Canadian planemaker Bombardier reported $6.9 billion in revenue in 2022

Bombardier has just released details of its fourth quarter and full-year 2022 financial results as well as detailing its expectations for 2023.  

The Canadian company reported $6.9 billion in revenues, an increase of 14% year-over-year following higher deliveries and a favourable aircraft mix and also a significant contribution from aftermarket services, which grew 22% year-over-year to reach $1.5 billion in 2022.

Bombardier reported an adjusted EBITDA of $930 million, a 45% increase year-over-year and well over the guidance of greater than $825 million. The growing contribution of the Global 7500, cost structure improvements, higher aftermarket contribution and a better aircraft mix were among the key factors in this substantial increase. The company also beat guidance on the full-year reported EBIT, which was at $538 million.

The company made the most of the strong demand and competitive product portfolio and avoided pitfalls related to the pressures on the supply chain to deliver 123 aircraft, 49 of which were delivered in the fourth quarter of 2022. 

Éric Martel, Bombardier’s President and Chief Executive Officer said:  "The 2022 results - are a resoundingly positive culmination of a strong year, and a testament to the team’s effort to execute in the fourth quarter. We exceeded commitments across the board, be it on deliveries, our growing aftermarket business and profitability. We are also proud of the fantastic job our team did on deleveraging, with $1.1 billion dollars of debt retired in 2022 thanks to cash from our balance sheet and operations. This puts us ahead of our plan and gives us the flexibility to be even more proactive and opportunistic going forward."

CDB Aviation delivers two Boeing 737-800 to Italian carrier Neos

The leasing firm CDB Aviation, confirmed this week that it had delivered two Boeing 737-800 aircraft to a new customer, the Milan-based Neos. 

Neos, which operates services from Italy and Europe to the Americas, Asia, and Africa, plans to deploy the two aircraft, configured with 186 single class seats, on intra-European and intercontinental routes.

“We look forward to building a strong working partnership with our newest European customer in Italy, Neos,” commented Paul Boyle, CDB Aviation’s Head of Commercial, EMEA. “These two Boeing aircraft are well suited to serve the carrier’s short- and medium-haul network.”

“We are excited and proud to welcome the second aircraft leased from CDB Aviation into our fleet. These two aircraft are a perfect fit to support our strategic short-haul fleet renewal plan and commercial operations planned for 2023. We thank the CDB Aviation team who has shown a high level of commitment since the negotiation phase, and we hope that this is just the beginning of a long and fruitful collaboration,” commented Marco Brusa, Neos’ Fleet Planning Manager.

“With the accelerating pace of air passenger traffic’s recovery, Neos has the potential to seize on the nascent rebound in air travel and regional tourism,” underscored Peter Goodman, CDB Aviation’s Chief Commercial Officer. “We are very pleased to have collaborated with the Neos team on this transaction as part of the airline’s ongoing fleet upgrade initiative. We look forward to building on our relationship and supporting their ambitious growth trajectory in the future.”

KLM plans to increase frequencies to Greater China from 26 March, 2023

From the start of the Summer schedule 2023 on 26 March, KLM is planning to increase the frequency of flights to Greater China in response to the lifting of travel restrictions by the Chinese government. The planned increase is subject to government approval.

KLM will operate a service three times a week from Amsterdam to Hong Kong. Starting with six non-stop flights to both Beijing and Shanghai, we are planning to increase this to daily services in May. Beijing hereby returns to our network.

The increased number of flights from 26 March, 2023, marks the next step in the resumption of routes from and via Amsterdam to Greater China. The Chinese market is important to the KLM network, because of the level of demand from business travellers.

The planned schedules for the summer schedule are as follows:

Amsterdam - Hong Kong               Tues./Thurs./Sat.

Hong Kong – Amsterdam              Wed./Fri./Sun.

Amsterdam – Beijing                      daily

Beijing – Amsterdam                      daily

Amsterdam – Shanghai                  daily

Shanghai – Amsterdam                 daily      

Detailed flight times, days and fares may be consulted on KLM.com or in the KLM app

All flight schedules mentioned herein are subject to changes in travel restrictions and governmental authorizations.

easyJet launches emergency collection to support UNICEF’s Türkiye and Syria earthquake appeal

The emergency onboard collection will raise vital funds for children and their families affected by the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria

Donations will go directly towards easyJet and UNICEF’s emergency appeal supporting children and their families in the region who need it the most

From Saturday 11th February, easyJet is launching an emergency onboard collection to raise vital funds for UNICEF’s Türkiye and Syria emergency earthquake appeal.

The in-flight collections will take place across easyJet’s entire network from Saturday over the next two weeks, offering more than 2.7 million passengers across 36 countries the opportunity to donate.

UNICEF is particularly concerned for the safety and wellbeing of children who have lost their homes, separated from their families, with no access to food or water supplies and left out in the freezing cold

The child rights organisation is currently working in the region to protect the safety, health and welfare of children

The funds raised from the collections will go directly towards supporting UNICEFs round-the-clock emergency response in the region, to help provide urgent support to the children who have lost their homes, sleeping rough and those who have been separated from their families.

easyJet has partnered with UNICEF for more than a decade and is currently supporting the charity’s latest emergency appeal following a successful Ukraine appeal last year, which raised more than £800,000 for children and their families impacted by the war in Ukraine.

Over the last 10 years easyJet’s customers have raised more than £16m through onboard donations, helping to protect millions of children around the world from disease and keep them safe during emergencies.

Michael Brown, Director of Cabin Services, commented:  “We are deeply saddened to hear about the devasting impact of the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria and our thoughts are with all those affected. We would like to thank our customers in advance for any onboard donations for UNICEF’s emergency appeal and for their generosity and kindness. Their support will help UNICEF and their volunteers to provide a lifeline in the region for the children and families who have been affected.

“We’d also like to thank our fantastic crew who make these collections possible, who are always passionate about going the extra mile to raise money for UNICEF and the vital work they do.”

Jon Sparkes, Chief Executive, UNICEF UK:  “In the wake of the recent and devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria, we are thankful for Partners like easyJet. These are the most powerful earthquakes to hit the region in almost 100 years and came at the worst possible time for vulnerable children and their families.”

“UNICEF and easyJet are committed to ensuring that those affected receive urgent support. By supporting UNICEF’s appeal, easyJet is helping to provide access to emergency supplies.”

“Children face extra risks to their health without supplies of food and clean water and donations from easyJet and its customers will support UNICEF’s work around the clock to protect the health and welfare of children and their families.”

The all-Canadian leisure airline, Jetlines has added Rossen Dimitrov to its Board of Directors, the firm confirmed this week.

The all-Canadian leisure airline, Jetlines has added Rossen Dimitrov to its Board of Directors, the firm confirmed this week. Mr Dimitrov is an experienced senior executive with over 20-years of experience in the airline industry and is presently employed as the Chief Officer Customer Experience at Qatar Airways. As the Chief Officer Customer Experience at Qatar Airways, Rossen is constantly challenging the status quo by building a customer-centric approach to delivering future-proof aircraft, lounge and airport interiors, technology-enabled experiences and new service concepts that are the foundation of the airlines' customer experience.

Earning an internationally recognised reputation for creating bespoke guest experiences and being awarded as number #3 on the Future Travel Experience Airline Passenger Experience Global Power List, Mr. Dimitrov has held various senior executive and advisory roles in Canada and internationally including Chief Operating Officer at Air Italy, Chief Customer Experience Officer Air Italy, and Chief Guest Experience Officer at WestJet, and presently as Chief Officer Customer Experience at Qatar Airways.

“Rossen’s experience and success as a senior executive in airline industry makes him a great addition to strengthen the Canada Jetlines Board of Directors,” stated Eddy Doyle, President & CEO. “We look forward to his leadership and contributions to Canada Jetlines.”

British Airways is sharing the love with its customers this Valentine’s Day with a range of special touches.....

British Airways is sharing the love with its customers this Valentine’s Day with a range of special touches including seasonal desserts, a dedicated ‘Love is in the air’ in-flight entertainment channel and sweet treats in its lounges.

To celebrate the month of love, the airline’s culinary experts have created a bespoke Valentine’s Day afternoon tea for those travelling in First. The indulgent afternoon tea comprises of a range of finger sandwiches, a chocolate orange Battenberg, raspberry tart and a chocolate love heart cookie. To accompany the sweet treats, customers can select from the Warre’s Colheita 2009 Tawny Port or the Sauternes, both carefully selected by the airline’s Master of Wine.  

For those travelling in Club World, the airline has lovingly created a chocolate mousse dessert and a raspberry and rosewater Valentine’s macaroon as part of the afternoon tea in Club Europe. For customers wishing to pair these sweet treats with a tipple, the airline recommends Graham’s Six Grapes Reserve Ruby Port.

To help customers get in the romantic mood this February, British Airways has also launched a dedicated ‘Love is in the air’ in-flight entertainment channel available in every cabin. Customers looking to enjoy a date night for one in the air can settle in and select from a range of romantic classics and bingeworthy boxsets such as Bridget Jones’s Diary, You’ve Got Mail and The Mating Game.

DfT Reach for the Sky Challenge Fund awards the RAeS with funding for Falcon 2

DfT Reach for the Sky Challenge Fund awards the RAeS with funding for Falcon 2

Raising the profile of Inclusive Skies of Tomorrow, through outreach

The Royal Aeronautical Society on 1 February 2023 were announced as one of 11 recipients of the ‘Reach for the Sky Challenge Fund’ by the Department of Transport (DFT) and the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for the Falcon 2 STEM outreach programme.

The Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS) has inspired many generations of aviation, aerospace and space enthusiasts into various careers. The RAeS aims to inspire younger generations through a variety of STEM education and outreach programmes. For many the dream to fly or undertake a career in aviation and engineering are not easy. Promoting an inclusive aviation and aerospace industry of tomorrow, raising awareness of disabilities and accessibility needs is what the RAeS most recent outreach programme Falcon 2 aims to achieve.

The Falcon 2 programme is a STEM outreach challenge for young students aged 6-19 years. The programme provides an opportunity for underrepresented groups, especially students with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, to design, conceptualise and build an accessible mobile flight simulator as well as increasing disability awareness. The aim of Falcon 2 is to create a learning platform for all students to collaborate with their peers to address accessibility issues in the aviation and aerospace industry, paving a way for the future workforce to provide unique solutions to current limitations, all whilst experiencing the wonder of flight.

IATA issues new guidance on transporting mobility aids safely and efficiently

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced new guidance to assist airlines and handling agents to transport mobility aids safely and efficiently and improve the travel experience for passengers with disabilities. 

Providing safe, reliable and dignified transport for passengers with disabilities is a priority for airlines that was reinforced by a unanimously approved Resolution at the 75th IATA Annual General Meeting in 2019. The safe and efficient transport of mobility aids was identified as a key area for improvement by airlines, working with industry stakeholders and disability groups. 

Star Alliance lounge at Schiphol Airport available to use on a pay as you go basis.

Star Alliance Lounge at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport Now Offers Pay-as-you-go Access

Passengers travelling in all cabins on Star Alliance member airlines can now choose to experience the premium lounge before their flight.

The Star Alliance-branded lounge at Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS) airport now permits pay-as-you-go type entry.  Thus, in addition to offering complimentary access to Star Alliance Gold members, and First Class and Business Class passengers, the lounge will now welcome other Star Alliance passengers regardless of membership status or cabin class, for a nominal fee.

This is the fifth among the six Star Alliance-branded lounges to offer paid access, after the Star Alliance lounges in Rome (FCO) Airport, Rio De Janeiro (GIG) Airport, Buenos Aires’ Ezeiza International Airport (EZE), and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

The Star Alliance Amsterdam airport lounge is located airside in Departures Hall 2 after security clearance for the Schengen Area. This makes it ideally positioned for easy access to passengers travelling to or from European destinations within the Schengen Zone. Currently, 14 Star Alliance member airlines operate flights from the Amsterdam airport connecting 20 destinations in 16 countries.

Codeshare deal with Airlink opens up Southern Africa for British Airways passengers....

British Airways has announced a codeshare partnership with Airlink, improving connectivity between the UK, Europe, North America and more than 15 destinations in Southern Africa.

With bases in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban in South Africa, Airlink is a premium regional airline with a wide-reaching network of cities in 14 countries, including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Namibia.

The agreement means British Airways’ customers travelling from or transiting through London will be able to connect to their final destination via Cape Town or Johannesburg on a single ticket.  This will offer more choice and flexibility for those travelling on to one of 18 towns and cities, such as Windhoek in Namibia and Durban in South Africa.

British Airways currently flies twice daily between London Heathrow and Johannesburg with A380 aircraft, twice daily between London Heathrow and Cape Town with B777 and A350 aircraft and three times per week between London Gatwick and Cape Town with B777 aircraft.

Members of British Airways’ loyalty programme, the Executive Club, can earn Avios when flying on Airlink flights on a British Airways’ codeshare journey. Avios is the programme’s currency, which can be used as part-payment towards Reward Flights or upgrades, as well as hotel stays, car hire and more.

OAG Launches Flight Status Alerts.

OAG, the world’s leading provider of travel data and insight, today announced the launch of its new Flight Status Alerts, which delivers an all-new view of immediate flight changes.

Flight Status Alerts directly integrates into OAG’s Flight Info Platform, which already provides a continuous stream of flight schedule changes. Flight Status Data together with Flight Schedules now delivers the broadest possible coverage of flight information to OAG customers which include booking engines, travel and hospitality apps, airline apps, online travel agencies, metasearch, search engines and flight tracking apps.

This powerful combination provides a first-of-its-kind flight window into key schedules and status data – from the moment a flight is scheduled to when luggage hits the baggage belt, and everything in between.

Powered by Microsoft’s Azure Event Hub, the advanced technology delivers speed and scale to notifications on OAG’s Flight Info Platform. It processes an average of 40 updates each second and provides millions of updates in real-time on schedule and status changes.

Key benefits of the flight window include:

Pegasus Airlines Statement following the Earthquake in Kahramanmaraş

Pegasus Airlines Statement following the Earthquake in Kahramanmaraş

We are deeply saddened by the earthquake that occurred in Kahramanmaraş, and which has affected many provinces. May those who lost their lives rest in peace. Our deepest condolences to those who have lost loved ones and we wish a fast recovery to those who have been injured.

We would like to inform you about the activities carried out by Pegasus Airlines within the scope of earthquake solidarity. 

Wideroe to start new Bergen - London Stansted route next month.

A new Widerøe flight linking London Stansted and Bergen will offer travellers from London and the East of England easy access to Norway's famous fjords from 26 March 2023.

Widerøe, the largest regional airline in Scandinavia, will operate a twice-weekly service to the country’s second-largest city using a 110-seat Embraer E190-E2 aircraft.  Flights will depart London Stansted at 18.40 on Fridays and 11.30 on Sundays.

A World Heritage Site located in the west of Norway, Bergen, is renowned for its Bryggen harbour district, one of Europe's oldest ports, and as the gateway to Norwegian fjords.

Simon Gorrighan, London Stansted’s Aviation Director, said:  "We're delighted to welcome Widerøe to London Stansted, adding yet another new destination to our growing network and giving passengers even more choice when travelling from their local airport.

This new route makes a beautiful region of Norway more accessible to UK travellers as well as being an important route for business, especially the energy industry in Norway and the East of England."

Christian Skaug, Widerøe’s Commercial Director, said:   "We are very pleased to be flying to London Stansted from 26th March and being able to maintain London as part of our route map. London Stansted has smooth and convenient connections to the City of London, which we know our customers will appreciate."

Several other new flights will be available from London Stansted this summer, including Belfast, Newquay, Edinburgh, Asturias, Klagenfurt, and Leipzig with Ryanair.

Smiths Detection awarded contract to upgrade New Zealand’s airport checkpoint security

Smiths Detection, a global leader in threat detection and security inspection technologies, has been awarded a contract to supply New Zealand’s Aviation Security Service (AvSec) with advanced checkpoint security technology for its five major international airports; Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Queenstown and Wellington.

.

Smiths Detection will supply 35 HI-SCAN 6040 CTiX computed tomography (CT) X-ray machines. The HI-SCAN 6040 CTiX, which meets international regulatory requirements in both the USA and EU, ensures the highest level of security while improving the experience for both passengers and operators. The carry-on baggage scanner can speed up security screening by allowing passengers to leave laptops and liquids in their cabin baggage, as well as deliver cost savings to airports as it is the most energy-efficient checkpoint CT X-ray on the market. In addition, Smiths Detection will also supply:

The iLane.evo smart automatic tray return system, which delivers a steady flow of trays, removing bottlenecks and providing a seamless checkpoint journey

 

The iCMORE Weapons algorithm that supports security operators by identifying knives, guns, gun parts or ammunition concealed in bags

Each piece of equipment is part of Smiths Detection’s integrated checkpoint and uses leading-edge technology designed to help increase security, improve passenger experience, and enhance operational efficiency.

The Equity Index 2022/23 produced by Lead 5050 places IAG Cargo in second place.

The cargo division of the International Airlines Group, IAG Cargo has taken the second spot in The Equity Index 2022/23 which is produced by Lead 5050, a cross-industry accreditation body, that ranked firms using official data on average salaries, bonuses, and pay at every level. 

The well-respected IAG Cargo was only beaten by the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) after data showed the business had a very small median and mean overall pay gap, with pay more evenly spread throughout all levels of the organisation.

Caroline Andrews, Chief People Officer at IAG Cargo said: "At IAG Cargo, we are committed to fostering an inclusive culture that appreciates the value of diversity and delivers on a great place to work for everyone. As a traditionally male-dominated industry, we are challenging this stereotype and working hard to inspire future female talent, and we are proud to receive recognition for this in the Equity Index 2022/23."

Leanne Linacre, chief executive officer of Lead5050, said: "Whilst the UK is a world leader in ensuring employers provide transparent data on gender-related pay, after years of progress, the gender pay gap for full-time workers has increased.

At the same time, the number of job vacancies rose to a record level last year whilst the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite adversely affecting women who are having to reduce their hours of work because of the cost of childcare.

"Closing the gender pay gap would strengthen the economy as higher wages would encourage more women to either enter the labour market or extend their working hours."