German "
Search
October 7th 2021

More articles from the category

October 7th 2021

A touch of Dolce Vita: with the Singapore Airlines A350-900 from Copenhagen to Rome

Stephen Lorenz 7 October 2021 19:46

If life gives you lemons, make lemonade”, this old saying is the ideal opening sentence for this trip report. The Corona pandemic has also made staying on board a commercial aircraft an almost rare highlight for numerous frequent flyers and aviation enthusiasts around the world. So how do you make lemonade out of such a situation? In the midst of the pandemic, Singapore had closed its borders for months, and only a few people were allowed to enter the country. This extraordinary situation is also the reason why Singapore Airlines' "Fifth Freedom" flight from Copenhagen to Rome, which was relaunched a few weeks ago, is thanks to this extraordinary situation. Flight SQ352 takes off from Singapore at 00:30 as scheduled and reaches Copenhagen about 12 hours later at 6:55 local time. After a short turnaround of just under 1,5 hours in Copenhagen, the A350 flies on to the Italian capital, where the plane reaches its final destination for some travelers and the crew at 10:35. Getting to Copenhagen Airport There are numerous ways to reach the Danish capital from all over Germany, Austria and Switzerland - depending on the departure airport, more or less cheaply. As I wanted to avoid any hectic arrival and departure, I decided to arrive the day before in order to breathe in a little Scandinavian air and experience coziness in peace and quiet, in order to start the journey to the sometimes bustling Italian metropolis the next morning in the right mood. After a good dinner and a short night in the practical and simple hotel,

Continue reading "

Memorial for Nazi victims unveiled at Vienna Airport

Jan Gruber 7 October 2021 19:11

Between 1943 and 1943, two satellite camps of the Mauthausen concentration camp were located on the grounds of Vienna-Schwechat Airport. Thousands of people were forced to do forced labor under terrible conditions. Many died in the process. The artist Arik Brauer, who died in January 2021 and whose own family fell victim to the Nazi reign of terror, designed a memorial that was officially unveiled on Thursday. It is located in front of Terminal 3 and was presented to the public by, among others, National Council President Wolfgang Sobotka (ÖVP), State Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP), Mayor Michael Häupl (SPÖ), IKG President Oskar Deutsch and airport board members Julian Jäger and Günther Ofner. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP), who was also announced as a speaker, obviously did not think it necessary to appear. High-ranking representatives from politics and business emphasized the importance of honoring the memory of the countless victims of the Nazi regime among the concentration camp prisoners and forced laborers at Heidfeld (the site of today's airport), who were forced to build aircraft there. The memorial was designed by Arik Brauer as his last major work. "In a democracy, tolerance, freedom of opinion and respect for the basic rights of the individual are unshakable cornerstones. The artist and humanist Arik Brauer campaigned for this throughout his life. With this memorial at Vienna Airport, he continues to remind us of this - and not just us, but also all people who arrive or depart here. And that is important, because the dangers of nationalism and dictatorship are omnipresent all over the world," explains Wolfgang Sobotka, President of the Austrian National Council. The past of the site was examined by the airport historian Rainer Stepan and the Mauthausen Committee: After the annexation

Continue reading "

Canada introduces mandatory vaccination on trains and airplanes

Jan Gruber 7 October 2021 18:39

From October 30, 2021, the Canadian government will make the use of airplanes and long-distance trains dependent on vaccination status. Anyone who is not fully vaccinated will no longer be allowed to travel. Exceptions will only be made for people who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons. Most Canadian airlines have now announced that they will implement the new regulation. This should not pose a particular problem in international traffic, as full vaccination against Covid-19 is the basic requirement for entry into the North American state. There are certainly critical voices regarding domestic traffic, as it will limit the range of movement of unvaccinated people. It is also assumed that the people affected will then increasingly use their own cars instead of trains or planes, which is not really in the spirit of environmental protection. The vaccination requirement for flights and long-distance trains is to come into force on October 30, 2021 and affects all people over the age of 12. Exceptions are only provided for people who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons. If you ignore the new regulation and get caught, you could face a fine of up to 5.000 Canadian dollars. For travelers who have only recently received the first dose, there is a four-week transition period for domestic travel. The second jab should be completed during this time.

Continue reading "

Tui Germany boss gives 2G rule a rejection

Amely Mizzi 7 October 2021 18:06

Stefan Baumert, the new managing director of Tui Germany, rejects holiday trips only for vaccinated and recovered people. This is not planned either on board the company's own airlines or in the hotels. In an interview with the newspapers of the Funke media group, the manager said, among other things, that there are no plans to regulate 2G. However, he also admitted that the official requirements of the respective state must be followed. This means that if 2G or even 1G is required locally, then Tui will implement it. In general, the Tui Germany boss sees a "new normal" in travel. The progress of the vaccination campaigns in the summer meant that business was "well underway" again. At the same time, customers are dealing with travel warnings differently and are booking and traveling despite them. The Tui manager's statement certainly shows that the inflationary and incomprehensible issuing of travel warnings has led to the deterrent effect fizzled out. Surveys show that many citizens simply no longer take them seriously or ignore them completely. Tui boss Baumert also explained to the Funke newspapers that booking behavior has changed. While "before Corona" some bookings were made up to a year in advance, travelers now buy "at very short notice". In the week of departure, up to 15 percent of capacity is still sold.

Continue reading "

Additional ICE sprinters: Deutsche Bahn competes with airlines

Jan Gruber 7 October 2021 17:33

Many European politicians are of the opinion that short-haul flights should be shifted to rail. At the same time, there are repeated calls for tickets to be cheaper. Deutsche Bahn, however, is raising prices again with the timetable change. With the timetable change, the state-owned provider wants to make the airlines in domestic German traffic significantly more competitive. This is to be done with the help of the ICE Sprinter trains, which are subject to a surcharge. On some routes, the offer is being increased. For example, the Berlin-Cologne route is affected, which in the past was also called the "civil servant shuttle" by air. From mid-December 2021, DB plans to offer three daily train pairs that should run in under four hours. Additional ICE Sprinter trains are also to run between Düsseldorf via Cologne and Munich and Hamburg to Frankfurt am Main Airport. An additional evening connection will be launched between Berlin and Munich, where it has already established itself as serious competition to air travel. But the additional service also comes at a price, because the ICE Sprinter trains are subject to a surcharge and can therefore be used with comparatively expensive tickets. In general, Deutsche Bahn AG is raising ticket prices again in mid-December 2021. On average, tickets are expected to become around 1,9 percent more expensive, which means that the cheaper tickets promised by politicians due to a VAT reduction are gradually evaporating.

Continue reading "

Trollhättan: Swedish provincial airport wants to raise its own carrier

Jan Gruber 7 October 2021 17:07

The Swedish airport Trollhättan-Vänersborg feels left behind by the rest of the world and now wants to change that with the help of its own virtual airline. Due to the narrow runway, however, the airport is severely limited in terms of aircraft types. The last time a Fokker 22 from BRA landed at this airport was on March 2020, 50. Since then, there has been no connection to the capital. Many routes have since been reactivated, but Trollhättan-Vänersborg is still left behind. Since talks with potential operators have come to nothing, the company wants to take its fate into its own hands with its own virtual carrier. The new company is due to take off under the name Västflyg at the beginning of 2022. The airport explains, among other things, that it is in talks with some airlines about the necessary charters. However, no fixed contract has yet been signed. Those responsible are aware that the short and narrow runway severely limits the options. The initiator of the project is Svante Andersson, who told local media that the train journey time between Trollhättan and Stockholm, at well over eight hours, is unreasonable, especially for the economy. The plan is therefore to initially reactivate the connection to the capital and favors the inner-city airport Bromma. However, no final decision has been made yet. Västflyg will also offer other destinations within Sweden at a later date. Abroad, Copenhagen is being considered. However, the focus is initially on reactivating the route to Stockholm.

Continue reading "

France: Easyjet has more business travelers again

Amely Mizzi 7 October 2021 16:01

In September 2021, the low-cost airline Easyjet recorded the highest proportion of business travelers since the beginning of the corona pandemic. 26 percent of customers from France were traveling for business. Of this customer group, 58 percent were on domestic flights. The carrier believes it is on the right track and expects the business travel segment to recover faster than originally expected. "We are very pleased to see positive signs of a recovery in business travel in our network and especially in France, where the proportion of business travelers has reached an average of over 30 percent and up to 50 percent on certain domestic routes," said Bertrand Godinot, head of France at Easyjet.

Continue reading "

ECJ: flight attendant strike is not an exceptional circumstance

Amely Mizzi 7 October 2021 15:04

The European Court of Justice has ruled that strikes by cabin crew are not extraordinary circumstances within the meaning of the Air Passenger Rights Regulation. This means that airlines must pay compensation. The lawsuit was brought by a passenger whose flight from Salzburg to Berlin was cancelled due to a flight attendant strike. Eurowings refused to pay the compensation of 250 euros and took the position that the cancellation was due to extraordinary circumstances. The dispute dragged through the courts and finally ended up before the European Court of Justice under the reference number C-613/20. Eurowings argued that it had taken all reasonable measures to prevent the cancellation. The Supreme Court sees the matter differently and is of the opinion that if there is a strike at the parent company, it must be expected that employees of subsidiaries will also take part in the industrial action. This applies in particular if the union explicitly calls on employees of this airline to stop work. Eurowings cannot claim that it has no influence when employees go on strike for better working conditions. In fact, this could have been avoided in advance. The ECJ is therefore of the opinion that the cause of work stoppages is basically controllable, but that the strikes were accepted. In an initial statement, Eurowings acknowledges the ruling and regrets that the European Court of Justice did not follow the arguments put forward. The German Aviation Association criticises the fact that the decision does not state when a strike is an extraordinary circumstance and when it is not. In this context, it is calling for the amendment of the Air Passenger Rights Regulation and

Continue reading "

September 2021: Berlin had 1,46 million passengers

Amely Mizzi 7 October 2021 14:05

Berlin Brandenburg Airport counted around 2021 million passengers in September 1,46. This represents an increase of 2021 travelers compared to August 30.000. However, the figure was significantly lower than September 2019. Two years ago, Schönefeld and Tegel airports had 3,2 million passengers. Compared to the same month last year, September 2020, the number of passengers has more than doubled from around 694.000. Aircraft capacity utilization was 2021 percent in September 77. Last month, more than 13.300 flight movements were recorded at BER, 600 more than in August. Last year, around 9.500 aircraft took off and landed in Schönefeld or Tegel in September; in September 2019, the figure was almost 26.000 aircraft. Around 2.430 tonnes of air freight were handled last month, an increase of 280 tonnes compared to August and almost 600 tonnes more than in September 2020. In the pre-crisis month of August 2019, the figure was almost 3.020 tonnes. Since April 2021, the airport company has been using its two runways on a monthly rotation basis. This ensures a more even distribution of aircraft noise. In September, the northern runway was used. The attached graphic shows the flight movements on the individual flight routes. "The passenger numbers in September show that there is a revival in air traffic beyond pure holiday traffic in the summer. Business travel has also recovered. For October, we expect stable traffic figures at around the level of the last few months. How sustainable and pronounced the recovery in demand will be in the winter months, however, remains to be seen on the further course of the pandemic.

Continue reading "

Ryanair will station two more planes in Zagreb

Granite Pireci 7 October 2021 13:03

The low-cost airline has announced new expansion plans for its base in Zagreb. Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary visited the base in the Croatian capital today. At the press conference, he revealed that two more aircraft will be stationed in Zagreb next summer in 2022. This would increase the number of aircraft on site to a total of five. The low-cost carrier currently has two Lauda Europe A320 aircraft stationed in the city. A third aircraft will join them at the end of the year. Nevertheless, some routes are still served by aircraft outside the base. This will change in the future, said O'Leary. The Ryanair boss did not reveal which new routes the company is aiming for. "But we are certainly not concentrating on routes served by Croatia Airlines. Rather, we are targeting connections that are not even served from Zagreb," Michael O'Leary is quoted as saying by the online portal Ex-Yu-Aviation. At the same time, O'Leary criticised the slow development of Croatia Airlines in Zagreb. While he acknowledged that the national airline offers good connections from the capital, he noted that these are not enough to meet existing demand. The head of the airline group said: "In the next six months, Ryanair will add 24 routes from Zagreb, while Croatia Airlines has introduced three in the last three years and received twelve million euros in state aid. We, on the other hand, do not receive any subsidies from the state."

Continue reading "