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CAPA News Briefs

CAPA publishes more than 1,000 global News Briefs every week, covering all aspects of the aviation and travel industry. It’s the most comprehensive source of market intelligence in the world, with around 50 per cent of content translated from non-English sources. The breadth of our coverage means you won’t need any other news sources to monitor competitors and stay informed about the latest developments in the wider aviation sector.

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Below is a sample of the latest news headlines.

Korean Air announced (28-Nov-2024) the European Commission granted final approval to Korean Air to proceed with plans to acquire a controlling stake in Asiana Airlines and subsequently merge the two airlines, after the airline implemented the following measures to address competition concerns:

  • Korean Air will divest Asiana Airlines' global freight business, including freight aircraft, slots, traffic rights, flight crew and other employees;
  • Korean Air will assist rival airline T'way Air to commence services connecting Seoul to Barcelona, Paris, Frankfurt and Rome, including providing slots, traffic rights and access to required aircraft.

As previously reported by CAPA, the airline submitted requests for regulatory approval for the Asiana acquisition from antitrust authorities in 14 countries in Jan-2021. It has received approval from authorities in 13 countries, including Australia, Singapore, the UK, China and Japan, and is still awaiting approval from authorities in the US. [more - original PR - Korean]

Emirates Airline announced (26-Nov-2024) plans to bring forward daily A350 scheduled Dubai-Edinburgh service from 03-Jan-2025. The A350 will be rolled out to eight other destinations including Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Kuwait, Bahrain, Colombo, Lyon, Muscat and Bologna, with more destinations to follow. [more - original PR]

CAPA - Centre for Aviation, in a report entitled: 'AviAlliance acquires three smaller UK airports from AGS - what will the future hold for all of them?', stated (22-Nov-2024) AviAlliance's somewhat mixed performance in 2024 - including its share loss in Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport, increased holding in Athens International Airport, the continued positive performance of San Juan Luis Munoz Marin International Airport and the general downturn of the regional aviation market impacting some of its airports in Germany - may have impacted the investor's decision to enter the airport market in the UK. AviAlliance is confident in its investment in Aberdeen International Airport, Glasgow Airport and Southampton Airport, but faces a challenge. The sale of AGS should be completed in 1Q2025. [more - CAPA Analysis]

IAG announced (25-Nov-2024) a new sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) purchase agreement with eSAF producer Infinium, which plans to supply the UK market with power-to-liquid eSAF from 4Q2026. Infinium will supply eSAF to support IAG airlines over a 10 year period. The eSAF will be produced at Infinium's Project Roadrunner facility in the US. IAG group sustainability officer Jonathon Counsell stated: "So far, we're on track to deliver our 10% 2030 SAF goal and agreements with innovators like Infinium are key to reaching this target. Aviation as an industry is working hard to decarbonise and policy should focus on solutions such as SAF, rather than only increasing costs which risk affecting the competitiveness of the European aviation industry". [more - original PR]

Qatar's Ministry of Interior, via its official Twitter account, announced (22-Nov-2024) the launch of the US Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) on 22-Nov-2024, in coordination with US Department of Homeland Security and US Customs and Border Protection. The system allows Qatari citizens to travel to the US without a visa for up to 90 days, under the visa waiver programme.

UK's Department for Transport launched (25-Nov-2024) the Jet Zero Taskforce, a congregation of "the most senior figures in the aviation sector" who will support efforts to "make greener air travel a reality". These will include Transport Minister Louise Haigh, Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds, Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Ed Miliband, CEOs of airlines including easyJet and Virgin Atlantic Airways, representatives from London Heathrow Airport and Manchester Airport, as well as fuel producers, trade bodies and leading universities. The taskforce will feature an annual CEO level meeting to set priorities and review progress. Building on the previous Jet Zero Council, the taskforce will support the production and delivery of sustainable aviation fuel and zero emission flight, as well as the sector's demand for greenhouse gas removals and the non-CO2 impacts of aviation. [more - original PR]

CAPA - Centre for Aviation, in an article entitled: 'Spirit Airlines' Chapter 11 filing creates more questions than provides answers', stated (25-Nov-2024) Spirit Airlines' recent Chapter 11 filing was hardly surprising. The airline has not been profitable in years and debt payments were looming large. The airline has forged a pre-arranged reorganisation with bond holders and also released a turnaround plan that is arguably a business model shift away from the aggressive product unbundling that served Spirit well for many years. But none of its planned changes are new or innovative in a market dominated by larger airlines. For now, Spirit's bond holders seem willing to give the company time to execute on its plan, however the airline's fate is far from certain. [more - CAPA Analysis]

Japan Airlines (JAL) and IndiGo announced (25-Nov-2024) plans to commence codeshare services on 16-Dec-2024. IndiGo will codeshare on JAL's services connecting Tokyo Haneda Airport, Tokyo Narita Airport and Osaka Kansai International Airport to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport, and connecting Haneda and Narita to Singapore. JAL will codeshare on IndiGo's services connecting Delhi and Bengaluru to 18 domestic destinations in India, enabling connections from JAL's Tokyo Haneda-Delhi and Tokyo Narita-Bengaluru services. [more - original PR]

British Airways unveiled (25-Nov-2024) its new first class seat, developed in partnership with Collins Aerospace. The new first class cabin forms part of the carrier's A380 retrofit plans and is scheduled to launch in mid 2026. The carrier reported it has "already rolled out over 120 initiatives" as part of its GBP7 billion transformation programme. [more - original PR]

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, via its official website, announced (22-Nov-2024) the launch of a trial visa free entry policy permitting ordinary passport holders from Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Malta, Estonia, Latvia and Japan to enter China for business, leisure or transit and stay for up to 30 days without a visa (Reuters/Global Times, 22-Nov-2024). The trial will run from 30-Nov-2024 to 31-Dec-2025. China's Government also decided to extend the visa free stay period for ordinary passport holders from 29 countries, including Australia, South Korea and France, from 15 days to 30 days, effective from 30-Nov-2024.

Etihad Airways announced (26-Nov-2024) plans to launch the following 10 services in 2025:

The 10 routes will complement Etihad's new 2025 services to Prague, Warsaw and Al Alamein. CEO Antonoaldo Neves said: "2025 marks a pivotal year for Etihad, with more than 90 destinations in over 50 countries, a fleet of more than 110 aircraft - including our amazing new A321LRs - welcoming over 20 million guests onboard". [more - original PR]

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26-Nov-2024 12:37 PM

Emirates receives its first A350

Emirates Airline received (25-Nov-2024) the first A350 (A6-EXA) of 65 to be delivered in the coming years. The delivery marks the first new aircraft type to join the Emirates fleet since 2008. The aircraft will be ferried from Toulouse to Dubai, where it will receive finishing touches at Emirates Engineering. The aircraft will officially enter commercial service in Jan-2025 on service to Edinburgh, followed by eight other destinations across the Middle East, West Asia and Europe. [more - original PR]