Airline Trends News
Jet Airways On-Time Performance Soars 89.9% in May 2010
Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline, and Jet Lite, a wholly owned subsidiary, have achieved the best on time performance in May, as per the figures released by the Director General of Civil Aviation.
Thomas Cook to rent inflight PSPs
Thomas Cook Airlines is to replace its free inflight entertainment systems with hand-held Playstation PSPs. The device will be rented for £7.50 per flight, in a move that echoes an industry-wide shift to generating ancillary revenue rather than raising headline fares.
BRIC aviation set to break Airbus-Boeing duopoly
The Boeing-Airbus duopoly of the $1.6 trillion aircraft manufacturing market is set to face a formidable challenge from the BRIC economies over the next two decades. Young upstarts – including the likes of Brazil’s Embraer and China’s Comac – are launching aircraft that will erode the duopoly’s 90 percent share of the narrow-bodied market.
Air fares set to soar after ash crisis
Airlines are likely to add more than $50 to the price of transatlantic tickets in a bid to recoup losses from the volcanic ash crisis and soaring oil prices. According to leading think tank, the Centre for Economics and Business Research, fares could rise by up to 5.2 per cent this year, and 6.3 per cent in 2011 and 2012.
ANA introduces women-only toilets
All Nippon Airways is introducing women-only lavatories on its international routes in response to “numerous requests for this service”. The Japanese carrier joins Korean Air as the only other commerical airline to offer such a service.
Premium airline growth set back six years by recession, IATA
Despite recent gains, losses in the premium air traffic market during the global recession have erased the previous six years of growth, according to the International Air Travel Association (IATA).
OAG reports rise in airline traffic
Overall global airline capacity grew for the sixth month in succession during February, according to the latest figures from OAG Aviation.
Airlines suffer worst year since WWII
Last year witnessed the biggest slump in air passenger traffic since World War II, according to the International Air Transport Association. Passenger traffic dropped by 3.5% in 2009 from a year earlier, while freight traffic fell 10.1%, reversing years of steady growth.
Delta plans $1bn fleet upgrade
Delta Air Lines, the world’s largest airline by revenue, has announced plans to invest $1 billion over the next four years to upgrade its fleet and passenger facilities.
Low-cost carriers greener than full-service
Ryanair has emerged as an unlikely model for sustainable travel in new research showing that low-cost carriers produce up to 35 percent less carbon emissions per passenger than their full-service counterparts, due to higher load factors and seat density, as well as newer fleets.
Air France to charge obese fliers double
Obese passengers who are too large to fit into one seat face being charged for a second under new rules being imposed by Air France, and may not be allowed to board for “safey reasons” if they refuse to pay.
BA/AA tie-up dealt bitter blow
British Airways and American Airlines have been dealt a bitter blow by the U.S. Department of Justice, which has ruled that their proposed tie-up would result in “competitive harm” and lead to transatlantic fares rising by as much as 15 percent. It has recommended major concessions in return for granting anti-trust immunity.