SWISS expands its ‘Green Fares’ Europewide

Following successful trials in Scandinavia, SWISS is expanding its ‘Green Fares’ programme throughout Europe together with the Lufthansa Group. With SWISS’s Green Fares, the offsetting of the carbon dioxide emissions generated by the customer’s air travel is included in the price. The new Green Fare option complements SWISS’s existing range of products in the sustainability field.

Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) is expanding its ‘Green Fares’ to all its European markets with immediate effect, together with the further airlines of the Lufthansa Group. The new fares were introduced in SWISS’s Scandinavian markets on a trial basis in August 2022.

Any SWISS customer choosing a Green Fare for their flight will be automatically offsetting the carbon dioxide emissions generated by their individual air travel – 20% through the use of sustainable aviation fuel or SAF and the remaining 80% through a contribution to quality climate protection projects. The present generation of sustainable aviation fuels generates 80% less carbon dioxide emissions than traditional aviation kerosene. SAF also offers the future prospect of almost carbon-neutral flying.

“With our Green Fares, which we have already successfully trialled in Scandinavia, we are offering our customers a further attractive and simple option for making their air travel more sustainable and, by purchasing SAF, helping to transform the aviation sector,” says SWISS Chief Commercial Officer Tamur Goudarzi Pour. “Working together in this way, we can send strong signals to the market to continue to pursue SAF’s development and production. We will only be able to scale up SAF production to the extent required through a joint drive of this kind from customers, airlines and technology providers alike, and with the appropriate political support.”

Cathay Pacific Group is first to offer intermodal cargo operations with upstream acceptance at Hong Kong International Airport’s Logistics Park Pilot Scheme in the Chinese Mainland

Regular sailings from Dongguan will bring security-screened and palletised air cargo direct to a secured pier at Hong Kong International Airport for export

Cathay Pacific Cargo and the Cathay Pacific Cargo Terminal, operated by Cathay Pacific Services Ltd (CPSL), have become the first carrier and first cargo terminal operator to have cargo shipments accepted in Dongguan and transported to Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) by ship for outbound airfreight, enabling full upstream sea-air intermodal export cargo handling between the Greater Bay Area (GBA) and Hong Kong.

The HKIA Logistics Park in Dongguan developed by the Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) enables shipments to be security screened, built up and accepted as cargo for flights before being loaded on ships that unload in a secured area at HKIA, from where pallets and ULDs can be towed straight to a waiting aircraft. The pilot scheme’s base will migrate to a permanent facility from 2025.

WestJet announces largest network expansion from Edmonton in airline's history with launch of new U.S. routes and enhanced domestic connectivity

WestJet announces largest network expansion from Edmonton in airline's history with launch of new U.S. routes and enhanced domestic connectivity

New transborder routes connecting Edmonton with Minneapolis and Seattle along with increased access across Canada underpins continued expansion of Alberta's global aviation network

WestJet today revealed significantly increased transborder connectivity from Edmonton International Airport, with new non-stop service to Minneapolis, Minnesota and Seattle, Washington as part of its 2023 summer schedule. In addition, WestJet's summer schedule from Edmonton will revitalize the city's domestic connectivity from coast-to-coast with the airline unveiling new routes from Edmonton to London, Moncton, Charlottetown and the resumption of nonstop flights to Ottawa, Montreal, Nanaimo and Penticton.

WestJet's renewed commitment to the city of Edmonton will see the airline's service increase by almost 50 per cent this summer when compared to 2022. Additionally, today's announcement underpins WestJet's strategic ambitions to grow its presence across Western Canada and further strengthen Canada's east-to-west connectivity.

"Since our first day of operation in February 1996 to reaffirming our commitment to the city and region almost exactly 27 years later, Edmonton is an integral part of WestJet's beginnings and our future," said Alexis von Hoensbroech, WestJet Group Chief Executive Officer. "As WestJet continues to own our position as the undisputed home-team carrier of Western Canada, I am grateful to be celebrating our renewed focus on Edmonton alongside our valued partners as we take strides to energize the city's two-way tourism opportunities and bolster its accessibility for business and leisure travellers."

In celebration of its new Edmonton-based investments which mark the single largest expansion of WestJet's network serving Edmonton in history, the airline, in partnership with Edmonton International Airport, was joined by valued partners from across the region at a special event held in the heart of the city's vibrant downtown ICE District.

"WestJet continues to invest in our region by creating important non-stop routes to critical destinations that foster business development and propel the visitor economy," said Myron Keehn, President & CEO, of Edmonton International Airport (YEG). "The more flights we have at YEG, the more opportunities we can offer Edmonton, our region, and Canada's North, and we're thrilled to welcome even more WestJet flights to our airport and showcase the Edmonton Region as an attractive hub for tech, sustainability, trade and tourism."

Rounding out Alberta's growing and thriving aviation hub

WestJet's summer schedule serving Alberta builds on the airline's foundational support of the province that will allow for its leisure, cargo and business economies to thrive like never before. With five new additions and the restart of four destinations to Edmonton's network, WestJet will serve 21 domestic and four transborder destinations from Alberta's capital this summer.

Exeter Airport launches summer season recruitment drive.....

Exeter Airport is creating 25 new jobs

ahead of the busy summer season

Exeter Airport is launching a recruitment drive to attract 25 new staff as it gears up for the busy summer season.

The airport has 26 direct destinations on offer this year with new summer flights to Faro in the Algarve with Ryanair, and year-round connections to the USA including New York, via Dublin, with Aer Lingus.

It is expecting to handle over 450,000 passengers this year and staff are needed to support the busy operation over the coming months.

Exeter Airport has won plaudits for its customer service and was ranked the best airport in the UK in a national league table published last year.

The airport will be holding a recruitment open day on Tuesday 21st February in the main departures terminal from 1.00pm to 6.00pm. Car parking is free and there is no need to book.

There is a wide range of posts on offer including passenger services agent, security officer, ground crew, despatcher, executive lounge assistant, cleaner, and Royal Mail screener.

To help potential new recruits get a flavour of the roles on offer, Exeter Airport has recently published a series of online videos in which its own staff are the stars, explaining why they love the jobs they do.

Stephen Wiltshire, managing director of Exeter Airport, said: “We’re expecting a busy summer ahead with new routes and increased capacity so we’re recruiting for around 25 roles to meet that demand and add to the 260 employees we already have. “The open day is a chance for people to come along and meet the team and find out more about working at their local airport, and we look forward to welcoming potential applicants to the terminal.”

Airport staff enjoy a range of benefits including free on-site parking while on duty, free airport parking when they go on holiday, discounts on Fred Olsen holidays and pension scheme. Full training and uniform are provided and there are great career development opportunities. 

The latest job opportunities at the airport are also posted on the airport’s website with details about how to apply.

Jetstar adds 58,000 seats on Adelaide-Bali route

Jetstar’s newest and most fuel-efficient aircraft, the A321neo LR, will start flying between Adelaide and Bali from 21 July.  

The aircraft has up to 46 more seats on each flight compared to the Airbus A320 which is currently flying the route, boosting capacity by 25 per cent and adding around 58,000 more low fares on the ever-popular route.  

Two of Jetstar’s state-of-the-art, longer-range NEOs will be permanently based in Adelaide from mid-year, flying to Bali as well as domestic destinations to support Jetstar’s ongoing commitment to offering incredible low fares.   

Jetstar’s NEOs 

The A321neo LR offers the best inflight experience of any low-cost carrier — featuring a quieter cabin, wider seats, bigger overhead bins, inflight USB charging and seat-back device holders.  

Jetstar’s A321neo LR fleet is continuing to grow, with the fifth NEO due to touch down early next month from the Airbus factory in Germany. In total, the aircraft manufacturer is delivering 18 NEOs by the middle of 2024.  

Jetstar Group CEO, Stephanie Tully, said flying the NEO will see Jetstar welcome onboard over 250,000 customers a year between Adelaide and Denpasar.   

“Bali has always been Jetstar’s most popular international destination and it’s not hard to see why with its beautiful beaches, delicious food, friendly locals, affordability, and proximity to Australia,” Ms Tully said.   

Iberia is the first airline in the World to obtain all three Aenor Innovation certificates

Iberia is at the forefront of innovation, as demonstrated by its three Aenor certificates.  It is the first company in the tourism sector and the first airline in the world to obtain these three certificates simultaneously. In Spain, only three companies have achieved all three UNE certificates, and one of them is Iberia.

The UNE are certifiable specifications whose objective is to standardise processes, establishing requirements to be fulfilled by organisations according to each type of standard. Iberia has obtained the three UNE innovation certificates that endorse its innovation, surveillance, and intelligence management system, as well as its capacity to carry out the technological transfer of its own intellectual property to a third company.

Iberia Airport Services, at the Forefront of Digitisation and Innovation in the Handling Sector. Obtaining these innovation UNEs is directly linked to the ramp handling tenders called by Aena, in which Iberia Airport Services is bidding for the licences at 41 airports. The technical section of these tenders has been built on three verticals: innovation, sustainability, and people, and Iberia Airport Services has presented a very robust proposal in all three of them.

European travel is at loggerheads with recession fears, according to Bloomberg Intelligence

European travel is at loggerheads with recession fears

Photo by Pascal Meier on Unsplash

European travel companies will be hoping demand continues to remain solid, ensuring strong enough pricing can offset cost inflation and boost margin as capacity and occupancy are restored, with recession trends not yet much in evidence as passengers catch up on experiences missed during the pandemic.

Conroy Gaynor, Consumer Industry Analyst, Bloomberg Intelligence, said: “Budget airlines Ryanair and EasyJet have upbeat bookings, but consumers trading down could soften the yields of legacy rivals due to report 4Q earnings and issue outlooks. Full-service carriers rely on long-haul travel, with Lufthansa among those benefitting from market power on some routes. The price of jet fuel is 28% lower since June but still up 45% vs 2019 and strike disruption and salary increases remain 2023 headwinds. Some hotel chains, including Accor, have been raising room rates for higher energy and wage bills.”

 

European legacy airlines’ share price outperformance has generally improved, along with earnings expectations, since the last reporting season. Pent-up demand remains robust and macroeconomic headwinds have eased, including those related to energy and currency. IAG and Lufthansa benefit from Trans-Atlantic flights and some Asian reopening prospects, but Air France-KLM’s operational recovery is overshadowed by concerns at Amsterdam Schiphol airport and balance sheet complications.

 

IAG benefits as travellers splash out on long haul

Emirates celebrates 10 years in Poland.

           Emirates, the world's largest international airline, celebrates the tenth anniversary of its first commercial flight operation in Poland. Since the inaugural flight in February 2013, the airline has carried more than 1.6 million passengers on the service across more than 6,300 flights from Dubai to Warsaw in both directions. The carrier offers Polish passengers a daily direct flight operated by a Boeing 777-300ER wide-body aircraft.

This year we are celebrating Emirates’ anniversary in Poland, which is an exceptional opportunity to summarize the past decade as we look ahead to 2023 with greater optimism. We are delighted that we have been operating flights on the Dubai-Warsaw route for the past ten years. Poland consistently remains a very important market for us, and we particularly value cooperation with partners that contribute to exceptional service for our clients and support the domestic development of trade and tourism. The past decade is motivation for us to continue on the path of providing the best quality services and maintaining the highest standards – said Maciej Pyrka, Country Manager of Emirates in Poland.

Over the years, Emirates flights to Warsaw have created new opportunities for business, trade and tourism and strengthened the ties between the United Arab Emirates and Poland. The Emirates Group employs more than 600 Poles, including cabin crew, pilots and employees in other business areas across the Group. Emirates offers candidates exceptional career opportunities, the chance to gain world-class expertise at the airline's state-of-the-art training center in Dubai, including an excellent training facility and a wide range of development programs.

S&P downgrades SriLankan Airlines bond after default

Photo by Fasyah Halim on Unsplash

              Ratings agency S&P Global on Monday cut its long-term issue rating on state-owned SriLankan Airlines' foreign currency-denominated bond after the airline was unable to meet an interest payment and defaulted on a paper.

"We lowered the issue ratings on the SLA 2024 bond to 'D' from 'CC' because both the issuer and government of Sri Lanka, as guarantor, missed a coupon payment of about US$6.1 million," the ratings agency said in a statement on Monday.

SriLankan Airlines defaulted on a $175 million bond as it was unable to meet a $6 million interest payment, its chairperson told Reuters on Thursday.

S&P affirmed the other ratings on Sri Lanka and said that the outlook on the country's long-term local currency rating is negative.

Reporting by Akriti Sharma in Bengaluru

flynas now offers electronic stopover visa service

flynas, the Saudi air carrier and the leading low-cost airline in the Middle East, announced that its passengers can apply for an electronic Stopover Visa through its website. The "Stopover Visa" is issued after purchasing the airline ticket, and the validity of the visa extends to three months and the stay in the Kingdom up to 4 days.

The visa application will be passed automatically to the unified national visa platform at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to process and issue the digital visa immediately and send it to the beneficiary via e-mail.

Expecting that the new service will contribute to increasing the visitors to the Kingdom, including Umrah and Pilgrim visitors, tourists, and businessmen, Bandar Almohanna, CEO and Managing Director of flynas, said, “the Saudi Vision 2030 has laid the foundations for cooperation among the regulatory and executive sectors on one hand, and with the private sector on the other hand, to serve the Kingdom’s goals in all sectors. Today, we see a practical application of this integration and cooperation by enabling the national carriers to facilitate a request for issuing a Stopover visa, which facilitates procedures of obtaining a Stopover visa for whoever wishes to visit the Kingdom”.

Almohanna stressed that this service will contribute to strengthening the Kingdom's position as a global hub for travel and business by facilitating quick business visits, making the Kingdom a point of contact between countries and continents. He indicated that the new service comes in line with the civil aviation strategy to reach 330 million passengers and link the Kingdom's cities with 250 global destinations and 100 million tourists annually.

Thousands of tourists are expected to benefit from the Stopover visa to attend the various cultural and entertainment events in the Kingdom throughout the year. Additionally, the 4-day visa can also be used to perform Umrah in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and visit the Prophet’s Mosque in Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah. Moreover, business people can benefit from the Stopover visa to enter the Kingdom for quick business trips.

Wizz Air to offer new Barcelona- Tel Aviv route.

Wizz Air to offer new Barcelona- Tel Aviv route - flying four times a week with an Airbus A321 NEO aircraft seating 239 seats.

The Barcelona Air Routes Development Committee (BARDC) within its Strategic Plan 2021-2024, has as its main objective the recovery of routes/companies that operated before the pandemic, increase capacity in some existing destinations with high demand but low supply.

Israel has been among the countries with the highest demand for many years and, even with the main route, Tel Aviv, amply covered, the demand exceeds the existing capacity.

The airline, which has started its operation back in 2004 in Barcelona, in the very year when it started its operation is now flying to Tel Aviv as well, making it its 20 destination being offered from the capital of Catalunya.

Tel Aviv is the Israeli NONSTOP CITY, offering a combination of culture, history, entertainment, strong High-tech ecosystem and great beaches, young and old, tourists and locals, Jews, Muslims and Christians. In Tel Aviv you can find an excellent culinary scene, as well as cafes, bars and clubs, historical sites, and impressive museums.

It is also recommended to go to the southern part - Jaffa - and enjoy 3500 years of history on one hand, and modern entertainment places on the other. All of these of course in front of the beautiful beach where you can find young surfers and old fishermen. In Jaffa you can see the magic of combining different religions and people from different backgrounds, living side by side.

Wizz Air will offer the route Barcelona- Tel Aviv, and v.v., throughout the year, with 4 weekly frequencies on an Airbus A321 NEO aircraft, which offers a capacity of 239 seats.

The new Airbus A321neo incorporates the latest technologies in aviation and offers significant environmental benefits, with a nearly 50% reduction in noise footprint, a 20% reduction in fuel consumption and 50% reduction in nitrogen oxide emissions compared to the previous model. Wizz Air is the biggest operator of the Airbus A321neo in Europe and has one of the largest standalone order book globally of over 300 aircraft of this type, which will help the airline reach its sustainability targets.

Vietnam Airlines And Singapore Airlines strengthen commercial cooperation

Vietnam Airlines And Singapore Airlines 

strengthen commercial cooperation

 

               Vietnam Airlines and Singapore Airlines (SIA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen the commercial collaboration between the two airlines.

The carriers will initially explore opportunities for codeshare arrangements to facilitate better connectivity between Vietnam and Singapore. This could potentially be expanded to include other destinations that SIA serves. The two airlines will also explore other areas of commercial cooperation that could offer more value and options to their customers.

Mr Pham Minh Chinh, Prime Minister, Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and Dr Tan See Leng, Minister for Manpower and Second Minister for Trade and Industry, Singapore, witnessed the exchange of the signed MoU during the Vietnam-Singapore Business Forum on 10 February 2023.

Emirates launches humanitarian airbridge to help in Turkey and Syria earthquakes relief efforts

In the wake of the devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, Emirates is setting up an airbridge with the International Humanitarian City (IHC), to transport urgent relief supplies, medical items and equipment to support on-ground aid efforts and search and rescue activities in both countries. The first shipments are due to go out today on EK 121 and EK 117, consisting of high thermal blankets and family tents from UNHCR, followed by World Health Organisation (WHO) and World Food Programme (WFP) relief cargo of medical kits and shelter items, coordinated by the IHC in Dubai. 

In the coming days, more consignments of blankets, tents, shelter kits, flashlights, water distribution ramps and trauma and emergency health kits will be transported on Emirates.

Emirates SkyCargo plans to dedicate cargo space for around 100 tonnes of humanitarian relief goods over the course of the next two weeks across its daily flight operations to Istanbul. The critical emergency supplies carried on Emirates will then be delivered by local organisations to affected areas in southern Turkey and northern Syria, supporting on-ground responders and providing much-needed aid to the hundreds of thousands of people impacted by the earthquakes. 

HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Emirates’ Chairman and Chief Executive, said: “We stand with the Turkish and Syrian people and are working with experts like the International Humanitarian City to help provide urgent relief to those affected and displaced by the earthquakes, as well as support the complex recovery efforts on the ground. Emirates has extensive experience in supporting humanitarian relief efforts, and through its three daily flights to Istanbul will offer regular and consistent widebody capacity for relief items and medical supplies. Emirates also supports the UAE’s ongoing humanitarian efforts to support Turkey and Syria, and Dubai’s unique position as the world’s largest international aid logistics hub means that we can efficiently reach disaster-stricken areas and the most vulnerable people as quickly as possible.”

flynas celebrates opening of Doha office

flynas, the Saudi air carrier and the leading low-cost airline in the Middle East celebrated the opening of its office in Doha on January 30, 2023, after operating daily flights between Saudi Arabia and Qatar, to be the first low-cost operator linking the two brotherly countries.

flynas held a press conference and a dinner party in Doha, in the presence of the Ambassador of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to Qatar, HH Prince Mansour bin Khalid bin Farhan Al-Saud, and the officials of the Qatar Tourism, and the General Authority of Civil Aviation in Qatar.

flynas is the first low-cost carrier linking the Kingdom and Qatar with daily flights to Doha from Riyadh and Jeddah, within the expansion strategy it launched early last year under the slogan "We Connect the World to the Kingdom", and in line with the objectives of the Saudi civil aviation strategy to reach 330 million passengers and increase the international destinations connected with the Kingdom to more than 250 destinations by 2030.

The Saudi carrier started last November operating up to 6 daily flights from King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah to Doha, providing its guests with multiple options with the launch of the FIFA World Cup 2022 hosted by Qatar.

Canada Jetlines announces another loan

Canada Jetlines, the fledgling budget airline of Canada has announced it has bagged itself another loan. Last week the firm said it has entered into a non-convertible term Loan Agreement for a $1,500,000 loan from Roosheila Group which is a holding company for Reg Christian, a director of the Company and travel industry veteran. 

The terms of the Loan include:

The Loan will be advanced in a single tranche of $1,500,000 (“First Tranche”) following Neo Exchange Inc. approval;

the Loan bears interest at the rate of 7.95% per annum and has a maturity date of 60 months from the date of advance;

principal and interest amounts are payable in equal monthly installments for the term of the Loan plus an additional annual 10% principal repayment;

no shares are issuable in connection with the Loan;

the Lender is granted a Board nomination right to nominate an independent director for the term of the Loan;

the Borrower shall pay the document closing costs of the Lender; and

the Loan is secured with a subordinate security interest against the Company’s credit card processor holdback funds.

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering and the Loan for aircraft acquisition, general corporate and working capital purposes.

This news release does not constitute an offer of securities for sale in the United States. The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and such securities may not be offered or sold within the United States absent U.S. registration or an applicable exemption from U.S. registration requirements.

Canada Jetlines is a leisure-focused air carrier, which will utilize a growing fleet of Airbus 320 aircraft to provide Canadians with value vacation choices and convenient travel options. Canada Jetlines will provide exciting vacation packages to iconic Canadian destinations and beyond via strong partnerships with airports, CVB’s, tourism entities, hotels, hospitality brands, and attractions. With a projected growth of 15 aircraft by 2025, Canada Jetlines aims to offer the best-in-class operating economics, customer comfort and fly-by-wire technology, providing an elevated guest-centric experience from the first touchpoint.