Delta to drop the following routes

Delta Air Lines has or is planning to drop nine routes according to Airline Route:

Cincinnati – Milwaukee – November 25, 2018
Cincinnati – Nashville – already dropped on September 28, 2018
Detroit – Akron/Canton – November 26, 2018
Detroit – Peoria -November 26, 2018
Los Angeles – Oakland – already dropped September 30, 2018
Minneapolis/St. Paul – Bloomington – November 26, 2018
Minneapolis/St. Paul – Flint – November 25, 2018
Minneapolis/St. Paul – West Palm Beach – January 2, 2019
New York JFK – Bangor – November 25, 2018

Copyright Photo (all others by Delta): Delta Air Lines Boeing 737-932 ER WL N812DN (msn 31923) LAX (Michael B. Ing). Image: 943933.

Delta aircraft slide show:

American Airlines new Flagship Burger

This weekend, chefs, culinary experts and foodies gathered at the New York City Wine & Food Festival (NYCWFF) to celebrate the best of the culinary world and try some tasty burgers, including American’s very own Flagship Burger.

https://player.vimeo.com/video/294887279

As the official airline sponsor of NYCWFF, American was onsite all weekend celebrating with attendees in its Flagship-themed lounge and participated in the annual burger competition Friday. The popular rooftop party, where chefs and restaurants show off their burger skills, included more than 30 of NYC’s best burgers and featured American’s Flagship Burger.

“We knew we had something special with the Flagship Burger and were excited and proud to be the first airline to have its burger entered into the New York City Wine & Food Festival contest,” said Janelle Anderson, vice president of Marketing for American. “The Flagship Burger was created with local professional chefs and first launched when we opened our restaurant style lounge at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) last year. We had fun being a part of the competition and know we put up a good fight.”

The NYCWFF burger competition has two awards — a people’s choice award and a winner picked by a panel of judges who participate in a blind tasting. This year’s judges included Neil Patrick Harris, David Burtka, Geoffrey Zakarian, Rachael Ray and Andrew Zimmern. The people’s choice award is decided by the festival attendees who have the chance to taste all of the burgers participating and vote for their favorite.

Professional chefs designed the Flagship Burger using locally sourced ingredients, and the burger made its debut in May 2017 at Flagship First Dining at JFK. American celebrated the opening of its premium lounge and showed off the Flagship Burger to customers and media, including Travel + Leisure who called it the “best airport burger.”

The Flagship Burger is available in Flagship First Dining locations at JFK, Miami International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport. Flagship First Dining is open to customers traveling in first class on a transcontinental or long-haul international route.

American continues to invest in the premium experience and plans to open the next Flagship Lounge and Flagship First Dining at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in 2019.

American Airlines Chef John Ogden presented NYCWFF attendees with the signature Flagship Burger.

The Flagship Burger presented at NYCWFF’s annual burger competition.

Boeing, Air Lease Corporation, deliver S7 Airlines’ first 737 MAX

Boeing, Air Lease Corporation (ALC), and S7 Airlines celebrated the delivery of the airline’s first 737 MAX, via lease from ALC.

S7, operated by Globus Airlines, becomes the first Russian airline to fly the new and improved 737 airplane. S7 plans to take 10 more 737 MAX jets over the next few years as part of its strategic plan to strengthen its airplane fleet.

The 737 MAX 8 is part of a family of airplanes that offer from about 130 to 230 seats and the ability to fly up to 3,850 nautical miles (7,130 kilometers). The MAX 8, in particular, can seat up to 178 passengers in a standard configuration and features the popular Boeing Sky Interior. The airplane helps reduce fuel use and emissions by 14 percent compared to previous airplanes, outperforming the competition by 8 percent when it comes to operating costs per seat.

The 737 MAX is the fastest-selling airplane in Boeing history with more than 4,700 orders from 104 customers worldwide.

Top Copyright Photo (all others by S7 Airlines): S7 Airlines Boeing 737-8 MAX 8 VQ-BGW (msn 43302) BFI (Joe G. Walker). Image: 943925.

S7 Airlines aircraft slide show:

Azores Airlines to retire the last Airbus A310

Azores Airlines tomorrow (October 15) will operate the last Airbus A310 revenue flight with CS-TGV.

The airline made this short announcement on social media:

On October 15, the last aircraft of Azores Airlines’ A310 fleet makes its last flight.

It is a 19-year cycle, almost two decades to transport thousands of passengers to the most diverse destinations.

Thank you to all who caressed this distinguished fleet!

Note: The Airbus A310 fleet did not receive the name and livery change to Azores Airlines due to the pending retirement of the last A310.

Video:

Top Copyright Photo (all others by the airline): SATA Internacional Airbus A310-304 CS-TGV (msn 651) YYZ (TMK Photography). Image: 900159.

Above Copyright Photo: SATA Internacional Airbus A310-325 CS-TKN (msn 624) AMS (Ton Jochems). Image: 913257.

SATA aircraft slide show:

Bottom Copyright Photo: SATA Internacional Airbus A310-304 CS-TGV (msn 651) YYZ (TMK Photography). Image: 904604.

Lufthansa CityLine to fly the Airbus A319

Lufthansa Group has made this announcement:

Lufthansa CityLine and pilots’ union Vereinigung Cockpit have agreed on new employment conditions for their approx. 650 pilots. The collective bargaining agreement sets the stage for the introduction of a new, future-proof aircraft type at Lufthansa CityLine.

Come 2019, Lufthansa CityLine will start operating A320 family planes taken over from Lufthansa.

The first Airbus A319-100 aircraft will depart from the Munich hub next spring. Another 5 aircraft will follow by the end of 2020.

“Lufthansa CityLine has been handling an important part of our feeder traffic at the hubs in Munich and Frankfurt for many years,” says Wilken Bormann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Lufthansa CityLine and CEO of Lufthansa Hub Munich. “Entering the A320 segment is a logical next step. With the new collective agreement, both negotiating partners have illustrated their will to jointly develop Lufthansa CityLine as a key component of the Lufthansa Group.”

The parties have agreed on an extensive package. It includes, among other things, a moderate salary increase for the next three years and a growth-related increase for 2021. Essential points of the structure of the company pension plan will be adapted to the regulations for Lufthansa’s mainline staff. Another key aspect is the optimization of the training roadmap for its pilots. The package thus opens up important new growth prospects.

Lufthansa CityLine is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG and a specialist in hub traffic at the two hubs of Frankfurt and Munich. Every year, the airline welcomes around eight million passengers aboard its roughly 50 aircraft. The fleet takes off to around 80 airports in over 24 countries more than 300 times a day. Lufthansa CityLine employs about 2,200 people.

All photos by Lufthansa.

Vistara to recreate Tata Air Services’ historic flight to Mumbai via Ahmedabad on October 15, 2018

Vistara tomorrow (October 15) will recreate the historic first flight of TATA Air Services with a special flight (UK 1) between Delhi and Mumbai via Ahmedabad with its retroject VT-ATV.

According to the airline, October 15, 2018 marks the 86th Anniversary of the launch of TATA Air Services, India’s very first airline.

The historic Douglas DC-3 aircraft with the registration of VT-ATV first flight flew from Karachi to Mumbai via Ahmedabad.

The airline made this announcement:

Vistara unveiled its 22nd aircraft on September 1, 2018, an Airbus A320neo (pictured) with an extraordinary retro-livery (paint scheme) that is the first of its kind in India, along with a historic aircraft registration number.

The iconic retrojet took its first flight on September 5, complemented with retro-uniform and a special menu that tied the experience together perfectly. The grand livery has received a host of praises and has left all our customers and staff speechless!

This special day marks the 86th anniversary of the launch of Tata Air Services, India’s very first airline. Piloted by JRD Tata himself, the first flight flew from Karachi to Mumbai via Ahmedabad and, Vistara Retrojet will be recreating the historic flight by operating from Delhi to Mumbai via Ahmedabad for the first time ever!

Please find the flight schedule for VT-ATV for October 15, 2018:

Flight No.	Origin	Departure Time	Destination	Arrival Time
UK 1	Delhi	07:45	Ahmedabad	09:10
UK 1	Ahmedabad	09:55	Mumbai	11:10
UK 960	Mumbai	11:50	Delhi	14:10
UK 817	Delhi	16:05	Bengaluru	18:50
UK 818	Bengaluru	19:40	Delhi	22:20

Relive the golden days of flying aboard the VT-ATV with special retro-uniform for select cabin crew, inspired by the 1950s and 60s. The flight will also feature a menu with JRD Tata’s favourite dishes, as remembered by senior chefs at Taj Hotels. It includes Cheddar Cheese and Onion Omelette, Crêpe au Champignon, Meat Medley, Waldorf Salad, Minestrone Soup, Herb Roast Chicken, Goan Prawn Curry and Crème Caramel.

Top Copyright Photo (all others by Vistara): Vistara – TATA SIA Airlines Airbus A320-251N WL F-WWIN (VT-ATV) (msn 8326) TLS (Eurospot). Image: 943126.

Vistara aircraft slide show:

Route Map:

Hainan Airlines today puts the first Airbus A350-900 into service

Hainan Airlines flight HU7607 took off from Beijing and landed at Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport at 11:00 am on October 13 Beijing time, marking the successful completion of the maiden commercial revenue flight of the first Airbus A350 aircraft owned by Hainan Airlines Holding Co., Ltd.

The A350-900 provides passengers with a new standard of travel experience with its leading modern cabins. The business class comes equipped with the Staggered seat layout for enhancing passenger privacy and the classic Straight-Line design. In addition, the front section of economy class is equipped with 18″ wide seats that deliver up to 34-35″ in legroom, providing economy class passengers with priority seat selection of extra legroom. Every seat of the aircraft comes with the seat-back entertainment system. Passengers on selected aircraft are also served cappuccino or espresso brewed by a high-end fully-automatic Nespresso capsule coffee machine.

Hainan Airlines’ young luxury fleet now counts over 400 aircraft, mainly consisting of Boeing 737s, 787s and Airbus 330s.

In 2018, the airline will add four new A350-900 aircraft, which will serve Hainan Airlines’ international and domestic routes with the aim of providing passengers with a more convenient and comfortable travel experience.

Hainan Airlines aircraft slide show:

Volotea reaches 20 million passengers in only seven years

Volotea, the airline of mid and small-sized European cities, has reached its 20 million passenger carried since its operations started in 2012.

Volotea has reached its 20 million passengers carried since 2012. The passenger, Laurent Lannou, was flying from Bordeaux to Majorca and was awarded with a year-long free flights prize to any destination from Bordeaux.

The airline reaches this mark after carrying more than three and a half million passengers between last June and September, with an average 95% load factor.

Volotea has carried 20 million passengers and will operate more than 44,000 flights this year. The airline has more than 30 aircraft on its fleet and operates a total of 293 routes in 2018 connecting 78 European cities in 13 countries, including: France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Greece, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Albania, Portugal, Malta, Austria, Ireland and Luxembourg. Volotea grows profitably since 2014 and has employed more than 1,000 people this year.

Volotea’s Growth

Volotea has carried 20 million passengers since its first flight in 2012 and more than 4.8 million in 2017.

In 2018, Volotea has opened 58 new routes to serve a lineup of 293 routes, operating flights to 78 mid and small-sized European cities in 13 countries: France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Greece, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Albania, Portugal, Malta, Austria, Ireland and Luxembourg. The airline expects to carry between 5.7m and 6.0 passengers at the end of 2018.

Volotea has currently twelve bases: Venice, Nantes, Bordeaux, Palermo, Strasbourg, Asturias, Verona, Toulouse, Genoa, Bilbao, Marseille and Athens. These last three have been inaugurated recently in 2018. Volotea will inaugurate a new base in Cagliari.

Volotea employs over 1,000 people in summer 2018, a year in which it added 250 new positions.

In 2018, Volotea operates its network with 32 aircraft, Boeing 717s and Airbus A319s. Both models are recognized for their comfort and reliability, with Volotea offering reclining seats which are 5% wider than the average in airlines.

The Airbus A319 is the aircraft model selected for its future growth and will allow the company to increase its passenger capacity by 20% to 150 seats and to serve longer routes.

Top Copyright Photo (all others by Volotea): Volotea Boeing 717-2BL EI-FCU (msn 55190) PMI (Ton Jochems). Image: 943837.

Volotea aircraft slide show:

Destinations:

airBaltic takes delivery of its latest Airbus A220-300 (YL-CSL)

airBaltic on October 13, 2018 in Riga welcomed the second to last Airbus A220-300 jet for the year, registered as YL-CSL.

By the end of 2018, airBaltic plans to have a total of 14 Airbus A220-300 aircraft in its fleet.

Since the launch operations on December 14, 2016, airBaltic Airbus A220-300s have been in 35 countries and landed in 70 airports. Most often airBaltic flies Airbus A220-300s to Moscow, Amsterdam, Paris, London and Barcelona.

The Airbus A220-300 offers an excellent flying experience with such benefits for passengers as wider seats, larger windows, more hand luggage space in the cabin, improved lavatories and much more. The new aircraft is also considerably quieter – with a four times smaller noise footprint. Moreover, at the moment it is the greenest commercial aircraft in the world, as it is the first aircraft to have a transparent declaration of the life-cycle environmental impact, helping to reduce CO₂ and NO_X emissions by 20% and 50% respectively.

airBaltic this summer has also launched an improved cabin with new, comfortable seats on its latest three Airbus A220-300 aircraft. Passengers now benefit from such additional improvements as more legroom, new pockets behind the seats for magazines, as well as hangers next to the seat for jackets. All airBaltic Airbus A220-300 aircraft will get the improved cabin.

airBaltic serves over 70 destinations from Riga, Tallinn and Vilnius, offering the largest variety of destinations and convenient connections via Riga to its network spanning Europe, Scandinavia, the CIS and the Middle East. For summer 2019, airBaltic has introduced three new destinations from Tallinn to Malaga, Brussels and Copenhagen. In addition, next summer airBaltic will launch a new direct route connecting Riga and Stuttgart.

Photos: airBaltic.

Miami Air flight attendants ratify new contract

Miami Air Flight Attendants, represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA), today voted 93 percent to ratify a new contract. The 5-year agreement provides immediate pay raises and per diem, and improved work rules for over 100 Flight Attendants.

“Miami Air Flight Attendants stood together throughout negotiations and a year ago, authorized a strike if necessary. Today, we ratified a new contract that will provide much needed wage increases for Flight Attendants and their families,” said Natasha Glasper, AFA Miami Air President.

Negotiations began in January 2015. The the National Mediation Board has overseen negotiations through mediation since December 2015. Flight Attendants overwhelmingly authorized a strike in October 2017.

Miami Air is a charter airline, privately owned by TSI Holding Company of St. Louis, MO, operating flights for vacation tour companies and major sports teams including for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Steelers, Miami Dolphins and Heat, Tampa Bay Lightning and New Jersey Devils.