general

U.S. airlines appear to have rediscovered their mojo, thanks to a sharp reduction in capacity that plagued the market this summer. Airfares have turned higher, and airline stocks are now outperforming the broader market. That improvement was one reason why American Airlines lifted its full-year profit forecast. It led to a surprise Q3 profit at Southwest Airlines and has put Delta Air Lines on track to deliver one of the most profitable fourth quarters in its history. The NYSE Arca Airline index has gained 23% in the past three months, outpacing an 8% jump in the S&P 500 index. It's a reversal from this summer when excess supply of seats in the price-sensitive end of the market forced carriers to discount fares to fill their planes, hurting earnings. Airlines have aggressively reduced growth plans since then. Annual domestic seat growth slowed to 1.9% in the current quarter - the lowest rate after the COVID pandemic - from 8.3% a year ago and 6% in the June quarter, according to data from TD Cowen.<br/>

Spanish airport operator Aena said on Wednesday its net profit in the first nine months of the year rose 27% from the same period last year as the post-pandemic travel boom pushed passenger traffic to new records. Aena booked a net profit of E1.44b out of revenues rising 16% to E4.39b. The revenue and profit data were in line with forecasts from analysts polled by LSEG, who expected E4.4b in revenues and E1.46b in net profit during the January to September period. The company reported a record 283m passengers across its terminals in Spain, Latin America and Britain in the period. Airlines that use Aena's airports in Spain expect traffic to continue to grow in the winter season and believe it can break last year's all-time record of passengers. Southern European airports will outperform their northern counterparts by traffic volume this year, according to analysts consensus, with southern terminals receiving more leisure travellers while northern destinations, which focus on business passengers, will be less busy.<br/>

California will partner with a trade group representing major U.S. airlines to increase the availability of sustainable aviation fuels, state officials said Wednesday. The California Air Resources Board announced a plan with Airlines for America — which represents Delta, JetBlue, United and other airlines — to increase the availability of sustainable aviation fuel in the state to 200m gallons by 2035. That amount would meet about 40% of intrastate travel demand, the agency said. Davina Hurt, a board member and chair of the San Francisco Bay Area's Air Quality Management District, said the commitment would help the state combat climate change and improve air quality. “Together we are not just taking a step forward in cleaner fuels but creating a ripple effect of positive change that will resonate throughout the nine counties of the Bay Area and extend to the state of California and beyond,” Hurt said at a news conference at the San Francisco International Airport. California produces about 11m gallons annually of sustainable aviation fuel, according to the board. The state plans to use sustainable aviation fuel produced in California and in other states to meet the new targets. The announcement comes after some airline workers and advocates said the state is not doing enough to address the health impacts of jet fuel emissions. Air Resources Board staff last year included jet fuel in proposed updates to the state's low carbon fuel standard, a program aimed at transitioning the state toward transportation fuels that emit fewer greenhouse gas emissions. But staff later removed jet fuel from proposed changes to the rule, which the board is set to vote on next week.<br/>

A union representing about 33,000 striking U.S. West Coast factory workers said late on Tuesday it had met with Boeing for the first time since members voted down an improved contract offer from the planemaker last week. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 751 said with the assistance of Acting U.S. Labor Secretary Julie Su, the union's bargaining committee "had a productive face-to-face meeting with the company to address key bargaining issues." The union, whose members have been on strike for nearly seven weeks, added it "will continue to engage with the company to secure the best possible outcome for our members." A Boeing spokesperson confirmed the company met with the union on Tuesday for negotiations, assisted by Su. Earlier this month, Su had helped the parties restart discussions, ultimately leading to last week's vote on an offer of a 35% pay rise over four years that was rejected by 64% of union members. The union has been seeking a 40% pay rise over four years and the return of a defined-benefit pension. Last month, about 95% of workers rejected a 25% pay hike. Boeing on Monday launched a stock offering that could raise up to $24.3b to strengthen finances squeezed by the halt to production of its best-selling 737 MAX and its 767 and 777 widebody programs due to the strike.<br/>

Airbus maintained financial and industrial targets as it posted higher-than-expected third-quarter core profit and revenues on Wednesday, led by demand for profitable models and a favourable annual comparison for its troubled space business. The world's largest planemaker said its widely-watched adjusted operating profit rose 39% to E1.407b in the quarter as revenues rose 5% to 15.689b. Analysts were on average expecting Q3 operating profit of E1.2b on revenues of E15.302b, according to a company-compiled consensus.<br/>

Airbus said Wednesday that it has handed over its first extra-long-range narrow-body aircraft, the A321XLR, marking another step in an era of smaller and more fuel-efficient jets flying longer distances, and further expanding a delivery gap between Airbus and rival Boeing. The first aircraft was delivered to Spanish airline Iberia, which plans to debut it between Madrid and Boston next month. American Airlines and United Airlines have also ordered the 321XLRs. Airbus said the XLR can fly up to 11 hours nonstop, or 4,700 nautical miles, about 15% farther than the A321LR, a long-range version of the 321 aircraft, which is used for trans-Atlantic missions like JetBlue’s service between New York and Amsterdam. The plane maker has been working on getting the aircraft certified for five years. It burns about 30% less fuel than older aircraft, the manufacturer said.<br/>

Airbus, the world’s largest commercial airplane manufacturer, said on Wednesday that it was preparing for the possibility that the United States would impose new tariffs on all imports, and that the company would deal with the higher charges by passing them along to its airline customers. In a call with reporters, Airbus’s CE, Guillaume Faury, said the European company was monitoring the U.S. presidential election next week and would be prepared for the possibility of a new 10% tariff. Former President Donald J. Trump, the Republican candidate, has made sweeping tariffs a critical plank of his economic platform if he wins. Faury said any new tariff would be passed along to Airbus’s airline customers, in much the same way that Airbus dealt with a tariff that Trump put on European aircraft in 2020 as part of a long-running airplane subsidy dispute. “So that’s something we will be discussing with our customers” if necessary, Faury said. “But it puts them in a difficult place of adding an additional cost on what they have ordered and what they’re procuring,” he said. “That’s basically mainly a decision of the state that has to be borne by the companies.” He added: “So we are prepared. We know what it feels like. We don’t believe that’s helping aviation and the competitiveness of the airlines and the aviation industry, but it’s something we would be able to manage.”<br/>

The IATA and its partners have successfully demonstrated that the industry is ready to deliver a fully digital air travel experience. This was achieved in a proof-of-concept (PoC) involving two passengers using different digital wallets and travel credentials on a round-trip between Hong Kong and Tokyo. IATA partnered with Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong International Airport, Narita International Airport, Branchspace, Facephi, NEC, Neoke, Northern Block and SICPA for the travel which took place on 21 and 22 October. The airport elements of this PoC were conducted in a live environment, building on an initial PoC carried out in a test environment in 2023.<br/>