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JetBlue Airways said Wednesday it has started selling flights scheduled for next spring and summer between the United States and both Dublin and Edinburgh. The airline said it will run daily flights from New York and Boston to Dublin from March 13 through Sept. 30, and from New York to Edinburgh from May 22 through Sept. 30. JetBlue plans to use single-aisle Airbus A321neo planes configured with 160 seats for both routes. JetBlue hopes to take advantage of strong demand for international travel, which has grown more quickly than domestic travel this year. The New York-based airline currently flies to London, Paris and Amsterdam, far fewer transatlantic destinations than offered by its bigger U.S. rivals.<br/>

Southwest said on Wednesday it has reached a tentative agreement with the Transport Workers Union Local 556, representing nearly 19,000 flight attendants, making it the first major US airline to strike such a deal. The union would communicate details about the agreement and the voting timeline directly to its members, the company said. Transport Workers Union Local 556, which represents Southwest's flight attendants, has said its members have not received a pay raise in the last four years. Southwest flight attendants have been demanding higher pay and a better work-life balance in their new contracts. In the past two years, unions across the aerospace, construction, airline and rail industries have put up fights for higher wages and more benefits in a tight labor market. In August, the airline reached a tentative labor agreement with the union that represents about 17,120 transport workers who handle ramp, operations, provisioning and cargo.<br/>

Southwest Airlines is giving travelers extra peace of mind with the new ability to track their bags on the carrier’s app and website. “Southwest Airlines has introduced the ability for customers to track checked bags throughout their journey – from takeoff to landing,” a statement from the airline said. “Now on Southwest.com and the Southwest mobile app, customers can view the status of their checked bag across three different milestones of each checked piece of luggage: confirming when bag tags are printed and when bags are loaded and unloaded from our aircraft.” Southwest differentiates itself by allowing passengers to check up to two free bags on all tickets, and also recently introduced the ability to add checked bags to their reservation digitally, up to 24 hours before departure. The airline also recently announced changes to its frequent flyer program, aimed at making it easier for customers to achieve A-List and A-List preferred status while some of their competitors tighten the ranks of who is eligible for elite perks. Travel experts have recommended travelers place Apple AirTags, Tiles, or other electronic tracking devices in their bags – especially checked luggage – before they head to the airport in hopes that it will make it easier to navigate the lost and found claims process.<br/>

Mexican airline Volaris expects to reach an agreement with engine maker Pratt & Whitney in the next month on an initial round of mandatory motor inspections, the company's CE said on Wednesday. The inspections, required after RTX Corp-owned Pratt & Whitney discovered a rare powder metal defect, could continue into 2024 and 2025, Volaris CE Enrique Beltranena said in a call with analysts. Of Volaris' 126-aircraft fleet, 73 "may be temporarily affected," Beltranena said, representing a major hit to the company. Pratt & Whitney is expected to shell out billions of dollars to fix the defect, with the vast majority going to airlines. Volaris will not have clarity on the long-term impact of the inspections until at least Q1 of 2024, Beltranena added. However in September alone, Volaris' available seat miles, a measure representing passenger carrying capacity, shrank 8% to represent a revenue hit worth $18m, he said. The airline currently has 16 aircraft grounded, Beltranena added. Volaris trimmed its full-year estimates to reflect the change, with Q4 capacity expected to remain "virtually flat" compared to the year-ago period. The airline had been expecting to boost flights to the United States after Mexico regained a US-given aviation safety rating, which allowed Mexican carriers to expand routes to its northern neighbor.<br/>

Mexican discount carrier Volaris lost $39m in Q3 2023 and is planning to beef up its service to the USA while warning about flight disruptions caused by Pratt & Whitney (P&W) engine issues. The Mexico City-based carrier released its financial results on 25 October, saying it turned a $39m operating profit (excluding interest and taxes) in Q3, up 11% from last year. The carrier generated $848m in third-quarter revenue, up 10% year on year. “Volaris’ performance in the third quarter showed resilience, resulting in revenue growth,” says CE Enrique Beltranena. “This growth was mainly due to increased passenger volumes and record-high ancillary revenue per passenger. We achieved this by maintaining strong cost control, especially when it came to non-fuel expenses.” “Despite facing challenges related to Pratt & Whitney’s GTF preventive-accelerated inspections, Volaris is fully committed to ensuring the safety, financial stability and long-term success of our airline,” he adds. P&W is recalling thousands of PW1100G geared-turbofan (GTF) engines due to defective disks, a move that will force airlines globally to ground hundreds of Airbus A320neo-family jets at any given time in the coming year. During a call with investors, Beltranena says the issue will affect up to 73 aircraft in Volaris’ 126-strong Airbus fleet, and that the airline is “actively addressing the global issues” related to the engines. “We’ve developed a mitigation plan to partially offset the impact,” he says. “Management is looking for alternative solutions.” Those include extending leases on aircraft and redeploying capacity to other routes. Volaris says the issue will leave its Q4 capacity flat compared to last year and that its operating revenue will remain “at the low end” of its previous guidance of $3.2b.<br/>

The Israeli airline El Al will suspend regular flights to and from Japan starting next month as clashes continue between Israeli forces and the Islamic group Hamas. El Al offers two round trips a week between Tel Aviv and Japan's Narita Airport, near Tokyo. But the airline plans to stop the service until March next year, after the final round trip on October 31. El Al had originally planned to suspend flights on this route from December through February, when passenger numbers drop. The plan was brought forward because of the ongoing fighting, which has already discouraged travelers.<br/>

Gulf Air, Bahrain’s national carrier, will extend its operations into China in January 2024 with flights to Guangzhou and Shanghai from Bahrain. The move is part of the airline’s calibrated growth strategy to strengthen its global network and to connect Bahrain with key global destinations under the national Economic Recovery Plan of Bahrain. This strategic move also represents a significant step forward for Gulf Air to bolster its Asia-Pacific presence and support connectivity under the One Belt One Road initiative of China, the airline said. The expansion plans were revealed at the Bahrain-China Investment Forum hosted by the Economic Development Board of Bahrain. The forum was part of a special delegation to the country led by Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro, Minister of Industry and Commerce. "We are excited by the opportunity to expand our presence in the Asia-Pacific region with new flights connecting Bahrain and the cities of Guangzhou and Shanghai in China," said Dr Jeffrey Goh, CEO of Gulf Air Group Holding. "China is one of the world's fastest-growing economies and a global tourism market. It is key to our strategy of calibrated network growth. These flights will offer greater choice and flexible travel experiences for passengers and create new pipelines for trade, tourism and collaboration, benefitting both nations.”<br/>

Thai nationals are launching five new airlines with a total investment of at least 3.85b baht (S$145m), expecting to start commercial operations in 2024, eyeing a piece of Thailand’s growing aviation market which is estimated to reach 320b baht in value in 2024. The five new airlines that have been granted the Air Operating Licence (AOL) are: Really Cool Airlines, P80 Air, Pattaya Airways, Siam Seaplane and Landarch Airlines, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT). These airlines will have to wait for the CAAT to approve their Air Operator Certificate (AOC) before they can fly commercially in Thailand. Patee Sarasin, CEO of Really Cool Airlines, said that the airline expected to receive an AOC in January 2024 and start flying from Q2. In the first two years of operation, Really Cool Airlines would focus on Asian routes such as Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Shanghai with four Airbus A330-300 aircrafts, said Patee. With an initial crew of 130, the company will test the market with chartered flights during March 2024 to May 2024, then switch to regular flights and later expand to European markets.“We would not compete with Thai Airways International on their regular routes but would focus on flights to secondary cities, which would also help further promote Thailand’s tourism industry,” said Patee. Really Cool would also be the world first’s airline that delivers passenger luggage to their doors, he added. “We are planning to invest some 1b baht in products and services under Rally Cool brands, such as Really Cool Taxi, Really Cool Medical, and Really Cool Cargo,” he said. Meanwhile, P80 Air spokesman Sorakrit Wannala said that the company expected to get its AOC in the next eight to nine months and start commercial operation in the last quarter of 2024.<br/>

Nok Air continues to scope out airports in northeastern Thailand for a suitable site to build an MRO facility. According to The Nation newspaper, the low-cost carrier has an initial budget of THB1.5b baht (US$41.6m) and is also scouting for a foreign joint venture partner. Nok Air CEO Wutthiphum Jurangkool told the outlet that he hopes to have the facility operational by 2026. ch-aviation has previously reported on Jurangkool's MRO plans. He wants the facility to service the carrier's fourteen B737-800s in-house, and he hopes to have the necessary approvals and financing in place sometime in Q1 2024. The CEO adds that Utapao Airport is not being considered because of the potential competition there. Chai Eamsiri, the CEO of Thai Airways International, has confirmed his airline has the funds and the desire to revisit pre-pandemic plans to build an MRO facility at that airport. Originally a joint venture between the airline and Airbus, the latter pulled out during the pandemic, but Eamsiri and local infrastructure agencies promoting the US$200m-plus plan say there's plenty of regional MRO business ripe for the capture in addition to meeting Thai's own in-house MRO needs.<br/>

Tony Fernandes, the Malaysian tycoon behind budget airline AirAsia, is planning to raise more than $1b in debt and equity for his Capital A conglomerate and preparing to list some of its businesses through a blank-cheque company in New York. The entrepreneur has agreed a deal with Aetherium Acquisition, a special purpose acquisition company trading on Nasdaq, and plans to list several businesses through it next year, according to two people familiar with the deal. They include a new business extending the AirAsia brand to companies hoping to start airline franchises in developing countries. AirAsia, which Fernandes bought from the Malaysian government in 2001 for less than $1 and turned into one of the region’s largest low-cost carriers, has since diversified into multiple business lines. The Kuala Lumpur-listed group was renamed Capital A last year to reflect its broadening portfolio, which includes a fintech “super app” called Move, an aviation consultancy arm, logistics business Teleport and airline engineering and maintenance services provider Asia Digital Engineering. The Spac deal would be a significant test of investor appetite for the AirAsia brand after the group underwent a dramatic restructuring to rescue its debt-laden business during the pandemic. As of 2021, Capital A has been classified as a distressed company by the Malaysian government, a categorisation known as Practice Note 17 that subjects companies to greater regulatory scrutiny. It has applied to exit PN17 status. Capital A has come under focus in the past over its accounting practices, liquidity constraints and debt levels. While those levels have fallen back since hitting highs of more than $15bn during the Covid-19 pandemic, levels are still elevated at $5.1bn compared with its market capitalisation of $760mn. Capital A said $500mn of that was bank debt, while the rest comprised aircraft leases.<br/>