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.
South African Airways (SAA), Africa's biggest and most important airline, wants to become a member of Star Alliance. SAA said membership in Star would strengthen its role as a global player and support existing initiatives for better customer service. SAA also expects "significant economic advantages" from joining.
Cirrus Airlines will operate the four-times-daily Zurich-Lugano service using Dash 8-300s for Swiss, beginning April 1. Swiss was forced to look for a partner because its own Avro RJs and Saab 2000s are no longer certified for the steep approach to Lugano. The airport is the only one connecting the Tessin region in Southern Switzerland to Swiss's hub in Zurich. -JF
Hungarian state-owned carrier Malev and CSA Czech Airlines last week announced a bilateral alliance that Malev hopes will lead to membership in the SkyTeam alliance. The two national airline companies signed a letter of intent aimed at making their commercial cooperation tighter and more effective. CSA, a SkyTeam founding member, will also sponsor Malev's earliest possible membership in SkyTeam, Malev said, but it disclosed no further details.
