Aviation

Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co and American Airlines Group Inc have scrapped their annual staff Halloween parties because of the coronavirus pandemic, suspending revered traditions amid an unprecedented industry slump. “You all know Halloween celebrations will look differently this year,” Southwest CEO Gary Kelly said in his weekly message to employees. “Please remember to wear your masks while having fun with one …

Bloomberg Singapore Airlines Ltd will restart 19-hour non-stop flights to New York next month, betting that demand will recover as the coronavirus pandemic eases in its home country. The airline will use its Airbus SE A350 aircraft for the world’s longest flight, with three weekly services starting from November 9 from Changi Airport to John F Kennedy International, according to …

Bloomberg British Airways is planning to cut the number of flights it operates from London Gatwickas the coronavirus pandemic continues to slam the travel industry, the Mail reported. The carrier aims to shift business to Heathrow — Britain’s largest airport — where it will counter falling demand for business travel by boosting premium leisure flights to long-haul holiday destinations, the …

Bloomberg Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd will cut 6,000 jobs and close its Cathay Dragon brand, the South China Morning Post reported, as part of a strategic review to combat the deep damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The Hong Kong-based airline is expected to officially announce the plan after the market close on Wednesday, the newspaper said. It initially planned …

Bloomberg India is ready to sweeten the deal for the sale of Air India Ltd, the loss-making state-owned carrier, a finance ministry official said. The government is considering allowing potential suitors for Air India decide how much of the flag carrier’s debt they want to take on as part of the deal, Disinvestment Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said in an …

Bloomberg London Heathrow airport will offer rapid Covid-19 tests to departing passengers as more territories require travelers to provide a clean analysis as a condition for entry. The Oxford LAMP rapid Covid-19 tests will cost 80 pounds ($104) and can be used for travel to destinations including Hong Kong and Italy that are conditioning entry on a negative Covid-19 result, …

Bloomberg The travel bubble for Hong Kong and Singapore could start with one daily flight between the two financial hubs, according to Hong Kong Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau. The number of dedicated flights under the agreement may change depending on the coronavirus situation in the cities, Yau said at a briefing on Tuesday, without elaborating. The …

Bloomberg The virus-ravaged airline industry reached a milestone, carrying more than 1 million passengers for the first time in seven months. US airport security checkpoints processed 1,031,505 people, or 39.6% of the equivalent day in 2019, according to a tally by the Transportation Security Administration. Several of the busiest days since mid-March have occurred in the past two weeks and …

Bloomberg Boeing Co is weighing whether to jettison the Seattle-area headquarters of its commercial-airplane division as it cuts costs and stockpiles cash. A sale of the Longacres industrial park would also include an adjacent building once used to train airline pilots. Boeing converted the wooded suburban campus from a horse-racing track in the 1990s, and the property has 855,000 square-feet …

Bloomberg American Airlines Group Inc plans to make Boeing Co 737 Max passenger flights at the end of this year for the first time since the aircraft’s grounding in March 2019. The Max will serve the busy Miami-New York corridor once a day starting December 29 through January 4, American said. The airline will “take a phased approach” to returning …