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The second largest airline operator at Heathrow has announced it is cutting dozens of services from its weekly schedule of flights.

BMI British Midland is scrapping part of its domestic network and slashing capacity to Europe in an attempt to stem losses.

The airline is expected to announce today that it is axing two of its services between Heathrow and Leeds and Bradford and Durham Tees Valley.

A total of seven daily departures will be cut, on top of the previously announced closure of the twice-daily service between Heathrow and Jersey.

source: thisislondon.co.uk

A Continental Express flight from Newark to Buffalo crashed into a house about five miles from Buffalo Niagara International Airport on Thursday night, killing 49 people.

The plane carried 44 passengers and a crew of 4, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The Erie County executive, Chris Collins, later said at a news conference that 49 people, including one on the ground, were killed.

source: iht.com

Four leading airlines called on Thursday for aviation emissions to be included in a broader climate pact, after growing criticism from green groups that the sector was not doing enough to fight global warming.The move is the first step by the world’s airlines, which account for around two percent of global pollution, to steer the debate on an emissions pact toward a deal they are happy with, rather than having one imposed on them.

Air France/KLM, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Virgin Atlantic and airport operator BAA issued the call in Hong Kong and outlined a series of principles a new global deal for aviation must adhere to.

source: Reuters

U.S. airlines’ on-time performance declined dramatically in December compared to the previous month, but improved slightly over a year earlier, the Transportation Department said Monday. The carriers blamed heavy snowstorms around the Christmas holiday and aviation system issues for contributing to some delays.Airlines had a significantly higher domestic flight cancellation rate and a higher mishandled baggage rate in the final month of 2008 compared to November. Even complaints about airline service were up in December compared to November.

source: iht.com

German flag carrier Deutsche Lufthansa still plans to invest in acquisitions to be ahead of the game when the global economic crisis ends, supervisory board Chairman Juergen Weber said.

Lufthansa is currently taking a breather after an acquisition spree last year, in which it set out plans to buy Brussels Airlines and Austrian Airlines, cutting the number of large independent airlines in Europe.

Scandinavian airline SAS is a potential target, while Spain’s Iberia could become available in the longer term if its merger talks with British Airways come to nothing.

source: Reuters

British Airways has announced that it will introduce mobile phone technology on its business-class only flights between London City Airport and New York JFK.

Passengers travelling on the twice-daily route, set to launch in the autumn, will be able to send and receive text messages and emails during the flight, and access the internet.

“‘The service is aimed at people in the Square Mile,’” said a spokesman for BA. “‘We believe the route and the new technology will offer an appealing package to business travellers.’”

source: telegraph.co.uk

Air France-KLM and Alitalia have reached an agreement to strengthen their partnership cemented by Air France-KLM taking a minority stake in Alitalia. This agreement will give Air France-KLM greater access to the Italian market thanks to Alitalia which, following its acquisition of Air One, has reinforced its position on the domestic market.

source: Easier

A flight attendant is suing JetBlue Airways and Delta Air Lines, saying a male employee denied her a work-related flight because she wasn’t dressed provocatively enough.

The flight attendant, 37-year-old Karin Keegan of Pittsburgh, works for Delta. The airline has an agreement for JetBlue to ferry Delta flight attendants to job assignments on a standby basis.

Keegan’s lawsuit said a male JetBlue worker wouldn’t let her on a flight in October 2007 because she wasn’t dressed provocatively enough, then allowed other flight attendants with less seniority to board the plane.

JetBlue told the commission it is not liable because Keegan is not an employee. But federal law enables employees to sue over workplace harassment even when they are not directly employed by the alleged harasser.

source: USA Today

Alitalia SpA begins operating under new ownership Tuesday but still faces the task of fighting off low-cost rivals in its pivotal domestic market. Alitalia has undergone massive change since it entered bankruptcy protection in late August with more than €1.2 billion ($1.6 billion) in debt.

As part of its restructuring, Alitalia has been merged with its biggest domestic rival, Air One SpA, giving it more than a 55% share of Italy’s internal flights, according to the airline. Lucrative domestic routes, such as that between Rome and Milan, form a key part of Alitalia’s plan to break even next year.

source: WSJ

The takeover of much of the European airline industry by the continent’s biggest carrier seemed to move ahead today as separate reports linked German giant Lufthansa with bids for SAS of Scandinavia and Italy’s Alitalia.

Lufthansa recently took control of Britain’s bmi  –  Heathrow’s second biggest carrier  –  and has already taken over Swiss and Brussels Airlines and is in negotiations with Austrian Airlines.

Now executives at the German carrier have fuelled the belief they are stalking SAS.

source: Daily Mail