Asiana Airlines Faces Legal Battle Over Crash

In the first investigation of its kind, federal transportation officials are reviewing whether Asiana Airlines failed to meet legal obligations to help the families of passengers after one of its planes crashed at San Francisco International Airport in July.

Three people died and dozens were injured when Asiana Flight 214 clipped a seawall while landing on 6 July, following a trip from South Korea, where the airline is based. Under US law, Asiana was required to provide a range of services to family members of the 291 passengers, from the prompt posting of a toll-free number to gather and distribute information to providing transportation and lodging so family members could comfort injured loved ones.

Congress created the rules in the late 1990s, following crashes after which airlines were roundly criticized for ignoring family members. However, the government rarely audits the plans to check whether airlines can deliver the assurances they make on paper, and an Associated Press review of documents filed by two dozen foreign airlines found cases in which carriers had not updated their plans.

Asiana's plan was last updated in 2004. After the crash, problems with the airline's response were almost immediately apparent.

JetBlue's new Mint!

JetBlue, the single-class carrier whose brand was built partly on the idea that it treats all its passengers equally, will launch a new premium class next summer.

Available only on flights between New York and San Francisco and New York and Los Angeles, the new premium section, dubbed "Mint," will feature lie-flat seats, its own tapas-style menu, and customized amenity kits. The first flight with the new premium section will take off from New York's JFK to Los Angeles International Airport on June 15, 2014.

TAM Alliance Switch.

Brazilian carrier TAM will officially switch to the oneworld frequent-flier alliance on March 31. The move will take the airline out of the Star Alliance, with TAM saying its membership in that group will formally end on March 30.

TAM is part of the LATAM Airlines Group, created out of the 2012 merger between TAM and Chile-based LAN. LAN has been a longtime member of the oneworld group. Chilean regulators required LATAM subsidiaries LAN and TAM to exit one of the alliances as a condition for the merger.

TAM's parent company said in March that oneworld would be the chosen alliance, though the timing for a switch remained uncertain until today's announcement.

More Pilots for American

American Airlines plans to hire 1,500 pilots over the next five years as it expands international flying and takes delivery of new planes, the carrier said on Monday.

The AMR Corp unit, which has been operating under Chapter 11 protection since late 2011 and is looking to emerge from bankruptcy by merging with US Airways Group Inc, said it will post open jobs October 1 and start training in winter.

The Fort Worth-based company said its plans call for hiring and training 40 to 50 pilots a month beginning this winter. The airline is also in the process of hiring and training 1,500 new flight attendants.

The hiring reflects operational needs, projected retirements and new Federal Aviation Administration rules requiring increased experience and rest for pilots, American Airlines said in a statement. The planned merger has no bearing on the hiring plans, a spokesman added.

Alitalia Aircraft Skids Off Runway in Rome

A plane has skidded off the runway at Rome's Fiumicino airport after its landing gear malfunctioned during a thunderstorm.

Officials said there were around 10 people who suffered "light injuries" and were treated by medical staff at the airport, according to the ANSA news agency.

The plane, an Airbus A320 belonging to flagship carrier Alitalia, had flown from Madrid with 151 passengers on board.

It came to rest on its side near the runway.

The pilot realised as he was coming in that the plane's right wheels had failed to deploy and he warned air traffic control ahead of time, ANSA said.

The plane then toppled on its right wing during landing and could be seen on its side near the runway.

The national air transport safety agency has opened an investigation into the incident, and officers have been sent to examine the plane.

More 787 woes

(c) planespotters.net

Glitches are keeping Boeing's Dreamliners in the headlines, including two new problems that came to light during the weekend. The issues have been considered to be minor, but their frequency is creating operational frustrations among Boeing's 787 customers.

Reuters reports a Dreamliner for Polish airline LOT had to divert to Iceland on Sunday because of a glitch in the the aircraft's identification system, according to an airline spokeswoman.

The flight was en route to Warsaw from Toronto when it made the unscheduled stop at the Iceland's Keflavik airport near Reykjavik.

REUTERS: LOT 787 Dreamliner forced to land in Iceland
REUTERS: Analysis: New trial for Boeing as Norwegian demands 787 repairs

"The aircraft had to land due to an air identification system fault," LOT spokeswoman Barbara Pijanowska-Kuras tells Reuters. "The Norwegian authorities have refused permission to fly over its territory, even though other countries gave permission to fly over theirs."

Frontier Airlines Sold Cheap.

The funky tailed Frontier Airlines is to be sold off at a dirty cheap price to William Franke, a pioneer of the cheap tickets and high fees airline business that has spread overseas and is growing in the U.S.

Franke is the former chairman of Spirit Airlines, which has earned consistent profits by jamming more seats on its planes and charging extra for things that other airlines do for free, such as printing a boarding pass at the airport, or using the overhead bin.

Franke's Indigo Partners LLC is buying Frontier for $36 million plus assumed debt. He made it clear that he'll steer Frontier in the same direction as Spirit.

"We endorse and will support continued efforts to build Frontier into a leading nationwide ultra-low cost carrier," Franke said in a statement announcing the deal on Tuesday.

Frontier began moving in that direction last year as Republic Airways got ready to sell it. On Aug. 6 it began charging as much as $100 each way for carry-on bags for some tickets purchased somewhere other than Frontier's website.

A 63-year-old United Airlines pilot who had a heart attack mid-flight has died, an Idaho hospital tells The Associated Press.

That came after the captain of United Flight 1603 had a heat attack, prompted the Seattle-bound flight to divert and make an emergency landing in Boise on Thursday evening. An off-duty pilot helped land the plane.

The Boeing 737-900 landed safely there after originating from Houston Bush Intercontinental Airport, according to United.

Is it the end of the Boeing / Airbus duopoly

SINCE the late 1990s airlines wanting to buy short-to-medium-haul “narrowbody” planes with 100-200 seats have had little choice (apart from some creaky old Russian aircraft) but to pick either Boeing’s 737 or Airbus’s A320. As orders for such planes have boomed in recent years, aircraft-makers in China, Russia and Canada have been working on new contenders to break this American-European duopoly. On September 16th Canada’s Bombardier got there first, launching the maiden flight of its CSeries plane (pictured).

The Man Who Sold The Sky ??

John Leahy helped Airbus push Boeing out of the number one position in plane sales. Can the best salesman in the business keep Europe at the top? 

Read the speical Reuter's report on the man who sold the sky! 

One warm July evening three years ago, John Leahy set off along London’s river Thames in an electric punt. With Leahy, a sharp and energetic New Yorker who has been Airbus sales chief since 1994, were the company’s Middle East president Habib Fekih and Tim Clark, president of Emirates Airlines, one of the fastest-growing airlines in the world. Dubai-based Emirates was the largest customer for Airbus’s A380 superjumbo but Leahy wanted Clark to confirm his support for the A350, Airbus’s bid to compete with Boeing's drealiner -    the report continues here.

Ryanair Will Be Nice to Passengers?

 Ryanair Europe's biggest budget airline, has promised to transform its "abrupt culture" in a bid to win customers from costlier rivals, admitting for the first time that a reputation for treating its passengers badly might have become a problem.

The Irish firm, this week voted the worst of the 100 biggest brands serving the British market by readers of consumer magazine Which?, said on Friday it would become more lenient on fining customers over bag sizes and overhaul the way it communicates.

"We should try to eliminate things that unnecessarily piss people off," Chief Executive Michael O'Leary told the company's annual general meeting, after several shareholders complained about the impact of customer service on sales.

He said the company would overhaul its web site, set up a new team to respond to emails and stop fining customers whose carry-on baggage exceeds minimum sizes by a matter of millimetres.

"A lot of those customer services elements don't cost a lot of money ... It's something we are committed to addressing over the coming year," O'Leary said.

Allegiant Grounding Over Slides

 Allegiant Travel Co, a low-cost carrier that provides service to leisure destinations, is grounding as many as 30 of its aircraft, or roughly half of its fleet, to inspect emergency evacuation slides in response to an FAA request for information.

The company's shares fell about 5 percent.

In a statement on Friday, Allegiant cited a "compliance issue" that will necessitate prompt inspections of the evacuation slides in its MD-80 aircraft. It added that the move would lead to delays and cancellations, and said the process was expected to be completed by the end of this month.

The Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday it directed Allegiant to report on the status of the slides on its MD-80s after it investigated an emergency evacuation of Allegiant Flight 436 at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas on Monday.

"The FAA this week became aware that Allegiant Air may not have inspected some emergency evacuation slides on its MD-80 fleet at required intervals," Ian Gregor, public affairs manager with the FAA Pacific Division, said in a statement.

US / American Merger Lawsuit

US Airways and American Airlines, whose proposed merger has been stalled by U.S. government opposition, urged a court on Friday to require the Justice Department to turn over documents relating to its approval of four previous airline mergers.

The Justice Department filed a lawsuit on August 13 to stop the planned merger of US Airways (LCC.N) and American's parent, AMR Corp (AAMRQ.PK), arguing that the deal would lead to higher air fares and other fees. A judge will hear the case without a jury in November and decide whether the deal can go forward.

The airlines have said that the merger is needed to help them compete in a rapidly consolidating industry.

In their motion, US Airways and American asked for analyses, studies, forecasts and other documents relating to the Justice Department's approval of the four mergers completed over the past decade.

Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N) acquired Northwest Airlines in 2008, United (UAL.N) merged with Continental in 2010 and Southwest Airlines Co (LUV.N) bought discount rival AirTran in 2011. US Airways bought America West in 2005.

Justice Department spokeswoman Gina Talamona said that the agency would reply formally to the motion next week.

The motion for the material, which could be quite extensive, will likely be granted, said Robert Skitol, an antitrust expert with Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP.

"There's no doubt about it being very burdensome," said Skitol. "This is very resource-intensive."

Previously, the government had said the request was too broad, and that data on previous mergers not relevant to this case.

The airlines and the Justice Department could settle the antitrust lawsuit, which would likely require the companies to sell certain assets. Any divestitures would require approval from the judge overseeing American's emergence from bankruptcy.

The airlines have defended the deal in court filings, saying it would create $500 million in savings to consumers annually by building a stronger competitor to Delta and United.

In its complaint, the Justice Department focused on Ronald Reagan National Airport, just outside Washington, D.C., where the two companies control a combined 69 percent of takeoff and landing slots. It also listed more than 1,000 routes between two cities where the two airlines dominate the market.

The case at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia is No. 1:13-cv-12346.

From Reuters.com

US Skies Open For Ukraine Aviation.

Airlines based in Ukraine are now allowed to fly to the the United States, after the Federal Aviation Authority found the country's safety standards have improved.

The Authority does not rate or rank specific airlines but assesses whether a country's aviation authorities meet standards developed by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Those that do not meet the standards are not allowed to operate flights to the United States.

Countries that currently fall short of those standards include Bangladesh, Montenegro, Serbia, Guyana, and Indonesia.

According to the FAA, it worked with Ukraine's civil aviation authority to ensure that its safety oversight system complies with the ICAO standards.

The FAA announced the change Friday afternoon.

Read more: 

PIA Pilot Guilty of Drunk in Charge of Aircraft

A pilot has pleaded guilty to being “impaired by drink” in the cockpit of a plane at Leeds Bradford Airport.

Irfan Faiz, 54, had more than four times the legal alcohol limit in his system when he was arrested after getting on board the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft, Leeds magistrates heard on Friday.

Other staff had noticed he was “unsteady on his feet” and smelt of alcohol before the flight to Islamabad on Wednesday night.

He was eating chewing gum and mints to mask the smell as he boarded the plane, the court heard.

Faiz, from Pakistan, was carrying out pre-flight checks when police were called and arrested him. The 180 passengers who were on board had to disembark and were put up in a hotel overnight before flying out on a rescheduled flight on Thursday.

Faiz pleaded guilty to carrying out an activity ancillary to an aviation function while impaired by drink.

Chairman of the bench James McAuley told Faiz: “By your actions you breached the trust of the public who must be comfortable that when travelling they are safe to travel.

“The consequences could have been serious loss of life.”

Faiz, who could face a prison sentence, was remanded in custody to be sentenced at Leeds Crown Court at a later date.