Brazil’s economic development bank has agreed to provide US regional carrier SkyWest Airlines with R670m ($128m) in financing for the purchase of six Embraer 175 regional jets. Embraer disclosed the agreement between SkyWest and The Brazilian Development Bank on 10 October, saying it covers financing for E175s that SkyWest had ordered previously. The bank, which invests in projects for the purpose of supporting Brazilian industry, could not immediately be reached to confirm the deal. Embraer says it will deliver the six jets to St George, Utah-based SkyWest through the end of the year. “The aeronautical sector is considered strategic due to its high added value in technological content, innovation and labour training,” says Embraer. Under the terms of the deal, The Brazilian Development Bank will make payments in Brazilian reais to Embraer on behalf of SkyWest. The airline will then make payments in US dollars to the bank, “generating foreign currency for Brazil”, Embraer says.<br/>
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Air Senegal will suspend flights on its Central Africa route serving Cotonou in Benin, Douala in Cameroon and Libreville from Oct. 30 due to lack of business, it said on Monday. “This decision is justified by the poor financial performance of this triangular line since its launch in March 2021,” the airline said in a statement. Senegal’s national carrier re-launched in 2016 with ambitions to become a leader in the West African market, but it has struggled to become profitable as it competes with several other regional airlines on crowded regional routes. Major carriers such as Air France KLM SA and Turkish Airways dominate the more profitable international routes to and from West Africa. Regional airlines have also struggled to emerge financially from the coronavirus pandemic, which grounded planes and halted travel. Senegal’s former national carrier, Senegal Airlines, went out of business after running up massive debts in less than five years of operation.<br/>Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.<br/>
Long-standing owners of UK regional carrier Loganair, Stephen and Peter Bond, are to appoint advisors for the possible sale of their stake in the airline. Loganair CE Jonathan Hinkles confirms a report in the UK’s Sunday Times that plans are under way for a sale. ”After 25 years as investors in Loganair – initially as part-owners and since 2012 as sole owners – Stephen and Peter Bond have decided to appoint advisors to review options for the sale of Loganair. It could see them hand over the stewardship of Scotland’s airline to new owners by mid-2023,” says Hinkles. “The Bonds – Stephen is now 72, Peter is 61 – are committed to finding the right future owner for Loganair, who will act as its custodian for the next generation, just as they and previous owners have done. In the meantime, they remain wholehearted supporters of Loganair until any process is successfully concluded.” He says the airline is “trading profitably”, has repaid its Covid-19 bank debt ahead of schedule and notes that passenger numbers are around 50% above pre-pandemic levels. ”It will very much continue to operate as it is today, with no changes to routes, services or employment,” Hinkles adds. The Scottish regional carrier, which marked its 60th anniversary earlier this year, carried around 700,000 passengers last year, UK CAA data shows, and this summer expanded its codeshare with British Airways. Cirium fleets data shows Loganair has 38 aircraft in service, including 13 ATR turboprops and a dozen Embraer 145 regional jets.<br/>
Boeing advanced after Mongolia’s national carrier operated the 737 Max jet in China, marking the first time in almost four years the model was used for commercial services to the country. A MIAT Mongolian Airlines round-trip flight with passengers between Ulaanbaatar to Guangzhou landed in the southern Chinese city at 8:18am local time on Monday, according to FlightRadar24 data. MIAT Mongolian Airlines has the trip scheduled to fly again, using the 737 Max, on Oct. 17 and Oct. 24. Both are listed on the carrier’s website. MIAT received all necessary permission in August to operate the Max into China, and no special permit was required for Monday’s flight, a spokesperson for the carrier said in an email. “The aircraft has undergone all of the work related to the safety bulletins issued by Boeing and authorities and is safe to operate,” the spokesperson said. The move is being closely watched as a potential signal the model may be closer to a return to service by Chinese carriers. Boeing officials met with China’s aviation regulator last month to review pilot training criteria for its Max jetliners, in a sign the planemaker is getting closer to securing all the necessary approvals to get the Max back up and flying in China -- the last remaining major aviation market not to permit its resumption. “We continue to work with global regulators and our customers to safely return the 737 Max to service worldwide,” Boeing said in an e-mailed statement, declining to comment further. <br/>
Things are stirring in Korea’s airline market. Air Premia, which launched last summer, is now selling tickets on the busy Seoul Incheon-Los Angeles route, with flights starting on October 29. Service will run five times per week using Boeing Dreamliners, in direct competition with incumbents Korean Air and Asiana. Each offers two flights a day in both directions. The new airline hopes to capitalize on Korea’s decision to drop all Covid-related travel restrictions this month, a prelude to what airlines hope will be a revival of tourism and family visits. Northeast Asia, including Korea, Japan, and greater China, has been slow to see travel recover this year, even as most other regions have experienced a takeoff. During August, the latest month of published statistics, Seoul Incheon airport handled 2m passengers. That’s up from just 339,000 last August but still far shy of the 6.4m Incheon handled in August 2019. Air Premia calls itself a “hybrid service carrier,” aiming to offer low fares but with more amenities than most low-cost carriers. It currently operates three Boeing 787-9s configured in two classes: premium economy and economy, each with “standard” and “flex” pricing options featuring distinct policies on bag allowance, seating assignments, change and cancellation fees, etc. Economy customers can also choose a “lite” fare option offering the cheapest seats but also the fewest amenities and most restrictive policies.<br/>