Trabber News

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News of November 2007


Korean Air to launch low-cost airline

27 November 2007

Korean Air is to launch a new low-cost airline that will serve destinations across south-east Asia.

The airline, known for now as Air Korea, is expected to start services in May 2008, with routes to Shandong and Hainan Provinces in China.

After the China flights, Air Korea plans to run flights to destinations in Japan (excluding Tokyo), Thailand and Malaysia, with further short and mid-haul routes to follow.

Flights will operate out of Incheon International Airport, South Korea’s biggest airport located in the country’s capital, Seoul.

source: travelbite.co.uk


Airline’s new South West flights

27 November 2007

The South West based airline Flybe has announced expansion plans as part of a bid to strengthen its position as a regional hub.

The airline company has said seven new routes are scheduled for its two airports in Cornwall and Devon.

New services to Glasgow, Birmingham and Southampton will be on offer from Newquay.

Passengers from Exeter will be able to travel to Aberdeen, Dubrovnik, Inverness and Brussels.

All the flights are expected to start in the spring next year.

source: BBC


Lufthansa, TUI, Eurowings discuss airline alliance

23 November 2007

The merger plans of Lufthansa’s Germanwings unit and of TUI’s TUIfly division are set to include Eurowings too, people familiar with the talks told Reuters on Thursday.

The parties plan to build a larger alliance that also involves Eurowings as a third airline, the people said.

Building entrepreneur Albrecht Knauf, who holds a majority stake in Eurowings, may also take a stake in the possible new entity, the people said. Lufthansa owns 49 percent of Eurowings but has all the voting rights and operates the regional airline.

source: Reuters


Obese passenger wins case against Air France

23 November 2007

A Frenchman who weighs 170 kilograms (375 pounds) has won a court case against Air France after it made him buy a second seat on a flight from New Delhi to Paris, he told AFP.

Jean-Jacques Jauffret, a 43-year-old screen-writer, said he was deeply humiliated when airline staff measured his girth with wrapping tape in front of other passengers at New Delhi airport.

source: Forbes


Frequencies doubled on Helsinki-Moscow route

23 November 2007

As of April 2008, Finnair and Aeroflot will cooperate on flights between Helsinki and Moscow that will run four times a day, a total of 28 times a week. The development represents a breakthrough in long negotiations to add capacity to flights between the two capital cities.

source: Boarding.no


TUIfly, Lufthansa’s Germanwings in talks

22 November 2007

Lufthansa’s Germanwings airline and TUIfly are in talks about an alliance that could include a merger, sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

The sources said talks were at an early stage, adding that Germanwings would seek operational control in any alliance with TUIfly.

Lufthansa, TUI and Germanwings declined to comment.

Travel giant TUI Travel , which is 51 percent owned by TUI, said in September it could sell TUIfly. TUI Travel is conducting a strategic review and is to detail its decisions by January.

source: Yahoo!


Low-cost carriers making their way to Korea

22 November 2007

Tiger Airways joins Yeongnam Air in plans for challenging Asiana/KAL duopoly in 2008

South Korea’s air transport market looks set to undergo a radical shakeup with Singapore-based low-cost carrier Tiger Airways the latest to unveil plans for a new airline there.

Until now South Korea’s market has been dominated by Asiana Airlines and Korean Air, although two small turboprop operators have begun operating limited domestic services in recent years. Real competition should come to the market soon, with start-up Yeongnam Air hoping to begin operating in February. Its plans were unveiled earlier this year and it recently secured a business licence from the ­Transportation ministry.

source: flightglobal.com


Silverjet celebrates inaugural flight to london

21 November 2007

Silverjet, the British luxury airline, touched down this morning at the Executive Terminal of Dubai International Airport, marking the first time a commercial carrier has been granted access to the airports private aviation facilities and the first airline of its kind to fly to the Emirate.

source: albawaba.com


Chicago: Bad visibility leads to flight delays, cancellations

21 November 2007

Low visibility Tuesday has led to flight delays and cancellations at both Midway and O’Hare airports, according to the City Department of Aviation.

More than 30 flights at O’Hare International Airport had been canceled as of about 8:30 p.m., according to Aviation. Delays are averaging 90 minutes for flights in and out of O’Hare.

At Midway, delays ranged from 15 minutes to an hour, according to Aviation. “No major cancellations have been reported,” according to the city. Earlier in the day, a few flights to and from the East Coast had been delayed more than two hours.

source: Sun Times


Ryanair says can absorb higher fuel costs

21 November 2007

Low-cost Irish airline Ryanair can absorb much higher fuel costs than competitors because of its higher profit margins and will never introduce fuel surcharges, its chief executive said on Tuesday.

“‘We’ve guaranteed no fuel surcharges at Ryanair,'” Michael O’Leary told reporters. “‘Ever’.”

O’Leary said if oil prices continue to rise it will benefit Ryanair because it will have fewer competitors.

“‘If Vueling was losing money with oil at $65 a barrel then it’s bankrupt at $95,'” he added, referring to Spanish airline Vueling which announced a 73 percent dive in its third-quarter net profit last month to 1.35 million euros and pre-tax losses rose to 48.6 million.

source: Yahoo!