Aviation

Bloomberg A new airline is preparing to start flights in South Africa next week, entering the industry at a time when carriers near and far are going bankrupt amid the worst crisis in aviation history. Lift, owned by Johannesburg-based leasing company Global Airways, will operate three Airbus SE A320 jets and look to tap returning domestic demand after an almost ...

Bloomberg American Airlines Group Inc is seeing a slowdown in demand because of surging coronavirus cases, signalling a weaker outlook heading into the year-end holidays. After a strong start for the fourth quarter, a deceleration in net bookings growth began before Thanksgiving and has persisted into this month, American said in a regulatory filing. As a result, the company expects ...

Bloomberg The UK moved to exempt “high-value” executives from rules requiring people entering the country to quarantine for two weeks, in a move designed to boost business. The rule change means that from 4 am on Saturday, business people arriving in the UK from countries that aren’t on the UK’s travel corridors list won’t have to self-isolate for 14 days, ...

Bloomberg Airbus SE is confident in its plan to increase production of the best-selling A320 family of jets to a rate of 47 a month next year, even as the slump in air travel puts pressure on customers, according to people familiar with the matter. The company has extensively stress-tested its backlog of orders for the model, and remains comfortable ...

Bloomberg The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated airlines’ digital uptake as carriers look for ways to reduce human touchpoints. But that push has had another impact, too. It’s reduced cabin weight, and that can mean big cost savings. Singapore Airlines Ltd’s low-cost carrier Scoot said it’s introducing an inflight system called ScootHub that customers can access via their mobile devices to ...

Bloomberg ANA Holdings Inc will raise as much as 332.1 billion yen ($3.2 billion) via an overseas and domestic share placement as airlines around the world rush to shore up their finances amid the coronavirus pandemic. Japan’s largest carrier, whose shares have slumped 30% this year, will use the proceeds to repay long-term debt and buy Boeing 787 aircraft to ...

Bloomberg Lunar New Year may be more than two months away but one Chinese fuel supplier is already gearing up for an expected surge in air travel. China Aviation Oil (CAO) is seeking to import jet fuel for January delivery in its first buy tender since May, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The move by CAO, one of the ...

Bloomberg Europe’s airlines will struggle more than competitors elsewhere to end losses next year as they’re held back by higher expenses and their dependence on overseas routes, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The region’s carriers should achieve seat-occupancy levels averaging 63.8% for the whole of 2020, increasing to 65.6% in 2021. That’s still below the projected break-even ...

Bloomberg The coronavirus pandemic and its devastating impact on global aviation and economic growth isn’t swaying Megawide Construction Corp from its 109 billion peso ($2.3 billion) plan to upgrade Manila’s airport, the main gateway to the Philippines. The company proposed a 10-year plan to double annual capacity at the aging and overcrowded Ninoy Aquino International Airport to 65 million passengers, ...

Bloomberg Global airline lobby IATA is working on a mobile app that will help travellers demonstrate their coronavirus-free status, joining a push to introduce so-called Covid passports to speed up the revival of international travel. The Travel Pass will display test results together with proof of inoculation, as well as listing national entry rules and details on the nearest labs, ...