May 2011 Archives

 Taking its journey to world domination global ambitions one step further, the internet giant Google has now begun displaying flight search data for its search results.

 easyJet, the UK registered LCC, has launched a new campaign against a proposed rise to the UK Air Passenger Duty. Titled, "Tax Planes, Not People", the carrier asks the government to change the APD tax to a per-aircraft basis from its present per-passenger basis.

UPDATE: The airline has confirmed to The Networker that it will not be launching its own service to Canada, but instead code-share.

 I am sure that you have heard the word GDS plenty of times when discussing about airlines. What does GDS mean? What can it do? Let's find out.

Etihad Airways today announced plans to launch flights to Mahé in the Seychelles, becoming the third Gulf carrier to operate flights to the Indian ocean island. EY 622 AUH 1000 - 1435 SEZ Mo, We, Fr, Sa (4h35min)

Iberia, from 29th of September, is launching twice weekly service to Luanda in Angola. The service operates out of Madrid.

The schedule:


IB6321 MAD 0020 - 0655 LAD Mon, Fri 343 (7h35min)
IB6322 LAD 2240 - 0725 MAD Mon, Fri 343 (7h45min)

Flydubai is launching new flights to Ukraine, and in a grand way. The Dubai based LCC is starting three routes into Ukraine.Maps generated by the Great Circle Mapper - copyright © Karl L. Swartz.

Singapore Airlines today announced its plans to launch a new low cost long haul carrier. The new subsidiary, to be wholly owned by SIA, will be managed independently. The airline stated that "The new airline is being established following extensive review and analysis. It will enable the SIA Group to serve a largely untapped new market and cater to the growing demand among consumers for low-fare travel,"

 Back in August 2010, All Nippon Airways announced its plans to launch a low cost carrier. This new LCC, to be based in Osaka, was first called A&F Aviation - till it gets a name. This new LCC has now received its proper name - Peach. Aligning with the new brand, the holding company too would be renamed into Peach Aviation Ltd.

 Lufthansa, effective Winter 2011/12 will be terminating service to Hyderabad, HYD. The German carrier presently operates thrice weekly Frankfurt - Hyderabad flights. Poor loads are believed to be the reason for the cancellation. There is only very little O&D traffic between Hyderabad and Germany, and LH's flights were almost entirely dependent on connecting traffic.

 The eruption of the Grímsvötn volcano in Iceland has caused European air travel to be affected again. While expected to be as not bad as the situation last time, there are still significant flight cancellations expected.

Lufthansa today announced that it will be closing down its Lufthansa Italia subsidiary. The airline launched Lufthansa Italia in 2008.

Lufthansa and Air Dolomiti will take over role of the Lufthansa Italia brand - Air Dolomiti to expand route network

Frankfurt / Milan, 23 May 2011 - Lufthansa is reshaping its presence in the Italian market in order to focus on its strong position there. To that end, Lufthansa's current alignment in Italy with its core brand Lufthansa, Lufthansa Italia and the regional airline Air Dolomiti will be streamlined.

The Lufthansa Italia brand, which was launched in 2008, will only be retained until the end of the summer timetable on 29 October 2011. The Airbus A319 aircraft currently operated by Lufthansa Italia will be deployed elsewhere within the Lufthansa Group from the start of the 2011/2012 winter timetable. At the same time, Lufthansa foresees double-digit growth in its offering to Italy, which it already serves frequently from its Frankfurt and Munich hubs. Air Dolomiti will also increase flight frequencies to Germany in its route network, which focuses on connecting the major economic centres in Northern Italy with Lufthansa's Munich base. Together, Lufthansa and Air Dolomiti currently serve 19 destinations in Italy.

Lufthansa CEO and Chairman Christoph Franz: "Bundling our services under the Lufthansa and Air Dolomiti brands will give us a clearer and more streamlined presence in the Italian market. When we launched Lufthansa Italia three years ago, we filled a gap that had emerged in Milan following Alitalia's withdrawal from Malpensa and the end of our cooperation with Air One. Our service is highly appreciated and the response from passengers in Italy is excellent. However, given the slump in prices on European routes and the competition, it was extremely difficult to establish a profitable European network under a separate brand. It therefore makes sense to focus the Lufthansa Group's offering on connecting the connecting the Italian market to the Group's hubs.

Lufthansa Executive Board member Carsten Spohr, who is responsible for Lufthansa's passenger business, commented: "We are the most successful foreign airline in Italy and we want to consolidate our position. By shifting capacities from Lufthansa Italia to our core brand Lufthansa and strengthening Air Dolomiti, we will be able to offer our customers an even higher quality network of services via our hubs. The link between 'Lufthansa' and 'Italia' will remain as close as it has been up to now." Michael Kraus, CEO and President of Air Dolomiti will be responsible for realigning Lufthansa's and Air Dolomiti's presence in the North Italian market.

Thomas Eggert took over as Sales Director in Milan on 15 April 2011. An experienced airline manager, he began his career at Lufthansa more than 20 years ago in Milan, at that time in Lufthansa's Cargo division. Since then, he has held various positions within the Lufthansa Group in Asia and Europe. Prior to taking up his current appointment he was Head of Corporate Development at Lufthansa Cargo in Frankfurt.

Deutsche Lufthansa AG

Corporate Communications

 Continuing its expansion wave, Emirates has today revealed the addition of a third daily flight to Frankfurt and the addition of Airbus A380 services to Munich.

 Emirates Airline has decided to take a short break from its never ending battle for more landing rights in Canada.

 "We respect the 'umpire's decision' and I think we are just of the view that we are very comfortable letting some time pass." 

said Andrew Parker, a senior vice president of international affairs at Emirates, with TheNational.

 In an interview with Luchtvaart Nieuws, KLM CEO Mr. Peter Hartman has stated that the carrier is planning to launch flights to Rio De Janeiro ( GIG ), Brazil, from the next Winter season.

 Arik Air of Nigeria, recently received approval from the US DoT to operate flights to Houston, however the airlines viability remains an issue.

Vietnam Airlines, from 8th of December, launches flights to London. The flights operate four times a week to London Gatwick.
The flights are planned to be operate out of both Hanoi com Ho-Chi-Minh City, with two weekly flights for each. The flights will operate as red-eyes for an early morning arrival, both ways. VN already serves Paris, Moscow and Frankfurt in Europe.
VN141 SGN 2320 - 0620+1 LGW Tu, Fr 777
VN140 LGW 1200 - 0710+1 SGN We, Sa 777

VN145 HAN 2340 - 0620+1 LGW Mo, Th 777
VN144 LGW 1200 - 0630+1 Tu, Fr 777

 Welcome to the second chapter of The Networker lessons. I'm sure that you have often heard the word equipment when talking about an airline route. What is an equipment ? Let's find out.

 As The Networker posted last week, Czech Airlines has now revealed that it will be setting up a base at M R Stefanik Airport, Bratislava, Slovakia. Given below is the full schedule of the airline's planned Slovak operation, that will be making it the Czech-Slovakian airline again, ironically. More details on the operation could be found here. 

 In a webcast aimed for investors, Mr. Libano Barroso, TAM CEO, stated that the airline is planning to launch flights to Mexico City, Mexico.

IATA has suspended the membership of the Zimbabwean national carrier Air Zimbabwe ( IATA: UM ) following unsettled debts.
This will stop Air Zimbabwe from using IATA's flight booking and finance services, a critical part in making bookings via travel agents. The amount of unpaid debts are $280,000.
The airline has stated that it has already engaged IATA to negotiate the settlement of debts.

 Air New Zealand and Virgin Australia, which late last year received approval for a trans-Tasman joint network, has announced that the joint operations will commence from Winter 2011 ( effective 30th October ).

 Air Transat, the Canadian charter carrier, has received a fresh new livery. The first aircraft sporting the new livery, C-GKTS, an Airbus A330, rolled out of the paint hangars in Rio De Janeiro yesterday. The aircraft is due to arrive in Montreal in a few days.

 In an interview with ATWOnline, Peter Foster, CEO of Air Astana, has outlined the Kazakh carrier's ambitious expansion plans.

 According to a report on The Slovak Spectator, CSA Czech Airlines will be launching a new base at Bratislava, Slovakia's main airport, as early as next June.

 Delta Air Lines, effective 17th June will be suspending its flights to Kiev indefinitely. The airline presently serves Kiev from New York, JFK. The move is likely a part of the airline's cost cutting initiative. The airline will continue to offer code-share service to Kiev via Paris and Amsterdam.

Lufthansa from 31st October 2011, is launching flights to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, from Munich. The new flight will be operating as a tag on flight to its present Riyadh flight, which will see an upgrade from PrivatAir 737 to the airline's own Airbus A340-300 aircraft.
New flight schedule:
LH608 MUC 1150 - 1905 RUH 1955 - 2140 JED 343 Mo, We, Fr
LH609 JED 2310 - 0040+1 RUH 0130+1 - 0525+1MUC 343 Mo, We, Fr

 SriLankan Airlines has announced that it will be launching new flights to Moscow, Russia, from 15th September. The new flights will operate twice weekly on-board Airbus A320 aircraft, via Dubai. The airline had previously planned to operate thrice weekly via Abu Dhabi, on board Airbus A330-200 aircraft, but later brought forward the flights.

Recently there was an article in the UK's Sunday Times that the International Airline Group ( which consists of British Airways and Iberia ) was preparing a bid to take over TAP Portugal.
While this article itself should be taken with a grain of salt, this appears to be something plausible for a number of reasons.
1. Portugal has been asked to privatize TAP Portugal as part of the country's multi-billion Euro bailout.
2. IAG is known to have prepared a list of takeover targets.

But what will happen to TAP's network, and the European competitive landscape if this deal takes place ?

The biggest strength in the TAP route network is without a doubt its extensive South American network. A possible IAG takeover of TAP, and an upcoming LAN + TAM merger ( LATAM ) in the other side of the pond will radically change the present competition in the South America - Europe market.

A merger of the both sides ( IAG and LATAM ) will drive IAG and LATAM into dominant positions in this particular market and will likely cause an increase of the fares on these routes. This happens as both groups will then be trying to achieve the best possible synergies in terms of yield optimization.

Will the EC let an IAG takeover of TAP go through ? This is an interesting, and perhaps the most important, question. The EC is known to be considering the competition in specific markets and routes prior to giving approval to a merger. This is further evident by the recent mergers the EC approved and rejected.

Lufthansa takeover of SWISS - The merger was approved and the airlines were only asked to give back some of their FRA and ZRH slots.

Aegean merger with Olympic - The merger was rejected because this would have considerably hurt the competition in the Greek market.

While looking at these decisions, one could argue that the EC did not consider the competition in the North Atlantic market ( where both Lufthansa and SWISS are very good ) and that the acquisitions of Brussels Airlines, bmi and SWISS have brought Lufthansa into a dominant position in Central Europe.

But that itself could hurt Lufthansa as that is, at present, the only reason the EC could reject a Lufthansa takeover bid for TAP Portugal. And it seems that Lufthansa has a better chance at it, as the Lufthansa group's south American network is not as strong as that of the IAG's.

However, if none of the above take-overs get accepted, there remains to be one very strong candidate - AF-KLM. The Air France + KLM group at present does not own any other leading European airlines and nor will its takeover hurt the South America - Europe market as much as an IAG takeover will.

With such an interesting list of consequences, it will be very interesting to see what will happen to a TAP Portugal takeover bid in the future.

SriLankan Airlines has brought forward its Moscow launch date from 23rd December to 15th September, the airline's Chairman announced. As per the new plan, the flights will now initially operate twice weekly via Dubai - as opposed to the earlier plan of thrice weekly via Abu Dhabi. The new schedule is not yet available and this article will be updated once it is available. Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka grew 34% in the first quarter of 2011 while tourist arrivals from Russia alone has grown 22%. Aeroflot recently announced plans to resume its scheduled flights to Colombo from 1st November, after a hiatus of almost a decade.

As per the present schedule display, Delta Air Lines will be cancelling the following routes effective 7th September, 2011.

Cincinatti - Fort Wayne
Memphis - Golden Triangle
Memphis - Lafayette
Memphis - Lexington/ Blue Grass
Memphis - Moline/ Quad City

There are also multiple frequency reductions planned, more information on which could be found on this blog soon. In a letter to its employees, Delta Airlines CEO has stated that the airline will soon be s

 Frontier Airlines, effective 5th June , will be suspending the following routes.

 Qatar Airways today announced that the airline will be launching service to four more destinations this year, namely Baku, Entebbe, Madinah and Tbilisi.QR538 DOH 0115 - 0645 EBB 320 Tu, Th, SaQR974 DOH 0830 - 1230 GYD 1330 - 1445 TBS 320 Tu, Fr, Sa

Qantas will be ending its San Francisco services a week earlier than planned, on 7th of May. The service was previously planned to end on 14th May. The airline presently flies on the Sydney - SFO route four times a week on board Boeing 747-400 aircraft. The airline will be launching services to Dallas on 16th May following the SFO service's closure.

Thanks to my friend Steven Frischling for bringing this to my attention - it seems that US Airways has revealed its Airbus A350 configuration.