Package holidays boom shows no sign of abating as Tui enjoys surge in bookings September 20, 2022 The post-pandemic boom in package holidays shows no sign of abating as giants such as Tui continue to enjoy high levels of bookings. The German operator said in a trading update published on Tuesday it would stick to its profitability forecasts following an uptick in summer and winter reservations. TUI saw a travel revival this [...]
London airports cancel flights to avoid noise on Queen’s funeral September 15, 2022 London airports such as Heathrow and London City are cancelling flights to avoid noise on Monday, the day of the Queen’s funeral. Heathrow has announced it will cut 15 per cent of its daily schedule, i.e. more than 100 flights, while London City will not fly over Westminster. The west London hub – jointly with [...]
Lufthansa in talks with investors over sale of aircraft maintenance business September 15, 2022 Lufthansa is reportedly in talks to sell a stake in its aircraft maintenance business, Lufthansa Technik. According to Reuters sources, the airline is to offload between 20 and 30 per cent of its stake and was attracting more interest from financial investors than rival firms. The airline is also expected to commence talks with private [...]
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary to stay until 2028 as airline sorry for ‘mishandling’ press at AGM September 15, 2022 Ryanair’s boss Michael O’Leary is in talks to extend his contract until 2028, as the company said sorry for “mishandling” the press at its AGM this morning. The chief executive told journalists on Thursday that he was hoping to sign the papers by March, subject to agreement on terms. O’Leary also apologised after reporters were [...]
Heathrow leads EU airports’ charge as passenger volumes treble September 14, 2022 Heathrow is leading the passenger traffic charge at EU airports, as numbers increased by more than 300 per cent in July. Data published today from aviation trade body ACI Europe showed that in July the west London hub was ahead of EU airports, as it reported 6.3 million passengers. On the other hand, Paris Charles [...]
Willie Walsh: Fuel prices will put pressure on carriers for rest of year September 7, 2022 Increasing fuel prices will continue to put pressure on airlines’ costs for the rest of the year, according to aviation boss Willie Walsh. “I am aware of some airlines that have embarked on hedging in recent months … just to provide themselves with some protection against the volatility that we’re witnessing,” said Walsh – a [...]
EU airlines’ seat capacity almost back to pre-Covid levels August 29, 2022 EU airlines’ seat capacity is almost back to pre-pandemic levels. According to an analysis by aviation market intelligence firm CAPA – Centre for Aviation, airline capacity is now at almost 89 per cent of 2019 levels. Projected volumes for the fourth quarter of 2022 have also gone up slightly to 88 per cent over the [...]
Wizz Air crowned worst airline for flight delays August 29, 2022 Wizz Air was crowned the UK’s worst airline for flight delays in 2021, according to data from the Civil Aviation Authority analysed by the PA news agency. Figures showed that Wizz Air – which operates from 10 British airports, including Luton and Gatwick – ran on average 14 minutes behind schedule. Wizz Air was followed [...]
Bank Holiday: Around 900 flights cut since July August 26, 2022 Around 900 flights for the upcoming Bank Holiday weekend have been cut from flight schedules since July. UK flights planned for 26 to 30 August were 14,030 with an estimated 2.4 million seats on 1 July but data recently released by aviation analytics firm Cirium shows that numbers went down by 6.4 per cent. Compared [...]
Qantas says pandemic ‘existential crisis’ over despite losses August 25, 2022 Qantas, Australia’s flagship airline, has said the “existential crisis” posed by the pandemic is over despite posting losses for the third consecutive year. Compared to 2021, the Australian airline widened its underlying loss before tax to 1.86bn Australian dollars (£1.1bn) due to the closure of Australia’s borders and uncertainty over the Delta and Omicron variants. [...]