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JetBlue Airways raised its third-quarter revenue forecast on Thursday, citing improved operational performance and strong summer travel demand, sending its shares nearly 7% higher in premarket trading. The airline said the improved outlook was due to stronger bookings in Latin America, one of its major markets, and on gains from previously announced cost cuts and cancelling routes that were less profitable. Bookings from travelers, who were affected by the global cyber outage in July that forced multiple airlines to halt flights, also helped, the airline added. JetBlue was not one of the primary carriers affected by that outage, which stranded thousands of passengers across the nation. The carrier now expects revenue in the range of a 2.5% decline to 1% growth year-on-year in the July-September quarter. The company had earlier forecast revenue to drop somewhere between 1.5% to 5.5% for the quarter. Since the termination of its proposed $3.8b merger with ultra-low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines in March, Jetblue has taken several measures to improve its financial performance. It deferred deliveries of 44 new jets from Airbus, reducing planned capital expenditures by about $3b between 2025 and 2029. The company also decided to exit some routes that were not living up to its financial expectations. JetBlue now expects current quarter unit costs excluding fuel to grow between 5% and 7%, compared with a previous forecast for a 6%-8% rise.<br/>

JetBlue Airways Corp. investor Vladimir Galkin, a Florida entrepreneur, has increased his stake in the carrier to 9.98% and says he’s met with top executives to discuss a possible board seat. Galkin has been steadily building up a stake in JetBlue this year, and is now the airline’s third-largest investor, behind BlackRock Inc. and Vanguard Group Inc. Galkin said in an interview that he met with JetBlue’s CEO Joanna Geraghty and CFO Ursula Hurley earlier this week. “I have not decided whether I want to become a director,” he said. “Any consideration would, of course, require further discussions with the board and adhering to their nominating process.” Galkin said he “expressed my interest in monitoring my significant investment as a director at some point” during the discussions. Geraghty didn’t make a commitment “either way,” and encouraged him to speak with the board’s nominating committee as required by the company’s bylaws, Galkin said. JetBlue said it “regularly speaks with shareholders and investors to listen to their views on the company’s strategy and progress.” A spokesman declined to comment on discussions with individual shareholders. The airline is in the midst of a turnaround effort after federal judges blocked a planned acquisition and a partnership with another carrier, limiting its growth prospects. Geraghty has detailed plans to pull out of some cities and delay $3b in new aircraft purchases to help control persistently high costs. The airline will shift its focus back to leisure customers in its original strongholds of New York, New England, Florida and Puerto Rico. <br/>

A federal judge in Boston on Thursday rejected a request for up to $34.1m in legal fees by a group of private antitrust lawyers who sued to stop the proposed $3.8b merger between JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines.<br/>U.S. District Judge William Young denied the fee request in a brief electric order. "The plaintiff's motion is denied because in no sense were any of the plaintiffs a 'prevailing party' in this action," Young wrote. The airlines abandoned their merger in March after Young sided with the U.S. Department of Justice in a separate government case challenging the deal, ruling that it would harm consumers. One of the lawyers who sought the fees, Joseph Alioto of the Alioto Law Firm in San Francisco, said Young relied on the wrong statute in rejecting their request. "Private plaintiffs are encouraged to bring these suits, and this minute order says, 'Don't bother,'" Alioto said. He said he will be filing a motion asking Young to set his ruling aside and have a hearing on the merits of their fee request. Spokespersons for JetBlue and Spirit did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The airlines were represented by attorneys from Cooley and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. The airlines had opposed the fee request and accused the private lawyers of piggy-backing on the government's case. After the airlines dropped the merger, the private lawsuit was dismissed as moot, a fact the airlines pointed to in their opposition papers filed last month.<br/>

Allegiant Travel Company, parent of ultra-low-cost carrier Allegiant Air, has disclosed the resignation of chief marketing officer Scott DeAngelo, effective 30 September. DeAngelo’s departure, announced 5 September, comes amid Allegiant’s broader C-suite reshuffle that has seen new CE Greg Anderson assume the company’’s top leadership position. Over the past six years, DeAngelo helped develop Allegiant’s marketing and advertising strategies, including overseeing the airline’s frequent flyer programme and securing naming rights for Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. ”His extensive experience and innovative approach have helped enhance our brand and set us up for future success,” Anderson says. “The effects of his work will be evident for many years, and I deeply appreciate his contributions.” Current chief revenue officer Drew Wells will become chief commercial officer, a role encompassing DeAngelo’s former duties as well as Allegiant’s revenue and network-planning departments. <br/>

Fresh details about the last moments of a plane operated by Brazilian regional carrier Voepass could be unveiled in a preliminary report set for release on Friday, as investigators weigh possible contributing factors like icing and maintenance. The report by Brazil's Center for Research and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (CENIPA) should give a history of the Aug. 9 ATR 72-500 flight that killed 62 when it crashed in Vinhedo, some 80 km (50 miles) northwest of Sao Paulo, industry experts said. A final report by the Brazil-led investigation on the causes of the tragedy could come a year after the doomed flight bound for Sao Paulo's Guarulhos international airport crashed. Air crashes usually occur due to multiple factors. Some experts have cited ice on the wings as a possible contributor to the crash, because warning notices were issued that day for severe icing in the region. An equipment review of the plane on Aug. 8 seen by Reuters didn’t flag any problems related to the de-icing devices. Aviation Herald, a safety publication, reported that the turboprop airplane, which uses turbine engines to turn propellers that move the aircraft, had re-entered service only a month before the crash after being damaged in a tail strike in March. The ATR-72 has been involved in several cases where pilots lost control after ice build up, including one where a plane stalled in 2016 in Norway, but the pilot regained control. In 2010, icing and pilot error were blamed for an Aero Caribbean Flight 883 crash in Cuba, killing 68 people.<br/>

Modernisation of European airspace could help the aviation industry eliminate 18m tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year, according to UK budget carrier EasyJet. EasyJet bases its estimate on a study of its own operations carried out using artificial intelligence which monitored every one of its flights over a 12-month period. Analysis of that data shows “airspace inefficiencies” across Europe caused a 10.6% increase in CO2 emissions, equivalent to more than 663,000t. “If EasyJet were able to fly straight and at the right altitude, we would tomorrow burn more than 10% less fuel, for us that’s about 663,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions,” CE Johan Lundgren told an event at Cranfield University on 4 September. “If you extrapolate that across the whole of European aviation it would be 18m tonnes less CO2.” EasyJet says a “significant proportion of this efficiency” occurs around terminal airspace, particularly during descent “largely due to outdated or poorly designed lower airspace”, it says. While the problem is Europe-wide, the carrier says “the greatest inefficiencies” are in the UK – with seven of the 10 least efficient routes into London Gatwick airport, its main base in the country. The southeast of England is a “a particular problem area due to high demand and capacity constraints,” it adds. David Morgan, EasyJet COO, says airspace reform is the “quickest way” to reduce CO2 emissions.<br/>

Two Northern Ireland women, who have flown to Egypt for a holiday, have said the plane arrived without luggage for many passengers. Robyn Allison said the EasyJet flight was delayed leaving Belfast International Airport on Wednesday afternoon and passengers were told it was “due to baggage issues”, but she thought it had been resolved. The Lisburn woman said, after arriving in Hurghada later that night, passengers were waiting for an hour and a half before being told the bags were “lost”. BBC News NI understands that there was a technical issue with the aircraft hold and that arrangements are being made to get the luggage onto Hurghada as a priority. In a statement, Easyjet said: "We are sorry that flight EZY3077 on 4 September departed from Belfast to Hurghada without a small number of bags on board, which we are looking into with our ground handling provider at the airport to understand why this happened. "The bags are being flown to Hurghada on the next available flight to reunite these customers with their luggage as soon as possible." The BBC has also contacted Belfast International Airport and Swissport for comment.<br/>

Aeroflot Group chief Sergei Alexandrovsky has expressed interest in taking advantage of new Russian regulations on leasing to support operations in the east of the country. Alexandrovsky spoke during a session at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok on 4 September. He stressed the importance of air transport to the region, stating: “The whole of the Far East can’t survive without aviation.” But he adds that meeting presidential objective to develop the sector is a “huge challenge”. “It’s feasible but it will take a lot of resources,” he says. Alexandrovsky says that meeting demand is the “most important problem”, highlighting Aeroflot’s co-operation with Aurora Airlines – formerly a subsidiary of the group before it was sold in 2020. “One of the possible ways is to use mechanism of leasing,” he says. “And I think we have to discuss this opportunity for leasing mechanisms in greater detail.” Russia’s government recently unveiled amendments to the country’s Air Code including new rules giving airlines the freedom to engage in wet-leasing from 1 September. Aeroflot and S7 Airlines had previously sought regulatory change to allow the introduction of wet-lease operations. Aurora uses a fleet of Western-built aircraft including Airbus A319s and Bombardier turboprops.<br/>

Australia’s Alliance Aviation has executed two letters of intent (LoIs) covering the sale of six Embraer 190 airframes minus their GE Aerospace CF34 powerplants, alongside a separate deal to sell 13 surplus Rolls-Royce Tay engine cores. Under the first two agreements, the carrier will sell six E190s “that have been or will be purchased by Alliance over the next nine months,” it says. Alliance in February 2023 agreed to purchase a package of 30 E190s from lessor AerCap, principally to gain access to spare engines. The first delivery from the LoI will occur “later this month.” The six aircraft covered by the LoIs will be flown directly from the delivery point in the USA to Europe where their CF34-10 engines will be removed and shipped to Australia. “It is important to note that the underlying basis for the AerCap transaction was to provide a ready supply of high-quality GE CF34-10 engines for Alliance’s growing E190 fleet, and this transaction forms an important part of this strategy,” says Alliance managing director Scott McMillan. An additional agreement will see Alliance sell 13 “surplus, time expired, or unserviceable” Tay 620/650 engines to another European operator.<br/>