CityJet to be sold to Intro Aviation

CityJet (Dublin) and its subsidiary VLM Airlines will be sold by AirFrance-KLM to Intro Aviation. Air France-KLM on March 28 agreed to accept the offer from Intro Aviation. The new owners are expected to take control in about four weeks. CityJet (Air France by CityJet) will continue to fly for Air France.

Air France-KLM issued this short statement:

On March 28, 2014 Air France accepted the firm offer received in December 2013 from Intro Aviation GmbH to purchase CityJet and its VLM subsidiary. The closing of the transaction for the CityJet shares should take place in April 2014.

Air France and CityJet will pursue their commercial co-operation as part of a new industrial plan which foresees, in particular, the development of flights under the CityJet brand on departure from London City to European destinations, and CityJet continuing to operate flights on behalf of Air France on departure from Paris-CDG.

The announcement of this future sale is important for the staff of CityJet and VLM. One of the aims of the operation is to set the conditions for a new long-term development for the company and its staff.

Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth/AirlinersGallery.com. CityJet’s BAe RJ85 EI-RJG (msn E2344) lands at EuroAirport in Air France colors.

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Air France by CityJet:

US Airways jumps from the Star Alliance to the Oneworld Alliance

US Airways (Phoenix) yesterday (March 31) as planned, completed its transition to Oneworld along with TAM Airlines (Sao Paulo) marking the biggest single-day expansion of the alliance since its launch 15 years ago.

US Airways’ regional affiliates, operating as US Airways Express, also transitioned to Oneworld, following US Airways’ recent merger with American Airlines (Dallas/Fort Worth).

With its regional affiliates, US Airways serves more than 200 destinations and 30 countries with a fleet of more than 620 aircraft. It carried 82.5 million passengers in 2013 and currently operates 3,200 departures a day. It uses the two-letter code US, but this will be changed to AA once the two airlines combine under a single operating certificate.

It has added more than 50 destinations to the oneworld map – most in its US home but also two in Canada and one each in Ireland and Mexico – along with its key hubs of Charlotte, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Washington DC’s Reagan National, expanding oneworld’s presence across the USA, particularly throughout the East Coast and across the North Atlantic.

Once the integration is completed, the new American will offer service to more than 330 destinations in more than 50 countries, carrying 190 million passengers a year on a fleet of 1,500 aircraft.

US Airways:

Delta and Virgin Atlantic launch Seattle/Tacoma-London Heathrow flights

Delta Air Lines (Atlanta) continued its rapid expansion in Seattle/Tacoma with the launch of new daily nonstop service from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to London Heathrow Airport on Saturday, March 29. The route, established as part of Delta’s joint venture with Virgin Atlantic Airways (London).

Through its trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia, Delta offers Seattle-area travelers nonstop service to Paris and Amsterdam while also providing connecting service to more than 150 additional destinations beyond those European hubs.

This spring Delta will also begin expanded Seattle/Tacoma service from Anchorage; Fairbanks, Alaska; Juneau, Alaska; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; Portland, Oregon; San Diego; San Francisco; San Jose, California; and Vancouver to support its growing international gateway that currently serves London Heathrow, Amsterdam and Paris-Charles de Gaulle as well as Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo-Narita, and Tokyo-Haneda.

In June, Delta will begin new international service from Seattle/Tacoma to Seoul and Hong Kong, bringing Delta’s total nonstop transoceanic destinations to nine, as many as all other SeaTac international carriers combined.

By this summer, Delta will offer more than 2,500 daily international seats as part of its 79 peak-day departures to 25 destinations.

Delta currently operates 35 peak-day departures to 15 destinations from Seattle/Tacoma.

Delta Air Lines (current):

Flybe to introduce a new purple color scheme tomorrow

Flybe (Exeter) is introducing a new purple brand built around a new “Fastest Way from A to Flybe” ad campaign. The first aircraft, Bombardier DHC-8-402 (Q400) G-JECY (msn 4157) named the “Spirit of Liberum”, is due out of the paint shop at East Midlands (EMA) tomorrow with the new look. G-JECY is due to go into revenue service from Exter to Manchester on Thursday (April 3) afternoon.

The airline issued this statement:

Today (dated April 1) marks the beginning of a new era for Flybe, Europe’s largest regional airline, that today unveils a major brand refresh with a reinvigorated product and service offering: Flybe Purple brings to life its core business of time-saving, punctual travel with the introduction of a vibrant, dynamic modern ‘look and feel’, a touch of fun and a world-first 60:60 On Time Guarantee for passengers.
The changes reflect a distinctive new product based firmly on the customer proposition that Flybe is the Fastest Way from A to Flybe, faster than rail and road.

Flybe’s flagship product is its world-first 60:60 guarantee that promises its customers if a flight arrives more than 60 minutes’ late at its destination due to a delay within Flybe’s control, they will qualify for a £60 voucher towards their next flight as long as they book within 60 days.

There is also a new-look website, and ticket options have been re-named so that ‘what you see is what you get’ – ‘Just Fly’ replaces ‘Essentials’; ‘Get More’ is the previous ‘New Economy’ and ‘All In’ is the former ‘Plus’ ticket choice.

An eye-catching purple aircraft, the Spirit of Liberum, will be the first Flybe Bombardier Q400 to take to the skies in special commemorative livery: and Improved on-board experiences feature the introduction of stylish purple crew uniforms and purple mood lighting as well as daily on-board winners, deplaning gifts and an on-time musical celebration.

Paul Simmons, Flybe’s Chief Commercial Officer, says: “As an airline we are dedicated to continuously looking at ways to improve as a business. Our brand refresh is a significant step forward for us as we move to become the UK’s local airline of choice with a focus on time-saving and punctual travel for regional customers. Purple is not just our new brand colour – it reflects our passion for delivering on our commitment to being the Fastest Way from A to Flybe.”

The new uniforms:

Flybe:

Videos: New TV ad and the making of the new ad campaign:

Island Air will again operate the Bombardier Q400, orders two

Hawaii Island Air, Inc. (Island Air) (Honolulu) has placed a firm order for two Bombardier DHC-8-402 (Q400) NextGen turboprop airliners and has also taken options for four additional Q400 NextGen aircraft. The aircraft will be delivered with a dual-class, 71-seat configuration. Island Air is Hawaii’s leading regional airline and second oldest carrier.

Island Air previously operated the type briefly in the past.

Image: Bombardier.

Island Air:

InterCaribbean Airways to fly between Kingston and Montego Bay in Jamaica

InterCaribbean Airways (formerly Air Turks and Caicos) (Providenciales) has announced the introduction of new scheduled nonstop air service connecting Kingston to Montego Bay, with 16 weekly flights each way.

The flights will be operated by 30 seat Embraer 120 aircraft with onboard flight attendant starting on April 16.

InterCaribbean Airways is the national carrier of the Turks & Caicos Islands and operates a fleet of Embraer EMB-120 and Beech 99 aircraft, operating flights domestically to Grand Turk and South Caicos, in addition to International flights to Santo Domingo, Puerto Plata and Santiago in the Dominican Republic; Cap Haitien and Port Au Prince in Haiti; Kingston and Montego Bay in Jamaica; Nassau in the Bahamas; new services to Samana, Dominican Republic and San Juan, Puerto Rico begin on April 2, 2014.

TAM joins Oneworld today

TAM Airlines (TAM Linhas Aereas) (Sao Paulo), the Brazilian carrier of the LATAM Airlines Group, today (March 31) joined Oneworld, an airline alliance currently undergoing the largest expansion in its history.

This is one of the most important steps to achieve the entry of all LATAM Airlines Group into Oneworld. LAN Airlines has been a member of Oneworld since 2000 as well as all of its affiliates, namely LAN Argentina, LAN Colombia, LAN Ecuador and LAN Peru, have already joined. TAM’s affiliated airline in Paraguay (TAM Mercosur), will also join Oneworld soon. As a result, all passenger airlines of the LATAM Airlines Group will be members of the same alliance.

To celebrate this moment, today TAM’s first aircraft bearing the Oneworld logo will be on display at Congonhas Airport in Sao Paulo with the presence of CEOs and representatives of all Oneworld member airlines, who traveled to Brazil especially for this event.

As a result of the merger with LAN Airlines, TAM left the Star Alliance to join Oneworld.

Image: TAM.

TAM:

Air Canada is folding Air Canada Jetz, will fly seasonal Ottawa-Fort Lauderdale flights

Air Canada (Montreal) is giving up on its charter division called Air Canada Jetz.

According to the Ottawa Citizen, Air Canada has made a “business decision to exit this segment of the market,” which it has been operating since 2001. The division will shut down this year when the current contracts expire.

The division’s main customers are sports teams, entertainment bands and political parties.

Air Canada lists past and current customers:

Rogers Communications
Phil Collins
Bruce Springsteen
U2
Rolling Stones
Spice Girls
United Jewish Association
CIBC
Honda
Toyota
American Express
Novapharm
Berlex
Comcast
CTV
Lombard
And many more…
Professional sports teams:

Montreal Canadiens
Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Raptors
Edmonton Oilers
Calgary Flames
Vancouver Canucks
And more…

In other news, Air Canada has announced it will operate seasonal nonstop flights every Monday and Saturday from July 5 to September 1, 2014, between Ottawa and Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood, Florida.

Copyright Photo: Eddie/Maloney/AirlinersGallery.com (all other images by Air Canada). Airbus A320-211 C-FPWD (msn 231) touches down in Las Vegas.

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Air Canda Jetz:

ANA today operates the last Boeing 747 flight ending an era

ANA (All Nippon Airways) (Tokyo) today (March 31), as planned, operated the last Boeing 747 flight. The pictured Boeing 747-481 (D) JA8961 (msn 25644) with 497 passengers and 17 crew members operated a round trip from Tokyo (Haneda) to Naha, Okinawa and back, ending 35 years of continuous Boeing 747 operations. JA8961 was delivered to ANA for domestic operations on May 13, 1993.

ANA today (March 31) also retired the Bombardier (de Havilland Canada) DHC-8-300 (Q300).

Read the full report from ZipanguFlyer (with photos): CLICK HERE

ANA:

ANA Banner:

Aeroflot retires the Ilyushin Il-96 from scheduled operations

Aeroflot Russian Airlines (Moscow) according to Airline Route, planned to operate the last scheduled Ilyushin Il-96 flight yesterday (March 30) between Tashkent and its Moscow Sheremetyevo hub. The type was introduced in 1993.

Copyright Photo: Arnd Wolf/AirlinersGallery.com. Ilyushin Il-96-300 RA-96015 (msn 74393202012) taxies at Salzburg, Austria.

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