The airline Alaska Airlines has announced the launch of a daily connection between San Diego and Atlanta. The route is scheduled to begin in mid-May 2024. The airline Alaska Airline will launch another daily connection next year, as confirmed by the Aeroroutes portal. The airline plans to launch the San Diego-Atlanta route from mid-May, which will operate on a daily basis.
The low-cost carrier Wizz Air successfully completed its first flight on the Vienna-Hurghada route. The connection is ideal for tourists looking for the perfect holiday trip. The low-cost carrier Wizz Air successfully completed its first flight on the connection between the capital Vienna and the Egyptian city of Hurghada. The route will now be flown every Monday and Friday. Valeria Bragarenco, Corporate Communications Manager, said: “We are delighted to be expanding our route network from Vienna to include additional holiday and city break destinations, thus offering our Austrian customers more opportunities to explore new cities and enjoy their holidays. The new route from Vienna to Hurghada will offer Austrian passengers great adventures and unforgettable experiences. At WIZZ, we continue to strive to offer affordable flight connections to a number of exciting destinations and look forward to welcoming passengers on board our young and sustainable Airbus fleet." Julian Jäger, CEO of Flughafen Wien AG, said: "With Wizz Air, Hurghada is now even more accessible from Vienna. With guaranteed sunshine, the destination offers a perfect opportunity to extend the summer a little longer. We wish Wizz Air all the best on the new route."
The German airline Eurowings has made it its mission to recognize airports that deliver exceptional performance in the handling area on their route network. Graz Airport came second in the so-called Eurowings Station Award, based on its outstanding performance on site. The Eurowings Station Award is intended to reward airports that occupy a place in the German airline's route network and deliver top performance. This honor has now been bestowed on Graz Airport, with the German airline Eurowings awarding the airport in question second place. The assessment and selection takes into account safety aspects, punctuality and customer feedback. The young Eurowings base was convincing in all respects and is one of two Austrian airports to achieve top rankings. Salzburg Airport also has a place on this list, having achieved first place in this award. Robert Strigl, Eurowings Base Manager in Graz, is enthusiastic: “It makes me incredibly proud and underlines, on the one hand, the outstanding performance of the entire operational team at the site and, on the other hand, that Eurowings is an excellent place to be in Graz.”
The Latvian airline Air Baltic announces the launch of non-stop flights from Tallinn to Burgas and from Tampere to Palma de Mallorca from Tampere for the 2023 summer schedule. A total of 13 new routes will be launched. "As we continue to monitor market dynamics and passenger demand, Air Baltic is committed to expanding its route network and improving connectivity in the Baltic States and Tampere (Finland). This time, we have recognized the opportunity to expand our network in Central and Southeastern Europe as a whole. The addition of Burgas and Palma de Mallorca makes our offer even more attractive and diversified," said company CEO Martin Gauss. Overview of the new routes: Destination served Flight frequency Start date Riga (Latvia) – Alicante (Spain) 2 flights weekly February 27, 2024 Riga (Latvia) – Tirana (Albania) 2 flights weekly May 1, 2024 Riga (Latvia) – Sofia (Bulgaria) 3 flights weekly May 2, 2024 Riga (Latvia) – Ljubljana (Slovenia) 2 flights weekly May 2, 2024 Riga (Latvia) – Skopje (North Macedonia) 2 flights weekly May 2, 2024 Riga (Latvia) – Chisinau (Moldova) 2 flights weekly May 4, 2024 Riga (Latvia) – Pristina (Kosovo) 2 flights weekly May 4, 2024 Tallinn (Estonia) – Billund (Denmark) 2 flights weekly May 2, 2024 Tallinn (Estonia) - Malta 1 flight weekly May 4, 2024 Tallinn (Estonia) - Burgas (Bulgaria) 2 flights weekly May 1, 2024 Vilnius (Lithuania) - Krakow (Poland) 2 flights weekly May 3, 2024 Palanga (Lithuania) - Amsterdam (the Netherlands) 2 flights weekly May 29, 2024 Tampere (F domestic) – Palma de Mallorca (Spain) 2
The airline Qatar Airways feels discriminated against by the Australian authorities because its request to increase flight frequencies was rejected. Company boss Akbar Al Baker describes this as "very unfair". The circumstances under which the request was rejected are quite controversial. Previous "underpants examinations" that Qatar Airways allegedly had carried out on flight personnel in the past are said to have played a role. At least politicians made a suggestion in this regard. But the carrier is also angry for another reason. It feels badly treated by Australia because it helped to repatriate citizens during the corona pandemic while other airlines suspended their services.
Airlines fail in terms of customer satisfaction when it comes to dealing with delays and flight cancellations. This is the result of a survey by AirHelp, the world's largest organisation for air passenger rights. The passengers surveyed rated their satisfaction with the airlines' support during flight disruptions on average only 3,13 out of 10 points. If the delay is more than two hours, the operating airline must provide passengers with meals and drinks at the airport - many do not know this. The majority of the passengers surveyed (82 percent) were not informed of their rights during their flight disruption, and only 37 percent of passengers were guaranteed basic supplies such as food and drink during the disruption. 15 percent of them only received these when they asked for them. The biggest problems for the affected passengers are the long wait (73 percent), arriving at their destination at an inconvenient time (71 percent) and stress (68 percent). Only 74 percent of passengers with cancelled flights received the benefits they were entitled to. Passengers affected by flight cancellations are entitled to alternative transport or a full refund of the flight price. 74 percent of those surveyed were given these options. However, 33 percent of them only after they had asked for them. If necessary, airlines must also provide accommodation and facilitate transport there: According to the survey, only 27 percent of those surveyed were provided with accommodation, while 20 percent had their transport paid for. Flight interruptions often result in high additional costs for passengers. 72 percent of the passengers surveyed have additional expenses due to flight delays, which
After a failed expansion in the 2022 summer flight schedule, Corendon was operating on a reduced level during the warm season of this year. Things will continue to be more relaxed in summer 2024. However, a new non-stop connection between Cologne/Bonn and Tel Aviv is being introduced. In the Germany-Austria-Switzerland region, the Corendon Group will offer its services from a total of 2024 airports with the 29 summer flight schedule. Around three million seats will be offered to Turkey, Spain, Greece, Morocco and Egypt. New to the program: two weekly rotations to be served between Cologne/Bonn and Tel Aviv. "As we expect stable demand, we will continue to offer our customers connections to the usual extent next summer with regard to travel destinations and seat capacity offered," says Mine Aslan, Commercial Director of Corendon Airlines. "Due to the challenging global economic developments, we have decided to keep the flight schedule stable and ensure safe operations," Aslan continues. Corendon is currently assuming that demand in the area of ethnic traffic will increase. This means that the offer to Turkey will be expanded. Corendon Airlines has therefore extended the operating times for these flight connections: they will start earlier in the year and run for longer. In the coming year, Corendon Airlines primarily wants to employ its own fleet. There are certainly considerations for wet-lease operations, but probably only on a small scale, explains Mine Aslan. In the future, Corendon Airlines is expecting significantly more growth again. The airline is planning to renew the fleet of Corendon Dutch Airlines and is taking a Boeing 737-9 into service.
Star Alliance member United Airlines has opened two new "United Clubs" at Denver Airport. Among them is the largest of its kind to date, with an area of 3.250 square meters spread over three levels. A special highlight of the new club is a bar on the mezzanine level, where guests can use the time they spend waiting for their flight to enjoy a beer tasting. Last month, United Airlines opened a new club in Denver in Terminal A, not far from Gate A26, covering an area of around 2.300 square meters. In contrast to the new club in Terminal B, which impresses with its urban ambience, street art and clear, geometric shapes, this club is inspired by the natural beauty of Colorado and the Rocky Mountains. With two fireplaces, stacked wood, checkered cushions and decoration with nostalgic winter sports accessories, it is reminiscent of a ski lodge. This club offers space for 400 guests on two levels.
Actually, not a single spare part for Western aircraft in use in Russia should reach the Russian Federation. At least that is what the sanctions, which are being practiced by the USA and the EU, among others, stipulate. In reality, however, the opposite is the case, because Russian carriers continue to obtain the parts they need through intermediaries. The Russian portal "Vjorstka", which is considered critical of the government, reports, among other things, that from the beginning of the year until around the end of July 2023, the carriers Rossiya, Pobeda, S7 Airlines and Aeroflot were able to import spare parts for aircraft made by Airbus and Boeing worth around 110 million US dollars into the Russian Federation. But how is that actually possible when, due to the sanctions, parts are no longer allowed to be delivered to the country? To do this, the Russian carriers use specially founded subsidiaries located abroad. These purchase the coveted spare parts through intermediaries and then "export" them to the Russian Federation. As an example, the news report cites the airline S7, which went on a shopping spree through a subsidiary called Globus via a Chinese company called DLA (GZ) Technology Co. It was proven that engines for the A320 series were brought to Russia in this way. For the Embraer 170, General Electric engines could be obtained via a construction company in the United Arab Emirates. Parts also came to Russia via Armenia. For example, a company called A Trade Service acted as an intermediary for Honeywell parts that Pobeda wanted. Rossiya Airlines used the Chinese company Yunnan for the pressure gauges it needed, which were manufactured in the USA.
The takeover of the regional airline Wideroe by the low-cost airline Norwegian Air Shuttle, announced a few months ago, will probably not be waved through by the competition authority without further ado. An in-depth investigation has been initiated. The responsible authority announced that it has reasonable grounds to suspect that the purchase by Norwegian could have a negative impact on passengers. For this reason, an in-depth investigation has been initiated, which must be completed by November 17, 2023. It will then be announced whether the deal will be approved or prohibited. In the latter case, there is then the possibility of appealing against the decision.
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