The US CDC will take steps to improve collection of international air passenger contact information to better monitor public health risks after a report found the current data system "needs substantial improvement." The Government Accountability Office (GAO) on Monday said, "limitations in how CDC collects and manages air passengers’ contact information - including CDC's use of an outdated data management system - hinder the agency’s ability to monitor public health risks and facilitate contact tracing." Beginning in November 2021, the CDC required all airlines to collect contact tracing information from all international air passengers. The report said the CDC's current data management system developed in the mid-2000s "was not designed for rapid assessment or aggregation of public health data" and the CDC "is unable to quickly and accurately identify the number of passengers exposed to a specific infected passenger on a flight." A CDC spokeswoman said agency director Rochelle Walensky "continues to work with the administration and Congress to improve CDC’s data capabilities. Reporting data to CDC is vital to the agency’s ability to provide real-world, real-time data to policymakers who must make recommendations and guidance to protect the American public." CDC, an agency of the Health and Human Services Department (HHS), told GAO it estimated that between 2015 and 2019 - before the pandemic - about 80 to 130 distinct flights annually warranted at least one contact investigation "compared to more than an estimated 25,000 distinct flights in 2020" and 17,000 passengers.<br/>
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The debris could cause “uncommanded activation of the engine fuel shut-off function”, or prevent pilots from pulling the engine fire handle, the proposed AD says. Boeing and an unnamed parts supplier have already notified operators who received affected parts, the FAA’s proposal says. The airframer also addressed the risk in a service bulletin dated 2 May that applies to 787s with specified production numbers. But because engine fire shut-off switches can be swapped between 787s, the FAA’s proposal, if adopted, would apply to all US-registered 787s. There are 132 such aircraft, including 787-8s, -9s and -10s. “The inability to pull the engine fire handle when an engine fire is detected could lead to an uncontrolled engine fire and subsequent wing failure,” adds the proposal. “Uncommanded activation of the fuel shut-off function for an engine, which if combined with in-flight shutdown of the remaining engine, could lead to total loss of engine thrust.” The FAA’s proposal would require US airlines to replace 787 left- and right-side engine fire control panels that have specified serial numbers. The FAA is accepting comments about its proposal through 22 August. “We are aware of the FAA’s notice of proposed rulemaking and had previously issued guidance to 787 operators on this,” Boeing tells FlightGlobal. “We fully support the FAA’s recommendation to make that guidance mandatory.”<br/>
The Canadian summer air travel season has been less 'lift-off' and more 'stuck on the tarmac' – and passengers say things are only getting worse. Air travellers across the country are sounding the alarm over lost and delayed luggage in airports. The horror stories are countless. When passengers, bags and airplane misconnections and flights get cancelled or delayed, it drips across the entire system," aviation expert Robert Kokonis said. "It's not just international and U.S. flights, but even domestic flights impacting places like Calgary and Edmonton. The problems are going to be pronounced and we are seeing that manifested in these massive piles of baggage." Dozens of people have spoken out on social media after losing their luggage at Toronto's Pearson International Airport, including one woman who said her bag was lost twice during her journey, resulting in a frustrating “suitcase scavenger hunt” that ultimately proved fruitless. In fact, in Toronto, a baggage service recovery task force has been implemented to examine and address system failures resulting in mountains of luggage and hours-long queues. The issues in Calgary aren't nearly as bad, but the residual effects are very real. The chaos has prompted many Canadians to instead carry on their luggage, which also comes with its own problems. Firstly, some websites and stores are selling out of the bags faster than they can stock. And what's worse, is that an increase in carry-on luggage is leading to some passengers being forced to check their bags, as there are only so many overhead compartments. "Travellers have to understand that airlines and airports were not designed for now over 100 consecutive days of delays," Kokonis said. Story has more. <br/>
Heathrow airport warned of more flight cancellations while low-cost Wizz Air became the latest airline to cut its flying plans, highlighting how this summer’s travel disruption is hitting every part of the aviation industry. The UK’s busiest airport said it would tell airlines to cancel more flights operating from its airfield if needed, after admitting the service “has not been acceptable” at times this summer. “We have already seen times recently when demand exceeds the capacity of the airport, airlines and ground handlers,” said John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow’s CE. “We will review the schedule changes that airlines have submitted in response to the government’s requirement to minimise disruption for passengers this summer and will ask them to take further action if necessary,” he added. Passengers at Heathrow were also hit by last-minute disruption after the airport told airlines to cancel 61 out of the roughly 1,100 flights scheduled to operate on Monday. “We are expecting higher passenger numbers in terminals 3 and 5 today than the airport currently has capacity to serve,” the airport said. The fresh disruption came as Wizz Air said it would cut back its flight plans for the peak summer period by 5 per cent and that the measures would “avoid cancellations and secure a more punctual operation”. Airlines across Europe have been forced to cut back their plans for the summer as staffing shortages across the industry have left them unable to operate their original schedules. The schedule cuts at Wizz are smaller than those seen at many other airlines. EasyJet has cut back its plans for the current quarter by about 7%, while BA has cancelled 13% of its flights originally scheduled to fly between March and October.<br/>
Lion Air Group chairman Rusdi Kirana has reiterated the airline group’s commitment to the Boeing 737 Max, with its Batik Air Malaysia unit set to take its first 737-9 aircraft early 2023. Kirana was speaking at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur on 11 July, announcing the rebranding of airline unit Malindo Air to Batik Air Malaysia, as well as the official re-entry of Boeing’s 737 Max aircraft into its fleet. Indonesia-based Lion Air Group, which also includes Lion Air, Super Air Jet and Batik Air of Indonesia, as well as Thai Lion Air, has more than 200 737 Max aircraft – a mix of Max 8s and Max 9s – on order. Kirana, who was responding to a question from FlightGlobal, says the airline group is looking to continue operations of the type, some of which have already returned to service in Indonesia. “[Boeing] did a lot of work to make sure that the [737 Max] is safe for travel…We have [more than] 200 aircraft on order with Boeing, and we will still [take delivery of them] because…we will need more aircraft as demand comes back…to reduce ticket prices,” Kirana says. His comments come as Batik Air Malaysia looks set to have 17 Max 8s in its fleet by year-end. The airline has four in operation now, operating them to destinations farther afield including to Pakistan and Australia. It confirms that the new aircraft will be a mix of fresh deliveries from Boeing, as well as existing 737 Max aircraft from within the Lion Air Group.<br/>
Domestic passenger traffic is expected to pick up this month as airlines begin to increase flight frequencies in response to the loosening of travel restrictions, according to the Aeronautical Radio of Thailand (Aerothai) and the International Air Transport Association (Iata). Both organisations noted the pace of recovery is consistent with global trends. According to Aerothai president Nopasit Chakpitak, an average of 1,437 domestic flights took off from the nation's airports every day after the lifting of most Covid-19 restrictions on July 1 -- up from 1,374 flights per day last month. Domestic passenger numbers are expected to surge this month as there are two long weekends, the Asanha Bucha and Buddhist Lent holiday from July 13-17 and the long weekend for His Majesty the King's birthday from July 28-31. As a result, he said, the average number of domestic flights taking off each day is expected to increase to 1,450-1,480. With more and more airlines restoring destinations and increasing flight frequencies, up to 430,000 flights are expected to take off this year, up 41% from last year's figure.<br/>
Airbus expects airlines to order more aircraft than previously forecast over the next 20 years to replace less fuel-efficient planes, but said passenger numbers would not grow as fast as previously thought. In its 20-year outlook published on Monday the European aerospace group raised its forecast for global deliveries of jets by all manufacturers to 39,490 from 39,020. Roughly 80% of the deliveries are expected to be for single-aisle aircraft, which typically serve short and medium-haul destinations, while 2,400 planes will be new and converted freighter aircraft. The upward revision is partly the result of 2021 being taken out of the rolling 20-year forecast period. Last year was exceptionally weak for deliveries as the industry struggled to emerge from the pandemic, which led to the temporary grounding of most of the world’s fleet. Airbus said it expected passenger traffic to grow more slowly than before, by 3.6% per year rather than the 3.9% forecast in November, as higher energy costs and the cost of carbon start to hit the sector. “As energy prices become more expensive, whether we are talking about crude oil prices or carbon dioxide pricing or alternative fuels, there is a strong correlation between what is good for the environment and the fact that purely for operating costs, airlines are very, very motivated to require the latest, most efficient and lowest-emission aircraft,” said Bob Lange, head of business analysis and market forecast at Airbus. Just 20% of all aircraft currently in service are in the latest generation of fuel-efficient planes, such as Airbus’ best-selling A320neo family of narrow-body jets and Boeing’s rival, the 737 Max. However, this is up from 13% in 2019.<br/>
The post-pandemic recovery of commercial aviation may have an early, unlikely protagonist: the A380 superjumbo. The world's largest passenger plane seemed to be on the scrapheap just two years ago, as airlines grappled with the spread of the coronavirus. The entire fleet was grounded, many of the planes went into long-term storage, and some airlines even took the chance to get rid of their A380s altogether, with Air France retiring its fleet in May 2020. But now, as passenger numbers rise and air traffic returns to pre-pandemic levels, the plane is enjoying a resurgence. More than half the global fleet is already back into service, according to data from Flightradar24. Lufthansa was the latest carrier to announce the plane's return -- although not before 2023 -- and there are reasons to believe that more A380s will progressively soar back into the skies. "It's definitely having a comeback," says Geoff Van Klaveren, an aviation analyst and managing director of advisory at IBA. "Operators were quite reluctant to bring it back because it's a very costly airplane, but I think we've seen demand recovering faster than people expected." Airbus produced and delivered 251 A380s, and 238 remain available for service today, with the rest having been retired or scrapped. The plane, which is no longer in production, is popular with passengers and crews but not with airlines -- only 14 have operated it to date. Out of those, nine are currently flying it: British Airways, All Nippon Airways, Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Qantas, Qatar, Asiana, Korean Air and China Southern Airlines. Some of these already have plans to press even more of their A380s back into service.<br/>