JetBlue Airways boosted its full-year financial outlook, citing better-than-expected bookings and operational performance this fall. Its shares jumped in premarket trading. The airline expects an adjusted loss of 40 cents to 50 cents a share for 2023, and revenue growth of 4% to 5%, it said in a securities filing Thursday. That compared with an earlier forecast for an adjusted loss of 45 cents to 65 cents and for revenue gains of 3% to 5%. “Demand for travel remains healthy,” the company said. “Since late October, close-in bookings have outperformed expectations for both holiday peak and non-holiday travel periods.” Shares rose 7.8% to $5.10 as of 7:39 a.m. in New York. The stock was down 27% so far this year through Wednesday’s close, compared with a 3.6% rise for the S&P SmallCap 600 Index. JetBlue also lifted its projection for the quarter ended Dec. 31. It now expects to report an adjusted loss of 25 cents to 35 cents a share, above its previous projection for an adjusted loss of 35 cents to 55 cents. It’s also better than a consensus analyst estimate for a loss of 41 cents a share.<br/>
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Can you fly round-trip from Toronto to Lisbon for as little as $2? No, but it might seem like you could if it weren't for taxes, fees and other surcharges on an Air Transat booking that CBC Toronto reviewed for next month. That's because the base fare for the trip is $2, but the carrier's air transportation charge is $600, and other taxes and fees bring the all-inclusive price up to $719.85. A Greater Toronto Area travel agency flagged the toonie base fare after booking similar round-trip flights to the same destination for clients through Air Transat with a base fare of $3.50 and an all-in price of $723.59. Jeff Verman, CEO of Plus Travel Group, said he believes airlines are dropping base fares and raising carrier surcharges to avoid paying commissions to travel agents. "This is a deliberate move to pay us less," Verman said. "[Our] service fee alone does not make us profitable. Commission is what we need to be profitable each transaction." Unlike many travel agencies, Verman's survived the COVID-19 pandemic. But he said his company is about half the size it was before — and it can't afford to be operating at a loss on bookings, like making a commission of 18 cents on a $3.50 base fare. Travel agents get commission only on base fares, and with Air Transat, that commission is 5%.<br/>
Brazilian airline Azul reported on Thursday an adjusted net loss of 360.2m reais ($73.34m) for Q3, compared with a loss of 527.3m reais a year earlier. The airline had already reported other preliminary figures for the three months ended September but had not disclosed its bottom line.<br/>
Italy's antitrust regulator is set to drop a case launched against airlines over possible price fixing for flights last Christmas between the island of Sicily and mainland Italian cities, a senior official said on Thursday. The investigation had targeted national operator ITA Airways as well as budget airlines easyJet, Ryanair and Wizz Air. Antitrust official Guido Stazi told parliament the regulator had found no evidence to conclude that prices of flights last December had been determined by "illicit coordination" among airline operators. He said the airlines had already been informed of the findings and the case would be closed formally within the next few weeks. The investigation followed a complaint by consumer group Codacons and looked into flights connecting the Sicilian cities of Palermo and Catania with places including Rome, Milan, Turin and Bologna. The issue of the high price of flights to the islands of Sicily and Sardinia flared again over the summer when the Italian government responded initially with a plan to cap fares. The government changed course after protests led by Ryanair, the market leader in Italy, and asked the antitrust body to police prices.<br/>
The frequency of flights landing and taking off from Ben Gurion airport has fallen 80% since the start of the war. Few foreign airlines are operating flights to and from Israel and the situation seems unlikely to change in the near future. "Globes" has learned that Ryanair, which has the biggest aircraft fleet in Europe, and is one of the most popular low-cost carriers operating in and out of Ben Gurion airport, is to cancel all its flights to and from Israel in January. An official announcement on the matter has not yet been released. The frequency of flights landing and taking off from Ben Gurion airport has fallen 80% since the start of the war on October 7th from 500 per day to just 100 per day. Most foreign airlines have canceled all flights to Israel, in part because of the refusal of insurance companies to provide them with coverage. With government insurance guarantees the three Israeli airlines - El Al, Arkia and Israir - are continuing their flights. El Al has canceled flights to some destinations including Sharm el-Sheikh, Istanbul, Dublin, Marseilles, and Tokyo.<br/>
India's troubled domestic airline SpiceJet is likely to raise 10b rupees-12b rupees ($120m-$144m) in fresh capital to pay pending salaries and revive its grounded fleet of 25 aircrafts, local TV channel ET Now reported on Thursday. The budget carrier will consider raising capital through an issue of equity shares or convertible securities on a preferential basis on Dec. 11, SpiceJet said in an exchange filing on Wednesday. Shares of the company jumped 20% to a 16-month high of 52.30 rupees, after the report. SpiceJet did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for comment. The carrier has been scrambling to raise funds and restore operations for a part of its fleet that has been grounded amid a string of weak quarterly results and fierce competition in the sector. In August, SpiceJet told a court that it was "struggling to stay afloat", as it was ordered to repay money to its former owner, Kalanithi Maran. In September, the airline made a $1.5m payment to Credit Suisse after India's top court order in a separate case. The Supreme Court granted six months' time to the company to clear arrears of $3m in the subsequent hearing. Credit Suisse and SpiceJet have been engaged in a legal dispute since 2015 over the bank's claim over unpaid dues of around $24m.<br/>