general

A power outage is disrupting flights at a John F. Kennedy International Airport terminal, the airport said Thursday. The outage at Terminal 1 was caused by an electrical panel failure that resulted in a “small isolated fire overnight that was immediately extinguished,” the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said. “The power outage is currently impacting the terminal’s ability to accept inbound and outbound flights,” the statement said. Other terminals are being used to accommodate the affected flights, and travelers should check with their airlines for flight status, the Port Authority said. An Air New Zealand flight that was due to land at JFK at 5:40 p.m. ET Thursday was diverted back to its origin airport, according to flight tracking site FlightAware. Some arriving international flights were diverted to other East Coast airports, including Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, Boston’s Logan International Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport, JFK’s website showed.<br/>

Resurgent passenger aviation following the coronavirus pandemic has created shortages of jet fuel, pushing up airlines’ operating costs and fares. US jet fuel inventories stood at just 36.5m barrels on Feb. 10, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Stocks were at the lowest for the time of year since 1985 and 4.3m barrels (-11% or -1.94 standard deviations) below the prior ten-year seasonal average. The deficit has narrowed from 6.3m barrels (-15% or -2.83 standard deviations) at the start of October 2022, but inventories remain stretched. Kerosene-type jet fuel is produced by similar refinery processes to diesel and other distillate fuel oils, but at higher quality specifications. Jet supplies have experienced the same pressures as other middle distillates – rebounding transportation demand coupled with worldwide limits on refinery production. Shortages of other middle distillates have bled across into tight supplies of jet fuel since both draw from the same refinery streams. The number of passengers boarding scheduled flights in the United States recovered to 89% of its pre-pandemic level between January and November 2022, according to the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The volume of jet fuel supplied to the domestic market also returned to 89% of the pre-pandemic level in the first eleven months of 2022, according to the EIA. But with shortages of both jet fuel and other middle distillates, the average price paid for jet fuel climbed to $3.37 per gallon ($142 per barrel) in 2022 up from $2.00 per gallon in 2019.<br/>

The internet sites of several German airports were disrupted on Thursday after what may have been a hacker attack, German news agency dpa reported. The disruptions did not appear to have an immediate impact on the country’s air traffic, the agency said. Nuremberg Airport in southern Germany reported that its online site was receiving so many requests that it collapsed. The homepages of Duesseldorf and Dortmund airports in the west of the country were also unreachable, dpa reported. In eastern Germany, the website of Erfurt-Weimar airport was shut down. The airport’s internet provider was checking whether it was a hacker attack, dpa reported. On Wednesday, Frankfurt airport had to temporarily divert all flights away from the country’s busiest airport after a problem with airline Lufthansa’s computer systems that was caused by construction works.<br/>

French airport operator ADP said on Thursday that it expects profit to return to pre-pandemic levels a year earlier than anticipated, but its outlook for Paris passenger traffic disappointed, sending its shares sharply lower. The operator of airports in France, central Asia, India and elsewhere, posted annual earnings that beat expectations as traffic recovered and it saw stronger activity in its retail and services business. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) came in at E1.70b, against an estimate of E1.63b in a company-provided poll. Despite the market-beating results, investors were disappointed by the company’s outlook. Analysts at JPMorgan said guidance was “underwhelming”, citing updated traffic expectations for Paris of between 87% and 93% of 2019 levels, compared to a previous forecast that pegged the figures at 85% to 95%. At a results presentation, ADP Chairman and CEO Augustin de Romanet, said pent up demand will likely continue to offset rising inflation in the near term, while the key Chinese travel market will progressively return. He sees weekly flights from China likely increasing to around 28 in June from 6 currently. “I hope it will be more,” de Romanet said, noting that negotiations between French and Chinese authorities were ongoing, but that the return to pre-COVID-19 levels was not “super simple”.<br/>

The government will increase flights between Korea and China to 80 per week by the end of this month as the COVID-19 situation is showing signs of stabilization, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said Friday. The current number of flights to China is 62 per week under curbs imposed in late December and the number would be gradually increased to 100 per week starting next month, Han told a COVID-19 response meeting. Korea has required travelers from China to take COVID-19 tests before departure and upon arrival and they are required to arrive at Incheon International Airport for proper containment management until the end of this month. Next week, the government will make a decision on whether to lift such restrictions, Han said. "The COVID-19 situation has clearly stabilized, with the daily average number of COVID-19 confirmed cases falling for eight consecutive weeks to maintain the 10,000 level," Han said.<br/>

China resumed regular passenger flights with 58 countries last week after the country removed certain COVID-19 restrictions on international passenger flights from Jan. 8, 2023. During the week from Feb. 6 to 12, some 98 domestic and overseas airlines operated 795 flights, up 65% from the week from Jan. 2 to 8, Shang Kejia, an official with the Civil Aviation Administration of China, told a press conference on Thursday. The number of countries handling flights to or from China and airlines operating these flights resumed to 64 and 80%, respectively, of the level in the same period of 2019. Shang said the domestic air transport market would continue to see rapid expansion, and the flight amount is likely to equal and even exceed the pre-epidemic level. Shang also expected the number of international flights to increase further, driven by the gradual resumption of demand for international business, tourism, and education.<br/>

There’s a ritual involved in creating the perfect Sichuan hot pot and it involves fat — lots of it. Diners first immerse slivers of meat in a spicy soup rich in molten animal tallow, then dip each morsel in a plate of vegetable oil, before finally devouring it. It’s a rich delicacy, one that produces about 12,000 tons of waste oil each month in the Chinese city of Chengdu alone. So in 2016, a startup began exporting some of that leftover restaurant grease to Europe and Singapore, where it gets recycled into fuel pure enough to fly airplanes. Responsible for around 2% of the world’s total emissions of planet-warming gases, the aviation industry is under pressure to find greener ways to power its jet engines. Several major airlines, including British Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways and Delta Air Lines, have pledged to replace about 10% of their jet fuel with a sustainable alternative by 2030, and more than 50 have begun to experiment with it, but cleaner substitutes are still being developed. Waste oil from kitchens is emerging as a major source of sustainable jet fuel because it doesn’t displace food production or encourage deforestation to make way for crops. And China, with its large population and love for super-greasy hot pots, is already the largest exporter. “Our mission is to make gutter oil fly to the sky,” said Zhong Guojun, vice president of Sichuan Jinshang Environmental Technology, which is behind the project. The Chengdu-based company collects used oil, mostly from hot pot restaurants in the Sichuan capital of 16m, and removes impurities such as sodium and metal particles. Its end product is a biofuel precursor usually called industrial mixed oil, which is then packed on ships that sail east along the Yangtze River to the port of Shanghai, from where it’s exported to Neste Oyj, the world’s largest producer of sustainable aviation fuel, and to global energy giants including BP PLC and Eni SpA, to be further refined into biodiesel or jet fuel.<br/>

Passengers traveling through airports in Vietnam will soon have a new experience undergoing security checks, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV). Details of the plan to implement face biometrics were recently unveiled by the government agency and a pilot to that effect is programed within Q1 this year, per a report by the Vietnam News Agency. According to the CAAV, the move will bring many benefits to passengers including improving social order at airports and reducing the time spent for check-in processes. The facial recognition system will also help airport security staff better detect fake or forged documents as well as identify those prohibited from flying or persons on watch lists. The outcome of the pilot will be reported to the Ministry of Transport and studied for further action. The move comes after an agreement was reached in October last year between the CAAV and other industry stakeholders for the use of chip-based citizen ID cards by some domestic flight passengers.<br/>

Air Lease Corp said on Thursday aircraft delivery delays were not getting any better as labor and parts shortages roil the aerospace industry. “Last year, we had delays on some aircraft that were like two to three months. And we had delays on A321neo that was 9 months... I can’t give you a mathematical average, but it’s certainly worse than three months, and it’s not getting any better,” Air Lease Chairman Steven Udvar-Hazy said during an investor call. Airlines are queueing up to buy jets from Boeing Co and Airbus to tap into a greater-than-expected recovery in travel, but have had to turn to leasing firms for planes. “We remain skeptical that Airbus and Boeing will meet their aspirational production rate goals over the next two to three years,” Air Lease CEO John Plueger said. Earlier on Thursday, Airbus said it slowed the production ramp-up of key narrowbody models, while Boeing on Wednesday said the supply chain was not yet ready for production rate hikes. The lack of aircraft has, however, powered lessors’ earnings in recent times as lease rates climb due to strong demand. Delivery delays were also pushing airlines to extend their leases for an average of three years, Air Lease executives said, adding that it was really hard to predict the supply chain.<br/>

Airbus is urging stepped-up European cooperation to ensure the continent’s security and future access to space after a year that saw the company suffer fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the crash of a European satellite launcher. The France-based plane maker on Thursday reported a record overall 2022 profit of E4.25b ($4.55b), up from 4.21b euros the year before, despite inflation challenges and supply chain disruptions that slowed efforts to ramp up aircraft production. CEO Guillaume Faury said the company aims to deliver 720 planes this year, up from 661 last year, in an effort to keep up with growing demand by airlines as travel picks up worldwide following COVID-19 disruptions. On Tuesday, Air India unveiled an massive order that included 250 Airbus passenger jets. Airbus didn’t disclose financial terms of the deal, which could be worth tens of billions of dollars. Airbus took in 820 orders in 2022 and reported revenue of E58.8b ($63b). US rival Boeing has lagged behind Airbus in deliveries but has been closing the gap, reporting 774 orders and 480 deliveries last year. Both companies are struggling with shortages of engines and other supply chain issues that limit how fast they can build and deliver planes. Those supply issues have overshadowed what is otherwise a rebounding market for aircraft, said Richard Aboulafia, managing director at consultancy AeroDynamic Advisory. Demand has been supported by the travel recovery from the worst of the pandemic, a spike in fuel prices that put a premium on newer, more efficient aircraft, and the need for smaller, single-aisle aircraft flying point to point such as the Airbus A-321. “It’s nothing to do with markets and everything to do with supply,” Aboulafia said. “The market’s fine — it’s just a question of what supply can bear.”<br/>

Boeing said on Thursday it is merging its aircraft financing arm into its commercial airplanes business unit as part of a push to simplify its corporate structure. After the retirment of Boeing Capital Corp (BCC) President Tim Myers this spring, Boeing said it will "realign" the financing arm within the commercial airplane unit while still maintaining "strong coordination" with the company's treasury arm. Airfinance Journal earlier reported the move. Boeing Capital, a subsidiary of Boeing, provides asset-based financing and leasing to prospective commercial jet buyers. By moving the financing organization under its commercial airplane unit, the Boeing hopes it can simplify the buying process for customers. The realignment will "focus resources on our core work of supporting our customers and their financing needs," Boeing CFO Brian West said in an internal memo viewed by Reuters. A Boeing spokesperson said the shift will provide airline customers "with more consistent support" for arranging aircraft financing. Rob Martin, finance chief for the commercial airline business, and Boeing Treasurer David Whitehouse will be responsible for the transition, West said in the memo. The closure of Boeing Capital continues a trend for Boeing to consolidate operational structure. The company in November announced a reorganization of its defense unit aimed that halved its business divisions.<br/>

A Boeing 747 configured as a private VIP jet is being scrapped after having spent just 30 hours in service over 16 flights. The aircraft, originally intended for a Saudi royal, sat on the ground for almost 10 years at EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg, located at the border between France, Switzerland and Germany. There, it was meant to be fitted with a lavish interior, but that never happened, and after failing to find a new buyer, the plane was eventually flown to Pinal Airpark in Arizona – an aircraft boneyard where retired planes get stripped for parts or stored indefinitely. The plane is a BBJ, for “Boeing Business Jet” – heavily modified editions of Boeing’s jetliners targeted to governments and corporate clients. Its range of over 10,000 miles and cabin space of about 5,000 square feet are unrivaled by any other business aircraft. It’s also the most advanced model of the Boeing 747 ever produced – the 747-8 variant – which first flew in 2010 but failed to find commercial success due to being expensive to operate. The final one, delivered to cargo operator Atlas Air in early 2023, marked the end of the 747’s production history, though the variant still has a future in the spotlight: two 747-8s are currently being transformed into the next Air Force One planes. Boeing has sold over 250 BBJs to date, the vast majority of them 737s, which have a broader market appeal. The large, expensive, four-engined BBJ 747-8 was a harder sell: “Ten were built in total, and this is the first one retired,” says Connor Diver, a senior analyst at aviation analytics firm Cirium. “It’s not transparent who exactly is buying them, but it’s a very, very large private aircraft and the only operators or buyers tend to be governments and royal families.”<br/>