The EU executive urged US regulators Wednesday to allow Norwegian Air Shuttle to fly to the US from Ireland, warning it may escalate the matter after 2 years of deadlock. The carrier wants to expand its long-haul operations to the US but has run into opposition from unions and some US airlines who say Norwegian would undermine wages and working standards. The EC has previously said that the delay constitutes a breach of the Open Skies air traffic agreement between the EU and the US. "I hope that actions will rapidly be taken to ensure compliance with the EU-US Air Transport Agreement," Violeta Bulc, EU transport commissioner, said. "The EU is seriously considering all available options to swiftly solve the issue." That could mean submitting an arbitration request to resolve the dispute. <br/>
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The Transport Ministry will extend Nok Air's inspection period by another month after the database collection of its pilots' flight hours was found to not have been conducted based on the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand's regulations. Transport minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith said Tuesday the inspection period had to be extended as Nok Air submitted only the monthly and annual flying hours of its pilots, calculated according to the calendar. However, according to CAAT, flying hours must be presented in 3 patterns: 7 consecutive days in which the total number of hours must not exceed 34; 28 days with not more than 110 hours in total flying time; and 365 days, with flying hours not more than 1,000. Arkhom said he also instructed CAAT to re-examine the issue and report to him within a month. <br/>
A new Armenian airline, called "Armenia" plans to launch regular flights in early April, a press officer for the Chief Civil Aviation Department (CCAD), said Wednesday. According to him, the airline has already received a certificate of CCDA for operation of aircraft and is now going through the final stage of obtaining a certificate for operating regular commercial flights. He said the number of aircraft and the destinations of the airline are still a trade secret. The founders of the airline, according to CCAD are Ashot Torosyan (51%), Tamaz Gaiashvili (25%) and Robert Hovhannisyan (24%). Tamaz Gaiashvili is the founder of the Georgian airline Airzena. He was chairman of its Board of Directors, while Robert Hovhannisyan was his deputy. Most of the employees of the new airline will be staffed by Airzena’s personnel. <br/>
S7 air group has established a new airline company in Cyprus, Vladislav Filev, a co-owner of S7 said Wednesday. The name of the new airline is Charlie Airlines, he said. “In England they called Cypriots ‘Charlie’," Filev said. The new company will make flights from Cyprus to a number of European countries. The flights may start already this year. The airline will use 2 A319 aircraft from S7 fleet, Filev said. According to him, Russian shareholders will own about 40% in the new company. He said that 60% will be held by foreign investors but declined to name them. Filev did not say whether he will own a stake in the new airline directly or via some of the companies he controls. He added that the new company will make it possible for S7 to operate in Europe within the zone of EASA. <br/>
Hungary is to offer Emirates fifth freedom rights in a move that is likely to irk some of Europe’s largest carriers lamenting the expansion of the fast-growing Gulf airlines. Hungary’s minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said Wednesday his country has agreed to offer fifth freedom rights to Emirates after an approach by the govt of the United Arab Emirates. Hungary has been without a national airline since 2012 when Malev declared bankruptcy, though Budapest is the headquarters of Wizz Air, whose network has included Dubai since 2013. Szijjártó said he hopes Emirates, which already flies daily to Budapest, will transform the country into a regional hub for air traffic. Szijjártó said he was due to meet with Emirates later Wednesday. <br/>
Emirates beat out Qantas Wednesday to fly the world’s longest non-stop route when it launched a direct service from Dubai to Auckland, New Zealand. The 17-hours-and-15-minute return leg will overtake Qantas’ 16-hour flight from Dallas to Sydney. Later this month, Emirates will outdo itself when its launches direct flights from Dubai to Panama that it says will take 17 hours and 35 minutes in the winter. The Emirates Auckland service was announced in late January, which is short notice compared to the time between announcing and starting a destination by the airline. The motivator? Qatar Airways’ CE Akbar Al Baker had said he was planning non-stop flights to New Zealand and also to Chile in South America. “Emirates likely saw Qatar’s development in a key market as an unacceptable challenge,” said a senior analyst at CAPA. <br/>
Wizz Air is no longer the FTSE firm with the fewest women in senior roles after recruiting 2 in the space of a week. The carrier unveiled Sonia Jerez Burdeus, a former finance director at Vueling, as its new CFO, starting 1 June. The appointment was made a week after Wizz Air appointed Susan Hooper, a former managing director of British Gas Services, as a non-executive director. Wizz Air came out worst in a list of UK-based companies produced by the former trade minister lord Davies, who led a govt-backed review of the gender balance at the top of British companies. It was one of 15 companies in the FTSE 250 with no women on its board. Although Wizz Air’s finance director does not sit on the company’s board, its new non-executive director will. That will move the company off the bottom of Davies league table. <br/>