United Airlines is "cautiously optimistic" about the outcome of U.S.-China negotiations on increasing the frequency of direct flights between the two countries. Walter Dias, sales director for greater China, Korea and Southeast Asia at United, told Nikkei Asia on Tuesday that the airline would like to add more flights to the four every week connecting Shanghai Pudong and San Francisco -- the only direct passenger route between the US and mainland China. But he said that would depend on talks between the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Civil Aviation Agency of China aimed at easing restrictions on flights that were imposed because of the COVID-19 pandemic and as Washington-Beijing tensions escalated. "We cannot add any flights until the two governments come to an agreement on our frequency," Dias said, adding it was "hard to predict" what would happen. "We're just cautiously optimistic that they will kind of have some additional agreement, but we'll just have to watch and monitor what happens there." Aviation services are universally governed by mutual agreements. The one between Washington and Beijing is rigid compared with "open skies" arrangements that grant foreign carriers more freedom in deciding where and when to fly. Chicago-based United was the first U.S. carrier to resume direct flights between the US and China at the end of January as COVID restrictions in China were gradually lifted. Delta Air Lines restarted their Sino-American flights last week, while American Airlines ones are scheduled to begin at the end of the month. Meanwhile, United resumed its direct passenger flights between Hong Kong and San Francisco on Monday, after a three-year hiatus. The aviation agreement between the U.S. and Hong Kong is governed under a separate aviation agreement, not connected to the one with China. Dias called the resumption of the first direct flight from Hong Kong to the continental U.S. a "big milestone for rebuilding Asia-Pacific routes." He said a second daily flight could be added as demand recovers.<br/>
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A passenger who helped restrain a threatening man on a weekend flight from Los Angeles to Boston said Tuesday that the entire chaotic episode was over within seconds thanks to teamwork. Simik Ghookasian said in a telephone interview that he was seated several rows behind the man, who had quietly tried to open an airliner’s emergency door before trying to stab a flight attendant with a broken metal spoon, according to prosecutors. “I heard the guy getting louder and louder and I thought it was just an argument, but he started yelling and screaming and threatening people, threatening to kill them,” said Ghookasian, a Los Angeles government contractor flying to Boston on United Flight 2609 on Sunday for work. Until the yelling, he hadn’t noticed anything unusual about the man, who federal authorities have identified as Francisco Severo Torres. Ghookasian said he saw the spoon and he was among five or six passengers who piled onto Torres and removed it from his grasp. It turned out to be the handle of a metal spoon, from which the bowl portion had been broken off, authorities said. “That guy was really strong and was really resisting,” Ghookasian said. “We had a hard time holding him down. It was total teamwork.” Ghookasian asked a flight attendant for some zip ties or duct tape, and the flight attendant produced some zip ties. Ghookasian, who said he has first aid and counter-terrorism training, said he didn’t have time to be scared, he just reacted and used his instincts. “Everything just exploded in a few seconds,” he said. Torres, 33, of Leominster, Massachusetts, was arrested when the plane arrived in Boston and charged with interference and attempted interference with flight crew members and attendants using a dangerous weapon, federal prosecutors said. He was detained pending a hearing scheduled for Thursday.<br/>
US officials are investigating a close call involving Air Canada and American Airlines flights at a Florida airport. According to the US FAA, or FAA, on Feb. 16 an air traffic controller at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport in Florida cleared an Air Canada Rouge flight for takeoff after clearing an American Airlines crew to land on the same runway. "After the controller advised the American flight crew that Air Canada was departing, the American flight crew discontinued their landing," the FAA said in a statement to CTVNews.ca. "The FAA estimates the aircraft were approximately 3,100 feet (945 metres) apart when the American jet began its climb-out." Both the FAA and US NTSB are currently investigating the incident, which likely occurred around 8 p.m. ET. No injuries were reported. "The American Airlines crew self-initiated a go-around," the National Transportation Safety Board added in a March 6 statement. "A preliminary report expected in 2-3 weeks." In a statement to CTVNews.ca Tuesday, an American Airlines spokesperson said the company is co-operating with investigators. Air Canada and Canadian transportation officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Air Canada Rouge flight was travelling to Toronto while the American Airlines flight was arriving from Charlotte, N.C.<br/>
Some 36 flights at Lufthansa subsidiary Austrian Airlines were cancelled or delayed on Tuesday due to a cabin crew meeting to discuss wage talks, a spokesperson said, affecting around 1,800 passengers, mostly with destinations in central Europe. Operations were expected to stabilise during the afternoon, said the spokesperson, and around 4,100 passengers have been able to fly as planned. More staff than expected had attended the meeting where employees were to be told about the stalled re-negotiation of a collective wage agreement. After an initial agreement in October, cabin crew demanded a renegotiation due to the airline's strong Q3 results.<br/>
Former British Airways chief operating officer Jason Mahoney is to take up an equivalent role at Scandinavian carrier SAS. Mahoney will take up the post at SAS on 1 May, succeeding Simon Pauck Hansen who stepped down in January. While he served as COO at BA, Mahoney’s most recent position at the UK carrier has been chief technical officer. His technical background includes several years at leisure operator TUI where he was director of engineering and maintenance, and he also held a similar post at former UK carrier BMI. Mahoney is a “well-recognised and experienced professional”, says SAS chief Anko van der Werff. SAS has also named Erik Westman as executive vice-president for network and revenue management, a role in which he had already been occupying in an acting capacity.<br/>
Expressing his concern at the rising incidents of unruly behaviour by passengers on flights, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson has urged concerted industry effort to contain the problem. “It is unfortunate that the [passenger] behaviour is not always what one would expect in a public environment. As an industry, we need to step forward and say there’s what is acceptable and what’s not acceptable,” Wilson told Business Today. The CE of the country’s national flag carrier made this observation while responding to a question on the incident on a New York-Delhi flight where a business class passenger had allegedly urinated on a co-passenger on November 26 last year. The matter is currently sub judice. Expressing deep regret at the incident, Wilson admitted they had failed to handle the situation adequately around that time. “As a consequence of that incident, we’ve looked at internal processes. We’ve looked at the technology that we will be using in reporting such incidents internally as well as to the regulator. We’ve looked at some policies because clearly, we need to do better,” he said.<br/>
Logistics specialist NYK has entered into an agreement to transfer all shares in Boeing 747 freighter operator Nippon Cargo Airlines (NCA) to Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways Holdings. The shipping group cites the ongoing cost of running the cargo airline for the decision. The terms of the deal are still under discussion but both parties hope to finalise the transaction by October. “The continuous introduction of new aircraft to expand the operation and maintenance system, and the continuous training of personnel engaged in operation and maintenance required a considerable expenditure,” NCA says. “In the highly volatile business environment of airfreight transportation, NCA has been facing challenges in expanding its business scale at a level that is commensurate with such costs.” For ANA, the deal will “dramatically enhance its international air cargo network” and products and services based in Japan and also with the aim to contribute to the development of global economic activities both in Japan and abroad. “In order for NCA to achieve further growth and increase corporate value from a long-term perspective which includes environmental responsiveness, we believe that it is the best option to transfer shares of NCA to [ANA] which operates the same business, and has been providing NCA with cooperative relation to strengthen its maintenance system,” NYK adds. NCA currently operates a fleet of eight 747-8 freighters and owns five 747-400 freighters that are operated by ASL and Atlas Air. The airline decided to concentrate on the 747-8F after a maintenance issue forced the company to temporarily ground its fleet back in 2018. It also faced a government maintenance warning earlier this year. In the first nine months of the current business year, NYK reported that its air cargo business had made a profit of Y56.4b ($415m) – flat on a year earlier – and revenues increased by a quarter to Y178.3b. However, NCA’s profitability has been patchy over the years, having reported losses in fiscal years 2012, 2013, 2018 and 2019. NYK has been involved in NCA since it was established in 1978 and acquired all shares in the freighter operator in 2010 with the aim of becoming “a comprehensive logistics company offering ocean, land, and air transportation”.<br/>