Coronavirus: British Airways halts flights to mainland China January 29, 2020 British Airways has stopped flights to Beijing and Shanghai for the next two days in an attempt to stem the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. The airline’s decision follows the Foreign Office yesterday urging British citizens not to travel to mainland China unless it was essential to. Read more: UK citizens back from Wuhan face [...]
Pendragon shares fall on gloomy profit projection January 29, 2020 Car dealership Pendragon today said that it expects its profit to be at the lower end of expectations for its full financial year. The company, which has had two chief executives depart in the last year, has been hit by sluggish UK car demand. Shares fell 4.5 per cent this morning to 11p. Pendragon is [...]
Budget airline Wizz Air boosts profit guidance on strong passenger growth January 29, 2020 European budget airline Wizz Air today increased its profit guidance for its financial year to between €350m (£296m) and €355m on strong third quarter results. The carrier said today passenger numbers grew 23.2 per cent in the the three months to 31 December compared to the same quarter the previous year. Net profit for the [...]
Another ‘disastrous month’ for Boeing as reputation hits rock bottom January 29, 2020 Boeing’s reputation has hit a record low this month, as the troubled plane maker gears up to announce its annual results this afternoon. The manufacturer is still reeling from two crashes involving its 737 Max jet in 2018 and 2019. They killed a combined 346 people, and led to the best-selling jet being grounded worldwide. [...]
‘Enough is enough’: Two thirds of South Western Railway passengers fed up with fares January 28, 2020 Barely a third of South Western Railway passengers feel they are getting value for money, after months of strikes and delays caused misery across the network. According to the National Rail passenger survey, just 34 per cent of customers were satisfied with fares, the lowest score of any franchise in the country. Overall passenger satisfaction [...]
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary calls Flybe a ‘loss-making turkey’ in stinging rebuke to chancellor Sajid Javid January 28, 2020 Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has issued another sharp rebuke to chancellor Sajid Javid in the wake of the government’s rescue of Flybe, this time saying the UK’s business strategy is “doomed to fail”. In a letter bound to further escalate the row between the two, O’Leary called the struggling regional airline a “loss-making turkey”. He [...]
Electric avenue: E-scooters to get green light for road use January 28, 2020 Eco-conscious commuters are set for a welcome boost to their journey under plans to legalise the use of electric scooters on roads and cycle lanes. The government is expected to launch a consultation next month on how to regulate the speedy scooters and ensure safety, the Times reported. This will be followed with trials in [...]
Near-miss: Iran plane skids onto major road after pilot misses runway January 27, 2020 Iran narrowly avoided its second major aviation tragedy in less than a month this morning, after a passenger jet ended up belly-down in the middle of a major highway after a botched landing. Nearly all of the 136 passengers on board escaped unscathed – with two on board suffering leg injuries. The incident happened in [...]
Flybe: Ministers draft in restructuring advisers on rescue loan talks amid ‘state aid’ row January 27, 2020 Ministers have brought in advisers to help negotiate a government loan to struggling regional airline Flybe, despite insisting the rescue deal will not constitute state aid. Alvarez & Marsal (A&M) has been tasked with advising the Department for Transport (DfT) in assessing the basis for a commercial loan, according to Sky News. The company, a [...]
Powering up Britain: How the UK will become carbon neutral by 2050 January 27, 2020 Net zero by 2050. At first blush, it sounds like a code phrase one would hear in the halls of MI6 or in the Ministry of Defence. But as British citizens or residents, we should remember it. In simple terms, it is a declaration by Britain to become carbon neutral in 30 years. This may [...]