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United Airlines is raising the price to check bags, becoming the latest carrier this year to hike a fee that generated more than $5b for airlines in the first nine months of 2023 alone. United economy passengers who book domestic tickets starting Feb. 24 will pay $40 for a first checked bag, or $35 if they prepay online at least 24 hours before their flight, an increase of $5. A second checked bag will cost $50 at the airport, or $45 in advance, up $5 for both options. The changes apply to most flights throughout North America, a United spokeswoman said. In 2020, United raised the price to check a bag at the airport by $5 to $35 but kept it steady at $30 if travelers paid for the service in advance. Certain credit card holders, frequent flyers with elite status, active military and travelers in top-tier classes can still check a bag for free, United said. Earlier this week, American Airlines raised its fee to check a first bag on domestic flights to $35 if purchased in advance and $40 at the airport. Both options were previously $30. A second checked bag will go up from $40 to $45.<br/>

Air Canada said Friday that it will cap fares and add more than 6,000 seats in some markets operated by Lynx Air in light of the imminent suspension of operations by the troubled Canadian budget airline. Air Canada said that the measures would help Lynx Air customers impacted by the shut down of the airline to return home or make alternative arrangements for planned trips. Calgary-based Lynx Air filed for court protection from creditors on Thursday, and said it would cease operations from Feb. 26 as it grapples with higher operating costs, fuel prices, and airport charges. According to Cirium, an aviation analytics company, Lynx has 9 Boeing 737 MAX 8 in service and is scheduled to operate 569 flights in February. Air Canada said the capped fares will be available for purchase before Feb. 26 for travel across Canada up until April 2, to aid travel during the spring break and Easter holiday periods. The added capacity of above 6,000 seats on Lynx Air routes will be available in certain locations in Canada, as well as the U.S., and Cancun in Mexico between Feb. 25 and March 19, the airline said. Air Canada added that flights were already "relatively full" due to high demand during the winter travel period, and its ability to increase capacity further was limited. WestJet, Air Canada's smaller rival, has also promised to offer discounts on routes previously served by Lynx.<br/>

German airline Lufthansa said on Sunday it was keen on moving ahead in wage negotiations for thousands of ground crew after labour union Verdi demanded the company offers a higher pay increase aimed at averting more strike action. "We have taken note of Verdi's statements and are still interested in a quick agreement," a company spokesperson said in a written reply to an enquiry. Ground staff walked off the job at major airports on Tuesday in their second strike this month, which Lufthansa said had affected 100,000 passengers. The fourth meeting in the dispute over pay for some 25,000 ground staff ended fruitlessly on Thursday. March 13 or 14 had been pencilled in beforehand as the next date for a meeting. But Verdi said on Saturday it was now seeking an earlier meeting to speed a deal. "Negotiators have asked Lufthansa to gather for a further meeting before March 13," it said. "However, the prerequisite for that is a significantly improved offer by the employer, that should be delivered (to us) beforehand." Verdi said Lufthansa on Jan. 21 and 22 had only made two amendments to its initial offer, characterising those points as "small concessions". Lufthansa had also lengthened the duration of a proposed new pay structure by three months to 28 months, Verdi said.<br/>

Lufthansa Group CFO Remco Steenbergen is to leave the European airline group as part of series of executive changes which also include the appointment for former Airbus and Rolls-Royce executive Grazia Vittadini as its new technology chief. Steenbergen, who joined the airline group as CFO at the start of 2021, will depart Lufthansa’s executive board by mutual agreement in May. Michael Niggemann, who has board responsibility for human resources, will serve as interim CFO until a permament replacement is appointed. The new CFO will join a restructured and new-look executive board, which will be cut from six to five members. Steenbergen is one of four executives stepping down from the executive board as part of the revamp. This also includes former Swiss International Air Lines CE, Harry Hohmeister, who holds responsibility for passenger airlines, as well as Christina Foerster and Detlef Kayser.<br/>

Australian travellers keen to enjoy Europe over the coming summer can anticipate far more competitive fares this year, after Turkish Airlines brought forward the date for its inaugural direct flight to Australia. Turkish Airlines’ first flight will arrive in Melbourne on March 2 – two weeks before previously announced, and use a bigger Boeing 777 aircraft. It will initially fly to Istanbul via Singapore on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, before expanding into other cities. The much-anticipated arrival of Turkish direct into Australia – rather than just its current code share operations out of Singapore – will almost certainly put downward pressure on flight prices, said Graham Turner, co-founder and CEO of Flight Centre Travel Group. “Fares are still way above what we were seeing in 2019, but I think 2024 will be really positive for consumers chasing sharper airfare prices, and an airline the size and scale of Turkish coming direct into this market will really shake things up,” Turner said. Economy return prices from Australia to European cities are currently sitting at about A$2000-$2500, rising to $3500 in peak periods, compared with $1500 – and even $1000 – before the pandemic hit in February 2020. The launch gives Australians a new springboard into Europe that does not involve the standard, lengthy queues at London’s Heathrow Airport. Given Turkish Airlines, a Star Alliance partner, is one of the world’s largest carriers, its connectivity and frequency of flights to a range of European cities is unrivalled by any of the large carriers that dominate the Australian market into Europe, such as Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Qatar.<br/>

The head of Africa’s largest carrier Ethiopian Airlines has called for the continent to implement an agreement allowing airlines to operate freely to increase competition and reduce the costs for travellers amid rising demand for flying. It is “a big obstacle” for Ethiopian Airlines and affects “nearly all African airlines” who are not able to expand their services, Ethiopian Airlines Group CE Mesfin Tasew told the Financial Times.  An African initiative to liberalise the aviation space to which 37 countries have signed up was launched in 2018. However, the Single African Air Transport Market has not yet been fully implemented, in part due to countries protecting their national carriers. Unlike in other regions that have deregulated aviation, airlines operating in Africa have to sign bilateral agreements to fly between two countries on the continent. There is growing demand on the African continent partly thanks to economic growth and the growing middle classes. However, flights on average are only filled about 70%, according to airline data — the lowest compared to any other region, because of the cost of flying. Home to about 18% of the world’s population, Africa only accounts for roughly 2% of global air traffic.  Liberalising African aviation would “pave the way for rapid development of air transport service within Africa”, said Mesfin.<br/>

Air India this week released its new inflight safety video, designed to keep passengers engaged by showcasing many of India’s classical dances and art forms while providing essential safety information. Dances have served as a form of storytelling in the past, and these Indian classical dances showcase the same storytelling ability. The video features eight different Indian dance forms from across the country: Bharatnatyam, Bihu, Kathak, Kathakali, Mohiniyattam, Odissi, Ghoomar, and Giddha. Campbell Wilson, CEO and Managing Director of Air India, spoke about the video: “As a flagbearer of the country and a longstanding patron of Indian art and culture, Air India is delighted to present a work of art that is designed to deliver essential safety instructions while showcasing India’s rich cultural diversity to travelers around the world. Our guests will find this inflight safety video to be more immersive and informative, and a warm welcome to India from the moment they step onboard.” Each dance is choreographed to a specific safety instruction. Bharatnatyam is used to depict the seatbelt safety and cabin baggage instructions. It is followed by Kathakali and Mohiniyattam, which express the prohibition of smoking and the use of electronic devices onboard.<br/>