Author: Andrew Bashuk

Delta Announces Q4 and 2021 Year-End Financials

Delta Air Lines was, as always, first out of the gate amongst U.S. airlines announcing its earnings report for the year-end 2021. The carrier revealed it came up short in hitting most of its targets for the year’s final three months. After expecting to eek out a small profit in Q4, Delta lost money for the quarter despite significant cost savings in December when it went several days without operating much of its schedule.

Delta took a loss of $395 million during Q4 on $9.5 billion in revenue. The good news is that the gross revenue figure is Delta’s largest since an $11.44 billion Q4 in 2019, and the total beat analysts’ expectations which predicted $9.2 billion in revenue.

Delta did show a profit for the full year, finishing up $280 million in the black. That year-end profit does include $4.5 billion in government aid and comes after the airline posted a record loss of $12.4 billion in 2020. It ended 2021 with $14.2 billion in liquidity including cash, cash equivalents, Braves World Series gear, and a closet full of Biscoffs.

China Suspends More U.S. Flights

China has now suspended at least 70 flights from the United States since January 1 as it futilely attempts to control the transmission of COVID-19 into its borders.

Six more flights were canceled yesterday because of positive tests from passengers who had already landed in the country. United’s flights to Shanghai are being canceled by the Chinese government as are four flights on China Southern from Los Angeles to Guangzhou beginning the week of January 31.

Prior to the pandemic, about 100 passenger flights per week flew between the two countries, but that number has dropped to as low as 20 in recent weeks and even less with the current suspensions. In addition to cutting flights, China is also imposing a 40% limitation on capacity for flights from the U.S., with the U.S. DOT retaliating with a similar restriction on flights from China. No decision has been made yet if the federal government will also impose a similar 40% capacity restriction on Chinese restaurants — but nothing is being ruled out at this point.

American Flight Attendants Side Hustle Under Scrutiny

American Airlines flight attendants are being accused of selling desirable trips to more junior flight attendants for as much as $200 per trip.

Trips are assigned based on seniority, and the carrier’s flight attendant union, The Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), takes the view that selling trips to other FAs circumvents the seniority system. Were the seniority system to bid on trips and days off not be in place, it’s possible the whole system could come crumbling down.

AA accused its FAs of first brokering trips in 2018, and the carrier said it would put new technology in place that would monitor for any suspicious activity. The APFA resisted the airline monitoring for such behavior back then but is now in favor of cleaning up the process. A similar scheme was uncovered a couple years back at United, but it wasn’t international trips that were being sold – it was the ability to connect somewhere other than Newark.

• Air Mauritius resumed flying to Johannesburg this week. It will operate the route 5x-weekly.
• Delta also announced in its year-end financial report today that it would spend about $180 million on an employee profit sharing program, with each of its 75,000 employees receiving approximately $1,250. Employees also have the option of taking the equivalent amount in SkyMiles, which to get to $1,250 in value takes about 4 million.
• Eastar Jet‘s founder Lee Sang-jik was sentenced to six years in prison after being convicted of embezzling nearly $5 million, causing the airline to lose about $40 million by shadily selling undervalued stock to his kids, and he cost the airline about $5 million more by messing around with the value of bonds held by the carrier and its subsidiaries. Other than that, he was a model employee.
• Finnair is delaying the launch of its new business and premium economy classes until staffing issues related to omicron die down.
• FitsAir found room to fit a Q400 into its fleet to begin international passenger ops from its Colombo (CMB) base later this quarter.
• Hawaiian is suspending its service to Brisbane for the foreseeable future. This will leave Sydney as the carrier’s lone destination in Australia for the time being.
• LATAM expects to operate about 72% ASM this month as compared to January 2019.
• Qantas will cut its capacity by about 33% through the end of March.
• Singapore raised $807 million from a bond issue this week. The carrier made the decision to raise the cash after announcing a third daily flight to New York earlier this week and realizing how expensive hotels in the city will be for crew. The $800 million should cover them for the first month, at least.
• USA Jet Airlines took delivery of the world’s first MD-88 freighter.
• Wizz Air issued a €500 million bond.

I used to be addicted to the hokey pokey, but after months of intense therapy and inner-reflection, I finally turned myself around.

Cockpit Enthusiast Booted off AA Flight

A traveler on American Airlines flight 488 from San Pedro Sula, Honduras (SAP) to Miami was apprehended by police in San Pedro Sula Tuesday for daring to explore his curiosity about the inner-workings of the cockpit of a B737-800 aircraft.

The passenger ran down the jetbridge into the aircraft, beelining directly for the cockpit, which was exposed with its door open as it usually is during the boarding process. Once in the cockpit, the passenger damaged some of the controls and then made the rational decision to try and jump out the window.

The strange actions were especially frustrating for American and its passengers, as the flight was delayed eight hours while AA found a replacement plane and crew (because the crew would time out) in Miami and sent it to Honduras, delaying one of American’s rare flights that was actually planning to operate on-time.

The replacement aircraft arrived at SAP at 10 p.m. local time and was boarded without any cockpit incursions this time and took off at 10:45 p.m., arriving back in Miami at 1:59 a.m., perfect timing for passengers and crew to hit the clubs in Miami Beach.

United Flight Attendants Call for Service Reductions

United Airlines flight attendant union asked its airline to consider reducing on-board service levels to limit the number of interactions between flight attendants and passengers to reduce opportunities for the transmission of COVID-19.

The union noted that Alaska recently announced it would only do one beverage service per flight in the main cabin, regardless of flight length, and is also reducing the amount of buy-on-board stock by about one-third. United says it is reviewing the request and will get to it after it figures out how to make Newark something better than the 8^th circle of Hell for connecting passengers… which means never.

The request comes just days after UA announced it plans a trial next month of returning several pre-pandemic service touches in Polaris including expanded desserts and the return of warm nuts (the horror of room temperature nuts). The union is also asking UA to cool its nuts for a couple weeks longer and delay the return of these service elements.

Singapore Starts Spreadin’ the News

Singapore Airlines is growing its presence in the Big Apple (and northern New Jersey) as the carrier expands to three daily flights into New York this March for the first time in its history.

The carrier will operate two daily nonstops from Singapore to New York, one to New York/JFK and another to Newark, both operating with an A350-900 ULR aircraft. The third flight will be its fifth freedom flight from Singapore via Frankfurt, operated by an A380.

The daily flight from SIN to JFK blocks in at 9,537 miles and takes the crown as the longest flight in the world. It’s scheduled to take 18:40 to New York and 18:50 to Singapore. The nonstop to Newark comes in at 9,523 miles, making it the second-longest flight in the world but far more painful since it involves arriving at Newark. The A350 operating both routes for SQ has only 161 seats on-board – 67 in business and 94 in premium economy.

By comparison, the A380 operating the SIN-FRA-JFK route comes with a sardine-friendly 475 seats, including six Singapore Suites up front, 82 business class seats, 44 in premium economy and a hefty 343 in the back for the hoi polloi.

• Aeromexico has 86% of its creditors voting in favor of its reorganization plan, according to Aeromexico.
• Air France-KLM needs cash. Get in line, pal.
• Amelia International Airlines, the pride of Slovenia, is beginning cargo ops after acquiring its first dedicated freighter, an ATR-72F.
• Avianca will begin two new routes to the United States in March — daily service from Cartagena (CTG) to New York/JFK beginning March 27 and 3x-weekly from Medellin (MDE) to Orlando beginning March 29.
• Delta is extending the validity of all eCredits on the carrier through December 31, 2023 for travel through 2024.
• Empire Airlines is growing its empire as it acquired fellow FedEx express carrier West Air.
• Georgian Airways, fresh off celebrating a national championship in American football, was granted bankruptcy protection by a Georgian court.
• Hans Airways, the official airline of Los Angeles’s Nakatomi Plaza, signed an LOI to purchase its first A320-200.
• Norse Atlantic Airways named its second B787 Dreamliner “Rago.” It considered naming the plane “Bjørn,” but decided not to since that’s the name of nearly everyone who works at the airline, and adding a plane with the name would just make things complicated.
• Ryanair‘s latest angry rant is to blame Lufthansa for faking global warming and climate fears to maintain slots at German airports. The carrier also blames Lufthansa for outing Santa Claus and not being real and for throwing banana peels on the runway at multiple airports just as Ryanair planes are ready for taxi and takeoff.
• SpiceJet‘s appeal to dismiss a liquidation order owed to Credit Suisse was dismissed by an Indian court, but the carrier was able to buy itself some more thyme as the court extended a deadline to January 28 for an appeal to India’s Supreme Court.
• South African Express‘s liquidation process has been anything but an express, as it was delayed by a seventh time in South African bankruptcy court — this time until July 4, 2022.
• Virgin Atlantic opened for applications to fill up to 400 new cabin crew positions after receiving permission from Delta.

I knew a guy who collected candy canes, he always kept them all in mint condition.

American Releases Q4 Investor Update

American Airlines’s investor update from the final quarter of 2021 is out, and the airline announced it expects revenue for Q4 to be down 17% from Q4 2019 – but that’s actually good news, as it expected it to be down 20% previously.

AA paid about $2.36 per gallon for jet fuel – a figure that would have been significantly more, but it saved up all its grocery points for the year to use during Q4, earning a significant savings at the pump. American says it paid a 22% tax rate for the quarter, a figure which would have been much higher had not been able to write off the refunds it sent for its multiple operational meltdowns during the year’s final months.

The airline ended the quarter with about $15.8 billion available in total liquidity. At one point, it was closer to $16 billion, but it’s planning a lavish going-away party for outgoing CEO Doug Parker, and supply chain shortages are causing the price of Texas-sized shrimp cocktail to skyrocket.

BA Takes a Swing at ITA

It’s not enough that Lufthansa has made ITA the apple of its eye, as now British Airways and its parent IAG are interested in lighting money on fire making a bid for the reborn Italian carrier.

Reports over the weekend said that Lufthansa Group was interested in a stake as large as 40%, and it’s considered the leading contender to acquire the airline. But reports in Italy say ITA CEO Alfredo “Sauce Me” Altavilla is in discussions with IAG, which is still reeling after its purchase of Air Europa fell apart late last year.

With the Air Europa purchase in the crapper, IAG has the billion dollars it planned to spend burning a hole in its pocket. Just like Lufthansa’s interest in ITA might be about keeping it away from the competition as much as actually wanting the airline and its assets, BA and IAG could be thinking the same thing.

Garuda Indonesia in a Financial Mess

SkyTeam carrier Garuda Indonesia finds itself owing about $4 billion more than it thought it did to creditors while it tries to extend its debt security another ten years before expiring next year.

Creditors of the beleaguered carrier reported $13.85 billion in claims, significantly higher than the $9.8 billion Garuda publicly admitted to owing earlier this month. A billion here, a billion there, it eventually adds up to more than the airline can afford to pay back. To raise capital, it’s looking to extend its $500 million sukuk – a fancy word for Islamic debt securities – from 2023 to 2033.

If successful, Garuda then plans to offer the holders of the sukuk about $0.19 cents on the dollar to convert one-third of the deal to equity in the airline. Unfortunately, that equity isn’t worth very much, and neither is the sukuk, after the carrier defaulted on payments in June 2020 – when it was originally due – and then extended its life to 2023. In Garuda’s defense, it’s possible if it can keep kicking the can down the road on the payments that an asteroid could hit earth and save it from having to ever repay.

• Air Greenland is temporarily suspending ticket sales.
• AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes believes international travel will bounce back. He also believes ancillary fees are customer-friendly, jet fuel is too expensive, taxes are too high, soup is rarely hot enough, banks should be open longer hours, and cab lines should move more quickly at major international airports.
• Alaska awards are now available for redemption on Royal Air Maroc.
• American and Aer Lingus launch their new codeshare agreement this week.
• Asian Express — the Tajik LCC, not the Chinese food place at your local mall’s food court — plans to restart flying with a wet-leased A320. It will begin selling tickets as soon as it finds enough towels to dry the plane.
• Azorra purchased 22 A220 family aircraft.
• Cathay Pacific will relaunch its Marco Polo loyalty program to the cleverly-named “Cathay” this July.
• EGO Airways was knocked down a peg or two this week when the Italian government suspended its permit to operate in the country.
• Jazz Air retired its final Dash 8-300 on Sunday.
• Lion Air plans to roar back into B737 MAX ops later this year.
• Turkish Air Cargo successfully flew 63 horses from Chicago to Istanbul last week, but the flight was not a comfortable one as all 63 passengers arrived in Istanbul with long faces.
• United is offering a $15,000 signing bonus for new ramp agents in Denver. To claim the cash, employees must be employed by United for at least one year and not be vaporized by the ghosts living under the Denver airport.

Waiter: “I see your glass is empty, can I get you another?”

Me: “What the hell am I gonna do with two empty glasses?”

Southwest Halts Employee Contact Tracing

Southwest Airlines suspended its internal workplace contact tracing program for positive COVID-19 tests while it tries to weather the storm created by the increase in positive cases.

Southwest will now follow current CDC guidelines in which fully vaccinated people who have received their booster and always have their order ready when they get to the deli counter at the grocery store do not have to isolate following a close contract with someone who has the virus. People in that situation should get tested after five days as a precaution, wear a mask for ten days, and decline the sample slice from the deli counter employee – it’s ham, you know what it tastes like.

The carrier is also reducing its required isolation period for confirmed positive tests from ten to five days, provided the employee is symptom-free for 24 hours and doesn’t still try to pay at the grocery store with a written check.

Southwest canceled nearly 4,000 flights between December 31 and January 7, representing almost 15% of its schedule, most of which related to staff shortages caused by positive COVID-19 cases. The carrier hopes that this new, temporary guidance will help it right the ship both in the air and at the supermarket.

Qatar Wants More Than $600 Million from Airbus

Looking to get a taste of the real Italy, Lufthansa executives were seen at The Olive Garden in Times Square over the weekend working on their plan to try and buy up to a 40% stake in Alitalia ITA.

If successful, ITA would become a member of Lufthansa Group, and relieve Eurowings Discover’s role of being the new guy. Alfredo Altavilla, president of ITA, said that he was very interested in a Lufthansa takeover, which makes perfect sense considering he chose to join Delta, Air France, and KLM in SkyTeam like 15 minutes ago.

Italy is Lufthansa’s second-largest international market, behind just the United States. Air Dolomiti is currently a Lufthansa Group airline, but it’s a small, regional LCC that focuses on connecting Europe via Germany to parts of Italy and not on the Italian market itself. Adding ITA would also be addition by subtraction as it would take its biggest competitor in Italy away from rivals Air France/KLM.

Israel Reopens Borders to Tourists

Israel reopened its borders Sunday to tourists who are fully vaccinated or have fully recovered from COVID-19 or can prove a grandparent has an original hamantaschen recipe.

The country’s borders had been closed since November and forced the Israeli government to offer aid packages to El Al and other airlines to make up for lost revenue from the closure. Tourists entering Israel must show a negative test no more than 72 hours before departure and pass another test upon arrival. They then must be able to ask and answer The Four Questions.

The country does not have any medical exemptions for unvaccinated tourists, so if he’s considering a trip to Israel this spring, Novak Djokovic should probably choose somewhere else.  

• Air Alsie is wet-leasing an E190 to Germany’s Lübeck Air.
• Alaska is cutting back on-board service to one beverage service in economy regardless of flight length through the end of January.
• American is delaying the launch of its 3x-weekly service between DFW and Tel Aviv to May. Also, but (most likely) unrelated, it’s now offering sustainable pajamas, whatever that means.
• Delta announced that Scott Laurence will join the airline next week as Vice President of Network Planning. Scott comes from JetBlue where he took on the DOJ as the leader on the Northeast Alliance. His first job at Delta will be to figure out what goes on at Concourse D in Atlanta and who actually flies out of there. His second job will be to destroy his former airline in its New York home.
• KLM will now add 0.5% of Sustainable Aviation Fuel for flights departing Amsterdam. Beginning Thursday, customers will have the option to purchase additional SAF for their flight. They’ll also have the option to cover the cost of on-board catering, post-flight cleaning services, and the salary of their gate agent.
• Qantas won’t be selling first class on its A380 service between Sydney and Los Angeles because it can’t sell it it’ll use it to upgrade frequent fliers who purchased business class.
• SAA acknowledged it’s in default on one of its aircraft in Zambia, which led to an attempted seizure of the aircraft, but the carrier is allegedly still in possession of the airplane.
• SKS Airways received its Air Service License from the Malaysian government.
• Virgin Atlantic customers saw their mileage totals reset to 0 today. It’s most likely an error and everyone’s mileage totals will be restored in a day or two — but there’s always a chance the carrier is “testing” to see if people notice on behalf of Delta.
• Virgin Australia is cutting back its schedule by about 25% through the end of February.

I just burnt my Hawaiian Pizza.

Should have used aloha temperature.

Cathay Pacific Potentially On the Hook for Hong Kong’s Omicron Outbreak

The Hong Kong government is currently investigating if it will hold Cathay Pacific legally accountable for the current Omicron outbreak on the island, saying that the carrier is responsible for the conduct of its employees. The Governor of Texas immediately chimed in, saying that the island should instead just let people sue Cathay Pacific since it works so well in his state.

The city government traced the current outbreak back to two Cathay Pacific employees who broke quarantine during the final week of 2020 to eat out at a restaurant on the island that we assume is to die for. The carrier recently suspended long-haul cargo flights along with most of its scheduled passenger ops while it reevaluated what it could realistically operate with the current quarantine restrictions on the island.

Cathay currently requires all pilots and flight attendants who are eligible to be vaccinated including having received a booster.

Qatar Wants More Than $600 Million from Airbus

As a Qatar Airways lawsuit against Airbus over what Qatar alleges is a paint defect on the A350 rolls on, court documents revealed that the airline is seeking more than $600 million in compensation from the manufacturer.

The dispute, which is tied up in court in London, demands a $610 million lump sum from Airbus plus another $4 million for every day Qatar is forced to keep its aircraft grounded. Qatar contends that Airbus has not yet identified the reason for the issue — though it has its eyes on you, Sherwin Williams — and will not return the affected aircraft to service until Airbus has figured out a solution.

The paint issue on the A350 has been a problem for several other operators of the aircraft — including Cathay Pacific, Delta, Finnair, and Lufthansa – but Qatar is the only operator to take its fleet out of service. Qatar and Airbus had been exchanging harshly written statements over the paint issue for the last several months but had avoided the courtroom until Airbus threatened to take Qatar to court for continuously bringing up the defect. Qatar took the “you can’t fire me, I quit” tact when it then took Airbus to court before Airbus could do the same to Qatar.

Sunwing Strands Passengers in Cancun by Choice

Canadian charter operator Sunwing Airlines operated a flight on December 30 from Montreal to Cancun chock full of French-Canadian influencers who broke and flouted basically every rule that it exists when on an airplane. The group was filmed partying on-board, mask-less, drinking and dancing in the aisle, with some passengers openly vaping in the cabin. Or as Spirit calls it — Tuesday.

As a result, Sunwing canceled their return flight, scheduled to operate on Wednesday, and no other airline was willing to fly them home. Air Canada and Air Transat both declined, while WestJet said it would have to check with Delta – but the answer would likely be a big N-O.

Canadian Prime Minster Justin Trudeau weighed in on the issue saying he was “extremely frustrated” with the incident. He reportedly then threatened to ban the passengers from watching NHL hockey for the rest of the season as punishment.

• Air Astana is resuming service at its Nur-Sultan (NQZ) hub today following the airport’s temporary closure due to political instability in Kazakhstan.
• Delta will no longer require pilot applicants to have a bachelor’s degree, making it preferred instead of an requirement. The change makes sense considering the computer does most of the flying anyway…right?
• Emerald Airlines won a three-year government contract to operate twice-weekly service from Dublin to Donegal (CFN).
• Finnair is challenging the concept that it’s always 5 o’clock somewhere, as the carrier will no longer be allowed to offer alcohol on flights after 5 p.m.
• Fly Gangwon was granted an air cargo permit in South Korea.
• Iraqi Airways received its first A220-300.
• Ryanair is closing its base in Frankfurt and is canceling all flights to and from the airport effective March 31. Shockingly, the carrier blames the airport and its cost structure for the decision. It will now offer service to Frankfurt via the city’s alternative airport located in Dublin, Ireland.
• SpiceJet is challenging the court order to extract $24 million in a liquidation order from Credit Suisse after the two were unable to come together on a settlement dill.
• Thai and four other Thai airlines are receiving $187 million in aid from the Thai government.
• T’Way Air is L’ooking to add more A330s to its fleet.
• United is adding its Polaris business class and premium economy to its A321XLR aircraft when they are delivered, the first single-aisle aircraft on the carrier to have Polaris.
• Virgin Atlantic is launching flights to Austin this summer. Maybe.

What kind of doctor is Dr. Pepper?

Fizzician

Alaska Reduces January Schedule by 10%

Alaska Airlines announced Thursday that it will reduce its schedule for the rest of January by about 10% to give it the cushion it needs to better run its operation.

Alaska has been plagued by operational issues since Christmas due to omicron raging through its staff, which was then compounded by a major winter storm through its Seattle home. The carrier dipped below the 65% completion mark during the final week of 2021, and it hasn’t yet fully recovered as it canceled 16% of its schedule yesterday.

The airline, through a spokesperson, resisted a change to its name to Alask Airlines during the reduction in service, saying that the 10% cutback is to flights only and would not have any effect on its name. Passengers impacted by the schedule cuts will have the option of rebooking on another Alaska flight, receiving a refund, or bundling up and get steppin’, because Anchorage is several days away on foot.

Avelo Finds Cash Under its Seats

Avelo asked its cabin staff to check underneath the seat cushions on each of its aircraft in-between flights and the staff managed to find a cool $42 million, increasing the airline’s invested capital base to over $160 million.

The Series B funding comes after the carrier raised $125 million in January of 2020, with this funding round coming in much more costly for investors than two years ago. Morgan Stanley Tactical Value (MSTV) was responsible for $30 of the $42 million in this round, adding on to their investment from 2020, making MSTV the carrier’s largest shareholder by a significant margin.

Most of the investors from this round were shareholders already from the first round in 2020, including Avelo’s CEO and founder Andrew Levy. Levy and other airline board members and members of the senior management team have invested a collective $34.7 million in the airline, once again proving the old adage that the best way to make $1 million dollars in the airline industry is to start with $34.7 million.

Pakistan International Airlines Inches Closer to Rejoining the Aviation World

Pakistan International Airlines has been airlina non grata in the aviation world since its flight 8303 crashed in May of 2020 and the resulting investigation determined the carrier had more than 200 pilots who weren’t actually pilots.

The investigation into the deadly crash that killed 99 of the 101 on-board was attributed to pilot error, which seems wrong since the “pilot” wasn’t really a pilot.

Pakistan’s aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Kahn said today that the carrier had been recertified by the ICAO after addressing the significant safety concerns outlined in investigations last summer of which the fake pilot issue was just one. Two hundred sixty two pilots were determined to be “dubious,” which is PIA for “fraudulent,” while several other safety-related shortcomings were identified and supposedly fixed.

The carrier still operates limited domestic and regional routes but is hoping to be allowed to return service to Europe and the U.S. within the next couple months.

• Air Canada is suspending service to some sun-splashed destinations through April 30.
• Atlas Air ordered four new B777 freighters.
• Austrian operated its final A319 flight last week and now plans to sell all seven of its A319s to Lufthansa CityLine for $50 each plus an original copy of The Sound of Music.
• Bluebird Nordic is adding B777s to its fleet.
• Jeju Air issued a $25.1 million bond.
• Singapore is selling old business class seats for the bargain price of $4,400, which is roughly what you’d pay to sit on the same seat to fly to Singapore when it was in service. Oh and they only ship to Singapore.
• Southwest‘s struggles continued Thursday as the carrier canceled over 500 flights before noon.
• Ventura AirConnect relaunched intra-state flights from Surat (STV) to four cities.
• Wizz Air‘s slot acquisition at London/Gatwick from Norwegian is now official.

What did the farmer say when the last of his haystacks were stolen?

This was the final straw.

Hong Kong Suspends Flights from U.S., U.K., and Others

Hong Kong announced a temporary ban on flights from the United States, United Kingdom, and six more countries for at least two weeks. Other countries in the ban include Australia, Canada, Francia, India, Pakistan, and the Philippines. The suspension will be in place beginning January 8 through at least January 21.

The island has a 6 p.m. indoor hospitality curfew in place now, while most non-essential stores and businesses have been closed for at least two weeks. Fearing this overreaction wasn’t crazy enough, Hong Kong also requires hospitalization for all positive COVID-19 cases, even for those who are asymptomatic.

Hong Kong’s first positive case of omicron was reported on New Year’s Eve after an infected Cathay Pacific flight attendant broke quarantine and ate at a restaurant. She reportedly also kept talking while her mouth was full and chewed with her mouth open.

BA to Resume Sydney Service in March

British Airways will resume its famed Kangaroo Route between London/Heathrow and Sydney with a stop in Singapore on March 27, returning the route to service for the first time in nearly two years.

When the Sydney flight resumes, BA will then suspend its current service between London and Singapore through October 31, with the carrier using its London-Singapore-Sydney route to transport customers to Singapore. The decision to maintain Singapore as a once-daily service rather than double up with the return of the Sydney flight was based on reduced demand, ongoing uncertainty from COVID-19, and frustration from learning that you don’t have to be in Singapore to enjoy a Singapore Sling.

BA is hanging on to the possibility that the Singapore flight could be resumed prior to October 31 if demand warrants it. In the meantime, it is swapping the aircraft on the route, from the B777 on the current LHR-SIN route to the B787-9 Dreamliner for LHR-SIN-SYD.

Etihad Looks for Shorter Quarantine Requirements

Etihad Airways is pushing the Abu Dhabi government to reduce the time its staff must stay isolated after either a positive test or close contact with a positive case. The request comes shortly after Delta and JetBlue successfully led U.S. airlines to lobby the CDC for a reduction in required quarantine following a positive test.

The carrier told staff it approached the government in a plea for operational relief, as the carrier is experiencing similar staffing shortages as airlines across the world. Currently, anyone who tests positive in the UAE visit a unique medical center for an assessment. Patients with mild symptoms or who are asymptomatic are fitted with an electronic ankle tag, must isolate for 10-days, and are required to binge watch an entire series on Netflix from four choices provided by the government.

• Asiana expects to resume flying its A380 fleet in the next several weeks.
• Delta apologized (technically only to SkyMiles members) for its recent operational challenges.
• Israir expects to begin trading on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange via an IPO once BGI Investments completes its purchase of the airline.
• Singapore will begin 3x-weekly A350-900 service between Milan/MXP and Barcelona on January 17.
• SkyWest has been working with its mainline partners to reduce its schedule in January due to an increase in positive COVID-19 cases.
• TAP is hopeful of receiving another €990 million in aide from the Portuguese government in 2022. Keep that gravy train going.
• United and Virgin Australia applied to the DOT for codeshare permission on each other’s flights.
• Vietravel Airlines is adding an A321neo to its fleet in Q2.
• Vistara will operate flights between Delhi and Mumbai to Kolkata 5x-weekly this month with a technical stop on the way to Kolkata in order to circumvent flight limits due to COVID.
• Volaris Costa Rica now plans to begin flying early in Q2 of this year.

I saw a microbiologist today. He was much bigger than I had expected.

Can You Hear Me Now?: Wireless Companies Agree to Delay

Both AT&T and Verizon agreed to an 11^th hour delay of the rollout of their new 5G wireless network at the behest of the airline industry after the FCC and DOT were unable to play nicely together in the federal government sandbox and come up with a solution.

The new 5G networks were supposed to go live tomorrow, January 5, but both companies acquiesced to the pleas from the airlines and DOT to hold off so the FAA could further determine which airports could see interference from the new network. Without the delay, airlines warned that delays could worsen around the country while new guidelines were issued and tested for airlines and pilots.

A letter from transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg to the wireless companies drew the ire of FCC commissioner Brendan Carr who said that Buttigieg had no standing to slow down or obfuscate FCC business – only he, Carr, has the right to use his position to slow things down and promote general government red tape.

Allegiant Goes on Post-Christmas Shopping Spree

Allegiant is close to securing an order with Boeing for 50 B737 MAX aircraft that total about $5 billion if purchased at the list price, which it most definitely will not be doing. The carrier took advantage of having $89 in Boeing credit after returning a model airplane it was given for Christmas from Sun Country, which is why it went on to the Boeing website in the first place.

The order is a chance for Boeing to stop the bleeding somewhat, after the manufacturer lost out on two big orders last month from both KLM and Qantas. We imagine the purchase price is impossibly low, so Allegiant is ready to strike while the iron is hot. The deal comes about a month after Allegiant announced its commercial alliance with Viva Aerobus – the Mexican LCC is, like Allegiant, exclusively an Airbus airline.

Currently, Allegiant operates 122 aircraft – all of which are A319s or A320s. The new planes would replace retiring Airbuses in the fleet, and would be stored in Las Vegas’s Allegiant Stadium when the Raiders are out of town.

Pacific Coastal Airlines Calls it a Day (or Two)

Vancouver-based Pacific Coastal Airlines, a regional carrier that operates scheduled passenger operations, charters, and cargo flights throughout British Columbia temporarily suspended all service as the carrier dealt with a COVID-19 outbreak.

The carrier shut itself down this past Sunday and Monday, hoping the two-day break would allow it to catch up and return to regular service today, January 4. The airline possesses a fleet of nine airplanes, all Saab 340s, with six of them in service (except for the last two days).

The outbreak was primarily at the carrier’s Operational Control Center and left it short of enough staff to oversee its flights and operations. Passengers who were scheduled to fly on January 2 or 3 can contact the carrier (in theory) for a refund or rebooking on a future date.  

• Air Madagascar is on the hunt for new investors. Interested parties should contact the Malagasy government.
• Air Serbia launched twice-weekly new service between Niš (INI) and Istanbul.
• Canada Jetlines took delivery of its first aircraft, an A320-200, as part of its plan to relaunch this spring. The carrier found it much easier to convince potential customers it was a real airline with an airplane, rather than without.
• Delta added nonstop flights from three cities to Indianapolis prior to the College Football Playoff National Championship. The carrier added nonstops from Birmingham, Huntsville, and Savannah, scheduled to depart on Saturday January 8 and return on Monday, January 11.
• Etihad secured a €700m revolving credit facility.
• German Airways finally knocked EGO Airways down a notch or two when it repossessed an E190 from the carrier after “several months of differing views on the interpretation of the contract.”
• Kuwait Airways suspended all service to Sri Lanka because Sri Lankan sales agents and local airline offices have been stiffing the carrier on payments. The carrier was forced to take the drastic move after sending its fixers Bennie and Tony to try and collect, but they came back empty-handed.
• Philippines AirAsia reopened its Clark (CRK) hub.
• Qantas resumed 3x-weekly service to Johannesburg over the weekend.
• United took delivery of its 15th and final aircraft as part of a lease order with CDB Aviation. The order consisted of two B787-9 Dreamliners and 13 B737 MAX 8s.

Why do lawyers always get buried under 30 feet of dirt?

Because deep down they’re really good people.

United Offers Triple Pay to Pilots

United Airlines is offering triple pay to its pilots to pick up extra trips during January to keep the airline’s operation functioning and reduce the number of canceled flights.

United and its pilots’ union – the Air Line Pilots Association – reached an agreement on the higher pay after the union first rejected such overtures late last year. The carrier will offer three-and-a-half times pay for open trips taken from December 30 through today, with triple pay offered tomorrow through January 29.

United is one of several airlines paying its flight attendants and other staff bonus pay to keep its operation from falling (any further) off the rails, and now adds bonus payments to its pilots — both of which are on top of the 5x pay United pilots and flight attendants should receive as hazard pay for working flights to or from Newark during the holiday season.

SAA Moves Closer to Partnership with Kenya Airways

Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta announced during his New Year’s Day address that Kenya’s flag carrier plans to “join hands with partners in South Africa to establish a Pan-African airline, with unmatched continental reach and global coverage.” He forgot to add “… until it inevitably goes bankrupt sometime next year.”

Despite speculation that the two airlines would merge, SAA squashed that idea over the weekend, saying that the two airlines would continue planned cooperation but have no intention of merging. The two airlines signed a strategic partnership framework two months ago, and while neither has figured out what that means exactly, both are willing to move forward with a mutually-beneficial partnership.

SAA’s plan is to leverage each other’s networks with extensive codeshares but keep the two brands operating independently. Any idea of a full-on merger ended when SAA told Kenya Airways the two could merge, but KQ would have to rebrand itself as Mango to more efficiently use all the Mango-branded items laying around SAA’s offices.

United Flight Attendant Worked 23 Years with Stolen Identity

Federal agents arrested United flight attendant Ricardo Cesar Guedes at Houston/IAH and charged him with several federal crimes after it was revealed he had been living with a false identity for more than 20 years.

When pressed during questioning, Guedes said he took the identity of Wilson Ericson Ladd because well, would you want to have your name associated with United? Guedes stole the identity in the ’90s, during a pre-9/11 time when such things were much easier than they are now. He had a passport issued in his name and was hired at United in the late ’90s.

Perhaps more impressive then fooling the federal government and the state department for so many years was that he managed to keep his job as a FA through the downturns following both 9/11 and the pandemic. When asked for comment, United stated that Guedes is no longer employed by the airline, which makes sense because Wi-Fi in federal prison is notoriously spotty which would make Guedes unreliable – at best – in logging into his United employee app to bid on his next round of trips.

• Aeromexico has a pending a offer from Alinfra S.C. to purchase 49% of the carrier’s current capital stock offering.
• Air Caraibes joined Air Austral and Corsair’s merger talks like a lover scorned.
• AirAsia Group proposed changing its corporate name to Capital A in an effort to distance itself from all the failing subsidiaries it owns across Southeast Asia.
• Air New Zealand is now offering on-board catering as passengers exit the aircraft at their destination as the carrier has finally tired of watching people eat.
• Ariana Afghan Airlines issued an RFP for a three-month widebody wet lease, beginning February 1.
• China Southern received two new A350s late last week.
• El Al confirmed it will receive an additional aid package from the Israeli government.
• GOL‘s acquisition of Brazilian regional carrier MAP was approved by the Brazilian government.
• Indonesia Air Transport received an AOC to begin scheduled commercial operations.
• Philippine Airlines exited Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Restructuring last Friday, just in time to announce its 2022 New Year’s resolution of “not going bankrupt again.”
• Starlux took delivery of a new A321neo.
• TUI took delivery of a B737-8 MAX.
• World2Fly expects2fly scheduled ops sometime early in 2022.

I called the paranoia hotline last night. A guy answered the phone and asked “How did you get this number?”

This will be our final Cranky Daily of 2021. We’ll be back on Monday to begin 2022 with all the best in airline news, crankiness, and update on guys named Bjørn starting airlines in Scandinavia. Happy New Year!

JetBlue Reduces Schedule

JetBlue Airways is reducing its schedule through January 13 by about 1,300 flights to navigate staffing difficulties due to the Omicron strain of COVID-19.

Most airlines, JetBlue included, have canceled thousands of flights since Christmas Eve due to inclement weather and Omicron raging through its flight crews. JetBlue’s cuts will equal about 10% of its daily schedule – giving itself an operational cushion until Omicron hopefully dies down.

The carrier was forced to cancel 173 flights on Thursday – about 17% of its schedule — leaving customers stranded across the country. By canceling portions of its schedule now, it gives itself and customers the chance to rebook and reschedule travel without being stuck in airports a long way from home. That’s good since most JetBlue customer service agents will be at home with Omicron anyway.

JetBlue said in a statement that the schedule cuts were its own idea and not American’s and any rumors that AA forced the decision were untrue. It also said the cuts have nothing to do with its pending litigation over the Northeast Alliance with the DOJ, and the fact that the majority of the cuts were from DCA to the home airports of key members of the DOJ’s team on the lawsuit are nothing but coincidence.

Cathay Pacific Forced to Shrink in Hong Kong

Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific will make major changes to its schedule from its hub after the island’s government announced airline crews on all non-mainland China flights would no longer have quarantine exemptions offered to them.

The carrier will cancel many of its passenger flights through the first quarter of 2022, while shutting down its entire cargo operation for at least seven days. The airline’s scheduled passenger flights will be consolidated into far fewer frequencies, and affected customers will have the option of receiving full cash refunds if their flight is changed. Other options will include rebooking on a new date or receiving a handwritten note from the Communist Party thanking them for not visiting until the removal of Hong Kong’s political freedoms is complete.

Other changes include requiring that flights to mainland China are operated by “closed-loop” crews which will be required to quarantine every time they arrive in Hong Kong for anything longer than a short layover. The Hong Kong government will also shut down any route for at least two weeks if multiple positive cases are found on any one route or if passengers on the same flight are spotted putting their feet up on the bulkhead without socks at any point during flight.

SriLankan Airlines to be Privatized

State owned SriLankan Airlines is likely to be privatized after the Sri Lankan government’s Enterprise Restructuring Board advised the government to end the state’s financing of the carrier.

The ruling from the board was not exclusively aimed at the flag carrier as the government was also nudged to privatize other large financial losers such as the Electric Board, Petroleum Corporation, Transport Board, National Water Supply, and the Colombo Toupée and Wig Emporium. A free-market advocacy group said that 55 state owned enterprises in Sri Lanka – led by SriLankan Airlines — have lost $6 billion since 2006 with the five biggest money losers costing Sri Lankan taxpayers $2 million a day in 2019.

The carrier has been responsible for 44% of the losses of the state-owned enterprises, or, as the UAE calls it, a drop in the bucket. The carrier generates $141 million in revenue during Q2 2021, improving on the $196 million in revenue it made for the entire fiscal year ending in March 2021. Despite the improvement, the airline lost $122.5 million in Q2, compared to a $286 million in the previous fiscal year.

• AirAsia India finally paid off all its debts to the Airports Authority of India. This became possible when the government permitted it to pay with AirAsia X airplanes that nobody wants.
• American will upgrade to daily service between Miami and Anguilla (AXA) on April 2.
• Avion Express had its restructuring plan approved by Lithuania’s bankruptcy court.
• Camair-Co is laying off 130 staff members as it goes through restructuring.
• HK Express will begin once-weekly service to Singapore on February 1.
• Qatar is requiring flight attendants to remain in their hotel rooms during layovers to lessen their chance to contract COVID-19. Hotel staff will be advised to put tape on the outside of the door across the crack so that they can totally tell if somebody sneaks out to see the boys at the camp across the lake.
• Norse Atlantic, the Norwegian startup founded by three guys named Bjørn, received its AOC from the Norwegian government.
• SKS Airways plans to debut in Malaysia early next year.
• Spice XPress, the cargo division of SpiceJet is exploring the acquisition of electric freighters. It expects to thyme their delivery to arrive by 2024.

Make sure you use the restroom tomorrow before midnight because no one wants to bring their shit into next year.