UK aviation industry rejects decision to leave EU Aviation Safety Agency March 9, 2020 The UK aviation industry has hit back at plans to leave the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) by the end of the year, saying that the move posed a risk to highly skilled jobs in the UK. The calls come after US magazine Aviation Week reported that transport secretary Grant Shapps had confirmed that [...]
Flybe’s last flight: How Europe’s biggest regional airline met its demise March 9, 2020 At 8.30pm on Wednesday evening, passengers were still being ushered onto planes bearing the indigo livery of Flybe. Half an hour later, members of the cabin crew on one of its last ever flights, from Manchester to Belfast, were crying, having just lost their jobs. “Staff in tears. This is so grim,” tweeted Holly Hamilton, [...]
Norwegian under scrutiny amid concerns over carrier’s debt pile March 8, 2020 A number of hedge funds have increased their bets against Norwegian Air amid concerns that the low-cost carrier could follow Flybe into bankruptcy due to the slump in demand due to the coronavirus outbreak. According to IHS Markit data obtained by the Sunday Telegraph, nearly 16 per cent of the airline’s stock is on loan [...]
Budget 2020: Pilots call for air passenger duty tax suspension March 6, 2020 The British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa) has called on chancellor Rishi Sunak to suspend air passenger duty in next week’s budget to protect the struggling aviation industry and avoid another airline collapsing like Flybe. Global airlines have been severely damaged by the coronavirus outbreak, with international trade body IATA predicting a 24 per cent reduction [...]
Flybe collapse: Regional airports braced for ‘massive impact’ March 5, 2020 The collapse of Flybe could have a “massive impact” on the UK’s regional airports, with considerable doubts as to whether some of the regional carrier’s routes would be taken on by other operators. Aviation consultant John Strickland told the PA News Agency that it would be a “challenge” to get replacement airlines, describing it as [...]
Global airlines could take $113bn hit from Covid-19, four times worse than past predictions March 5, 2020 The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said that the coronavirus could cost the global industry up to $113bn this year, nearly four times larger than previous estimates. The industry body’s best-case scenario sees a minimum hit of $63bn if the Covid-19 virus is contained within current markets, but said this figure could nearly double [...]
No fly zone: As coronavirus fears grow, airlines must brace for the worst March 3, 2020 One of last month’s more outlandish news stories was the report that the coronavirus outbreak had caused an upsurge in private jet inquiries. More wealthy travellers than ever, it seems, are willing to pay thousands of pounds an hour for a plane unto themselves, in an attempt to dodge the risk of getting infected. The [...]
Bribery probe and military aircraft unit send Airbus to €1.36bn loss February 13, 2020 Global aerospace giant Airbus has swung to €1.36bn loss for 2019, compared to a profit of just over €3bn for the year before. The huge loss is down to a provision for a $4bn settlement of a bribery case as well as a €1.2bn charge against its military aircraft programme. The group has however met [...]
How e-scooters, self-driving cars, and flying taxis will shape the future of your commute February 10, 2020 An air of tranquility hangs about Stratford’s electric scooter riders. Their bodies are still, poised, as they glide by on this crisp February morning. I try to copy them and end up skidding along, struggling to figure out how to position my feet — but after a couple of wobbles I’m gliding too. As I [...]
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 [...]