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United Airlines pilots approved a new four-year contract that is the costliest ever at a US carrier, providing a cumulative increase in total compensation of as much as 40.2% over the life of the agreement. The contract, with $10.2b in value over the four-year term, leaves Southwest alone among the four biggest US carriers without a new post-pandemic pilot accord. The United agreement was approved by 82% of those voting, the Air Line Pilots Association said Friday. More than 97% of all United aviators cast ballots. United pilots join counterparts at Delta and American Airlines in using an industrywide shortage of aviators as leverage to secure their first post-pandemic contracts with not only notable pay raises, but multiple changes to improve scheduling and work-life balance. The new United contract includes $1.7b in new policies that affect quality of life, such as increased profit sharing and improved pay during training, the union said. “The journey that brought us to this day was long, difficult, and not without turmoil and upheaval,” Garth Thompson, chairman of the ALPA unit at United, said in a statement. “However, the journey also reinvigorated our union, reminding us of what we can accomplish through involvement and resolve.” The pilots also benefited from the fact they were all negotiating at the same time, allowing them to push for similar terms in some areas. The multibillion dollar agreement will boost United’s costs and be the most expensive ever for an airline labor agreement. Pilots will get an immediate pay boost of 13.8% to 18.7% upon signing the deal, followed by annual increases of as much as 5%. More than 200 improvements in the contract, including pay hikes, are immediate, the union said. “We are the largest and best airline in the world because of our people, and I’m happy to give them a great contract,” CEO Scott Kirby said about the vote in a post on LinkedIn.com. <br/>

EgyptAir’s new international route between Cairo and São Paulo, which commenced on September 4, has been temporarily suspended. The airline initially launched this route with the assistance of Brazilian travel agencies, marking an important milestone in its expansion efforts into South America. However, after just two fortnightly flights, the service has been suspended, and it is not expected to resume until at least November 27. The decision to suspend the route was attributed to delays in the signing process of the bilateral agreement between Brazil and Egypt, as reported by AEROIN. The suspension of this route has implications for passengers who had already purchased tickets for direct flights. EgyptAir has announced that it will work closely with travel agencies to reassign these passengers to other airlines offering connecting flights. It’s worth noting that the Cairo–São Paulo route did not perform as anticipated in terms of passenger occupancy. In an effort to boost occupancy, EgyptAir had initially sold tickets directly to consumers. However, due to the delay in finalizing the bilateral agreement between the two countries, the airline found it necessary to suspend the route temporarily.<br/>

Thai Airways International Pcl says flights from China have been over 90% full after South-East Asia’s second-largest economy temporarily relaxed visa rules for visitors. “We have seen significant growth in terms of Chinese traffic into Thailand,” the carrier’s CCO Korakot Chatasingha said. Thailand is banking on Chinese visitors to lead a spending recovery as policy tweaks and new airport infrastructure bolster the tourism-dependent nation. Bangkok’s busiest airport just last week opened a new terminal. Thai Airways, which is going through a debt restructuring after Covid, said last month it plans to increase its flights to five Chinese cities to 56 a week, up from 49, starting Dec 1. Chinese visitors can enjoy visa-free entry to Thailand from Sept 25 to Feb 29 as the popular holiday destination seeks to boost flagging tourist numbers from Asia’s biggest economy. Eight months into 2023, arrivals from China are only about 50% of pre-pandemic volumes, according to Korakot. While Korakot was confident in the long-term recovery of Thailand’s largest source of foreign tourists, the airline is weighing whether to further increase China flights. <br/>

All Nippon Airways has suspended separate cargo joint-venture contracts with United Airlines and Lufthansa, as it restructures its cargo business. ANA did not provide reasons for the decision, but says that the move will not have significant impact on its earnings. It entered into a partnership with Lufthansa Cargo in September 2014, more than six months after it struck a similar deal with United; the three carriers are all members of Star Alliance. The Japanese carrier is in the process of acquiring Nippon Cargo Airlines from logistics group NYK, a deal that was first announced in July and is expected to wrap up in February 2024, more than three months later than initial targets. The takeover has attracted scrutiny from anti-trust authorities, which has pushed the date for completion to the right. According to Cirium fleets data, Nippon Cargo Airlines has a fleet of eight in-service Boeing 747-8 freighters.<br/>