25 JANUARY 2021
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- COMMENT: Gatwick – Not all doom and gloom
- MAX EU hearing (Monday)
- Accor new hotels
- Airbus production
- BA and Sainsbury's
- Busy June for Cornwall with G7
- CAA November airport stats
- Collinson and Singapore Airlines
- Covid Testing – Explained
- Crossrail 2 mothballed
- Drone on – more developments
- Emirates Travel Pass
- EU and travel
- Heathrow Express updates
- Help for Eurostar?
- Joe Biden’s aircraft orders
- Kids fly free to Abu Dhabi or Dubai
- KLM suspends UK
- Loganair’s summer plans
- Qatar to the Middle East
- Saga vaccinates
- ON TOUR: Gibraltar
- AND FINALLY: Petition to Government
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Saga vaccinates
Holiday and cruise ship operator Saga has said that all clients must produce proof of Covid-19 vaccination before taking a trip.
The latest Travel Updates from Government
Flights within the UK are still unrestricted although strong precautions are being taken and Scotland has its own rules.
COMMENT: Gatwick – Not all doom and gloom
The collapse of Norwegian’s long-haul Boeing Dreamliner operation at Gatwick is a blow for the south London airport but not fatal and not unexpected. In time the US will come back, and the summer will see jetBlue introducing narrow-bodied flights to New York. British Airways still has a foothold to the Caribbean with TUI serving some destinations in the region and WestJet and Air Transat serving Canada.
MAX EU hearing (Monday)
A hearing is scheduled today (25 January 09:30 CET) by the Transport Committee of the European Parliament who has summoned the executive director of its civil aviation agency EASA to answer questions regarding the anticipated recertification of the Boeing 737 MAX.
BA and Sainsbury's
Nectar, the Sainsbury's-owned loyalty programme, and British Airways have announced a new partnership, giving customers the opportunity to convert Nectar points into Avios and plan their air travel.
Busy June for Cornwall with G7
The Carbis Bay (eco) Hotel, near St Ives has been chosen as the venue for the G7 Summit 11-13 June, the Government confirmed on Sunday.
Collinson and Singapore Airlines
London-based Collinson Group and Singapore Airlines (SIA) have announced that all SIA passengers flying outbound from Singapore and Indonesia (bound for Singapore) are now able to book pre-departure polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and serology tests as part of a trial service.
Covid Testing – Explained
When announcing its tie up with Singapore Airlines concerning travel from the Island State, Collinson also offered an appendage as a briefing note on Covid-19 testing. BTN reproduces in full.
EU and travel
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is supporting an initiative from Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to agree a common digital European Covid-19 vaccination certificate that would enable those who are vaccinated to travel freely within Europe without Covid-19 testing.
Joe Biden’s aircraft orders
One of new US President Joe Biden's first tasks in the Oval Office was to sign an executive order mandating the wearing of masks on all flights.
KLM suspends UK
At very short notice KLM cancelled all its UK departures for Saturday (23 January).
On Friday all the inbound passengers were unloaded, the aircraft then returning with no passengers to Amsterdam.
Qatar to the Middle East
Now happily ensconced in Heathrow T5, with all the benefits of the various British Airways executive facilities, Qatar Airways is providing connecting flights to numerous destinations in the Middle East and Africa via Doha with four flights daily.
ON TOUR: Gibraltar
With the hope, and expectation, that border restrictions between Gibraltar and Spain will be lifted by the summer (and travel controls too) as reported in last week's BTN last week “editor at large” Jeff Mills takes a look at the 2.5sq mile “Rock”, the gateway to the Mediterranean.
AND FINALLY: Petition to Government
BTN’s editorial assistant Sharon Ross has three young children at home due to the schools being closed.
Accor new hotels
For the massive French hotel group Accor, one of the world’s largest hospitality operators, the last month or so has meant a couple of important openings, in spite of the pandemic.
Airbus production
In spite of the gloomy situation the airline industry finds itself in, Airbus is updating its production rate planning for the A320 family aircraft upward in response to what it sees is the market situation.
CAA November airport stats
The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has published the November passenger figures for all British airports. The full annual numbers are expected later this week.
Crossrail 2 mothballed
New Civil Engineer reports that Crossrail 2 has been mothballed after £115m has been spent on consultants and research.
Drone on – more developments
AGS Airports, which owns and manages Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton airports, is to lead a consortium that will develop and trial what will be the UK’s first national distribution network to use drones to transport essential medicines, blood, organs and other medical supplies throughout Scotland.
Heathrow Express updates
The lack of passengers due to the pandemic has been seized upon by the airport-owned Heathrow Express for a fleet upgrading.
Help for Eurostar?
The UK and French Governments are reported to be working together to work out a plan to prop up Eurostar, which says its passenger numbers have dropped to less than 1% of normal during the latest Covid lockdowns.
Loganair’s summer plans
With the Isle of Man (IOM) enforcing the most severe travel restrictions of anywhere in the British Isles, Loganair’s confidence in the future has seen the publication of ambitious plans for summer 2021 which now includes two routes into Heathrow.