September 14, 2021

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September 14, 2021

Lufthansa and Travelport continue business relationship

The airline group has signed a new contract with the travel distribution company Travelport and ultimately wants to save money with it. Travel agencies in particular will be able to book Lufthansa Group flights more easily via the Travelport+ internet platform in the future. This will eliminate fees for airlines and travel agencies that would otherwise be incurred when booking via global distribution systems (GDS), as aero.de reports. Especially in times of crisis, it is more important than ever to offer customers added value through advanced technology, explained Group Sales Manager Tamur Goudarzi Pour. The Lufthansa Group had already signed a new distribution agreement with Sabre, a provider of global booking systems, in December 2020.

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Emirates launches first airline virtual reality app in the Oculus store

The Gulf carrier is the first airline in the world to launch a virtual reality app in the Oculus Store. This allows customers to view the Gamechanger First Class Suites, the airline's signature A380 onboard lounge or the cabin around their own seat from the comfort of their own home. "Emirates is committed to delivering innovative and outstanding customer experiences - whether on board, on the ground or in the digital world. In 2018, we were the world's first airline to introduce advanced web VR technology on our digital platforms. We have continued to invest and develop this experience further. Today, we are delighted to be the first airline to launch a fully-fledged Oculus VR app," said Boutros Boutros, Divisional Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications, Marketing and Brand at Emirates. The new VR app, developed in collaboration with technology company Renacen, allows Emirates customers to navigate the Economy, Business and First Class cabins using navigation hotspots, explore their seat location and the iconic onboard lounge and spa shower on the Emirates A380. The Emirates Oculus VR app is available from the Oculus Store.

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Air Dolomiti celebrates its 30th birthday: a regular at MUC since the beginning

Shortly after the opening of Munich Airport in Erdinger Moos, the Italian airline Air Dolomiti also began scheduled service between Munich and Italy. The first flight between Venice and Munich took place in June 1992. At that time, the fleet still consisted of ATR 42 propeller aircraft. Since then, the airline, which is now part of the Lufthansa Group, has expanded its route network and now flies to a total of nine destinations from Munich. Embraer 195 aircraft are now used. "We look forward to continuing the excellent cooperation with this airline, which, with its excellent connections to the most diverse regions of Italy, makes an important contribution to the success of the Munich air traffic hub," explained Jost Lammers, Chairman of the Management Board of Munich Airport GmbH, on the occasion of the airline's anniversary. Air Dolomiti is celebrating its 30th birthday with a celebratory event at its headquarters in Verona. But the airline also has good news for its Munich passengers on the occasion of the anniversary: ​​After a long corona-related interruption, Air Dolomiti is flying daily from Munich to Turin again from today.

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Flughafen Wien Group: August was the strongest travel month since the start of the pandemic

August 2021 was the busiest summer travel month in the Vienna Airport Group with 2,2 million passengers, and around 1,8 million passengers at the Vienna location. This means that passenger volume doubled compared to last year - but compared to the pre-crisis level in August 2019, this still represents a passenger decrease of 45,3 percent in the group. In August 2021, the Vienna Airport Group recorded the most passengers since the start of the pandemic: The passenger numbers of the Vienna Airport Group (Vienna Airport, Malta Airport and Kosice Airport) in August 2021 are still well below the pre-crisis level at minus 45,3 percent, but with 2.223.735 travelers they are more than twice as high as in August of the previous year. Vienna Airport also recorded 1.778.054 travelers, more than double the number of August 2020, but is still 43,6 percent below the pre-crisis level of August 2019. In view of the current passenger numbers, the Vienna airport operator expects to achieve its own forecasts. "Traffic development at Vienna Airport is therefore in line with expectations, and the outlook for the full year 2021 with around ten million travelers at the Vienna location and twelve to 13 million travelers in the Vienna Airport Group remains unchanged," it said in a press release on Tuesday. There are currently 162 destinations served directly from Vienna, which is around 75 percent of the pre-crisis offering.

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Cargo: Leipzig again on record course

Over the entire year, Leipzig/Halle Airport was able to increase its cargo handling by 18,4 percent to 1.025.187 tons. This meant that the company had already broken the 1 million ton mark in August for the first time in its history. In the most recent month of this year, around 125.505 tons were handled. This corresponds to an increase of 15,1 percent compared to the same month last year. Last year, more than 1,38 million tons of cargo were handled, a new record result. The number of cargo flights grew by 25,8 percent to over 40.000 in the first eight months of the year. In total, over 80 cargo airlines fly to the airport and serve a route network that includes over 270 destinations worldwide. The airport records up to 1.300 cargo take-offs and landings every week. The airport is DHL's largest hub worldwide and Amazon Air's first regional air cargo center in Europe. This makes the airport one of the most important hubs for express and e-commerce shipments.

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Dortmund wants to attract more switchers via OTA Kiwi

The online travel agent Kiwi and Dortmund Airport have been working together on connecting flights since September 1, 2021. The airport in the Ruhr area is mainly served by low-cost airlines that do not offer transfers. And that's exactly where the first problem comes in, because Ryanair and Kiwi are at such a crossroads that they are having various legal disputes. For example, the low-cost airline does not accept boarding passes issued through Kiwi's check-in service and has also obtained several injunctions in Czech courts. Kiwi has been offering connecting flights for several years that cannot normally be booked with the airlines. According to the company, it guarantees the connections. For travelers with luggage, however, the main disadvantage is that in many cases the luggage has to be picked up at the conveyor belt and checked in again at the counter. Kiwi has now entered into a partnership with Dortmund Airport that will enable passengers transferring to this OTA to use the security fast lane. According to the airport, this should reduce the transfer time. Dortmund is clearly hoping that Kiwi will attract more transfer passengers. The airlines Wizz Air and Ryanair are the dominant ones locally. Neither of them officially offers connecting flights via this airport. "We are delighted to welcome Dortmund Airport as another partner airport. Together we will improve the transfer process for passengers with our Smart Pass service and position Dortmund Airport as an attractive, uncomplicated transfer point," explains Patrick Zeuner, Head of Airport Partnerships at Kiwi. "The big advantage for passengers is that flights from different airlines can be combined via Kiwi.com.

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Australia prohibits cooperation between Qantas and Japan Airlines

Oneworld members Qantas and Japan Airlines want to deepen their cooperation in traffic between Japan and Australia. However, they have not taken the Australian competition authority into account, which has temporarily prohibited the plans. The authority announced, among other things, that competition must be maintained even after travel restrictions are lifted. It is believed that coordinating the flight schedules and fares of Qantas and Japan Airlines could hinder potential competitors. Ticket prices are also expected to rise. The two carriers concerned expressed their disappointment in an initial media statement, but want to continue working together within the Oneworld alliance. This also applies to codeshare agreements. However, the planned deeper cooperation will not happen for the time being due to the ban by the Australian competition authority.

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August 2021: Zurich reports 1.593.672 passengers

Zurich-Kloten Airport had a total of 2021 passengers in August 1.593.672. This was 51,2 percent of the performance achieved "before Corona". Compared to the same month last year, there was an increase of 119,7 percent. In August 2021, Zurich was able to break the 50 percent threshold of the pre-crisis level for the first time since the start of the pandemic. This is attributed in particular to the increased demand for vacations. As in July, over a million passengers traveled through Zurich Airport in August 2021. The peak day was Sunday, August 68.862, 1, with 2021 passengers. Despite challenging passenger processes, the airport operator draws a positive conclusion when looking back on the summer months and thanks all partners and passengers for their good cooperation. Despite the challenging situation, the processes largely worked well and most passengers arrived at the airport well prepared. The number of local passengers in August 2021 was 1.188.143. The proportion of transfer passengers was 25,1 percent, corresponding to 398.190 passengers. The number of flight movements increased by 49,5 percent compared to the same month last year, to 16.228 takeoffs or landings. Compared to August 2019, there were 35,7 percent fewer movements. The average number of travelers per flight was 127,0 passengers, 34,5 percent higher than the previous year. Seat utilization increased by 16,3 percentage points to 74,8 percent in the reporting month. A total of 31.278 tons of cargo were handled at Zurich Airport in August. This corresponds to an increase of 48,2 percent compared to the same month last year. Compared to August 2019, 11,8 percent less cargo was handled.

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Alitalia brand is about to go under the hammer

The Italian government's original plan was that Alitalia's successor, Ita, would simply fly under the traditional brand. This has been done many times in the past. However, the EU Commission wants the brand to go under the hammer. This is now being initiated. The Alitalia brand is to be auctioned off shortly. The highest bidder will be awarded the contract. In theory, anyone who can demonstrate the bidding security required at auctions can bid. It is certain that ITA will bid. However, it remains to be seen whether the new state-owned company will win the contract. In theory, a competitor could bid and then legally launch a "new Alitalia". Alternatively, the price could simply be driven up. It therefore remains to be seen who will make the highest bid for the Alitalia brand.

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CMA CGM wants larger cargo planes

The shipping company CMA CGM has only owned aircraft since the beginning of 2021. The Belgian airline Air Belgium operates these four Airbus A330-200Fs for the shipping and logistics company from Marseille. Now they want to purchase even larger Boeing 777-F freighters. CMA CGM is the largest shipping company in France and was formed in 1999 through the merger of the two shipping companies Compagnie Générale Maritime (CGM) and Compagnie Maritime d'Affrètement (CMA). According to its own information, CMA CGM operates a fleet of 566 ships and serves 420 ports worldwide. It is the third largest container shipping company in the world behind the Danish Maersk and the Swiss MSC. The approximately 110 employees are employed in 000 countries. At the beginning of 160, four Airbus A2021-330F cargo aircraft were taken over from Qatar Airways. These are operated under the name CMA CGM Air Cargo by the Belgian airline Air Belgium. In this so-called CMI contract, the operating airline is responsible for the crew, maintenance and insurance, while the owner remains in possession of the aircraft. The Airbuses are registered in Belgium under the registration numbers OO-AIR, OO-CMA, OO-CGM and OO-SEA. From Liège, scheduled cargo flights serve the destinations Atlanta, Chicago O'Hare, Dubai World Central, Istanbul and New York-JFK. Other destinations are also flown to as required. The company's own Airbus A200-340s (and soon A300-330s) used for passenger flights are based in Brussels-Charleroi. French AOC planned Now, a few days ago, job offers from CMA CGM appeared. Captains and First Officers are sought for the Boeing 900-F. Candidates should have at least 777 and 8000 hours of flight experience respectively, of which

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