March 3, 2021

More articles from the category

March 3, 2021

Israel: Tel Aviv remains largely sealed

Since January 2021, Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport has been unusually quiet. Apart from a few domestic and cargo flights, there is not much going on. The reason for this is that the government has ordered a widespread closure for international traffic. This will not change any time soon. Although the travel restrictions are to be gradually lifted, the number of possible entries will be limited to 1.000 per day. Initially, these will primarily be open to people with Israeli citizenship and the Green Pass (proof of vaccination). The number of daily entries will be gradually increased. However, people who are not vaccinated need a special permit to leave the country. Foreigners also need a permit to enter the country, and the chances of this being granted without proof of vaccination in the future are not good.

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Norwegian writes off Boeing 737-Max-Order

The insolvent airline Norwegian Air Shuttle confirmed that it will neither accept the Boeing 737 Max aircraft it has ordered nor use them in flight operations. However, this requires that the low-cost airline can successfully conclude the creditor protection proceedings. If this is not the case, Norwegian Air Shuttle will face liquidation in the second quarter of 2021. The carrier had already incurred enormous debts with aggressive expansion long before the corona pandemic. In the fourth quarter of 2020 alone, it posted a loss of 1,95 billion US dollars. It is under creditor protection in both Ireland and Norway. Boeing has not yet been able to reach an agreement on the cancellation of the large order. However, the Airbus order has been gotten rid of. The company is now writing off the advance payments it has already made to both manufacturers. It has no alternative as it has not yet reached an agreement with Boeing. In Ireland, it is trying to reach this through legal proceedings, but Boeing is insisting on the US location. Meanwhile, even ten B737-800s are threatened with forced auction.

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Volocopter collects another 200 million euros

The flying taxi pioneer Volocopter says it was able to attract a further 200 million euros from investors. The funds will be used to develop the Volocity product, which is to be used on commercial routes. The list of companies that participated in the round includes prominent names such as Blackrock, DB Schenker, Daimler and Continental. The Chinese car company Geely also subscribed. In total, Volocopter says it has so far received 372 million euros from investors for the development of the flying taxi.

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Eurowings wins three consumer awards

The low-cost airline Eurowings won a total of three awards as part of the "German Customer Awards 2020/21". According to a press release, the carrier scored highly in the categories of customer satisfaction, customer service and value for money. The airline has been recognized by the German Society for Consumer Studies (DtGV) as a three-time winner of the "German Customer Awards 2020/21" - a Germany-wide consumer ranking. The Lufthansa Group's tourism subsidiary took undisputed first place in the discount airline sector in all three categories (customer satisfaction, customer service and value for money). Details of the rankings have been published at www.dtgv.de. The central question of the annual “German Customer Award” study is which companies have the most satisfied customers (category “customer satisfaction”), which companies have the most positive customer experiences (category “customer service”) and how appropriate the company’s performance is in relation to the price charged (category “price-performance ratio”). The online customer survey received around 330.000 opinions on a total of 2.261 companies from 233 industries.

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SunExpress launches paid “Corona cancellation” option

The holiday airline SunExpress wants to create additional trust and thus attract new bookings with an optional "Corona Care Guarantee". This costs three euros on international flights or seven Turkish lira within Turkey. By paying the fee, travelers should be able to cancel or change their booking if they themselves or first-degree relatives have been infected with the coronavirus. Appropriate proof must be presented up to ten days after the scheduled departure. As part of the Corona Care Guarantee package, the German-Turkish airline SunExpress also offers passengers with an existing booking rebooking and cancellation options in the event that a travel warning is issued for travel between Germany and Turkey. Independently of this, SunExpress continues to offer the "SunFlex" option, which allows travelers to change their booking up to 30 days before departure without fees. In the Premium tariff, this option is available for up to seven days. Until the end of March 2021, the Classic tariff can be changed up to 15 days in advance. However, tariff differences may be charged.

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Zurich: rapid tests in the lounge at an exorbitant price

Two additional testing stations have been opened at Zurich-Kloten Airport. One of them is in the security area. This offers rapid antigen tests and is intended to make travel easier for transfer passengers. Switzerland has recently started requiring people who are simply changing planes to present a negative test result. In Arrivals Area 1 in Terminal 1, Wochout GmbH offers rapid tests for asymptomatic people every day from 5:00 a.m. to 20:00 p.m. The price is 80 Swiss francs. The result should be delivered within 15 minutes by SMS and email in English. Advance registration is not required, but is recommended. It is planned that PCR tests will also be offered in the new test center at a later date. The new test center in Terminal 1 complements the existing test center in Terminal 2 run by Checkport/Ender Diagnostics, which has been offering rapid antigen tests in addition to PCR tests using saliva samples since March 1. The latter cost 80 Swiss francs and the evaluation takes around 15 minutes. The Airport Medical Center's testing offer (PCR, IgG antibody test and rapid antigen tests) by appointment will also continue to exist. New test lounge on the airside Since February 25, 2021, travelers and airport partners at Zurich Airport have had access to the Marhaba Lounge on the 3rd floor of the Airside Center, which has been temporarily converted into a testing location for rapid antigen tests. The test lounge is operated by ground handler dnata in cooperation with test partner Viselio. In the lounge, which has been converted into a "classroom", the focus is on a high throughput of passengers in the shortest possible time - when fully expanded, the passengers of a fully loaded short-haul aircraft should be able to be tested within an hour under

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Ruefa travel agencies facing major downsizing

Ruefa, Austria's largest travel agency chain, is facing major job cuts, which have already been reported to the employment service as part of the early warning system. Around 100 of the 600 jobs are at risk, reports the radio station Ö1. Ruefa is a brand of the domestic tourism group Verkehrsbüro. For several years, all of the group's travel agencies have been operating under the Ruefa brand, which was taken over. A spokeswoman confirmed that the job cuts are imminent. However, she did not want to give exact figures. "I cannot confirm the number itself, but due to the ongoing very challenging overall situation for the travel industry, we will also have to take measures, and unfortunately a job cut is also being considered," said the spokeswoman for the Verkehrsbüro Group. According to the group, the reason for the measure is that sales fell by 70 percent last year. Traveling is also "almost impossible" this year. The reasons for the job cuts are therefore said to be "quite plausible" and "obvious". The Verkehrsbüro Group is also calling for special solutions for large companies, as they would lose a large part of the funding due to the cap. Special solutions are “definitely needed”. It is still unclear whether individual Ruefa travel agencies will be closed permanently due to the job cuts. In Germany, DER announced a few days ago that it would be closing numerous locations. If possible, the affected staff will be deployed in other travel agencies in the group.

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IHK demands money for Weeze, Dortmund and Paderborn

The NRW airports of Weeze, Dortmund and Paderborn will not receive any money from the "aviation billion" because they are not classified as international airports. The Chamber of Industry and Commerce has sharply criticized this situation. It is demanding that all six airports in North Rhine-Westphalia be treated equally. The Chamber of Industry and Commerce sent a letter to NRW Transport Minister Hendrik Wüst, calling on him to ensure that all airports are treated equally. The state has promised in principle that it will contribute to the costs of the rescue, but according to current information, the federal government will not provide anything. The Chamber of Industry and Commerce is particularly annoyed that the small Münster/Osnabrück airport will receive support from the government's pot, but Weeze, Dortmund and Paderborn will not. The background to this is that the German Air Traffic Control operates at FMO. Paderborn Airport is in insolvency proceedings under self-administration.

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Mesa Airlines founds European subsidiary

The US regional airline Mesa Airlines wants to expand to Europe in the form of a branch. The carrier announced on Tuesday that it has founded a company together with Gramercy Associates Limited that will apply for European approvals. Mesa will hold 49 percent of the new company, as majority ownership would not be permitted under EU regulations. 51 percent will be owned by Gramercy. This company will be managed by Tony Davis, former CEO of Tiger Airways. The earliest possible start date for the first flight is "end of 2021". The European branch, which does not yet have a brand name, will operate Bombardier CRJ-900 regional jets. Mesa has 54 of this type in the USA. The carrier mainly provides ACMI services for the major US airlines. It wants to use exactly this concept in Europe, but is also considering flights on its own account.

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Aer Lingus sends Shannon Base to the labor exchange

IAG Group member Aer Lingus will not employ 129 employees at the Shannon base between March 8, 2021 and probably June 7, 2021. During this period, those affected will not receive a salary. At best, they can apply for support from the employment office. Aer Lingus' approach is very reminiscent of the practice that is common in the construction industry. Over the winter, many companies deregister their employees. They then receive unemployment benefits and the employees are rehired in the spring. In some companies, this procedure is repeated every year. Aer Lingus is now taking a similar approach, which is driving the unions mad. Among other things, employee representatives criticize the fact that employees are already receiving greatly reduced wages and are now receiving even less in the form of unemployment benefits. Aer Lingus counters that it has not been able to operate any flights from the Shannon base since April 2020 and that there is no prospect of improvement before July 2021. For financial reasons, it has no other choice.

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