Coming any minute now to a sky near you: a plane packed with people going on holiday, leaving wispy white contrails in its wake and memories of Covid-19 that seem like a bad dream. The world is flying again. In Q3, 10.5m flights are scheduled to criss-cross the skies, according to industry data compiled by BloombergNEF. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is anticipating record passenger numbers this year, and planes that will be about as full as they were before the virus using record amounts of fuel. For environmentalists, the trend will be met with dismay as it drives an accompanying surge in carbon emissions and another watermark in a resurgence of tourism. For the oil industry, the revival is a welcome boost, though. This is a world in which Opec and its allies have been forced – since the early days of the virus – to keep the supply of petroleum artificially constrained. Jet fuel consumption suffered a far bigger and more enduring hit than any other mainstream petroleum product. “As a human race, we are starting to travel more again,” said Eugene Lindell, head of refined products at industry consultant FGE. We are “shaking off the pandemic years.” It is international travel that is set to see the biggest surge. That will grow by 9.7% this year with huge increases in Asia, Europe and North America. International flights from Asia should climb by 23% but there are substantial gains almost everywhere. In Singapore, another waypoint between Asia and the West, passenger numbers at Changi Airport in the first three months of 2024 – at 16.5m people – have exceeded 2019 levels. Pent up demand saw China as the airport’s top destination for the quarter, after the introduction of a 30-day visa-exemption arrangement between the two nations. It’s translating into record passenger numbers for key long-haul hubs in Asia and the Middle East. <br/>
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Holidaymakers are being warned about a rise in scams where fake social media accounts are used to impersonate airlines. Bogus accounts exist for every major UK airline on X, formerly known as Twitter, and are regularly used to trick customers into giving away their personal data, according to the consumer champion Which? It added that X is too slow to take down offending accounts. The social media platform said accounts that impersonate organisations may be permanently suspended under its "misleading and deceptive identities policy". It previously told Which? that it had taken down all of the fake accounts identified by the consumer group. The scam often happens when a frustrated customer reaches out to an airline to try to fix a problem, said Which? It said scammers crawl social media – often using bots, a type of automated software – to find such interactions. They then respond to the query or complaint, hoping that the customer will not notice they are being contacted by a fake account. Which? gave the example of a researcher who contacted the genuine Wizz Air X account, @wizzair, asking if a flight was delayed, and almost immediately received responses from two fake accounts. “Both used near-identical language, apologising for the inconvenience, stating that they had ‘already escalated this matter to the relevant department’ and requesting a ‘reachable WhatsApp number for assistance’ via DM [direct message],” it said.<br/>Every major airline affe<br/>
Restrictions on carrying liquids over 100ml in hand luggage are being temporarily reintroduced at some regional airports in the UK. The change will apply from 00:01 BST on Sunday 9 June 2024 and will affect passengers at Newcastle, Leeds Bradford, London City, Aberdeen, Southend and Teesside airports. All of the airports affected have Next Generation Security Checkpoints (NGSC) in full operation and had scrapped the 100ml liquid rules after introducing the high-tech CT scanners. The Department for Transport said reintroducing restrictions would "enable further improvements to be made to the new checkpoint systems" and was not in response to a specific threat. Bristol Airport was scheduled to scrap the 100ml limit on liquids being allowed in carry-on baggage from 14 June. However, that will now be delayed. "There remains a 100ml max rule for each liquid taken in hand luggage,” said a spokesperson for Bristol Airport. Most UK airports, including London Gatwick, Heathrow and Manchester, still have the restrictions on liquids in place as their new scanners are not yet in place. The six smaller airports affected warned passengers to pack liquids into hold luggage wherever possible to avoid delays going through security. Liquids, including aerosols and gels, carried in hand luggage should not exceed 100ml.<br/>in some cases even the reinforcement of floors.<br/>
The CE of Manchester Airports Group is seeking international expansion as the aviation industry recovers from the pandemic. Ken O’Toole said the company, which owns Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands airports, wants to sign commercial deals to manage others overseas in the short term before considering buying another hub. “Pre-Covid, we bid on a number of international opportunities. And I am quite keen that we continue to look at those commercial opportunities,” he said. O’Toole hopes to capitalise on plans by some state-owned airports to shake up operations and “re-energise” in an effort to attract more passengers following the pandemic. Although large airports and those in regions popular with tourists have rebounded strongly, some of the smaller airports are struggling to recover. Passenger numbers at airports that handle less than 1mn travellers a year are a third below their pre-Covid-19 levels, according to industry body ACI Europe. O’Toole’s company, owned by Manchester City Council, IFM Global Infrastructure Fund and the nine other Greater Manchester local authorities, has a public-private ownership structure that would give it an edge over “aggressive” infrastructure funds in the race to expand, he said. “The conversations I’ve had with governments around the world, people see that as a very positive characteristic, and probably one more aligned to strategic long-term partnerships than some of the more aggressive funds that have come in and run airports in different places,” he explained.<br/>
Canadian investors have acquired a majority share of Italy’s Parma airport, situated midway between Milan and Bologna. The airport is primarily served by budget carrier Ryanair and the Moldovan operator FlyOne. Canadian aviation firm Centerline Airport Partners says it has acquired a 51% shareholding in the airport company SOGEAP. “Our international experience and commitment to excellence will bring significant benefits to the city and its people,” says Centerline CE Andrew O’Brian. The company describes the measure as a “strategic investment” which “underscores our commitment to enhancing connectivity”. “With a proven track record in airport management and development worldwide, Centerline is poised to elevate the airport’s operations and services,” it adds. It aims to expand the destination network served from Parma, attracting international carriers to serve new routes. “The main focus will be on an improved customer experience, ensuring that all passengers enjoy a seamless and enjoyable airport experience,” says Centerline.<br/>
Japan's regional airports are seeing a recovery in international travelers as foreign tourists flood the country, returning in fiscal 2023 to just over 60% of the total for pre-pandemic fiscal 2019, but an absence of visitors from China is a headwind on a full recovery. Regional airports often have routes that serve relatively close Asian destinations, and some are seeing sharp rebounds mainly due to travelers from Taiwan. Last fiscal year, Kumamoto Airport, located in the southern island of Kyushu, hosted 233,000 international passengers, double the 114,000 in fiscal year 2019. Business travel was a large factor in that increase due to the opening of a chip plant there by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. The airport opened a passenger terminal with enhanced international flight support in 2023. In September, a new route to Taipei began service, making 12 round trips per week. The passenger load factor is a solid 80%. "More families are coming for sightseeing," said an airport operator representative. Kochi Airport, located on the island of Shikoku, started its first international scheduled charter flight service with Taiwan in May last year. International passengers increased fortyfold compared with fiscal 2019, going from 800 to 31,000 as the airport actively courted tour groups from Taiwan. Eight of the 43 regional airports with international flight operations exceeded passenger numbers for the fiscal 2019, according to the preliminary figures released by the Osaka Regional Civil Aviation Bureau and the Tokyo Regional Civil Aviation Bureau for fiscal 2023. The total international passengers recovered to about two-thirds of the fiscal 2019 level to 4.4m.<br/>
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) says Thailand may be constrained in its pursuit of becoming the region's leading aviation hub by 2030 because of global supply chain disruptions, adding that Thailand needs to remove unnecessary regulations and move towards digitalisation for aviation efficiency. "I think Thailand can achieve its ambition, but it will probably take longer than 2030," Willie Walsh, IATA director-general, told the Bangkok Post at the group's annual general meeting in Dubai. Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin pledged to make Thailand the region's leading aviation hub by 2030, as part of the "Ignite Thailand" vision. Walsh said this policy is ambitious and Thailand is acknowledged as a popular tourist destination. However, achieving this status by the proposed timeline would require many long-term investments that might exceed the 2030 milepost, he said. Walsh said one obstacle is new aircraft orders, particularly wide-body jets that are extremely difficult to acquire from both top manufacturers -- Airbus and Boeing. In the past, he said the lead time for orders for Boeing 787 and Airbus A380 jets was 4-5 years, citing his experience as CE of British Airways when the airline ordered both models in 2007 and obtained them in 2011 and 2012. "Back in 2007, we never had any concerns about getting in the queue. It was pretty clear we would get the aircraft we ordered," said Mr Walsh. "Today, you can try to order an aircraft, but you are going to wait for a long time." According to IATA, 1,583 aircraft will be delivered globally in 2024.<br/>
Domestic air-ticket prices have become a headache for many families and tourists making travel decisions. This is not only affecting consumer pockets, but also the domestic tourism and aviation industries as well, analysts said. The average price for economy-class tickets on Vietnam’s domestic routes has surged by up to 25% year-on-year. “Aside from Vietnam, airfares are generally high worldwide because prices are the function of supply and demand,” said Subhas Menon, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines. If demand is much more than supply, then prices tend to be high. So this is the case now. Just look at aircraft deliveries and delays. Supply is not keeping up with demand.” Economist Dinh Trong Thinh from the Academy of Finance said there were few airlines in Vietnam and very few planes. Aircraft recalls for inspection and repairs and the modest quantity of newly leased aircraft have led to a significant decline in the number of commercial planes in Vietnam, Thinh said. He said the more airlines a market has, the more competitive it would be, and airlines have to find ways to lower ticket prices to meet passenger needs. However, it would be a complicated matter to form new carriers in Vietnam.<br/>
Airbus has started building a new A320neo-family assembly line in Toulouse to replace an older and less efficient facility and help speed up production from next year. The move will not lead to a net increase in the number of assembly lines but is part of plans to modernise and speed output of the best-selling A320neo/A321neo family to meet rising demand at a time when aircraft supplies are under pressure. Last year Airbus added a new production line for its A321neo model at one end of a colossal facility once used to make the double-decker A380 superjumbo, which is no longer being built. That brought the number of Airbus narrow-body lines in Toulouse to two and the worldwide total to 8. Airbus plans to bring this to 10 by adding capacity at existing plants in the United States and China. The next task is to switch the original Toulouse A320 line from its current location in the former Concorde assembly hall to a new spot inside the former A380 assembly plant, one of the world's largest industrial buildings. Building work on the new line is well under way in a bay adjacent to the A321neo line that was opened last year, an industry executive who recently visited the site told Reuters. An Airbus spokesperson confirmed it had started building the new line and said it would be operational in 2025, with plans to transfer activities progressively from the current facility. The project continues a partial makeover of the birthplace of the world's biggest airliner, while switching off the lights in a historic hangar once used to make the world's fastest.<br/>