easyJet lands industry leading A- rating from CDP in global climate impact assessment

easyJet has been awarded an industry-leading rating of A- by CDP – recognition for the airline’s continued work in optimising the carbon efficiency of its operations, as well as its commitment to reaching net zero by 2050.

CDP, formerly known as the Climate Disclosure Project, is a not-for-profit charity that runs the global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities, states and regions. It is commonly regarded as the gold standard of environmental reporting, one that gathers the most comprehensive dataset on corporate climate action in the world.

easyJet is one of the few airlines in the world to have achieved a rating of A- (having previously been graded B), boosting its score through the quality of its carbon disclosure as well as management of climate change risk.

Jane Ashton, Sustainability Director at easyJet said:  “We are delighted to have been awarded an A- rating by CDP, a true testament to the hard work we are all doing at easyJet to ensure that our SBTi-validated 2035 carbon reduction target is met and our aim to be net-zero by 2050 is realised.

Decarbonising aviation continues to be a major undertaking and focus which is why easyJet continues to take vital steps not only to safeguard the benefits the sector provides but also ensure that we do all that we can to minimise our impact.”

Making continued improvements into 2024:

easyJet continues to make strategic improvements to its fleet every day and has already made a number of ground-breaking changes in the last year.

For example, since the last CDP reporting period, the airline completed the rollout of its Descent Profile Optimisation (DPO) software, which reduces the amount of fuel used during landing by plotting a more fuel-efficient descent on all aircraft – making an estimated saving of at least 50kg of fuel per flight.

Additionally, a fifth of easyJet’s fleet is now made up of A320neo family aircraft – which are 13% more fuel-efficient and up to 50% quieter during take-off, landing and taxing thanks to its state-of-the-art CFM LEAP-1A engines that meet ICAO’s Chapter 14 regulations.

easyJet was awarded the Net Zero Strategy of the Year by Business Green in 2023 which commended the airline for the breadth, detail and ambition that it outlined in its net-zero roadmap.

The airline, which is focusing on new technologies as a means to decarbonise and meet its goals, continues to collaborate with companies including Airbus, Rolls-Royce, Cranfield Aerospace and GKN Aerospace to support the development of zero emissions hydrogen-powered aircraft.

easyJet is also a founding member of the Hydrogen in Aviation Alliance – a coalition of diverse aviation and hydrogen stakeholders launched to develop and catalyse the infrastructure and policy needed to support hydrogen aircraft operations.   

RAF Globemaster delivers Army attack helicopters to the Arctic

A Royal Air Force C-17 Globemaster recently delivered Army Air Corps Apache helicopters to Royal Norwegian Air Force Base Bardufoss.

Joint Helicopter Command personnel were hopeful that they could successfully train and complete environmental qualifications in the Arctic Winter and to learn how to live and operate in one of the world’s most hostile environments where temperatures can fall to -30°C.

The survival and operational training ensure that UK military personnel can operate globally to protect the UK’s interests, particularly alongside NATO and partner Nations. Cooperation and interoperability enable the projection of lethal force and also an ability to sustain deployments.

Once arctic training is complete, the Joint Helicopter Force’s Apache will be staying on in Norway to take part in another exercise involving 20,000 personnel from 14 countries.

Bumper January for Norwegian..........1,138,621 passengers travel with the airline

In January, the European budget carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle carried 1,138,621 passengers, securing a load factor of 83.1%.  The capacity (ASK) was 1,820 million seat kilometres, down 3 percent from the same period last year. Actual passenger traffic (RPK) was 1,512 million seat kilometres. In January, Norwegian operated an average of 63 aircraft with a regularity, meaning the share of scheduled flights taking place, of 99.0 percent. Punctuality was affected by the severe winter weather and the share of flights departing within 15 minutes of scheduled time was 76.7 percent.

“Our operations during the winter season are affected by seasonal weather and particular winter storms. I would like to give thanks to the tireless effort of our colleagues, who have ensured that our disruptions are kept to a minimum, to the benefit of our many customers,” said Geir Karlsen, CEO of Norwegian.

Meanwhile, Norwegian's recent purchase - Widerøe welcomed 246,326 passengers during the month, taking the Norwegian Group's total number of passengers to 1,384,947.  

"For the first time, our traffic figures include those of Widerøe, and in total, Norwegian and Widerøe had 1.4 million passengers on board in the first month of the year. For Norwegian, it is very positive that the load factor increased by five percentage points compared to January last year. Demand to beach destinations continues to perform in the high-end of our expectations with many of our customers opting for some warmer Mediterranean weather," said Geir Karlsen, CEO of Norwegian.

For 2024, Norwegian has hedged jet fuel corresponding to approximately 50% of projected consumption at levels close to current forward prices.

In December, the Norwegian Competition Authority approved Norwegian’s acquisition of Widerøe, and the transaction was completed 12 January. Work has already begun to ensure that organisations deliver on shared goals with the aim of delivering better overall customer offerings with seamless travel and increased travel options. One example involves the changing of Norwegian’s ground handling provider to Widerøe Ground Handling, which took effect from 1 February at many airports across Norway.

The above report on the monthly traffic numbers now also includes numbers from Widerøe which is attached on page two. Widerøe increased its production in January with 4 percent compared with the same period last year, while the number of passengers increased with 8 percent. The load factor was up 3 percentage points.

Many industry commentators are wondering what Norwegian's long-term strategy after the company recently invested in Norsk e-Fuel, which will establish what could be the world's first large-scale production facility for electrofuel. The fossil-free jet fuel will be produced at a plant in Mosjøen in Nordland. The partnership will give Norwegian early access to essential fossil-free aviation fuels.

Marty St. George Named President of JetBlue

JetBlue has confirmed the appointment of Marty St. George as the company’s next president, effective February 26, 2024. He will report to Joanna Geraghty, JetBlue’s current president and incoming chief executive officer.

Since 2020, St. George has served as chief commercial officer at LATAM Airlines Group, Latin America’s largest airline holding company, in Santiago, Chile. Prior to joining LATAM, he operated an airline strategy consulting practice, where he served airline and travel industry clients, including a role as interim Chief Commercial Officer at Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA. He previously served as a member of JetBlue’s leadership team from 2006-2019.

Over the span of 13 years with JetBlue – beginning as vice president, planning, later senior vice president marketing and commercial, and ultimately executive vice president and chief commercial officer – St. George was a key architect of the carrier’s focus city strategy, led its successful entry into airline partnerships, and oversaw its distinctive brand and innovative product strategy. Prior to JetBlue, he held marketing and network planning leadership roles over nearly two decades at United and US Airways.

In his new role as president, St. George will lead JetBlue’s commercial functions – including marketing, loyalty, network planning, airline partnerships, sales and revenue management – along with customer support, enterprise and operational planning, and corporate communications. He’ll also have oversight of JetBlue Travel Products (JTP), an important growth area for the company, which will continue to be led day-to-day by its president, Andres Barry.

Bristow takes major step towards the next generation of coast guard search and rescue aviation services in Ireland

Bristow Ireland Limited, a subsidiary of Bristow Group Inc, the leading global provider of innovative and sustainable vertical flight solutions, has received its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), marking a significant step towards the next generation of Coast Guard search and rescue aviation services in Ireland.

"Gaining an AOC is a fundamental requirement to provide search and rescue in Ireland," said Neil Ebberson, Bristow Director of Government Services. "It was awarded after the successful completion of a lengthy application and assessment process run by the IAA and ensures the highest standards of professionalism and safety are met in the country."

To gain AOC approval, Bristow Ireland was required to demonstrate that its AW189 aircraft will meet the Irish regulator's requirements for safe and compliant operations; submit detailed documentation to show that it can safely manage continued airworthiness; demonstrate that it can safely operate the AW189 to the required standards; and carry out a proving flight with the AW189 in Ireland.

Ebberson added: "With more than 75+ years of global experience to draw on, our Ireland team demonstrated that we have the experience, skills, and capabilities to operate to the standards the IAA demands for an Air Operator Certificate.

"The next phases of preparation for this critical new service are well in hand. TOEXCEL Ireland Limited - who are our fixed-wing partners - are working in parallel for the award of a fixed-wing AOC, which will in turn enable us to deliver the capability enhancements. We are looking forward to reporting more progress as we move towards the initial transition to the new service in late 2024."

Bristow now has Air Operating Certificates covering 11 jurisdictions.

NAV CANADA and Indra to deploy leading air traffic management platforms

NAV CANADA and Indra have reached a milestone agreement that will contribute to the evolution of Canada's air traffic management systems the firms announced this week. 

The first phase of the agreement will support the deployment of a state-of-the-art flight data processing system (FDPS) and an air traffic flow management system (iACM) for complex airspaces within NAV CANADA's network centre.

In line with NAV CANADA's strategic direction, this partnership represents a tangible step towards Trajectory-Based Operations (TBO) in Canada, shifting air traffic management towards a strategic approach that takes a more comprehensive picture of a flight from take-off to landing. This new technology can calculate routes with great accuracy and predict the evolution of air traffic over an extended horizon, supporting greater planning and coordination.

These systems will integrate information processing from Canada's area control centres, automatically notifying the system of any changes in flight plans between each of their respective airspace. This will enable better flexibility resulting in the improvement of traffic flow within Canadian airspace and across the rest of the network. The result will be more efficient  routings for aircraft operators, reduced fuel consumption and associated greenhouse gas emissions while providing greater operational resiliency to disruptions and meeting the capacity requirements of a growing sector.

These advancements, which continue to keep safety at the forefront, reflect the vision for the future of air traffic management defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)'s Aviation System Block Upgrades (ASBU), which promote technologies that enable greater collaboration and operational predictability in global aviation.

This agreement also reinforces the collaboration between NAV CANADA, UK's NATS and Norway's Avinor, which also have Indra as a strategic technology partner. Both companies welcomed this important agreement.

The technology will be deployed over a ten-year horizon across NAV CANADA's facilities.

WestJet's Expansive Summer 2024 Schedule

Underpinning its commitment to Canadians, WestJet increases domestic, leisure and international travel opportunities by 15 per cent year-over-year

WestJet has announced a significant increase in coast-to-coast travel options for Canadians with the initial release of its summer 2024 schedule. The airline is set to introduce 10 new routes and return or extend 16 routes that will continue to connect Canadians as part of its robust growth strategy. Publication of WestJet's full summer schedule will be completed over the coming week.

"Our 2024 summer schedule continues to deliver on our commitment to make critical investments across Canada, providing more affordable options for Canadians and international visitors to connect with the people and places that matter the most," said John Weatherill, WestJet Group Executive Vice-President and Chief Commercial Officer. "This summer will see the return of seasonal, leisure-focused flying, to connect Eastern and Western Canada, and substantial growth in service to sun destinations, further cementing our position as Canada's leading leisure airline. At our global hub in Calgary and cities across the country, WestJet's schedule supports Canada's visitor economy with more than 75,000 seats arriving each week from Europe, Asia and the United States."

Connecting Canadians Across the Country

In addition to the continued expansion of WestJet's network with 15 new routes to and from Western Canada, this summer Eastern Canada will benefit from 11 new routes including: 

• New direct seasonal service between Calgary and Deer Lake, Nfld.
• The return of seasonal non-stop service between Toronto and Deer Lake, Nfld., Moncton, N.B., Charlottetown, P.E.I., and Victoria, B.C.
• Return of transatlantic flying between Halifax and Dublin, Edinburgh and London, and St. John's and London (Gatwick)
• 44 per cent growth in Halifax, N.S. and 60 per cent growth in St. John's, Nfld. compared to Summer 2023

Leading in Leisure

As Canada's top choice for leisure travel, the WestJet Group will offer more capacity than any other airline for Canadians looking to fly to popular sun destinations this summer. Highlights include:

• 57 per cent growth in Latin and Caribbean routes over summer 2023
• 56 per cent increase in capacity from Toronto to sun destinations
• More flights between Hawaii and Canada than any other airline, and the only airline providing year-round service between Canada and Maui-Kahului, from both Calgary and Vancouver

Transborder Growth and Expanded Access to Delta hubs

Providing increased opportunities for two-way travel between Canada and the United States, WestJet will grow transborder seat capacity by 26 per cent this summer, including 70 per cent growth to Delta hubs.

Royal Air Force Typhoons arrive in Saudi Arabia for large scale multinational air exercise

RAF Coningsby based Typhoons from XI (Fighter) Squadron have arrived in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to join this year’s Spears of Victory exercise being held at the King Abdulaziz Air Base. 

Personnel from across the RAF have deployed on this large scale, Saudi hosted multinational air warfare training exercise. The RAF are joining participants from several branches of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s military, as well as contingents from Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, France, Greece, Pakistan, and the US.

Squadron Leader Hodgkinson, UK Detachment Commander said:  “Spears of Victory 24 is an extremely important training opportunity for our force enablers to work alongside strategic partners in the region to demonstrate the Combat Air capacity of our highly trained pilots and engineers in the Typhoon Force. Now, as much as never before, we strive for excellence in air dominance – collaborating with allies that have come together in a demonstration of their commitment to stability in the Broader Middle East."

In addition to the RAF Typhoons taking part in this year’s exercise, the Royal Saudi Air Force will be flying their Typhoons, Tornados and F-15s.  F-16s are taking part from Bahrain, Greece, and the UAE.  The Saudi F-15s will be joined by others from Qatar.  The French Air and Space detachment will be contributing Rafales, and the Pakistan Air Force will be flying their JF-17s. The Royal Air Force of Oman will also be flying Typhoons.

Hodgkinson adds: "The welcome at King Abdulaziz Air Base and the support in country has been fantastic and the facilities here will allow us to really make the most of this opportunity. We look forward to a busy deployment, operating at a high tempo alongside our international colleagues; I am confident the whole detachment will learn a great deal from the Exercise."

The United States Detachment is not flying this year, but instead has committed a mixed unit of National Guardsmen to provide a range of ground support activities, including Fire Fighters Security, and logisticians to support the exercise.

PLAY Passenger numbers grew by 61% in January

The Icelandic budget carrier, PLAY Airlines carried 99,704 passengers in January 2024, the company confirmed this week. That is up 61% increase from January 2023 when PLAY carried 61,798 passengers. The load factor in January 2024 was 75% compared to 77% in January 2023. 

The airline has reported the demand for flights to Iceland had been affected negatively in the short term by global news coverage of the seismic activity in the Reykjanes Peninsula in November 2023, some of which the carrier claims was inaccurate. Forward bookings are looking good and thus PLAY believes the load factor will increase soon.  Ancillary Yield is also growing, with January experiencing a notable 21% increase year on year.

Of all passengers travelling with PLAY in January 2024, 27.1% were travelling from Iceland, 31.1% were travelling to Iceland and 41.8% were connecting passengers. PLAY’s on-time performance in January was 78.1%, negatively impacted by adverse weather conditions in Iceland.

New destination, the launch of Stopover and Europe’s youngest fleet

In January, PLAY announced flights to Split in Croatia. PLAY’s first flight to Split will be on May 28 and flights will be operated once a week until October. This will be the first time that scheduled flights are operated between Iceland and Split and this is also PLAY’s first destination in Croatia. PLAY’s route network will include around 40 destinations in 2024. 

In late January, it was announced that passengers can now book themselves an up to 10-day Stopover in Iceland with no additional cost. PLAY already offers competitive prices in all its markets and this new feature gives passengers even more reason to choose PLAY. This makes the airline more competitive and will further exploit PLAY’s strategic connecting flights between North America and Europe with Iceland as a hub in the middle.

To compete more fully with Icelandair, PLAY's new stopovers will take advantage of the airline’s hub-and-spoke model, with all flights connecting through Iceland. PLAY’s stopovers will enable passengers to stay up to 10 days in Iceland to experience the island’s incredible natural wonders including waterfalls, geysers, hot springs, glaciers and Northern lights. 

“PLAY has taken advantage of Iceland’s location near Europe to bring travellers convenient flights and affordable fares, and now the stopover feature brings even more benefits to our passengers. Rather than having a few hours' layover in Iceland, travellers can make a stop at this bucket-list destination for an extra day or week to experience everything our home country has to offer. Long stayovers are a win-win for both us and our passengers to enable exploration at a low price,” said PLAY CEO Birgir Jónsson.

Top level changes at Frontier Airlines.....

Frontier Airlines has made some key changes in its executive leadership team, the carrier confirmed this week. Howard Diamond has been promoted to Executive Vice President, Legal and Corporate Affairs; Steve Schuller has been named Senior Vice President, Human Resources; and Jeffrey Moore has been promoted to Vice President, Technical Operations.

Diamond and Schuller’s promotions became effective February 1, 2024 and Moore’s promotion becomes effective March 15, 2024. Diamond and Schuller report to Frontier CEO Barry Biffle. Moore reports to Senior Vice President of Operations Trevor Stedke.

Diamond has served as the company’s Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary since 2014. Prior to that he served as Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Thales USA, Inc., as well as Chief Counsel at BAE Systems Land and Armaments, f/k/a United Defense, LP. He began his legal career as an officer in the U.S. Army JAG Corps, after which he served as a litigation associate at the law firm Sherman & Howard. Diamond holds a B.A. from Wesleyan University and a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Schuller joined Frontier in September 2018 as Vice President, Human Resources. He has more than 30 years of HR expertise, having worked in leadership roles for a variety of companies from entrepreneurial start-ups to global corporations, including Wyndham Worldwide and JC Penney. Prior to joining Frontier, Schuller served as Vice President of Talent and Chief Learning Officer for Catapult Health, a national healthcare company focused on worksite preventative health. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University.

U.S. budget carrier Sun Country Airlines reports financial results for its fourth quarter and full year 2023

Sun Country Airlines reported financial results for its fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2023, earlier this month.  The budget airline based in Minneapolis recorded total revenues of  $245.5 million, the highest fourth quarter on record.

“We are excited that Sun Country’s uniquely diversified business model, and the efforts of our outstanding employees, produced another strong quarter, with record revenue(1), a 7.0% GAAP operating income margin and a 7.4% adjusted operating income margin(2),” said Jude Bricker, Chief Executive Officer of Sun Country. “Additionally, we continue to maintain solid cost control with fourth quarter adjusted CASM(3) falling by 2.2% versus fourth quarter 2022. Results for the full year were equally impressive. Full-year 2023 revenue exceeded $1 billion for the first time, our GAAP operating income margin was 12.1%, and our adjusted operating income margin of 13.0%(2) was our highest on record(1). GAAP net income for the year was $72.2 million and we grew total year-over-year block hours by 9.8% and total revenue by 17.3%. We believe our unique business model produces superior results across operating environments and 2023 again proved that out. We could not have achieved these record results without the hard work of our dedicated employees. We are looking forward to another successful year in 2024.”

Q4 2023 total revenue of $245.5 million, highest fourth quarter on record(1)

Q4 2023 GAAP diluted EPS of $0.10 and operating income margin of 7.0%

Q4 2023 Adjusted diluted EPS of $0.12(2) and adjusted operating income margin of 7.4%(2)

FY 2023 total revenue of $1.05 billion, highest full year on record(1)

FY 2023 GAAP diluted EPS of $1.23 and operating income margin of 12.1%

FY 2023 Adjusted diluted EPS of $1.37(2) and adjusted operating income margin of 13.0%(2), highest full year on record(1)

For the quarter ended December 31, 2023, Sun Country reported Income Before Income Tax of $7.7 million and Net Income of $5.6 million, on $245.5 million of revenue. Adjusted Income Before Income Tax for the quarter was $9.3 million(2). GAAP Operating Income during the quarter was $17.1 million, producing an Operating Income Margin of 7.0%, while Adjusted Operating Income was $18.3 million(2), resulting in an Adjusted Operating Income Margin of 7.4%(2).

“We had a very successful 2023,” said Dave Davis, President and Chief Financial Officer. “Our full year GAAP pre-tax margin was 9.0% and we produced an adjusted pre-tax margin of 9.9%(2), which we expect to be the best, or among the best in the industry. Our cost performance improved throughout the year as our fourth quarter adjusted CASM(3) of 7.3 cents was 2.2% lower than a year ago. Additionally, our 2023 GAAP diluted EPS was $1.23, our adjusted diluted EPS was $1.37(2) and we generated a record(1) 21.4% adjusted EBITDA margin(2) for the full year. These positive results allowed us to return cash to shareholders through share repurchases, which in 2023 totaled 4.2 million shares for $68.6 million. Total Capex spending in 2023 was $218.2 million, of which approximately $200 million was for additional aircraft. We expect these aircraft to provide almost all of the passenger lift we need through 2025, resulting in much lower capex levels in 2024.”

Notable Highlights

Strengthened ties with our Minnesota community by becoming the Official Airline of the University of Minnesota Gopher Athletics

Acquired one 737-800 which will remain on lease to Fly Dubai until the fourth quarter 2024. Expected to acquire another 737-800 by the end of February 2024 which will also remain on lease to Fly Dubai.

The Company repurchased 0.9 million shares at an average price of $14.93 during the fourth quarter. At the end of the year, $11.5 million remained under the current repurchase authorization.

Say hello to MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport.......

Say goodbye to Montreal Saint-Hubert Airport 

Say hello to MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport.

Henceforth, the airport located in Saint-Hubert since 1927 will be known as MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport. The abbreviation MET will be used to enhance brand recognition and accessibility. The green line incorporated into its logo symbolizes the movement of the Saint Lawrence River, reflecting connectivity, mobility, and the dynamism of its new purpose. Its electric green colour builds upon the previously used forest green, evolving the visual identity towards novelty and vibrancy, highlighting the organization's commitment to the development of green and innovative technologies.

"With this substantial development, we are changing the very nature of the airport. Our ambition is to revolutionize the airport model, making it a source of collective pride and inspiring the world to view air transport differently. This is what the new identity of the airport represents," stated Mr. Yanic Roy, CEO of MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport. Upon the opening of the new terminal in the summer of 2025, airlines will serve the entire country. Consequently, MET will be propelled among the largest airports in Canada. In doing so, Montreal will join the trend of major world metropolises that benefit from multiple interconnected airports to meet their air transport needs. This complementarity is central to the development of MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport and is expressed through four key commitments:

Revolutionize the airport model by initiating and adopting eco-friendly and cutting-edge practices.

Be a citizen airport serving the people and communities.

Contribute to making Montreal a leading airport destination.

Improve the connection of people in Quebec with the rest of the world.

More than just a name change, the new identity of MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport is the promise of an innovative and different airport experience that listens to communities and industry stakeholders, initiates the latest advancements to build a leading, innovative, and sustainable airport model.

"We are not seeking growth at any cost. We are developing an airport in harmony with its environment, in consultation with communities, and utilizing its facilities to promote innovation and green transition. With MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport, we aim to surpass the traditional model of air transport and contribute more to society," specified Mr. Yanic Roy, President and CEO of the airport.

It is worth recalling that on February 27, 2023, the airport announced its partnership with Porter Airlines for the construction of a commercial terminal with a capacity of 4 million passengers annually. These investments of over $200 million mark the beginning of a significant transformation into commercial aviation serving major domestic destinations.

MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport is a non-profit organization established in 2000 that owns the infrastructure and land. MET aims to showcase and exploit the full potential of this highly important airport for the Montreal region and the aerospace innovation hub of Longueuil. We are developing a new airport model that prioritizes human-scale air transport, eco-responsibility, community collaboration, and the integration of cutting-edge practices. With a main runway of 2.4 kilometres in length, MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport can accommodate the majority of commercial aircraft in Canada. However, the airport has chosen to design its facilities to admit only quieter and more eco-friendly single-aisle aircraft. Its commercial terminal has been under construction since August 2023 and will be operational in the summer of 2025, accommodating 4 million passengers annually. Just 15 kilometres from downtown Montreal, MET - Montreal Metropolitan Airport is strategically located for airlines and business aviation. Its terminal will offer travellers unprecedented speed, aesthetics, and comfort.

MET – Montreal Metropolitan Airport 

Space reflectors could ensure bright future for solar power farms

Reflectors placed in orbit around the Earth which reflect sunlight towards future solar power farms at dawn and dusk could help accelerate the transition to net-zero, researchers say. 

Space engineers from the University of Glasgow have published new research showing how kilometre-wide orbiting reflectors could boost the output of future large-scale solar farms by reflecting additional sunlight towards them even after the sun has set. 

In a paper published as a preprint in the journal Acta Astronautica, the researchers describe how they used sophisticated computer simulations to help determine the most effective method of using orbiting solar reflectors to generate additional power. 

Their models showed that putting 20 gossamer-thin reflectors into orbit 1000 kilometres from the surface of the Earth could reflect sunlight to solar farms for an extra two hours each day on average. The additional sunlight could boost the output of the world’s future solar farms, particularly after sunset when electricity demand is high. The output could be scaled up further by adding more reflectors or increasing their size.

The reflectors would maintain an orbit close to the Earth’s terminator line – the boundary where daylight on one side of the planet transitions into night on the other – in an arrangement known as a Walker constellation.

Walker constellations are widely used in technologies like satellite communication systems, where groups of equally-spaced satellites form rings around the planet to ensure consistent communication with the Earth’s surface.

The team developed an algorithm to determine how the reflectors could be arranged in the constellation and angled to catch the sun’s rays most effectively, maximising the additional sunlight reflected to solar power farms around the Earth in the early morning and late evening. 

The researchers suggest that the 20 reflectors could generate an extra 728 megawatt-hours (MWh) of electricity per day – the equivalent of adding an additional large-scale solar power farm to Earth without the associated cost of construction. 

Dr Onur Çelik, from the University of Glasgow’s James Watt School of Engineering, is the corresponding author of the paper. He said: “Solar power has the potential to be one of the key accelerators in our race to reach net-zero, helping us to mitigate the global impacts of climate change by reducing our reliance on fossil fuels. 

“The price of solar panels has dropped quickly in recent years, increasing the pace of their adoption and paving the way for the creation of large-scale solar power farms around the world. 

“One of the major limitations of solar power, of course, is that it can only be generated during daylight hours. Putting orbiting solar reflectors in place around the Earth would help to maximise the effectiveness of solar farms in the years to come. Strategically placing new solar farms in locations which receive the most additional sunlight from the reflectors could make them even more effective.” 

Vista marks 20 years of success with strong 2023 performance

Through 2023 Vista witnessed record flight hours, a 20% growth in subscription hours and Member base, and enhanced its service offering with an extensive fleet refurbishment;

17% growth in on-fleet hours globally, double digit growth in all territories — Program membership being the largest driver, with live flight hours up 30% despite a challenging economic backdrop;

Over 50% of Vista’s flight hours today come from outside of the U.S., emphasizing the global diversity of the Group’s business model and the benefit of its floating fleet;

Integrations to be completed in Q1/2024; 93 aircraft refurbished throughout 2023 — 50% more than initially planned — bringing the total number of iconic “silver and red” aircraft to 230;

Only operator to guarantee availability on every continent around the world for Global 7500 Members;

Concluded investment into global infrastructure and created a network of seven dedicated maintenance hubs across the U.S. and Europe 

                                        

Vista, the world’s leading global private aviation group, provides a market update and overview into its robust performance for 2023, highlighting continued growth and progress across all areas of the business. Innovating the industry for 20 years through continuous investment in people, technology and infrastructure, the company has continued to expand its global footprint, enhanced its services and achieved record on-fleet flight hours.

Robust growth across all geographies

In 2023, Vista captured more market share in the private aviation sector, now with over 5% of total market share thanks to two decades of strong and consistent performance. In the last year alone, the company has grown its on-fleet hours globally by 17% to 200,000 hours through double-digit growth across all geographies. With an addressable market of over 24,000 business jets there is significantly more scope and opportunity for the Group to capture further market share.

Vista has increased its proportion of flight hours coming from Program subscription clients following three years of record momentum of new subscribers, making up around 60% of total on-fleet revenue for the Group. Program clients commit to a 3-year agreement, providing the company with long-term visibility on services required and revenue flow. During the year, the Group operated around 87,000 flights — 18% more YOY and 80% up against pre-pandemic levels— with the numbers expected to keep increasing in 2024.

Vista’s global presence continues to rise, with more than 50% of total flight hours coming from outside of the U.S.. In 2023 the company made the decision to expand its service area in Africa with dedicated aircraft to support demand in the region. The company also increased the number of aircraft serving Asia and the Middle East, and extended the offering for its Global 7500 Members, granting guaranteed availability of this game-changing aircraft on every major continent around the world. Vista is the only company that is capable of offering this industry-leading aircraft on a global scale and providing such guarantees.

Thomas Flohr, Founder and Chairman of Vista, said: “2023 was another year of successful performance in our business. Despite having to react to deep economic shifts and complex geopolitical uncertainty, we produced double digit growth across all markets — achieved whilst refurbishing and upgrading our fleet ahead of schedule, further improving our service standards and significantly increasing aircraft availability. Today, Vista is a truly global and recognizable brand all around the world thanks to the 20 years in which we have delivered an unmatched service to our clients, and we are well placed to further increase our market share over the next two decades.

The trust of our Program Members is driving our steady growth trajectory, with ever more remaining loyal to Vista than ever before. This provides us with consistent, visible, revenue streams and a strong client base. Our long tenure in this industry means we can anticipate and understand what global business leaders want when it comes to global travel.

Beyond the impressive commitment from our Members, I am equally proud of our team of 4,400 experts around the world who are fully committed in delivering the best service to our clients.”

Fleet optimization and refurbishment

The addressable market of over 24,000 underutilized jets highlights an opportunity to change the inefficiencies of the entire industry. By increasing the utilization rates of each aircraft, the Vista Members’ fleet of over 300 aircraft, is instead optimized to deliver the best service at the best possible rates.

Volaris Reports January 2024 Traffic Results: 88% Load Factor

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación, S.A.B. de C.V.  - Volaris, the ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) serving Mexico, the United States, Central, and South America, reports its January 2024 preliminary traffic results.

In January 2024, Volaris' ASM capacity decreased by 10.7% year-over-year, while RPMs decreased by 8.9%; the result was a load factor increase of 1.8 pp YoY to 88.0%. Volaris transported 2.5 million passengers during the month, a 13.0% decrease compared to January 2023. Mexican domestic RPMs decreased by 20.1%, while international RPMs increased by 15.1%.

Enrique Beltranena, Volaris' President and CEO said: “The GTF engine accelerated inspections have resulted in a significant reduction in ASMs, particularly within the Mexican domestic market. This reduction has been balanced by increased capacity in international markets following Mexico’s Category 1 upgrade by the United States’ Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Consequently, the reallocation of capacity has led to improvements in load factors within the Mexican domestic market and robust transborder traffic between Mexico and the U.S.

As highlighted last month, unit revenue growth continues to show strong performance. The shift in trend in total unit revenue that started in the fourth quarter of 2023 was sustained in January 2024. Our booking curves suggest that this positive trend will continue for the upcoming months, in line with our 2024 guidance.”

Frontier Airlines Fourth Quarter 2023 Results......

Frontier Group Holdings, parent company of Frontier Airlines, Inc. reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2023  this week.

Frontier Airlines Fourth Quarter 2023 Key Highlights:

Pre-tax margin was 0.7 percent and adjusted (non-GAAP) pre-tax margin was 0.8 percent

Total operating revenues were $891 million, 2 percent lower than the comparable 2022 quarter

Cost per available seat mile (“CASM”) was 8.93 cents, 10 percent lower than the comparable 2022 quarter, and adjusted (non-GAAP) CASM (excluding fuel) was 5.90 cents, 8 percent lower than the comparable 2022 quarter

Achieved a 99.5 percent completion factor during the quarter, and the highest on-time arrivals and departures since 2015 (excluding pandemic-year 2020) in the month of December

Took delivery of four A321neo aircraft during the fourth quarter, increasing the proportion of the fleet comprised of the more fuel-efficient A320neo family aircraft to 79 percent as of December 31, 2023, the highest of all major U.S. carriers

Generated 105 available seat miles (“ASMs”) per gallon, approximately 3 percent higher than the comparable 2022 quarter, reaffirming Frontier's position as the most fuel-efficient of all major U.S. carriers and its ongoing commitment to being “America's Greenest Airline” as measured by ASMs per fuel gallon consumed

Unveiled a reimagined Frontier Miles loyalty program for 2024 enabling customers to “Get it All for Less” and earn the highest rate in the industry on total eligible purchases

Announced new crew bases at Cleveland Hopkins, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International, Chicago O'Hare/Midway and San Juan, Puerto Rico (announced January 2024)

Announced new routes and expanded operations from 10 bases, consistent with the Company's strategy to focus growth on overpriced and underserved markets

“Fourth quarter results significantly outperformed guidance on strong operational performance and cost execution, providing a solid foundation as we enter 2024,” commented Barry Biffle, Chief Executive Officer. “Leveraging this momentum, we intend to expand profitability in 2024 by executing on our network simplification plan, focusing growth on overpriced and underserved markets, further diversifying our revenue stream, enhancing customer engagement, and further lowering our unit costs. I'm proud of Team Frontier for their outstanding performance and for their commitment to deliver Low Fares Done Right.”

Four bolts missing from door plug of Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9...

The U.S. FAA has confirmed that not one, not two, not three, but four bolts used to hold a door plug on a Boeing 737 MAX 9 jet belonging to Alaska Airlines were missing, allowing the door panel to fall off during a flight in January.

The U.S. Safety Board investigating the incident said that evidence released this week shows bolts were missing from the door plug, which had been removed to fix rivets that were damaged in the production process.

The NTSB had previously remained silent on the cause for the panel to rip off during a flight operated by Alaska Airlines, but now it has confirmed that "The investigation continues to determine what manufacturing documents were used to authorize the opening and closing" of the plug during the rivet rework,"  The troubled aircraft had recently experienced pressurisation warnings on previous flights had climbed to around 16,000 feet following departure from Portland, Oregon.

The NTSB said it had been focused on how this panel or door plug which is fitted into a number of Boeing 737 MAX 9 models as a replacement for an optional emergency exit - detached from the Alaska Air plane. The report indicates that the plug is held down by four bolts, and then secured by "stop fittings" at 12 different locations along the side of the plug and the door frame.

Passenger numbers up in January for Icelandair

Icelandair saw passenger numbers rise 7% in January this year, marking a surprising increase during a time of seismic and volcanic activities in part of the country during the month. The carrier advised that 225,168 passengers travelled with them in the first month of 2024, 31% of passengers were travelling to Iceland, 20% from Iceland, 41% were via passengers and 8% were travelling within Iceland. The airline says its load factor was 69.4% whilst on-time performance was down to just 79.8%.   

Sold block hours in charter flights increased by 16%. Freight measured in Freight Ton Kilometers decreased by 9% compared to January last year. 

Although the seismic activity and volcanic eruption in the Southwest of Iceland in November had no effect on Icelandair’s flight schedule, global media coverage of the events did have a significant negative impact on bookings in the fourth quarter of 2023 which is a very important sales period for flights in January. This affected load factor in January. This negative development has eased during the first weeks of the year. The via market is strengthening significantly with a higher proportion of bookings than at the same time last year. The demand is also strong on the market from Iceland.  

Virgin Atlantic Cargo Joins Freightos' WebCargo to Bring Air Cargo eBooking to Thousands of Freight Forwarders Globally

Freightos, a leading vendor-neutral booking and payment platform for the international freight industry, announced that WebCargo by Freightos has partnered with Virgin Atlantic Cargo, a global air cargo leader. This collaboration combines Virgin Atlantic Cargo's extensive network with WebCargo's digital reach, providing more options for forwarders globally.

With the largest off-site cargo handling operation at the UK's largest commercial aviation hub in London, Virgin Atlantic Cargo flies to 30 destinations across four continents, including key locations across the United States, India, China, Nigeria, South Africa, and the Caribbean. Virgin Atlantic Cargo's state-of-the-art cargo centre "dnata City East" offers the latest technology and facilities available to handle cargo efficiently and enables smooth connections to its onward network. The airline's facilities and the processes implemented worldwide are designed to keep all types of products from general cargo to perishables and pharma safe during their transportation.

"We are delighted to have partnered with WebCargo as we continue to provide intuitive experiences for our customers, so they can move cargo their way. As customer requirements and digital experiences evolve it's important for us to work with a platform that has an optimized digital booking process and provides access to the largest number of forwarders with seamless access to our global network," said Virgin Atlantic Cargo Managing Director Phil Wardlaw. "Customers are at the heart of everything we do and we strive to make air cargo easier for everyone, offering more ways to book and access our capacity," Wardlaw added.

"The addition of Virgin Atlantic Cargo's capacity to WebCargo means that freight forwarders in over 10,000 offices worldwide gain instant, digital access to Virgin's vast network, including key destinations, such as New York, Los Angeles, and New Delhi," said Manel Galindo, Chief Revenue Officer at Freightos. "Global reach is crucial in our current era of supply chain disruptions and Red Sea workarounds. We are proud to partner with Virgin Atlantic Cargo to expand trade between the people of the world."

Virgin Atlantic Cargo Booking & Pricing | WebCargo

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UnionPay cards now being accepted by Iberia....

Iberia Airline, the flag carrier of Spain, part of the massive IAG group of airlines has formed a partnership with UnionPay International, a leading global card scheme, supporting the Russian regime and officials that now allows people to book flights and make payments using UnionPay card easily through Iberia Airlines official website and APP. 

This additional payment method, accessible to all the UnionPay cardholders - including those with Russian cards, supplements Iberia's existing payment options, enhancing the security and efficiency of online transactions for its clientele.

After nearly 100 years of business development, Iberia Airlines has now reached its service to 26 domestic and 64 international destinations across Africa, the Americas, Asia and Europe, making it convenient for tourists to travel in the most of the destinations across the globe. With acceptance in 181 countries and regions, UnionPay as a global card scheme has also constructed a widely covered service network, making sure the UnionPay cardholders can get access to a full range the payment scenarios wherever they go to. 

With billions of cards issued globally, UnionPay is the world-leading card payment network and is the preferred payment method for the Chinese and Asian market. The partnership with UnionPay has expanded the Asian customer base who reside in Eurozone for Iberia Airlines.