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.
Lufthansa will be the first major European airline to order the new Airbus A320 new engine option (NEO). The airline’s board of directors on March 16 approved a plan to buy 25 A320NEOs and five A321NEOs. Lufthansa also ordered five Boeing 777 freighters for its cargo operation (Aviation Daily, Jan. 27). Lufthansa says it will start taking delivery of the NEOs in 2016. The aircraft will become available in 2015, according to Airbus’ plans. The airline has not yet made an engine selection.
Kuwait-based carrier Wataniya has shut down all operations. The airline said in a statement that “given the current financial situation of the company and the lack of fair trade requirements in the local market, as well as the difficult political and security situation in the region, the board has decided to cease all Wataniya Airways operations with the return of its last scheduled flight to Kuwait tonight [March 16].”
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects fares to continue their upward trend with the supply-demand conditions still “close to historic highs,” the association says in its current Premium Traffic Monitor. IATA points out that fares are still 15% below the pre-recession peak, but 15% above the January 2009 low. Premium travel was up 8.1% in January after growth slowed significantly in December as a result of the severe winter weather. Overall traffic increased by 5.1%, indicating the strong rebound of first- and business-class demand.
