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April 7, 2022

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April 7, 2022

Easter: ÖBB put 13.000 additional seats on the rails

Jan Gruber April 7, 2022 13:03

The Austrian Federal Railways are expecting particularly high demand around Easter - not least because of the climate ticket. Therefore, additional trains are being put on the rails. A total of 13.000 additional seats are being offered. The state railway company wants to use pretty much everything that can roll on rails around Easter. On the main travel days, the service is being increased, particularly on the western and southern lines. These are mainly additional sets that will run as so-called D trains. However, additional Railjets will also be used in some cases, according to the ÖBB. Regardless of this, due to the expected high demand, it is advisable to purchase a paid seat reservation. This guarantees that you can travel in any case. If the train is overcrowded, the train manager may ask some passengers to get off for safety reasons, but not people with valid seat reservations.

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Easyjet leases wet lease capacity from Smartlynx

Jan Gruber April 7, 2022 12:06

The Latvian company Smartlynx has signed a long-term ACMI contract with Easyjet and will fly three Airbus A320s from London Gatwick for the low-cost airline. Another aircraft will be used on behalf of Easyjet Europe from mainland Europe. The British low-cost airline has significantly increased its offering from the United Kingdom's second-largest airport. In some cases, it also leases take-off and landing rights from competitors in order to be able to grow further. The company announced earlier this year that it would rent wet lease capacity to cover peaks during the 2022 summer flight schedule. However, an exact number of aircraft was not given. Currently, three Airbus A320s from Smartlynx fly from Gatwick for Easyjet. The Austrian sister company Easyjet Europe, which was launched as part of Brexit, will use at least one Airbus A320 from Smartlynx from mainland Europe. The aircraft also serves as a backup aircraft. This wet lease aircraft does not yet have a permanent station.

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Pristina: Wizz Air plans new base and strong expansion

Amely Mizzi April 7, 2022 11:07

The low-cost airline Wizz Air is planning to open a new base in Pristina, the capital of Kosovo. This would be in direct competition with that of the Lufthansa subsidiary Eurowings Europe. Robert Carey, who has been President of the Wizz Air Group for some time, held talks with members of the Kosovo government on this matter. During the Corona pandemic, the Pristina routes have not only proven to be particularly stable, but the airport has even been able to increase the number of passengers, unlike almost all other airports in Europe. The manager explained, among other things, that around 2023 travelers are expected to travel to/from Pristina in 600.000. The company wants to significantly expand traffic to the DA-CH region, but Carey did not give any further details, neither whether this will involve increases and/or new routes. Many people with Kosovo roots live and work in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and want to regularly visit their friends and acquaintances back home. The main competitors of the flights are long-distance bus companies such as Flixbus, because customers are loyal but price-sensitive. Carey also said that Wizz Air would like to fly to destinations in neighboring countries from its planned base in Pristina. The airline wants to add as many new routes as possible and is currently conducting a needs analysis with the airport and the government.

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Slovenian government: Wizz Air starts in Maribor

Jan Gruber April 7, 2022 10:03

According to Slovenian Secretary of State Franc Kangler, the Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air is to start a new connection between Maribor and Skopje "very soon". This would be the first time that the carrier will fly to two airports in Slovenia. So far, its market presence has been concentrated on the capital's airport, Ljubljana. Maribor has been quiet for some time, as in the past scheduled services, including those from Ryanair, have not been able to last very long. It was only recently announced that Luxwing will start various charter flights under the Skyalps brand. The government member told "Sierra 5" that the low-cost airline Wizz Air will soon be offering flights to the capital of North Macedonia from Maribor. There have been long and extensive negotiations with the low-cost airline. However, Kangler also admitted that a final contract has not yet been signed. A possible comeback by Ryanair is also on the table. The ministry confirmed, among other things, that promising negotiations are also taking place with this carrier. Since the collapse of the Chinese conglomerate that briefly operated Maribor Airport, it has been back under the wing of the government. Various incentives are being used to breathe new life into the airport, which has been dormant for some time, apart from its role in pilot training.

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Finances: Stuttgart wrote a loss of 24,7 million euros last year

Amely Mizzi April 7, 2022 09:38

Baden-Württemberg's largest airport, Stuttgart, had 3.582.096 passengers last year. Although it was up 11,5 percent compared to the first year of the pandemic, it was significantly below pre-crisis levels. The airport performed similarly financially. "We are only slowly recovering from the deepest slump in the history of our company. Securing liquidity and jobs remains our top priority. Passenger numbers and revenues in 2021 were still well below pre-crisis levels, so the result was once again significantly negative. This makes urgently needed investments for our ambitious climate goal of reducing our emissions to zero by 2040 more difficult," said Walter Schoefer, CEO. Flughafen Stuttgart GmbH (FSG)'s revenue in the 2021 financial year amounted to EUR 143,8 million, an increase of 1,2 percent over the previous year. In terms of the business result after taxes, FSG once again had to report a significant loss of minus 24,7 million euros (2020: minus 96,9 million euros). The number of flight movements rose by 5,7 percent to a total of 62.135 take-offs and landings. "We now have to prepare ourselves operationally and organizationally for this. Many service providers have lost staff during the pandemic who cannot be replaced so quickly. We are doing everything we can to ensure that processes run as smoothly as possible in the summer. Long-term forecasts are still difficult; we expect around six million passengers by the end of the year," explains Managing Director Ulrich Heppe.

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“Ancient” Lufthansa tickets about to expire

Amely Mizzi April 7, 2022 09:05

The Lufthansa Group is extending the option for its airlines Austrian Airlines, Swiss, Brussels Airlines, Air Dolomiti and Lufthansa to rebook tickets sold between July 1, 2020 and July 31, 2021 free of charge. Until May 31, 2022, the airline will waive the fees for these tickets, but a possible fare difference may be payable. The rebooked trip must be started by February 28, 2023 at the latest, according to a sales communication. Passengers who have tickets that had the original travel period between May 1 and 31, 2020, should act now: A free rebooking is only possible until April 15, 2022. If the original travel date was between June 1 and 30, 2020, you still have until May 18, 2022. After that, the tickets will expire.

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Entry into Bulgaria: 3G proof is sufficient again

Jan Gruber April 7, 2022 08:36

At the beginning of the month, EU member Bulgaria changed its entry regulations to 3G proof. Until now, vaccinated and recovered people also required a negative PCR result. In order to enter Bulgaria without quarantine, you must now be vaccinated, recovered or tested. At the beginning of the year, the EU member introduced the so-called 2G Plus rule due to the Omicron variant. This has now been replaced by 3G. People who cannot provide proof must go into a ten-day quarantine. In this case, a corona test must be carried out in Bulgaria. Within the country, the mask requirement has been largely lifted. It is only recommended on public transport and in hospitals, but there is no longer a requirement.

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Comment: The "Condor's" new clothes

Stephen Lorenz April 7, 2022 08:09

Dear Condor Marketing & PR department, what were you thinking? After it officially leaked out at the end of last week that something bigger was brewing at Condor, everything suddenly happened very quickly. A few days before an interview with Condor boss Teckentrup, I had already heard on the radio that Condor was "daring to do something new - in the direction of Icelandair" - ergo - different colors - with the same concept. This Monday at 10:00 a.m. It was to be made official. There was apparently great fear east of Rhein-Main Airport at headquarters that something would leak out in advance. A PR employee logged on to a large German aviation forum late in the evening last Sunday to expressly condemn their own employees to secrecy. Clearly legible for everyone and deleted again less than an hour later. What a spectacle for a Sunday evening, it was a good thing I had salted popcorn next to me so I could follow this. Now I have to be honest and say that I have a lot of connections with Condor, many beautiful moments. Condor is vacation, and in my opinion there is a lot of truth in this sentence. Condor = vacation airline – that is probably what most people associate with it, and unlike their colleagues and competitors at “TUIFly”, they quickly ironed out a major mistake: the brief name change to Thomas Cook Airlines. Why would the boss of another tour operator put his guests on a plane that clearly bears the name of a competitor? A huge mistake that was made when Hapag Lloyd changed to Thomas Cook Airlines.

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Rostock-Laage has five holiday destinations this year

Jan Gruber April 7, 2022 07:32

A total of five holiday destinations will be offered from Rostock-Laage Airport in the 2022 summer flight schedule. These are to be served from May 2022. They are the destinations Heraklion, Rhodes, Hurghada, Antalya and Luxembourg. The last-mentioned destination will be served by Luxair on Saturdays between May 21 and October 8, 2022 and is more geared towards incoming traffic. Corendon will fly to Heraklion on Fridays from May 6 to October 28, 2022. Corendon will also fly to Rhodes on Mondays from May 2 to October 25, 2022. Antalya is offered all year round. During the height of summer, Corendon Airlines offers two rotations per week. These are offered on Thursdays and Fridays. Hurghada is served by Corendon on Mondays. There are also individual charter flights this year, as airport manager Maren Wolters explains: "Rostock-Laage Airport is once again offering a summer flight program with five destinations this year, as well as special flights to Jersey and Guernsey, which can be booked through PTI Panoramica. In the summer months, MSC will also once again fly cruise passengers to Warnemünde via our airport for their Baltic Sea cruises."

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Cologne: Dnata takes over Wisskirchen Handling Services

Amely Mizzi April 7, 2022 07:03

The Emirates subsidiary Dnata intends to take over the German freight service provider Wisskirchen Handling Services. The transaction is still pending regulatory approval. With this acquisition, the company is entering the German market in the cargo services sector. Wisskirchen is the sole operator of the Cologne-Bonn Cargo Center, a 12.000 square meter facility at Cologne/Bonn Airport (CGN), which offers a comprehensive range of freight services with a team of around 180 highly qualified employees. The company handles more than 85.000 tons of freight annually, including general cargo, perishable goods, pharmaceuticals, dangerous goods, electronics and other consumer goods. Cologne-Bonn Airport is the third largest airport in Germany in the freight sector and has considerable further growth capacity. It operates 24 hours a day and is ideally connected to the road network. In 2021, freight handling at the CGN increased by 14 percent compared to the previous year - a new annual record. Dnata has entered into agreements with Oliver Hellwig, the owner of Wisskirchen, to acquire 100 percent of the company's shares. The details of the transaction have been kept confidential. The acquisition is subject to approval by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection in Germany. "We are delighted to announce our first cargo investment in Germany. It is part of our ongoing and comprehensive commitment to cargo infrastructure. Since 2014, we have invested in nine new cargo facilities in Europe. We look forward to playing a key role in the next phase of Cologne/Bonn Airport's development as a major cargo hub and I would like to thank Oliver Hellwig for his professionalism throughout this process," said Stewart Angus, Regional CEO Europe at Dnata.

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