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September 17, 2020

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September 17, 2020

Infections: Denmark also locks out Austrians

guest Author September 17, 2020 18:51

Austria is now classified as a risk area by another country: Denmark has put the Netherlands and Portugal on the "red list" in addition to the Alpine republic. The federal capital Vienna has already been classified as red by the Serum Institute for several days. This has now had significant consequences, as the Austrian Foreign Ministry explains: As of September 19, 2020 (midnight), entry from Austria is only possible for special reasons. This is no longer possible for tourist purposes. The local police have provided more information on Denmark's current regulations at this link. Any effects on the flight offer from Austrian airports cannot currently be foreseen. When asked, the providers stated in unison that further developments - especially with regard to demand and booking numbers - are being monitored and any decisions will be made accordingly. Wizzair, Ryanair/Lauda and Austrian Airlines, among others, offer flights between Austria and Denmark. (Author: This article was written by Michael Müller.)

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Air Canada includes corona insurance

Jan Gruber September 17, 2020 14:50

Star Alliance member Air Canada will include Covid-17 insurance in all new bookings from September 2020, 19. The offer is initially valid until October 31, 2020 and is initially only available to people who purchase their ticket in Canada. The carrier has not yet said whether it plans to roll out the offer to other countries or whether the promotion will continue. The insurance is included in all bookings made in Canada between September 17 and October 31, 2020 and is currently expressly reserved for residents of Canada. Air Canada states the coverage amounts as follows: up to 200.000 Canadian dollars for treatment costs related to Covid-19, up to 150 Canadian dollars for quarantine costs (accommodation and meals), but a maximum of 300 Canadian dollars per family, a maximum of 14 days. In addition, up to 500 Canadian dollars will be reimbursed for the return journey if the country is a country that has been assigned travel warning levels three or four by the government. The prerequisite is that the illness occurs abroad and the maximum travel period is observed until April 12, 2021. The insurer is Manulife. Another insurance product is also offered in cooperation with Allianz. This is also open to passengers who do not reside in Canada. However, a premium must be paid to the insurance company for this.

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Rostock dreams of the future as a spaceport

Jan Gruber September 17, 2020 14:29

What are Paris, London, Munich or New York compared to the moon or even Mars? This conclusion may have been reached by a study by the German Aerospace Center, which found that Rostock-Laage Airport would be suitable as a spaceport. It would be technically feasible for space shuttles, which resemble airplanes, to be deployed from the Baltic Sea airport. Rostock-Laage would also be suitable, at least in principle, for so-called carrier aircraft. According to a report by Norddeutscher Rundfunk, the availability of these findings does not mean that a spaceport will now be built on the Baltic Sea. This location can only be recommended, but it is completely unclear whether a spaceport will ever be built in Rostock-Laage. The DLR also points out that there is currently no legal basis for space launches from Germany. RLG boss Dörte Hausmann is nevertheless hopeful that a carrier aircraft could take off towards the North Sea for the first time in 2023.

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October 22, 2020 - Day of the decision for Condor

Jan Gruber September 17, 2020 14:20

The Darmstadt District Court has summoned the creditors of the insolvent holiday airline Condor to the Congress Center of Messe Frankfurt on October 22, 2020. There are only two items on the agenda: discussion of a submitted second insolvency plan and the vote on this plan. This meeting was actually supposed to take place much earlier, but the law requires the personal presence of the persons and institutions authorized to vote. Due to the Corona measures, this has simply not been possible so far. If everything goes according to plan on October 22, 2020, Condor can leave the protective shield procedure. However, they do not yet have a buyer and are therefore using a kind of "trustee solution". In the spring, the sale to Lot's parent company PGL failed at short notice, with the Corona pandemic probably being the main reason for the Poles' withdrawal. They are now - at least for the time being - no longer interested. So that Condor does not get caught up in the maelstrom of the Thomas Cook bankruptcy, a so-called protective shield procedure was filed last year. This is a special form of German insolvency proceedings, which is intended in particular to protect against claims and liabilities against the owners. Since the takeover by PGL failed, a "new protective shield" was registered in the spring. Furthermore, the Federal Republic of Germany granted a second financial injection in the form of state-backed loans through the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau. The new insolvency plan differs fundamentally from the first, because there is no buyer. Erdsiek Vermögensverwaltung is already the official owner and acts as trustee, because Condor does not want to start another sales attempt until after the Corona pandemic. At the moment

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Blue Air announces Vienna comeback

Jan Gruber September 17, 2020 13:49

The low-cost airline Blue Air, which has come under massive pressure due to the Corona crisis, will fly between Bucharest and Vienna again from the 2021 summer flight schedule. However, the carrier will first operate seven individual rotations between the two cities around Christmas. The target group are Romanians working in Austria who want to spend the holidays with their families at home. Other destinations that the Romanian carrier, which is currently undergoing restructuring, plans to fly to again from Bucharest are Rome-FCO, Madrid, Bologna, Birmingham and Barcelona. Vienna is to be served twice a day on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from March 28, 2020. A rotation is currently planned for Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Blue Air operates Boeing 737 medium-haul jets.

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BA boss Cruz: “We are fighting for survival”

Jan Gruber September 17, 2020 13:37

Like many other airlines, the IAG subsidiary British Airways is currently fighting for survival. Company boss Alex Cruz told a committee of inquiry in the House of Commons on Wednesday that they are concerned about the future development of the winter season. According to Reuters, he also estimated the volume of business. This is currently between 25 and 30 percent of regular activities. All possible measures are therefore being taken "to ensure that we can actually survive this winter". This is the "worst crisis that British Airways has experienced in its 100-year history". According to Cruz, the airline he heads is still fighting for survival. There has been considerable criticism of the staff cuts from local politicians and especially from unions. British Airways has so far laid off around 13.000 employees and has been able to negotiate salary cuts for many more. The company is making a loss of around 20 million pounds sterling per day and therefore had no other choice, said the BA boss. The shareholders recently helped the parent company IAG with around 2,74 million euros. The United Kingdom only grants state-backed loans, but not extensive rescue packages worth billions like Germany and France, for example.

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Rapid PCR tests: salvation for tourism and aviation?

Jan Gruber September 17, 2020 13:26

Travel restrictions, strict entry regulations and sometimes extremely short-notice travel warnings, which are sometimes controversial, are making life difficult for the airline and tourism industry. Politicians are pinning their hopes on a vaccine being available as soon as possible. However, the sector is slowly but surely running out of steam, as winter is traditionally rather weak anyway. Normally, you would always earn a fat cushion in the summer, which would then get you through the cold season without any problems. This was not possible this year, however, and new travel restrictions and the associated low demand could now really put many hotels, tour operators and airlines in trouble. Either the states will step in and give the suffering industry a helping hand, or there will be a wave of bankruptcies. This will mean that thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of people in Europe alone will lose their jobs. The call for new ways to ensure safe travel and thus the survival of an entire industry is therefore becoming louder and louder. The core problem at the moment is that many countries allow entry upon presentation of a negative PCR test, but in Austria, for example, this is very expensive to obtain. Often, you need one again on your return journey, which means the costs add up. Some countries allow you to go into quarantine for up to 14 days as an alternative, but in others, the answer is: “You can’t come in here.” Airlines, tour operators and hoteliers are now hoping that some kind of interim solution will be found. They are thinking of rapid PCR tests, the reliability of which was recently assessed by the WHO.

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Ex-employees sharply criticize Laudamotion as an employer

Granite Pireci September 17, 2020 12:38

The former airline of the racing driver Niki Lauda, ​​who died last year, has had to listen to harsh criticism from former employees. They report "working conditions like in the 19th century" and are putting a huge strain on the company. The online edition of the news magazine "WELT" is a heated debate. Right in the middle of it all: Ryanair subsidiary Laudamotion. It is confronted with serious allegations, some of which are backed up by old employment contracts or excerpts from correspondence with the former employer. It becomes clear that the company's employees are nowhere near as well off as its customers. While some can fly to Palma for less than 20 euros, others have to work during the legally prescribed rest period. Sick or overtired colleagues were often brought on board and pressured not to take sick leave. This treatment not only endangers the health of the company's own staff, but also flight safety on board, says former flight attendant Stefan, who openly describes his experiences with Laudamotion as an employer. It should go without saying that flight attendants arrive well-rested for their flight. Mistakes can quickly occur that could cost lives in an emergency. "If passengers have to be evacuated after an emergency landing, I don't know if it's a good thing if the flight attendants are so tired that they forget what commands they have to give to the passengers," says Stefan. Another affected person, who worked as a senior flight attendant for the company, also says that it is extremely stressful. For example, individual flights were not cancelled even though the aircraft had demonstrable defects. There were also cases in which repairs were not carried out immediately.

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Handelsblatt: Tui is facing a capital increase

Jan Gruber September 17, 2020 11:38

The travel group Tui, which has been hit hard by the Corona crisis, is apparently about to increase its capital. The Federal Republic of Germany has already helped out twice with loans worth billions. Now the company wants to raise between 700 million and one billion euros on the stock exchange. Handelsblatt reports that around 300 million euros of this will come from major Russian shareholder Alexei Mordashov. CEO Fritz Joussen wants to set the conditions for the capital increase by the end of the month. Officially, the Tui Group is keeping quiet, as it did not want to comment on the newspaper's report. It will therefore be necessary to wait and see how things develop.

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UK: Thomas Cook is back

Jan Gruber September 17, 2020 11:31

The Thomas Cook Group collapsed around a year ago. Several rescue attempts failed and the UK government ultimately rejected the company. Now the traditional brand is making a comeback under the umbrella of the Chinese group Fosun. The company secured the rights to the brand and is now launching as the travel platform “Thomas Cook”. The business model is currently limited to trips that can be taken from the UK without quarantine. The form of billing is also unusual, as payment only has to be made after returning from vacation. The company also wants to enable free rebooking to other destinations. The Financial Times reports that 50 people are currently employed. Most of them are said to be former Thomas Cook employees. There are apparently partnerships with Easyjet and the consolidator Paxport. Hotel brands from the Fonsun Group are also being sold. The Thomas Cook brand has been badly damaged by the bankruptcy, which is why it will probably be difficult to build trust with it. Therefore, customer funds are placed in a trust account and are only paid out to the company after the traveler returns. This is also intended to avoid expensive customer money protection. According to the Financial Times, Fosun recently invested 6,5 million euros in the portal. If successful, the model will be expanded to Belgium, France and the Netherlands. In China, the Thomas Cook brand is already being used to sell domestic trips.

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