Posts Tagged ‘airlines’
Thursday, January 5th, 2012
Following the introduction of strict rules on aircraft carbon emissions within the European Union, two of the world’s largest airlines have announced that they will be increasing fares. The regulations apply to all planes landing or taking off from European airports, and mean airlines will now have to purchase certificates to compensate for the greenhouse gasses they produce.
America’s Delta Air Lines said that passengers who wish to fly to Europe will now have to pay an extra $6 on a round trip. Lufthansa has said that it too intends to hand on the cost of the emissions charges to passengers, but has not yet announced how much ticket prices will rise by.
The German carrier predicted that it would have to purchase 35 per cent of the certificates that it needs. The estimation is based on recent growth and past emissions, and will cost Lufthansa in the region of 130 million euros over the course of this year. Lufthansa is the second largest European carrier in terms of passenger traffic behind Air France-KLM. It is the world’s fifth largest.
Delta Air Lines is the second largest carrier in the world behind United. At the end of last year a group of Canadian and US airlines petitioned Europe’s highest court over the new emission rules claiming that they were contrary to international law. They were not successful.
A number of countries including India and China have said that if the rules continue to affect their airlines there could be retaliation in the form of similar charges being applied to European carriers entering their airspace.
Tags: Air France KLM, airlines, Delta Air Lines, European Union, Lufthansa, United
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Wednesday, January 4th, 2012
Emirates Airline is continuing its expansion into the world of online holidays by taking over Travel Republic, one of the UK’s best known internet holiday brands. The company will now be controlled by Dnata, Emirates’ holiday arm, but will continue to operate under the Travel Republic brand.
According to Dnata, Travel Republic will compliment its existing corporate and leisure travel services. The firm was set up in the UK in 2003 and last year managed to increase its turnover by 40 per cent to £400 million. Recently the company’s management have expanded their focus to Europe and have opened in Spain, Italy and Ireland. Dnata said its intention is to work closely with the team at Travel Republic and take the brand global.
Travel Republic’s managing director, Kane Pirie, said joining Dnata will allow it to accelerate its ambitions to expand. The website currently offers customers a choice of 650 destinations around the world with 100 airlines. It also provides access to 120,000 hotels.
In recent years Dnata has been expanding and diversifying. In 2008 the company acquired 49 per cent of Mind Pearl, a global outsource provider, as well as a 23 per cent stake in Hogg Robinson, the corporate travel group.
In 2010 Dnata widened its airport reach by taking over Alpha Flight, an in-flight catering company. The acquisition of Travel Republic has been made at a time when consumers are moving away from booking holidays on the high street and doing so online. Thomas Cook recently announced that it was being forced to close 200 outlets because of a slump in profits.
Tags: airlines, Alpha Flight, Dnata, Emirates, Hogg Robinson, Mind Pearl, Thomas Cook, Travel Republic
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Friday, December 30th, 2011
On 1 January, the emissions trading scheme will begin across Europe as a way of offsetting the amount of carbon dioxide being produced by airlines. The scheme will apply to all airlines land or taking off from airports in the EU. Carriers will have a cap put on the amount of CO2 they are allowed to produce and will have to pay for credits.
In the UK a number of airline bosses have formed an alliance to demand the abolition of the controversial Air Passenger Duty. They are arguing that the tax was originally intended to offset emissions and now that ETS is being introduced it no longer has to serve that purpose.
In a statement IAG boss Willie Walsh, Carolyn McCall from easyJet, Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary and Steve Ridgway of Virgin Atlantic explain that there is no proof that the government has ever used APD to pay for the environment. Currently the Exchequer receives £2.5 billion every year from APD and is hoping to ramp this up to £3.6 billion by the middle of the decade.
The group points out that according to figures compiled by the government, airlines in the UK were already contributing enough money to cover carbon emissions in 2008. APD since then has soared. By 2020 it is estimated that airlines in Britain will be paying around 400 million euros under ETS.
The scheme applies to all airlines visiting airports in Europe and has come under fire from foreign governments who feel the charges do not conform to international legislation.
Tags: airlines, APD, Carolyn McCall, easyJet Ryanair, ETS, IAG, michael o'leary, Steve Ridgway, Virgin Atlantic, Willie Walsh
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Thursday, December 29th, 2011
The International Air Travel Association has predicted that a tax on airline carbon emissions set to be introduced by the European Union in January could cost the airline industry 900 million euros in 2012. The tax has been condemned by foreign governments claiming that it goes against international legislation.
There are growing fears that the new charges for all airlines entering or leaving the EU could result in a trade war. In September, a group of countries got together to condemn the decision by Brussels, and some have threatened to introduce taxes of their own in retaliation.
Hilary Clinton, America’s Secretary of State, and Ray LaHood, the US Transport Secretary, told the EU that Washington would have to take appropriate action if it pushes through with its intention. The European Court of Justice last week ignored a petition by a group if Canadian and US airlines.
Any carrier refusing to submit to the taxation could find that it is no longer allowed to operate in Europe and will be fined heavily. China has said that it may retaliate by cancelling lucrative orders for planes with Airbus. Russia said it was considering imposing a charge on any European carrier entering its airspace. India has threatened to come up with its own form of taxation.
The introduction of the carbon emission tax is likely to result in an increase in ticket prices which could force many to seek alternative forms of transport. IATA predicts that by 2020 the tax could cost international carriers as much as 2.8 billion euros every year.
Tags: Airbus, airlines, carbon tax, European Union, Hilary Clinton, IATA
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Friday, December 9th, 2011
A British scientist has developed a device which he hopes will allow airlines to avoid having to ground their fleets whenever there is volcanic ash in the atmosphere. The system works by using thermal imaging cameras which have been tuned to be able to identify silicates in the air, the product of volcanic eruptions. It then uses data from satellites and atmospheric models to let a pilot know which way the cloud is likely to head.
Dr Fred Prata said that his system was able to show where ash clouds were present at altitudes between 5,000ft and 50,000ft. Pilots will be told where the ash is 100kms before they hit it so that they can plan an alternative route.
Airlines have been looking for a way to detect ash since fleets were grounded last year for close to a week across Europe. Air space was closed after the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokul volcano. Dr Prata said that only a small area was actually too dangerous for jets to fly through and that his device would allow planes to stay airborne in the event of another eruption.
The project has been supplied with funding by easyJet, which said that the 2010 eruption cost it around £50 million.
The successful testing of the equipment has become more urgent as scientists are warning that the Katla volcano on Iceland is showing signs of activity which could result in an eruption. Katla is 10 times the size of Eyjafjallajokul, and lies beneath a massive glacier.
Tags: airlines, ash clouds, Easyjet, Eyjafjallajokul, volcanic ash
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Friday, November 18th, 2011
A group of airlines in the UK and Ireland have come together to ask the government to abolish Air Passenger Duty. The tax was first added to tickets in 1994 as a way of offsetting the carbon emitted by jet engines. What was between £5 and £40 added to the price of a ticket is now between £24 and £170 depending on the destination and the class which is being flown.
Ryanair, easyJet, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are all saying that the charge is extremely damaging and needs to be scrapped. They say that holidaymakers in the UK are being unfairly penalised, and that the country has become far less attractive to overseas visitors.
The Treasury, which stands to make around £2 billion from APD this year, has defended the tax. A spokesperson said that UK travellers were not required to pay VAT for their flights, unlike people in a number of other European countries.
Conservation groups have also defended APD, saying that it is necessary for combating the damage done by aircraft engines. Although the Chancellor made the decision not to raise the price of APD this year, many expect that it will be hiked next year by around 10 per cent.
Willie Walsh, boss of International Airlines Group and former head of British Airways, said he had contacted George Osborne to ask him to rethink APD. The Treasury said that it had already examined a number of ways of simplifying the tax and that announcements would be made in the coming weeks.
Tags: airlines, APD, British Airways, Easyjet, Ryanair, Virgin Atlantic
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Wednesday, November 9th, 2011
Britain is facing an announcement that, for the fourth time in just five years, Air Passenger Duty will be increased. Many in the airline industry are concerned that the hike will hit those who have already booked their seats on future flights. If the announcement in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement is as predicted, the new level of APD will be introduced on 1 April 2011.
This increase will be added onto all flights after that date, meaning that those who have thought about their travel plans well ahead of time will still be required to pay the controversial tax.
Virgin Atlantic has said that it already has thousands of advanced bookings, and if the other airlines are taken into account this amounts to some 6.5 million seats already bought for after 1 April next year. APD will have to be tacked onto the price of every one of these tickets.
If the government manages to put its proposals through, Virgin said that the £2 billion raised because of the tax in 2010 would increase to £3 billion. It is expected that an average of 10 per cent will be added to the price of airline tickets after the Chancellor makes his announcement. However, some prices could go up by a third.
Hoteliers, tour companies and restaurateurs are predicting that APD will cause bookings next year to fall by around five per cent. The November 2010 APD increase saw some flights shoot up in price by well over 50 per cent.
Tags: air passenger duty, airlines, APD, flights, travel, Virgin Atlantic
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Wednesday, October 26th, 2011
US Congress has joined with other governments around the world in condemning European Union plans to impose a carbon emissions charge on all commercial airlines flying in and out of Europe. The House of Representatives has not wasted time in declaring its support for a bill which would make US carriers exempt from the EU’s carbon trading scheme.
As of the beginning of next year, airlines landing or taking off in Europe will have to pay for a permit. The funds from these permits are meant to off-set the greenhouse gasses being produced by the airlines.
Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, John Mica, said he had told representatives from the EU, while they were in Montreal, that the US would fight the legislation. He added that the rules contravened existing trade agreements and were contrary to international law.
Opposition to the charges has also been forthcoming from the Obama administration. The State Department has issued a statement in which it says the EU legislation has not been thoroughly addressed. Major US airlines, including US Airways, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and American Airlines, as well as global cargo haulers UPS and Fedex, claim that they will have to hand over around $3 billion by 2020 under the new rules.
When the rules come into play, the EU has said any airline not paying for permits would be fined heavily. Other nations, including India and China, have already said they disapprove of the legislation. China has gone as far as to threaten not to buy Airbus planes if the rules are not changed.
Tags: airlines, American Airlines, carbon emissions, Delta Air Lines, European Union, United Airlines, US Airways
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Tuesday, October 4th, 2011
Members of British Airways’ Executive Club are being offered the opportunity to attend an advanced safety course. For around £125, customers will be taught advanced techniques which they can use in the case of an emergency. The session lasts for around four hours and shows trainees how best to evacuate their seats and where life jackets are actually stored and how to put them on.
The course culminates in customers being shown how to get out of the cabin in the event of an emergency. British Airways’ course coordinator, Andy Clubb, explained that people felt more confident when travelling with an airline when they had better knowledge of how to react if the worst happened.
He added that as well as being able to look after themselves, the course meant that travellers would be better able to look after their fellow passengers in an emergency. He went on to say that other passengers would react better if they saw people behaving positively, rather than panicking, after a crash.
Apparently, most airline disasters are survivable and it is the confusion following a crash which results in casualties. The course has been instigated after a request from BP. The company sends its workers around the globe and it said that some of the airlines its employees used did not always have the best safety standards.
British airlines have an extremely good safety record. The last crash which had any fatalities was in 1989 when 47 people died on board a British Midland jet in Leicestershire.
Tags: airlines, BP, British Airways, British Midland, Executive Club
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Friday, September 16th, 2011
A long-running battle over holiday pay between British Airways and its pilots could be at an end after a European court rules in favour of the employees. The European Court of Justice ruled that pilots’ holiday pay should be in line with total pay packages, including allowances, and not just basic pay.
Calculations made by the British Airline Pilots’ Association showed that airlines faced having to pay a £50 million bill. The union said this would take into account six years worth of back-pay and could mean £20 million going to the pilots and some £30 million being paid to other airline staff.
The decision will now be reviewed by the UK Supreme Court, but union members are confident that it will agree with the European ruling. General secretary at Balpa, Jim McAuslan, said the victory was not just a cause for celebration for around 3,000 pilots at BA, but for all UK airline pilots.
A union spokesman said that BA could turn up at the Supreme Court with new information which could have an affect on the ruling in Europe, but added that most pilots remained confident that the decision would not be overturned.
Mr McAuslan said the fight had lasted six years, but that the decision was finally in favour of the workers. He added that Balpa would now be seeking similar pay deals for every airline in the country. A British Airways spokesperson said the flag-carrier would await the Supreme Court’s decision and that the ECJ had only been looking at the technical aspects of the issue.
Tags: Airline Pilots Association, airlines, BA, BALPA, British Airways, European Court of Justice, pilots, Supreme Court
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