Aviation

  Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co. was eager to sign up as the ‘launch customer’ for Boeing Co.’s new 737 Max, soon to be the Greyhound of the skies as it replaces its older, less fuel-efficient cousins in fleets worldwide. But Southwest won’t be first to fly or even receive the new aircraft. That honour will go to a smaller low-cost ...

  Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co., the largest US discounter, is benefiting from a pickup in demand and pricing power that began late last year and is carrying over into 2017. Airfares are firming up after almost two years of declines, Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly said. Revenue from each seat flown a mile, an industry benchmark, is poised to end ...

  Bloomberg Clear, the biometric screening firm long hobbled by a limited network, is landing in several major US airports soon—including New York’s LaGuardia—marking the start of an era that could radically accelerate your trip from curb to cabin. But there are some bumps to smooth out first. Clear, which started at JFK International Airport earlier this month, will open ...

  Bloomberg Qantas Airways Ltd. plans to expand its international business after a three-year restructuring effort by Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce helped deliver record profits for the Australian carrier. The division, which was losing money before the turnaround, is now in a position to grow, Joyce, 50, said in an interview in Beijing with Bloomberg TV on Thursday. Joyce ...

  DUBLIN / Reuters Ryanair is in talks about providing connecting flights to AlItalia’s long-haul services and has raised objections with German authorities about a Lufthansa-Air Berlin tie-up, as it tries to ease its expansion in continental Europe. The Irish airline, Europe’s largest by passenger numbers, is looking to add 11 million passengers in the year to March 2018 and ...

  Bloomberg Copperchase Ltd., a UK-based contractor, began the first phase of construction of an airport in central Iraq that will help ease travel for millions of religious pilgrims who visit the city of Karbala each year. The company is building a runway, terminal, control tower and other facilities at a cost of between $250 million and $500 million, Nahidh ...

  Bloomberg Passengers who want to watch a movie on American Airlines Group Inc.’s new 737 Max better bring a device to watch it on. The carrier said it won’t feature seat-back video screens on the Boeing Co. aircraft because almost all travelers now carry mobile phones, tablets and laptops. Satellite-based systems have improved on-board internet speed and access, which ...

  Bloomberg Boeing Co. profit rose as the 787 Dreamliner emerged from a decade of losses and helped the planemaker weather a turbulent market for wide-body jetliners. Adjusted earnings were $2.47 a share, despite an accounting loss for an aerial tanker program, the company said on Wednesday in a statement. That exceeded the $2.32 average of analyst estimates compiled by ...

  Bloomberg Standard & Poor’s (S&P) downgraded Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc’s credit rating to three levels above junk after factoring in 670 million pounds ($836 million) in fines for bribery and corruption charges. The aircraft engine-maker’s long-term investment rating has been downgraded to BBB+ from A-, S&P said in a statement, cautioning that a new mandatory accounting system could weigh on ...

  Bloomberg The European Union will propose extending an exemption on foreign flights from its carbon market until 2020 after nations worldwide reached a historic deal last year to introduce a global system to curb the growth of emissions from airlines. The European Commission, the EU’s regulatory arm, will probably present a draft law on Feb. 3 sparing carriers, ranging ...