Ryanair Holdings will stop flying to the German cities of Dortmund, Dresden and Leipzig, and withdraw the majority of its flights to Hamburg as it spars with the government over rising taxes. Europe’s biggest low-cost carrier said that the latest cuts will reduce its German traffic by 12%, or 1.8m seats, next summer. Ryanair said it’s responding to rising aviation taxes, security and air traffic control charges. Hamburg will lose 22 routes, Ryanair said. The Irish budget specialist said the government should immediately scrap aviation taxes, reduce ATC charges and push back an increase in security fees in order to prevent further reductions in the airline’s German schedule. Rising charges in Germany have also been highlighted by flag carrier Deutsche Lufthansa AG, and EasyJet Plc has also pared back its German service. In September, Ryanair lowered its fare outlook on weaker demand in the peak summer season. The airline cited slowing consumer confidence that ended the post-Covid demand boom, as inflation weighed on household incomes. Since then, CEO Michael O’Leary has said that ticket-price trends have improved.<br/>
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New seats are being fitted in planes as part of measures to improve accessibility for passengers with reduced mobility. Guernsey States-owned Aurigny said it had invested in the aisle chairs to "provide greater comfort and ease" when boarding and disembarking its planes. In addition all arm-rests will now be adjustable and disability aids have been fitted in the toilets. Additional ramps are due to arrive in November and December to "offer better protection from the elements", with two based in Guernsey, one at Gatwick Airport and one at Southampton Airport. Dave Cox, head of ground operations, said changes would improve the travel experience for customers who needed it. He said: "We assist around 500 reduced mobility customers each month, and we’re working hard to enhance their travel experience with us. We remain dedicated to offering as much support as possible with specialised equipment provided to all customers who request it."<br/>
Emirates airline has invested about $48m in advanced equipment and systems to train pilots and cabin crew on the Airbus A350 aircraft, which is expected to join its fleet in weeks. The Dubai-based carrier has ordered three full-flight simulators, with the fixed-base training device replicating the A350's flight deck and using visual and audio systems to make training sessions as realistic as possible, Emirates said on Thursday. The airline has so far trained about 30 pilots and 820 cabin crew members. By the end of November, more than 50 pilots will have completed their training on the A350 simulators. "With our investments in the new simulators and systems, our pilots and cabin crew are equipped, trained and supremely confident to manage any operational challenge safely and competently," Capt Bader Al Marzooqi, Emirates’ senior vice president of flight training, said. The Airbus A350 is central to Emirates' long-term strategy. The aircraft can accommodate up to 350 passengers in a standard three-class configuration, and is suitable for various needs, from short-distance flights to ultra-long-range routes of up to 18,000km non-stop. Emirates has 65 Airbus A350-900 aircraft on order. The airline aims to use them to serve ultra-long-haul destinations in the US, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand – all up to 15 hours of flying time from Dubai – following the initial launch of the wide-body jets on mainly regional routes.<br/>
Russian carrier Aeroflot expects to switch fully to domestically-developed software next year as part of its digitisation strategy, its CE has told the country’s prime minister. Aeroflot chief Sergei Alexandrovsky informed prime minister Mikhail Mishustin during a meeting that the company had achieved “significant progress” in transforming its digital operations over the past two years. He said the company plans to “completely switch to domestic software” in 2025, having reached a level of 90% last year with a target of 95% this year. “Any modern company cannot effectively exist without a developed IT landscape,” he added. Alexandrovsky said Aeroflot Group plans to start implementing a new airworthiness and maintenance package, known as ‘Kupol’, next year to replace the AMOS software. “This is a product the market needs, everyone is waiting for it,” he stated, adding that it was 65% ready. The group will introduce it for its own airlines, before offering it to other carriers. Alexandrovsky told Mishustin that the company would launch a domestically-developed flight planning program this year. He said this would provide fuel savings from 2-5% which would equate to around Rb8b ($82m) per year. Next year the carrier also intends to introduce an automated revenue-management program, Alexandrosky added: “Passengers will be able to choose tickets at the best price.”<br/>
Start-up Israeli carrier Air Haifa has taken delivery of a second ATR 72-600, as it negotiates the problems of expanding operations during the current conflict in the region. The airline emerged around July this year and introduced its first aircraft a couple of weeks later. “Our second aircraft is already here,” the carrier stated on 9 October, after the ATR was flown from Toulouse to Tel Aviv, via Crete. While the airline has been aiming to operate from Haifa, in the north of Israel, the broadening of the Gaza conflict to Lebanon has complicated the airline’s strategy. Its latest aircraft has remained at Tel Aviv, operating flights to the Jordanian capital Amman. Air Haifa says that, owing to the “security situation and circumstances beyond our control”, it cannot operate planned services to Eilat which were scheduled for 13-25 October. It adds that it is also unable to operate its Larnaca flights from Haifa, and that the service – between one and three daily flights – will instead depart from Tel Aviv over 14-26 October. But the carrier says it hopes to commence Haifa operations on 27 October, circumstances permitting.<br/>