The European flag carrier, the launch customer for the Bombardier C Series will place its first CS100 into service on flight LX638 from Zurich to Paris Charles de Gaulle on July 15, 2016 before introducing the type across a number of European markets.
Although the Air France-KLM Group low-cost brand has previously served the UK market from the Netherlands, the new links from Paris Orly into England and Scotland’s capital cities by its Transavia France operation represent its first ever flights between France and the UK.
Before the meetings took place at Routes Europe 2016 in Krakow, the Messis and Ronaldos of the aviation world took to the pitch for a charity football tournament. The tournament was sponsored by The Best of France, and it took place at the University of Economics.
Delivering the keynote address at the monthly Wings Club meeting in New York, James Hogan, president and chief executive officer, Etihad Airways said that in an industry dominated by legacy airlines, and with such high barriers to entry, no new network carrier could hope to compete effectively in its own.
Kraków has always been, in many respects, a charmed city. With a history that dates back to the 4th century settlement of Wawel Hill, Kraków has fortuitously avoided destruction, growing into one of the most prominent cities in Central Europe. A city of majestic architectural monuments, cobbled thoroughfares, cultural treasures, timeless courtyards, priceless artworks and legendary beer cellars and gardens, Kraków’s historic centre is the pride of Poland.
The southern Ireland regional facility now has a network of more than 50 routes with nine new routes taking off this year including Düsseldorf with Aer Lingus, London City, Nantes and La Rochelle with CityJet, Madrid with Iberia Express, Cardiff with Flybe, Southampton and Leeds Bradford with Aer Lingus Regional as well as Menorca with Lee Travel and Stein Travel.
Latest figures from VisitBritain state that tourist numbers to the UK from China were up 37 percent in the first nine months of 2015 as more than 200,000 Chinese holidaymakers visited the UK in the nine month period. VisitBritain is hoping to double spending from Chinese visitors to £1 billion by 2020, - they were already among the highest spenders ringing up £2,688 a head and already account for almost a quarter of tourist spending in the UK.
The Chinese city will become Iberia’s first Asian destination ahead of its previously announced launch of flights to Tokyo from October 18, 2016. This year the Spanish airline is also resuming services to Puerto Rico (from May 15, 2016) and to Johannesburg (from August 1, 2016), while its seasonal flights to Boston, previously offered from March to October, will operate through December this year.
Dublin Airport officials are working closely with airline partners to build Dublin Airport as a gateway and a significant growth in transatlantic capacity in particular is helping to provide significant transfer opportunities.
OpenSkies revealed earlier this month that the 767-300 would join its existing 757-200s from August 2016. Our Airline Route blog now confirms that schedules have been updated to include the new arrival with a first scheduled flight of the type due on August 19, 2016.
The new services to Amritsar, Chennai and Jaipur, will boost the SIA Group’s international network into India to 15 destinations, served by its mainline business, regional operation SilkAir, low-cost brand Tiger Airways and now its medium- and long-haul, low-cost unit, Scoot.
The third biggest city in China, Guangzhou, will host World Routes 2018. The prestigious event returning to another Chinese city highlights the importance of this emerging market for aviation and follows its successful hosting in Beijing in 2009 and this year's event in Chengdu later this year.
Baiyun International is an example of not just the rapid rise of the aviation sector in China, but also the growth strategy of airport operator Guangdong Airport Authority to develop the facility as a major hub and support the growth of anchor tenant China Southern Airlines to introduce new markets. In 2000 the airport was handing just over 12 million annual passengers – in the subsequent 15 years it has quadrupled and added a further 43 million annual passengers.
The new connection will be the only direct flight between London Gatwick and Bucharest and will grow Wizz Air’s daily flights between the two cities to four, complementing its existing three times daily link from London Luton, a route that was introduced almost ten years ago in January 2007.
This marks the return of the two routes after a four year absence and will be the only direct long-haul services to be offered from Bristol Airport. The move is part of the holiday company’s strategy to ensure customers across its home UK market can fly more easily from their local airports.
The new flight will bring a significant number of additional one-stop connection opportunities from Košice International Airport via Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport. Although the flight is initially launching on a three times weekly basis as the carrier tests the market, it is its ambition to grow frequencies in future schedules, as has been the case with many of the new markets it has introduced over the past few years.
Tokyo will be Hong Kong Airlines’ seventh destination in Japan and will complement its existing twice daily flights to Routes Asia 2017 host city, Okinawa, daily flight to Okayama, five times weekly service to Sapporo, three times weekly service to Kagoshima and twice weekly flights to Miyazaki and Kumamoto.
Heathrow’s unique capacity constraints – it is operating at 98 percent capacity – coupled with the high demand from airlines due to strong passenger yields at the airport, mean slots are hard to obtain. The airport currently claims it has a queue of thirty airlines waiting for slots.
The new airport will completely revolutionise travel to and from the island. At present, Saint Helena is accessible by a boat trip that takes around five days from Cape Town.
Norwegian Group has waited two years to hear that it can fly to the US under the subsidiary name Norwegian Air International. That day has arrived. The airline received tentative approval for a foreign air carrier permit today from the US Department of Transportation, which said it made its decision with “caution and careful consideration”.
With the EU referendum campaign officially taking off in the UK, the topic of Brexit will certainly dominate conversations as June 23rd draws closer. Will the UK vote to stay or leave the European Union? Despite the uncertainty of the situation, if Brexit succeeds, the aviation industry in the UK will inevitably face tough implications.
As the Eastern European market continues to grow, much of the growth can be attributed to two of the biggest low-cost carriers (LCCs) in the region. Ryanair and Wizz Air dominate much of the market, but despite growing service, only overlap on a handful of routes. Both carriers have announced plenty of new services in the last 12 months, many of which serve Poland – the largest of the Eastern European air transport market with a third of all seats.
The new route has not only gained the attention of the travelling public, but also the wider industry with network planners across Europe and even further afield voting this new service ahead of other routes such as Hainan Airlines’ Beijing – Manchester, Wizz Air’s Kutaisi – Berlin, Norwegian’s Oslo – Las Vegas and British Airways’ London – Tehran for a Routes Case presentation at Routes Europe in an exclusive Routesonline poll.
Alitalia will offer a four times weekly service between Rome and Beijing from July 18, 2016 using a three-class, 250-seat Airbus A330-200. The Rome – Beijing city pair market has grown over the past ten years from around 50,000 O&D passengers to over 130,000 passengers last year.
