He started his journalism career in 1992 as a freelance writer for Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany’s largest daily national newspaper and soon specialised in air transport. Jens joined Aviation Week and Aviation Daily in 2000 as one of the European correspondents. Later his role was expanded to cover international air transport. In 2013 he was named Managing Editor Commercial.
Jens frequently appears on radio and TV to comment on industry matters. In 2003, he received the Hugo Junkers Award of the German aviation press for his coverage of Fairchild Dornier’s bankruptcy. He was named the country’s top travel and air transport writer by the Travel Industry Club three times. Jens graduated from the Munich School of Journalism.
Air Berlin is adding two members to its board of directors, bringing much-needed airline industry expertise to the company. Barbara Cassani and Saad Hammad will join the board in May. Air Berlin, which posted a loss of almost €100 million ($144 million) last year, is going through major changes as it prepares to join Oneworld in 2012.
International Airline Group (IAG), the parent of British Airways and Iberia, is setting up an integrated cargo unit. The division will combine British Airways World Cargo and Iberia Cargo. IAG says that both cargo operations will retain their existing brands, but there will be only one sales contact for both in the various markets. The group argues that Iberia Cargo’s strong presence in Latin America fits well with the BA network in North America, Asia and Africa. According to IAG, the combined entity will be among the 10 largest cargo airlines worldwide.
When aircraft makers shifted from cutting output to ramping up production, there were underlying concerns within the industry that elements of the supply chain could crumble under the quick reversal. It now seems as if those fears may be realized. In the past year, both Airbus and Boeing took abrupt U-turns, ramping up production to pre-crisis levels. And the dust hasn't settled yet—Airbus, having boosted narrowbody output twice, is now considering a further jump to 42-44 aircraft per month from 40.
