November 9, 2023

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November 9, 2023

Air freight: DHL is recording a significant decline in sales

The logistics company Deutsche Post-DHL is currently struggling with a sharp decline in air freight. The extent of the decline is extremely significant, as according to its own statements, sales have fallen by 48,8 percent. In the third quarter of the current financial year alone, DHL was confronted with a 12,2 percent drop in volume. The group of companies explained, among other things, that demand on routes between Asia and Europe, Asia and the USA, and within the Asia-Pacific region has fallen significantly. In addition, freight rates have fallen again due to intense competition. The sum of these factors has led to a 48,4 percent drop in sales. This also has consequences for the group's earnings, as Deutsche Post-DHL had to announce that it would have to reduce its forecast EBIT for the full year 2023 to a range between 6,2 and 6,6 billion euros. Most recently, sales were 19,4 billion euros, around 20 percent less than in the same period last year.

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October 2023: Airbus delivers 71 aircraft

The European aircraft manufacturer Airbus was able to deliver a total of 2023 commercial aircraft to 71 customers in October 42. At the same time, it was able to land 119 gross new orders. 2 A220-100, 7 A220-300, 23 A320neo, 28 A321neo, 1 A330-200, 2 A330-900 and 8 A350-900 were delivered to customers. Orders were received for 6 A220-100 for Air Niugini, 8 A220-300 for an unnamed customer, 8 A320neo for Cathay Pacific, 87 A321neo - 60 for United Airlines, 24 for Cathay Pacific, 3 for an unnamed customer -, 10 A350-900 for an unnamed customer. So far this year, the European aircraft manufacturer has delivered 559 commercial aircraft to 81 customers.

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Karlsruhe: Freebird has started Hurghada flights

The airline Freebird Europe operated the first flight from Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden to Hurghada on November 7, 2023. There were reportedly 152 passengers on board. Managing Director Uwe Kotzan is pleased that Baden-Airpark has a direct connection to Hurghada again after a long interruption. "With this connection and the favorable flight times, FKB now also has attractive package tour options in the winter flight schedule." Flights to and from Hurghada are offered on Tuesdays in the winter flight schedule. Departure is scheduled for 12:50 p.m., landing in Egypt is scheduled for 18:20 p.m. local time. The flights are operated for tour operators, including Tui, and can be booked individually or as a package tour.

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Lufthansa Group launches free basic WiFi internet

Until now, Lufthansa Group passengers on short and medium-haul flights have had to pay comparatively high fees for the WiFi Internet offered by Deutsche Telekom. In mid-January 2024, at least the basic offer, which is intended to enable messaging including sending photos, is to be free of charge. Currently, most of the aircraft in the Airbus A320 fleet are equipped with the Internet technology. However, the passengers' contractual partners are not the Lufthansa Group airlines themselves, but Deutsche Telekom AG. This is the official provider of WiFi above the clouds. There has been repeated criticism of the high usage fees, as numerous competitors offer at least the basic version completely free of charge. This will probably also be the case with the Lufthansa Group from mid-January 2024. At least the messaging version will be offered free of charge on short and medium-haul flights that are operated with appropriately equipped aircraft from the A320 series. At the same time, the crane group announced that Deutsche Telekom will reduce the rates for the paid packages. The simple fact that many travelers have refrained from using the Internet above the clouds due to the high costs is also likely to be behind this. "Lufthansa is investing around two billion euros in product and service improvements. We have implemented and planned many large, medium and smaller initiatives that make traveling with Lufthansa an even better experience," says Heiko Reitz, CCO Lufthansa Airlines. "One good example is free messaging. I am delighted that our guests will be able to stay in touch with their loved ones or business partners above the clouds in the future - and all for free." The prerequisite for using the new free service is logging in.

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Emirates now also uses Shell-SAF

Since October 24, 2023, Gulf carrier Emirates Airline has been using SAF supplied by Shell on long-haul flights from Dubai. Emirates flight EK 412 to Sydney on October 24, 2023 was one of the first flights to operate with SAF blending. The SAF blend that Shell supplied for the refueling system at DXB airport consisted of 40 percent pure SAF and 60 percent conventional kerosene. The chemical properties of this blend are identical to those of conventional kerosene. This means that it can be seamlessly integrated into the airport's existing fuel infrastructure and the entire Emirates fleet can be refueled with it without any modifications being required. "We are taking proactive measures to enable more sustainable flying now and in the future. Supplying the aircraft from Dubai is just one of the steps we have taken to reduce emissions and specifically help our customers minimize their own carbon footprint. “We still have a long way to go and we hope that our partnership with Shell Aviation will inspire other manufacturers to fill the supply gap and provide SAF at key hubs such as Dubai and other points on our route network,” said CEO Tim Clark.

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With a stop in Erbil: Iraqi Airways begins direct flights Baghdad-Düsseldorf

The airline Iraqi Airways plans to return to Düsseldorf with direct flights in November 2023. The comeback is announced for November 14, 2023 with Boeing 737-800. Iraqi Airways intends to operate direct flights between Baghdad and Düsseldorf on Tuesdays. In both directions there is a stopover in Erbil for boarding and disembarking. In contrast to non-stop flights that go from A to B without a stopover, direct flights can have any number of stops as long as the flight number remains the same. Many passengers are not aware of the difference, which then repeatedly leads to annoyance, especially during the holiday season. 

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FACC AG reports increase in sales

In the first nine months of the current year, FACC AG was able to control sales to EUR 513,9 million. EBIT is reported at five million euros. The recovery in the aviation industry continues. In the first nine months of 2023, FACC AG was able to achieve a 22,5% increase in sales to EUR 513,9 million compared to the same period last year. The high capacity utilization of the aviation industry is also illustrated by FACC's long-term order book, which recorded significant growth with a volume of USD 5,8 billion. The Q3/2023 result is burdened by seasonally lower sales in the summer months, a challenging material supply in the supply chain, training expenses for new employees and inflation-related cost increases, especially in the personnel area. The further outlook for the 2023 financial year remains unchanged: Group sales in the 2023 financial year will increase by over 12% to 16% compared to the 2022 financial year. In terms of earnings, management expects a reduced but positive result for the second half of the year compared to the first half of the year.

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Israel: Arkia, El Al and Israir need state aid

The war in Israel, instigated by Hamas, is also having a significant negative impact on airlines' business. While foreign providers have largely withdrawn for security reasons, domestic companies are trying to maintain flight offerings. Due to a lack of demand, this costs a lot of money. Before the Corona pandemic, Israel was a very popular destination for cultural, city and beach holidays. The fact that there is a simmering conflict between hardliners on both sides has been accepted due to its long duration and people have trusted that Israel has everything under control. However, the Corona pandemic meant that demand collapsed to zero almost overnight. One of the main reasons for this was the comparatively extremely restrictive entry and quarantine regulations imposed by the government. At times, tourists were not allowed to enter Israel at all. After the restrictions were lifted, tourists gradually began to come back to the country. In addition, Israelis themselves are considered to be extremely keen to travel and are therefore also an extremely important target group for airlines. Business has therefore gone well again for the airlines. However, the military attack by Hamas meant that demand collapsed to virtually zero within a few days. While most foreign providers have suspended their flights to/from Tel Aviv and Eilat, Arkia, Israir and El Al, among others, are trying to maintain their flights as far as possible. But this comes at a price, because due to a lack of demand, new bookings are hardly possible, as Israelis currently do not want to or cannot travel for a variety of reasons. Many consider

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Duro23: Zurich completes emergency exercise

A few days ago, Zurich-Kloten Airport successfully carried out a periodically prescribed emergency exercise. The aim of the "DURO23" exercise was to enable the emergency services and organizations involved to practice their procedures in an environment that was as realistic as possible and to gain insights for an emergency. In addition to various organizational units of Zurich Airport AG, the Zurich Cantonal Police, Zurich Protection & Rescue, SWISS, various handling agents, airport emergency teams, the Zurich Public Prosecutor's Office and the Cantonal Civil Protection Company also took part in the exercise. At the same time, Zurich Airport's rear emergency organization - the crisis team, crisis information and support services - was called in and practiced. In the scenario of the emergency exercises, those responsible always base the scenarios on realistic events and locations. In this year's "DURO23" emergency exercise, the event included an accidental landing with damage to an A220 aircraft, a fire in a building caused by the accident and an accident involving a tour bus. In total, around 400 people and around 180 extras - including a school class - took part in the emergency exercise. In addition, around 50 people took care of organizing the exercise. The results are now being evaluated and will be incorporated into a detailed overall assessment. The findings from the final report are intended to contribute to the further optimization of the emergency organization at Zurich Airport.

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Corendon does not plan any growth for 2024

The Corendon Group does not plan to grow significantly in the coming year. After a botched expansion, the company was only operating on a reduced level in 2023. It will stay that way, because the company wants to concentrate on city destinations in the future. Managing Director Yildiray Karaer explained to Touristik Aktuell that the capacity offered in summer 2023 was around 40 percent lower than a year earlier. At that time, the company expanded like crazy and was left with empty seats on many routes, but had high wet lease costs. The group plans to operate around 2024 aircraft in summer 38. This means that no significant growth is planned. In the future, the company plans to fly to more city destinations, which it wants to develop step by step into year-round destinations. 

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