Aviation

BRITISH AIRWAYS NDC CONTENT NOW LIVE ON TRAVELPORT

New Distribution Capability content from British Airways is now live on the Travelport+ platform, enabling the carrier to give simplified access to NDC content to agents, so that travel retailers can easily book and service NDC offers for their customers.

THAT’S A NEW ONE: Baghdad-bound bear escapes on plane

As if there aren’t enough reasons for planes to be delayed these days, a bear escaped from its crate in the cargo hold of an Iraqi aircraft as it was due to depart from Dubai airport, leaving passengers disgruntled over the delay and causing a stir on social media.

TIME TO ‘TAKE OWNERSHIP’: IATA slams feds for airport delays

Instead of pursuing “costly and poorly thought-out” air travel consumer rights regulations, federal governments in Canada and the US need to “take ownership” of the issues causing “unacceptable” delays at airports across the continent and resolve them, says the director general of IATA.

LOW-COST ARAJET COMING TO CANADA

Canadians will have a new connection to the Caribbean and South and Central America courtesy of low-cost Dominican Republic-based carrier Arajet, with the launch of Toronto service in October, followed by flights from Montreal in November.

CANADA JETLINES FLYING HIGH

Another month, another record number of hours flown, says Canada Jetlines, which has also announced the addition of its third plane. Following a 265% increase in hours flown in Q2 over the hours flown in Q1, the discount carrier says it set a new record of hours flown in July with 622 block hours flown in the month.

ACV ADDS MORE EPACKAGES DESTINATIONS

Air Canada Vacations has added a host of popular sun destinations to its ePackages shopping tool. Among them: Bermuda, Belize, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Fort-de-France, Martinique, Grand Cayman, Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, Saint Vincent, St. Kitts, Port of Spain, Kingston (Jamaica), and Mexico City and Monterrey (Mexico).

YEG EXPANDS EDUCATION TO PREVENT HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Edmonton International Airport (YEG) is the first Canadian airport to sign on to a new initiative led by Action Coalition on Human Trafficking (ACT) Alberta that provides translated materials to Canadian newcomers about their rights in Alberta.

WESTJET TO BOOST ABBOTSFORD, HAMILTON SERVICE

The WestJet Group has announced changes its winter schedule with an expansion of sun destinations from Abbotsford, BC, serving the Fraser Valley and a similar transition from Swoop to the mainline carrier in Hamilton, Ont., as WestJet integrates its low-cost subsidiary.

GATWICK TO GUSSIE UP NORTH TERMINAL

Passengers travelling through London Gatwick’s North Terminal will soon be able to enjoy a host of new features, as its biggest-ever transformation gets underway. Among those who will experience the £10-million refresh will be WestJet passengers flying from Canada to the British capital.

MARK YOUR (2028) CALENDAR: SAS opens reservations for electric-powered flights

Scandinavian Airlines says travellers can now book seats on the carrier’s first commercial flights in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark aboard electric-powered aircraft – due to start to five years from now. The Stockholm-based SAS airline group said there will be 30 seats available on each of the three flights and that the day and place of departure will be communicated to travellers by email once decided. Online reservations opened June 2.

FINGER LICKING GOOD? British Airways serves KFC right out of the bucket

Last Sunday a British Airways flight ran into a catering issue when it was discovered that the catering carts were ‘not properly chilled’ making the planned in-flight meal unusable on BA252 from Turks and Caicos to London. When the plane made a scheduled stop in Nassau, the crew went into the terminal to buy KFC chicken buckets and distributed pieces to passengers in economy and business class.

TAKING THE HEAT: Department of Transportation investigates lengthy Delta tarmac delay

A Delta Air Lines flight taxied around the Las Vegas airport for nearly 90 minutes in triple-digit temperatures, causing at least one person to need medical treatment. The Boeing 757 aircraft left its gate at the LAS on Monday afternoon but never left the ground. The plane taxied to the end of a runway and then turned around and returned to the terminal.

WESTJET UNVEILS WINTER SCHEDULE

The WestJet Group has announced its winter schedule, operating 230 direct routes from Canada to the southern US, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America this winter, while also extending key domestic and international routes from summer to year-round service.

HAIL DIVERTS FLIGHT: US bound jetliner battered by hailstorm over Milan

Hail battered a Delta Air Lines passenger jet bound for New York shortly after taking off from Milan on Monday, forcing it to divert safely to Rome’s main airport, Italian media and the airline said. The aircraft sustained damage to its nose and on the fuselage near the wings, according to Italian media.

RARE RUNWAYS: The world’s most beautiful landing strips

It’s estimated there are more than 41,000 airports in the world. And while it would be impossible to visit them all, British-based company Artemis Aerospace has channelled its eye-in-the-sky ethos to come up with a shortlist of six must-see runways that provide rare and beautiful vistas, guaranteeing a great start, or end, to a visitor’s journey.

TANGIBLY IMPROVED: YYZ commitment to enhanced service pays off

Toronto’s Pearson airport says a staffing boost and other initiatives have ‘tangibly improved’ service, and issues that sparked chaos at Canada’s largest airport last summer have been addressed. And no longer is the Toronto hub rated last globally in on-time performance.

AIR CANADA ENHANCES INFLIGHT SERVICE

Air Canada has added a host of new features for passengers, from check-in to inflight. The upgrades include expanded in-flight food and beverage offerings, more family-friendly options in the airline’s in-flight entertainment library, as well as additional advances to the Air Canada App.

THE SKY IS FALLING: Jet junk hits Chicago home

An emergency evacuation slide fell from an airliner and landed in the backyard of a home near Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, causing no injuries but damaging a roof, officials and witnesses said.

UNITED PILOTS PARLAY PROFITS INTO ‘HISTORIC’ PAY HIKE

United Airlines and the union representing its pilots say they reached agreement on a contract that will raise pilot pay by up to 40 percent over four years. The union valued the agreement at about $10 billion. It followed more than four years of tumultuous bargaining that included picketing and talk of a strike vote.

NOT THE BRIGHTEST IDEA

An American woman was fined after attempting to bribe a police officer at the Munich airport’s passport control over the weekend, according to German federal police. The 70-year-old was travelling from Athens to Washington with a stopover in Munich when she attempted to go through passport control without presenting a valid ID, police said.

CAN NAVY MAKE MEXICO’S AIRPORTS SHIP-SHAPE?

Mexico’s armed forces are taking control of the capital’s main airport, and the government plans to give the military control of nearly a dozen more across the country as the president takes aim at corruption and mismanagement.

HOW YOU CAN HELP SHAPE AIR PAX RIGHTS

The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) has launched consultations on proposed amendments to the Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR) and you can help shape the outcome.

WORLD CUP A WINNER FOR QATAR AIRWAYS

Qatar Airways reported $1.2 billion in profits over the past year, buoyed by its role in ferrying fans to the soccer World Cup. The long-haul airline said it transported 1.4 million passengers to the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. It also expanded its network to more than 160 destinations.

COURT CONFIRMS SCHIPHOL FLIGHT CUTS

Appeals court judges in Amsterdam have ruled that the Dutch government can order Schiphol Airport, one of Europe’s busiest aviation hubs, to reduce the number of flights from 500,000 per year to 460,000.

TRANSAT SELLS MEXICAN PROPERTY

Transat AT Inc. says it has sold a piece of land in Mexico to resort company Finest Resorts for US$38 million. The company says the sale is part of its plan to focus on its airline business as it tries to return to profitability after more than two years of losses.

LYNX TO OFFER MORE U.S. OPTIONS FROM EAST

Lynx Air is expanding service to its US network this fall, with the addition of routes from Toronto Pearson International (YYZ) to Los Angeles International (LAX) and Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX), as well as from Montreal Pierre Trudeau International (YUL) to Las Vegas Harry Reid International (LAS).

JETBLUE, AA DEAL DERAILED: Carrier sets sights on Spirit, again

JetBlue says it will end a partnership with American Airlines in the Northeast US after losing a court fight over the deal and will instead focus on salvaging its proposed purchase of Spirit Airlines.The US Justice Department sued to block both the JetBlue-American deal and JetBlue’s agreement to buy Spirit for $3.8 billion on grounds that they would hurt competition.

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