Wizz Air UK obtains its AOC, launches its first flight on May 3

Wizz Air made this announcement on social media:

Great news for London! We are pleased to announce that Wizz Air UK Limited has been granted an Air Operator’s Certificate and Operating Licence by the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority. Our first flight under the newly licensed WIZZ UK is taking off today from London Luton to Bucharest. Wizz Air UK will have 8 brand new Airbus A320 and Airbus A321 aircraft in service by the end of 2018!

The airline continued:

Wizz Air UK Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wizz Air Holdings Plc, one of Europe’s fastest growing airline groups, is pleased to announce that it has been granted an Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) and Operating Licence (OL) by the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority.

Wizz Air UK, headquartered at London Luton airport, began operations on May 3, 2018, with the first flight between London Luton and Bucharest.

Wizz Air UK will have 8 brand new Airbus A320 and Airbus A321 aircraft in service by the end of 2018.

With the addition of Wizz Air UK, the group will have almost 9 million seats on sale on its low fare routes to and from the UK in 2018, some 14% growth year on year.

Wizz Air is now the eight largest airline group operating in the UK, with flights to 74 destinations in 23 countries from 9 UK airports, including eight new routes for 2018 from London Luton to Larnaca, Tirana, Tallinn, Bratislava, Lviv, Athens, Keflavik and Bari.

Photo: Wizz Air UK.

Route Map:

SAS highlights its winter schedule

SAS has made this announcement:

The new SAS winter program features new routes and more frequent departures for all of Scandinavia, domestic, intra-Scandinavian, European and intercontinental.

On the intercontinental routes, there will be an increase in the number of flights from Copenhagen to both Washington and Miami, whilst there will be a doubling of the weekly flights between Stockholm and Miami.

The Scandinavian capitals – Oslo, Stockholm and Copenhagen – will see an increase in the number of flights to a number of European destinations. In addition, several completely new routes will be introduced, including Gothenburg – Berlin, Stockholm – Oulu, Tampere – Malaga and Bergen – Aberdeen.

This initiative is in response to good market growth plus higher passenger numbers in winter, a period that usually sees lower demand than the summer season. SAS will fly 200 routes in its winter program for the first time and 18 new routes for the whole of 2018.

SAS made a substantial investment in Aarhus, Denmark, in April and this will be continued this winter with routes to destinations such as Malaga, Munich, Stockholm and Oslo. From Copenhagen Kastrup, the timetable will continue to include flights to Gazipasa and Beirut this winter plus more departures to Düsseldorf, Stuttgart, Brussels and Munich.

SAS will also expand capacity on routes to Bergen and Tromsø, Norway, to meet increased demand. The Tromsø route was originally planned for the winter program only, but its popularity has persuaded SAS to offer departures throughout the summer and winter. SAS will also operate the Stockholm – Tromsø route up to five times a week during the winter.

Although Copenhagen – Boston will take a winter break, the number of intercontinental flights to Miami and Washington DC will be increased, with three and seven weekly departures from Kastrup, respectively. The frequency of flghts to Miami from Stockholm will double.

In Norway, Oslo will have more frequent departures to Warsaw, Billund, Dusseldorf and Gazipasa, plus flights to a number of other cities: A new route between Bergen – Aberdeen is being established, whilst the Bodø – Alicante route is proving very popular with customers and will continue in the winter program.

There will also be new direct routes from Stockholm to Oulu, Finland, plus additional departures between Gothenburg and Berlin. Berlin is currently also serviced from Stockholm, Copenhagen and Oslo. There will also be more frequent departures from Stockholm to more European destinations, such as Alicante, Lisbon, Turku and Örnsköldsvik.

Tampere in Finland will gain a new route to Malaga in the SAS winter program.

SAS aircraft slide show:

Air Canada operates a biofuel flight from Edmonton to San Francisco

Air Canada announced its Edmonton–San Francisco flight on May 2 will operate with biofuel onboard a 146-seat Airbus A320-200 aircraft. The larger aircraft was scheduled for this flight to accommodate the trade mission delegation led by the Government of Alberta, the City of Edmonton and Edmonton-area businesses to California.

“Air Canada is proud to partner today with the Edmonton International Airport (EIA) to operate today’s flight with biofuel. Air Canada continues to support and advocate for the development of biofuel in Canada to become commercially viable; a big step towards creating more sustainable aviation in Canada and internationally. This is our eighth biofuel-operated flight since 2012. The result of today’s biofuel use reduces this flight’s carbon emissions by over 10 tonnes, which represents a 20% reduction in net carbon emissions for this flight,” said Teresa Ehman, Director, Environmental Affairs at Air Canada.

“Since 1990, Air Canada has improved its fuel efficiency by 43 per cent. We have also committed to meet ambitious targets set by the International Air Transport Association, including carbon-neutral growth from 2020 and to reduce CO2 emissions by 50 per cent by 2050, relative to 2005 levels. These efforts and other green initiatives to increase efficiency and reduce waste were recognized by Air Transport World which earlier this year named Air Canada the Eco-Airline of the Year for 2018.”

“This biofuel demonstration flight reflects our combined commitment to bring forward low carbon, renewable fuels into the aviation and airport sectors,” said Tom Ruth, President and CEO of EdmontonInternational Airport. “Air Canada’s leadership in the renewable resource sector strongly aligns with EIA’s commitment to regional economic development and sustainability, while reducing the long-term carbon impact of airport operations.”

“Dozens of Alberta businesses and organizations are joining us on today’s San Francisco flight, to help showcase our province’s potential abroad and create new jobs and opportunities at home,” said the Honourable Deron Bilous, Alberta Minister of Economic Development and Trade. “Using biofuel is an important reminder that, by working with partners like Air Canada and EIA, Alberta will continue to be the energy and environmental leader North America needs for the 21st century.”

“This commitment and use of cleaner energy shows corporate leadership which is integral to all of us working together to address climate change,” said Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson. “I hope it encourages other companies to follow suit so we can continue to accelerate leadership on energy transition and climate change.”

Air Canada’s Edmonton–San Francisco daily, nonstop flights launched yesterday, May 1.

Air Canada aircraft slide show (old liveries):

JetBlue introduces its new cabin on Airbus A320 N646JB

JetBlue Airways today formally unveiled its first Airbus A320 to undergo the airline’s fleet restyling, which is bringing an all-new interior to its A320 aircraft. The aircraft – tail N646JB named “Bravo Lima Uniform Echo” – operated its first scheduled flight today between Boston Logan international Airport (BOS) and Bermuda’s L.F. Wade International Airport (BDA). True to its founding mission to bring humanity back to air travel, JetBlue’s restyled interiors boast the very best in customer comfort, connectivity and entertainment – creating an environment that feels more like lounging in your living room than flying at 35,000-feet.

JetBlue’s A320 cabin restyling marks the first major overhaul the customer-friendly airline’s original fleet since launching in 2000. The industry-disrupting airline that first revolutionized flying with a refreshing reputation for its customer-focused approach, free snacks and signature live TV at every seat is creating a modernized experience based on customer preferences. For most of the airlines 101 destinations the A320 restyling will bring the first upgraded JetBlue product to their city in nearly 20 years.

A major focus of the restyling is keeping customers connected throughout their flight, including a new inflight entertainment system, high-definition seatback televisions, in-seat power outlets with USB ports and continued free gate-to-gate Fly-Fi high-speed internet.

Phased Restyling Schedule
The restyling will include two iterations of the design, with the 2018 model introducing features from the popular A321 interior and the 2019 and beyond model featuring an innovative seat design and inflight entertainment system unlike anything offered by U.S. airlines today.

For roughly the next nine months, JetBlue’s A320s will be restyled with the Rockwell Collins Pinnacle seat and LiveTV 4 entertainment options currently enjoyed by customers on the airline’s A321 aircraft.

In early 2019, JetBlue will transition to the restyling featuring the Rockwell Collins Meridian seat and Thales AVANT and ViaSat-2 products.

Introducing A Sleek and Smart Seat
In 2019, JetBlue will outfit its A320 aircraft with the Rockwell Collins Meridian seat, customized for the airline’s needs and featuring a number of design elements with customer comfort in mind:

Expanded seat width offers more than 18 inches, the widest available for the A320.
The most legroom in coach of any U.S. airline (a).
Enhanced cushion comfort.
Adjustable headrests, a new feature for JetBlue’s A320.
Contoured seatback design at knee level creates additional living space for every customer.
Redesigned seatback stowage options, including an innovative elastic grid to accommodate a variety of customer items.
At least two easily-accessible and repositioned power connections at every seat.

Exceptional Entertainment Options
Also in 2019, JetBlue will build on its reputation as an industry leader in inflight entertainment options with Thales AVANT and ViaSat-2 connectivity. With this system, JetBlue will offer customers aboard its restyled A320s expanded entertainment choices in nearly every region the airline flies.

10.1 inch, 1080P high definition screen at every seat.
More than 100 channels of live television.
Expanded collection of on demand movies, TV shows and video content, plus new gaming features.
Destination-specific content allowing customers to enhance their travel experience.
Picture-in-picture function.
Enhanced, 3D flight map offering multiple ways to track time to destination.
NFC paining turning personal handheld devices into remotes or gaming controllers.
Expanded Fly-Fi connectivity, providing coverage to nearly the entire JetBlue network.

All About In-Air Ambiance
JetBlue’s A320 restyling also allows the airline to refresh the overall feel of the aircraft interior. New LED lighting will enhance the look and tone of the in-cabin ambiance and allow for a variety of lighting settings to increase customer comfort. New sidewalls and overhead bins will also be installed, as well as a variety of newly incorporated design elements throughout that will capture JetBlue’s unique style and personality.

Restyling Schedule
JetBlue expects to complete approximately a dozen A320 restyles by the end of 2018, with the ability to complete multiple aircraft each month by 2019. JetBlue’s so-called A320 classics will be restyled first. JetBlue’s overall A320 restyling is set to take approximately three years.

Often Copied, Never Duplicated
As JetBlue refreshes its A320 fleet the airline is also enhancing an additional element that cannot be matched anywhere else in the sky: the airline’s crewmembers.

JetBlue’s philosophy has always been to hire those who are passionate about providing great service. In 2017 the airline grew to include more than 5,000 inflight crewmembers. At the same time JetBlue made a commitment to provide every one of them with enhanced tools and training for more meaningful interactions with customers every day.

Building on the success of JetBlue’s specially trained Mint inflight crewmembers, the airline expanded its unique ‘JetBlue Promises’ training standards across the board, with every inflight crewmember on track to compete the program in 2018. JetBlue is committed to offering world-class hospitality experiences across the entire airline, on every flight and at every seat.

All photos by JetBlue.

Frontier adds two new cities and announces six routes

Frontier Airlines has announced service on six new routes, including two new cities.

Frontier announced it will bring its unique brand of low fares done right to Santa Barbara and Sacramento, California.

In July, the carrier will continue its rapid growth in Raleigh-Durham with new flights to Detroit and Minneapolis/St. Paul as well as continuing expansion in Austin with new flights to Salt Lake City.

Summary of New Service

AUSTIN (AUS) to/from SALT LAKE CITY (SLC)

F9 1257 Depart AUS: 2:43 p.m. Arrive SLC: 4:36 p.m.

F9 1587 Depart SLC: 5:26 p.m. Arrive AUS: 9:16 p.m.

Aircraft: Airbus A320

Frequency: Wednesday, Saturday*

*Frequency effective 8/12: Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday

Service Start July, 7

DENVER (DEN) to/from SACRAMENTO (SMF)

F9 629 Depart DEN: 4:50 p.m. Arrive SMF: 6:25 p.m.

F9 629 Deptart SMF: 7:25 p.m. Arrive DEN: 10:45 p.m.

Aircraft: Airbus A320

Frequency: Monday, Wednesday, Saturday

Service Start: Aug, 1

F9 630 Depart DEN: 5:03 p.m. Arrive SMF: 6:38 p.m.

F9 630 Depart SMF: 7:38 p.m. Arrive DEN: 10:58 p.m.

Aircraft: Airbus A321

Frequency: Friday

Service Start: Aug. 3

DENVER (DEN) to/from SANTA BARBARA (SBA)

F9 569 Depart DEN: 4:55 p.m. Arrive SBA: 6:33 p.m.

F9 570 Depart SBA: 7:24 p.m. Arrive DEN: 10:54 p.m.

Aircraft: Airbus A320

Frequency: Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday

Service Start: Aug. 21

Seasonal

LAS VEGAS (LAS) to/from SACRAMENTO (SMF)

F9 745 Depart LAS: 4:32 p.m. Arrive SMF: 6:03 p.m.

F9 748 Depart SMF: 6:53 p.m. Arrive LAS: 8:16 p.m.

Aircraft: Airbus A320

Frequency: Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday

Service Start: Aug. 12

RALEIGH – DURHAM (RDU) to/from DETROIT (DTW)

F9 623 Depart RDU: 6:00 a.m. Arrive DTW: 7:50 a.m.

F9 890 Depart DTW: 9:34 p.m. Arrive RDU: 11:17 p.m.

Aircraft: Airbus A320

Frequency: Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday

Service Start: July, 8

Seasonal

RALEIGH – DURHAM (RDU) to/from MINNEAPOLIS – ST. PAUL (MSP)

F9 623 Depart RDU: 6:00 a.m. Arrive MSP: 7:52 p.m.

F9 462 Depart MSP: 6:46 p.m. Arrive: RDU 10:20 p.m.

Aircraft: Airbus A320

Frequency: Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday

Service Start: July, 9

Seasonal

Copyright Photo: Frontier Airlines (2nd) Airbus A320-214 WL N230FR (msn 6773) (Betty, the Bluebird) SNA (Michael B. Ing). Image: 941691.

Frontier aircraft slide show:

Qatar Airways touches down in Cardiff, Wales

The first Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, touched down on May 1 at Cardiff Airport, where it was welcomed with a celebratory water cannon salute (below) and greeted by the Mayor of the Vale of Glamorgan, Ms. Janice Charles. The new service will connect Cardiff to more than 150 business and leisure destinations worldwide.

On board the inaugural flight to Cardiff, Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, was joined by Secretary of State for Wales, Mr. Alun Cairns, The First Minister of Wales, Mr. Carwyn Jones, the United Kingdom Ambassador to the State of Qatar, Mr. Ajay Sharma and Chairman of Cardiff Airport, Mr. Roger Lewis.

To celebrate this special occasion, the award-winning airline flew its ultra-modern Airbus A350-900 to Cardiff, providing VIP guests the opportunity to experience the state-of-the-art aircraft. This was the first time a commercial passenger Airbus A350-900 aircraft, whose wings are built by Airbus in Wales, has landed on Welsh soil. Going forward, Qatar Airways will operate its daily Cardiff service with a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which has a two-class configuration including 22 seats in Business Class offering passengers direct aisle access with its 1-2-1 configuration, as well as 232 seats in Economy Class.

The launch of the new route to Cardiff is Qatar Airways’ first-ever service to Wales, providing passengers enhanced connectivity to the Middle East, Asia and Australia, with seamless connections to Sydney, Hong Kong, China, Melbourne and many more attractive business and leisure destinations.

Qatar Airways currently serves London Heathrow, Manchester, Birmingham, and Edinburgh, with service to London Gatwick to commence on May 22, 2018.

The airline last month revealed a raft of forthcoming global destinations in line with its expedited expansion plans, including the announcement that Qatar Airways will be the first Gulf carrier to begin direct service to Luxembourg. Other exciting new destinations to be launched by the airline include Tallinn, Estonia; Valletta, Malta; Langkawi, Malaysia; Da Nang, Vietnam; Bodrum and Antalya, Turkey; Mykonos, Greece and Málaga, Spain.

All photos by Qatar Airways.

Video:

QANTAS orders six more 787-9 Dreamliners, announces the retirement of the last 747-400

QANTAS Airways on May 2 announced an order for six additional Boeing 787-9s to fly on its international network, bringing its fleet of Dreamliners to 14 by the end of 2020.

The arrival of the new aircraft will enable the airline to accelerate retirement of its last six Boeing 747s – an aircraft type that has been in its fleet in various forms since 1971.

QANTAS Group CEO Alan Joyce said the announcement was an important moment for the national carrier.

“This really is the end of one era and the start of another. The jumbo has been the backbone of QANTAS International for more than 40 years and we’ve flown almost every type that Boeing built. It’s fitting that its retirement is going to coincide with our centenary in 2020,” Mr Joyce said.

“Over the years, each new version of the 747 allowed QANTAS to fly further and improve what we offered passengers. The Dreamliners are now doing the same thing.

“The 787 has better economics and a longer range, and its already opened up new routes like Perth to London. With a larger fleet of Dreamliners, we’ll be looking at destinations in the Americas, Asia, South Africa and Europe.

“By the end of 2020 we’ll have farewelled the 747, finished upgrading the cabins of our A380s, and welcomed our fourteenth 787. That’s a great proposition for our customers and creates some really exciting opportunities for our people,” added Mr Joyce.

Interiors of the additional 787s will feature the same configuration as the existing aircraft. The QANTAS Dreamliner carries fewer passengers than the larger 747 (236 seats vs 364) and has a greater focus on Business and Premium Economy seating.

However, the reduced maintenance needs of the 787 plus more efficient aircraft patterning and reduced payload restrictions on long routes mean the actual impact on overall capacity for QANTAS International is expected to be negligible. The Dreamliner burns approximately 20 per cent less fuel.

To date, QANTAS has taken delivery of four 787-9s with a further four due to arrive by the end of 2018. The six announced today will arrive between late 2019 and mid-to-late 2020.

There are currently ten 747-400s left in the fleet and these will be steadily retired between July this year and the end of 2020.

QANTAS received the last of its 747s new from Boeing in 2003, which will be 17 years old at time of retirement.

Top Copyright Photo: QANTAS Airways Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner VH-ZND (msn 63390) (Yam Dreaming) LHR (SPA). Image: 941740.

QANTAS Airways aircraft slide show:

Bottom Copyright Photo: QANTAS Airways Boeing 747-48E VH-OEB (msn 25778) LAX (Michael B. Ing). Image: 940779.

https://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Endangered-Species-List/Endangered-Species-List/i-KQJWMx6/A

Norwegian to add a third daily flight between London Gatwick and New York JFK

Norwegian has announced that from October 29, 2018 the airline will add an additional frequency between London Gatwick and New York JFK.

Norwegian is now the second largest long-haul airline at Gatwick with 13 direct long-haul destinations. The airline serves a total of 11 routes to the US and recently added Chicago and Austin to its’ expanding network.

The new flights provide extra flexibility and convenient schedules allowing passengers to choose a departure and arrival time that suits their requirements. Flight DI7017 departs from London Gatwick at 09.50 and lands at New York JFK at 13.00. Flight DI7018 departs New York JFK at 19.40 and lands at London Gatwick at 07.10 the following day.

Copyright Photo: Norwegian.com (Norwegian Air UK) Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner G-CKWD (msn 38789) (Ernest Shackleton, British Polar Explorer) PAE (Nick Dean). Image: 941721.

Norwegian UK aircraft slide show:

British Airways to start Nashville service on May 4

British Airways will launch the only nonstop service between London (Heathrow) and Nashville starting on May 4.

British Airways commented on the new route:

To celebrate the new five-a-week service the airline welcomed country music star, Stella Parton, to Heathrow with the Nashville native strutting her stuff and sharing her top tips.

Stella, who has lived in Nashville for 50 years and whose birthday is on May 4, was photographed on board a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner as the airline’s newest fleet will serve the capital of Tennessee.

Stella Parton, who hails from one of America’s most legendary music families, said: “On behalf of all of the Nashville natives we are so excited to welcome a British invasion! Nashville is so much more than just a music town, it’s growing, it’s happening and we want people to come and see what fantastic things we have going on. I’ve been lucky enough to tour the UK many times so I can’t wait to be able to fly direct to London with no stop-over!”

For a taste of the deep south the airline will be serving traditional hot chicken on flights from Nashville to Heathrow Terminal 5 in all cabins until June 4.

Top Copyright Photo (all others by British Airways): British Airways Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner G-ZBJI (msn 60626) LHR (SPA). Image: 940955.

British Airways aircraft slide show (Boeing):

Vietjet further expands with new routes to Taiwan and South Korea

Vietjet continues its Asian expansion program with the launch of two new international routes: Hanoi – Taichung (Taiwan) and Danang – Daegu (South Korea).

The Hanoi – Taichung route will be operated with 5 return flights per week on every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from June 22, 2018 with around two and a half hours flight time per leg. The flight departs from Hanoi at 13:00 and arrive in Taichung at 16:30 (local time). The return flight takes off at 17:30 (local time) in Taichung and lands in Hanoi at 19:20.

The Danang – Daegu route will be operated on a daily basis from July 19, 2018 with around four and a quarter hour flight time per leg. The flight will depart from Danang at 00:15 and arrive in Daegu at 06:30 (local time). The return flight will take off at Daegu at 07:30 (local time) and lands in Danang at 10:00every day.

With 6 routes serving Taiwan including HCMC – Taipei; Hanoi – Taipei; HCMC – Kaohsiung; Hanoi – Kaohsiung; HCMC – Tainan; HCMC – Taichung, Vietjet is the airline flying the most Taiwanese destinations from Vietnam.

Daegu is the fourth largest city of South Korea, after Seoul, Busan and Incheon.

Copyright Photo: Vietjet Air (VietJetAir.com) Airbus A320-214 WL D-AXAA (VN-A678) (msn 6025) XFW (Gerd Beilfuss). Image: 922328.

Vietjet aircraft slide show: