American Airlines' plan to grow revenue by relying more heavily on alliance partners to ferry passengers in uncompetitive markets while bulking up flights to U.S. Sunbelt states has been called into question by a U.S. court ruling blocking a key tie-up. A U.S. federal judge last month ordered the company to end its alliance with JetBlue Airways Corp, saying the partnership "substantially" diminished competition in the domestic market. The alliance allows the carriers to coordinate flights and pool revenue. It also is a big piece of American's strategy to compete in the New York market, where it was losing money. Since the partnership started, American has ceded domestic capacity out of New York to JetBlue. It has allowed American to move away from unprofitable routes while maintaining a presence in New York. The alliance also enables the airline to feed traffic to its global partners who fly into the region. If the alliance is dissolved, it will likely be forced to rebuild its capacity or cut international flights out of the region. When asked about options Wednesday at an investor conference, CEO Robert Isom declined to share details, saying "there's a lot to be worked out." The company has called the ruling "wrongly decided" and plans to appeal, but its executives don't see a material impact to the company's earnings as the court's order is not expected to have ramifications beyond New York. American has not specified the JetBlue alliance's contribution to its earnings. But in its ruling, the court said JetBlue owed American a transfer payment upwards of $200m at the end of 2021 as part of the deal's revenue-sharing agreement.<br/>
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The US DoT said on Thursday it is fining British Airways $1.1m for failing to provide timely refunds to passengers for flights to and from the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since March 2020, USDOT received over 1,200 complaints alleging British Airways failed to provide timely refunds. British Airways, which is owned by IAG, denied the allegations. USDOT said it would credit British Airways $550,000 toward the penalty because the airline in 2020 and 2021 issued more than $40m in refunds to customers with nonrefundable tickets. USDOT said the fine "establishes a strong deterrent to future similar unlawful practices by British Airways and other carriers." British Airways said it acted lawfully at all times and offered customers flexibility to rebook travel or claim refunds if flights were canceled. USDOT said consumers were unable to get through to customer service agents when calling the carrier for several months because British Airways failed to maintain adequate customer service phone lines. The airline said Thursday that "at the height of the unprecedented pandemic – when we were unfortunately forced to cancel thousands of flights and close some call centers due to government restrictions – our customers experienced slightly longer wait times to reach customer service teams." USDOT has been fining airlines it says failed to provide timely refunds.<br/>
Qatar Airways is to recommence flying from Cardiff Airport by the end of this year. The airline mothballed its Cardiff-Doha route at the start of the pandemic more than three years ago. Airport boss Spencer Birns confirmed discussions were ongoing to determine when services would resume. "We are excited in anticipation that we are likely to hear about their planned start dates soon," he said. Vale of Glamorgan MP, Alun Cairns, called the route a "vital" connection to the Middle East. Qatar Airways, which flies to more than 160 destinations worldwide, withdrew the Cardiff to Doha service after a dispute with Airbus that left them short of aircraft. "The pandemic clearly had an impact on the airline industry, but I am hopeful that with the return of Qatar Airways to Cardiff will provide a big boost to the airport that has suffered in recent times," said Cairns.<br/>
Alan Joyce, who has simultaneously delighted shareholders and enraged passengers as head of Qantas, says he’s in no rush to take on a new job, let alone lead another airline. Joyce, one of the world’s highest-profile aviation bosses, will retire in November after 15 years at the helm of the iconic Australian airline. He said Wednesday he’s resisting the urge to accept offers of work that are already rolling in, less than a month after he announced he’ll be stepping down. “The temptation is to fill up the diary,” Joyce, who turns 57 at the end of June, said in an interview. Instead, he’s heeding advice to step back for six months. His enforced isolation will include a long trip to Antarctica, he said. Joyce is part of a small club of ever-present airline chiefs — think Michael O’Leary at Ryanair and Tim Clark at Emirates — who have become almost synonymous with flying. The Qantas CEO is running down the clock on a career that has seen peaks — successfully navigating multiple crises, enriching shareholders and extending the airline’s envied record of never having lost a jet plane — and troughs, including food attacks, death threats and a near-corporate collapse. Story features some of the highs and lows.<br/>