Star Alliance has been named the World’s Leading Airline Alliance at the World Travel Awards for the third consecutive year. At the North America 2022 edition of the awards held in August, the Star Alliance Los Angeles airport lounge also retained the award for North America's Leading Airport Lounge for the third year running. In receiving these awards, Star Alliance CEO Jeffrey Goh said: “We are extremely delighted to be receiving the World Travel Awards for the third consecutive year. This is particularly fitting as we celebrate our 25th anniversary this year.” Mr Goh continued: “These awards are testimony to the great work that more than 400,000 employees across the Star Alliance network do each day in delivering safe and seamless travel, and also to all the customers who have continued to give us and our member carriers their confidence and support.” Now in its 29th edition, the World Travel Awards was established to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. The annual awards are awarded based on a worldwide poll of qualified executives working within travel and tourism, and the consumer travel buyer. Graham E Cooke, Founder, World Travel Awards, said: "Star Alliance continues to set the benchmark for global aviation and I am delighted that both the travel trade and the public have acknowledged this by voting it the World’s Leading Airline Alliance 2022 at the World Travel Awards. Earlier this year, Star Alliance’s ground-breaking LA lounge was also the runaway winner for North America's Leading Airport Lounge once again." In addition to these two awards won at the alliance level, a number of Star Alliance member carriers also came away as individual winners this year. Nine of them won awards in 21 categories, ranging from World’s Leading Airline – First Class, to Leading Airlines in Europe, Oceania, Asia and Mexico & Central America.<br/>
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Lufthansa has revealed a special livery for its Qatar Football World Cup plane which the airline said "sends a clear message to the world". The Airbus A330 is emblazoned with the message "diversity wins" along with an image depicting people of various genders and ethnicities arm-in-arm. The paint job has been unveiled amid controversy over Qatar's strict anti-LGBTQ+ rules. Homosexuality is illegal in the Middle Eastern nation, however Qatar World Cup ambassador Khalid Salman recently said LGBTQ+ travellers are welcome to attend the tournament - so long as they "accept our rules here". He also described homosexuality as "damage in the mind". On Monday (local time), Lufthansa will drop off Germany's World Cup players, coaches and staff to a training camp in Oman on regular scheduled flight LH632 from Frankfurt to Dubai via Muscat. The airline has not yet confirmed if it will use the same aircraft to transport the team to Qatar, but is expected to. "Lufthansa is a byword for openness, tolerance, diversity and bringing people together," the airline said. "The company enables its customers from all nations and cultures to connect, and welcomes everyone aboard, regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, religion, nationality, identity or sexual orientation. And it is taking this same message - that Diversity Wins! - aloft and around the world." Germany's interior minister Nancy Faeser, who is also in charge of sport, called Salman's comments "terrible".<br/>
Ahead of US and UK antitrust authorities’ decision on whether to approve a merger between South Korea’s two full-service carriers of Korean Air Lines and Asiana Airlines next week, aircraft safety has emerged as a key factor in their decision after four passenger jet accidents by Korean Air Lines in the second half of this year alone. Korean Air Lines’ merger of Asiana to create a full-service air transport monopoly in Korea has gained approval from nine overseas authorities and is waiting for endorsement from five key markets - the United States, the United Kingdom, European Union, China and Japan. Korean Air Lines expects to gain the nod from the UK as Korea’s two flag carriers account for an insignificant share in the global airline industry. But the biggest challenge is the US’s decision due Nov. 15, where the process is mandatory. “The US has considerable influence on the global aviation market and thus, it is hardest to get its approval. Gaining the nod from the US is the most critical (in the merger) for now,” said an official from the aviation industry.<br/>
Boeing sees India as key to offsetting sluggish business in China, its biggest overseas market, as it tries to seal a massive aircraft order from the South Asian nation’s flag carrier and expand its presence in the country. “With uncertainty around China, the Indian market is increasingly important to us,” John Bruns, Boeing vice president of commercial sales and marketing in India and Southeast Asia, said Friday. Boeing and Airbus are both in the running for what could be one of the largest aircraft deals ever as formerly state-run Air India is overhauled by new owner Tata Group, which is considering adding as many as 150 737 Max jets and about 50 Airbus widebodies to its fleet. “We’re excited to be talking to them and we’re excited about that market,” Bruns said on the sidelines of a meeting of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines in Bangkok. Beyond that, he said Boeing doesn’t comment on discussions with customers. Boeing is on track to employ 5,000 staff in India, which would be its biggest overseas workforce, exceeding Australia’s 4,300, Bruns said. As for China, Boeing’s position there is complicated by geopolitics and Covid, which has left the borders of the world’s second-biggest economy largely closed. The US manufacturer is trying to find takers for some 737 Max planes that were due to go to Chinese customers but haven’t been delivered. Carriers in China have yet to resume flying the 737 Max commercially since it was grounded in March 2019 following crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia. “It’s still a slow recovery in China,” Bruns said. “There’s not like a huge demand for a bunch of new capacity at the moment.” <br/>
Thai Airways International is “studying closely” plans to bring its stored Airbus A380s back into its fleet to cope with a capacity shortfall, as the airline sees a steady increase in travel demand. Airline commercial chief Korakot Chatasingha says the airline has not committed to a decision, but is looking at the “cost effectiveness” of such a move. “As you know, to bring them…and return them to service, costs a lot of money,” says Chatasingha, who was speaking to reporters during the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) Assembly of Presidents held in Bangkok. Thai previously operated a fleet of six A380s, but grounded the aircraft amid a collapse in travel demand during pandemic, which saw the airline file for business rehabilitation. Of the six superjumbos, two are owned by the Bangkok-based airline, with the other four examples on lease. The airline intends to return its four leased A380s to lessors, and thus will study returning the remaining two to service. The disclosure comes as Chatasingha says the airline will “review its fleet planning” in 2023 as part of capacity expansion efforts. At present, Thai and its sister unit Thai Smile Airways operate a fleet of 64 aircraft, including 20 A320s. Two A330s - previously put up on sale - are expected to join the fleet by January 2023, a move Chatasingha says is driven by the need to boost capacity. The airline has, as part of restructuring efforts, streamlined its fleet, retiring its Boeing 747s, A380s and older 777s and A330s. Thai also signed leases for two more A350s, which will arrive in 2023. Chatasingha, who says another two are on the cards, notes that the aircraft were not part of original fleet plans and were secured in anticipation of a ramp-up in capacity.<br/>