United Airlines said Wednesday it will fly two additional flights between Newark, New Jersey and Athens in the coming days to help Americans who are trying to return home from Israel. Chicago-based United said the first flight will leave Thursday from Newark and then depart Friday from Athens back to New Jersey. The airline will fly another pair of flights Saturday and Sunday. The State Department said Wednesday “commercial flights are available even if they are not direct to the U.S. We are also exploring contract options to facilitate U.S. citizen travel to nearby countries.”<br/>
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Air Canada pilots started bargaining talks in June amid a global pilot shortage that’s given aviators all over North America leverage to seek new contracts. Negotiations have already been held this year with airlines in both the United States and Canada, including Calgary-based WestJet Airlines. In May, Air Canada aviators officially joined the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), the same union that represents WestJet pilots. Now, 95% of all professional Canadian pilots are represented by ALPA, which is also the world’s largest aviators union. Charlene Hudy, ALPA’s Air Canada chair, said members are looking for a comparable contract to those at competitors, including United Airlines and Delta. Pilots at Delta in March negotiated a 34% wage increase over the next four years. In contrast, their counterparts at Air Canada have received a 2% increase on average each year since 2014, lagging the rate of inflation. Story features transcribed interview with Hudy about negotiations, previous bargaining talks and what Air Canada pilots are hoping to achieve. <br/>
An unsolved $17m heist of Swiss gold and cash near Canada’s busiest airport has led Brink’s Co. to sue Air Canada for allegedly letting a thief slip away with the loot. Miami-based Brink’s accused the airline of “negligence and carelessness” in a lawsuit after a heist at a Toronto cargo facility netted thieves about 400 kilograms (882 pounds) of gold and $1.9m in bank notes. The carrier failed to ensure the shipment marked “valuable cargo” had adequate security and protection, Brink’s alleges in the the statement of claim, which was filed at the Federal Court of Canada on Oct. 6. Air Canada declined to comment. In mid-April, Swiss bank Raiffeisen Schweiz Genossenschaft and precious metals refining company Valcambi SA hired Brink’s to move the goods from Zurich to Toronto, the lawsuit says. Brink’s, in turn, arranged for Air Canada to fly the valuables between the two cities. The shipment of gold bars and bills was hauled from Pearson International Airport to a warehouse at around 5:50 p.m. Toronto time on April 17. About 40 minutes later, someone showed up with fraudulent documents to pick them up. “No security protocols or features were in place to monitor, restrict or otherwise regulate the unidentified individual’s access to the facilities,” Brink’s alleges in the statement of claim. The person then “absconded with the cargo” and, so far, “there have been no arrests or convictions and the shipments have not been recovered,” the lawsuit says. “This is still a very active ongoing investigation, and information will be released when investigators believe it will not interfere with the investigation’s integrity,” Peel Regional Police spokesperson Aruna Aundhia said in an email.<br/>
A US bankruptcy court judge granted SAS AB’s request to speed the process of paying $3m to advisers of the Scandinavian airline’s investor group, keeping its restructuring on track over opposition from creditor Apollo Global Management. Judge Michael E. Wiles set an Oct. 12 hearing on a motion to expedite reimbursement to advisers to the group led by Air France-KLM and Castlelake LP, who are set to take control of the SAS as it exits from Chapter 11 protection. SAS’s request appeared to be “in the best interests of the debtors, their estates, their creditors, and all parties in interest,” the judge said in a court filing on Tuesday. Apollo had objected to the expedited hearing, arguing that the move would make it harder to prevail on its plan to object to the payment. It added that it won’t have enough time to review and respond to the reimbursement motion. Apollo provided a $700m debtor-in-possession term loan to SAS as it went through Chapter 11 reorganization. While the US equity firm reportedly sought to buy a majority stake, SAS last week chose the rival Air France-KLM group, which also includes the Danish state and Lind Invest ApS.<br/>
Air New Zealand Thursday flagged lower earnings for first half of fiscal 2024 on a recent softness in domestic travel demand and volatility in jet fuel prices, dragging its shares to a five-month low. New Zealand's flag carrier expects earnings before tax for the first half to be between NZ$180m ($108.36m) and NZ$230m. The company had reported NZ$299m in the year-ago period. "With interest rates at 5.5% and inflation still well above target, people are more prudent about spending habits and air travel can take a back seat to other modes of transportation in such circumstances," said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade. The carrier said jet fuel prices and the weaker New Zealand dollar had an adverse impact on costs for much of the first financial quarter. Jet fuel prices increased by 35% from July to September, but came down almost 10% over the past week, it said. The airline assumes an average jet fuel price of $110 per barrel for the remainder of the first half of fiscal 2024. "Many airlines will be keeping a very close eye on recent volatility in fuel prices, as price swings in energy market can have oversized impact on profits," Waterer added. The company had termed fiscal 2023 as "unique", recording revenue of NZ$6.3b and statutory earnings of NZ$574m for the period.<br/>