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Latam Airlines and its main pilots' union in Chile have reached an agreement staving off a threatened strike, the union said Wednesday. The Union of Latam Pilots (SPL), which says it represents 313 of the airline's nearly 500 pilots, voted almost unanimously last week to begin a strike, leaving a window for a mediation process mandated by Chilean law. "Minutes before the deadline expired for reaching a fair deal, Latam and the SPL union managed to defuse a strike which until the end seemed inevitable," the union said in a statement, which provided no details of the accord. The union argued that due to the pandemic, 240 pilots were fired and compensation was reduced by 30%. It said that while company executives and other employees have since recovered 100% of their pre-pandemic salaries, pilots continue to receive a reduced salary. The largest carrier in South America, Latam Airlines last week announced the completion of a years-long restructuring process after it declared bankruptcy in 2020. The airline, created by the 2012 merger of Chile's LAN with Brazilian rival TAM, operates units in Chile, Brazil, Colombia and Peru.<br/>

LATAM Airlines, South America's largest carrier, reported on Tuesday a narrower Q3 net loss of $296m, the company said in a statement, partly hit by high fuel prices. The Chile-based airline's quarterly loss this year compares to a $694m loss during the same three-month period last year. LATAM's revenue during the July to September period rose 97% to total $2.587b compared to Q3 last year. The airline, created by the 2012 merger of Chile's LAN with Brazilian rival TAM, operates units in Chile, Brazil, Colombia and Peru. The company's quarterly results follow the firm's early November completion of a years-long restructuring. LATAM filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2020 after the airline was hammered during the pandemic. "We're cautious in what we're seeing going forward ... as we see a more difficult macroeconomic environment, a pandemic that's not over yet and a fuel price that's still very high," said Ramiro Alfonsin, LATAM's vice president for finance.<br/>

Start-up leisure carrier Canada Jetlines plans to roll out its first international route on 19 January with non-stop service from its hub in Toronto to Las Vegas. The fledgling discounter said on 8 November that it intends to fly between Toronto Pearson International airport and Harry Reid International airport multiple times per week, pending final approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). “We are incredibly excited to launch Canada Jetlines’ international services with a route to the entertainment capital of the world,” says Eddy Doyle, Jetlines’ CE. “As we continue to expand our international network with our first route into the US, we look forward to beginning services in such a coveted tourist and convention destination such as Las Vegas.” After several delays, Jetlines began operating on 22 September, using a single Airbus A320-200 for passenger flights between Toronto and Calgary. On 1 November, the US Department of Transportation (DOT) tentatively granted Jetlines a foreign air carrier permit allowing it to fly in the USA. In addition to Las Vegas, the vacation specialist has its eyes on other warm-weather destinations such as Orlando and Sarasota, Florida, as it hopes to capture a piece of the so-called “snowbird” market. In December, Jetlines expects delivery of a second Airbus A320 and will begin a transcontinental route from Toronto to Vancouver. Jetlines is one of two recent entrants to Canada’s low-cost airline segment, as rival start-up Lynx Air, based in Calgary, began revenue flights using new Boeing 737 Max 8s earlier this year.<br/>

Loss-making airline Flyr , which failed on Tuesday to raise the new equity it had aimed for, now instead plans a smaller initial cash injection offered by a group of investors, the company said on Wednesday. Flyr on Nov. 3 said raising cash was vital for the company to survive the upcoming winter season and prepare for a ramp-up in spring and summer of 2023. Under the revised plan, Flyr will initially raise 250m Norwegian crowns ($24.4m) in a private placement and up to 100m from a subsequent offering to current shareholders, less than the 530m crowns it had aimed for. To cover the remaining cash needs, investors participating in the share issues would get subscription rights allowing them to buy additional stock during the first quarter of 2023, potentially raising another 350m crowns, Flyr said. “If the company fails to raise this additional new capital by the end of Q1 2023, the company may not be able to sustain its future operations,” Flyr said.<br/>

Cyprus Airways is to expand its network to the major European capitals of Paris and Rome, with year-round services from mid-December. The airline currently operates to seven regional destinations from its Larnaca base: the Greek cities of Athens, Thessaloniki, Rhodes and Heraklion, plus Beirut, Tel Aviv and Yerevan. It uses a fleet of two Airbus A320s and a single A319. Cyprus Airways states that it is to broaden its network to Paris Charles de Gaulle from 16 December, operating three-times weely. It will follow this with a Rome Fiumicino service, flying twice a week, beginning on 20 December. CE Paul Sies says commencing service to the two capitals is part of the airline’s strategic plan to “connect Cyprus”. “Both [Paris and Rome] are important gateways for incoming tourism and business travel to Cyprus,” he says. “They are also central hubs with multiple international connection possibilities, thereby increasing Cyprus’ connectivity to various global markets.” Cyprus Airways emerged in 2016 as a successor to the island nation’s flag-carrier with the same name. Originally linked to Russian operator S7 Group, it was acquired by new owners last year, the Maltese-based SJC Group.<br/>

Air Serbia is to open a new long-haul service connecting Belgrade to the Chinese city of Tianjin before the end of the year. The airline is to open the connection on 9 December. Air Serbia will deploy Airbus A330 twinjets on the route. But continuing Chinese restrictions from the pandemic mean the frequency will be limited to a once-weekly operation, the carrier states, and the airline acknowledges that the ground time the aircraft will spend in Tianjin – more than 24h – is “not optimal”. Its predecessor airline, JAT, previously served China with a connection to Beijing but this was withdrawn more than two decades ago. Few Chinese services are currently being offered by European carriers. “In spite of the still-limited international air traffic with China, and strict rules imposed since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, our airline has succeeded in obtaining all the necessary permits and completed all preparatory activities,” says CE Jiri Marek. He believes the operation will lift “strong economic and cultural relations” between the two countries. Air Serbia could potentially expand its Chinese service to other cities including Beijing and Shanghai, Marek adds. “We will continue to closely monitor the status of [pandemic-related] restrictions and promptly react on new opportunities, once the market access limitations have ended,” he says.<br/>

Swedish carrier Braathens Regional Airlines is claiming to be the first to operate services with the maximum-permitted blend of sustainable aviation fuel. BRA, which uses a fleet of ATR 72s, will conduct two flights weekly between Gothenburg and Lyon, on behalf of automotive firm Volvo Group, from autumn this year. The flights will be conducted with a 50% blend of sustainable fuel, the upper certified limit for commercial aircraft. BRA claims the route will be the first commercial services in the world flying with such a blend. Volvo Group personnel will be able to travel between the company’s headquarters and the Renault corporate centre in Lyon. “With this flight route, we will achieve a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions by at least 40% from day one,” says BRA chief commercial officer Martin Erkenborn. “Our hope is that this is just the beginning, and together with our corporate customers we can have several routes with similar solutions.” BRA adds that it is collaborating with ATR and fuel producer Neste to accelerate the process of certifying flights with wholly-sustainable fuel.<br/>

Emirates and Gulf Air have today officially signed a codeshare partnership, starting this December. <br/> The new agreement will offer easy connections and expanded choices for Gulf Air customers connecting to Dubai and onwards to a host of Emirates destinations across Europe, Africa, South America and the Far East. The agreement was signed on the first day of the Bahrain International Airshow (BIAS) 2022, signalling a growing relationship between both airlines following on the framework of cooperation established last year. The agreement was signed by Sir Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline and Gulf Air’s CEO Captain Waleed Al Alawi in the presence of Zayed R Alzayani, Gulf Air’s Chairman of the Board of Directors. The signing ceremony was also attended by members of each airline’s executive management teams. The expanded partnership will see Gulf Air place its marketing code "GF" on Emirates operated flights beyond Dubai to a selection of some of the most attractive global tourism hotspots, offering new holiday options for Gulf Air customers. Travellers will be able to connect to points including Budapest, Prague, Warsaw, Algeria, Tunis, Bali, Hanoi, HoChi Minh City, Taipei and Sao Paulo. <br/>

Air Arabia, the Middle East & North Africa’s first and largest low-cost carrier operator, Wednesday announced record financial results for Q3 ending September 30, 2022, as the carrier continued to deliver solid operational and financial performance. Air Arabia reported a net profit of AED416 million for the three months ending September 30, 2022, an increase of 99% compared to AED209m registered in the corresponding Q3 of 2021. In the same period, the airline posted a turnover of AED1.6b, a 100% increase compared to the same quarter of last year. More than 3.9m passengers flew with Air Arabia Group between July and September 2022 across the carrier’s six hubs in the UAE, Morocco, Egypt and Armenia, an increase of 103% compared to the number of passengers carried in the same quarter last year. The average seat load factor – or passengers carried as a percentage of available seats – during Q3 2022 stood at an impressive average of 80%, it said. Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohamed Al Thani, Chairman of Air Arabia, said: “Air Arabia’s solid performance in the third quarter of this year reflects the company’s strong operational and commercial strategy, and its underlying commitment to consistently deliver true value to customers. We are glad to witness another record performance supported by the strong passenger demand and rigid cost control measures adopted by the management team”.<br/>

Cebu Pacific trimmed its operating loss for the third quarter on the back of a significant increase in passenger travel revenue, despite it being a “lean season”. For the three months to 30 September, the low-cost operator was Ps3b ($51.6m) in the red at the operating level, improving on the Ps6.2b loss in the year-ago period. Quarterly revenue grew five-fold to Ps16.9b, led mainly by passenger revenues increasing nearly ninefold. The airline states it flew over 4m passengers across its network, more than five times the number carried a year ago. Cargo revenue also saw an increase, rising 41% year on year, while ancillary revenue leapt eight-fold, as a result of an increase in passenger numbers. The airline saw quarterly costs double year on year, to Ps19.9b, due mainly to “significantly higher” jet fuel prices, as well as the depreciation of the Peso. Airline finance chief Mark Cezar says: “We are encouraged by some notable improvements in our numbers amidst the ongoing challenges related to fuel and foreign exchange rates. We remain cautiously optimistic that through our ongoing initiatives, coupled with a sustained increase in passenger traffic, we will soon see better days ahead.” <br/>