KLM to launch flights to Salt Lake City and Ibiza

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KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (Amsterdam) has announced it will add two new routes to both Salt Lake City and Ibiza, Spain from Amsterdam. The AMS-SLC route will be launched on May 5, 2016 and will operate two days a week initially with Airbus A330-200 aircraft. On July 4, a third weekly flight will be offered.

KLM will cater to customer requirements by offering three different passenger classes aboard the A330-200: 30 seats in World Business Class, 178 seats in Economy Class, and 35 seats in Economy Comfort, which offers 10 cm more legroom, double-reclining seats and priority de-boarding.

The new KLM flights to Salt Lake City will supplement the existing daily flight between Salt Lake City and Amsterdam operated by Air France KLMโ€™s transatlantic Joint Venture partner Delta Air Lines. Salt Lake City is one of Deltaโ€™s five hubs.

From May 5 through June 18 and from September 8 through October 29, the flights will depart from Amsterdam at 10.20 CET, arriving in Salt Lake City at 12.40 local time. The return flights will depart from Salt Lake City at 14.50 local time, arriving in Amsterdam at 08.20 CET the following morning.

From June 23 through September 5, the flights will depart from Amsterdam at 12.30 CET, arriving in Salt Lake City at 14.50 local time. The return flights will depart from Salt Lake City at 16.50 local time, arriving in Amsterdam at 10.20 CET the following morning.

Additionally the carrier is also starting Boeing 737-700 service from AMS to Ibiza on July 4, 2016 until August 25, 2016. The seasonal flights will be operated weekdays only.

The peak season KLM operation to Ibiza is in addition to the existing Transavia Airlines (Amsterdam) summer operations from Amsterdam, Eindhoven and Rotterdam.

Copyright Photo: Chris Sands/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A330-203 PH-AOF (msn 801) is pictured in action at Calgary International Airport.

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China Postal Airlines to acquire 10 737-800 Boeing converted freighters

Boeing (Chicago, Seattle and Charleston) hasย announced an agreement with China Postal Airlines (Beijing) for 10 Next-Generation 737 Boeing Converted Freighters (BCFs), pending a program launch.

China Postal logo
Through its converted freighter programs, Boeing extends the valuable service life of a passenger airplane by modifying it to function as a freighter.

“This is a historic order both for China Postal and Boeing,” said Yufeng Li, president of China Postal Airlines, who signed the agreement with Boeing leaders at a ceremony today in Beijing. “The 737-800 BCF will bring to our freighter fleet more advanced avionics, better fuel efficiency and lower operating costs that will ensure China Postal’s continued success as a leader in the industry.”

The 737-800 is the first Next-Generation 737 that Boeing will offer for conversion.

Through the 737 BCF program, Boeing will support customers in the narrow-body freighter market, a segment of the freighter market growing quickly around the world.

China Postal Airlines joins Hangzhou-based YTO Airlines as a launch customer for the Boeing BCF program.

China Postal’s agreement with Boeing โ€“ which also includes the purchase of seven Boeing 757-200s that the airline plans to convert into freighters โ€“ marks the largest purchase order in the airline’s history.

China Postal Airlines Co.,Ltd. (CPA) was established on November 25, 1996 and officially launched services on February 27, 1997.

Up to now, the CPA fleet consists of twenty-two Boeing 737 aircraft including fourteen Boeing 737-300 and eight Boeing 737-400 freighters, as well as 4 leased Boeing 757-200 freighters.

The company uses Nanjing as its main cargo hub, as well as Shanghai and Wuhan as regional hubs, the company flies to 7 areas, including North China, East China, Northeast, Central China, South China, Southwest, Northeast and 3 international or regional cities containing Taipei (Taiwan), Seoul (South Korea) and Osaka (Japan).

CPA plans to expand its fleet to 30 aircraft.

Image: Boeing.

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Egyptian Government to appoint a global security company to review airport security

The Egyptian Tourism Authority has just made this announcement:

Egypt Tourism logo

The Egyptian government met with world-leading security and risk advisory companies in Cairo on December 10, 2015 to hear proposals to review and enhance airport security in the country.

The global security companies, which were chosen for their specific expertise in aviation security, presented to members of the Egyptian government’s Cabinet of Ministers, including His Excellency the Prime Minister, Sherif Ismail; Captain Hassan Kamal, Minister of Civil Aviation; Mr. Magdi Abdel-Ghaffar, Minister of Interior; and Mr. Hesham Zaazou, Minister of Tourism.

The assignment covers the requirement to audit aviation security at airports across Egypt, encompassing a review of security and safety procedures, equipment and training. The chosen company will then make recommendations to the government to ensure Egyptian airport security is world-class gold standard, and work alongside the government to support the implementation of the recommendations, additional training of security personnel as well as conducting ongoing and regular assessments.

The government is due to make a decision on which company to appoint in the coming days, following a thorough review of proposals and capabilities. An announcement is expected before the end of December.

The decision to appoint international security experts was made by the government’s security committee, established to review and enhance security across airports. The group is headed by the Prime Minister and includes the Interior Ministry, Ministry of Civil Aviation and Ministry of Tourism. The government is committed to take swift, transparent action in order to provide the best practices in security measures.

In addition, the government is already working closely with international authorities to enhance security, based on international best practices. Egypt recently passed an audit by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) which included representatives from Russian, Dutch, Emirati and Italian airlines. Furthermore, Egypt is collaborating with British, German and Russian government delegations which have been reviewing and providing recommendations related to security.

His Excellency Hesham Zaazou, Minister of Tourism, said, “Foreign visitors make a vital contribution to the Egyptian economy, and we are taking all necessary steps to further strengthen security for the tourism sector. Key ministries, under leadership of the Prime Minister, are working in close collaboration to make urgent enhancements to airport security.”

Qatar Airways launches its new “Going Places Together” worldwide ad campaign

Qatar Airways (Doha) on December 9 launched its new “Going Places Together” worldwide ad campaign with this new video and press release:

Qatar Airways logo

Qatar Airways successfully launched its new global brand campaign and tagline โ€“ Going Places Together โ€“ at a press conference in New York on December 9. The unveiling of the new campaign was well received by the international media and VIP guests who attended.
The press conference was hosted by Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, who said, โ€œThis campaign is all about the coming of age for this airline โ€“ taking a life of its own with a future that blossoms into a treasure each and every day. Itโ€™s about going places โ€“ literally and figuratively. We value each journey we take with our guests on board, and the overall experience of going places together.โ€

Top Video: Qatar Airways.

Qatar CEO Al Baker and model of the Airbus A350-900 (Qatar)(LRW)

Photo Above: Qatar Airways.ย Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker celebrates landing of the first Airbus A350 in the US.

Drawing together a series of interconnected themes, the re-brand is a fresh and even more emotionally engaging direction for the airline, which has developed its messaging strategy to reflect its evolution as a brand and its global role as a leader in the airline industry.

One of the fastest growing airlines operating one of the youngest fleets in the world, Qatar Airways has adopted the emotive and modern brand campaign to reflect its core values as a contemporary and innovative company that is really going places and wants nothing more than to inspire its passengers to do the same.

At the heart of the campaign is the concept of the airline connecting people both physically and emotionally with any of the 153 places on its global network on board one of its 173 state-of-the-art aircraft. The theme of connectivity extends to the warm welcome every passenger receives when they board a Qatar Airways flight from the friendly and helpful cabin crew who are hand-picked for their natural ability to make personal connections with every passenger they meet.

The new campaign, which debuted in Qatarโ€™s newspapers, television and out-of-home on Tuesday, will now roll out across global media channels including platforms such as the New York Times, CNN, Financial Times and Times Square billboards.The campaign celebrations began in New York on Tuesday when Qatar Airways became the first commercial airline to land an Airbus A350 in the United States. Qatar Airways was the global launch carrier of the A350 and is the first to fly the aircraft to three continents; the airlineโ€™s fleet of seven A350s currently flies twice a day to Frankfurt, double daily to Munich and three times a day to Singapore from Doha.

An eighth A350 will join the fleet before the end of the year and is scheduled to fly daily to Philadelphia from January 1, 2016. As further A350s join the fleet throughout 2016 passengers will have the opportunity to experience this new-generation aircraft on flights to Boston launching on March 16, and the new second daily flight to New York from April 1 and Adelaide, Australia from May 2.

Editorial Note: As previously reported on our World Airline News Facebook page, the first Airbus A350 departure from New York (JFK) was marred by an aborted takeoff (see video below):

 

 

Delta and KLM announce a codeshare partnership with Jet Airways via Amsterdam Airport Schiphol

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Delta Air Lines (Atlanta) and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (Amsterdam) will launch a codeshare agreement with India’s Jet Airways (Mumbai) that brings convenient new travel options for customers flying from Europe and the United States via Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to India and beyond.

Delta and KLM announce codeshare partnership with Jet Airways via Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (PRNewsFoto/Delta Air Lines)

Delta and KLM announce codeshare partnership with Jet Airways via Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (PRNewsFoto/Delta Air Lines)

Effective March 27, 2016 and subject to government approvals, Delta and KLM customers flying from Europe and the United States to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport will be able to connect onto Jet Airways’ new daily flights to Delhi and Mumbai, with onward destinations that include Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Kochi, Goa, Kolkata and Amritsar in India; Dhaka, Bangladesh; Kathmandu, Nepal; and Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Delta and KLM codeshare on these Jet Airways routes will provide customers with co-ordinated customer service, a single ticket and through-check in of bags to their final destinations. Delta SkyMiles and KLM Flying Blue members will be eligible to earn and redeem frequent flyer miles on codeshare routes operated by Jet.

In addition, Jet Airways will place its code on flights between Amsterdam and 11 destinations in the United States and Canada operated by Delta and KLM. These include: New York-JFK, Newark, Chicago, Washington D.C., Houston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal and Edmonton. Jet Airways will also codeshare on KLM-operated flights to 30 European destinations beyond Amsterdam including Madrid, Zurich and Milan. KLM’s service between Amsterdam and New Delhi also forms part of this agreement.

 

Delta and KLM offer up to 19 peak-day services to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport from 21 destinations in the United States and Canada.

Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems/AirlinersGallery.com. Jet Airways, with this new agreement, is shifting its European hub from Brussels to Amsterdam. Airbus A330-302 VT-JWU (msn 1391) prepares to taxi from the gate at BRU.

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ALC announces the lease placement of two new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners with El Al

Air Lease Corporation (ALC) (Los Angeles) has announced an agreement to lease two new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft to El Al Israel Airlines (Tel Aviv). Both aircraft are on long-term lease from ALCโ€™s order book with Boeing and are scheduled to be delivered to Israelโ€™s flag carrier airline in the third quarter and early fourth quarter of 2017. These new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft will replace older Boeing 747-400s in El Al’s fleet and will be the first two 787s for the airline.

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Lufthansa launches three long-haul leisure destinations from Frankfurt

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Lufthansa (Frankfurt) is adding three new long-haul destinations from its Frankfurt hub to Cancรบn, Mexico, Malรฉ, in the Maldives, and Mauritius.

The expansion kicked off on December 8, when flight LH 514 departed Frankfurt for Cancรบn. This was followed on Wednesday, December 9 with flight LH 704 to Malรฉ. The week was rounded off on December 10 with flight LH 708 to Mauritius.

Lufthansa has added to its network in the last few months, with Tampa, Florida and Nairobi, Kenya being added in late September and late October respectively. In March 2016, flights to Panama City, Panama will begin.

The aircraft used for these flights โ€“ equipped with a FlyNet broadband connection โ€“ is the Airbus A340-300, with seats spread over three different travel classes. Out of a total of 298 seats, 18 are in Business Class, 19 in Premium Economy and 261 in Economy.

Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth/AirlinersGallery.com.ย 8 Airbus A340-300s are being transferred to and leased-back from Lufthansa CityLine and will be operated in a high-density configuration on leisure routes. Airbus A340-313 D-AIGY (msn 335) prepares to depart from the Frankfurt hub.

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Air France to restore two long-range routes next summer

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Air France (Paris) will be enhancing its flight schedule for summer 2016 with two additional routes. Starting in June 2016, Air France will begin service from New York (JFK) to Paris-Orly, in addition to the four daily frequencies to Paris Charles de Gaulle.

Beginning in April 2016, Air France will operate three weekly flights from Paris Charles de Gaulle to Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport.

The daily New York-JFK to Paris-Orly service will be operated by Boeing 777-200 aircraft, equipped with 309 seats โ€“ 35 in Business, 24 in Premium Economy and 250 in Economy.

This route is part of the transatlantic joint venture with Delta Air Lines (Atlanta) and offers customers the possibility of arriving at Parisโ€™ second busiest airport. It also enables passengers to easily connect with Air Franceโ€™s domestic network on arrival at Paris-Orly.

Flight schedule (in local time)

AF37: Leaves New York-JFK at 18:05, arrives at Paris-Orly at 7:05 the following day;
AF32: Leaves Paris-Orly at 11:00, arrives at New York-JFK at 13:10.

Air France is supporting the resumption of commercial exchange with Iran and will serve Tehran from Paris-Charles de Gaulle three times a week (on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday) starting in April 2016.

Flight schedule (in local time)

AF738: Leaves Paris-Charles de Gaulle at 10:30, arrives in Tehran at 18:40;
AF755: Leaves Tehran at 7:15, arrives at Paris-Charles de Gaulle at 10:55.

Background of the New York โ€“ Paris Route

The route was launched on July 1, 1946, by Douglas DC-4. The flight lasted 23 hours 45 minutes and carried 33 passengers on board.

In 1960, Air France served New York from Paris-Orly by Boeing 707 in 8 hours 15 minutes.

In 1970, JFK airport welcomed Air Franceโ€™s Boeing 747-100, then the Concorde (1977), a romance that lasted more than 25 years. In 2009, New York was the first to welcome the Airbus A380.

Background of the Paris โ€“ Tehran Route

On April 29, 1946, Air France launched a scheduled route Paris โ€“ Marseille โ€“ Tunis โ€“ Benghazi – Cairo โ€“ Beirut โ€“ Baghdad – Tehran, with a flight every two weeks.

The nonstop Paris-Tehran route was suspended in October 2008.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. The restored Paris (Orly) – New York (JFK) route will be operated with Boeing 777-200 ER aircraft including the pictured 777-228 ER F-GSPY (msn 32305) arriving at Los Angeles International Airport.

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WestJet launches new services from Toronto Pearson

Stunning view of WestJet's Frozen logo jet

WestJet (Calgary) will launch new nonstop services from Toronto Pearson to six destinations over the next week beginning with twice-weekly service to West Palm Beach which started yesterday (December 11). Other new nonstop destinations include Huatulco, Merida and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, San Jose, Costa Rica, and Sarasota/Bradenton, Florida.

WestJet will operate 92 daily departures to 59 destinations from Toronto Pearson this winter, an increase of seven and 13 per cent respectively compared to last winter.

Details of WestJet’s new non-stop services launching from Toronto Pearson this month:

Route Frequency Departs Arrives Effective

Toronto – West Palm Beach Twice weekly 7:25 a.m. 10:32 a.m. Dec. 11, 2015
West Palm Beach – Toronto Twice weekly 11:20 a.m. 2:19 p.m. Dec. 11, 2015
Toronto – Huatulco Twice weekly 9:15 a.m. 1:55 p.m. Dec. 13, 2015
Huatulco – Toronto Twice weekly 2:45 p.m. 8:29 p.m. Dec. 13, 2015
Toronto – Merida Once weekly 8:15 a.m. 11:33 a.m. Dec. 15, 2015
Merida – Toronto Once weekly 12:25 p.m. 5:14 p.m. Dec. 15, 2015
Toronto – San Jose, CR Twice weekly 9:15 a.m. 1:40 p.m. Dec. 15, 2015
San Jose CR – Toronto Twice weekly 2:30 p.m. 8:38 p.m. Dec. 15, 2015
Toronto – Sarasota Twice weekly 8:05 a.m. 11:06 a.m. Dec. 18, 2015
Sarasota – Toronto Twice weekly 11:55 a.m. 2:39 p.m. Dec. 18, 2015
Toronto – Cabo San Lucas Once weekly 9:15 a.m. 12:32 p.m. Dec. 19, 2015
Cabo San Lucas – Toronto Once weekly 1:25 p.m. 8:32 p.m. Dec. 19, 2015

WestJet’s 2015 winter schedule also contains a number of new nonstop routes including Vancouver, Kitchener-Waterloo and Charlottetown to Orlando; Calgary to Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood and Liberia, Costa Rica; and Toronto and Halifax to Boston.

In other news,ย WestJet will today (December 12) launch new nonstop service from Calgary to Huatulco, its tenth destination in Mexico, and add new nonstop flights from Calgary to Liberia, Costa Rica, beginning on December 19.

With these new services, WestJet will operate 109 daily departures to 47 destinations from Calgary International Airport this winter, an increase of 12 and 17 per cent respectively over last winter. The airline now offers nonstop service from Calgary to 26 Canadian, 10 U.S. and 11 international destinations.

Copyright Photo: TMK Photography/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-8CT C-GWST (msn 37158) in the eye-catching Walt Disney World – Frozen livery departs from Toronto (Pearson).

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