United Airlines said Wednesday its CFO Gerry Laderman had announced plans to retire in 2024. The Chicago-based carrier plans to appoint a new CFO later this year. Laderman is expected to retire in September 2024 after being appointed to the role in 2018, the airline said in a regulatory filing. Laderman, a 35-year United veteran, played a pivotal role in steering the airline through the 2020 pandemic and lead the team that arranged $2b and $6b in financing. Prior to becoming CFO, Laderman served as senior vice president of finance, procurement, and Treasurer at United.<br/>
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Air Canada is to introduce up to six De Havilland Dash 8-400 turboprops from regional operator PAL Airlines, to help ease capacity pressure from pilot shortages. The Canadian flag-carrier has provisionally agreed – through a letter of intent – to use the aircraft on regional services in the east of the country. Under the proposal PAL Airlines would acquire up to six Dash 8s to operate on the Air Canada network for up to five years. The services would be branded as Air Canada Express, and complement Newfoundland-based PAL’s own scheduled route network. PAL president Calvin Ash says the services would be an “extension” of its strategy to build a strong presence in eastern Canada. “It would support continued growth in our operation, deepen our ability to build regional connectivity, and fortify PAL Airlines’ presence in the communities who have always supported our development,” he adds. Air Canada says the PAL pact has yet to be finalised. It already has an Air Canada Express regional co-operation with Jazz Aviation and insists that Jazz remains its “long-term” partner for such services. “We are working together to increase flying activity within the framework of our existing [capacity purchase agreement] given the current industry-wide pilot situation,” says Air Canada chief Michael Rousseau. Rousseau describes the potential PAL deal as a “bridging arrangement” to deliver additional capacity on “select routes”. Jazz parent company Chorus Aviation says the deal “does not impact” the company financially, and that the addition of the PAL Dash 8s is intended to meet travel demand.<br/>
Scandinavian Airlines said Wednesday travelers will soon be able to book seats on the carrier’s first commercial flights due to start five years from now in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark aboard electric-powered aircraft. The Stockholm-based SAS airline group said there will be 30 seats available on each of the three flights and that the day and place of departure will be communicated to travelers by email once decided. Online reservations will open June 2. The airline added that the price will be the same in all three Scandinavian currencies - 1,946 - signifying the year that SAS started flying. ”The fact that we can now invite our passengers to the next major milestone in the future of aviation is a natural continuation of that pioneering spirit and a significant step on our journey towards more sustainable aviation, said SAS CEO Anko van der Werff. He referred to the fact that Scandinavian Airlines in 1957 started flying over the North Pole to significantly shorten flight time between continents when it launched the commercial route Copenhagen-Tokyo. In September, SAS signed ”a letter of support” with Sweden-based Heart Aerospace to produce electric aircraft. The company plans to add Heart Aerospace’s ES-30 planes to its regional fleet. Several airlines plan to use electic-powered passenger aircraft on short-distance commercial flights.<br/>
A civil society organisation has launched a lawsuit against Ethiopian Airlines, accusing the state-owned carrier of discriminating against ethnic Tigrayans. The suit brought by Human Rights First, a local NGO, claims the airline is preventing “Tigrayans aged 15 to 60” from buying tickets for flights from the northern Tigray region to Addis Ababa, the federal capital. It also claims the company has increased ticket prices for the route as a form of “collective sanction” against the people of Tigray. The group claims this violates Ethiopia’s constitution, which contains articles ensuring equality among ethnic groups and guaranteeing freedom of movement. “By discriminating between citizens and limiting their freedom of movement, the accused has infringed upon their fundamental and democratic rights,” the lawsuit document states. “These charges have been presented in order to compel the accused to cease these violations.” Tigrayans make up about 6m of Ethiopia’s population of about 120m. Their home region of Tigray was at the centre of a civil war in 2020-22, which killed hundreds of thousands of people and featured widespread human rights abuses. For much of the conflict, Tigray was cut off from the rest of Ethiopia, with communications and transport links severed. Flights between Addis Ababa and the Tigrayan towns of Shire and Mekelle, the regional capital, resumed in late December after the signing of a ceasefire a month before. However, Tigrayans trying to travel to Addis Ababa say they have been prevented from buying tickets and from boarding Ethiopian Airlines flights.<br/>
Just as Singapore Airlines was giving employees an eight-month salary bonus after record profits, Hong Kong was giving away more than 4,400 free tickets for regional rival Cathay Pacific as the city sought to encourage visitors to return. Shares of Singapore Airlines have soared to their highest levels in more than three years after the national carrier made clear the strength of its post-coronavirus pandemic recovery with an annual profit of S$2.16b ($1.6b) for the year ending in March. In stark contrast, shares in Hong Kong-listed Cathay Pacific have dropped nearly 40% from a high in April 2019. In March, the airline unveiled a HK$6.5bn ($830m) loss for 2022 and shares have remained flat since. Their financial divergence reflects the rise of Singapore, one of the first countries in Asia to reopen its borders after the pandemic, and the burnishing of its status as a business hub. Hong Kong, on the other hand, remained largely closed off to travel until late last year, losing its status as the region’s busiest airport to Singapore in 2022. Its slow reopening has affected Cathay Pacific, which is also reeling from labour shortages. “Singapore was ahead of everyone last year in Asia-Pacific [with the reopening],” said Brendan Sobie, an independent aviation analyst based in Singapore. “They benefited from that tremendously. “I don’t think Cathay’s first financial year after reopening will look like Singapore’s,” he added. “That honeymoon period caused by supply and demand imbalance is waning — they’ve largely missed out on those market conditions.” Hong Kong tourism is still very early in its recovery, which is reflected in the carrier numbers. Singapore Airlines has reached nearly 80% of pre-pandemic passenger capacity, while Cathay Pacific is still at less than 50%. Singapore Airlines and its wholly owned budget airline Scoot carried 2.7m passengers in April, an 85% year-on-year increase and just under the 3.1m passengers they flew in the same month in 2019. Cathay Pacific carried 1.4m passengers in April 2023, about 44% of the number in April 2019. <br/>
Singapore Airlines (SIA) passengers travelling in economy and premium economy class will be able to access free unlimited Wi-Fi from Jul 1, the airline announced on Wednesday. To enjoy the perk, passengers must be a member of SIA's rewards programme KrisFlyer. Registration is free. SIA will be "the first airline to offer free unlimited Wi-Fi to customers across all cabin classes and virtually across the entire aircraft fleet", a company spokesperson told CNA. As of May 1, SIA has 136 passenger aircraft in its fleet. About 95% of SIA's fleet is equipped with inflight connectivity, with the exception of seven Boeing 737-800 planes that are among SIA's oldest aircraft. These seven planes are not Wi-Fi enabled and are slated to be retired in the coming years. Currently, KrisFlyer members travelling in economy and premium economy class are offered two and three hours of free Wi-Fi respectively. Free unlimited Wi-Fi is currently offered to all passengers in Suites, First and Business classes, including non-KrisFlyer members.<br/>
The chief of Singapore Airlines (SIA) has admitted the airline could have done better with its rollout of paper food boxes and the removal of appetisers. CEO Goh Choon Phong on Tuesday addressed the "very strong feedback from customers" to the paper boxes for economy class meals, which were launched in March for a trial on some medium- and long-haul flights. The airline has since decided not to proceed with the initiative "for now", after criticism about its food standards and presentation of meals. Explaining the rationale behind the paper boxes, he told reporters that SIA could serve varieties of "comfort food" it could not offer in the past on economy class, including laksa and mee siam, as the boxes could retain moisture and heat. This meant customers could consume the food "in the way that it should be served". The management team, he added, had also tasted the dishes before the trial and found them to be "quite good". "However, we got very strong feedback from customers," he said. "We learnt a lesson ... (It is) not just how good (the food) may taste, but also the perception of using paperware during the inflight service." When the boxes were first introduced, some said the move made SIA appear "cheap" and that it was a cost-cutting measure. The airline has clarified the boxes cost more than the current disposable plastic casserole dishes. Goh acknowledged the airline should have "paid more attention" and been "more comprehensive" in looking at how the paper packaging could be perceived by customers.<br/>