26 OCTOBER 2015
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- COMMENT: The world according to easyJet
- Airspace changes "essential"
- Belfast adds Brussels Airlines
- Big expansion for Aer Lingus
- Chiltern’s rail revolution
- Double boost for Norwegian
- Final flight for US Airways
- Flybe adds routes for winter
- Gatwick lands BA Kennedy service
- JetBlue in wi-fi challenge
- Korean’s new-look B777
- Lufthansa for Silicon Valley
- Major conference for Cranfield
- Manchester – Beijing confirmed
- Monarch back to the future
- Singapore A350-900 for AMS
- Turkish adds fifth Istanbul daily
- Up and away for CS100
- Vietnam boosts winter line-up
- Virgin Trains' new look
- Vueling adds two at MAN
- ON TOUR: European regional airlines meet in Berlin
- AND FINALLY: Chinese visitor
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Big expansion for Aer Lingus
Major long-haul expansion for 2016 was announced by Aer Lingus last week, with the number of transatlantic routes growing from nine to 12 and transatlantic seat capacity reaching 2+m for the first time.
Final flight for US Airways
An aviation era came to an end last week as US Airways flew its final flight, an Airbus A321 service departing from San Francisco and heading for its home state of Pennsylvania.
JetBlue in wi-fi challenge
Free wi-fi across the entire fleet is to be offered by US airline JetBlue from next autumn in a direct challenge to its bigger rivals.
COMMENT: The world according to easyJet
Carolyn McCall, easyJet CEO, has a commitment to employing more women pilots. That was the theme of her inaugural British Air Transport Association (BATA) lecture. Nothing wrong with that. Ms McCall had a clear message to deliver and she made the most of it. Her comments follow a report, also published last week, that only 6% of registered UK engineers and technicians are female.
Airspace changes "essential"
Management of Britain’s airspace must change if future needs are to be met, says Martin Rolfe, CEO of NATS.
Chiltern’s rail revolution
History is being made today (Monday 26 October) as Chiltern Railways opens service between Oxford and London, the first new rail line for more than 100 years between a major British city and the capital.
Flybe adds routes for winter
Two new routes – Edinburgh to Liverpool and Southampton to Dusseldorf – are included in Flybe’s winter 2015/2016 schedule, which began yesterday (Sunday 25 October).
Korean’s new-look B777
Described as the ultimate in privacy, the First Class Kosmo 2.0 Suite made its debut as Korean Air launched its newly-refurbished Boeing 777-300ER on the daily service between Heathrow and Incheon yesterday (Sunday 25 October).
Major conference for Cranfield
Top speakers from the transportation industry and allied fields have been recruited for the 2015 European Aviation Conference, hosted by the Centre for Air Transport Management and being held this year at Cranfield University on 18-20 November.
Manchester – Beijing confirmed
New direct flights between Manchester and Beijing operated from next summer by Hainan Airlines, China’s fourth largest carrier, were confirmed on Friday.
Singapore A350-900 for AMS
Amsterdam is to be the inaugural destination for Singapore Airlines’ new-generation Airbus A350 fleet, the company announced last week. Services are expected to begin by next April.
Turkish adds fifth Istanbul daily
A new daily flight between Heathrow and Istanbul was launched yesterday (Sunday 25 October) by Turkish Airlines, the carrier’s fifth daily service between the two capitals.
Virgin Trains' new look
Virgin Trains on Monday 19 October unveiled a new look for its staff working on its East Coast route.
ON TOUR: European regional airlines meet in Berlin
There was an upbeat mood in Berlin as the European regional airline fraternity celebrated their 35th annual get together. This despite the persistent gloomy rain clouds and disappointment that the city’s stunning new Brandenberg Airport was still not open (the new schedule is mid 2017 – as long as they don’t lose that deadline and have to re-apply for planning permission, observers warned).
Alison Chambers reports for BTN.
AND FINALLY: Chinese visitor
Toastmaster Richard Birtchnell's opening words at the Aviation Club during the Chinese President’s visit to the UK last week.
Belfast adds Brussels Airlines
Belgium’s flag carrier, Brussels Airlines, is to operate a service from George Best Belfast City Airport to Brussels Airport from 27 March next year.
Double boost for Norwegian
With third-quarter profits more than doubling this year, Norwegian is keeping up the pace and continuing to expand its international operations by signing an agreement for 19 new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners.
Gatwick lands BA Kennedy service
After a seven-year absence, British Airways will launch daily direct Boeing 777-200 flights from Gatwick to New York on 1 May, making it the only carrier to fly to the US destination from all three of London’s main airports – Gatwick, Heathrow and London City.
Lufthansa for Silicon Valley
The first non-stop flights to California’s Silicon Valley from a European airport are being launched in April when Lufthansa begins service between Frankfurt and San Jose.
Monarch back to the future
In case you missed it, it was 30 years ago last week that Marty McFly travelled back to the future in what became the iconic film of the same name.
Up and away for CS100
Bombardier’s all-new C-Series CS100 aircraft has successfully completed more than 90% of its certification programme and is now in the final stage of flight testing, the company said last week.
Vietnam boosts winter line-up
Following the successful launch of its brand new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft on UK routes in September (see BTN 22 September), national carrier Vietnam Airlines has announced its schedule for winter 2015-2016, including a new additional weekly nonstop to Ho Chi Minh City.
Vueling adds two at MAN
Direct services to Alicante and Rome are being launched from Manchester Airport next June by Vueling.