BA owner IAG SA predicted a surge in inbound tourism spurred by a weakening of the pound after the UK’s decision to quit the EU, just as discount rival Ryanair Holdings said the Brexit vote is likely to depress demand and force carriers to cut fares. IAG doesn’t plan to eliminate jobs or move assets away from Britain in the wake of the Brexit vote, and there will be no significant capacity cuts or fare discounting, CEO Willie Walsh said Tuesday. “The UK now becomes more attractive for tourists,” Walsh said. “Corporates were pausing on the uncertainty, and now we don’t expect them to bounce back as we would have expected had the vote been ‘Remain.’ In the long run, such demand effects tend to even out.” Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary offered a starker analysis, saying he expects sterling to be weak for the next six to 12 months, compelling the low-cost carrier to “keep lowering fares to keep people flying.” Plans for growth in the UK will be put on hold, with 50 new planes due for delivery this year to be deployed in other markets. Carolyn McCall, who heads EasyJet and also spoke at the Brussels gathering, came down somewhere in the middle, saying that while there may be some short- or mid-term “turbulence,” demand remains strong. Airlines are still struggling to evaluate exactly how June 23’s referendum will impact their industry. While the weaker pound might stimulate visits to the UK, Ryanair is concerned that it will reduce the ability of Britons to fund vacations. An economic slowdown could undermine travel further, while a relocation of offices from London to continental Europe by key employers would damage one of the world’s strongest business-travel markets.<br/>
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American Airlines is adding two Midwestern routes to its Chicago O’Hare hub. Three daily round-trip flights to Lansing, Mich., will begin Aug. 23 while two daily round-trip flights to Akron-Canton start Oct. 6. American’s American Eagle affiliates will fly both routes with 50-seat Embraer ERJ-145 regional jets. American already flies from CAK to four other destinations: Charlotte, New York LaGuardia, Philadelphia and Washington Reagan National. With the new Chicago flights, American will become the top carrier at CAK in terms of daily flights (13), though Delta will still fly with an overall higher seat count there, CAK spokeswoman Kristie Van Auken said. The new American flights also offer something of a rebound for CAK, which lost several Southwest routes in 2015. Southwest now flies only to Atlanta -- and seasonally to Orlando -- from Akron-Canton. But those loses have been partially offset by new American flights to New York – and now Chicago – as well as by new Allegiant routes to Florida.<br/>
A Japan Airlines copilot has been arrested in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, after he allegedly assaulted a police officer during a night out. The airline said Soichi Tatsumi, 42, was seen hitting a 49-year-old JAL captain he had been drinking with Monday evening and then slapped a police officer who attempted to intervene. He was arrested on the spot for allegedly obstructing an officer in the performance of duty. The police quoted Tatsumi as saying he was drunk and therefore could not remember clearly what happened. The pilot and copilot were supposed to fly Flight 182 from Komatsu Airport near Kanazawa to Tokyo’s Haneda airport on Tuesday morning. The flight was canceled, leading to rescheduled travel arrangements for 81 people. JAL suspects both pilot and co-pilot breached internal rules about drinking before duty. Pilots are not allowed to consume alcohol up to 12 hours before a flight.<br/>