24 OCTOBER 2016
- COMMENT: This lady is for turning
- Aeromexico's new baby
- Alitalia IT upgrade
- AOA's heavyweight line-up
- Delta's designer new look
- Emirates’ US$11m lounge
- Ethiopian expands at home
- Flybe extends Cardiff service
- Ireland's capital on a roll
- LCY evacuated in alert
- Madrid upgrade by Etihad
- Metropole's new King's Suite
- New-look Gatwick on show
- Premium Economy for Iberia
- Runway decision put off again
- SAS boost for Dublin
- Sunset Boulevard at Los Angeles
- Top slot for Southampton
- Vancouver – Delhi non-stop
- Win one, lose one for BA
- WOW on growth trail
- ON TOUR: ERA in Madrid
- AND FINALLY: Flying tots
© 2022 Business Travel News Ltd.
Ethiopian expands at home
Two new domestic services between Addis Ababa and Dembi Dolo and Kebri Dahar have been announced by Ethiopian Airlines with an initial three-a-week schedule on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays using the Bombardier Q400NG.
LCY evacuated in alert
London City Airport had to be evacuated on Friday after a suspected chemical incident left people needing treatment for breathing difficulties. London Fire Brigade (LFB) said about 500 people were affected, with ambulance staff treating 26 patients at the scene and taking two to hospital.
Vancouver – Delhi non-stop
The only non-stop service linking Vancouver with Delhi, an Air Canada B787-9 Dreamliner flight, took off from the Canadian city on Friday, arriving in India on Saturday morning.
COMMENT: This lady is for turning
Or so we are led to believe.
Aeromexico's new baby
The first of 10 B787-9 Dreamliners due to join the Aeromexico fleet has been unveiled at the carrier’s complex at Mexico City International Airport. The aircraft has been named Quetzalcoatl, after the Aztec god of wind and learning.
AOA's heavyweight line-up
IAG chief executive Willie Walsh, his counterpart at Flybe Saad Hammad and Ryanair chief commercial officer David O’Brien head the latest speaker line-up for the the Airport Operators Association (AOA) annual conference on 21-22 November at the Hilton Metropole Hotel, London.
Delta's designer new look
In a move described as “bringing the glamour back to flying”, more than 60,000 Delta Air Lines front-line employees including customer service agents and flight attendants are being given a new look created by New York fashion designer Zac Posen.
Flybe extends Cardiff service
Flights being operated by Flybe between Cardiff and London City Airport are being extended from 1 November after what the airline called “an overwhelming response from the business community”.
Madrid upgrade by Etihad
Etihad Airways is boosting its Abu Dhabi – Madrid route to a daily operation from 1 June with the introduction of three new services a week. Flights will continue to operate with the two-class A330-200 with 22 seats in Business Class and 240 in Economy.
New-look Gatwick on show
Images of how Gatwick might look with a new runway were issued by the airport on Friday as part of its campaign for expansion under aviation-capacity plans for the South East.
Premium Economy for Iberia
A new Premium Economy cabin was unveiled on Thursday by Iberia to be available on 37 of its long-haul aircraft, starting during the 2017 summer season.
Runway decision put off again
Accusations of dither and delay resurfaced last week after the widely-expected statement on runway capacity in the South East was put off again by the government. It is now expected tomorrow (Tuesday 25 October). See also COMMENT in this issue.
Sunset Boulevard at Los Angeles
The latest milestone in the US$8.5bn modernisation of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), the new Terminal 6, was unveiled on Wednesday by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) and Westfield.
Win one, lose one for BA
British Airways gained a new route and lost an existing one last week, announcing it would launch flights between Heathrow and New Orleans next March while suspending its Heathrow – Chengdu service from January.
ON TOUR: ERA in Madrid
BTN correspondent Alison Chambers reports from Madrid on the ERA’s annual gathering (alison.chambers@emeraldmedia.co.uk)
Talk at this year’s European Regions Airline Association (ERA) annual gathering in Madrid focused on the value of capacity-provider (wet-leasing) contracts and how they are becoming more prolific in Europe.
AND FINALLY: Flying tots
The scamper of tiny carry-ons is becoming more prevalent, it seems. New data released from Heathrow shows a sharp rise in numbers of children under five flying through the airport, as our little ones become accustomed to becoming global jet-setters.
Alitalia IT upgrade
A “substantial increase” in revenues and improvements in customer service are being forecast by Alitalia following the completion of a major IT system upgrade. Its introduction is part of an overall business restructuring plan now in hand to place the airline on a sustainable commercial platform.
The move saw all Alitalia’s reservations, check-in and critical airline operations switched last weekend from Arco to global technology company Sabre.
Emirates’ US$11m lounge
A major makeover costing US$11m of the Emirates Business Class lounge at Concourse B of Dubai International Airport was unveiled by the airline last week, marking the end of a two-year refurbishment.
Ireland's capital on a roll
Last week’s announcement by Scandinavian Airlines of more flights from Dublin Airport (see this issue) is the fifth expansion for the Irish airport announced by an overseas airline in the past three weeks, according to the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA).
Metropole's new King's Suite
This year’s venue for the AOA annual conference, the Hilton London Metropole – the UK's largest conference and meetings hotel – has unveiled its new-look King's Suite, following completion of a refurbishment costing nearly £1m.
SAS boost for Dublin
More capacity between Dublin and Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm is being provided by Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) next year with extra flights on all three services. Oslo will gain 16% more seats and the other two destinations 9% each.
Top slot for Southampton
Southampton Airport has been named Airport of the Year by the European Regions Airline Association (ERA) following a successful year which saw four new airlines, including KLM with worldwide flights via its hub in Amsterdam, begin services.
WOW on growth trail
“Soaring demand” has led the Icelandic low-cost transatlantic airline WOW air to announce plans to increase the number of flights from London to its hub in Iceland to two a day while boosting its onward long-haul services to California.
From 27 March 2017, the airline will fly daily from London to Los Angeles and San Francisco, via Reykjavik. It currently operates four times a week to Los Angeles and five times a week to San Francisco.