Lufthansa launches Munich flight

Lufthansa has expanded its long-haul services from Toronto to include a second German destination, Munich. The new flight will connect travellers from Toronto to the global Munich hub throughout the summer travel season until Oct. 24. It’s the first time Lufthansa has flown from Toronto to Munich. Lufthansa already operates daily non-stop flights between Frankfurt and Toronto.

The new Munich flight, LH 495, is flown on an Airbus A330-300 aircraft and will feature a new First and Business Class in a configuration of First, Business and Economy Class seats.

Said Hans DeHaan, director, Lufthansa Group Canada: “This reflects Lufthansa’s commitment to the Canadian market and the high level of demand we are seeing here. The new route is a great addition to our services by adding more than 1,500 additional seats to Germany and beyond every week.”

Munich, the capital of Bavaria, is the third largest city in Germany and home of the world renowned Oktoberfest celebration. Its rich German history and culture is a beacon for tourists. The city houses some of the most prominent museums and galleries, including the Deutsches Museum, said to be the world’s largest museum of science and technology.

The Toronto-Munich service is the second new route introduced to Canada this year. On May 16, the airline launched its Montreal-Frankfurt service.

The two Canadian routes are the only new services Lufthansa will launch in North American this year.

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Hawaiian's Dunkerley says airline committed to Airbus A350-800 acquisitions

Hawaiian Airlines President CEO Mark Dunkerley said the airline is committed to acquiring six Airbus A350-800s, saying the long-range aircraft are ideal for flights between Honolulu and Asian cities such as Bangkok, Thailand, and Singapore.

Bloomberg reports Dunkerley, in an interview watt the annual general meeting of the International Air Travel Association in Doha, Qatar, said the A350, which has fallen out of favor in recent years with other airlines that prefer larger models, said the A350 serves Hawaiian well because it is long trance, it is larger than the airline's A330-200 aircraft and it is fuel efficient.

Bloomberg reports Dunkerley said he still expects to start taking deliver of the A350 aircraft, which seat 276 passengers in two classes and have a range of 8,250 nautical miles, in 2017.

Bloomberg reports Airbus has only 34 contracts left for the A350-800, compared to 600 for the larger A350-900, with Hawaiian and three other customers, Russian airline Aeroflot, Awas Aviation Capital Ltd. and Asiana Airlines, based in South Korea.

Hawaiian, a subsidiary of Hawaiian Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: HA), also plans to acquire 16 new Airbus A321neo long-range aircraft between 2017 and 2020 and has rights to purchase an additional nine aircraft.

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airberlin plans flights from Stuttgart to Abu Dhabi

airberlin, Germany’s second largest airline, will introduce a daily flight between Stuttgart and Abu Dhabi on 1st December 2014, opening up 41 onward travel destinations for flight guests. The new Abu Dhabi route, still subject to government and regulatory approvals, is airberlin’s first long-haul destination from Stuttgart. The service will be operated by an Airbus A320 aircraft configured with 12 seats in Business Class and 132 in Economy Class.   

Altogether, airberlin will offer 63 flights per week this coming winter season from Germany to Abu Dhabi jointly with Etihad Airways, flying twice daily from Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich, as well as daily from Stuttgart.   

In addition to being able to connect onwards to an extensive network of cities, the new non-stop services will provide first-time access from Stuttgart to Abu Dhabi, capital of the UAE, and one of the fastest growing travel destinations in the world. Flight guests will also have good connecting options through Etihad Airways’ equity and codeshare partner network to destinations across the Gulf region, Asia, Australia and the Indian subcontinent. 

"The new airberlin flights from Stuttgart to Abu Dhabi mark an important milestone in our involvement with Stuttgart Airport. The Stuttgart area is one of the most economically important regions in Germany, and we see great potential for our planned services to Abu Dhabi," said Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, Chief Executive Officer of airberlin.   

"We welcome this connection from Stuttgart to Abu Dhabi. This is important for our export-orientated economy. Baden-Wuerttemberg policy has supported this project for a long time, as it means a further connection for the region to strong markets and is attractive in terms of tourism in both directions. Travellers from Stuttgart will be able to reach many destinations more quickly via Abu Dhabi, and travellers from the Gulf region will have a convenient connection enabling them to get to know the attractions of the south west of Germany, make business contacts with leaders in world markets and technology, or take advantage of world-class medical care," said Prof. Georg Fundel, CEO of Stuttgart Airport GmbH.   

Flights are on sale from today and topbonus miles can be collected and redeemed on the new services. The same applies to the corporate business points program, which is used by companies across Germany.   

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Iberia increases flights to Chicago and Panama City

Iberia is upping its services to Chicago and Panama City from June 1. The Oneworld airline will from Sunday offer ten weekly services on its Madrid to Chicago route, an increase of three. Its Madrid to Panama City route will run six times weekly, as opposed to the current schedule of five times per week.

Iberia is in the process of gradually introducing its new brand image and cabins in its long-haul fleet (see news, November 2013).

The new classes are already available on 17 of its 25 wide-bodied aircraft. Last month, Iberia and BA's joint venture with American Airlines was extended to include AA's merger partner US Airways (see news, April 3).

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Emirates increases services to India

Emirates airline will expand its A380 network to 28 destinations, when it launches a daily A380 service to Mumbai International Airport on July 21.

EK 500 and EK 501 between Dubai and Mumbai will be up-scaled to a three-class A380 aircraft, representing with a capacity increase of 2,127 seats per week in each direction. This offers passengers flying to India from key destinations in North America and Europe the chance to experience Emirates’ hugely popular flagship aircraft on this route.

In addition, Emirates will deploy larger Boeing 777 aircraft to Delhi and Hyderabad to serve growing demand. Delhi will have 980 additional one-way weekly seats while Hyderabad will increase its capacity to add 672 one-way weekly seats.

A combined total of 3,779 one-way weekly seats will be deployed on Mumbai, Delhi, and Hyderabad through these aircraft upgrades. This follows the recent bilateral discussions between the governments of Dubai and India, which provided a phased increase of 11,000 seats for Dubai carriers.

“Air transport is an important economic driver. It facilitates trade and tourism, and has a multiplier effect through direct and indirect job creation. Emirates has been serving India since our founding year in 1985, and it is our largest market today which we serve with 185 flights each week. We look forward to working with the new Government in India to grow India’s economy through enhanced aviation connectivity and to realize India’s ambition to grow its international aviation market to 85 million passengers by 2020,” said Ahmed Khoory, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations- West Asia & Indian Ocean.

India's National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) recently modelled the impact of Emirates up-gauging daily services to Mumbai from Boeing 777s to an Airbus A380. The annual incremental economic benefit from up-gauging one service is $8.3 million in additional GDP per return flight and the creation and support of over 1,000 jobs.

The Emirates A380 operating on the Mumbai route will feature 14 private First Class suites, 76 Business Class lie-flat seats and a spacious cabin for 399 Economy Class passengers.

On board, passengers can experience a range of unique facilities in all cabins - from the Shower Spas in First Class, to the A380 Onboard Lounge where passengers in the premium cabins can relax in a social environment during the flight; as well as 11.4” touch screen LED personal TVs.

Passengers across all cabins can enjoy up to 1,800 channels of the latest movies, TV shows and music from around the world alongside a range of games on the award-winning ice inflight entertainment system. The latest technology allows passengers to stay connected throughout the flight with high-speed Wi-Fi access and mobile phone and data services.

“Many customers specifically book their flights to our destinations knowing that they will have the chance to fly on the A380. Now that Mumbai is being added to our global network of A380 destinations, I’m sure this will come as welcome news to many of our passengers across Europe and North America who can now fly all the way from their origin point of departure to Mumbai exclusively on the A380,” said Ahmed Khoory.

Emirates currently has 48 A380s in service, more than any other airline globally. Emirates received 12 of the giant double decker aircraft over the last year. More than 25 million passengers have travelled on the Emirates A380 since it was first launched in 2008.

Emirates operates 185 flights per week to 10 gateways in India. This offers travelers on Emirates global network, which includes 85 cities in the Americas, Europe, Africa and Middle East, a range of convenient flight options to one of Asia’s most exciting leisure and business destinations.

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Budget carrier AirAsia plans flights in India soon

Asia’s leading budget carrier, AirAsia, is hoping to begin operations in India in two to three months, the airline’s CEO said today.

The carrier this month won court approval to operate in India after delays because of domestic airlines’ opposition. AirAsia India will begin flying with two planes, Tony Fernandes, AirAsia group chief executive officer, told reporters.

Despite a market of 1.2 billion people, airlines in India are unprofitable due to high costs and cut-throat competition. But Fernandes says AirAsia has studied the market for a long time and “we feel moderately optimistic.”

He spoke in Manila where he attended the World Economic Forum on East Asia.

He said with a new government in place, a wave of optimism and a strengthening rupee and stock market, “it’s a good time to be in India.” Prime Minister-elect Narendra Modi is to be inaugurated on Monday.

“There’s a billion people there, how strange if we can’t make it work,” Fernandes said. But despite the optimism, he said the carrier will start with only two planes and “we’re just going to dip our toes, we won’t sink our whole body there.”

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Egypt Air launches flights to Hurghada

In a step to revive the tourism industry, Egypt Air launched for the first time a new direct route to Hurghada from Jeddah, according to Gamal El Gazar, general manager of Egypt Air, Saudi Arabia, as reported by Saudi Gazette.

“The brand new destination, Hurghada, will operate a twice weekly service from King Abdulaziz Airport,” he said.

Strong passenger demand has prompted the airline to launch Hurghada route, “The additional new destination of Hurghada, is further proof of increasing consumer and business demands on these popular Egypt destinations,” said El Gazar.

The airline will be flying every Tuesday and Saturday from Jeddah.

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United Airlines to Launch Nonstop Service Between San Francisco and Tokyo's Haneda Airport

United Airlines, the U.S. carrier with the most extensive global reach, today announced it will add Tokyo's Haneda Airport to its route network, with daily nonstop service from San Francisco effective Oct. 26, 2014, subject to government approval.

Haneda Airport will be the tenth trans-Pacific destination that United serves nonstop from San Francisco, and the third newAsia-Pacific airport – also including Taipei and Chengdu – for United this year.

"We are excited about adding Haneda Airport to our global route network," said Jim Compton, United's vice chairman and chief revenue officer. "By providing nonstop service from our San Francisco hub to both Tokyo airports, we will maximize choice and convenience for customers traveling from across the Americas to Tokyo, and to points beyond on our joint-venture partner ANA."

Flight 875 will depart San Francisco International Airport daily at 6:35 p.m., arriving at Haneda Airport at 10:05 p.m. the following day (all times local). On the return, flight 876 will depart Haneda daily at 12:05 a.m., arriving in San Francisco at 5:15 p.m. the previous day, after crossing the International Date Line. Flying times will be approximately 11 hours, 30 minutes westbound and 9 hours, 10 minutes eastbound.

Effective Nov. 2, 2014, San Francisco arrival and departure times will be one hour earlier due to the end of daylight saving time. 

The flight schedules enable customers to use convenient public transportation between Haneda Airport and central Tokyo andYokohama.

Connecting Flights

United customers traveling on the new Haneda flights will be able to make one-stop connections at the San Francisco hub to and from 28 cities throughout North America and beyond. In addition, the new service will provide connections at Haneda on the extensive network of United's joint-venture partner ANA to other international destinations, including Bangkok andSingapore.

With the introduction of the San Francisco – Tokyo/Haneda service, United will operate once-daily service between San Francisco and Tokyo's Narita International Airport, rather than the twice-daily service currently offered. The airline also operates daily service to Tokyo/Narita from its hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New York and Washington.

United in San Francisco

United is the largest carrier at San Francisco International Airport, offering nearly 300 daily flights to more than 90 destinations in the U.S. and around the world, more service than any other airline from the Bay Area. From its San Francisco hub, United also offers more nonstop trans-Pacific service to and from the United States than any other carrier hub. United currently operates nearly 30 daily nonstop flights from San Francisco to 21 international destinations and will add nonstop service fromSan Francisco to Chengdu, China, in June, pending government approval.

Onboard Products and Services

The Haneda service will be operated with Boeing 777 aircraft with 269 seats – eight in United Global First, 40 in United BusinessFirst and 221 in United Economy, including 104 United Economy Plus extra-legroom seats. Both Global First and BusinessFirst feature flat-bed seats, along with a wide range of premium-cabin services and amenities.  All seats on the 777 feature a personal on-demand entertainment system. 

About United

United Airlines and United Express operate an average of more than 5,200 flights a day to 369 airports across six continents. In 2013, United and United Express carried more passenger traffic than any other airline in the world and operated nearly two million flights carrying 139 million customers. United operates nearly 700 mainline aircraft and, in 2014, will take delivery of 35 new Boeing aircraft, including the B787-9 as the North American launch customer, and will welcome 27 new E175 aircraft to United Express. The airline is a founding member of Star Alliance, which provides service to 195 countries via 26 member airlines. More than 85,000 United employees reside in every U.S. state and in countries around the world. For more information, visit united.com, follow @United on Twitter or connect on Facebook. The common stock of United's parent, United Continental Holdings, Inc., is traded on the NYSE under the symbol UAL.

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Norwegian signs agreements to lease three new 787-9 Dreamliners

Norwegian has signed agreements to lease three new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners for its long-haul operation. Two of the aircraft will be delivered in 2016 and one in 2017. This is the brand new, more environmentally friendly and even larger Dreamliner model, which is scheduled to enter commercial service this year.

Norwegian continues to expand its international operation by signing agreements to lease three Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft. Two of the aircraft are scheduled to enter service in 2016, while the third is scheduled to enter service in 2017. Today, Norwegian has five 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft in its fleet and another three on order. In addition, the company has six 787-9 Dreamliners on order. With the new order announced today, Norwegian will have 17 aircraft in its long-haul fleet in 2018.

Facts about Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner:

• Accommodates up to 20 % more passengers than the 787-8 Dreamliner
• 6 meters (20 feet) longer than the 787-8
• Significantly increased cargo capacity compared to the 787-8
• 8% lower fuel consumption per seat than today’s model, which also means lower emissions
• Can fly longer than the 787-8 (depending on cabin configuration).

The airlines company reported its first quarter results for 2014. The pre-tax profit (EBT) was -813 MNOK. Despite a seasonally weak quarter, the passenger growth is strong and the load factor high. The quarterly results are affected by the additional costs associated with wet-leasing replacement aircraft on long-haul routes, as well as a weaker Norwegian currency (NOK).  

The total revenue in the first quarter was 3.55 BNOK, up 22 percent from the same quarter previous year. The company carried 4.9 million passengers, a growth of 24 percent. The company’s traffic growth (RPK) was up as much as 50 percent, which means that Norwegian’s passengers fly considerably longer distances than they did a year ago.

The first quarter results are also characterized by a solid production growth (ASK) with an increase of 48 percent. The load factor was 77 percent, up one percentage point compared to the same quarter last year. Adjusted for one-off costs and a weak Norwegian currency (NOK), the unit cost (CASK) was reduced by nine percent.

Additional costs related to the long-haul operation amounted to 78 MNOK in the first quarter. This includes wet-lease costs, additional fuel, as well as costs for accommodation, food and drink for delayed passengers who have been affected by the technical and operational problems associated with the long-haul operation.

During the first quarter, Norwegian has taken delivery of five new Boeing 737-800s and one Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. This morning, Norwegian announced an order of an additional three 787-9 Dreamliners. Norwegian currently has five Dreamliners in its fleet as well as 12 on order. See separate press release.

“Traditionally, the first quarter is seasonally weak and in addition the figures have been significantly affected by a weak Norwegian currency (NOK) against the dollar and the euro. Also, the wet-lease of aircraft has negatively impacted the quarterly result. On the positive side, the passenger growth is strong and the load factor continues to rise, even with the company’s strong production growth. The strong competition in Norway reflects the prices, but Norwegian is becoming increasingly equipped to meet this competition,” said CEO Bjorn Kjos. - See more at: http://www.traveldailynews.com/news/article/60370#sthash.NuQy61c7.dpuf

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BA launches two Greek flights this weekend

The two services from Heathrow will both operate twice a week, with the Mykonos flight starting on Saturday (May 3) and Santorini on Sunday (May 4).

BA will be using an Airbus A320 aircraft on both routes, offering a total of 162 seats in economy and Club Europe.

Richard Tams, BA’s head of marketing, said: “Mykonos and Santorini are great short-haul holiday destinations and we think they’ll prove really popular with customers and sun-seekers.”

Mykonos flights will operate on Tuesdays and Saturday, while the service to Santorini flies on Wednesday and Sunday.

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Scandinavian Airlines announce new Edinburgh/Norway flights

Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) is to launch two new service from Edinburgh to Norway this summer. A new service connecting Edinburgh with Norwegian Capital, Oslo has now launched, with a further direct flight service between Edinburgh and Stavanger due to start on April 24. Both routes will be twice weekly services, operating on Thursdays and Sundays until October 5. Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive at Edinburgh Airport, said “We’re delighted to welcome the first of two routes to Norway launching this month.

“Norway is an important tourism and business link for Scotland and we’re pleased to be working with SAS in developing our good relationship.

“These services to Oslo and Stavanger will give Scots the chance to visit this beautiful country and allow Norwegian passengers the opportunity to experience all that Edinburgh and Scotland have to offer in 2014”.

Hans Dyhrfort, SAS’ regional general manager for Western Europe, added: “We are pleased to offer new summer services direct to both Oslo and Stavanger and provide direct flights to Norway, the fjords and Scandinavia.

“We expect the new routes to appeal to both leisure and business travellers, with the flights well timed for long weekend breaks to Oslo, famed for its vibrant bar and café culture, world class museums and lively nightlife, situated between Norway’s stunning fjords and forest.

“For the business traveller, we offer the convenience of direct flights to Oslo and Stavanger, as well as the option to connect with onward flights to many other Scandinavian destinations.”

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