Global airline passenger traffic in February was significantly higher year-on-year amid “continued strong growth in travel demand” but still lagged pre-pandemic levels. In February, the most-recent month of available data, global traffic measured in revenue passenger kilometres jumped 56% year-on-year, but was still only 85% of February 2019 levels, according to a 4 April report from the IATA. International traffic was up 90% year-on-year, while domestic traffic was 25% greater than the same month of 2022, IATA says. “Despite the uncertain economic signals, demand for air travel continues to be strong across the globe and particularly in the Asia-Pacific region,” says Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general. “The industry is now just about 15% below 2019 levels of demand and that gap is narrowing each month.” International traffic nearly quadrupled year-on-year in the Asia-Pacific region – which is “maintaining the very positive momentum of the past few months” since Covid-19-related travel restrictions have been lifted, IATA says – and was up 48% in Europe, 44% in Latin America, 75% in the Middle East, 91% in Africa and 67% in North America. The strongest domestic growth was recorded in Japan, where domestic traffic surged 161% year-on-year and now stands at 90% of pre-pandemic levels. Notably, US airlines’ domestic demand rose 11% year-on-year in February and was slightly ahead of passenger traffic levels reported for February 2019. “People are flying in ever-greater numbers,” Walsh says. “With the Easter and Passover holidays, we are expecting large numbers of travellers to take to the skies in many parts of the world. They should do so with confidence that airlines have been rebuilding resiliency that suffered owing to the pandemic.”<br/>
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Preliminary traffic figures from global airports grouping ACI World show air passenger numbers climbed to almost 7 billion last year, up 53.5% on 2021. That is the equivalent of 73.8% of the passenger numbers ACI reported across airports in 2019, before the pandemic. ACI World figures confirm that Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International airport was again the busiest airport in the world in 2022, handling just under 94 million passengers. The Delta Air Lines’ hub has long held that position, with the notable exception being during pandemic-hit 2020, when Chinese airport Guangzhou – boosted by the early reopening of the large Chinese domestic market that year – led the way. Atlanta is one of five US airports to feature among the six busiest by passenger numbers last year, reflecting the strength of the USA's air travel recovery and the size of the country's domestic market. The latter point is underlined by no US airport being among the 10 top airports last year by international passengers traffic only. Dubai, the fifth biggest airport overall last year with 66 million passengers, was 2022's top international hub. Heathrow was runner up, with the vast majority of its 61m passengers travelling on international flights. Seven European airports were among the 10 busiest hubs by international passengers last year. ACI World director general Luis Felipe de Oliveira says: "While US airport hubs were able to recover quicker due to their strong domestic market, we are now witnessing global hubs joining upper ranks – including Dubai, Istanbul and London Heathrow airport. "While we continue to march forward cautiously amidst multiple headwinds that could impact the speed and magnitude of global air traffic recovery, the latest rankings represent an important milestone in reaching pre-pandemic levels. The re-opening of China, the second largest aviation market after the US, is now expected to bring an overall gain, both domestically and for international travel.”<br/>
The Dutch government cannot introduce a cap to lower flight numbers at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport later this year, a local court ruled on Wednesday, blocking one of the most high-profile attempts yet to reduce the aviation industry’s environmental impact. A Haarlem court ruled that the government could not cut flight numbers by 8 per cent to 460,000 per year because it had not gone through the correct procedures when it introduced the rules as temporary measures. “According to European rules, the state can only reduce the number of air transport movements at an airport after going through a careful process,” the court said. The ruling is a boost for the airline industry, which brought the case against the government and pointed to its longstanding efforts to reduce aircraft noise levels and carbon emissions, including through the introduction of newer aircraft. “With our measures we see a better alternative for achieving less noise and CO₂ while meeting travellers’ need to fly,” said Dutch carrier KLM. Other carriers including easyJet, Tui and Delta were also involved in bringing the case. Schiphol said the court decision provided clarity and pledged to “continue with everything we do to make aviation quieter and cleaner”. The Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management has been contacted for comment. The case rested on the local impact of flying, including noise and nitrogen dioxide levels and was closely watched within the European aviation industry as one of the first efforts by the state to limit flying on environmental grounds. The industry argues that it does not need to curtail growth in flying as it strives to hit net zero by 2050 because of new technologies, notably cleaner fuels. But environmental campaigners have questioned the potential of the new technologies, which are unproven commercially, and on Wednesday said the judgment was a setback.<br/>
Turkey closed its airspace to planes flying to and from Sulaymaniyah International Airport in Iraq’s Kurdish region, accusing separatist militants of using the site. “Infiltration” of the airport by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, is threatening flight safety, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. The closure will run until July 3. The PKK, which seeks autonomy for Turkish Kurds, is designated a terrorist organization by the European Union and the US. The government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan considers it a major threat, and Sweden’s alleged support for the party is one reason his administration is holding out on approving the Nordic country’s bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region and the central government in Baghdad agreed on Tuesday to resume oil exports via Turkey after a legal spat, but shipments are yet to begin.<br/>
Hamburg airport’s operator is aiming to reduce bottlenecks in security queues and smooth passenger flow by encouraging departing travellers to book a specific slot for security checks. The operator is offering passengers – and up to four companions – the opportunity to select a 15min slot online, up to 72h before departure. Upon arriving at a specific entry point to security, at the allocated time, the passengers can scan their boarding card or a confirmation QR code to gain access. Hamburg’s operator says the service – branded ‘Slot & Fly’ – is free and available to all passengers, irrespective of airline and cabin class. Only registered passengers can use the security entry point, located in Terminal 1, and only within the reserved time slot. Hamburg airport CE Michael Eggenschwiler says the service is an “important building block”, adding that it presents passengers with the possibility of avoiding long queues without compromising security. “This allows passengers to plan more reliably how long they will spend at Hamburg airport, reducing the stress of their journey,” states Hannover federal police department president Michael Schuol. He says the scheme also enables better co-ordination of security personnel. Hamburg’s operator points out that the number of passengers using the airport is rising, and that some 270,000 are expected weekly during the Easter holiday period.<br/>
East Japan Railway (JR East) said Tuesday that it now aims to open a new train line connecting Tokyo Station and the capital’s Haneda Airport in fiscal 2031, two years later than the initially planned fiscal 2029. The new line will allow passengers to travel between the station and the airport without changing trains in around 18 minutes, compared with about 30 minutes on existing lines. Construction for the new airport line will begin in earnest in June. A tunnel will be built for the 12.4km section between the airport and an area near Tamachi Station, while existing facilities such as elevated tracks will be renovated. A new station will be built in an underground area between the airport’s Terminal 1 and Terminal 2. The project is estimated to cost about Y280b.<br/>
Boeing is again delivering 767s, having restarted hand overs after a pause due to quality issues affecting commercial and military versions of the widebody jets. The US manufacturer on 5 April confirmed its deliveries of the type have resumed but did not provide additional information. Cirium fleets data, however, shows that Boeing delivered a 767-300ER Freighter to US package-delivery giant FedEx on 24 March. Boeing’s 767 delivery pause became evident early last month after the company said it was working to address what it called a “quality issue” affecting its two remaining in-production 767 variants. Those include cargo-configured 767-300ER Freighters and 767-based KC-46 military refueling tankers. “Through Boeing’s standard process, a quality issue was identified on some 767/KC-46 Tanker components,” Boeing said on 7 March. “We are continuing to work through our process with our supplier, regulator and customers to resolve the issue.” Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief executive Stan Deal said last week that the problem involved a “paint adhesion issue”, according to a Reuters report. Prior to the recent 24 March delivery, Boeing had last delivered a 767 in December 2022, also to FedEx, according to Boeing’s data. The company is expected to disclose its March aircraft order and delivery figures on 11 April.<br/>
Embraer, the world's third-largest aircraft supplier, plans to expand its footprint in the narrow-body passenger jet market in Asia, where demand is expected to take off. By 2025, the Brazilian manufacturer aims to deliver 100 jets a year with up to roughly 150 seats. Asian markets, such as China and India, will be front and center of that strategy, CEO Francisco Gomes Neto said in Sao Paulo. Embraer is a leader in commercial planes with fewer than 150 seats. Delivering 100 aircraft worldwide in a year would mark a 75% increase from last year's total. The company has laid groundwork to deliver planes to China. In November, one of the latest in Embraer's E2 series, the E190-E2 commercial jet, won type certification -- approval of an aircraft's design for airworthiness and other standards -- from Chinese authorities. The E195-E2 is expected to receive type certification soon. Embraer jets will compete in China with the ARJ21, made by the state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC). But Gomes Neto contends that the E2 family is superior, noting that it is "very efficient, very quiet and very comfortable." New orders from China could be announced this month when Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is due to visit China from April 12. Meanwhile, the company is in talks with India airlines over passenger jets, and a contract could be signed "in 2024," said Gomes Neto. Embraer has yet to make any deliveries to India. India and Embraer are also negotiating deliveries of warplanes. Embraer is considering opening a production site in India with a local counterpart if orders are secured. The global market for 61- to 170-seat jets stands at 15,425 units between the years 2022 and 2041, according to industry researcher Japan Aircraft Development Corp. (JADC), with a value of $1.38t. The pandemic severely dented demand in 2020, but orders picked up again in 2021. Embraer delivered 41 aircraft, including cargo planes, that year, according to JADC data, taking a commanding lead over Canadian rival Bombardier, which delivered three planes.<br/>
FedEx Corp. is seeking to cut $4b in costs by combining its two main delivery networks, in an ambitious plan by new CEO Raj Subramaniam to increase profit margins. The courier has for decades operated an express package business separately from its ground unit, which FedEx acquired in 1998 and depends on third-party contractors to make the last-mile delivery of parcels. As of June 2024, it will be “a single company operating a unified, fully integrated air-ground network under the respected FedEx brand,” the company said Wednesday. “FedEx is at a pivotal moment in history,” Subramaniam said during an investor meeting in New York. “There is significant value in FedEx that’s being unlocked for shareholders.” The courier’s shares rose 3.8% at 9:49 a.m. in New York. The stock has been trading almost 30% below its May 2021 peak. FedEx has trailed United Parcel Service Inc. on profit margins even though its larger rival has a unionized workforce and pays its drivers more than twice what their counterparts at FedEx’s ground network make. Many analysts point to the efficiencies of UPS’s single delivery network as the reason. In the latest quarter, UPS reported adjusted operating margins of 13% compared with just 5.2% for FedEx. <br/>
Three people on board a sightseeing helicopter died after the aircraft crashed near the UNESCO World Heritage Site Ha Long Bay in Northern Vietnam Wednesday afternoon, according to a statement on the government’s website. The pilot and two Vietnamese tourists were killed, according to the statement. Two other passengers are missing. The Textron Inc. Bell 505 aircraft lost contact with air traffic control about 10 minutes after taking off from Tuan Chau Island in northern Ha Long City, the government said. More than 200 people, 30 ships and boats joined search-and-rescue efforts, the government of Quang Ninh province said in a Thursday morning statement.<br/>
Finnish biofuel producer Neste plans to start commercial production at its renewable fuels expansion project in Singapore in the coming weeks after trial runs, a senior company executive said on Wednesday. Neste plans to inaugurate the 1.3m tonne-per-year (tpy) plant next month, executive vice president Carl Nyberg told Reuters. The plant will boost Neste's sustainable aviation fuel capacity by up to 1m tpy, in addition to a 500,000 tpy project at their Rotterdam plant, he added. The Singapore expansion and production from a new joint venture plant in California with Marathon Oil Corp will increase Neste's biofuels capacity to reach 5.5m tpy by end of 2023, up from 3.3m tpy, Nyberg said. Neste produces renewable fuels, mainly from waste and residues such as used cooking oil and animal fat from food industry waste. Nyberg expects these to continue forming a big part of the company's feedstock pool while it develops new solutions such algae from a pilot project in Spain.<br/>