easyJet and Neos: starting from June, flights will be available from Southern Italy to New York and Santo Domingo via Milan Malpensa

easyJet has made this announcement:

The partnership between easyJet, the leading airline in Milan Malpensa, and Neos, the second Italian airline and part of the Alpitour group, aims to increase connectivity between Southern Italy and th…

easyJet and Neos have announced a partnership to further enhance connections from Italy to some of the most attractive intercontinental destinations. Starting from 16 June, easyJet will provide connecting flights from Catania, Naples and Palermo to Neos’ passengers departing for New York JFK Airport and Santo Domingo La Romana Airport, with a stopover at Milan Malpensa Airport, easyJet’s main hub in continental Europe.

As a result of the partnership, easyJet, the leading airline at Milan Malpensa, will offer flights from Catania, Palermo, and Naples to Neos and Alpitour customers heading to the United States and the Dominican Republic, allowing Alpitour Group, the leading tour operator in Italy, to further expand its product offering in Southern Italy.

easyJet (UK) aircraft photo gallery:

Tibet Airlines Airbus A319 B-6425 veers off the runway at Chongqing, catches on fire, 36 people injured

https://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Hot-New-Photos/Hot-New/i-xpG6R3V/A

Tibet AIrlines flight VT9833 from Chongqing to Nyingchi in China on May 11 aborted its takeoff with 113 passengers and nine crew members on board.

The Airbus A319 (B-6425) aborted its takeoff roll and veered off the runway and was destroyed by fire.

Saudia operates the world’s longest net positive flight

Saudia – Saudi Arabian Airlines issued this report:

SAUDIA, the national flag carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, operated the world’s longest net positive flight thanks to a partnership with Enviro-tech business CarbonClick and aviation consultancy SimpliFlying.

On May 12, 2022, SAUDIA offset a total of 346 tons of carbon emissions, including radiative forcing impacts by a factor of two, for commercial passenger flight SV227, from Jeddah to Madrid, making the flight net-positive.

Operating with a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, the flight time was 5 hours and 55 minutes. Flight SV227 departed from King Abdulaziz International airport at 1030 hrs and arrived at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas airport at 1535 local time.

This flight is SAUDIA’s entry into The Sustainable Flight Challenge, an initiative by SkyTeam, one of the world’s three major airline alliances. All SkyTeam airlines are being challenged to go above and beyond by finding the most sustainable way to operate one single flight in their existing networks.

The challenge seeks inspiration from the 1934 MacRobertson Air Race from London to Melbourne. As part of that, CarbonClick’s partner SimpliFlying is working with SAUDIA to enable them to operate a net-positive flight.

The flight will also see the world’s first in-flight sustainability lab, where passengers contribute ideas on how air travel can become ‘greener’, led by SimpliFlying.

SAUDIA’s participation in SkyTeam’s Sustainable Flight Challenge is part of a broader commitment by the airline to continually improve its environmental performance. This is an integral part of its business strategy and commitment to becoming an industry leader in sustainability. The flight comes on the heels of the Future Aviation Forum in Riyadh, where sustainability was a key theme and SAUDIA was the strategic partner and official carrier.

CarbonClick has been selected by SimpliFlying and SAUDIA as the offsetting partner for this challenge. CarbonClick will offset flight SV227 by applying the contribution from SAUDIA to the generation of clean wind electricity for communities in India. From the offsets bought, wind turbines can be powered for 26 days, generating clean energy for the local population.

This Gold Standard project is building wind power in India, displacing an equivalent amount of carbon-intense electricity which would otherwise rely on dirty fossil fuels like coal. The contribution by SAUDIA to this project will supply clean energy to the grid, providing sustainable electricity to families living in Bhuj, in the western Indian state of Gujarat.

Saudia aircraft photo gallery:

Shareholders of Avianca and controlling shareholder of GOL to create Abra Group

Avianca has issued this statement:

The principal shareholders of Colombia’s Avianca and the controlling shareholder of Brazil’s GOL have signed a landmark agreement to create a leading air transportation group across Latin America under a holding company structure named Abra Group Limited. Subject to customary regulatory approvals and closing conditions, the Abra Group will control Avianca and GOL and bring together their iconic brands under a single holding.

Through recent investments made by Avianca’s and Viva’s shareholders, the Group will also own a non-controlling 100% economic interest in Viva’s operations in Colombia and Peru as well as convertible debt representing a minority interest investment in Chile’s Sky Airline.

Together, Avianca and GOL will anchor a pan-Latin American network of airlines that will have the lowest unit cost in their respective markets, the leading loyalty programs across the region, and other synergistic businesses. Avianca and GOL will continue to maintain independent brands, talent, teams, and culture while benefiting from greater efficiencies and investments under common aligned ownership.

Abra will provide a platform for the operating airlines to further reduce costs, achieve greater economies of scale, continue to operate a state-of-the-art fleet of aircraft, and expand their routes, services, product offerings, and loyalty programs.

In the aggregate, the airlines under the Abra Group ownership will offer customers the largest network of complementary routes, with minimal overlap, across their markets.

Abra’s financial strength will provide long-term stability and agility to the participating airlines that will allow consistent and sustained investment in innovations and synergies.

Abra Group will be co-controlled by the principal shareholders of Avianca and the majority shareholder of GOL and be led by management with significant airline experience across the region, a long history of entrepreneurship, and a proven track record of growth and successful airline transformations.

Roberto Kriete, who will serve as the group’s Chairman, grew TACA in the 1980s into the leading Central American airline before merging it with Colombia’s Avianca Airlines in 2009. He also founded the leading Mexican carrier Volaris in 2006.
Constantino de Oliveira Junior, who will serve as the group’s CEO, pioneered Latin America’s low-cost carrier revolution when he founded GOL Airlines in 2001. Together with the acquisition of VRG in 2007 and Webjet in 2011, he led the company’s growth to a market-leading position.
Adrian Neuhauser, current President and CEO of Avianca, and Richard Lark, current CFO of GOL, will serve as the group’s Co-Presidents, in addition to maintaining their current roles at the airlines; further details on the Abra management team will be provided at closing.

Abra Group’s management will focus on achieving synergies to ensure the lowest cost structure in each carrier’s relevant market; expanding routes, services, product offerings, and loyalty programs; and developing innovative new products and services that will meet the evolving needs of passengers and air cargo customers in the highly competitive Latin American air transportation market and beyond.

Abra will also ensure that its operating airlines are ESG market leaders by providing enhanced governance as well as the financial strength to continue to invest in a lower carbon footprint fleet, which will significantly accelerate the airline industry’s path towards meeting carbon neutrality targets.

Roberto Kriete, Abra Group’s Chairman, said: “Our vision is to create an airline group that tackles 21^st century issues and improves air travel for our customers, employees, and partners as well as the communities in which we operate. Our customers will benefit from access to even better fares, more destinations, more frequent flights and seamless connections, and the ability to earn and use points across the brands’ loyalty programs. They will also be able to enjoy enhanced travel benefits and access to superior products and services.”

Constantino de Oliveira Junior, Abra Group’s CEO, said: “This agreement places Abra’s airlines in a position to lead air travel within the region – serving a population of over one billion and GDP of nearly three trillion US dollars – providing significant opportunities for capacity and revenue growth. Our unique enterprise structure will allow each airline to drive results by maintaining their independent brands, talent, teams, and culture and will provide employees more opportunities for personal and professional growth at every stage of their careers.”

In related news, the majority shareholders of Viva and Avianca jointly announced that Viva will become part of the same holding company as Avianca Group International Limited (Avianca Group) and that Declan Ryan, founding partner of Viva, will join the board of directors of Avianca Group, bringing his decades of aviation experience.

Any transfer of control rights over Viva’s operations in Colombia and Peru by the new holding company will be subject to requesting and obtaining all necessary regulatory authorizations.

Until the receipt of necessary authorizations, control and administration of Viva in Colombia and Peru will be independent of Avianca; Viva will continue to compete with the other airlines within the Avianca Group. Until the authorizations are obtained, customers, suppliers, employees, and relationships for the companies will remain the same; with separate internal and external operations, as well as independent sales channels and customer service teams.

Avianca aircraft photo gallery:

North American airline passenger satisfaction declines: Here’s why that’s good news, says J.D. Power

J.D. Power has issued its latest report on airline satisfaction in North America:

The crowds are back at the airport, those empty middle seats are occupied again and airlines in North America are raising ticket prices in response to soaring fuel costs and continued strong leisure travel demand—all at the expense of passenger satisfaction. While dramatically higher prices could harm airline brands in the long term, for now, load volume is continuing to climb and passengers are willing to be assigned a middle seat in exchange for getting out of their houses, according to the J.D. Power 2022 North America Airline Satisfaction Study,^SM released today.

“Customer satisfaction with North American airlines climbed to unprecedented highs for all of the wrong reasons during the past two years,” said Michael Taylor, travel intelligence lead at J.D. Power. “Fewer passengers meant more space on airplanes, less waiting in line and more attention from flight attendants. But that business model was simply not sustainable. Now, with volumes surging and some remnants of pandemic-era constraints still in place, passenger satisfaction is in decline—but that’s not really bad news. If airlines can find ways to manage these growing volumes while making some small adjustments to help passengers feel more valued, they should be able to manage this return to ‘normal.’”

Following are some of the key findings of the 2022 study:

Overall passenger satisfaction declines sharply across nearly all measures: Overall passenger satisfaction across all three study segments—first/business, premium economy and economy/basic economy—is 798 (on a 1,000-point scale), down more than 20 points from a year ago. Passenger satisfaction with cost, flight crews and aircraft all decline in this year’s study.
Premium passengers want their free drinks: Remnants of pandemic-era restrictions, such as the suspension of alcohol service in premium class, has driven sharp declines in passenger satisfaction with food and beverage offerings. This year, food and beverage satisfaction scores decline 38 points in the premium economy segment and decline 12 points in the first/business segment. By contrast, food and beverage satisfaction scores increase 7 points in the economy/basic economy segment.
Cost is a driving factor in satisfaction as average ticket cost rises 20%: With higher fuel prices and rising demand driving a 20% increase in average airfares through March 2022, cost continues to be a significant factor in passenger satisfaction. Overall satisfaction with cost & fees declines in the premium economy segment (-66 points), in the economy/basic economy segment (-33) and in the first/business segment (-21).

Study Rankings

JetBlue Airways ranks highest in customer satisfaction in the first/business segment with a score of 878. Alaska Airlines (876) ranks second and Delta Air Lines (862) ranks third.

JetBlue Airways also ranks highest in customer satisfaction in the premium economy segment with a score of 851. Delta Air Lines (837) ranks second and Alaska Airlines (825) ranks third.

Southwest Airlines ranks highest in customer satisfaction in the economy/basic economy segment with a score of 849. JetBlue Airways (828) ranks second and Delta Air Lines (813) ranks third.

The North America Airline Satisfaction Study measures passenger satisfaction with airline carriers in North America based on performance in eight factors (in alphabetical order): aircraft; baggage; boarding; check-in; cost and fees; flight crew; in-flight services; and reservation. The study measures passenger satisfaction in three segments—first/business, premium economy and economy/basic economy—and is based on responses from 7,004 passengers. Passengers needed to have flown on a major North America airline within the past month of completing a survey. The study was fielded from March 2021 through March 2022.

For more information about the North America Airline Satisfaction Study, visit
https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/jd-power-north-america-airline-satisfaction-study.

Southwest to spend two billion dollars in planned investments to improve the passenger experence

Southwest Airlines, today awarded the 2022 J.D. Power Award for Highest Customer Satisfaction among Economy carriers in North America, announces next steps in its plan to bring the next generation of Customer Experience in travel with Southwest Airlines®, through more than two billion dollars in planned investments. These initiatives are designed to enhance and simplify Customers’ journeys—from booking trips, to traveling through airports, and while inflight—delivering an even more enjoyable, efficient, and productive Customer Experience.

On the ongoing journey to modernize the Customer Experience, Southwest revealed commitments to:

Bring enhanced WiFi connectivity onboard aircraft;
Install latest-technology onboard power ports to charge personal devices at every seat;
Offer larger overhead bins with more space and easier access to carryon items;
Launch a new fare category with added flexibility and value, Wanna Get Away PlusTM;
Introduce more entertainment options and a wider selection of refreshments in the cabin; and,
Enable new self-service capabilities to bring elevated ease in doing business with Southwest, benefiting Employees and Customers.

“You can never stop working to get better, and as our beloved Founder Herb famously said, ‘If you rest on your laurels, you’ll get a thorn in your butt!’ We have a long and proud history of offering Legendary Customer Service and warm Hospitality, and we have bold plans and significant investments to modernize and enhance the Southwest Experience,” said Bob Jordan, Chief Executive Officer. “As we continue to welcome back loyal Customers and win new ones, these initiatives, combined with the best People in the industry, support our Purpose of connecting People to what’s most important in their lives through friendly, reliable, and low-cost air travel.”

Commitment to Connectivity

“Top of our list is giving our Customers reliable connections in the air to those things that are important and accessible to them on the ground,” said Ryan Green, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. “We’re investing in our onboard connectivity and bandwidth available to each Customer with upgraded technology that’s now installing across our existing fleet, a strategy to diversify our WiFi vendors on upcoming aircraft deliveries, and plugging Southwest Customers into in-seat power to keep them charged while in the air.”

Southwest is upgrading WiFi equipment on its existing fleet with longstanding connectivity provider Anuvu’s latest-generation hardware capable of providing a significant improvement in speed and bandwidth up to 10 times the current hardware onboard.
Plans are for the Anuvu latest-generation hardware to be onboard 50 in-service aircraft by the end of May, with a projected 350 aircraft upgraded by the end of October.

Testing the upgraded WiFi equipment is now underway on some routes over the western mainland U.S. As part of the test, Southwest is offering free WiFi to all Customers on select flights to understand how the upgraded equipment performs with a large number of Customers using the equipment simultaneously.

Alongside its relationship with legacy connectivity provider Anuvu, Southwest recently entered into an agreement with industry-leading satellite connectivity provider Viasat to provide high quality internet and live television programming onboard newly delivered aircraft beginning in the fall of this year.

Southwest pioneered gate-to-gate connectivity in 2010, becoming the first major airline in the United States to offer satellite-based connectivity on domestic flights. The first generation technology brought free live TV, streamed on individual devices. The airline continues to heavily invest in its WiFi product aimed to meet Customers’ connectivity expectations.

Leaping to the Latest In-Seat Power

Southwest plans to install latest-generation onboard USB A and USB C power ports on every seat in the aircraft, with a space-saving system that will not compromise legroom. The airline plans to bring this new convenience and capability onboard 737 MAX aircraft beginning in early 2023.

“The ability to keep your devices charged while you are connected inflight is a request that we’ve heard consistently in ongoing conversations with our Customers,” said Tony Roach, Vice President of Customer Experience and Customer Relations. “With so much that our Customers love about doing business with Southwest, we’re constantly listening to our Employees and our Customers for improvement opportunities, and we’re excited to share some additional news and updates on this ongoing work.”

Wait…there’s more!

Bin here, bin there: Alongside its famous “Bags Fly Free” promise that provides every Customer onboard a Southwest flight the option to check two bags for free (weight and size limitations apply), the carrier is making room in the cabin for carryon items with larger overhead bins that also bring easier access to store and retrieve luggage onboard. The larger overhead bins will be on aircraft deliveries beginning early next year.
Online, not in line: New functionality for the carrier’s digital platforms and airport kiosks give Customers the ability to handle common requests and help them move more efficiently from curb to gate. By late summer 2022, Customers will be able to purchase Upgraded Boarding A1-A15 positions (when available) on their mobile devices without standing in line at the airport. Also on the horizon, an ability to add lap child travelers when booking online, and the airline recently added lap child check-in at self-service kiosks. Introducing more self-service options builds on the carrier’s effort to reduce wait times with improved and simplified online change functionality; recent improvements have reduced the need for Customers to call to make flight changes, and subsequently reduced hold times to allow Southwest Representatives more availability for specialized Hospitality and Customer Service.
More flexibility takes flight: The carrier’s previously announced additional fare, Wanna Get Away Plus, is expected to become available to Customers later this month, bringing a new ability to transfer travel funds1 and to confirm a same-day change2 to an available seat on a different flight between the same origin and destination, without a change in base fare. Southwest also offers a wide variety of accepted payment methods, and provides My Account information in mobile friendly views across the carrier’s digital platforms.
Mixing it up: Adding to an expansive beverage selection featuring a number of alcohol options, additional refreshment offerings will begin this summer with a Bloody Mary Mix, followed by a ready-to-drink cocktail in September, alongside new options of Hard Seltzer, and Rosé.3 Southwest also will enhance its inflight entertainment portal to more than double the number of free movies currently available by end of year and coming late May will update the flight tracker to provide 3-D views that offer aircraft information and customized destination guides based on your flight itinerary.

Southwest Airlines aircraft photo gallery (current livery):

Inaugural Whitehorse, Yellowknife and Toronto flight takes off and arrives

Air North, Yukon’s Airline flight 4N823 (above) took off just after 8 am on the on May 10 with the airline’s President and CEO, Joe Sparling (below), at the controls. It will arrive in Toronto in the afternoon (below) after a brief stop in Yellowknife, marking the launch of the first-ever scheduled service between these capital cities.

In the North, it’s clearly understood how vital connection is personally, economically and culturally. Scale is redefined when moose outnumber people, there’s 0.09 Yukoners per square kilometre and the closest provincial capital is 1,500 kilometres away. It takes an airline with its roots in the territories, one that pulses with the resolve of those who live North of 60, to take on a route like this.

The Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation own 49% of Air North. More than 1,500 Yukoners also invested in the airline, which gives the company a mandate based around the needs of Yukoners.

Seasonal service to Toronto will operate until early October, 2022.

Quick Facts

Air North has been in operation since February 1, 1977. It acquired its first jets and began connecting the Yukon with southern gateway cities in 2002, beginning with Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton.
Air North now counts Victoria, Kelowna, and Ottawa among its other gateway connections—with Yellowknife on both the Ottawa and Toronto routes.
In the North, the airline offers ATR 42 turboprop (below) service between Whitehorse and Dawson City, Old Crow and Inuvik.
Air North also flies charter services for both passengers and cargo across North America.

Air North aircraft photo gallery:

United Airlines to cut its long-haul network in June due to the 777-200 prolonged grounding

United Airlines has been forced to cut its long-haul network in June due to the continued grounding of its 52 Boeing 777-200s powered by Bratt & Whitney engines.

The following routes will be cut in June:

Newark hub to:

Honolulu

Maui

Stockholm (Arlanda) (will not be restored)

Tokyo (Narita)

Washington Dulles hub to:

Dublin

Geneva

Honolulu

Sao Paulo

United Airlines aircraft photo gallery:

SAS will be forced to cancel around 4,000 flights this summer

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS will be forced to cancel around 4,000 flights this summer, blaming staff shortages and delayed aircraft deliveries according to the Swedish financial daily Dagens Industri (DI).

SAS aircraft photo gallery:

ANA to resume Airbus A380 “Flying Honu” operations on the Tokyo Narita – Honolulu route, will resume the Tokyo Haneda – London Heathrow route

• From July 1, ANA will resume operations of its Airbus A380 “FLYING HONU” for regular flights between Japan and Hawaii on the Tokyo Narita – Honolulu route.
• In addition, ANA will increase the flight frequency for flights between Tokyo Haneda – Honolulu beginning May 28 to accommodate customer demand.
• Ahead of the summer vacation season, flights between Tokyo and Honolulu will operate on a daily basis from July 1.

All Nippon Airways (ANA), Japan’s largest and 5-Star airline for nine consecutive years, will resume operations of its Airbus A380 “FLYING HONU” for flights between Japan and Hawaii beginning July 1 as international passenger demand continues its recovery. ANA will also increase the flight frequency on the Tokyo Haneda – Honolulu route from May, and from July 1 together with the Tokyo Narita – Honolulu route, the flight frequency between Tokyo and Hawaii will be further increased to deliver flights on a daily basis.

ANA’s FLYING HONU fleet is made up of three Airbus A380 aircraft, the first of which entered service in May 2019 and is painted in blue to represent the Hawaiian blue sky. The second FLYING HONU is emerald green which is inspired by the crystal clear water of the Hawaiian ocean. Finally, the third FLYING HONU features livery in orange inspired by the Hawaiian sunset.

ANA will continue to monitor local restrictions and quarantine guidelines as well as demand trends and travel viability as it decides on the frequency of flights and when to resume certain routes. Furthermore, ANA is committed to maintaining the standards and protocols established by the “ANA Care Promise,” our initiative to provide a clean and hygienic environment at airports and aboard aircraft so that all customers can travel safely and comfortably. For more details on our flight operations, please visit the ANA Website.

Overview of the Hawaii Route for May-October 2022

• Beginning July 1, ANA will resume 2 roundtrips/week on the Tokyo Narita – Honolulu route with the Airbus A380 “FLYING HONU” aircraft.
• In response to growing demand for flights to Hawaii, the flight frequency for the Tokyo Haneda – Honolulu route will increase from 3 roundtrips/week to 4 roundtrips/week beginning May 28.
• Furthermore, the Tokyo Haneda – Honolulu route will be increased to 5 roundtrips/week starting July 1, and together with the Tokyo Narita – Honolulu route, which will resume 2 roundtrips/week, there will be 7 roundtrips/week (daily roundtrip flights) between Tokyo and Honolulu.

Additional Announcement for May 28-June 30

Overview of the Hawaii Route for July 1-October 29

* The above plans are subject to approval by the relevant authorities, and operations/aircrafts are subject to change depending on the conditions on the day of the flight.
* The schedule for international flights from July 1 to October 29 other than the Honolulu route will be announced separately once the operations are decided.

Flight Schedule of the Hawaii Route from July 1

* The above plans are subject to approval by the relevant authorities, and operations/aircrafts are subject to change depending on the conditions on the day of the flight.

Changes in quarantine measures, immigration conditions and other precautions are being implemented. For customers planning to travel, please check the latest information from embassies, consulates, and health institutions in your destination.

In other news, ANA will also resume the Tokyo Haneda – London Heathrow route on June 1, 2022. The restored route will operate three days a week with Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft.

ANA aircraft photo gallery: