Norse Atlantic ASA will operate a smaller passenger network over the winter season, dropping all services to Los Angeles and paring back flights to New York as the airline works to preserve cash. The coming months will be pivotal for the Oslo-based long-haul specialist after it burned through half of its cash during the first half of the year. It’s reduced its airline schedule for the slower season, and will hire out more of its fleet to other airlines to provide steady income. Its winter schedule, covering November through April of 2025, is set to shrink by more than a fifth compared to the same period last year, according to data from Cirium. The company is halting all services to Los Angeles and reducing the number of flights to New York, Miami and Orlando from its main hub in London’s Gatwick airport. Meanwhile, the airline will introduce seasonal flights from Gatwick to two new destinations, Las Vegas and Cape Town. Norse has faced a turbulent year. The stock is down 83% as the low-cost carrier struggles to turn a profit and talks to secure a strategic investment fell through. As its resources dwindled, credit card companies held back cash. The company, which competes with more established rivals, said this week that its financial performance has been “weaker than anticipated” this year. Norse, which operates 12 Boeing Co. 787 Dreamliner jets, was formed during the pandemic with aircraft that were once used by Norwegian Air Shuttle, a discounter that turned away from the transatlantic market after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020. Norse is pivoting toward becoming more of a charter company that operates its own flights when profitable, CEO Bjorn Tore Larsen said Wednesday on an earnings call. It’s part of a revised business plan that aims to even out revenue and reduce costs.<br/>
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SpiceJet is putting 150 cabin crew on temporary leave without pay for three months as the embattled Indian airline tries to raise capital from institutional investors to fund its operations. “This step has been taken in response to the current lean travel season and the reduced fleet size, with the long-term stability of the organization in mind,” a spokesperson said in a statement late Thursday. SpiceJet said last month that it’s seeking to raise as much as 30b rupees ($358m) via a share sale but hasn’t announced any time frame. The beleagured carrier reported a 27% drop in net income for the first quarter to 1.5b rupees while revenue sunk 15% year-on-year. The staff furlough comes after India’s aviation regulator the Director General of Civil Aviation placed SpiceJet under enhanced surveillance to ensure that its poor financial health doesn’t impact safety, The Hindu reported, citing a senior DGCA official. SpiceJet said in its statement that crew members will continue to retain their status as employees. The budget airline is still flying but its market share in July fell to just 3.1%. It used to command around 15% of the market just prior to Covid in 2020.<br/>
Jetstar has officially opened its new base in Perth as it prepares to launch non-stop flights to Bangkok later this week. The low-cost carrier is basing up to four planes and 60 pilots in the west, as announced in November, having already commenced services last month to Singapore and Phuket. The news comes as Jetstar moves all its domestic and international operations to the Airport Central precinct. Jetstar will operate four return flights per week from Perth to Bangkok starting this Friday. “Strong demand continues for low fares flying and we’ll offer more than 300,000 new low fares seats a year with these new flights between Perth and Singapore, Phuket and Bangkok,” said Jetstar CEO Stephanie Tully. “Last year we flew more than 370,000 customers between Perth and Bali, so we know West Australians can’t get enough of Asia, and we’re confident these new flights will be just as popular. Initially basing up to 60 pilots and four aircraft in Perth will allow us to continue to expand our network out of the West in coming years, providing more choice for West Australians and boosting the state’s tourism economy.” Jason Waters, CEO of Perth Airport, has held up the new base – as well as Jetstar’s consolidation of operations – as proof of the airline’s “commitment” to WA.<br/>