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.
Aegean Airlines yesterday raised $185 million in an initial public offering. The airline sold 17.8 million shares at EUR7.6 (US$10.36) a share. The Greek carrier plans to use the proceeds to fund its ambitious expansion plans. Aegean has a fleet of 21 aircraft and has a further 19 Airbus A320 family aircraft on order. Aegean started cooperating with Lufthansa this year and is feeding the Star Alliance carrier at its main hub in Frankfurt. -JF
Airbus is considering teaming with a major partner to help it replace its best-selling single-aisle aircraft, although a decision on launching the new program is still years away. The European aircraft maker is far from making firm design choices, but Airbus's executive vice president for programs, Tom Williams, says the company will aim to cover the entire spectrum the A320 family already covers from around 100-210 seats.
Aeroflot is out of the race for Alitalia. The Russian airline dropped its bid yesterday, saying, "Aeroflot and its advisers have not had access to critical information with respect to the commercial and operational aspects of Alitalia's business to confidently formulate a well supported business proposal to successfully restructure Alitalia."
