Delta Cargo joins Sustainable Air Freight Alliance aligning to airline’s goal to be carbon neutral for a more sustainable future

Delta Cargo has joined the Sustainable Air Freight Alliance (SAFA), a business-led collaborative initiative aiming to reduce its members’ environmental footprint. The move aligns with Delta’s pledge earlier this year to become the world’s first carbon neutral airline. The airline has committed $1 billion over the next 10 years to mitigate all emissions from its global business.

SAFA is a collaboration between shippers, freight forwarders and airlines to track and reduce emissions from air freight and promote responsible freight transport. It is facilitated by BSR (Business for Social Responsibility), a global nonprofit business network and consultancy dedicated to sustainability.

“We’re proud to join SAFA as we accelerate our sustainability goals while also being aligned with our customers and their values,” said Shawn Cole, Vice President – Delta Cargo. “We are in the midst of the worst global pandemic in living memory, but we can’t afford to take sustainability off the agenda. Through this commitment, we are supporting Delta’s goal to be a more environmentally-friendly airline for generations to come.”

VSE Aviation & Honeywell Aerospace distribution agreement

VSE Corporation, a leading provider of aftermarket distribution and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services for land, sea and air transportation assets for government and commercial markets, today announced that its VSE Aviation subsidiary has entered into an exclusive, two-year distribution agreement with Honeywell Aerospace. Under the terms of the agreement, VSE will be the exclusive distributor of Honeywell’s LASEREF IV Inertial Reference System, in addition to its next-generation JetWave satellite communications hardware in both the Americas and Asia Pacific regions. VSE expects to sell system units under both programs beginning in the third quarter 2020.

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Dynamic Seat Blocker ?

Plusgrade, a leading ancillary revenue and merchandising platform used by global travel organizations to generate revenue from otherwise unsold inventory, has announced the launch of Dynamic Seat Blocker, elevating how airlines capture incremental revenue, and meet the evolving needs of passengers in a COVID-19 economy. With the launch of Dynamic Seat Blocker, Plusgrade continues to provide revenue recovery tools to help the airline industry rebound by adding a new type of enhanced seating option for additional comfort and space—improving the overall travel experience.

Braniff Airways signs agreements with the Dallas Cowboys, TAC Air and Reed Enterprises for headquarters

Some 65 years after the signing of the original letter of intent to build a new Braniff hangar at Love Field, an agreement was recently signed by Dallas-based Braniff Airways, Inc., with the Dallas Cowboys, TAC Air, Lincoln Properties and Reed Enterprises regarding the Airline's former Operations and Maintenance Base at Dallas Love Field. The licensing agreement, will ensure that Braniff's name will be used to identify the property for the next 69 years, according Braniff Board Chairman Richard B. Cass.

Braniff's new licensing agreement culminates nearly eight years of efforts to preserve the world's only surviving dual butterfly mid-century hangar, which was designed by the famed architects William Pereira and Charles Luckman of Los Angeles, California. In 2011, Braniff joined with advocacy lead Preservation Dallas to ensure that the hangar that had dominated the eastern side of Love Field for six decades would continue to contribute to Dallas’s history.

Delta is giving customers more space for safer travel

Delta is giving customers more space

 for safer travel

From the check-in line to Delta Sky Club seating to an empty middle seat onboard, Delta is giving customers more space for safer travel during the pandemic.

We know that having extra space is important to our customers, with 64 percent of survey responders listing it as the most important factor when travelling.

A part of Delta CareStandard – our ongoing commitment to keeping your spaces clean, giving you more space and offering you safer service, have a look at what “more space” means for customers:

DHL Expressto get four converted 767-300s

                   

             DHL Express will add four 767-300 Boeing Converted Freighters (BCF) as part of the logistics company’s efforts to continue modernizing and growing its fleet with cost-efficient and reliable freighters.

This step is part of DHL’s effort to modernize its long-haul intercontinental fleet in order to fly more eco-friendly and cost-efficiently. The aircraft are converted from passenger to freighter configuration by Boeing to fit the needs of DHL Express and meet the rising global demand for express services.

Passengers who refuse to wear masks at the airport are subject to a ban on flying United

United Extends Mask Requirements to Airports

 United Airlines today announced that customers will be required to wear a face-covering in the more than 360 airports where the airline operates around the world. This includes United customer service counters and kiosks, United Club locations, United's gates and baggage claim areas. If customers refuse to comply, they may be refused travel and banned from flying United at least while the mask requirement is in place. This will be effective for all customers traveling on and after July 24 regardless of when their ticket was purchased. United also will strengthen its mask exemption policy by only excluding children under the age of two. If a passenger believes that there are extraordinary circumstances that warrant an exception, they should contact United or speak to a representative at the airport.

The last farewell........Qantas 747-400 bows out with final flight from Sydney to Los Angeles and then on to Mojave

Today marked the end of an era for the Australian airline Qantas as the carrier operated its last commercial 747 flight. 

The final 747-400 in the fleet (registration VH-OEJ) left the airlines home base of Sydney at around 1400 local time.  Operating as flight number QF7474, bringing to an end five decades of history-making moments for the national carrier and aviation in Australia.

Qantas took delivery of its first 747 (a -200 series) in August 1971, the same year that William McMahon became Prime Minister, the first McDonalds opened in Australia and Eagle Rock by Daddy Cool topped the music charts. Its arrival – and its economics – made international travel possible for millions of people for the first time.

The fleet of 747 aircraft not only carried generations of Australians on their first overseas adventures, they also offered a safe voyage for hundreds of thousands of migrant families who flew to their new life in Australia on board a ‘roo tailed jumbo jet.

British Airways is to start a new route between Gatwick and Montego Bay in Jamaica from October 13, 2020.

British Airways is to start a new route between Gatwick and Montego Bay in Jamaica from October 13, 2020. 

Demonstrating its commitment to the Caribbean, the airline has also now resumed flying to Antigua (from August 1), Barbados (from July 18), Kingston (also Jamaica, from July 20) and St Lucia (from July 25), albeit with reduced frequencies.

Flights to Montego Bay, which will be operated by a three-cabin (World Traveller, World Traveller Plus and Club World) Boeing 777, will depart on Tuesdays and Saturdays and are now on sale on ba.com, with prices starting from as low as £427 return.

As a destination, Montego Bay is a tourist hotspot, famed for its beautiful beaches, water sports, resorts and nightlife.  

UK funding for green aviation increased to £400 million.

Business Secretary announces grants totalling £200 million, matched by industry, for new aerospace research and technology.

Aerospace jobs and supply chains across the UK will benefit from cutting-edge research and development projects announced on Monday by the government and aerospace industry leaders.

Government grants totalling £200 million, delivered through the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) programme, will be matched by industry to create the total investment of £400 million in new research and technology, enabling ambitious projects to lift off and support the sector’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

New projects set to receive funding will include developing high performance engines, new wing designs, ultra-lightweight materials, energy-efficient electric components, and other brand new concepts to enhance innovation within the sector. A project led by Williams Advanced Engineering in Oxford, for example, will develop ultra-lightweight seat structures that will reduce an aircraft’s fuel consumption.

The funding will also secure highly-skilled jobs in the UK’s aerospace sector and will benefit companies of all sizes from Caldicot in Wales to Bedlington in the North of England. Higher education institutions will also be a part of the projects, including the universities of Nottingham and Birmingham.

Is this the future of regional aircraft......

British design will create UK jobs and a blueprint for sustainable mass air transportation

 A pioneering design for a Hybrid Electric Regional Aircraft which will deliver a technical and commercial entry point for sustainable mass air transport is being unveiled today. The disruptive design has been developed by the Electric Aviation Group (EAG), the UK-based engineering and development firm, which expects its first aircraft to be in service by 2028.

EAG has optimised the latest technology, economics and operational parameters to create the design for the Hybrid Electric Regional Aircraft (HERA), to ensure it can solve the challenges of decarbonisation and mass transportation.

Key information about the 70+seater HERA:

Whisper-quiet operation reduces noise pollution
Innovative airborne battery regeneration to minimise turn-around time
Efficient battery integration
Thermal management of motors and power electronics
Gear Assisted Take-Off Run (GATOR) gives rapid acceleration for a quick lift-off reducing energy requirements
Short take-off-and-landing (STOL) performance enables new route opportunities affording greater profitability to operators
Cabin-flex design enables passenger operation during the day and cargo operation at night
Suitability for operating from regional airports brings convenience to travellers and gives increased proximity to warehouses, enabling private sector cargo to optimise last-mile terrestrial logistics and delivery systems and reduce carbon emissions
Future-proof design to accommodate alternative energy sources if available before 2030
Flexibility to transform into an all-electric or carbon-neutral as the battery density improves or alternative fuels and associated powertrain technologies mature and become affordable.

The design, which is being unveiled to coincide with the opening of FIA Connect, the virtual Farnborough Airshow today, has received unequivocal support from EAG's JetZero consortium, which includes some of the UK's leading engineering and manufacturing organisations and senior academic advisors.

"Significant investments have been raised to develop sub-19 seat hybrid and all-electric aircraft which we believe is the wrong strategy. These small planes cannot meet the demands of mass air transportation or the requirements of decarbonisation," commented Kamran Iqbal, founder, and CEO at EAG. "Our design is for an aircraft that will initially offer 800 nautical miles range at launch in 2028, and which will be able to carry over 70 people. We will be a first mover in what is a $4.4 trillion market."

EAG will draw on the rich heritage and strong aviation industry in Bristol when it begins production of the new aircraft for which it has already developed and filed a total of 25 patents covering a wide range of technologies. The organisation expects to initially create more than 25,000 jobs and unlock $5 billion of investments in the UK aerospace industry.

"We expect this to be a great example of British design, engineering and build," said Kamran Iqbal. "Not only will the development of the HERA help the Department of Transport accelerate its 'Jet Zero' carbon reduction goals, it will also help to create much-needed job opportunities in the aerospace, manufacturing, engineering and services industries post-Brexit. This represents the future of both passenger and cargo flights internationally and as an opportunity for investment, it could not be better timed."

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Merlin fliers are helping their Wildcat counterparts get their sea legs by helping to train them aboard HMS Westminster.

Photo Royal Navy / Crown copyright

Merlin fliers are helping their Wildcat counterparts get their sea legs by helping to train them aboard HMS Westminster.

Fresh from submarine hunting in the Denmark Strait on a NATO exercise, the Portsmouth-based warship is helping train the naval aviators of tomorrow from 825 Naval Air Squadron.

825 feeds the front-line Wildcat squadron 815, also based at RNAS Yeovilton in Somerset, with fully-trained air and ground crew so they can deploy on operations around the world, typically with Royal Navy destroyers or frigates such as Westminster.

The extensive training for the fliers includes key sea time – such as deck landings by day and night, winching personnel or loads from the flight deck, and refuelling without landing.

United Airlines Took Industry-Leading Steps to Manage Historic Impact of COVID-19 in Q2

United Airlines announced on Tuesday its second-quarter 2020 financial results, the most difficult financial quarter in its 94-year history, with a net loss of $1.6 billion, and an adjusted net loss¹ of $2.6 billion. Total operating revenues were down 87.1% year-over-year, on an 87.8 percent decrease in capacity year-over-year. The company's total liquidity as of the close of business on Monday, July 20, 2020, was approximately $15.2 billion. United now expects liquidity at the end of the third quarter to be over $18 billion.

Cash burn2 during the second quarter averaged $40 million a day, including $3 million of principal payments and severance expenses. The company currently is forecasting average daily cash burn to be approximately $25 million during the third quarter of 2020 including $6 million of principal repayments and severance expenses.

United believes it did the best job of matching actual capacity to demand among its largest network peers. The company also expects to finish the quarter with the lowest average daily cash burn among large network carriers.  

"I am grateful for the professionalism and dedication of our United team members who persevered through an historic and challenging period to deliver for our customers," said CEO Scott Kirby. "While this unprecedented crisis has been difficult for our team, we expect United produced fewer losses and lower cash burn in the second quarter than any of our large network competitors. We accomplished this by quickly and accurately forecasting the impact that COVID would have on passenger and cargo demand, accurately matching our schedule to that reduced demand, completing the largest debt financing deal in aviation history, and cutting expenses across our business. We believe this quick and aggressive action has positioned United to both survive the COVID crisis and capitalize on consumer demand when it sustainably returns."

Face coverings will now be required for all guests at Hyatt Hotels in the U.S. and Canada

Hyatt Hotels has confirmed that from Monday, July 27 all Hyatt hotels in the U.S. and Canada will require face coverings within indoor public areas, which include meetings and events spaces, restaurants and bars, and fitness centers.  

The hotel giant says it is introducing the new requirements following advice from medical experts and will help reduce the spread of COVID-19.  Some guests may be exempt from this mandate, including but not limited to people with medical conditions, consuming food or beverages in restaurants, and children under the age of two years.

Guests who are not wearing face coverings indoors will be asked to wear one, and at all Hyatt hotels, face masks will be made available to guests who do not have one. Additionally, Hyatt hotels request all guests practice proper social distancing in indoor and outdoor public areas, and social distancing guidelines are prominently placed throughout all hotels.

KLM appoints Eelco van Asch as new EVP Information Services & CIO

KLM announces today that Eelco van Asch (pictured above) will be appointed Executive Vice President Information Services & CIO with effect from 1 September 2020, when he will also be joining the Executive Team. He succeeds Paul Elich, who will be retiring on the same date. Maarten Stienen will succeed Eelco as Senior Vice President Hub Operations on 1 September.

Paul has worked for KLM since 1989 and has held various positions over the course of his 30-year career with the company. He has been a regular member of the Executive Team since 2007 and has served as Executive Vice President Information Services & CIO since 2014. KLM is very grateful to him for his many years of service.

Since 2000, Eelco has held various commercial, operational, and management positions at KLM, Air France KLM, and Cargo. He has served as Senior Vice President Hub Operations since 2016.

Maarten has been Managing Director of KLM Catering Services since September 2018. Before then, he held several different positions at KLM, most recently as VP Industrial Relations and Compensation and Benefits.

KLM would like to wish Eelco and Maarten every success in their new positions. KLM will announce Maarten Stienen's successor as Managing Director KCS at the earliest opportunity.

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