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Airline alliances redouble efforts to make multicarrier itineraries seamless

Star Alliance, Oneworld and SkyTeam -- the three global airline alliances -- are once again leaning into technology integrations for facilitating smooth, multi-airline journeys. Take, for example, Oneworld CEO Nat Pieper's comments during an interview last month: "We want a Oneworld multicarrier ticket to be as simple to orchestrate from a guest perspective as if they were flying the same itinerary on one carrier," he said. "It should be all facets of the journey, from the time you search that itinerary to check-in." He added: "Ultimately, as I get off the airplane, if I've got an issue with my bag and I'm on a British Airways-operated flight but I want to use the American Airlines app -- we want you to be able to use whatever app you want to." Ambitions such as these aren't new for the alliances. But as the three have reached something close to global coverage, facilitating seamless, multicarrier journeys has become a priority. And with air carriers around the globe now better positioned to dedicate resources to these integrations than they have been since pre-Covid times, the alliances are starting to achieve significant milestones. SkyTeam, which counts Delta, Air France, KLM and Korean among its 19 members, now facilitates seamless multi-airline itinerary check-in on 95% of the group's global volume, said CEO Patrick Roux. For example, a flyer whose one-way itinerary includes flights on Delta and Korean can check in for both flights via either carrier's app. "It's becoming a completed project. We're almost there," Roux said. "The ambition is to have all the touch points of the customer journey in place and to be the first one to provide it." Meanwhile, Star Alliance, which counts United, Lufthansa, Turkish and Singapore among its 26 members, has enabled cross-airline free seat selection on 83% of connecting bookings, said Luc Lachoix, Star's vice president of digital and technology. Star's goal is to bring that number to 90% by the end of the year. The alliance also projects it will facilitate multi-airline bag tracking on 60% of Star itineraries this year.
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Delta's flight disruptions hit its premium brand image

Among the big U.S. carriers, Delta Air Lines has assiduously built a reputation as a premium airline, touting its punctual and reliable operations relative to peers. But over the last several days, its brand image has been dented. Following a global cyber outage, the Atlanta-based airline has been the slowest among major U.S. carriers to recover. Since last Friday, Delta has canceled more than 6,000 flights, leaving hundreds of thousands of travelers stranded. Analysts estimate the hit to its bottom line could be in the hundreds of millions. Delta's operations recovered on Thursday, with the carrier cancelling just two flights as of 10:30 AM EST, according to data from FlightAware. Its disruptions were the latest in a series of unexpected problems that have hit individual U.S. airlines over the last few years. United Airlines bore the brunt of weather disruptions last year around the July Fourth holiday weekend. Southwest Airlines (LUV.N), opens new tab suffered an operational meltdown around the Christmas holidays in 2022 that upended travel plans for 2m customers. Prior to the cyber outage, Delta's reputation was strong, with aviation analytics firm Cirium and consultancy OAG ranking it as the most punctual airline in North America in both 2024 and 2023.
"That (premium) image has now taken a hit," said Conor Cunningham, an analyst at Melius Research, adding the disruptions would result in a hit of at least $350m to its operating margin in the September quarter.
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American and Southwest airlines report plunge in profit

American and Southwest airlines both reported a plunge in second-quarter profits on Thursday in the latest sign of the US industry misjudging demand for domestic flights. The carriers pledged to cut back flying in the second half of the year and promised changes to improve financial performance. American will continue to unwind a sales strategy that proved unpopular among business travellers and their travel agencies. Southwest, which is under pressure from activist investor Elliott Management, said it would offer assigned seating for the first time in its more than 50-year history. Budget carriers have been hit hardest by the oversupply of capacity in the US market, forcing them to lower fares. But the largest airlines have felt the strain too, with American chief executive Robert Isom saying it had “led to a higher level of discounting than we anticipated” in the second quarter. The lacklustre results follow massive disruption to air travel on Friday due to the worldwide IT outage caused by Crowdstrike’s faulty software update. Though most had recovered by last weekend, Delta Air Lines struggled through Tuesday to right its operations. The US Department of Transportation said it would investigate whether the carrier followed regulations for treatment of passengers on cancelled or delayed flights. Citi analyst Stephen Trent estimated the disruption would cost Delta earnings equal to 60 cents per share, or about $387m, in the third quarter. Melius Research analyst Conor Cunningham calculated a $350m hit to operating profit, with a fine from the Department of Transportation likely to follow. “What is more uncertain is the reputational damage Delta’s image may take,” he said. “It is certainly plausible forward bookings are impacted.” American also is suffering the continued consequences of its attempt to compel corporate travellers to book tickets directly through the airline rather than travel agencies. It said in May it would abandon that strategy, but Isom said on Thursday that in the second quarter it failed to win back the share of corporate travel that it wanted.
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Southwest will end its longstanding open-seating policy

Southwest Airlines will start assigning seats to passengers, ending its longstanding policy of allowing passengers to pick their seats once they have boarded, the airline said on Thursday. The new procedure will be implemented to increase revenue and in response to feedback from customers, 80% of whom report preferring an assigned seat, Southwest said. “This is the right choice — at the right time — for our customers, our people and our shareholders,” said Bob Jordan, the president and CE of Southwest. Even though the airline has been known for its unique seating model for more than 50 years, preferences have evolved, with more customers taking longer flights where they prefer a seat assignment, the statement said. The new policy was reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal. The changes bring Southwest, which for years has distinguished itself by offering low prices and a simple business approach, more in line with conventional airlines like American Airlines and United Airlines. Southwest makes a little less than $1b from fees it charges for the ability to board early and “ancillary” services, Jordan said Thursday on a conference call with analysts to discuss the company’s second quarter results. The company expects that earnings from the move to assigned seating and offering seats with extra legroom will be “substantially north of that,” he said.
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Airlines are finally cutting ticket prices as flight numbers rise

Qantas Airways, not known for usually offering big discounts, has cut prices more than six times in 2024. Virgin Australia is averaging at least one fare sale a month. Even Ryanair Holdings, which practically invented affordable European air travel, says flights are getting cheaper. Passengers around the world are winning some respite from the fare madness that followed the pandemic – and further price declines are coming. It is a partial re-balancing of power from the post-pandemic demand surge that gave airlines almost free rein over fares. As travel restrictions lifted and the world rushed to reconnect, prices ballooned for the reduced number of seats that were available. Premium fares reached more than US$20,000 (S$26,800). Now, falling fares reflect the growing number of international flights on offer, particularly in Asia and Europe, and a travelling public that is increasingly cost conscious. “It’s not just a blip, it’s a global trend,” said James Kavanagh, CE of leisure at Brisbane-based travel agency Flight Centre Travel Group. “Airlines certainly don’t have all the power at the moment.” International fares globally fell 6% in the first six months of 2024 from the year-ago period, Flight Centre said on July 24. Flights out of Australia were 13% cheaper, while fares to Indonesia – home to Bali, one of Australia’s favourite getaways – slumped 18 per cent, Flight Centre said. Prices will continue to fall as the cost-of-living crisis makes consumers more price-sensitive, Mr Kavanagh said. With under-pressure airlines seeking to fill planes months before departure, there are deals for early bookers, he said, citing 10-day tours to China, including flights and accommodation, on offer for A$999 (S$876).
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United Air says workers need doctor’s note to call out sick

A United Airlines Holdings Inc. policy requiring flight attendants to provide a doctor’s note when calling in sick on certain days is being reviewed by the US Labor Department to see if it conforms to federal rules. The department said it had received “numerous recent inquiries” from workers about the change, the agency said Thursday in a statement. United told employees that starting July 21 it would require the extra documentation until further notice for those calling out sick for assigned flights or being on reserve for Friday, Saturday or Sunday. “We have seen a significant increase in sick calls over weekends this summer,” United said in an employee message seen by Bloomberg. Those requests have risen as much as 23%, suggesting “that some flight attendants are misusing sick leave.” The policy also requires those calling out to visit a doctor in person. The change doesn’t prevent taking approved unpaid leave, and complies fully with federal law and the carrier’s union contract, United said in an emailed statement. “The policy is narrowly tailored to the days when abuse has been occurring, and we hope to return to our usual approach of not requiring a doctor’s note soon,” the airline said. The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents United crew members, has filed a grievance against the airline over the issue, saying it violates their contract is “burdensome and costly” and intended to discourage workers from taking medical leave. The union and airline are currently in negotiations for a new labor agreement. In the message announcing the policy, United cited a greater risk of disrupting operations when more employees than normal are off the job for illness. The rule also applies to those taking paid or unpaid sick time, or using sick leave to care for a spouse or child. Failure to submit the note from an accredited physician within 72 hours could result in disciplinary action or termination, the airline said.
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Air France-KLM trims capacity outlook amid Olympics impact

Air France-KLM trimmed its full-year capacity outlook amid a bigger-than-expected shortfall from tourists avoiding Paris during the Summer Olympics, with the group initiating a hiring freeze and additional cost cuts. Group capacity is now expected to rise 4% from last year’s level, compared with a previous estimate of 5%, Air France-KLM said in a statement on Thursday. It also tweaked its 2024 capital-expenditure target to below E3b from an already revised April goal of E3b. The second quarter “confirmed an increasingly challenging environment for aviation,” CEO Ben Smith said. Passengers avoiding Paris to skirt possible disruptions and high prices during the Olympic Games kicking off Friday is now expected to result in a shortfall of about E200m, the company said, more than a previous estimate of E160m to E180m. French residents have been postponing holidays until after the Olympics, while international customers are staying away, it said. Citizens also traveled slightly less in June and early July due European elections first and then snap French legislative vote, the company added. Air France-KLM’s report adds to a series of gloomy outlooks by international carriers in recent weeks, hurt by a decline in ticket prices, delays in aircraft deliveries and higher costs. Deutsche Lufthansa AG said it will struggle to break even at its namesake airline unit this year, and Ryanair Holdings Plc warned on Monday that yields will be materially lower as travelers cut back on spending during the most important months of travel. Airlines poured capacity into Paris in the run-up to the Olympic Games, with Air France and its low-budget Transavia airline, as well as Ryanair leading the charge. While it’s typical for corporate travelers to avoid a host city during the Olympics, just 24 hours before the opening ceremony the French capital’s streets and restaurants remain empty as more residents work remotely or have left teh city, while tourists have yet to show up.
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Hong Kong’s Cathay ordered to investigate after junior pilot fails alcohol test

Hong Kong’s civil aviation authority has told Cathay Pacific Airways to investigate and submit a report on a junior pilot who failed an alcohol breath test just before he was scheduled to fly to the city from Sydney, which caused a lengthy delay to the flight. The Civil Aviation Department on Thursday said aviation safety was of the utmost importance and that it was very concerned about the incident. The department emphasised that flight crew members must not be affected by psychoactive substances to a degree that could affect their capacity to act or could jeopardise the safety of the aircraft. Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific told the Post on Thursday morning it was investigating the second officer on flight 110, who failed the test in Sydney on Tuesday. The airline emphasised safety was its “overriding priority” and it had a zero tolerance for staff who did not comply with alcohol rules. “Cathay Pacific is aware of the reports and we are maintaining close communication with the relevant authorities,” a Cathay spokesman told the Post. “The second officer in question has been suspended from flying duties with immediate effect, pending a full investigation. “Safety is our overriding priority and we have a zero-tolerance approach to non-compliance with our alcohol and other drugs (AOD) policy, which sets out the company’s standards and guidelines on handling any problematic use of alcohol or other drugs.”
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Low-cost airlines Flybondi, Jetsmart set sights on Brazilian market

Low-cost airlines Flybondi and Jetsmart are targeting Brazil as a top flight destination in coming months, looking to expand routes as the market opens up, executives at both firms said. "Is it true that Brazil's missing an ultra-low-cost airline? Probably," the chief executive of Chilean carrier Jetsmart, Estuardo Ortiz, told journalists on Thursday.
The firm, which currently operates nine routes in and out of Brazil, sees the country as an "instrumental" market to its operations, Ortiz said. Argentine competitor Flybondi is also weighing route expansions to Brazil, CEO Mauricio Sana told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday.
Over the last few months, Argentina has signed a slew of so-called "open-skies" agreements with other nations, including Brazil. The agreement with Brazil ramps up the number of permitted flight frequencies between the nations. With Chile and Uruguay, however, carriers from those nations can operate domestic flights in Argentina and vice versa. "The agreement signed with Brazil is regarding frequencies... it still doesn't include domestic flights. But the (Argentine) government wants to allow it," a source at Flybondi said on the condition of anonymity. A source at Argentina's transportation secretariat, also on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that it hoped such an agreement could be signed.
"(Brazil) has Gol and Azul, which aren't low-cost airlines," the Flybondi source said. "Rates are super high and it majorly lacks connectivity."
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Climate activists step up direct action at European airports

European flights are being severely disrupted by climate activists glueing themselves to runways as part of their campaign to ban fossil fuels, despite threats of tougher prison sentences for protesters breaking into airports. Frankfurt airport cancelled about 140 flights on Thursday after members of the Letzte (Last) Generation climate protest group cut through perimeter fencing and stuck themselves to the ground while holding “Oil Kills” banners. The disruption to Germany’s busiest airport, which lasted about two hours before police arrested the activists and flights resumed, is part of a pan-European protest movement to disrupt airports across the region. About 30 flights were cancelled at Cologne-Bonn airport on Wednesday after activists brought its runways to a standstill for three hours. German interior minister Nancy Faeser called the protests at Frankfurt airport “dangerous, dumb and criminal”. “Anyone who blocks runways not only risks their own life, but also endangers others and harms all travellers,” Faeser wrote on X. “These acts must be punished more severely. We have proposed severe prison sentences.” Fraport, which operates Frankfurt airport, said flight delays were expected for the rest of the day and recommended passengers check airline websites before travelling to the airport. Protesters have also targeted airports in the UK, Norway, Austria, Switzerland, Spain and Finland in recent days. Police arrested several activists from the Just Stop Oil protest group close to the perimeter fence of London’s Heathrow airport on Wednesday on suspicion of conspiring to interfere with a site of critical national infrastructure under the Public Order Act.
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Air Canada frequent flyers can now earn and redeem Aeroplan miles with Eurowings

Canadian flag carrier Air Canada has announced its latest airline partner. The Star Alliance carrier is already known for the number of airlines it allows its Aeroplan frequent flyer program members to redeem their points on, with the newest addition being Lufthansa Group subsidiary Eurowings. The low-cost airline is based in Düsseldorf, Germany, and is wholly owned by the Lufthansa Group. While Lufthansa is a Star Alliance member as a carrier, all of its subsidiaries are not members by default, so this presents a new opportunity for Aeroplan members to earn and spend miles on a new European carrier. Eurowings primarily serves domestic and European destinations from its main hubs, Düsseldorf and Hamburg. Aeroplan members can now earn Aeroplan points on all eligible Eurowings flights, Status Qualifying Miles, and a Status Qualifying Segment that count towards Aeroplan Elite Status. Eurowings flights ticketed by Air Canada also earn Status Qualifying Dollars. Aeroplan Members who do not hold Elite Status will earn points based on the actual distance flown and the booking class purchased. The process works slightly differently for those with status, as points are earned based on actual miles flown multiplied by the associated booking class accumulation percentage or the minimum points rule.
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Global tech outage to cost Air France KLM close to $11 mln, says CFO

Air France KLM faces a hit of about E10m from last week's global technology outage, finance chief Steven Zaat said on Thursday. The group is one of the first airlines to disclose a cost linked to the disruption. "The expectation is that it will cost us around 10 million (euros)," Zaad said in a press call, adding that KLM and Transavia bore the brunt of the disruptions while Air France was not seriously affected. A software update by global cybersecurity company CrowdStrike triggered systems problems that grounded flights, forced broadcasters off air and left customers without access to services such as healthcare or banking last Friday. Delta Air Lines has been the slowest among major U.S. carriers to recover from the outage. The carrier has cancelled more than 6,000 flights since Friday and analysts estimate the hit to its bottom line could be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
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Air Belgium rejigs A330 fleet as it looks towards exiting restructuring process

Air Belgium is expecting to exit a judicial restructuring process in September, and is claiming to have achieved profitability over the first four months of this year. The carrier axed its scheduled passenger operations in October last year – describing them as “chronically unprofitable” – and opted for restructuring to re-organise its debts. Abandoning the scheduled services meant its full-year turnover for 2023 fell by 40% to E134.4m. But the carrier managed to cut losses by 38% to €27.5 million, and it states that it is “once again profitable” for the January-April period this year. Air Belgium has focused more on wet-lease and charter operations, which accounted for 75% of its 2023 turnover. It points out that its performance last year was adversely affected by the unavailability of one of its two Airbus A330-900s following a technical incident in August. Air Belgium has chosen to withdraw both A330-900s this year – one of them (OO-ABG) in March and the other (OO-ABF) to follow in October – as well as two passenger A330-200s in June and September. It says it is holding discussions with lessors to replace the fleet with other A330-200s or -300s.
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German politicians demand better airport security after activist blockades

German politicians demanded better protection for the country's airports on Thursday after climate activists were able to breach fences and disrupt air traffic for the second day in a row. German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, whose ministry wants to punish unauthorised airfield access with up to two years in jail, criticised the blockades as "dangerous, dumb and criminal" as well as airport operators for not better securing their sites. "Airport operators must do more to protect their facilities, and we are in close contact with the firms on this," she said. Traffic at Frankfurt airport, Germany's busiest, was halted temporarily on Thursday after activists blocked runways by gluing themselves to the tarmac, a day after similar action affected Cologne-Bonn airport, the country's sixth-largest. The Frankfurt protesters were able to cut through a wire mesh fence to access the airport grounds, the activists said. The activists have vowed that the blockades are just the beginning of a campaign to exit oil, gas and coal by 2030 and have listed several countries across Europe and North America where disruptions are planned in the coming weeks. Similar actions at other European airports, including London, Vienna, Oslo and Zurich, had been foiled by authorities. "The damage to the economy and society is immense. That is why the judiciary and authorities must take much more consistent action," said German flagship airline Lufthansa in a statement.
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Abra signs preliminary deal for five A350s

Avianca and Gol holding company Abra Group has signed a memorandum of understanding for five Airbus A350-900s. Abra did not disclose a delivery timeline for the aircraft nor specify which carrier would operate the type. Neither Abra carrier currently operates A350s. Colombian carrier Avianca operates Boeing 787 widebodies, while Brazilian operator Gol – which is currently undertaking a Chapter 11 financial restructuring – is an all-narrowbody operator. Abra CE Adrian Neuhauser says: “We believe the arrival of these five A350s, which offer a best-in-class passenger experience, are more fuel efficient and have a lower cost per seat than competitor aircraft, will allow us to strengthen our commitment to make travel more accessible and responsible. This also means better prices for customers with better connectivity between our continent and Europe, and will further consolidate Abra as one of the largest and most competitive air transportation groups in Latin America. The aircraft selection is consistent with the strategic announcements we have done this year and further executes on our long term vision.”
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Saudi's flynas strikes deal for 75 Airbus A320neos, 15 A330s

Low-cost Saudi airline flynas has signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus for 75 of its narrow-body A320neo family aircraft and 15 of its wide-body A330-900 jets, the companies said at the Farnborough Airshow on Thursday. The A320neo deal is worth about $4b and the A330 deal about $1.7b, according to estimated delivery prices from Cirium Ascend. Reuters reported that flynas was negotiating an A330 deal ahead of the air show. "The A320neo family provides exceptional operational performance and environmental benefits, allowing us to offer unique, low-cost travel experiences," flynas CEO Bander Almohanna said in a statement. "Additionally, the A330neo will enhance our long-haul capabilities with its advanced technology and efficiency while supporting our growth plans and Saudi Arabia’s pilgrim program."
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UK plans to integrate drones into skies in airspace revamp

The British aviation regulator will incorporate nascent technologies such as air taxis and drones as it develops plans to modernize the nation’s airspace by 2040. The UK Civil Aviation Authority set out the key activities and milestones that it says the industry will need to deliver on as it builds a regulatory framework that addresses new technologies, according to a statement Thursday. “This includes projects looking at how new airspace users, such as drones and vertical take-off and landing aircraft, can fly safely in the same airspace as other aircraft,” the regulator said in a statement on its website. A swathe of electrically-powered flying taxi and drone startups have emerged in recent years that are racing to certify their aircraft and begin commercial operations. However, older airspace control practices may hamper that push. The CAA says it will modernize the UK’s airspace by 2040 — and has already begun work on some areas, according to the statement. The regulator will collaborate with the Airspace Change Organising Group, the Ministry of Defence and air traffic provider NATS Enroute Ltd. in executing the plan, according to the statement.
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Swedish court approves SAS's reorganisation plan

SAS Scandinavian Airlines (SK, Copenhagen Kastrup) is a step closer to exiting bankruptcy protection, currently scheduled for August 2024, after the Stockholm District Court approved its reorganisation plan in Sweden. The company's Swedish reorganisation is part of the overall turnaround plan approved during SAS's Chapter 11 process in the United States and is a condition precedent for the plan to become effective. Although the timetable may change, SAS anticipates emerging from restructuring in August, which will be contingent on fulfilling all necessary conditions, including regulatory approvals. There is also a three-week appeal period before the court's decision enters into legal force. As part of the Swedish reorganisation, all of the company's existing common shares and listed commercial hybrid bonds will be redeemed and cancelled. Against this background, the company has applied for the delisting of its existing common shares from Nasdaq Stockholm, Nasdaq Copenhagen, and Oslo Børs, and the delisting of its commercial hybrid bonds from Nasdaq Stockholm, pending the legal force of the reorganisation plan.
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Relatives of 18 dead in Nepal plane crash demand answers

Relatives of the 18 dead in an airplane crash in Nepal have yet to hear from the government or the airline on the possible cause of the disaster, they said a day after the small jet went down during take-off at the airport in Kathmandu, the capital. The incident has cast a spotlight on the mountainous, landlocked nation's poor record on air safety, with almost 360 people killed since 2000 in plane and helicopter crashes. The 50-seater CRJ-200 aircraft that crashed this week was operated by Saurya Airlines, and was ferrying 15 technicians, two crew and two of a technician's family to the central city of Pokhara, where it was scheduled for regular maintenance. Only the captain survived after it crashed in a field beside the runway and caught fire. "Nobody has contacted us," said Krishna Bahadur Magar, a relative of Nava Raj Ale who was a ground handler at Saurya and died in the crash. "Our relative was a member of the Saurya Airlines family," Magar said. "Why is the airline now behaving as if they don’t care about him?" Magar was among the dozens who crowded into a narrow alley outside the forensic unit of Kathmandu's Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital on Thursday, waiting for authorities to release the bodies of the dead. Some said doctors had told them they would not receive the remains of loved ones before Saturday, while those bodies charred beyond recognition would require DNA tests to be identified, a process that could take two weeks.
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'Truly shocking' - Officer kicks, stamps on man at Manchester Airport

A UK police officer has been filmed kicking and stomping on the head of a man who was lying face down on the ground during an arrest at Manchester Airport earlier this week. The male officer is seen holding a Taser over the man before kicking him in the head while other officers shout at onlookers to stay back in a video shared widely on social media platforms. Greater Manchester Police said in a statement that firearms officers had been attacked during an arrest following a fight in the airport terminal on Tuesday. It said it had referred itself to the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC) over the events and that one officer had been removed from operational duties. Assistant Chief Constable Wasim Chaudhry said: "We know that a film of an incident at Manchester Airport that is circulating widely shows an event that is truly shocking, and that people are rightly extremely concerned about. "The use of such force in an arrest is an unusual occurrence and one that we understand creates alarm. One male officer has been removed from operational duties and we are making a voluntary referral of our policing response to the Independent Office of Police Conduct." The IOPC said it would assess the referral and decide what "further action" is taken.
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Xi instructs Xiamen Airlines to play active role in cross-Strait exchanges

Chinese President Xi Jinping has instructed Xiamen Airlines to play an active role in serving economic and social development and advancing exchanges and cooperation across the Taiwan Strait. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the instructions in a reply letter to the staff members of the airline on the occasion of its 40th founding anniversary. Xiamen, a coastal city on the western side of the Strait, is at the forefront of cross-Strait exchanges and integration. During his tenure as vice mayor of the city, Xi helped Xiamen Airlines solve a number of problems during its initial development stage. In the letter, Xi said he is pleased to see that Xiamen Airlines, which started from scratch, has achieved leapfrog development over the past four decades. Xi called on the staff members to stay committed to reform and innovation, enhance the airline's core competitiveness, and contribute more to advancing the high-quality development of civil aviation and boosting China's strength in transportation. Established in July 1984, Xiamen Airlines is the first airline in China to operate under a modern corporate system.
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Kenya receives Adani proposal to invest in its biggest airport

Kenya’s government received a proposal from Adani Airport Holdings Ltd. to invest in the nation’s main airfield, the Kenya Airports Authority said. Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s company offered to help build a new passenger terminal and second runway at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in the capital, Nairobi, as well as refurbish existing facilities, KAA acting Managing Director Henry Ogoye said in a statement on Wednesday. The proposal will be subjected to technical, financial and legal reviews to ensure it complies with the nation’s public-private partnerships laws, he said. Ogoye made the announcement after lawmaker Richard Onyonka petitioned parliament to scrutinize a build-operate-transfer agreement with the Kenyan government. The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project on Wednesday questioned why the Kenyan authorities are considering a private proposal after experts advised the government earlier this year to put out a public tender for the project. The KAA referred a request for comment on the OCCRP report to Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi’s office, which didn’t immediately respond to queries. Kenya has previously refurbished and expanded its main airport and has had plans for a second runaway in an effort to retain its status as a regional aviation hub. Neighboring Ethiopia, which operates Africa’s biggest airplane fleet, has chipped away at that dominance in recent years. An estimated $1.85b of spending is required to address “challenges” identified at the airport, about $830m of which would be required in the first five years of a proposed upgrade project, according to the Adani proposal. The investment required is “significant and cannot be funded with the prevailing fiscal constraints without recourse to private funding,” the company said.
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The overlooked reason that planes crash so often in Nepal

The plane crash that killed 18 people in Nepal on Wednesday was at once horrific and sadly common, one of dozens of aviation disasters in the small Himalayan nation in the past decade. After each new accident, investigators point the blame in many directions, citing weather, difficult terrain, overworked pilots, aging aircraft. But a root problem is left unaddressed: A conflict of interest in which the officials who provide lucrative aviation services are the same ones who regulate them. This arrangement leaves the country’s Civil Aviation Authority to investigate itself if problems arise. It impedes, analysts and former officials say, the kind of urgent changes, and strict adherence, needed to improve oversight of life-or-death safety matters. The result has not just been frequent crashes — nearly 40 since 2010, according to government reports, resulting in over 350 deaths. Nepal’s poor record also threatens to further cut off its aviation industry from the outside world and deprive the poor nation of an important tourism stream. The European Union has barred the country’s airlines, including the national carrier, Nepal Airlines, for over a decade. If countries like India, China and the Gulf nations did the same, said Yogesh Bhattarai, a former aviation minister in Nepal, “that would be a huge loss for us.” The crashes in recent years have run the gamut, involving planes of all sizes: Fifteen helicopters, four single-engine planes and 16 double-engine planes. Except for three foreign airplanes, they have all been operated by Nepali companies. Story has more.
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US judge should reject Boeing plea deal, crash victim families say

U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor should reject a "sweetheart" plea deal the Justice Department struck with Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab, relatives of 15 of the 346 people killed in two fatal 737 MAX crashes said on Thursday. Late Wednesday, the planemaker finalized an agreement to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge and pay at least $243.6m after breaching a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement. Family members said in a court filing in Texas that they will submit a comprehensive objection to the plea deal by next week, arguing that there are a number of issues, including its "outdated and misleading statement of facts," use of "inaccurate sentencing guidelines" and "ambiguous restitution commitment" by Boeing. The families cited O'Connor's statement in a February 2023 ruling: "Boeing's crime may properly be considered the deadliest corporate crime in U.S. history." Spokespeople for Boeing and the Justice Department declined to comment on the families' filing. The DOJ told Boeing earlier this month it could accept a settlement that branded the planemaker a felon or fight the charge in court. The Justice Department said in May that Boeing had breached its obligations in the agreement that shielded the planemaker from criminal prosecution stemming from misrepresentations about a key software feature tied to fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 in Indonesia and Ethiopia.
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Jetmaking industrial problems overshadow orders at damp air show

The world's largest air show fizzled out on Thursday with a solid new Saudi jetliner order unable to dispel the gloom over recent problems in producing planes fast enough to meet demand. Britain's Farnborough Airshow opened earlier this week amid alarm signals from airlines over falling yields or average fares. But delegates said they remained above historic levels and although quiet, the show confirmed demand for wide-body jets. Airbus and Boeing posted about 40 firm orders - a fraction of recent years - and were roughly level depending on whether Qatar Airways' decision to come forward as the previously unnamed buyer for an existing Boeing order was counted. Including preliminary new orders, Airbus pulled ahead after announcing a deal on Thursday for 90 planes including 15 A330neos from Saudi carrier Flynas. Reuters reported talks with Flynas on the model ahead of the show. There was none of the triumphalism seen at past events with both major planemakers recognising they had other pressing issues, including the inability of factories to keep up with recent demand because of disruption left over from the pandemic. "Almost everyone plays to the rhythm. But all it takes is one piece of the puzzle that's missing and the puzzle is not complete," Airbus planemaking CEO Christian Scherer told Reuters. "We have 4,000 suppliers that flow into one plane." With the VIP chalets pulling down the shutters on a rainy and subdued air show, with only a drizzle of new aircraft orders, the exhibition halls where the global supply chain sets up shop for the week were still humming with activity. Inside the temporary bazaar, suggestions from manufacturers that the whole supply chain bears responsibility for the industry's manufacturing woes were far from popular.
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Airbus leapfrogs Boeing at Farnborough with major Flynas order

Saudi Arabia’s Flynas agreed to an outline order for as many as 160 Airbus SE jets, vaulting the European planemaker ahead of its US rival as the Farnborough International Airshow concludes. The discount airline will buy 75 single-aisle A320neo jets, as well as 15 A330neo widebody jets, Airbus said in a statement on Thursday. Flynas, an all-Airbus operator, said separately that it also has options for 55 A320neos and 15 A330s. With the late-breaking deal, Airbus has sold twice as many jets as Boeing Co. at the expo outside of London, the aviation industry’s biggest event of the year. But the US planemaker’s dominance in the wide-body category helped it nearly keep pace in terms of dollar value, based on estimates from aviation consultant Ishka. The Flynas order is a shot in the arm for Airbus’s A330 model, which is enjoying a second wind because of early availability and its favorable economics as long haul travel rebounds from the lows of the pandemic. Bloomberg News reported earlier about the potential for a Flynas order. The carrier previously had 65 A320neos on order. Order activity has been subdued at Farnborough after last year’s frenzy of post-Covid business, partly because backlogs for workhorse aircraft such as the A320neo and Boeing’s 737 Max now stretch beyond the end of the decade.
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Bombardier's second-quarter results beat on higher jet deliveries

Bombardier beat analysts' estimates for second-quarter results on Thursday, helped by higher plane deliveries and stronger sales in the Canadian business jet maker's services business. Robust demand for flying private since the pandemic is helping business jet makers' order backlogs, but supply chain snags and shortages of skilled workers following a recent wave of retirements have weighed on deliveries. Bombardier said on Thursday it delivered 39 aircraft in the quarter, up 10 from a year earlier and reported a 5% higher backlog of $14.9b. The company expects to deliver between 150 and 155 aircraft in 2024.
The Montreal-based company said it also burned $68m during the second quarter in free cash, a metric closely watched by investors, compared with free cash usage of $222 million a year earlier. Bombardier CEO Eric Martel said the company is demonstrating its expertise in "maintaining the industry's strongest track record for managing the supply chain." On Wednesday, Gulfstream jet maker General Dynamics reported a 50% increase in business jet deliveries in the quarter, but shares fell when the company only handed over 11 of its flagship G700 business jets, below a company target of 15.
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Embraer opens P&W repair hub as demand for engine maintenance rockets

Brazilian planemaker Embraer on Thursday opened a maintenance hub for Pratt & Whitney (P&W) engines in Portugal, which it expects to bring in an additional E600m in revenues per year once fully operational. The move comes amid surging demand for aircraft maintenance as airlines and manufacturers struggle with supply chain snags in the wake of the pandemic and more frequent engine repairs. The P&W-authorized maintenance facility at Embraer's OGMA subsidiary near Lisbon will be able to overhaul P&W engines that power jets made both by the Brazilian firm and larger peer Airbus. P&W, part of RTX Corp, has struggled since last year with a rare powder metal defect affecting mainly the Airbus A320neo jet, which led it to call for accelerated inspections that airlines say can take up to almost a year to complete. "Demand is high. All shops in the world have been full," the head of Embraer's Services & Support unit, Carlos Naufel, told Reuters. "The first engines we are receiving are from European airlines, but going forward they could come from anywhere." Consultancy Bain said in a report last week that airlines are facing their longest ever waits for engine maintenance, with demand likely to peak in 2026, constraining carriers' growth and adding costs.
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