Author: Andrew Bashuk

January 15, 2021

American Introduces the VeriFLY Health Passport for Travelers

American Airlines is expanding its partnership with the VeriFLY app, allowing passengers to ensure their compliance with virus-related requirements for travel into the United States. The app will be available for AA travelers beginning January 23, three days before a negative COVID-19 test is required for anyone flying into the United States from elsewhere.

American has been using the app since late 2020 for travel to select destinations in the Caribbean, Central, and South America.

The app is QR code-based and will verify that a passenger has uploaded the correct documents and verification, reducing the need to have a paper copy of all paperwork available at all times. It will also allow AA ground staff to scan the QR code to confirm compliance, making a more streamlined process that should reduce lines and wait times.

The efficiency of the check-in process is important for American’s senior management. The airline places a great priority on passengers getting through the airport hassle-free in order to be in the gate area for the start of the boarding process to experience dozens of boarding groups called ahead of them — which could be solved by signing up for the AA Mastercard. (And no, there is no link to it, and we don’t make any money if you get it.)

Southwest Making Elite Qualifying Easier Through 2021

Southwest passengers who earned a Companion Pass (the ole’ fashioned way – not via a challenge or status match) which was set to expire on June 30 will see an extra six months tacked on, making the Companion Pass valid through December 31. In addition, the airline is reducing qualifying thresholds for 2021 for elite status and Companion Pass qualification for 2022. All members will receive:

  • 15,000 Tier-Qualifying Points (TQPs)
  • 25,000 Companion Pass Qualifying Points (CPQPs)
  • 10 qualifying one-way flight segments towards Tier Status
  • 25 qualifying one-way flights towards Companion Pass
  • An overly chippy, singing flight attendant on that really early morning flight when you just want to sleep

With the boost, Southwest passengers will begin the year 40% of the way to A-List and 20% of the way to a Companion Pass.

The boosted points will appear in Rapid Rewards accounts in the coming weeks. Passengers will need to visit Southwest’s website 24 hours prior to claim their spot in line to receive the points. Customers in wheelchairs will receive their points first. Accounts of small children or anyone needing a little extra time to log in will receive theirs about one-third of the way through the distribution process.

Alaska to Block Middle Seats in Premium Class

According to TPG, Alaska Airlines will be blocking middle seats in Premium Class – its upgraded coach product – through May. The airline will not be blocking seats in main cabin or first class, leaving the premium main cabin product the only chance for passengers to guarantee themselves an empty adjacent seat short of paying for it.

The airline will only guarantee the block when middle seats existing – meaning smaller aircraft with 2×2 seating in each row in Premium Class will not have one of the two seats blocked. Those sitting in Premium Class on Alaska receive many of the same perks as first class passengers including chateaubriand carved in the aisle, 30-minutes with the on-board licensed masseuse, complimentary beer & wine, and a fruit & cheese platter.

Seats in Alaska’s Premium Class are available as a complimentary upgrade for Mileage Plan elites and for a fee for everybody else.

UK Hopeful London to NYC Corridor Could Open with Biden Administration

UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps is encouraged that an air corridor between New York and London could open with the new presidential administration being inaugurated this coming Wednesday.

Shapps told London’s LBC News on Friday that an executive order reached the desk of President Trump to jumpstart a NYC-London air corridor, but the president declined to sign the order. Airline execs on both sides of the pond have hope that President-elect Biden will sign the order during his first days in office.

Shapps says the UK has already vaccinated 3 million people, more than France, Germany, Spain, and Italy combined. That may be true, but the quartet does own 11 World Cup championships to England’s one. Ask English citizens which they would prefer – more vaccinations or more World Cups, and they’d likely choose the World Cup.

Malaysian Authorities Seize PIA Plane Filled with Passengers

It was a rough 2020 for Pakistan International Airlines, spending much of the year mired in a scandal in which we learned that many of the airline’s pilots weren’t actually pilots. It looks like 2021 is not off to a great start for the airline either, as a PIA 777 loaded with passengers in Kuala Lumpur and preparing to pushback from the gate en route to Islamabad was boarded and impounded by Malaysian authorities on Thursday.

The case involves a $14 million lease dispute in the UK on PIA’s two Boeing 777 aircraft, which it leases from Dublin-based AerCap, the world’s largest aircraft lessor. The order was issued by a Malaysian court in support of a ruling in London’s high court. PIA disputes the issue – naturally – and says it will fight the impounding via diplomatic channels.

Occam’s Razor is the problem-solving principal stating “the simplest explanation is usually the right one.” Occam is very relevant to this case, and can be applied by asking the simple questions, “Which is more likely? PIA is fully up-to-date on its payments on its two aircrafts and two courts in two countries made an egregious error? Or that PIA is underwater in its payments and hoped no one will notice?” This one will play itself out in the courts over the coming weeks and we’ll get our answer.

Airline Potpourri

  • Alaska will require passengers flying to/from the three DC-area airports to remain seated for 60 minutes after takeoff and before landing for the next week. The airline, along with American, Frontier, Southwest, and United joined Delta in banning firearms in checked baggage on flights to DC through January 21.
  • Azores Airlines completed a 9 hour and 49 minute nonstop flight between Lisbon and Bogota, setting the record for the longest flight operated by an A321LR.
  • Cathay Pacific plans to exclusively operate A350s on all Australian flights by November.
  • Emirates has suspended service to its three Australian destinations — Brisbane, Melbourne, & Sydney — indefinitely.
  • Wizz Air Abu Dhabi will begin service to Tel Aviv on February 12.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

I bought coconut shampoo today. But when I got home I realized I don’t even have a coconut.

January 14, 2021

Airlines Beef Up Inauguration Security Measures

With President-elect Biden’s inauguration less than a week away, airlines are increasing security measures and other in-flight protocols for the safety of staff and passengers in light of several incidents which occurred before and after last week’s insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

From January 16 through January 23, Delta will ban firearms in checked baggage for all flights into Richmond and all three D.C. area airports. Meanwhile, American is suspending alcohol service on flights to and from the three D.C. area airports from January 16 through January 21, which could incite a riot in its own right.

Delta, American, and United have will all have crews overnight at airport hotels away from downtown Washington or Baltimore. American is also offering private transportation to and from the airport for its crew. This is actually quite innovative since we understand they’ll just pull some regional jets out of the desert since they have nothing better to do and have them drive the crews to the hotel.

On top of this, the FAA approved a one-strike and you’re out policy effective through the end of March. Passengers can be fined up to $35,000 and/or put on a no-fly list for gross violations including assaulting, threatening, or intimidating crews. Flight crews will have the right to forward unruly passengers to the FAA for these offenses along with a host of other infractions, including passengers who clap upon landing; travelers in boarding zone 6 walking towards the jetway and hovering when boarding is first called; and people who watch a personal entertainment device without headphones.

Delta Releases Q4 and FY2020 Financials

Delta Air Lines became the first of the major U.S. airlines to release its final earnings report for 2020, leading what will surely be a string of airlines mired in red numbers. Delta posted a loss in Q4 of $1.1 billion on revenue of $3.5 billion. The Q4 revenue figure was a drop of 69% from Q4 2019 and came as Delta had 62% less capacity than the year prior.

On the (slightly) bright(er) side, Delta’s cash burn reduced to “just” $12 million per day, a 90% drop from its cash burn during the onset of the pandemic in March. Remember, however, that Delta’s cash burn numbers always look better than the rest because they exclude some debt and aircraft payments. The real number is probably closer to $400 trillion per day, give or take a few hundred trillion.

For the full year 2020, Delta posted a pre-tax loss of $9 billion which excludes another $6.6 billion in the red that was directly related to the pandemic. Delta earned $15.9 billion in revenue, a drop of 66% from 2019. The total operating expense for Delta including virus-related items dropped to $29.5 billion, down $10.8 billion from 2019.

In its earnings call on Thursday, Delta CEO Ed Bastian said that the airline has not decided if it will continue to block middle seats beyond March 31, also saying Delta has no interest in placing an order for the 737 MAX aircraft. Bastian also said that his airline would be interested in picking up slots at DCA that American and JetBlue will be forced to divest themselves of. Delta is the third largest carrier at the airport with a 14.5% share of passengers.

FAA Extends Slot Relief at Seven Major U.S. Airports

The FAA announced late Thursday it will extend the current waiver exempting airlines from their required minimum amount of service required to maintain slots at slot-controlled U.S. airports. The waiver was previously scheduled to expire on March 27, but will now remain valid through October 30, the end of the summer season. The extension will affect three airports: New York/JFK, New York/LaGuardia and Washington/National.

In addition to these three, the FAA will extend its policy for prioritizing flights canceled at designated IATA Level 2 airports for the purposes of establishing the airline’s operational baseline. This extension is also valid through October 30, and affects four airports: Chicago/O’Hare, Los Angeles, Newark and San Francisco.

In coming to the decision, the FAA requested comments on the issue in December. The government received 56 responses which came from IATA, oneworld & Star Alliance, Port Authority of NY & NJ, six U.S. carriers, 28 foreign airlines, some guy named Billy, and more. Despite not being named specifically in the report, we assume that Ryanair was one of the 28 foreign airlines to comment. Though it doesn’t fly to the U.S., the airline is loathe to miss an opportunity to complain, comment, or blame a government – any government – for something — anything.

United’s Return to JFK Delayed

United Airlines’ return to New York/JFK after a five-year absence is being put on hold for nearly a month. With travel not having recovered in the wake of the pandemic, especially on the coasts, United will wait to launch its return to flying from JFK to both Los Angeles and San Francisco until February 28 instead of the previously scheduled February 1.

In addition to delaying the start of service for four weeks, United will also pull back on the frequency of both routes, operating a mere five-weekly flights to both destinations. The airline remains hopeful that it can increase to its originally planned 2x daily service as early as late-March.

In the meantime, passengers that really can’t wait for United’s return to JFK can make their way to the airport any time in February and pass the time watching the final weeks of CNN Airport Network while counting down the days until a United flight again arrives… after a lengthy air traffic control delay.

Norwegian Eliminates Long Haul Network

Norwegian Air Shuttle announced a revised business structure in an attempt to make itself more attractive for investors to hand over some much-needed cash. Among the many ways it is attempting to look better, executives are considering Botox and a lip lift. But in the meantime, the first two steps taken by the airline are to eliminate long-haul flying and cut 1,100 staff in the U.K. whose jobs focused on supporting the long-haul network.

In the near future, Norwegian will strive to reduce its debt to “just” $2.35 billion while raising approximately $600 million to keep its planes in the air. Getting rid of all those 787s it has in the fleet should help.

The airline plans to focus on narrowbody, short-haul flying in the Nordics and throughout Europe. It will also shift considerable energy to its domestic network in Norway. It will have about 50 aircraft in service for 2021, with a hope to increase that number to 70 by 2022. The airline does not see the demand for long-haul flying returning anytime soon and believes by focusing on its core business and staying in Europe, it has a more practical path to losing less profitability.

Airline Potpourri

  • Air Canada has agreed to a sale & leaseback with Air Transport Services Group. ATSG will convert the aircraft from a passenger to a freighter configuration by taking out all the seats and giving it a hard scrubdown from nose to tail to get the maple syrup smell out. It’ll then lease the plane back to AC for its cargo operation.
  • Austrian will begin the phase out of its 767 fleet in March with its first aircraft ending its life with the airline. The rest of the 767 fleet is expected to finish up its flying on behalf of Austrian by the fall.
  • Congo Airways placed an order for two E195-E2 Jets from Embraer. These will join two E195s previously on order for the airline.
  • Loganair released its summer schedule from its hub at Isle of Man (IOM) Airport, which will include double-daily flights to London/Heathrow, four dailies to Manchester, and three to Liverpool aboard the coolest-looking tails in the sky.
  • Sky Lease, a Miami-based cargo airline is facing a proposed fine from the DOT of a cool $422,500 for operating dozens of flights last summer on a pair of 747s that were missing required avionics. The airline has 30 days to respond to the FAA ruling. That time might be best spent looking for their checkbook or remembering their Venmo password.
  • Wizz Air issued its first bond — worth €500m — that is expected to close on January 19.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

The rent on my apartment includes all utilities. My landlord called and said he wanted to come speak with me about my high heating bill. “No problem,” I said to him, “my door is always open.”

January 13, 2021

Delta Adds Two Senior Execs

In a memo to employees, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian announced two additions to the airline’s senior leadership team.

Alain Bellemare will be joining Delta as the president of its international business. Bellemare comes to Delta from Bombardier from where he retired last year as President & CEO. Prior to his time at Bombardier, he spent 18 years at United Technologies Coportation as President & CEO of Propulsion & Aerospace Systems.  In other words, he was in charge of the things that make airplanes go zoom zoom. Bellemare must now prepare for the culture shock of his life as he moves from Montreal to Atlanta.

Michelle Horn will be joining Delta from McKinsey where she was a partner for the consulting giant. Horn will take the roll of Senior Vice President & Chief Strategy Officer. Horn already lives in Atlanta and she and her husband and three children expect to welcome Bellemare along with his partner and two children to live in their home as part of a new Delta reality show that will be available as in-flight entertainment on Delta flights beginning Summer 2022.

Sriwijaya 737 Was Certified Airworthy After Nine Months in Storage

The Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737-500 that tragically crashed last week had been put into storage in March at the onset of the pandemic as Sriwijaya reduced its operation.

The aircraft was approved by Indonesian aviation authorities as airworthy during a check in November. It underwent a second inspection on December 14 before it returned to the air. The plane was parked on March 23 and remained dormant for nearly nine months. It had its airworthiness certificate extended December 17, 2021 and returned to Sriwijaya on December 19. Its first passenger flight took place on December 22 and was without incident.

After the FAA ordered U.S. operated 737s that had been stored for more than a week be inspected further for an issue in the engine, the Indonesian government did the same and performed that check on this aircraft in early December. The results of the test were not released publicly, but the fact that the plane was returned to service indicates it likely passed the inspection.

CNN Airport Network Signing Off

The dulcet tones of CNN Airport Network — which have been the background noise of layovers, delays and missed connections for more than 30 years — will sign off for the final time on March 31.

The network has not been profitable for some time and has seen its ad revenue plummet since the onset of the pandemic, forcing CNN to finally pull the plug on the programming. With most passengers able to stream news and information to their phones, the service became less and less relevant.

At its height, CNN Airport Network was shown on 1,800 screens in 54 airports across the country. The final half-hour of programming on March 31 will live on, running in a loop for the foreseeable future. Those passengers booked in basic economy will have the 30-minute loop sent to their seatback screens and it will be the only entertainment option available during flight.

Aeroméxico Attempts to End Labor Contracts

Aeroméxico has requested to end its collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with both its pilot and flight attendant unions as it restructures its finances in the wake of the pandemic. The airline claims the move is essential due to the “adverse financial, operational, and structural effects on the airline,” and it comes after it spent weeks negotiating with its unions to no avail.

Aeroméxico filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last summer in an attempt to clean up its balance sheet but still needs help from its unions. The airline saw its traffic shrink as much a 91% month over month back in April, and ended up down 84.5% on revenue for 2020. With President Trump’s term as president ending without a wall being completed, the airline is concerned customers will simply walk into the United States instead of flying.

As part of its restructuring, Aeroméxico came to an agreement for a $1 billion loan from Apollo Global Management, but terms of the loan require renegotiation with the labor unions. With no deal having been reached as the calendar turned to 2021. Aeroméxico is requesting permission from local labor authorities to use the force majeure clause in its CBAs due to the pandemic to end the agreements and start over.

Emirates Adds Flights in the Americas

Emirates Airline will grow its schedule to the Americas in the coming weeks as it resumes suspended routes and adds new frequencies to destinations it’s currently serving. The move comes as Emirates looks to find ways to lose more money before vaccines are widely available and demand improves.

Nonstop service will resume to Seattle on February 1 with Dallas/Fort Worth and San Francisco following on March 2. When these three destinations are resumed, Emirates will be serving 10 gateways in North America – nine in the United States plus Toronto/Pearson.

The airline also will increase its frequency to both New York/JFK and Los Angeles. JFK will see 2x-daily service beginning February 1, while the LAX flight will increase to a daily frequency. In addition to those two, São Paulo/Guarulhos will get one more weekly flight, upping to 5x-weekly.

The flights in New York and Los Angeles are being timed to connect with its codeshare partners JetBlue and Alaska. JetBlue is in the process of beefing up its schedules in and out of New York to match up with its Northeast Alliance partner, American. In addition to coordinating with AA, JetBlue will have the advantage of a second-daily flight from Emirates to feed domestic connections to. If passengers are lucky, they’ll connect onto one of JetBlue’s new A220s, to experience the NYC subway tiles in the restroom to ensure a true NYC experience for someone who didn’t get to leave the airport.

Airline Potpourri

  • Air Canada & Vueling completed a slot swap at London/Gatwick for two flights a day on both Thursdays and Sundays from May 20 through October 7.
  • Air Canada also announced it will be reducing its network further during Q1 2021 than it had previously planned. The airline will cut its total flying by an additional 25%, which is leading to a necessary reduction of as many as 1,700 employees.
  • Eastar Jet, a Korean LCC and bitter rival of Canada’s WestJet, is rapidly running out of money and plans to file for a court receivership by the end of January in a last-ditch effort to find a new investor.
  • Hawaiian has requested the DOT exempt it from service to Molokai (MKK) and Lanai (LNY) because the airline planned to end service to the two airports on January 14 already — with DOT permission.
  • Jet2 has suspended flight operations through at least March 25.
  • Qantas plans to revive its ambitious Project Sunrise later in 2021, which hopes to eventually launch nonstop service from Sydney & Melbourne to London, Paris, and New York.
  • Qatar plans to retain only half of its pre-pandemic A380 fleet once it returns to full operation. The 10 jumbo jets will compete on a primetime special to win the affection of Qatar CEO by receiving a rose-colored fuel pump at the end of each episode in order to advance to the next week.
  • Ryanair plans to begin flying the 737 MAX aircraft as soon as this summer.
  • Singapore has launched its first U.S. dollar bond on Wednesday to help fund the purchase of new aircraft.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

My wife left me because I always jump to conclusions and I’m very insecure. Oh, wait nevermind — she just went to check the mail.

January 12, 2021

DOT Approves American & JetBlue Northeast Alliance

The Northeast Alliance between American Airlines and JetBlue Airways passed the Department of Transportation’s regulatory review on Tuesday, despite objections from competitors including Spirit and Southwest. In a unique agreement, the airlines will be allowed to coordinate schedules in New York and Boston, a rare treat for domestic partners. They only had to divest a few slots at New York/JFK and Washington/National plus give assurances that they will use their slots better than they did before the pandemic in order to gain approval.

Both carriers will begin coordinating schedules very soon, to be in-place for the first-half of 2021. With JetBlue’s feed, American is still planning to add two new long-haul flights from JFK, one to Athens and one to Tel Aviv. JetBlue will be increasing its presence at all three main NYC airports, not just JFK as the airlines will be free to trade slots. Codesharing and mileage earning and burning will soon follow.

The negotiations between the two airlines and the DOT came down to the wire. The final sticking point was the DOT insisting American also divest itself of two rows in its Main Cabin product to give everyone more legroom on its aircraft. AA stood its ground and refused, willing to blow up the whole deal. In the end, the airline and the government compromised with AA agreeing to take the idea under advisement and gather a blue ribbon panel to study the effects. The government leapt at the chance to introduce another blue ribbon panel, satisfying both sides.

There will be more on this at crankyflier.com tomorrow morning.

CDC Requires COVID-19 Testing for All Travelers to the U.S.

Beginning January 26, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will require all travelers inbound to the U.S. to show written proof of either a negative COVID-19 test received within 3 days before travel or having recovered from COVID-19. Though we have not confirmed, we believe that you just writing on a piece of paper that you don’t have COVID-19 will not be accepted as “written proof.”

The CDC says that this combined with the recommendation that travelers get tested again 3-5 days after returning home and isolating at home for 7 days after travel will help slow the spread of the more infectious variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 that have been emerging in other countries.

The burden appears to be on the airline, saying that if proof is not provided, the airline must deny boarding to the passenger at the point of origin. There is nothing in here suggesting that those who have been vaccinated will be exempt from this ruling, so get ready to get tested if you’re leaving the country.

JetBlue Suspends Service to Eight Destinations; Introduces its A220

JetBlue Airways is suspending service to eight destinations on its route map for longer than originally planned. Burbank, Ontario, San Jose, and Baltimore were all suspended through March, but that will now go into June at the very least. In addition, Albuquerque, Burlington, VT (BTV), Minneapolis/St. Paul, and Portland, OR will lose JetBlue service on February 11 through at least April 1 (for now).

In happier news, the airline also introduced the on-board product for its A220-300 aircraft after recently having taken delivery of first out of the 70 it has on order. JetBlue’s A220 will offer an experience similar to what JetBlue has on its newly-refurbished A320s. The main differences seem to be that there is now a USB-C charger instead of just USB-A, and there will be fewer LiveTV channels onboard. So… not much.

The A220 itself, however, provides a great passenger experience with big windows, wide seats, and only 1 middle seat per row instead of 2. One unique touch, as a nod to JetBlue’s home in NYC, are subway tile patterns installed in the lavatories which is great, because we’ve always wanted to relive our youth by urinating in the New York subway. It’s unclear if the authentic New York subway smell will also be pumped in.

Allegiant Adds 21 New Nonstop Routes & Three New Destinations

Fans of low-cost travel to and from random point-to-point destinations will be excited to learn that Allegiant Air added three new destinations to its route network on Tuesday, announcing nine routes to the three new cities: Jackson Hole (JAC), Key West (EYW) and Portland, OR (PDX).

Jackson Hole will see flights to and from four cities on Allegiant: Los Angeles, Phoenix/Mesa (AZA), Las Vegas, and Reno all begin in early June. Key West will receive service from two cities, Nashville on June 2 and Orlando/Sanford on June 4. Last but not least is three destinations from Portland: Santa Maria, CA (SMX) beginning April 15, plus Monterey, CA (MRY) and Idaho Falls (IDA) both beginning May 28.

Allegiant is also adding service from both Sarasota and Denver to noted global travel mega-hub Peoria, IL (PIA). Charleston, SC will add Belleville, IL (BLV) on the fringes of the St. Louis metro area while Baltimore sees service to Punta Gorda (PGD) on May 27. Finally, it will add service in some markets that it had planned to start before the pandemic derailed plans.

Virgin Atlantic Seeks Further Refinancing

Virgin Atlantic finds itself rushing through a refinancing deal in which it will complete a leaseback program with Griffin Global Asset Management. The sale & leaseback should raise approximately $231 million for the beleaguered airline.

The cash will be used to pay back Davidson Kempner, the hedge fund which helped Virgin Atlantic survive the first lockdown. The airline owes approximately $160 million to the hedge fund, leaving it $70 million for use to operate the airline.

In a bit if Virgin irony, Griffin Global, the company paying for the sale & leaseback, is a subsidiary of Bain Capital, the hedge fund that has taken control of 93% of Virgin Australia. When asked to comment, a Bain Capital representative did not answer the question about whether or not the hedge fund really knew that Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia were not the same airline.

Airline Potpourri

  • Allegiant has gotten the exemption roulette 2.0 started, asking the DOT to consider the schedules for the week of January 16, not January 9 as the baseline for service to avoid forcing holiday schedules to endure.
  • Atlas Air placed the last order ever for four new B747-8 freighters.
  • Kenya Airways took delivery of a Dash 8-202 on Monday from Elix Aviation Capital, the first aircraft from Elix delivered to Kenya Airways.
  • Qatar resumed its daily service to Riyadh on Monday.
  • SAS president & CEO Rickard Gustafson will leave the airline, effective July 1.
  • Spirit, Frontier and JetBlue joined the chorus of U.S. airlines in banning emotional support animals onboard their aircraft.
  • United announced that it won a cleaning award that it possibly made up, but probably didn’t. But it’s definitely possible.
  • Vistara will begin daily nonstop service between Dehli and Sharjah, UAE (SHJ) on January 20.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

A man was driving along a deserted highway when he saw a hitchhiker and offered to pick him up. The hitchhiker got in the car and was very appreciative. He thanked the man and said “this is very kind of you — how did you know I wasn’t a serial killer or someone crazy?” And the man replied “Because sir, the odds of two serial killers being in this car at the same time is practically impossible.”

January 11, 2021

DOT to Bring Back Exemption Roulette

The DOT announced airlines receiving funds from the Payroll Support Program (PSP 2.0) will have to continue service minimums to cities and airports throughout the country if they want to get that sweet, sweet government money.

Last spring (and well into the summer), airlines spent much of their time in lockdown playing exemption roulette, appealing to the DOT for exemptions from required destinations and the DOT spent most of its summer denying the appeals.  Now it’s time to do it once again.

Airlines that have dropped service to an airport since the end of PSP 1.0 will not have to return unless there is no service left from any airline. The four destinations that have seen all service disappear since last fall will likely be getting their air service back, with the DOT expected to force the last airline to serve the destination — using the last one out is a rotten egg management style — to return. Those cities are:

  • Destin, FL (DTS)
  • Morrisville, VT (MVL)
  • Worcester, MA (ORH)
  • Meyers Chuck, AK (84K)

Airlines can try to for new exemption requests, but the time period is so short this time around that it’s unlikely they’ll have much luck.

Alaska’s Elite Members Become Even More Elite

Alaska Mileage Plan will be adding a fourth elite tier for those who fly 100,000 miles a year or more on the airline or its partners. The top tier on Alaska is currently MVP Gold 75k which, unsurprisingly, requires 75,000 miles flown (or 75,000 strikeouts) each year.

The new elite tier will begin in 2022, with more details released later this year. The airline has said not yet released its name, but some we encourage them to consider include MVP Gold 100k and MVP Super Important Gold 100. Don’t want to junk up that branding too much. Members of this exclusive new club can expect increased bonus miles, top upgrade priority on Alaska flights, lounge benefits, and the ability to yell at everyone around them without feeling bad about it

The change to Mileage Plan will make Alaska more in-line with its newest best buddy, American Airlines. Alaska and American are joining at the hip with American turning Alaska’s home of Seattle into an international gateway and both airlines introducing reciprocal benefits for elite members on both airlines. 

Update on Sriwijaya Air Flight 182 Accident

Sriwijaya Flight 182 took off at 2:36 p.m. local time from Jakarta en route to Pontianak (PNK) with 62 people on board before disappearing from radar and crashing into the sea. The aircraft involved — a 26-year old Boeing 737-500 with the registration PK-CLC initially operated by Continental and NOT equipped with MCAS because it’s not a 737 MAX — was last heard from at 2:40 p.m., just four minutes after takeoff. 

The plane lost more than 10,000 feet in altitude in less than a minute which suggests something much worse than engine loss or a minor mechanical issue.  Of the 62 on-board, 50 were passengers, six were crew working the flight, and the other six were crew who were flying to operate another flight later in the day. All 62 on board were Indonesian nationals.

Parts of the plane, clothing, and some body parts have been found in the Java Sea, at a depth of about 75 feet. Indonesian officials detected emergency signals from the flight’s data recorder and cockpit voice recorder and hope to retrieve them from the water in order to learn more about what happened during the four minutes the aircraft was in-flight.

ExpressJet Plans for Sequel

ExpressJet Airlines ended operations last September when the airline operated its final flight after losing its contract to fly on behalf of United. The airline’s website, which has been dormant since ceasing operations last fall, presently says that it plans to return later in 2021 as an independent airline.

The airline said in its statement that it plans to provide “high-quality, reliable, efficient point-to-point to small and medium sized cities that have lost services in recent years…” This is a promising idea because if we’ve learned anything in recent years, it’s that new airlines attempting point-to-point service to small and medium-sized cities always succeed.

ExpressJet has operated since 1984, almost exclusively as a regional carrier on behalf of other brands. As it brings itself back as an independent carrier, it will do so with its current fleet of grounded Embraer 145 aircraft. 

Southwest Gets Into the Spirit

Southwest Airlines submitted a letter to the DOT on Monday in support of the complaint filed by Spirit raising concerns about the American/JetBlue partnership announced last summer.

Southwest explains to the DOT that it raised many of the same concerns shared by Spirit in its own letter to the DOT written in July, two weeks after AA and B6 announced their new partnership. And Southwest came with receipts — the original letter is included in this complaint.

Both airlines are mostly concerned about the partnership’s stranglehold on slots at both New York/LaGuardia and Washington/National. Southwest notes that JetBlue received most of its slots at both DCA and LGA as part of a government slot divesture program, with JetBlue being a beneficiary due to its role as an independent LCC. But now, with its snuggling up with American, JetBlue no longer is an independent-LCC but rather a partner with The Man.

DOT representatives called JetBlue in order to get a response from the email, but when callers introduced themselves as being from the DOT, the only thing anyone from JetBlue would say is “new number, who dis?”

Airline Potpourri

  • Alaska placed 14 passengers on its permanent no-fly list after their behavior on a flight from Washington/Dulles to Seattle on Friday. This came two days after the 14 likely participated in a plot to overthrow the United States government.
  • Porter Airlines delayed its date of resumption for what seems like the 100th time, announcing it hopes to return to the skies March 27.
  • Rex and Virgin Australia are behind the new mandate in Australia to require facemasks throughout the air travel journey which began this weekend. Rex has required masks on-board since May. Previously the mask requirement only applied to flights to or from Victoria or New South Wales.
  • TransNusa, an Indonesian carrier, has agree to purchase 30 COMAC ARJ21-700 via an agreement with China Aircraft Leasing (CALC). With the purchase, TransNusa becomes COMAC’s first non-Chinese customer for its aircraft and claims the prize of a bobblehead of Chairman Mao that was being offered to the first non-Chinese airline to buy.
  • United became the last of the big-3 U.S. carriers to announce it is ending the practice of allowing emotional service animals onboard its aircraft.
  • Virgin Australia will reopen its lounges in Perth and Gold Coast (OOL) on Tuesday.
  • Volotea operated its final B717 flight on Sunday, sending its final few aircraft to the big airplane hangar in the sky Southern California.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

I always knock on the fridge before opening it. Just in case there’s a salad dressing.

January 8, 2021

Spirit Salty About American & JetBlue Partnership

Executives at Spirit Airlines must have read in yesterday’s Cranky Daily about Ryanair blaming the Irish government for the downturn in air travel during the pandemic. In order to keep up with its ULCC brethren, Spirit has submitted a complaint with the DOT about the partnership between American and JetBlue.

The gist of Spirit’s complaint is that the partnership between the two airlines will reduce competition in the Northeast, especially in New York. Spirit also believes the government did not stick its own policy of allowing public comment and challenging aspects of the partnership.

Spirit makes direct reference to other partnerships and mergers where the DOT forced airlines to divest themselves of slots in NYC. Those examples include 2010’s United/Continental merger, 2011’s Delta/US Airways slot swap, the 2013 AA/US Airways merger, and yesterday’s acquision of Lindor and Carrasco by the Mets which required giving up a whopping 4 players plus gates at the Marine Air Terminal. The airline also points out that American and JetBlue overlap on 26 routes out of Boston, LaGuardia and JFK, removing a competitor on those routes.

Spirit concludes by saying that at the very least, the government must permit third parties, such as Spirit, to formally review the agreements and submit comments. It’s unclear how many at the DOT and FAA will read the document, however, as Spirit sent it in a password protected PDF and will only provide the password for a one-time $9.99 fee.

Australia to Reduce International Arrivals Due to COVID Fears

Australia is reducing by half the number of international arrivals it will accept until at least February 15 in three of its states due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Each of the three will see its current weekly arrival totals reduced with New South Wales dropping to 1,505, Queensland from 1,000 to 500, and Western Australia from 1,024 to 512. Two additional states, Victoria and South Australia (aka North Antarctica), will continue to receive international arrivals at the same rate as both were already below the maximum threshold permitted by the federal government.

According to Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, 80% of Australians overseas are in countries where the new, more contagious strain of the virus has been detected. The current reductions are temporary until the government can receive a better grip on what effect the new strain of the virus will have in the coming weeks.

The nation will also require all international passengers to produce a negative COVID test before being allowed to board their flight to Australia. The test must be a PCR test, and a positive result will not only bar the passenger from flying to Australia but any other members from his or her household as well.

United to Refund Virus Test Fees for Delayed or Canceled Flights

With a virus test being a requirement for most international travel right now, United Airlines announced it will refund the cost of your test if there is a delay or cancellation within the airlines control (meaning not weather-related). This will protect customers who experience a delay or cancellation that pushes their arrival outside of the approved window for the test, which is usually 72 hours.

Customers who qualify can submit their test receipt with United and it will refund up to $200 per passenger. The value can also be converted into miles or an electronic travel certificate if you’re the kind of person who prefers restrictive credit from a corporation instead of actual money.

Top tier elites on United will see the offer extended further, with the airline even willing to refund the test if the delay is outside of the airline’s control, such as with weather. Customers are pushing to extend the refund to all United flights out of Newark — since they’re all likely to be delayed anyway — but United is holding off for now.

AirAsia India and Vistara Brace for Potential Merger

Indian conglomerate Tata Sons is considering merging two of its airline holdings, AirAsia India and Vistara, into one, larger Indian LCC.

Tata Sons took a crucial step toward a merger last month when it bought a significant amount of Christmas gifts portion of AirAsia India from AirAsia Group, increasing its ownership stake from 51% to 84%. Tata Sons has the right in its partnership agreement to increase its share all the way up to 100%, but will not make any decision until its current purchase transaction closes.

Tata Sons owns 51% of Vistara with Singapore Airlines holding the remaining 49%. Any merger between Tata’s two current airlines will require the OK from Singapore. In order to sweeten the pot, Tata Sons is prepared to license the recipe for the Singapore Sling and sell it onboard the new airline, with Singapore receiving a royalty for every drink sold. 

Lastly, Tata Sons is also in the mix for a bid on India’s largest carrier, Air India. If it wins the bid for the Star Alliance carrier, it is also considering merging all three airlines into one mega money-losing carrier. 

Air Canada’s Aeroplan & Virgin Australia Team Up

In a partnership that is surely to be approved by #1 Commonwealth fan, Her Majesty the Queen, Air Canada and its new-and-improved Aeroplan will partner with the new-and-improved (maybe) Virgin Australia, with the tie-up effective on June 19. Virgin Australia will be the fourth partner of Aeroplan from outside the Star Alliance to sign on.

The two airlines have codeshared on AC’s three destinations in Australia — Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney — that it operated prior to the pandemic. But with the new agreement, Aeroplan members will be able to redeem their mileage on all Virgin Australia flights via aeroplan.com 

Aeroplan members can also earn miles on Virgin Australia flights, with the percentage of miles flown earned dependent on a pre-boarding test on Australian history and check on how authentically Canadian the passenger’s accent appears to be.

Airline Potpourri

  • airBaltic announced that it flew 1.34 million passengers in 2020, a 70% drop from 2019.
  • British Airways is generously bringing back free water and snacks for short-haul economy. As always on BA, passengers are free to use the restroom without asking for permission.
  • Delta and JetBlue are the latest airlines to ban emotional support animals aboard their aircraft.
  • EGO Airlines, an Italian start-up that thinks very highly of itself, plans to begin service March 28. The airline has announced its inaugural route network which it believes to be truly outstanding, and began selling tickets yesterday.
  • Israir and Etihad signed an agreement to permit Israir pilots to train at Etihad’s facility in Abu Dhabi.
  • Royal Air Maroc plans to start new service to Dubai with 3x-weekly flights beginning March 28.
  • WestJet plans to further reduce its schedule which will lead to cuts for as many as 1,000 employees. The airline will keep as many employees as it can via pleas for reduced hours and unpaid leave, but also expects some employees to be laid off or furloughed.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

I had a dream last night the government announced we would be changing from pounds to kilograms. There was mass confusion.

January 7, 2021

Flight Attendants Union Wants Rioters Banned from the Skies

The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, the largest flight attendant union in the country, is pushing for the pro-Trump rioters who stormed into the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday to be barred from flying home.

The union is concerned for the safety of its members and other passengers on-board, with Wednesday’s seditious breach of the Capitol having been preceded by multiple incidents on-board planes en route to Washington earlier this week.

U.S. airlines are stepping up their safety and security measures this week, but realistically there’s no way to identify most who were or were not at the Capitol yesterday (except for this guy who wisely wore his work ID as he committed a crime), and there isn’t legal standing to prevent them from boarding an airplane. That being said, we strongly believe that denying boarding to anyone who dresses like this in public is good airline policy — terrorist or not.

In a memo to its staff sent late Wednesday, Delta Air Lines stated that it was working with safety, security, and law enforcement to increase security efforts at the big three Washington airports: DCA, IAD, and BWI. American Airlines announced it would not be offering alcohol on its flights to or from any of those Washington airports, which may seem prudent, but often the booze is the only enjoyable part of an AA flight.

Boeing to Pay $2.5 Billion in MAX Settlement

Boeing and the U.S. Department of Justice agreed today that Boeing will pay a $2.5 billion settlement to resolve the criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States following a DOJ investigation into the two 737 MAX crashes that killed 346 people. Pretty sure that’s not the kind of thing Boeing will be putting on its LinkedIn page.

The settlement is part of a deferred prosecution agreement and includes a criminal monetary penalty of $243.6 million, $1.77 billion in compensation to the airlines that operated the MAX, and $500 million to a crash-victims beneficiaries fund.

As part of the deal, the DOJ agrees to defer further prosecution of Boeing and will dismiss the charge in three years, provided the manufacturer abides by the obligations it agreed to with the DOJ over the three-year period.

Man Applauded Sentenced for Defrauding Spirit

Hubbard Bell, a former employee of regional carrier Mesa Airlines was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison after his conviction for fraudulently obtaining more than 2,000 free flights for himself and his friends on Spirit. When asked his thoughts on the jail term, Bell said that after spending that much time jammed up in the seats aboard Spirit, he was confident his jail cell would be an upgrade.

An employee burden perk for Mesa employees included free tickets on Spirit, by entering personal information on Spirit’s web portal for Mesa employees. After being fired from Mesa in November 2017 — which is surprising because it seems like this guy would be a model employee — Bell worked with his fellow henchmen to sell stolen and unauthorized information about current Mesa employees to access the web portal for the free flights.

He even manufactured fake Mesa employee ID cards for the fraudulent travelers in order to appear to be the employees they were impersonating.

 At sentencing the judge said that he considered all facts of the case and felt a 30-month sentence was plenty, along with restitution of the base value of the stolen tickets. 1,953 flights were found to be flown fraudulently, leading Bell to owe Spirit $12,540 in restitution, after an average of just $6.42 base fare per flight. The judge, who is likely EXP on AA has no idea about all of Spirit’s bases and fees, letting Bell off light.

Ireland to Require Negative PCR Test for Arrivals from Great Britain and South Africa

Beginning January 9, all arrivals into Ireland from either South Africa or the strange foreign nation of Great Britain will be required to provide a negative PCR test upon arrival into the country. If unable, they will be cursed at, given a pint of beer, and sent back whence they came.

Ireland had banned flights from Great Britain for the last several days, but the ban will expire at midnight on January 8, being replaced by the new, stricter testing measures.

Aer Lingus, which had halted all flights between Ireland and the UK plans to resume flights on Saturday. It will enforce the Irish order during the boarding process in the UK gateway. Passengers who cannot produce the test will be denied boarding.

Angry Man Screams at Cloud Ryanair Reduces Traffic Forecast

Ryanair has reduced the total number of passengers it expects to carry in the fiscal year ending March 2021 from 35 million to between 25 and 30 million.

As is it’s wont to do, the airline put our a statement angrily blaming the governments of Ireland and the United Kingdom for being responsible for its ills and struggles. Specifically, it takes issues with lockdowns and border closings, preventing the airline from flying its full schedule. While it seems likely that both governments have made a misstep or two, as all governments inevitably might, just once the government needs to put out a release detailing all the things it believes Ryanair has done wrong with its business.

On the bright side, Ryanair believes the thousands of canceled flight won’t lead to further losses on its bottom line because they would have been money-losing flights anyway. So to sum up, Ryanair wants Ireland and the UK to drop lockdowns and border closings so it can transport more passengers on flights that it knows will not make money. Okay.

In a statement released by the airline, Ryanair ranted, “NPHET [Ireland’s Public Health Team], which we believe has mismanaged many aspects of Ireland’s Covid response….” We understand Ryanair also blames the Irish health group for yesterday’s assault on the U.S. Capitol and for Ireland’s poor showing on the world soccer stage.

Airline Potpourri

  • Air HongKong is taking delivery of a new A330-343 to use for its partnership with DHL transporting cargo to the island.
  • Alaska is adding two new routes to Southern California. Daily nonstop service from LAX to Austin will begin on March 18 and will increase to 3x-daily on May 20. Daily nonstop service from San Diego to New York/JFK will begin April 4.
  • Cathay Pacific will resume flying from Hong Kong to London/Heathrow on January 12. Flights back to Hong Kong from London will remain suspended through at least January 25.
  • Lufthansa has raised €500 million since July for aircraft financing. Kudos to them.
  • Norwegian is returning many of its planes — up to 72 of them — back to Shannon (SNN) to be returned to lessors.
  • SkySafari will launch the first-ever East Africa private plane safari to Kenya and Tanzania in May.
  • Vistara will operate twice-weekly service between Delhi and Frankfurt beginning February 18.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

My least-favorite color is purple. I dislike it more than red and blue combined.

January 6, 2021

Kaua’i Launches World’s Most Scenic COVID Bubbles

The Hawaiian Island of Kaua’i will begin its “resort bubble” program today, in which visitors to the island can opt-out of the required 10-day quarantine by staying at one of the six resorts (with more to come) that are part of the island’s “enhanced movement quarantine” program.

When the State of Hawai’i offered the chance to be exempt from the mandatory state quarantine with a negative test from one of the state’s trusted testing partners, Kaua’i was the only island to opt-out of the program, due to concerns about the rising positive cases on the island. But the EMQ program will hopefully jump-start tourism to the island, providing visitors the chance to move freely about their resort while wearing a bracelet that ensures they do not leave under penalty of death.

The bracelet must be worn for 72 hours upon arrival, at which point a second negative test will allow the visitor to have completed the program. The program can be extended past 72 hours at the request of a spouse who wants to know what the hell his or her significant other does all day and would find the tracking data useful. Children everywhere are clamoring for the bracelet to be given to literary star Waldo in order to make his books less challenging, but those requests have so far been denied by Hawai’i governor David Ige. 

IAG Tweaks Corporate Structure to Protect Aer Lingus and Iberia 

IAG has altered the controlling ownership in both Aer Lingus and Iberia — ensuring both airlines are compliant with EU investor laws that came to be in the wake of Brexit — to retain its access to the internal market of the European Union.

In doing so, the airline placed Aer Lingus in the hands of a local trust to keep its Irish-ness and be EU-compliant. IAG has long claimed that Iberia is controlled by Spaniards in Spain, led by the Spanish department store chain El Corte Inglés. In Spanish, that translates to “The Corte Inglés.”

When the United Kingdom left the EU due to Brexit last week, companies, including airlines, were left scrambling to make sure they were primarily owned by EU-based holding groups not the UK, to maintain their EU status.  IAG also adjusted the makeup of its Board of Directors ensuring it was majority-led by EU nationals. Non-IAG airlines Ryanair, Wizz Air and easyJet have undertaken similar alterations to the corporate structures in recent weeks. 

DOT Finalizes Supersonic Flight Rules

The FAA and the DOT issued final rules to help pave the way for supersonic commercial flight to be introduced once again to the U.S. market. The government rules provide guidance for companies itching to lose money operating fly faster than the speed of sound. 

Boom, which is finalizing a $50 million funding round, introduced its demonstration jet in October. It is hoping for a 2025 rollout for its supersonic flights in the U.S. Other startups, such as Hermeus are pursuing supersonic flight for commercial operations.

SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, and others are exploring supersonic flight and point-to-point flying through the outer edge of the Earth’s atmosphere that could potentially reduce flight times by a significant amount. Unfortunately, there’s no supersonic option on the taxiway at JFK or Newark, so passengers will still enjoy lengthy wait times for takeoff and for a gate to open upon arrival, despite how fast their aircraft flew enroute.

Israir to Cut Staff, Consider Ending Saturday Flying

Israir is continuing to struggle financially amidst the pandemic, and the airline plans to cut another 15% of its workforce — roughly 60 employees – in 2021. The airline currently has approximately 400 staff on its payroll with 55% on unpaid leave.

In addition to cutting staff, the airline is considering ending its service on Saturday, the slowest day of the week for all airlines. It’s even more so in Israel as Saturday is the sabbath for the Jewish faith, and many who observe adhere to the practice of not working — which includes most everything, including taking a flight.

In the meantime, the airline is hopeful that its recent sale to BGI Investments will help it turn the tide in 2021. Israel is expecting to have the vast majority of its citizens vaccinated sooner than most — hopefully by the summer — which could hopefully give Israir, its chief rival El Al, and other Israeli airlines a leg up on returning to profitability. 

Delta Tamps Down the Spice

Delta Air Lines removed its objection with the DOT, paving the way for Indian carrier SpiceJet to receive its exemption to operate passenger flights between India and the United States.

Delta had submitted the objection because it felt it was unfairly being denied access to codeshare with JV partner KLM on flights from Amsterdam to India. The Indian authorities have since granted Delta’s request to codeshare with KLM, leading to Delta to rescind its objection.

Rumors began to swirl that Delta’s objection would likely be pulled when astute observers saw Delta CEO Ed Bastian spend an excessive amount of time at the spice rack of a local Atlanta Whole Foods.

Airline Potpourri

  • Air New Zealand will begin quarantine-free flights between Auckland and Brisbane. Three of the weekly flights will be quarantine-free, with the remaining two weekly services for passengers who will still require quarantine.
  • China Airlines will operate its final 747 passenger flight on February 6.
  • GLOBALX a Florida-based startup, took delivery of its first A320 aircraft on last Friday as it ramps up to complete its certification by this March.
  • T’way Air has acquired t’wo A330s for long-haul flying.
  • WestJet plans to resume 737 MAX flying on January 21 with three weekly roundtrips on the aircraft between Calgary and Toronto/Pearson.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

My neighbor Jack says he can communicate with vegetables. Jack and the beans talk.

January 5, 2021

U.S. Airlines Push for Virus Tests for All International Travel

U.S. airlines support the Center for Disease Control’s recommendation that all international travelers to the United States be required to produce a negative virus test within 72 hours of departure to be permitted to travel.

Airlines for America (A4A), the industry trade group, informed Vice President Pence in a letter on Monday that it is supportive of the CDC’s testing requirement in lieu of travel restrictions that are constantly changing.

Testing rules would apply to all international travelers while replacing current travel bans from certain countries including Brazil and the United Kingdom. The new requirement would also apply to travelers flying out of Florida, because people from Florida are generally crazy, so the more testing they endure — regardless of the type — can only help.

IATA has said for months that testing is the best pathway to reopening the skies to international travel absent the vaccine. Examples showing the strength of testing include the State of Hawai’i where flights to the islands doubled overnight when it announced its pre-travel testing program as a way to opt-out of quarantine. One thing to keep in mind, people like going to Hawai’i, so other countries… your mileage may vary.

Aussie Government to Qantas: Slow Your Roll

One day after Qantas felt confident enough to put international flying back on sale for a resumption date of July 1, the Australian government told the airline its decision might be premature.

Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack who is also the Transport Minister, said today that the government would decided when international travel would resume — not Qantas. The airline’s decision to open bookings beginning July 1 reflected its own expectation of the worldwide vaccine rollout after consulting with experts. Qantas also reminded the Deputy Prime Minister that July 1 is the dead of winter in Australia and… who wants to be stuck at home for that?

Despite the government pushback, the airline plans to move forward with its July 1 planned resumption, telling passengers that if flights have not resumed on that date, ticketed passengers would receive refunds, be given a credit, or inherit fractional ownership in a kangaroo farm in Tasmania.

Delta Tells GoGo it’s GoGoing to Use a New Wifi Partner

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Delta Air Lines announced its plans to shift away from GoGo, agreeing to a partnership with high-speed provider Viasat. Along with Viasat, the airline now intends to launch a Delta-developed access portal to enhance the online experience in-flight. Delta expects the new portal to be “practically free.” (It will charge 1,000 Skymiles for access which have so little value, the airline is legally able to call it free.)

Viasat’s technology, according to Delta, adds significant capabilities to its on-board network, increasing entertainment options while giving passengers faster and more consistent connections. The technology also give passengers the ability to quiet crying babies on-board for a nominal fee and to control weather along the route and at your final destination for a substantial fee. (One of those things if you need to ask how much — you can’t afford it).

Delta will begin to install the new service on a limited number of narrowbody aircraft this summer, with an eventual plan to have more than 300 planes with the new service. Viasat is already involved with several U.S. carriers, as it is the provider of JetBlue’s FlyFi, as well as internet service on select American and United planes.

A key distinction between Viasat and GoGo is that Viasat controls the entire online experience, making it more possible for the airline to control costs and offer free internet to all passengers — eventually. Viasat also says that its proprietary technology is able to make Biscoff cookies just a bit sweeter and on-board beer just a bit colder when connected to its network.

Air NZ Adds Stop in Honolulu Due to California COVID Spike

Effective February 2, Air New Zealand’s twice-weekly service between Auckland and Los Angeles will stop in Honolulu for a crew change.

When the plane stops in Honolulu, passengers will not be permitted to deplane but will be permitted to stare longingly out the window. The stop allows for a quick crew change before the plane continues the last third of its journey to Los Angeles. 

Air New Zealand is looking out for the health of its flight crew, as the virus is under control far more in Hawai’i than in Southern California. Flight attendants will work from Auckland to Honolulu, and have a three-day layover on Oahu. Then, they’ll fly a same-day turn, operating HNL-LAX and back to HNL, where they’ll receive another three-day layover, before working HNL-AKL to return home.

The airline is also operating cargo-only flights from Auckland to both Los Angeles and San Francisco — the cargo flights will also stop in Honolulu for a crew change. Air New Zealand’s pilots and flight attendants objected to the move, because that’s what they have to do. “Please, no,” they said, “don’t force us to spend six days in Hawai’i, that sounds horrible. We’d much prefer to spend it in a LAX airport hotel.”

Ethiopian Partners with African Electronic Trade Group

Ethiopian Airlines, the largest airline in Africa, announced a partnership with the African Electronic Trade Group to transfer historical artifacts within the African Continental Free Trade Area. The first batch of cargo is comprised of small, fragile trophies needing to be shipped to several African countries. The items are handmade by artisans in the Kingdom of Eswatini from recycled glass and then converted into tray tables for airplanes items of beauty.

Ethiopian is already in business with DHL, transporting cargo across the continent from its hub in Addis Ababa (ADD) on behalf of the worldwide shipping giant. The new partnership is designed to invoke the start of trading as part of AfCFTA to enhance business opportunities thought the continent, with the shipment of the trophies to be the start of a new era in trade and shipping between African nations.

The first shipment of trophies arrived to ADD on Friday and are on their way to their new homes. As part of the agreement, the priceless cargo will receive ET’s ShebaMiles for their flights, but the miles are not transferrable so only the original trophy may redeem them for future travel.

Airline Potpourri

  • Aer Lingus is suspending its flights between Ireland and the United Kingdom until January 9.
  • Bangkok Air is delaying the start of three new routes, temporarily suspending three routes, and reducing frequency of five others. It is also closing all lounges from January 8 to January 31.
  • Caribbean Airlines is suspending its service to Havana indefinitely.
  • NetJets‘ pilots union ratified a new collective bargaining agreement that will be in place through 2026.
  • TUI had a €1.25 billion cash infusion from the German government approved by the EU commission.
  • United Flight 3788 en route from Washington/Dulles to Syracuse on Monday diverted to Elmira, NY (ELM) after the pilots reported engine trouble. The passengers were relieved when the plane landed safely in Elmira because anywhere — literally anywhere — is better than Syracuse in January… even Elmira.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

What do you call a paper airplane that can’t fly? Stationary.

January 4, 2021

Oh Canada: True North Strong and PCR-Tested

Effective this Thursday, January 7, Canada will require all international travelers arriving into Canada to have tested negative for the virus. The test must have been a PCR test taken within 72 hours of departure to Canada.

The new policy applies to all passengers five and older and must be presented at the check-in desk prior to boarding the aircraft to Canada. Passengers will also be required to score at least 70% on an NHL history test and select a drawing of Wayne Gretzky out of a lineup or risk denied boarding. 

Airlines have been pleading with the government to eliminate the quarantine in favor of stricter testing requirements. It appears the government was only half-listening, because despite adding the test requirement, Canada is not altering its 14-day mandatory quarantine for all visitors. This means anyone arriving in Canada must have a negative test and undergo a 14-day quarantine. While the combo of a test and quarantine might be enough to discourage visitors, the fact that we’re heading into the dead of winter should keep voluntary travel to Canada down on its own.

Those violating the self-quarantine face stiff penalties including up to six months in prison and/or $750,000 in fines plus a required one-season stint sitting with screaming parents at youth hockey games.

Qantas Hopeful for July 1 Reopening of Australia’s Borders

After drinking way too much champagne on New Year’s Eve, Qantas has surprisingly opened international travel bookings for flights beginning July 1. It’s an optimistic move considering the airline has shut off all international travel since March with — until now — no sign of a change.

Flights available include its famed Kangaroo route to London/Heathrow and to Los Angeles. Missing on the restart are routes such as its Project Sunrise route from Sydney to New York/JFK. Brisbane to Chicago/O’Hare, which was initially slated to begin on April 15, does not have a new date to begin either. Sydney to Santiago, Chile is also not yet ready to return, but the airline does plan to resume flying to Johannesburg on July 1.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce is optimistic that his airline can resume flying all over the world this summer, but admits that it’s not a guarantee, stating “for some of our big destination like the United States and the UK, it’s going to need a vaccine given the high prevalence of the virus in both of those locations.”

Ryanair to Cancel 12 UK Domestic Routes, Blames Brexit Rules

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After an argument with the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Ryanair has chosen to take its ball routes away and go home.

The airline and CAA are in disagreement on the UK government’s wet-lease policy prohibiting airlines with a large presence in the UK relying on foreign-registered aircraft for its operation in the country. Ryanair’s use of foreign-registered aircraft in the UK is a new development — in fact, its fleet just became foreign-registered at midnight on Friday when the UK and Ireland became officially foreign. Prior to Brexit, they were one big happy EU family.  Now, not so much.

Ryanair’s objection (one of many objections, if we’re honest) is that, according to the airline, the CAA made this restriction on December 21, giving it just 10 days to comply. The CAA claims this is long-standing policy and Ryanair is full of it. Ryanair is definitely full of it, but it doesn’t mean it is wrong on this issue.

The best job to have for job security during the pandemic must be staff attorney at Ryanair. This issue will surely end up in court at some time in the coming months, but in the meantime, it will end 12 domestic routes, likely sending those planes on routes elsewhere until Ryanair gets angry about something else and takes someone else to court.

Saudi Arabia and Qatar Agree to Reopen Airspace

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the State of Qatar are in agreement to re-open land, sea, and air borders effective immediately. With the agreement, Qatar Airways will no longer have to contort itself around Saudi Arabian airspace for the first time since 2017 when Saudi Arabia joined Bahrain, Egypt, and the UAE with a blockage on Qatar.

The agreement was announced by Kuwait, which had been mediating the U.S.-led deal between both countries. Following its success in the Gulf, Kuwaiti negotiators are expected to fly to the United States tonight to help Major League Baseball make a decision on whether or not it will keep the DH in the National League for the 2021 season and beyond. (It’s rumored that Kuwait secretly despises the DH, so we support this plan.)

Qatar’s location on a peninsula bordering Saudi Arabia — the only country Qatar shares a border with — caused significant rerouting for flights. Saudi Arabia’s land mass is 20 times that of Qatar, dwarfing the nation while creating major navigational challenges. Perhaps the only group unhappy with today’s announcement are those comfortably ensconced in Qatar Airways’ Q-Suites product who will now have less time to enjoy it.

Stray Bullets Strike MEA A321s

Four brand-new A321neo aircraft belonging to Middle East Airlines were found to have been struck by stray bullets during New Year’s Eve celebrations in Beirut Thursday night.

Per AvGeek law, even though the shootings were in celebration and not an act of violence, the perpetrators, if found, will be immediately sentenced to live in the overhead bins on those airplanes either for 30 days or until the aircraft are ready to re-enter service, whichever is longer.

Airline Potpourri

  • American will join Alaska in eliminating the emotional support animal loophole, allowing only qualified service animals in its cabin for free. Expect the other major U.S. domestic airlines to follow suit soon.
  • Flybig, the newest Indian airline startup and big brother to Flysmall, inaugurated operations with a flight yesterday from Indore (IDR) to Ahmedabad (AMD).
  • Guizhou Airlines has taken delivery of its fourth A320neo.
  • Lao Airlines has indefinitely suspended its charter services. If you need to find alternate charter options within Laos, Cranky Concierge is always just a click away.
  • Qantas will swap the aircraft on its Kangaroo Route — London/Heathrow to Sydney — from an A380 to a Boeing 787 Dreamliner when it resumes the route on July 1.
  • Pakistan International Airlines owes $6 billion to gold and copper exploration giant Tethyan Copper Company (TCC). The High Court of Justice in the British Virgin Islands — where PIA is incorporated, because of course it is — will hold a hearing where it could its assets seized by the court. This is sure to end well for everyone involved.
  • Qatar is increasing its frequency to 10 weekly flights from Doha to São Paulo/Guarulhos. It is also adding its QF code onto 45 additional LATAM Brasil flights.

Andrew’s Moment of Levity

A man walked into a liquor store and the guy behind the counter asked “Do you need any help?” And the man said “Yes, but I’m here to get bourbon instead.”