commerce, loyalty program, and departure control. The carrier hopes that the switch will offer a smoother booking experience on its website and mobile app. An airline source discussed the difference between AI present system and Amadeus with the Business Standard, saying that the current PSS developed by SITA is a legacy product while Amadeus PSS has a modern interface, better functionalities, and a faster response time. Last year, Air India invited bids for a new seven-year PSS contract in March as its existing agreement with SITA is due to end in June this year. But Sabre approached the court in June after Air India selected Amadeus for the contract and accused the airline of favoritism in the selection process. The court, however, ruled in favor of AI's decision to go for Amadeus. The Tata Group also prefers Amadeus for its services, with Vistara also using Amadeus PSS and renewing its partnership with the firm in 2019. The Tatas have long-term plans to make Air India financially fit, improve aircraft conditions, bring in a new fleet and make it a technologically advanced airline according to global standards.<br/>