October 19th

More articles from the category

October 19th

Etihad landed commercially in Tel Aviv for the first time

Gulf carrier Etihad Airways ushered in a new era on Monday under flight number EY9607: For the first time, a commercial passenger flight from Abu Dhabi landed at Tel Aviv Airport. This was made possible by an agreement concluded between the United Arab Emirates and Israel. For decades, Abu Dhabi did not recognize the State of Israel. That changed this year, official diplomatic relations were established and an air traffic agreement was signed shortly afterwards. This enables airlines from both countries not only to fly over each other's country, but also to establish non-stop flights that did not previously exist. 28 weekly flights between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi and Dubai were agreed. These are to be offered by airlines from both Israel and the UAE. Ten weekly cargo connections were also agreed. Eilat Airport in southern Israel is open without restrictions between the two countries, but initially only for charter flights. The thaw between Israel and Arab countries has already found imitators in a positive sense, as an air traffic agreement was also concluded with Jordan, allowing airlines from both countries to fly over the country. Bahrain and Israel also established official diplomatic relations.

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Ryanair flew woman to Kiev-Borispil instead of Valencia

A 30-year-old woman actually wanted to fly from London Stansted to Valencia to visit her boyfriend. Due to a chain of unfortunate circumstances, she boarded the wrong Ryanair plane without being noticed and arrived in Kiev-Borispil. There she felt completely let down by the budget airline, as Ryanair does not have a service desk at this airport where she could have gone with her problem. The woman explained to the British Daily Star that she had probably confused the gates. Her flight would have departed from Gate 44, but she accidentally boarded at Gate 54 - to Borispil. According to the woman, nothing was noticed during the boarding pass check, as no error message was displayed after scanning. On board, the woman said she became suspicious and repeatedly asked the crew when the plane would arrive in Valencia. The only information she was given was that the flight time would be around two hours and 15 minutes. After landing, the woman realized that she had not landed in Spain, but in the Ukraine. According to her own statements, she recognized this, among other things, by the police uniforms and the fact that Cyrillic characters were visible. However, entry was problem-free, as only a stamp was placed in the passport and the police were not interested in the woman any further. The ground staff at Borispil Airport, however, were astonished how it could be that the woman with a Valencia boarding pass was "stranded" at the largest airport in Ukraine. After she herself had not made any progress with Ryanair,

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9.900 extras have already tested the BER

Berlin Brandenburg Airport is on the home stretch, and nothing stands in the way of opening. "All permits have been granted, all processes have been extensively tested," a press release states. Since January, employees of the airport company and the process partners (airlines, federal police, customs, ground handling service providers and others) have been preparing for the opening of BER at the end of this month. Trial operations have been running every Tuesday and Thursday since April, and in July around 400 extras were added each day. Around 120 employees from the logistics team coordinated the extras, luggage and catering. In total, over 47 employees and 24.000 extras were able to get to know BER on 9.897 trial operation days. Around 179.000 pieces of luggage were used at times. "54.000 bookings for 2.350 flights contributed to a realistic impression of the airport," it continues. The constructive criticism of the many airport testers was also taken into account. For example, garbage cans were enlarged, signage was adjusted, missing clocks were put up and charging stations for cell phones were procured. Terminal 1 of the BER will open on October 31st with a parallel landing by Lufthansa and Easyjet. On the same evening, more planes will land at T1, which will then take off again on November 1st. A total of around 5.000 passengers are expected at Terminal 1 on the first full day of operation of the BER. In addition, there will be almost 8.000 passengers at T5, the former Schönefeld Airport.

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Condor: Not an investor? No problem!

In recent weeks, things have gone quiet around Condor. The reason for this is the protective shield procedure, which was supposed to enable the airline to search for investors unhindered. Condor now wants to leave this - without an investor in tow. This Thursday, the company and creditors are to meet again to discuss the future of the carrier. The curious thing is that Condor is bringing an incomplete restructuring plan into play. The airline still lacks an investor. If the creditors agree, a so-called trustee would take his place, specifically the SG Luftverkehrsgesellschaft. The current management would remain in office and a new investor process will not start until the situation in the corona-plagued aviation industry has calmed down again, as the "Presse" reports. "That could be the case in 12 months, but also in 36 months," said a company spokeswoman. The cabin crew union UFO does not expect a decision before 2025. The comfortable limbo is made possible by a long-term loan from the state-owned KfW Bank of 550 million euros. This replaced another, much shorter-term loan that was supposed to transfer Condor into the fold of the Polish state airline Lot. But in the Corona crisis, the Poles, who were willing to take over, got into trouble themselves and canceled the firmly agreed deal on Easter Monday. Let's see whether the "start of a new era" really works.

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Tojner is negotiating through Airbus subsidiary Premium Aerotec

According to a media report, Austrian investor and billionaire Michael Tojner wants to merge his company Montana Aerospace with the Airbus subsidiary Premium Aerotec and create a powerful leader in the aviation supply industry. Tojner plans to carry out a capital increase at Premium Aerotec together with other partners and the German government and use the money to establish other companies under the umbrella of the joint venture, "Spiegel" reported today. An IPO is to follow later. Tojner's initiative could help small and medium-sized supplier companies in particular to cope with the slump in demand at Airbus in the wake of the pandemic. However, the plan has so far received little response from the German government, the magazine reported. The reason could be an investigation that is currently pending at the Economic and Corruption Prosecutor's Office (WKStA) in Vienna and is directed against Tojner and 34 other people. The entrepreneur and former business partner are suspected of having taken over several non-profit housing companies at dumping prices and of having caused damage of up to 120 million euros to Burgenland by paying far too little compensation for the loss of non-profit status. Tojner, however, rejects all allegations.

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Jet Airways: New investors get on board

The Indian airline Jet Airways could soon be flying again: According to media reports, the creditors' meeting has approved a sale. The German investor Florian Fitsch is also said to be involved. The London-based financial company Kalrock Capital and the Indian businessman Murari Lal Jalan have made a bid. And they are satisfactory. After months of negotiations, the deal is done. The creditors have also already given their approval. The new owners will pump the equivalent of 136 million US dollars into the company, as reuters.com reports. Further investments are also planned. But only part of the money will be in cash. The airline's creditors - including the State Bank of India - will also receive bonds and participation rights. The new investors are going all out. Among other things, they want to win back lost slots as quickly as possible and apply for a new AOC as soon as possible. In addition, the country's once largest airline is to be equipped with new aircraft. With the clear goal: to bring Jet Airways back to the top.

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Sun Express expands code-sharing agreement with Lufthansa

Sun Express is further expanding its codeshare partnership with Lufthansa in the coming winter season: After two years of codesharing on Turkey flights from Munich, the agreement is now being extended to several weekly flights from Frankfurt to Izmir, Antalya and Ankara. The connections operated by the Turkish airline will therefore also fly under Lufthansa flight numbers. "We are delighted that we will be extending our successful codeshare partnership with Lufthansa to Frankfurt in the winter and thus cover the two largest German airports," says Max Kownatzki, Chief Executive Officer of Sun Express. "In addition to numerous attractive transfer connections, passengers will also benefit from extremely convenient and short transfer and connecting routes in Terminal 1 of Frankfurt Airport." Sun Express's first codeshare flight from Frankfurt will start with the start of the 2020/21 winter flight schedule on October 25th this year, and the existing codeshare connections from Munich to Ankara, Antalya and Izmir will remain in place. "Both airlines also plan to continue the partnership for most SunExpress flights from Frankfurt and Munich in the 2021 summer flight schedule," the press release states. Current overview of the new codeshare flights from/to Frankfurt (local times):

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Risk of infection on the plane "practically non-existent"

People's travel is sometimes limited. The fear of infection is still too great. The US Department of Defense, in cooperation with United Airlines, has investigated the risk of infection on board. And has come to a clear conclusion. Anyone who adheres to the prescribed hygiene regulations has nothing to fear. Because the probability of infection on board is "practically zero", as the newspaper GTP reports. The sophisticated air filter systems of an aircraft are crucial for this. These exchange all the air in the cabin within 6 minutes. This means that you are better protected in an aircraft than in your own four walls. The IATA also welcomes the publication of these results. The umbrella organization of airlines goes a step further: "It is more likely to be struck by lightning than to become infected with the corona virus on board." Director General Alexandre de Juniac hopes that this report will encourage concerned people to board the plane.

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Germany: Many companies forego business trips

Apparently, home office is back in fashion. The current increase in infections has been proven to be reducing demand for business trips. "Many travel managers are now taking the path of least resistance and completely foregoing business trips within Germany," says Inge Pirner, Vice President of the German Travel Management Association (VDR). The confusing situation regarding travel rules within Germany has played a major role in this. In addition, many companies have imposed a temporary travel ban due to the controversial accommodation ban, which has already been overturned in several federal states, as the news magazine Reisevor9 reports. The travel manager is therefore calling on politicians to "ensure clear and nationwide uniform rules for business trips." 

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Environment Minister: There won't be a third runway

The Austrian Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler has clearly rejected a possible third runway at Vienna Airport. The aviation industry currently has very different concerns. Air traffic has been severely affected by the reduced travel activity, which will continue even beyond the pandemic, as the ORF reports. "I assume that the airport will adapt its plans to changes in behavior," said Gewessler. "In light of the current situation," she sees no need to tackle the controversial third runway. Vienna Airport must also be aware of this. Airport board member Julian Jäger spoke out a few hours after these statements from the environment ministries. For him, one thing is clear: There is no rush. There is currently no need to make a decision. "We have always said that the third runway will be built when there is approval, when there is demand and when it is profitable," Jäger told the Standard. In this sense, the position has not changed in ten years.

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