Southwest Softens Schedule
Southwest Airlines will reduce its schedule for the final four months of 2021 as a concession to employees who have been overwhelmed by understaffing all summer long.
Through October 6, the airline will take 27 daily flights out of the schedule, and then take 162 out from October 7 to November 5. It will make further adjustments after November 5 after it throws darts at a US map more accurately sees where demand is at that time.
Southwest was one of the first airlines to report a downturn in demand and bookings due to the B.1.617.2 Delta variant, and it’s possible these cuts are in response as much to the reduced demand as they are to employee complaints – but it works out very nicely for the airline to announce that as the reasoning.
Passengers booked on flights affected by the cuts will be given the option of rebooking, a refund, or still coming to the airport and getting tanked at an airport bar without actually traveling anywhere.
Avelo Means Hello and Goodbye: Airline Scraps Two Markets
Avelo Airlines is pulling two cities off its map – Monterey, CA (MRY) and St. George, UT (SGU) – before service ever began to either one.
Flights were originally supposed to commence September 30 to MRY and October 7 to SGU from the airline’s west coast hub in Burbank but are now being put on a hold for a year – airline speak for “never to be seen again.” Avelo announced the addition of both cities to its route network less than a month ago but is apparently being scared off due to lack of demand.
Avelo would have had a monopoly on both routes, as no other airline flies from Burbank to MRY or SGU, but perhaps no one operates the routes for a reason – something Avelo just learned for themselves. Customers who booked a flight to either city, and clearly there can’t be too many of them, are entitled to a full refund or an unusable Air Canada voucher.
Connect Airlines Connects Some Dots on Launch Plans
Connect Airlines still plans to launch this fall as a US-based, Canadian hub carrier providing shorthaul service from Toronto/City, the city’s conveniently-located downtown airport.
Connect connected with American to sign an interline agreement earlier this year and are close to securing a codeshare agreement as well. The codeshare will open Toronto/City to American’s network, allowing travelers to connect through AA’s hubs on their way to Connect flights into the close-in airport.
Despite being a US-based airline, Connect will use Toronto-based Canadian pilots paid on a Canadian pay scale, who are expected to exclusively drink Tim Horton’s when on the clock over Starbucks and Dunkin’. The pilots will bring Canadian flare to the skies from their overly polite cabin announcements to the singing of O’ Canada on approach.
Honolulu Opens New Concourse
The new Mauka concourse at Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport opens today, marking the first gate expansion at the airport in nearly 30 years.
The 230,000-square foot concourse can accommodate up to 11 aircraft, 3,000 leis, and 25 gallons of POG juice at any given time. The concourse is opening at a time when Hawai’i governor David Ige has urged people not to come to the islands due to the surge of the Delta variant in the state… as well as the anticipated surge the first time thousands of people flush toilets simultaneously in the new concourse.
In addition to the new gates, the new concourse comes with six new TSA lanes, adding six new opportunities to wait while Gail from Cleveland tries for the third time to get everything out of her pockets before going through the TSA nude-o-scope.
Hawaiian Airlines will use the new concourse primarily for long-haul flights. Since the concourse sits on top of the old commuter terminal, it is expected that the ghosts of Aloha and Mid Pacific Air will also become tenants.
Singapore Reopens Terminals 1 and 3
Singapore’s Changi Airport is reopening Terminals 1 and 3 on September 1 after both terminals had been shut earlier this year as a precaution due to the surging Delta variant.
The airport is taking new steps to keep passengers and staff as safe as possible. To begin with, any passenger whose journey began on Spirit, who flew on Spirit within 90 days of their arrival, or who even thought about flying Spirit will be denied entry into Singapore. Other safety measures include restricting the arrivals hall to arriving passengers, appropriate airport staff, and professional meet-and-greet service personnel.
The airport’s air-conditioning and ventilation systems have been improved, including hospital grade filters and new sanitization in the AC system. It set up a dedicated rest and dining area for airport staff to minimize their interaction with the public, but that begs the question – how long are these shifts that staff need a dedicated rest area?
- Alaska is operating confidential charter operations on behalf of the United States government related to the situation in Afghanistan. For more information on the confidential flights, click the link above to see Alaska’s press release.
- Copa is converting two B737-800s into freighter aircraft.
- Garuda Indonesia, Hong Kong charter specialist CapaJet, and all Indian-based airlines are currently prohibited from entering Papua New Guinea’s airspace.
- HK Express launches new service this week to Taipei and Kaohsiung (KHH).
- Porter is tightening things up for its return to the skies — literally. During its 18-month hiatus, the carrier added an extra row on its Q400 fleet, with 78 seats and 20 rows. Prior to the pandemic, it flew 74 seats in 19 rows.
- SWISS repaid $54.4 million of a $1.6 billion loan it received last year from the Swiss government. The Swiss government would not confirm or deny the payments.
- Virgin Australia will bring nine “new” B737-800 aircraft into its mainline fleet later this year.
What do you call a boomerang that doesn’t come back?
A stick.