UAE’s flag carrier Emirates has announced a new codeshare partnership with Greek airline company AEGEAN to increase its connectivity to eight new Greek cities via Athens. The partnership will benefit Emirates customers to access domestic Greek points using a single ticket. Emirates said that the new partnership would be effective from October. Emirates said: “Starting October 2022, Emirates and AEGEAN will further increase the joint codeshare network to include eight more European regional routes via Athens, including Bucharest, Belgrade, and Naples, among others, as well as westwards on Emirates’ flights to New York-Newark from Athens and New York JFK from Milan.” Currently, Emirates operates 12 weekly flights to Athens. The implementation of the new codeshare routes announced is subject to receipt of the necessary regulatory approvals.<br/>
star
Asiana Airlines' financial structure continues to deteriorate as its debts have soared due largely to foreign exchange losses as a result of the won's falling value against the dollar, according to industry officials, Tuesday. In the first half of this year, Asiana's debt soared to 13.39t won, up by 835b won ($638m) from a year earlier. The continuous rise in debt is becoming a burden on Korean Air, which aims to complete the acquisition of Asiana this year, they said. According to the Financial Supervisory Service, as of the end of the first half of this year, Asiana Airlines' consolidated debt ratio stood at 6,544%. The debt ratio, which stood at 2411% at the end of last year, rose by 4133.9 percentage points in half a year. This rise is because its total equity decreased by about 60%, from 521b won to 204.7b won, while its total debt increased by 835b won in the first half. This situation comes despite the company increasing its operating profit in the first half of this year by 283b won, turning a profit due to a sharp improvement in its cargo business performance. "Although international passenger demand is gradually increasing, there are concerns about the current resurgence of COVID-19, and the cost burden is inevitably high due to the influence of continuously high interest rates, high exchange rates and high oil prices," an industry official familiar with the matter said.<br/>
Singapore Airlines has taken delivery of its first DHL Express Boeing 777 Freighter, which it will operate on flights to the USA under a commercial partnership with the logistics giant. The aircraft features a dual SIA-DHL livery, and is the first of five 777Fs to be operated by the flag carrier. In March, SIA and DHL entered into a four-year “crew and maintenance agreement”, which sees SIA operate and maintain the fleet of five 777Fs.<br/>SIA says it expects to take delivery of its second 777F in November, with the remaining three examples delivered across 2023. The carrier expects to operate the type on flights between the USA and Singapore via North Asian and Australian points. Its first pair of freighters will be deployed on the Singapore-Incheon-Los Angeles-Honolulu-Singapore route six times weekly. DHL Express executive vice-president for aviation Robert Hyslop says: “The new Boeing 777 Freighter demonstrates our ongoing effort to strengthen our network and adjust flight routes, as well as lower our carbon emissions to achieve greener logistics. ”Singapore Airlines’ expertise in flight operations will enable us to better meet our customers’ needs in cross-border commerce, as we leverage the strategic location of our South Asia Hub in Singapore.”<br/>