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.
Airbus is starting to talk to airlines about converting A380 options to firm orders and is weighing whether to build A350s at a faster rate than first planned. New Airbus President/CEO Gustav Humbert says that fielding of the mega-transport next year will likely spur companies that have options to start turning them into firm orders. Airbus has about 50 options along with 149 firm orders for the A380, and 10 commitments from UPS are likely to be firmed up soon.
SN Brussels Airlines and Air Senegal have inked a partnership deal that covers the Brussels-Dakar route and intra-African services. Air Senegal will sell seats on the SN Brussels long-haul flight, while offering connecting services on Air Senegal aircraft from Dakar to Accra, Ghana; Bamako, Mali; Cotonou, Benin; Lome, Togo; Niamey, Niger; Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso; Nouakchott, Mauritania, and Cap Skirring in Senegal. SN Brussels is primarily an intra-European carrier but offers a significant network to African countries. -JF
Airbus CEO Gustav Humbert expects the order intake to decline within the next two years, as 2005 has turned out to be a record year for Airbus and Boeing. Humbert told The DAILY at the Dubai Air Show that in his view, the total annual market was for 650-800 units, about half of the roughly 1,600 aircraft the two manufacturers expect to sell this year.
