The rate of lost, damaged or delayed luggage nearly doubled in 2022 as air travel rebounded and the sector faced staff shortages following the Covid-19 pandemic, a study found on Tuesday. The report by Sita, an IT provider for the air transport industry, said 7.6 bags per thousand passengers were mishandled in 2022, up from 4.35 the previous year. The surge follows more than a decade of reduction in the rate of mishandled luggage, according to Sita. In total, 26m bags were mishandled in 2022, compared with 9.9m in 2021, as the number of travellers neared pre-Covid-19 levels, according to Sita. “After a decade where the mishandling rate more than halved between 2007 and 2021, it is disheartening to see this rate climbing again,” said Sita CE David Lavorel. “As an industry, we need to work hard to ensure passengers are once again confident to check in their bags.” Passenger air traffic soared to 3.42b in 2022, but airports and airlines had fewer staff to handle the surge, after laying off thousands when the pandemic brought the sector to its knees. Air traffic had reached 4.5b in 2019, with a baggage mishandling rate of 5.6 bags per thousand passengers.<br/>
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Air travel bookings are pointing to strong demand this summer, with Asia Pacific leading a regional rebound after coronavirus restrictions disappeared and airlines overcame the travel chaos that dogged last year’s peak season, the International Air Transport Association said. Forward bookings for the May-September period are 35% higher than in the same period in 2022, the airline-industry group said in a statement. Asia Pacific experienced the largest jump with a 135% increase, followed by a 43% advance for the Middle East and a 40% improvement in Europe. IATA’s survey, which polled 4,700 people in 11 countries, showed that 79% of passengers are planning a trip during this year’s peak travel season. The vast majority expect smooth travel conditions after airlines and airports beefed up operations following last year’s chaos. “For many this will be their first post-pandemic travel experience,” Nick Careen, IATA’s senior vice president for operations, safety and security, said in the release. “While some disruptions can be expected, there is a clear expectation that the ramping-up issues faced at some key hub airports in 2022 will have been resolved.”<br/>
The Biden administration said Tuesday it has formed an interagency team to develop a national strategy relating to advanced air mobility efforts such as flying taxis. Electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL) have been touted as the future of urban air mobility. Low-altitude urban air mobility aircraft has drawn intense global interest, with numerous eVTOL companies going public. The US DoT said the team includes NASA, TSA, FAA and Federal Communications Commission. The FAA earlier this month issued an "updated blueprint" for airspace and other changes to accommodate future air taxis. Last year, it issued a proposal to update its air carrier definition to add "powered-lift" operations to regulations covering other commercial operations like airlines, charters and air tours. The FAA said that under the blueprint, air taxi operations will begin at a low rate, similar to helicopters, and using existing routes and infrastructure such as helipads and vertiports. The FAA is separately developing a powered-lift operations rule for certifying pilots and operating requirements to fly eVTOLs. The agency expects to publish the proposal this summer.<br/>
Artist Crystal Kaakeeyáa Rose Demientieff Worl imagined what her work would look like on an Alaska Airlines plane. Her mom worked at the carrier, and while growing up in Juneau, Alaska, Worl often saw Alaska Airlines aircraft flying overhead. “Every time I see an airplane, a boat, a car, a wall, any shape and any form, I can’t help but visualize how my designs could wrap around it,” she said. Now, Worl doesn’t have to imagine anymore. Her artwork is painted on one of two new planes flying the US skies that honor Indigenous art and culture. In recent weeks, Southwest also unveiled a new livery designed, in part, by an Indigenous artist. “It’s really significant that they chose an Indigenous artist to do Indigenous art,” Worl said. “I hope it becomes a trend to support Indigenous people, sharing our art and our story.” US airlines can go decades without changing often conservative aircraft paint designs — huge symbols of their brands. They occasionally debut liveries featuring sports teams, charities or commercial partnerships with theme parks or consumer-facing companies, like the Walt Disney Co. “There’s some whimsy and fun to painting a large aircraft so it looks like a Star Wars character or an Orca whale,” said Edmond Huot, chief creative officer and livery designer at Forward Studio. “What we’re seeing now is an elevated sense of duty with artists who are local. They’re going to give those individuals a way to tell a greater story in a much more meaningful way.” Alaska Airlines in March announced it has plans to work with an Indigenous artist in Hawaii on another plane. Worl had dreamed up a plane design years ago. In 2020, she posted a mock-up of an idea on Instagram and tagged Alaska Airlines. “Are you ready for me @alaskaair?? I’m ready for you,” she wrote. She never heard back, but gave a copy of her creation to the carrier’s employees whenever she flew. She also had her friends and family to send it to the airline. Alaska, independently, decided to find an Indigenous artist to design a livery. Marilyn Romano, a regional vice president at Alaska Air Group Inc., had begun a search when she got a copy of Alaska Monthly magazine with Worl on the cover. She told Worl she’d never seen the Instagram post.<br/>
European airlines are calling on the European Commission to take more action to mitigate the impact of strikes on travel this summer, trade group Airlines for Europe (A4E) said in a statement on Tuesday, with demand for flights set to soar. Strikes have rolled across Europe this year, already causing problems during the Easter travel season. Now, analysts and airlines fear travellers could face another summer of disruption on a similar scale to last year. Specifically, air traffic controller strikes in France have led to delays and limited flights across the country, causing more air space congestion in Europe and prompting Ryanair to launch a petition demanding more action from Europe's leaders. The petition currently has over 964,000 signatures and, if it reaches 1m, would warrant a response from the Commission. "Millions of Europeans are eager to travel this summer, and strikes stand to shatter their plans," said Laurent Donceel, acting managing director of A4E. "It's high time the Commission took decisive action to ensure smoother skies for the months ahead." Baggage mishandling rates have also spiked amid staff shortages and labour disruptions, among other issues, according to SITA, an IT and digital services provider in the aviation sector. A4E's proposal calls for mandatory arbitration with air traffic control unions before they can call a strike, 21-day advance notice if they choose to strike and a three-day individual notice of strike participation. In most cases, labour law and union negotiations are the competence of EU member countries. "It is essential that people can travel freely across Europe and to guarantee the proper functioning of the internal market, in full respect of the right to strike," a European Commission spokesperson said in response to A4E's stance.<br/>
European Union countries are set to finalise targets for airlines to increase their use of sustainable fuels as an initial step towards curbing CO2 emissions from aviation, a final version of the law showed. The sustainable aviation fuel targets are the EU's attempt to cut flight emissions pending breakthrough technologies such as zero-emission aircraft, which are not expected for at least a decade. The final law, which diplomats from EU countries will review on Wednesday, confirms a political deal reached with the European Parliament last month. Under the rules, fuel suppliers must ensure that 2% of fuel made available at EU airports is sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in 2025, rising to 6% in 2030, 20% in 2035 and gradually to 70% in 2050. From 2030, 1.2% of fuels must also be synthetic fuels, rising to 35% in 2050. The proposal aims to increase both demand for and supply of SAF, which has net-zero CO2 emissions or lower CO2 emissions than fossil fuel kerosene. Such fuel is not yet produced at scale and is far more expensive than conventional fuels. Airlines have given the EU plan a mixed reception. Air France-KLM has said its voluntary SAF targets are more ambitious than the EU law. Lufthansa has said the law could distort competition internationally as the SAF targets would apply to airlines flying from European hubs but not to long-haul carriers flying from outside the European Union. Laurent Donceel, Acting Managing Director of industry group Airlines for Europe, said policymakers should match the targets with more support to build up a European SAF industry.<br/>
The IATA announced that the Focus Africa Conference will delve into six priorities under IATA’s Focus Africa initiative to strengthen aviation’s contribution to the development of the continent. The focus areas include the continent’s economic and social development, improving connectivity, safety and reliability for passengers and shippers. Focus Africa is taking place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on June 20-21 with Ethiopian Airlines as the host airline. “Over the next 15 years, Africa’s passenger traffic is expected to double. The continent stands out as the region with the greatest potential and opportunity for aviation. But this potential is limited by infrastructure constraints, high costs, lack of connectivity, regulatory impediments, slow adoption of global standards and skills shortages, among other factors. The Focus Africa Conference will bring together the continent’s key stakeholders to address these challenges,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General. Mesfin Tasew, Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, will deliver an Opening Keynote Address. “We are delighted to host IATA’s Focus Africa Conference and welcome the aviation industry to our home, Addis Ababa. Advancing the air transport industry is critical for Africa’s economic growth. The conference will allow industry leaders to join forces and drive the Focus Africa initiative,” said Tasew.<br/>
China's civil aviation transport saw strong recovery momentum in April, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said on Tuesday. The total transport turnover of the sector was 9.31b tonne-kilometers, soaring 214.5% year on year and recovering to 88.6% of the level recorded in the same period of 2019, before the COVID-19 outbreak, administration official Li Yong told a press conference. Nearly 50.28m air passenger trips were handled last month, surging 537.9% year on year. Of the total air passenger trips last month, passenger transport on domestic routes represented an increase of 3.4% from April 2019. In April this year, the cargo and mail volume of China's civil aviation sector totaled 545,000 tonnes, recovering to 90.6% of the figure recorded in the same period of 2019, Li said.<br/>
Clouds are gathering over the world’s third largest aviation market. India’s Go First has gone into bankruptcy – the country’s second airline to do so since 2019. Its subsequent public and messy spat with engine suppliers and lessors will have ripple effects across the industry and abroad. A bonanza of cheap fuel between 2014 and 2018 helped Go, as well as competitors like $11b InterGlobe Aviation’s IndiGo and SpiceJet, to expand aggressively. Daily passenger traffic is soaring but financial stress is rising because of cutthroat competition, high taxes and airport charges, and other issues. Rebounding crude prices is hurting too. In 2019, one-time giant Jet Airways shut up shop, following a price war. Aircraft emblazoned with both defunct companies’ logos are now grounded on Indian airstrips. Go, the country’s third largest airline with a 7% market share, blames Raytheon Technologies-backed Pratt & Whitney’s “faulty” engines. But the ultra-low cost carrier has posted three consecutive years of heavy losses and delayed listing plans. It owes some 65b rupees ($798m) to financial creditors including the Central Bank of India and Deutsche Bank, and more to vendors and lessors. The sector’s debt including lease costs stood at $12b in the year to March 2023 – at par with overall revenue, per estimates by rating agency Icra. Unhappy lessors are fighting back. A New Delhi tribunal has barred them from repossessing planes parked with Go, triggering a legal battle between the carrier and companies including Sumitomo-backed SMBC Aviation Capital. A global industry association, Aviation Working Group, has put India on a watchlist for violating global conventions on repossession of airplanes. That might raise lease premiums for other airlines to account for uncertainties around clawing back aircraft in the country.<br/>
Officials in Hanoi have proposed the construction of a second airport to serve Vietnam’s capital, anticipating significant population growth in the coming decades. Hanoi officials estimate that the city will have 21-23m inhabitants by 2050, comparable with Ho Chi Minh City, which is in the process of developing a second airport, according to a report in the country’s VN Express news outlet. Officials have already started assessing locations that could support a second Hanoi airport. It is envisaged that the new airport will only serve domestic flights. The report adds that Hanoi’s existing Noi Bai International Airport was designed for 25m passengers annually, but handled 29m passengers in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic. Cirium schedules data illustrates strong traffic growth at Hanoi Noi Bai over the last decade. In 2013, it handled 24,500 arriving flights and is estimated to handle 469,000 in 2023. Separately, work continues on Ho Chi Minh City’s Long Thanh International Airport. Land has largely been cleared for the project, but a bidder has yet to be found to construct the new airport. On 11 April, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha reportedly said that it is essential that a reputable contractor be found. In November 2020, Hanoi signed off on funding of VND109b ($4.6b) for the first phase of the new Long Thanh airport. The first phase will run from 2020 to 2025, with the aim to produce one of the region’s major air hubs. Phase one involves the development of one 4,000m long runway, a passenger terminal, and other infrastructure that will be capable of handling 25mi passengers or 1.2m tons of cargo annually.<br/>
Embraer has showcased its E190-E2 model’s ability to conduct a short runway landing during a demonstration flight in South Korea. The simulated short runway landing took place over a distance of 1,066m and highlighted the plane’s place as the only narrowbody aircraft that can access a 1,200m runway in all conditions according to Embraer. Carrying over 80 passengers and holding enough fuel to make an onward journey to Seoul, the aircraft conducted the landing at Pohang Airport in order to showcase its ability to land at the upcoming runway at nearby Ulleungdo Airport. The new airport, which is scheduled for completion by 2025, will have a 1,200m runway and is expected to cater for 50-seat aircraft, though Embraer’s demonstration has shown the company’s capacity to utilise the runway with larger planes. Ulleungdo Island, though a popular tourist destination, is only accessible by ferries which are often affected by adverse weather and can take between three to four hours to get to the island. A ceremony around the demonstration flight also included the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Embraer Commercial Aviation’s CCO Martyn Holmes and the governor of Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, Lee Cheol Woo. The MoU will see the aerospace company work with South Korea’s largest province on aviation-related issues such as strengthening provincial connectivity. <br/>