Aviation

  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 …

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business The Etihad Aviation Group Board of Directors on Tuesday announced that James Hogan will step down as President and Chief Executive Officer of the company in the second half of 2017. The Board and Hogan first initiated the transition process last year with the formation in May of the Etihad Aviation Group, a diversified …

  Dubai / Reuters Dubai International Airport remained the world’s busiest for international passengers in 2016, as existing markets grew and new routes were launched, the airport’s operator said. Annual traffic rose 7.2 percent to 83.6 million passengers in 2016 from a year ago, the operator said in a statement on Tuesday. It was Dubai airport’s second slowest annual growth …

  Bloomberg EasyJet Plc shares fell the most in almost four months after the company said a weaker pound in the wake of the Brexit referendum and higher fuel costs would weigh on full-year earnings more than expected. Shares of Europe’s second-biggest discount airline dropped as much as 9 percent, and were 8.7 percent lower at 982 pence in London …

  Dubai / Emirates Business GI Aviation, the newest name to enter the private air charter market in the UAE, is now open for bookings following the award of its GCAA Air Operator’s Certificate in December 2016. Several demo flights from its Al Bateen Executive Airport, Abu Dhabi home have been performed and recently, the privately-owned company showcased its first …