Hawai’i Island Opts out of Pre-Travel Testing Program
1 With a week to go until the state of Hawai’i reopens to visitors — provided they can produce a negative test within 72 hours of travel — the Big Island is opting out of the pre-travel testing program. It has chosen instead to keep the mandatory 14-day quarantine in place for all visitors.
Big Island mayor Harry Kim made his decision due to his concern about the virus surging on the island with 43 new cases on Saturday, its highest daily count since the onset of the pandemic.
Kauai had been hoping the state would adopt a post-travel testing program to supplement the pre-travel testing that will be in place next week. The state rejected that proposal and instead gave each island the option to opt-out of the statewide policy. The Big Island is the only to take the state up on the offer — for now. Maui and Kauai are both considering their options, but it sounds like this could all fall apart before it even starts.
Southwest’s Flight Attendant Union to Southwest: Not So Fast
2 Following Southwest CEO Gary Kelly’s video plea to garner concessions from the airline’s unions to avoid furloughs or layoffs, Southwest’s flight attendant union told Kelly to slow his roll.
Approximately 32% of Southwest’s flight attendants have already agreed to voluntary leave or early buyouts, and the flight attendant union feels that that’s plenty. TWU Local 556 President Lyn Montgomery is hesitant to make changes to a contract that they worked decades to obtain, believing the airline has not done all that it can on its own.
President Trump announced that he would not be negotiating further on any more virus relief bills until after the election which would likely have left the airline out of luck on a second government-funded lifeline… but then the president backtracked completely. So… who knows what might happen?
Meanwhile, Southwest’s pilots union has agreed to meet with the airline to discuss potential cost savings. The pilots’ willingness to come to the table will likely put more pressure on the flight attendants to do the same. One option Southwest is considering is to require pilots to purchase EarlyBird boarding to begin their pre-flight checks, otherwise they’ll be required to check-in 24 hours prior and board based on their check-in number.
Delta to Restructure Management Staff
3 Delta Air Lines is planning to make changes in its management ranks in an effort to be more streamlined to prepare for a post-pandemic world.
With more than 17,000 Delta employees taking buyouts or early retirement offers during the summer, the new slimmer Delta is evaluating whether it has the right people in the right places.
The airline says this round of moves is not about eliminating jobs but rather moving people to different departments in the name of efficiency. It will include replacing some key senior roles that are currently vacant due to early retirements and buyouts. The airline previously declared it would be moving its management team into new roles after the retirement of then-COO Gil West in September.
Here Comes the Boom
4 Boom Supersonic unveiled the final design of its XB-1 demonstrator aircraft today as it inches closer to bringing supersonic commercial aviation to the skies.
The prototype unveiled today is fully functional and will allow Boom to test its capabilities and systems as it works to make its Overture supersonic jet a reality.
The XB-1 prototype is a scaled-down version of what the Overture aircraft will eventually be, with the XB-1 lacking a passenger cabin (don’t get any cute ideas, Spirit), but it does have a cockpit for the pilots to test fly the aircraft. The original plan of having the pilots fly on temporary seating located on the wing was considered unsafe, so Boom went ahead and included the cockpit.
Boom plans to test the XB-1 at Mojave Air and Space Port in the Mojave Desert in the coming weeks. Ground testing will begin now, with testing of the aircraft in the air to begin sometime in 2021.
Party Like It’s 1990: Liberia to Bring Back its National Airline
5 Liberia’s flag carrier, Air Liberia, last operated in 1990, leaving the West African nation of 5 million without a national airline. But those days are over for the people of Liberia, with Lone Star Air ready to fill a void 30 years in the making… with “ready” being a very loose term.
The Liberian government signed an agreement with Ghana’s Goldstar Air to provide management services for the new national airline. Lone Star Air will operate to 11 destinations in West Africa from Monrovia (ROB) the nation’s capital.
Of course, it has to actually begin operating first, something that its partner Goldstar has also yet to achieve. Oh sure, it has a picture of its first airplane, but that is very clearly just photoshopped.
We decided we could improve it with a tribute to the only Lone Starr that counts.
If you’d like to keep abreast of the airline’s progress (or lack thereof), follow them on Twitter @LoneStarAir2. Make sure you have the “2” in there or you’ll be following a Texas-based HVAC company.
Airline Potpourri
- AirAsia X announced a restructuring plan today designed to get its airplanes in the air and the airline operating again.
- British Airways will send its two final 747s off to retirement tomorrow with simultaneous takeoffs from London/Heathrow. Both aircraft, like many Brits, will head to Wales to enjoy their retirement.
- Hawaiian’s first 787 Dreamliner, scheduled to be delivered in April, will be the final Dreamliner assembled in Everett, Wa.
- Jetstar is going to resume flying between Gold Coast (OOL) and Hobart (HBA) for the first time since 2013 with 3x-weekly service beginning December 1.
- KLM is reducing its weekly flights from Amsterdam to Vancouver from 4x-weekly to 3x-weekly for the six weeks between October 25 and December 11.
- Qatar cares not about actually making money, so it will be begin flying to its ninth U.S. gateway — San Francisco — with 4x-weekly service from Doha beginning December 15.
- United is adding two new routes this winter, serving Johnstown, PA (JST) once-daily from Chicago/O’Hare and Victoria, TX (VCT) twice-daily from Houston/Bush.
Andrew’s Moment of Levity
I borrowed a new book from the library last night about gravity and its affect on space travel. I can’t put it down.