Budget-conscious air travellers may have a little more to spend on Christmas presents this December with domestic ticket prices well down from where they were a year ago. However, those looking for seats at the pointy end of the aircraft may have to fork out a little more cash to enjoy all the luxuries of business class this holiday season. The Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regiona...
The Norwegian Group has extended the Total Base Maintenance Support TBS™ contract with Lufthansa Technik for its Boeing 737-800 fleet ahead of time. The MRO contract covering Boeing 787 wheels and brakes has also been expanded. Norwegian and Lufthansa Technik signed the first contract for a TBS™ covering the airline's Boeing 737-800 fleet already in 2012. Initial...
On Dec. 15, 1989, a KLM jumbo jet with 245 people onboard was nearing Anchorage International Airport for a refueling stop on its way to Tokyo. As it approached, the 747 encountered a massive problem: ash from the eruption of Mount Redoubt caused all four of its engines to fail. “We are descending now, we are in a fall!” one of the pilots said, as captured in a cockpit recording....
Air travel might be a hassle, at times, but in many important ways it’s getting better.Really.We found ten innovative trends that reveal a better future for the industry, and are set to make air travel more pleasant for passengers in 2016 and beyond. 1. Launch of A350 Aircraft and 787-9 Dreamliners While we don’t want to go all avgeek on you, there’s no flying without...
Scandinavian Airlines parent SAS AB returned to full-year profit as it benefited from lower fuel prices and a sharper focus on business travel, sending the stock to its biggest gain in 11 months. Earnings before tax and nonrecurring items recovered to 1.17 billion kronor ($140 million) in the year ended Oct. 31, from a loss of 697 million kronor a year earlier, the Stockholm- based company said...
Future British military operations will require more stand-off or remotely-operated weapons to counter a spread of advanced technologies among its enemies that will make today's conflicts appear "relatively simple" by comparison, according to a Ministry of Defence research paper. “The proliferation of technology and advanced weapons systems will provide many more states with...
When Boeing introduced the 747 jumbo jet more than 40 years ago, almost every aspect of the aircraft was unique. It was the largest plane of the day, it covered the longest distance and it marked the start of a new era in aviation. Its upper deck lounge and spiral staircases wowed passengers. Airlines across the world made a beeline to Boeing’s door to get the plane into their fleets. In...
Airbus Group said it’s still pondering whether to upgrade the A380 superjumbo to help end a sales drought, with production rates for the double-decker set to dip below 30 planes this year as output is slowed to help manage a dwindling backlog. Chief executive Tom Enders said that commercial-aircraft head Fabrice Bregier is “working on the business case” for an A380 revamp with...
Alitalia, Italy’s leading carrier, and Air Seychelles, the national airline of the Republic of Seychelles, have enhanced their codeshare agreement to provide Italian air travellers with unprecedented access to Seychelles. Beginning December 19, Alitalia will place its “AZ” flight code on three weekly flights operated by Air Seychelles between Paris Charles de Gaulle and...
Qatar Airways will launch new services between Doha and Durban on Thursday, December 17, 2015. The four-times-weekly service to Durban further complements the airline’s existing daily flights to Cape Town and double daily flights to Johannesburg, and is an expansion of the airline’s operations in South Africa. Travellers can now choose from a total of 21 flights a week to South Afri...
Qatar Airways yesterday announces a ban on battery-powered personal vehicles commonly known as 'hoverboards' on all aircraft as it continues to put the safety of passengers and crew first. Effective immediately, the ban applies to all small vehicles powered by lithium batteries as both checked-in baggage and as cabin baggage on all Qatar Airways flights. The ban applies regardless of th...
Pilots at Flexjet and Flight Options have narrowly voted in favor of representation by the International Local Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT). Polls closed on the election yesterday following a three-week voting period. A little more than 51 percent of the 644 pilots who voted (330) voted for representation. Approval is decided by a simple majority of the votes. A total of 663 pilots were eligible...
