Aviation

  Bloomberg Akasa Air, India’s newest carrier backed by billionaire Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, started ticket sales for its debut flights. The low-cost airline will initially fly Boeing Co 737 Max jets to four Indian cities, including Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Kochi, according to a statement. The carrier will start operating 28 weekly flights between Mumbai and Ahmedabad on August 7, followed ...

Bloomberg Deutsche Lufthansa AG’s pilots’ union is holding a vote on whether to strike, a move that would further disrupt the airline’s crucial summer travel season. The VC pilots’ union is gauging support for a walkout as talks with the airline over pay and conditions stumble, according to a spokeswoman for the labour organisation. A strike could then take place ...

  Bloomberg The head of United Airlines Holdings Inc apologised to US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg after the carrier publicly faulted regulators for worsening flight delays. Scott Kirby, United’s chief executive officer, said he reached out to clarify comments in a staff memo earlier this month. In it, a United executive said half of its delay minutes and the majority ...

  Bloomberg Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd extended the suspension of its London-Hong Kong flights by almost seven months to late March due to “ongoing operational complexities” even as the Asian city gradually eases some of the world’s tightest Covid-19 restrictions and people start to travel once again. The UK-based airline intends to resume the service on March 26, rather than ...

Bloomberg After emerging from a debilitating pilot strike, SAS AB now faces its next battle: convincing investors that it’s worth backing the Scandinavian airline’s $3 billion rescue plan. The carrier has just weeks to secure as much as $700 million in bridge loans to finance ongoing operations while it undergoes US Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, said Jacob Pedersen, an analyst ...

  Bloomberg Embraer said the choice of engine provider for a proposed propeller-driven model has been whittled down to US-based Pratt & Whitney and its UK rival Rolls-Royce Holdings. The Brazilian planemaker is evaluating the proposals and will make a final decision on the supplier by the fourth quarter, Arjan Meijer, chief executive officer at its commercial aviation business, said ...

Bloomberg Qantas Airways Ltd cancelled one in 12 flights in Australia last month, even more than in May, increasing the pressure on CEO  Alan Joyce as the airline struggles to cope with a demand rebound. Australia’s national airline scrapped 8.1% of scheduled domestic services in June, making it the country’s least reliable carrier, according to a government report. Virgin Australia ...

  Bloomberg Refuelling workers at London Heathrow airport called off a strike that was set to begin on Thursday and had threatened further disruptions at the UK travel hub. The walkout was suspended after Aviation Fuel Services Ltd made a “sustainably improved offer,” the Unite union said in a statement. The roughly 50 employees involved will now be given time ...

  Bloomberg The potential blockbuster deal of this year’s Farnborough air show still hangs in the balance, with Airbus SE growing more confident it can secure a landmark purchase of about 50 A350 wide-body jets from Air India Ltd at the event, and Boeing Co working on a deal for as many as 150 737 Max jetliners. The Indian carrier ...

  Bloomberg The UK government said new plans to curb the aviation sector’s carbon output should mean aircraft emissions never again exceed levels seen before the coronavirus pandemic. Improvements to the existing aviation system, including a targeted 2% annual gain in fuel efficiency and steps to modernise airspace to shorten routes, should mean 2019 is remembered as the peak year ...