Frontier Group Holdings is targeting capacity growth of up to 20% through the decade, CE Barry Biffle told Reuters, as the budget airline pushes to take a bigger share of the US leisure travel market from rivals amid a weakening economy. From 2024, the Colorado-based carrier is aiming to increase capacity, or the number of seats it offers, by between 10 and 20% a year as it seeks to position itself as America’s budget airline after the recent collapse of a deal to merge with rival Spirit Airlines. JetBlue Airways Corp prevailed over Frontier after a months-long bidding war. Frontier, which is about 82% owned by Bill Franke’s Indigo Partners, had previously told investors it would ramp up capacity this year by as much as 15% above the pre-pandemic level and said it would expand 30% year-on-year in 2023. If Frontier hits the high end of the previously unreported, longer-term growth target, it would emerge as almost the size of 2019-era American Airlines, before COVID-19 sent travel into a steep decline. “We will now be positioned in the market as the only national ultra-low-cost carrier,” Franke told Reuters. Frontier’s merger with Spirit would have created a budget airline behemoth and the fifth- largest airline in the United States.<br/>
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Cabin crew working for IAG's low-cost airline Iberia Express plan to go on strike from Aug. 28 to Sep. 6, a union statement said on Wednesday, in yet another labour dispute arising from the industry's turbulent post-COVID recovery. The strike at Iberia Express, backed by USO and SITCPLA unions, follows walkouts across Europe as staff complaints over pay amid the rising cost of living and deteriorating working conditions prompted by a boom of travel that followed the lifting of pandemic restrictions. The cabin crews are demanding better working conditions and pay rises to offset inflation, both unions said in a joint statement. "We are very disappointed with Iberia Express's management, which showed it doesn't keep its word and doesn't respect workers who have struggled to keep the company afloat," the statement said. Iberia Express said the unions' decision to call a strike was "incomprehensible" as talks are ongoing and a third union has agreed to the company's proposals. "We are confident the strike can be avoided and that we can keep talking to guarantee stability and offer a good service to our customers," Iberia Express said in a statement. The airline connects Madrid with about 40 cities all over Europe. Airline workers lost part of their income during the pandemic as many where on furlough and some bonuses were suspended.<br/>
Saudi Arabia has struggled to recruit a CEO for the new national airline it’s looking to establish amid confusion over the carrier’s strategy, according to people with knowledge of the situation. Current and former chiefs at American, European and Middle Eastern airlines have been approached before deciding not to get involved, two people said, asking not to be named because the matter is private. A board has been selected and advisers retained to help move things forward, they said. A lack of clarity concerning basic questions about the airline and Saudi Arabia’s future aviation landscape is one issue, together with potentially unrealistic performance targets, they said. The search has consequently moved on to lower-profile executives, the people said. The country’s Public Investment Fund, which is in charge of establishing the new airline, declined to comment on the state of the recruitment process. A person with knowledge of the sovereign fund’s plans said it has a potential CEO in mind and that an announcement may come in Q4. Saudi Arabia said in June last year that it would found a second national airline alongside flag carrier Saudia as part of the Vision 2030 push to make the economy less dependent on oil. While the startup would predominantly serve the capital Riyadh, which has ambitions to become a global business hub, it would also seek to compete with larger Gulf carriers for global transfer traffic. According to plans previously announced, Saudia, as Saudi Arabian Airlines is known, would remain focused on its current base in Jeddah, catering to the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimage markets, together with Red Sea tourism. Others carriers in the kingdom include Flyadeal, the low-cost arm of Saudia, and discount rival Flynas.<br/>
Emirates has kick-started its plans to upgrade the entire interior cabins of 120 Airbus A380 and Boeing 777 aircraft – two of the largest commercial aircraft types in service today. This ambitious project, representing a multi-billion dollar investment to ensure Emirates’ customers “fly better” for the coming years, officially commences in November and is managed entirely by Emirates’ Engineering team. The target is to completely retrofit four Emirates aircraft from start to finish every month, continuously for over 2 years. Once the 67 earmarked A380s are refreshed and back in service, 53 777s will undergo their facelift. This will see nearly 4,000 brand new Premium Economy seats installed, 728 First Class suites refurbished and over 5,000 Business Class seats upgraded to a new style and design when the project is complete in April 2025. In addition, carpets and stairs will be upgraded, and cabin interior panels refreshed with new tones and design motifs including the iconic ghaf trees which are native to the UAE. No other airline has handled a retrofit of this magnitude in-house, and there’s no blueprint for such an undertaking. Therefore Emirates Engineering teams have been planning and testing extensively, to establish and streamline processes, and identify and address any possible snags.<br/>
India's Akasa Air said on Wednesday it would keep adding one new aircraft every two weeks after the country's newest budget carrier received its third plane. Akasa began commercial operations on Aug. 7 with a maiden flight from the country's financial capital, Mumbai, to the city of Ahmedabad. Founder and CEO Vinay Dube said the airline was well-capitalized to induct 72 aircraft over the next five years, while mourning the death of Akasa's top backer and ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala who passed away on Sunday. "Our financial platform is strong enough to allow Akasa to place an aircraft order in the next 18 months that will be significantly larger than our first," Dube said. Akasa, which placed an order for 72 Boeing 737 MAX jets in November last year, will compete with budget carriers including IndiGo, SpiceJet and GoFirst. Domestic air travel in India has made a sharp recovery this year with airlines flying over 57m passengers in the first half, up 238% from last year, government data showed.<br/>