WestJet Airlines Ltd. is stepping up its turf war with Air Canada by forging a close link with Air France-KLM Group, Europe’s biggest airline, that aims to improve service for travellers from Western Canada to Europe and vice versa.
Calgary-based WestJet confirmed on Monday it is negotiating an “‘interline'” pact with Air France that would smooth baggage transfer and ticketing in both directions.
source: Canada.com
EasyJet, the largest UK low cost airline, on Tuesday reported a sharp increase in full-year profits and forecast a further significant rise in profits in the current year to next September despite record oil prices.
EasyJet forecast a further increase of around 20 per cent in underlying pre-tax profits in the current year excluding the impact of its proposed acquisition of GB Airways, the largely Gatwick-based franchise carrier of British Airways, which is due to be completed by the end of January.
Flyglobespan has announced that it will begin weekly flights from Bristol airport to Toronto from May next year.
The connection will open on May 26th, with services leaving Bristol every Monday to land at Toronto’s Hamilton airport.
In an initial protest against their employment conditions, Israir’s flight attendants declared a labor dispute over the weekend against the management of the company, demanding a collective employment contract in place of the current individual agreement on which they are now signed. The Histadrut will mediate between the workers and the management.
“‘The cabin attendants will not be satisfied with a contract that is worth less than the collective agreement the El Al air workers achieved and as the Arkia workers are about to sign,'” Raz Bahar, an Israir stewardess and the chairwoman of the workers’ committee, told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday.
Air Canada was struggling to contend with a computer problem Friday that caused flight delays at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport.
It was unclear whether the computer glitch, which apparently affected passenger check-in services, was localized at Pearson or had affected the airline’s operations nationwide, said Angela Mah, a spokeswoman for the airline.
“‘We are currently working on isolating the issue and resolving the issue as soon as possible,'” Mah told The Canadian Press in a telephone interview.
An advisory on the Air Canada website said the airline is experiencing technical difficulties with a computer system which will likely result in some flight delays. The advisory said the airline expects the issue to be fixed shortly.
source: Canadian Press
Representatives from the Transportation Ministry and a number of Indonesian airlines have pledged to improve aviation security and services to meet the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), in a move that may aid the country’s efforts to end the EU ban on Indonesian air carriers.
Indonesian airlines were banned by the EU on July 6 this year due to alleged poor service and failure to ensure flight safety and operational security.
source: The Jakarta Post
Air France has filed a law suit against the Irish low-cost airline with the Bobigny court of first instance in France, and is seeking compensation for damages.
”Ryanair has broadly advertised to the press that it is launching proceedings with the European Commission denouncing the alleged collusion between Air France and two other European airlines,” Air France said.
”It is basing its complaint on the mere fact that Air France and the two airlines concerned increased their fares on the same day, a few hours apart, following implementation of a fuel surcharge,” it added.
Air France said it considers the facts ”slanderous accusations” not only because they are ”pure fabrication” but also because ”Ryanair deliberately leaked the accusations to the media.”
source: Forbes
Iberia said on Thursday it had a new takeover approach from Gala Capital with a value of up to 3.7 billion euros ($5.4 billion), rivalling a long-awaited bid led by private equity group TPG.
In a statement, the Spanish airline said Basque savings bank BBK and the chairman of Air Europa were part of the bidding consortium, which would offer 3.6-3.9 euros a share.
Iberia shares jumped on the news and at 11:16 GMT were up 4 percent at 3.63 euros. They were then suspended from trade.
source: Reuters
The European Commission said it intends to simplify computerised reservations systems (CRS) in the airline ticket distribution market to boost competition.
The commission said it adopted a proposal for simplification which will reduce booking fees charged by the reservation systems and enable airlines to offer more travel options through CRSs.
The proposal will also bring pricing freedom into the CRS market, the commission said.
”More competition in this market means lower distribution costs and airlines offering more travel options via the CRSs,” commission vice-president Jacques Barrot said in a statement.
source: Forbes
Greek Tourism Development Minister Aris Spiliotopoulos on Tuesday met in London with Ryanair’s deputy CEO for talks on ways to lure the pioneering low-cost airline to the Greek market.
Speaking to reporters in the British capital on the sidelines of the World Travel Market trade fair, the Greek minister said negotiations were currently underway to attract low-cost airline carriers to Greece, while he underlined the importance of high-quality services in the tourism sector.
source: Ana.gr
