All 62 people aboard a Flydubai passenger jet flying from Dubai to southern Russia were killed when it crashed on its second attempt to land at Rostov-on-Don airport Saturday. Russia's emergencies ministry said the aircraft, a Boeing 737-800 operated by Flydubai, crashed at 03:50. Most of those aboard were Russian. "The aircraft hit the ground and broke into pieces," the Investigative Committee of Russia said. "According to preliminary data, there were 55 passengers aboard and 7 crew members. They all died." The plane's wing hit the ground on its second landing attempt and burst into flames. The region's governor said bad weather - strong, gusting wind in the Rostov area - was the primary line of investigation for the crash, but an adviser to the Russian transport minister said pilot error could also be a factor. <br/>
unaligned
The fatal crash of a Boeing jetliner in southern Russian early Saturday puts the spotlight on a still relatively unknown breed of airline: the Middle East budget carrier. For years the region’s growth carriers such as Emirates Airline, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways have made a name for themselves placing huge orders for Airbus and Boeing long-haul jets. They have stolen customers from US and European rivals by offering lower fares and lavish services, including on-board showers and first-class suites. In their shadow, the Middle East has embraced another group of airlines, the discount carriers trying to imitate the success of Southwest Airlines in the US and Ryanair in Europe. FlyDubai was set up by the Dubai govt in 2008 to mirror the success Emirates Airline has had in long-haul flying in the low-cost segment. <br/>
Fastjet CE Ed Winter, who is poised to leave the airline after clashing with investor Stelios Haji-Ioannou over mounting losses, said he still thinks the continent is on the cusp of a transformation into a viable aviation market. Without an unexpected slump in currencies spanning the South African rand to the Kenyan schilling, Fastjet would be making money and further down the road with its plan to become the first pan-African low-cost airline, Winter said Friday, his last day at the company. “You’d have a very different and far more optimistic situation,” the executive said. “I just think perhaps that’s delayed for a year as the economy improves. But you can’t say our model isn’t working. If the pound and euro had declined 30% then European airlines would be experiencing the same problems.” <br/>
Oman Air reported a loss of OMR86m (US$223.37m) for 2015, marking a 21.2% drop from the losses reported in 2014, as revenues rose 14% to reach OMR466m. The airline said Sunday it carried 6.3m passengers in 2015 — up from 5.1m the previous year. Capacity also rose to 20.5b ASKs, with an average seat factor of 71.4%. During the year, Oman Air saw the arrival of 9 aircraft including the airline’s first 2 Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners and Boeing 737s. The airline launched 3 new destinations; Singapore, Goa and Dhaka, and added frequencies to some of its existing routes. “The fall in oil prices has been mirrored by a fall in aviation fuel prices…enabling us to reduce the company’s losses.” There is, however, a darker side to the fall in oil prices, namely the impact on the economy of the Sultanate of Oman. <br/>
Virgin Australia has obtained a 12-month, A$425m unsecured loan from its 4 major shareholders, Air NZ, Etihad Airways, SIA and Virgin Group that will give the airline more time to fix up its balance sheet. The move comes as part of a broader review of Virgin's capital structure. The airline took out a $164m loan in the first half of the financial year amid a decline in its unrestricted cash balance. Virgin chairman Elizabeth Bryan said the airline had "largely completed" one of the most successful transformations in Australian corporate history over the last 6 years and was now reporting profitability and earnings growth. "The board is focused on optimising the group's balance sheet and capital structure to support the ongoing execution of its strategy and will lead a capital structure review," she said. <br/>