JetBlue Airways says the biggest hindrance to the carrier’s growth are continued delays in aircraft deliveries and planes that it’s forced to park waiting for engines or repairs. The airline has said it will get just 19 new Airbus SE aircraft this year, instead of the 30 it originally expected. And July’s discovery of problems with some Pratt & Whitney parts affects some JetBlue engines that will have to be taken off planes by the middle of this month. The carrier is counting on acquiring rival Spirit Airlines Inc. for a growth burst that would make it the fifth-largest US carrier. But a legal challenge by the US Justice Department on the grounds the deal would violate federal antitrust laws means that, for now, JetBlue has to maintain an alternate stand-alone plan for expansion. The airline needs to be larger to compete more effectively with carriers like American Airlines Group Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc. “We have a very big order book of new airplanes, but they’re all coming late,” CEO Robin Hayes said. “On top of that, there are some engine issues. And so, we actually have airplanes on the ground today with no engines because there isn’t enough engines to support them. I would say right now that is the biggest inhibitor to that organic plan.” CFO Ursula Hurley has said JetBlue now expects to receive 30 new planes in 2024, down from its original 43 ordered. But this was before factoring in the latest issue of potentially faulty Pratt & Whitney parts. On Sept. 11, RTX Corp. expanded the scope of required engine checks and said it will affect nearly its entire fleet of turbines powering Airbus’s latest A320. JetBlue had already been working with Pratt, a unit of RTX, to determine if its fleet of A220 aircraft also were affected. It has tried to lease extra engines, but the available supply is limited. <br/>
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A Boston doctor was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday on charges that he masturbated and exposed himself within the view of a 14-year-old female seated next to him on a flight from Honolulu to Boston in May 2022. Dr. Sudipta Mohanty, 33, was indicted on one count of lewd, indecent and obscene acts “while in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States.” He was arrested and charged by criminal complaint in August and released. Mohanty hasn’t yet entered a plea. “He is a well-respected primary care physician and educator, with multiple awards in both lines,” she said. “We are confident in the process ahead and certain that Dr. Mohanty’s excellent name will be restored. He is pleading not guilty to the indictment and looks forward to trial.” Mohanty worked as a doctor at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. The hospital has said the Cambridge resident is on leave and no longer practicing at the hospital. Investigators say Mohanty was a passenger aboard a Hawaiian Airlines Flight with a female companion and was allegedly seated next to a 14-year-old travelling with her grandparents, who were sitting nearby. About halfway through the flight, investigators said, the 14-year-old noticed that Mohanty had covered himself with a blanket up to his neck and that his leg was bouncing up and down. A short time later the minor saw that the blanket was on the floor, no longer covering Mohanty, and that Mohanty was masturbating, according to prosecutors. The minor moved herself to an empty seat in a different row. After arriving in Boston, she told members of her family about the incident and police were notified.<br/>
Southwest Airlines said Thursday it was better-prepared to handle upcoming winter weather thanks to the low-cost carrier's "big investments" in improving de-icing capacity and staffing. The Dallas-based company canceled thousands of flights in December last year after a massive winter storm crippled operations. At an investor conference on Thursday, Southwest CEO Robert Jordan said the company has new technology that helps it better understand weather conditions. "So big investments in winter operations, preparations. So de-icing trucks, and more de-icing capacity," Jordan said. Southwest is a popular option for customers looking for quick travel times as it relies on a point-to-point service to connect vast swathes of the country, instead of operating out of large hubs. But adverse weather last year made it difficult for it to marshal staff scattered across the nation.<br/>"I feel very, very prepared for this winter and all that will be in place by October," Jordan said.<br/>
The parent of Canadian carrier Air Transat reports on 14 September making C$57.3m ($43.5m) during its fiscal Q3 – its first quarterly profit since late 2019. For comparison, Transat AT lost C$106m during the three months ending 31 July 2022, a period affected by the emergence of the Omicron variant of Covid-19. “These impressive results demonstrate strong overall execution as well as our ability to meet sustained customer demand,” CE Annick Guerard said during the company’s quarterly earnings call. “They also reflect the strength of our brand as a carrier of choice for leisure travel.” Transat benefited from strong demand for international leisure travel – especially for flights across the North Atlantic – and higher pricing during the period, as well as the full resumption of operations following the pandemic. Demand for leisure travel was “robust” throughout the period, Guerard says, and has “remained solid in the early stages” of Transat’s fiscal Q4. “Looking further ahead, early bookings for the 2024 winter season suggest that consumer demand should remain healthy,” she adds. The company generated C$746m of revenue during its fiscal Q3, up from C$508m last year – a nearly 47% increase. Potential headwinds could affect the airline’s performance in the months ahead, however, including “the higher price of fuel, delays in aircraft deliveries and continuing supply chain challenges” such as long turnaround times for aircraft and engine maintenance, Guerard says. Transat recently added four aircraft to its fleet – three Airbus A321LRs and one A321ceo – and plans to operate 40 jets during the upcoming winter travel season in the Northern Hemisphere, which is five more than the carrier flew last winter. Combined with “enhanced fleet utilisation”, the additional aircraft will increase the carrier’s winter capacity by 23%, Guerard says. “This enables us to open new, promising routes, to revise or expand the seasonal character of others and to increase frequency on our best-performing sun destinations,” she adds. In August, Transat disclosed its plans to step up seasonal flying to Latin America, with a new Montreal-Lima route that will fly once weekly from 22 December to 26 April, and Toronto-Lima flights to be operated twice weekly from 20 December to 24 April.<br/>
Nigeria’s Air Peace has ordered five Embraer 175 E-jets, the Brazilian airframer said on 14 September. The order of the 88-seat aircraft “marks a significant step forward and is in alignment with Air Peace’s ongoing strategy of modernising its fleet”, Embraer says. Deliveries of the jets will begin in 2024. Air Peace already operates five E195-E2 aircraft, with orders for eight more, and the smaller jet promises to improve the airline’s ability to match capacity to demand, Embraer says. “This is another important step in helping to realise our ambition to connect the whole of Nigeria with the entire African continent, while also feeding passengers into long-haul flights from our Lagos hub,” says Air Peace CE Allen Onyema. “The acquisition enables us to continue delivering on our no-city-left-behind initiative – connectivity is what our passengers and Africa demand. The deal also paves the way to establish local maintenance capabilities in Nigeria, with direct support from Embraer.” In addition to the order from Air Peace, Embraer says that another Nigerian carrier, Overland Airways, received the first of three E175 E-jets last week. “The delivery of Overland’s first new E175 marks the beginning of an exciting chapter for the airline and Embraer,” says Stephan Hannemann, head of the Africa and Middle East Region for Embraer’s commercial aviation division. “Nigeria represents one of the fastest growing aviation markets in the world. Overland and Embraer are committed to the support of its continued success with a product line perfectly suited to build connectivity across West Africa.” Overland placed the order during the 2021 Dubai air show. It operates four ATR and one Beech 1900D turboprop.<br/>
Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) Capital has told an Indian court it detected corrosion of some parts and "a greenish deposit" on a plane leased to bankrupt airline Go First, after another lessor complained about "robbed" parts. Foreign lessors have been engaged in a legal tussle to repossess their aircraft after the Indian airline was granted bankruptcy protection in May, imposing an asset freeze that blocked the recovery of 50 plus grounded Airbus planes. The lessors currently are only allowed an occasional inspection of the grounded Go First planes, which DAE and others claim are not being properly maintained. In a Sept. 6 filing seeking to ensure the airline carries out maintenance, DAE submitted pictures to the Delhi High Court showing corroding plane parts and said the aircraft will "continue to deteriorate, resulting in a sharp decline in the value of the asset." Go First did not respond to a request for comment. Earlier this month, lessor ACG Aircraft Leasing, asked a court to direct the airline to replace "robbed" parts from its leased jets and allow it to appoint around the clock security to guard grounded aircraft, after it found many parts were missing. DAE court documents show it was worried about a lack of covers on cabin and cockpit seats "which would eventually lead to fungus formation", according to an internal e-mail contained in the filing.<br/>
India's aviation regulator has raised three incidents of engine failure in IndiGo flights with engine maker Pratt & Whitney, the country's civil aviation ministry said on Thursday. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has demanded that Pratt & Whitney identify the cause of engine damage and share data on engine failures globally, according to a statement by the ministry. Pratt & Whitney and IndiGo, India's biggest airline by market share, did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for a comment. Earlier this week, Pratt & Whitney parent RTX disclosed that a rare manufacturing flaw could ground hundreds of Airbus jets in coming years. It is the second time the company flagged engine issues this year after it recalled 200 engines worldwide in July due to snags in the high pressure turbine parts and asked carriers to remove engines for inspection before Sept. 15. Pratt & Whitney said earlier this week it was reviewing the need for a phase two recall for removal of up to 600 engines between 2023 and 2026, and will issue servicing plans in the next 60 days.<br/>
India's biggest airline IndiGo wants to test fatigue among its pilots using smartwatches and plans to appoint a consultant to improve its fatigue risk management processes, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters. Pilots can volunteer for trials that will use a fatigue management tool from Thales, and the data collected will be analysed anonymously, said the memo sent to all pilots by Ashim Mittra, head of IndiGo's flight operations department. "IndiGo will test Thales' fatigue management tool to assess pilot alertness levels over the next few months. Once completed, we will collectively evaluate the efficacy and accuracy of the data," Mittra said in the memo sent this week, and reviewed by Reuters on Thursday. IndiGo did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The move comes days after an IndiGo pilot collapsed and died before his flight, an incident that sparked complaints from some Indian pilots that they are being stretched to the brink by airlines, even though they comply with duty time regulations. Getting a consultant on board at IndiGo will play a vital role in implementing a robust fatigue risk management system in the coming months, Mittra said in the memo, adding it would also enable the airline to develop tailored fatigue mitigation strategies. India's aviation regulator is conducting a review of pilot fatigue data it has collected during spot checks and surveillance of airlines to see if regulations related to flight duty times or fatigue need to be changed.<br/>
AirAsia Philippines is aiming to expand its domestic market by 20% next year as the low-cost carrier targets more airport slots. “Additional slots will allow AirAsia to flourish in Visayas and Mindanao especially since we also plan to grow our domestic market by 20% in 2024,” Steve F. Dailisan, head for communications and public affairs at AirAsia Philippines, said in a media release. More airport slots will also allow the company to revive flights to Zamboanga, Dumaguete, and General Santos City, and increase flight frequency in Cagayan De Oro, Dailisan said. “This, in turn, will give AirAsia the upper hand to continue to provide the best value airfares and best travel deals as we continue to democratize air travel for everyone,” he said. An airport slot is a permit issued to airlines by the airport’s administration to allow them the use of takeoff and landing facilities. Transportation Secretary Jaime J. Bautista said unutilized slots were a result of the pandemic, giving rise to flight limitations and prompting the transfer of slots to airlines that are willing to use them. He added that the Transportation department would assess the availability of slots together with the Manila International Airport Authority and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines before giving the available slots to AirAsia.<br/>