The US FAA has finished its review of United Airlines Holdings Inc. after finding no significant safety issues, the agency said in a statement on Wednesday. The conclusion wraps up months of additional oversight imposed on the carrier following a series of alarming safety incidents, including a wheel that flew off a plane after takeoff and an aircraft that skidded off a runway shortly after landing. United in May said the FAA had begun to lift restrictions it imposed following the incidents, including allowing the airline to begin the process of adding new planes and routes again. The company declined to comment on the end of the review. The FAA launched a separate audit of Southwest Airlines Co. in July over its own mishaps, including a flight that plunged to within 400 feet of the ocean off Hawaii. The carrier has ordered all of its pilots to return to its base in Dallas for additional training following the incidents. Both examinations illustrate the FAA’s response to multiple safety scares during commercial flights this year. The most notable example was a January near-catastrophe in which a door-sized fuselage panel blew off a 737 Max shortly after takeoff. <br/>
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As Air Canada pilots vote whether to ratify a four-year agreement with the airline, some analysts say the company is "significantly undervalued" compared to its peers, and opportunity lies ahead for investors if the deal is ratified. The impact of the agreement, reached right before the strike deadline, will likely weigh on the airline's upcoming quarterly results due to higher costs if the deal if ratified, as well as an increase in the number of customers that likely turned away from the airline over concerns about a potential strike. Still, TD Cowen analysts Tom Fitzgerald and Helane Becker wrote in a research note on Tuesday that the airline is "taxiing towards outperformance" and "remains significantly undervalued." The analysts lowered Q3 and Q4 earnings estimates for Air Canada due to expected pilot wage inflation and customers likely booking away from the airline because of fear of a pilot strike, but expect that margins "have bottomed this year" and will improve going forward. They have a "buy" rating on Air Canada's stock, and a price target of $19 per share. "Air Canada remains significantly undervalued on an EV/EBITDA basis versus other full-service carriers. We believe this valuation gap will close once pilot negotiations are in the rearview, shareholder returns are announced, and the recovery in long-haul Asia Pacific traffic continues to benefit Air Canada's results," Fitzgerald and Becker wrote.<br/>
In an interview with Aerotelegraph, theAustrian AirlinesChief Operating Officer (COO), Francesco Sciortino, said that the US East Coast was the perfect choice for its initial 787-9 operation. The carrier currently has two 787s in service, previously owned by Vietnam's Bamboo Airways. The Dreamliner is a brand new aircraft type in the Austrian Airlines widebody fleet, which otherwise consists of Boeing 777s and older 767s. The four first long-haul destinations for Austrian's 787 fleet are as follows: Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), New York JFK Airport (JFK), Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR). According to the COO, these are great destinations to begin flying the new aircraft type on. He said: "Especially at the beginning, the US east coast destinations are the most suitable for operations because the structure of the crews means we have to fly routes that are flown with two rather than three crews. This means we can continue to train Dreamliner staff without any time pressure."<br/>
Air India’s recent announcement that most of its cabin crew must share hotel rooms during layovers has sparked concern over their need for rest and privacy, especially during long-haul flights. In a mail to its cabin crew on Tuesday, the airline informed them of some key policy changes regarding layover entitlements, leisure travel, and gratuity, among others. It informed them that while Air India crew were earlier entitled to a single room during layovers, “cabin crew” and “cabin seniors” will now be assigned rooms on twin-sharing basis; only senior cabin crew such as “cabin managers” and “cabin executives” will be allotted single rooms. The policy will be effective from December 1, 2024 for all airlines in the Air India Group, which also include Vistara, Air India Express, and AIX Connect. The new norms have been announced as Air India is merging with Vistara, where cabin crew were already required to share hotel rooms. It is learnt that several employees have shot off a mail to Air India CEO Campbell Wilson and its Chief Human Resource Officer Ravindra Kumar, objecting to the revised norms. Their letters underline that such a policy is detrimental to rest requirements and could impact their health as well as performance.<br/>