Air Dolomiti returns to Frankfurt and Munich

Air Dolomiti has made this announcement:

After more than two months of lockdown, connections between Italian cities and German hubs resume.

The Italian airline of the Lufthansa Group restarts operations and confirms flights from Italian cities to Munich and Frankfurt am Main.

A partial resumption of operations to Germany with more weekly frequencies is scheduled for June 15. Air Dolomiti will guarantee flights from Florence, Venice and Turin to Munich and from Verona and Turin to Frankfurt.

The Company will also operate flights from Venice and Bologna to Frankfurt on behalf of Lufthansa. The latter two will be added to the route Milan Malpensa-Frankfurt, which has also been active in the past months to guarantee a minimum service between Italy and Germany.

Air Dolomiti’s project is to increase the frequencies and destinations week after week in order to progressively return to normal, gradually taking all the necessary steps to operate in complete safety.

“It will be a semblance of semi-normality and we will be able to start seeing our turquoise diamond in the European skies more often again,” said Joerg Eberhart, President and CEO of Air Dolomiti. “During the lockdown it was not easy to see our aircraft lined up on the apron, but we never lost hope. Last week we were pleased to inaugurate the first domestic flights over Sicily from Florence airport. Today we are pleased to see our tails on the runway ready to take off for the German hubs“.

Air Dolomiti aircraft photo gallery:

Finnair seeks additional funding to stay in the air, maintaining the fleet

From Reuters:

“Finnair launched a share sale on Wednesday to raise 500 million euros ($568 million) from its existing investors, almost as much as its current market value as it seeks to strengthen its finances to cope with the coronavirus crisis.

Finnair, which is 55.8% state-owned, has said it was losing about 2 million euros a day as 90% of its flights were grounded, and has warned it could take two to three years for air traffic to recover to 2019 levels.”

Meanwhile Finnair is taking care of its fleet at Helsinki:

From Finnair:

PARKED BUT NOT FORGOTTEN: MAINTAINING FINNAIR’S FLEET WHILE GROUNDED

With Finnair’s capacity cut by 90 per cent due to coronavirus, aircraft that would usually be flying routes across Europe, Asia and North America have had to be grounded. But parking an airplane isn’t like leaving a car on the drive. It requires extensive maintenance, not to mention lots of space.

Joe Minihane14.04.2020

PARKED UP IN HELSINKI

“Alongside our natural Helsinki hub we have established capability to park aircraft also in Rovaniemi and Tampere,” explains Jukka Glader, Finnair’s VP of Ground Operations. Currently, though, only Helsinki is being used, with no plans to use airports other than those at Rovaniemi and Tampere.

“In practice, it is much easier to ground all at the Helsinki hub,” says Glader. “All grounded aircraft need applicable minimum servicing.”

This servicing is vital for ensuring that aircraft are fit to fly when they are called back into service, hopefully sooner rather than later.

“From the technical point of view there are a whole lot of actions that must be done – especially, when the aircraft are parked in “flight-ready” condition,” says Glader. “This means that the aircraft and its systems are maintained and tested regularly even if all the sensitive systems and components like engines and air data probes, such as those for speed and altitude, are covered and protected.”

REGULAR CHECK UPS

Finnair’s Airbus fleet requires separate checks every seven, 14 and 30 days. Seven day checks are the most basic, with a visual once over of the airplane and all of its protective equipment. The 14 day check is more involved. Aircraft batteries are reconnected and the main electrical systems energized. This is followed by various system tests on things like flight controls and wheel brakes.

The 30 day check requires maintenance staff to carry out much more extensive work. All external protections are removed and the engines are started. Air conditioning, anti–ice systems, on the wings and in the engine, are all inspected to ensure there are no problems. Once this is done, the airplane is placed back into parking status.

“This cycle will continue – we hope – for a maximum of up to three months,” says Glader.

“Aircraft parking employs our staff more than expected,” he adds. “Even if the aircraft is parked it is essential to follow the technical instructions and recommendations of the aircraft and engine manufacturers.”

The good news is that, with all of this maintenance, getting Finnair planes back into the air, when the time is right, will not take long.

“We have roughly estimated that preparation of one aircraft into flight condition will take one whole day,” says Glader, although it could be even faster.

CORONA CHOCKS

One of the biggest challenges in parking the majority of Finnair’s fleet has been ensuring the brakes are still in good shape.

“When an aircraft is parked for a longer period of time the parking brakes will fade even if they are set on. For most aircraft types this will happen within 24 hours,” says Glader. Usually, that means placing four chocks behind each set of wheels on an aircraft. But these are not normal times. Between 10 and 12 chocks are now required for each plane. And with so many parked up outside in Helsinki, there simply weren’t enough to go around. Step forward local carpenters in the Finnish capital.

“No one wants to see the 150-ton aircraft rolling on its own on the tarmac!” says Glader.

“This is where Finnair Engineering jumped in and proposed the manufacturing of temporary wooden chocks – “Corona Chocks”. A local carpentry shop was contacted and no less than 500 wooden chocks were custom made for Finnair within two weeks of the order being placed.”

It’s another case of people pulling together in a time of crisis. But hopefully it won’t be too long before Finnair’s planes are back where they belong: up in the sky, taking customers all over the world.

Finnair aircraft photo gallery:

Emirates adds Kabul to list of passenger destinations

Emirates made this announcement:

Emirates has received approvals to carry passengers on flights to Kabul in Afghanistan, starting from June 25, 2020, taking to 30 the total number of destinations currently offered to travelers.

In addition to Kabul, flights to the following cities can be booked on emirates.com or via travel agents: Bahrain, London Heathrow, Manchester, Frankfurt, Paris, Milan, Madrid, Zurich, Vienna, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Dublin, New York JFK, Chicago, Toronto, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Jakarta, Taipei, Hong Kong, Perth and Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Manila.

Customers can book to fly between destinations in the Asia Pacific and Europe or the Americas, with a convenient connection in Dubai, as long as they meet travel and immigration entry requirements of their destination country.

In addition, from June 8, 2020 Emirates will offer flights from Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad for travelers from Pakistan who wish to connect onwards to other Emirates destinations.

Health and safety first: Emirates has implemented a comprehensive set of measures at every step of the customer journey to ensure the safety of its customers and employees on the ground and in the air, including the distribution of complimentary hygiene kits containing masks, gloves, hand sanitiser and antibacterial wipes to all customers.

Travel restrictions: Customers are reminded that travel restrictions remain in place, and travellers will only be accepted on flights if they comply with the eligibility and entry criteria requirements of their destination countries.

Emirates aircraft photo gallery:

Video:

China Eastern converts 14 Airbus A330s to bring medical supplies to Europe

China Eastern Airlines has made this announcement:

At 09:09 AM June 5 local time, a China Eastern Airlines (CEA) “passenger to cargo” flight MU7263 took off from Jinan to Milan fully loaded with over 20 tons of supplies. This is CEA’s 22nd flight transporting medical equipment directly from China to Italy.

CEA performed 300 cargo flights per week recently. As of May, CEA performed accumulatively 4,000 flights involved in humanitarian and relief missions, carried 23,000 medical personnel and transported 10,000 tons of medical supplies among 20 countries across the globe.

Helps Stabilize Global Supply Chain

On March 12, CEA brought 9 Chinese medical experts and 9 tons of supplies to Rome, which is the first international aiding flight received by Italy. Up to now, 3 groups of medical experts and 200 tons of medical supplies have been delivered to Italy by CEA.

CEA is leading to use “passenger to cargo” planes for global medical supplies. CEA has transformed 14 Airbus A330 passenger planes by removing seats; consequently the original 90 square meters space is doubled. As the main type of plane model on the route between Europe and China, the modified A330 planes play a more important role during the special time. CEA transported 2,000 tons of medical supplies to Europe, connecting lives between China and over 20 cities in Europe.

When it comes to stabilizing global supply chain, CEA service is not limited to transporting capacity but covers comprehensive one-stop logistics supply service, including land transportation, airport service and customs clearance.

Methodically Passenger Service and Employee Protection

Pushing the time to February, CEA Europe Marketing Center has been working around the clock to coordinate with all the European airports, refund tickets and redesign travel routes for passengers. At the busiest time, Europe call center handled more than 4,000 emails and a sea of consultation calls in just one weekend.

In terms of employee protection, CEA has timely issued guidelines on internal work environment, daily prevention requirements and care measures for 100 thousand employees, especially for the people in Europe who stand out in the busiest frontline. The preliminary preparations have played an essential role in handling the following hard time.

Resting at home, CEA’s European employees did not forget about people around. Giada Pulcinelli, an Italian flight attendant, helped neighbors with limited mobility to purchase necessary supplies; initiated a public welfare fundraising to provide food for people. She keeps online learning for the best professional status to gets ready to the sky at anytime.

Headquartered in Shanghai, CEA is one of China’s three major airlines with 18 subsidiary companies and 109 sales offices worldwide. After 63 years of development, CEA’s fleet has reached more than 750 aircrafts with an average age of 6.4 years. As a SkyTeam member, CEA’s route network reaches more than 170 countries and 1,036 destinations, serving more than 130 million passengers worldwide each year, and the passenger traffic ranks among the top 10 in the world. In June 2016, CEA has opened four European routes in a week consecutively.

China Eastern Airlines aircraft photo gallery:

WestJet announces its travel hygiene program

WestJet today announced its travel hygiene program under the Safety above all umbrella, detailing what WestJet guests can expect when traveling to ensure their health and safety.

Billy Nolen, WestJet Vice-President, Safety, Security and Quality. “Safety is at the forefront of every decision and initiative at WestJet." (CNW Group/WESTJET, an Alberta Partnership)

“Safety, including hygiene and health, is above all at WestJet, which is why the already-existing mantra was selected to communicate our hygiene efforts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Billy Nolen, WestJet Vice-President, Safety, Security and Quality.

“Safety is at the forefront of every decision and initiative at WestJet and our efforts on health and hygiene are no exception. As the world continues to adapt to this new environment, we will continue to adjust our health measures to ensure the safest travel experience possible as more Canadians begin to fly once again.”

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, WestJet has introduced a number of safety and hygiene best-practice initiatives based on information from domestic and global experts such as the Public Health Agency of Canada, the World Health Organization and International Air Transport Association (IATA). These measures include introducing both seat distancing and aircraft fogging, which is a cleaning procedure that provides a complete disinfection of the aircraft interior using a hydrogen peroxide-based solution cleaner. WestJet has also implemented temperature taking before boarding across its 38 Canadian destinations.

It is a misconception that COVID-19 is spread on aircraft. With WestJet’s layered approach to health, the aircraft is as safe an environment as possible. In addition to the measures detailed here, all WestJet aircraft (737, 767, 787 and Q400) are equipped with an industry-leading air circulation system containing a HEPA filter, similar to what is used in hospital environments, achieving a viral removal efficiency of greater than 99.99909 per cent. World Health Organization also recently stated the spread of COVID-19 by someone who is not showing symptoms appears to be rare.

Concluded Nolen. “As Canadians continue to flatten the curve, WestJet is committed to doing our part, while helping guests feel safe getting back in the skies.”

Allegiant sees increased demand in May and June

Allegiant Travel Company today reported preliminary passenger traffic results for May 2020.

“We are continuing to see material improvement in demand from the April lows,” stated Gregory Anderson executive vice president, chief financial officer and principal accounting officer of Allegiant Travel Company. “For the entire month we averaged over $2 million in gross bookings per day. As such, we are anticipating our cash burn per day in the second quarter to be down to approximately $1.75 million. This number includes variable components related to increased capacity and a higher fuel price than previously forecasted, as well as an increased rate of voucher redemptions. This daily cash burn improves upon our previously expected estimate of $2.1 million per day, which was based on $750 thousand in daily gross bookings. In addition, we are anticipating the third quarter cash burn to be less than $1 million per day if $2.0 million in daily gross bookings were to remain consistent. This is less than the $1.5 million per day we spoke about during our earnings call. Even with this improvement in demand, we are continuing to focus on finding ways to reduce costs. As we have stated previously, the flexibility which is central to our business model allows us to take advantage of these periods of extremely low demand – which is clearly unique in our industry.”

“We have been pleased to see that May demand trends were stronger than anticipated,” stated Drew Wells, vice president of revenue. “In fact, during Memorial Day weekend Allegiant accounted for approximately eight percent of all travelers going through a TSA checkpoint versus two percent last year. During the first week of June we operated 70 percent of our schedule versus roughly 50 percent of the schedule in May. Even with the increases in capacity, we were able to maintain load factors just shy of 50 percent. With Las Vegas casinos opening early June, we expect modest improvements to continue throughout the month.”

Scheduled Service

	May 2020	May 2019	Change
Passengers	362,528	1,269,429	(71.4%)
Revenue passenger miles (000)	326,748	1,093,781	(70.1%)
Available seat miles (000)	690,624	1,308,911	(47.2%)
Load factor	47.3%	83.6%	(36.3pts)
Departures	4,654	9,086	(48.8%)
Average stage length (miles)	856	843	1.5%

Total System*

	May 2020	May 2019	Change
Passengers	365,519	1,281,742	(71.5%)
Available seat miles (000)	710,712	1,357,963	(47.7%)
Departures	4,795	9,416	(49.1%)
Average stage length (miles)	855	844	1.3%

*Total system includes scheduled service and fixed fee contract. System revenue passenger miles and system load factor are not useful statistics as system available seat miles include both ASMs flown by fixed fee flying as well as non-revenue producing repositioning flights used for operational needs. Fixed fee flying is better measured through dollar contribution versus operational statistics.

Preliminary Financial Results

	$ per gallon
May 2020 estimated average fuel cost per gallon – system	$.91

Alaska Airlines expands Next-Level Care safety measures

Alaska Airlines today expanded Next-Level Care, the culmination of nearly 100 different measures put in place to enhance the safety and well-being of guests and employees.

“Caring for our guests and employees and ensuring their safety has always been our number one priority. COVID-19 has touched all of us in some way and it prompted us to fundamentally change the entire travel experience,” said Alaska Airlines CEO Brad Tilden. “Next-Level Care has been informed by medical experts, employees and guests, to ensure our customers are safe, whenever they’re ready to fly.”

Drawing on the expertise of the UW Medicine’s infectious disease experts, Alaska Airlines’ long-time medical advisors, guests flying today will notice changes designed with safety and comfort in mind:

Pre-travel and wellness agreement: Guests are encouraged to use the Alaska mobile app to enjoy a smooth and contactless trip. Starting June 30, flyers will be required to complete a health agreement during check-in and verify that they haven’t exhibited COVID-19 symptoms in the past 72 hours, come into contact with someone who is symptomatic and agree to bring and wear a face mask or covering.
Physical distancing onboard: Guests can enjoy extra space on board. Through July 31, middle seats are blocked and flights will be capped at 65% capacity to allow for extra space between guests not traveling together. Families or large groups can request to sit together by calling Reservations.
Guest and employee face masks and hand sanitizer: Face masks are required for all guests 12 and over, and for all airline employees. Customers are expected to bring their own mask and wear it at the airport and during their flight. Additional supplies are available for anyone who forgets a face covering. Hand sanitizer is available throughout the airport including the lobby and gate areas. Personal hand sanitizing wipes will be available onboard starting in July.
HEPA air filters: With one of the newest fleets in the country, Alaska’s planes have the latest air filtration technology. Planes are equipped with two hospital-grade HEPA filters that remove 99.95% of airborne contaminants like COVID-19. The air filtration system cycles outside air on board to fully refresh cabin air every three minutes. Studies have shown with frequent air recirculation, cabin air filtration is comparable to the air quality found in hospitals. Guests can enjoy additional filtered air by opening their personal air vent after boarding.
Enhanced cleaning: Alaska Airlines is exceeding CDC cleaning guidelines, using high-grade, EPA-certified disinfectant to clean critical areas throughout the plane. Overnight every plane receives a deep clean and all surfaces, including high-touch areas, are sanitized.
Electrostatic sprayers: In addition to traditional cleaning with high-level disinfectant, planes are sanitized with electrostatic sprayers that disinfect surfaces throughout the cabin. The electrostatic sprayer allows the disinfectant to wrap around and cling to curved and cornered surfaces for an additional level of protection.
Safety measures at airports: Employees clean all surfaces throughout the airport including counters, kiosks and other high-traffic areas several times a day. Social distancing decals have been placed throughout the airport to remind people to “Mind Your Wingspan.” The stickers span six feet apart and help minimize crowding and promote distancing at ticketing counters, baggage drops, customer service centers and gate areas.
Boarding changes: At the gate, guests now board by row numbers in smaller groups, from the back to the front, to enable appropriate spacing.
Limited onboard service: To reduce interaction between flight crews and guests, inflight food and beverage service has been temporarily reduced. Flyers may bring their own snacks and water bottles to #FillBeforeYouFly. All seatback content except for the safety card has been removed to limit the spread of germs. Alaska’s Beyond Entertainment is still free for guests to enjoy hundreds of movies and TV shows streamed directly to their device.
Peace of mind policies: Change and cancellation fees are waived for travel for tickets purchased before June 30, 2020. Current elite status will be extended through 2021. Elite-qualifying miles earned between January-April 2020 will be rolled into 2021 to give guests a head start on earning status for 2022. Additionally, all active Lounge memberships as of April 1 will be extended by six months.

These are some of the nearly 100 policies, procedures and actions that together offer guests and employees layers of safety and it’s making a difference. In post-flight surveys of guests last month, 82% shared that they experienced a safe and healthy environment and 95% said their seat area was clean.

Alaska Airlines consults with UW Medicine medical advisors Dr. John Lynch and Dr. Chloe Bryson-Cahn, both UW Medicine infectious diseases physicians and infection prevention experts.

“People should think of flying the same way that they would when they shop at a grocery store,” said Bryson-Cahn. “Wear a mask, wash your hands, or use hand sanitizer, cover your cough and stay home if you have any COVID-19 symptoms. We’re all in this together.”

Malaysia Airlines increases domestic and reinstates international connectivity

Malaysia Airlines has increased its domestic and international connectivity beginning June and July respectively, to facilitate essential travels locally and as other countries begin to lift border restrictions.

The airline will adjust its network capacity from time to time to ensure passenger demandsare met, prior to normalizing the schedule in October for both domestic and international destinations.

The resumption of services will allow families who have not been able to return to their loved ones due to travel restrictions in many parts of the world to reunite. Passengers are however, reminded to check entry and exit requirements before their journeys with travel restrictions remaining in place in most countries.

The frequency of domestic flights for June and July are as follows:

Flights	Months	Frequency
Kuala Lumpur – Alor Setar/Johor Bahru/Kota Bharu/Langkawi/Terengganu/ Labuan/Miri/Sandakan/Tawau	June and July	2 times weekly
Kuala Lumpur – Kuantan/Bintulu/Sibu	June and July	Once a week
Kuala Lumpur – Penang/Kuching	June	3 times weekly
Kuala Lumpur – Kuching	July	5 times weekly

Frequency of flights for international destinations are as follows:

Flights	Months	Frequency
Kuala Lumpur – Dhaka/Kathmandu/London/Osaka/Narita/ Incheon/Hong Kong/Melbourne/*Sydney/ Perth/Denpansar/Phuket/Cambodia	July	2 times weekly Kuala Lumpur – Melbourne (1 until 18 July) *Kuala Lumpur- Sydney (1 until 5 July)
Kuala Lumpur – Chennai/Hyderabad/Mumbai/Bangalore/ Kochi/Sri Lanka/Taipei/Guangzhou/ Sydney/*Melbourne/Adelaide/Brisbane/ Surabaya	July	Once a week Kuala Lumpur – Sydney (6 until 31 July) *Kuala Lumpur – Melbourne (19 until 31 July)
Kuala Lumpur – Manila	July	3 times weekly
Kuala Lumpur – Jakarta/Bangkok	July	4 times weekly
Kuala Lumpur – Singapore	July	5 times weekly

Malaysia Airlines’ Group Chief Executive Officer, Captain Izham Ismail said, “We are pleased to announce the resumption of our services by increasing capacity to domestic and international routes and we look forward to welcoming our passengers back onboard. We shall continue to ensure their safety, health, as well as their comfort by introducing new initiatives aligned with international safety and health protocols, as part of our commitment to offer passengers peace of mind throughout their journey with us.”

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank our customers for their continued support and confidence in Malaysia Airlines throughout these challenging times. Following the Malaysian Government’s recent announcement on interstate travel, we have also released a special video titled ‘Ready to fly and rediscover Malaysia’ which is available on Malaysia Airlines’ social media platforms. We hope that by showcasing unique and beautiful domestic attractions located across Malaysia, we can inspire local travellers to explore the beauty of our homeland and boost local tourism efforts.”

At the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, Malaysia Airlines has implemented various enhanced safety measures and protocols in coordination with health and airport authorities to ensure passengers’ health and wellbeing are taken care of. These measures include temperature checks, sanitization and disinfection of all properties and facilities, enforcement of social distancing, mandatory usage of face masks and installation of protective screen barriers at check-in counters and transfer desks at KL International Airport (KLIA). All Malaysia Airlines frontliners on ground and onboard are required to wear personal protective equipment and their health screened daily. Even upon arrival, passenger luggage will be sanitized.

These health and safety precautionary measures are also extended to the Malaysia Airlines Golden Lounges which is planned to be re-opened on 1 July 2020.

At the same time, Malaysia Airlines passengers can continue to enjoy hours of inflight entertainment on their seatback screens, Wi-Fi connectivity and comfort amenities of hygienically packed pillows and blankets available on selected flights. Inflight dining has been modified to limit contact between cabin crew and passengers but are assured to be substantial for all cabin classes especially on long haul flights.

The airline also ensures all its aircraft are cleaned and disinfected before and after every flight, while lavatories will be kept clean during flight by cabin crew at regular intervals. Other inflight services such as reading material, inflight duty-free and retail will continue to be suspended for the time being.

Malaysia Airlines aircraft photo gallery:

Austrian Airlines receives financial aid from the Federal Government and Lufthansa

Austrian Airlines has made this announcement:

• EUR 150 million in state aid to cover coronavirus-related losses; ecological requirements imposed
• EUR 150 million injection of equity capital by Lufthansa
• EUR 300 million as bank loans to be repaid by 2026
• Rescue package designed to ensure maintaining flight hub to CEE and long-haul flight connections

The Austrian Federal Government, Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines have reached an agreement on the cornerstones of a EUR 600 million coronavirus rescue package for the national network carrier Austrian Airlines. The financial assistance is designed to support efforts to sustainably safeguard Vienna as an aviation hub in the long term, including its flight connections to Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and to long-haul destinations. According to the Austrian Economic Chambers, EUR 2.7 billion in domestic value creation, 17,500 jobs and EUR 1 billion in taxes and duties are linked to Austrian Airlines and its Vienna flight hub.

The Republic of Austria will contribute EUR 150 million in financial assistance to cover the losses incurred as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. In return, the Austrian Federal Government has received long-term, binding commitments to the Vienna aviation hub linked to strict ecological requirements. The entire financing package is dependent on state aid for Lufthansa in Germany, the approval of all corporate bodies and the consent of the EU Commission.

“Austrian Airlines has been and is a fundamental part of the multi-hub strategy pursued by Lufthansa Group. Thanks to this rescue package in combination with the improved framework conditions of the Austrian aviation system partners, we see ourselves in a position to rebuild the flight hub in Vienna after the crisis and connect Austria with important destinations in Europe and throughout the world”, states Carsten Spohr, Chief Executive Officer of Lufthansa Group.

The location requirements aim to reposition Austrian Airlines in the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis and generate sufficient funds to pay back the loans. The airline will attach particular importance to the environment and sustainability in its ongoing fleet modernization drive.

The following requirements with a focus on sustainability were specified, amongst others:

• Austrian Airlines will shift passenger traffic to the railways on short-haul flights inasmuch as an adequate infrastructure is available and direct accessibility to Vienna Airport is ensured based on a travel time of considerably less than three hours. However, the objective is also to make sure that the airports in Austria’s provincial capitals continue to be connected to a Lufthansa flight hub.

• CO₂ emissions within Austria should be cut in half by 2030.

• Austrian Airlines has pledged to increase jet fuel efficiency by 1.5 percent annually and to reduce average CO₂ emissions per 100 passenger kilometers of the entire Austrian Airlines fleet from 9.55 kg to 8.5 kg by 2030.

• CO₂ emissions are to be reduced by 30 percent by the year 2030 from the comparable level of 2005.

The state holding company Austrian Holdings AG (ÖBAG) has the possibility to appoint two people to serve on the Managing Board of Österreichische Luftverkehrs-Privatstiftung (ÖLP), the private foundation which holds a majority stake in Austrian Airlines (via the holding company Österreichische Luftverkehrs-Holding) in order to monitor compliance with all the conditions laid down in the agreement. Moreover, one of these two individuals will also serve on the Supervisory Board of Austrian Airlines AG.

Furthermore, a bi-annual dialogue on Austria as an aviation location including all relevant stakeholders is planned. The objective of this aviation dialogue is the ongoing further development and improvement of underlying conditions as a means of strengthening the flight hub at Vienna Airport.

Austrian Airlines originally reported liquidity requirements amounting to EUR 767 million to the COVID-19 financing agency of the Austrian Federal Government (COVID19-Finanzierungsagentur des Bundes GmbH, COFAG in short). The earlier restart of flight operations and the successful implementation of measures by the airline’s management to secure liquidity serve as the basis for the lower amount of EUR 600 million in required financing. This sum was also confirmed by the auditor PwC.

EUR 300 million will be made available as loans granted via bank financing. Another EUR 300 million provided as state aid and by Lufthansa will strengthen the airline’s equity capital. Not only is the repayment of the bank financing secured in this manner, but the ability to make medium-term investments in sustainable technologies will be ensured. In turn, this will safeguard the continued existence of Austrian Airlines as a systemically relevant partner for the Vienna aviation hub.

The bank loans totaling EUR 300 million are to be made available by an Austrian banking consortium consisting of Erste Group, Raiffeisenbank International, BAWAG and possibly further banks, with the Erste Group also serving as the overall coordinator. A guarantee for 90 percent of the loans will be assumed by the Republic of Austria via COFAG after the required evaluation steps are carried out and all necessary approvals have been granted.

Another significant part of the coronavirus rescue package will come from the airline’s employees. The close to 7,000 employees will make an accumulated crisis contribution of about EUR 300 million by taking salary cuts. The more than 1,000 business partners and suppliers of Austrian Airlines will also make a substantial contribution. Contract volume could be reduced by more than EUR 150 million, partially within the context of newly concluded agreements, in part also by means of renunciation.

“I am relieved and thankful that we have succeeded together in making Austrian Airlines ready for take-off again”, says Austrian Airlines CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech. “After almost three months on the ground, Austrian Airlines will lift off again and slowly ramp up its flight operations in accordance with international travel guidelines. We look forward to soon welcoming passengers on board our flights once again”, he adds.

Austrian Airlines aircraft photo gallery:

Airports point to ‘huge imbalances’ in air transport relief as latest passenger traffic figures show 98% loss

ACI Europe made this announcement:

ACI EUROPE reported today that Europe’s airports continued to be at an almost complete stand-still during the month of May, with passenger traffic down by -98% compared to the same period last year. As a result, only 4.3 million passengers travelled through the European network of 500+ airports in May, compared to 216.8 million last year.

Olivier Jankovec, Director General of ACI EUROPE said: “With well over half a billion passengers¹ lost so far this year and still no revenues coming in, Europe’s airports are anxiously waiting for travel restrictions to be lifted and airlines to resume operations. With the epidemic now de-escalating in many countries and a plan to allow for intra-European travel – at least within the Schengen area – by the end of the month, we are finally seeing some light at the end of the tunnel.”

“But there is no escape that the recovery will be slow and gradual – and that the post-COVID-19 aviation market will be fundamentally disrupted and structurally very different. For now, we do not see a return to last year’s traffic volumes before 2023.”

“Most national authorities are quite rightly taking a phased approach, but it’s vitally important that devices such as quarantine are risk-based and proportionate. If quarantine is used as a blunt instrument as it is in the UK, it is one which will deliver an economic and social blow from which we will all struggle to recover.”

All this shows that Europe’s airports, along with airlines, are amongst the sectors hardest hit by COVID-19, and that Government support is needed for them to recover. Such support is essential not just to restore the air connectivity that is underpinning the livelihood of communities, businesses and citizens – but also to safeguard the ability of both airports and airlines to invest and decarbonise.

SUPPORT NOT JUST FOR AIRLINES – BUT FOR THE ECOSYSTEM

However, Governments in Europe have almost exclusively helped airlines, with more than €24 billion of financial support already approved – and yet more to come. Meanwhile and apart from a few exceptions, airports have been excluded from national aid programmes for aviation. Airports have generally benefitted only from temporary unemployment schemes, leaving them in an extremely difficult financial situation.

France, Germany and Italy are particular cases in point, with those 3 countries extending a whopping€19.3 billion² in financial support to their former flag carriers, without providing specific support to their airports.

Jankovec commented: “Keeping airlines afloat – or rather flying, is obviously in the interest of airports. But this does not per se secure their financial viability. With selective governmental support not benefitting all airlines, and with no condition attached for recipient airlines to support their suppliers – including airports, the current situation creates huge imbalances in the air transport eco-system. This essentially brings us back to the era when the interest of airlines used to command aviation policy, with no consideration for other industry stakeholders – let alone consumers.”

CURRENT IMBALANCES MUST BE CORRECTED

ACI EUROPE, together with the national airport associations of Germany (ADV), France (UAF&FA) and Italy (Assaeroporti), called on governments and the EU to address these imbalances and safeguard the proper functioning of the Single Aviation Market by using all other instruments available for that purpose. This should include:

Allowing airports to benefit from temporary unemployment schemes under the most favourable conditions and beyond the Summer months. This is crucial to contain permanent layoffs and retain skilled staff.
Granting financial compensation to airports for the costs involved in remaining open when travel restrictions eliminated demand for air transport as well as for the costs involved in implementing sanitary measures.
Ensuring the timely return of slots not used by airlines, so as to allow airports to limit costs by effectively adjusting resources and staffing to the actual level of airline operations. This would also allow the timely reallocation of unused slots to other airlines – thus benefitting air connectivity.
Ensuring that charges paid by airlines for the use of airport facilities better reflect underlying costs as per the “user pays” principle advocated by the European Commission for transport infrastructure. In particular, under-recovered costs must be carried forward into future regulatory periods.
Airline dominance is set to become the norm in the post COVID-19 aviation market, as already evidenced by the way prominent airlines are conditioning the restart of their operations to either free use or massive discounts on airport charges. The revision of the EU Airport Charges Directive does not take this new reality into consideration and needs to be reconsidered to avoid further imbalances in the air transport ecosystem.
Ensuring further liberalisation of air traffic rights (in particular at niche, secondary hubs and regional airports) and relaxation of airlines’ ownership and control rules to facilitate the restoration and development of air connectivity.

As part of its OFF THE GROUND initiative, ACI EUROPE is releasing a number of papers detailing some of the above mentioned proposals (see below).