Flair Airlines Removes Carry-on Fees

Flair Airlines, the airline that is reinventing domestic air travel in Canada, announced it will no longer charge passengers for carry-on luggage.  The removal of charges took effect 1st December 2017 for anyone booking their flights in December; Flair will remove the $30 carry-on baggage fee.

"We have listened very closely to the input from our passengers," said Chris Lapointe, Vice President Commercial Operations. "Removing the carry-on baggage fee is something that we are excited to do as an airline.  We know how important this is to the travelling public in Canada."

Flair Airlines allows for one small personal item, and now one carry-on bag per person free of charge.  Standard luggage sizes apply.  Passengers will be required to pay for other checked bags.  "We want our passengers to have a positive experience with us, and if that requires us removing this fee, then we are delighted to respond," stated Lapointe.

Porter's seasonal service to Myrtle Beach resumes on Valentines Day.

Toronto residents now is the time to start planning your first getaway of the new year as Porter Airlines resumes seasonal service to Myrtle Beach, beginning 14th February 2018. 

Ideal for all you snowbirds, lovers, families or anyone that fancies a little holiday sunshine, Myrtle Beach is a wonderful destination.  There is lots to see and do plus it is also an elite golf destination. There are more than 100 courses in the area ready to challenge all skill levels, but if golf is not your thing or you think it just spoils a good walk, then worry not, there are loads of other things to do!   60 miles of beaches and they're gorgeous! Sparkling waters, white sands, endless possibilities. Great restaurants too, well what would you expect from the seafood capital of SC!  Oh, and of course you must take a revolution on the biggest big wheel on the east coast. 

The short flight from Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport makes Myrtle Beach an ideal destination for a taste of warmer weather. Flights operate twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays, with added frequency during March Break. Service concludes on May 19. Porter offers the only non-stop flights from Canada.

"This is the time to get a head start on holiday planning," said Robert Deluce, president and CEO of Porter Airlines. "Having a trip booked gives you something to look forward to once the holidays wrap up."

Lucky escape as ATR42 crashes in Canada

There was a remarkably lucky escape for the 22 passengers and 3 crew of an ATR42-320 aircraft belonging to West Wind Aviation crashed on 13th December just after take-off around 1 km from Fond-du-Lac Airport, Saskatchewan, Canada. 

All 22 passengers and 3 crew members on board the ATR 42-320 registration C-GWEA were rescued after the aircraft came down at approximately 18.15 local Canadian time yesterday evening.   The police advised that first responders got to the scene as quickly as possible and worked rapidly to remove the 22 passengers which included an infant and the 3 crew from the aircraft wreckage. 

Many people were injured in the crash and transferred to hospital and whilst the full extent of their injuries are not immediately clear, none are thought to be life-threatening conditions. 

“We train for incidents like this. First and foremost is the well-being of the passengers and crew. With all the hectic activity in this kind of incident, it’s really important to make sure that they’re front and centre and that they’re the focus.” Rick Philipenko, vice-president and chief financial officer of the Saskatoon-based West Wind Aviation said. 

Inside the ATR

Mr Philipenko said the area of the crash site is now under the control of authorities and the TSB,  “We’re an observer when we’re there on site. Our role primarily is to make sure the passengers and crew are looked after.”

The company initially posted the following message on its Facebook page, but there has been no official statement or update from the airline since last night. 

West Wind Aviation has been in operation since 1983 and flies from bases in Saskatoon, La Ronge and Stony Rapids, as well as in northern Saskatchewan.  In 2016 it bought out Transwest Air which added a number of aircraft to its fleet which included 5 ATR42's Twin Otters and Beech 1900C and D's. On its website, it proudly proclaims “Our safety record is exemplary and our customer service exceptional,” the company states on its website. “Fly with West Wind and we take care, for you.”

There has been no immediate reaction from the TSB who are at the scene investigating as to the cause of the accident.  

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The biggest Christmas Tree in the World?

Is, or rather was, this the biggest Christmas Tree in the world? 

An Airbus A380 for Emirates was on a test flight and through careful route planning and meticulous piloting the jet drew a massive Christmas Tree - complete with bauble decorations. The route was captured by Flightradar24 and shared on twitter many hundreds of times.

🎄 Finished! A Christmas tree and ‘tree topper’ by an @Airbus A380.https://t.co/CEadIGqKtt pic.twitter.com/eDclHp0Hum

— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) 13 December 2017

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The uncertain future of Niki

The fate of the Austrian subsidiary of Air Berlin, Niki seemed relatively certain a few days ago after Lufthansa had agreed to buy it as part of its rescue deal for Air Berlin. However European regulators expressed concern over competition in the region and so the German flag carrier Lufthansa has been forced to scrap its plans to buy Niki on Wednesday.  The surprise move has grounded the airlines fleet of aircraft and stranded thousands of passengers. The airlines managing director said was a “national disaster for Austria”.

The email message advising the end of Niki

Austria’s Transport Ministry indicated that there were approximately 5,000 Niki passengers stranded overseas over the next few weeks. Some would be able to get special 'rescue' fares with other airlines, including Eurowings and Tui.   

The airlines' administrator started urgent talks today in an effort to secure a purchaser for the beleaguered airline founded by former racing driver Niki Lauda. The administrators believe they must act with extreme urgency or else the airline may lose one of its most valuable assets, its runway slots!


Generally speaking in Europe, after the bankruptcy of an airline, the expensive runway slots are returned to a central pool from which they are redistributed to other airlines. Unless of course a buy has been found for the bankrupt airline. 

One of the administrators, Frank Kebekus hoped a deal for Niki could be agreed before the end of the year. “If we had that, then we can certainly take another week or two in January to finalize it,” he told local media. 

Local media is also reporting that there are five companies that have expressed an interest in buying the airline business. Although according to Wolfgang Katzian of Austrian union GPA said there were four interested parties, but refused to name them.

Earlier in the year, before the Lufthansa deal was in place, Niki Lauda offered around €100 million in partnership with Condor - part of Thomas Cook for Niki and 17 aircraft.  Yesterday he expressed to local radio that he was still interested in taking over the company - this time without a business partner.

The future is looking incredibly uncertain, for both passengers and staff - who still don't know for sure if they are going to get their wages for November. 

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WestJet announces frequent flyer redemption with Qantas

WestJet announced that members of WestJet Rewards can now redeem their WestJet dollars on Member Exclusive fares to destinations in the Qantas Airways (Qantas) network including Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland.

WestJet announced that members of WestJet Rewards can now redeem their WestJet dollars on to destinations in the Qantas Airways (Qantas) network including Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland. (CNW Group/WestJet)

"We are delighted to deepen our partnership with Qantas and bring even more global travel options to our WestJet Rewards members," said Ed Sims, WestJet Executive Vice-President, Commercial. "Offering Qantas' premium products, service, and flight network to our members is a further example of WestJet Rewards taking our guests even more places they want to go."

Member Exclusive fares provide great value and access to more than 450 partner destinations around the globe for bucket-list travel to places like Paris, Amsterdam, Rome, Shanghai and Hong Kong.  

More information on WestJet Rewards Member Exclusive fares and partner airlines can be found at westjet.com/here. 

Southwest add flights for US footie fans

 Southwest Airlines  announced new flights that'll get football fans from Oklahoma City and Atlanta to Los Angeles just in time for New Year's Day kickoff in one of college football's biggest games of the year.

Based on the demand from fans in Oklahoma and Georgia, the carrier added additional nonstop options for fans to get to the bowl game in Pasadena, Calif. The carrier added the following flights to its schedule:

ApplePay is the new way for Finnair

Finnair has introduced this week a new way to pay,  Apple Pay, which is transforming mobile payments with an easy, secure and private way to pay that’s fast and convenient.

Finnair customers can now use Apple Pay for ticket and ancillary purchases on Finnair’s mobile website and using the Finnair mobile application. Apple Pay is available for Finnair customers using iOS mobile devices globally in those markets where Apple has implemented the payment method.   

Security and privacy is at the core of Apple Pay. When you use a credit or debit card with Apple Pay, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device, nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted and securely stored in the Secure Element on your device. Each transaction is authorized with a one-time unique dynamic security code.

Norwegian buys more slots at London Gatwick for more expansion

One of the World's most popular low-cost air carriers, Norwegian, has confirmed today it has acquired an additional 28 weekly slots at London Gatwick Airport from summer 2018. The take-off and landing slots, purchased from Small Planet Airlines, will allow Norwegian to plan for continued growth at Gatwick as the airline heads into its busiest ever year in the UK in 2018.

London Gatwick is at the heart of Norwegian’s fast-growing UK operation, where the airline already flies more than 4.6 million passengers each year to over 30 global destinations. Norwegian’s route network at Gatwick includes affordable long-haul flights to 9 US cities and Singapore, with further long-haul routes to Argentina, Chicago and Austin launching early next year.

Planning work is now underway to allocate the newly acquired 28 weekly slots which cover the busy summer 2018 period at London Gatwick.

Norwegian Chief Commercial Officer Thomas Ramdahl said: “London Gatwick is at the heart of our global growth ambitions so securing these crucial new slots will allow us to offer our passengers' even more new routes, additional flights and affordable fares. Together with the launch of new routes to Argentina, Chicago and Austin in 2018, gaining extra capacity at London Gatwick is another huge boost as we get ready for our biggest ever year in the UK.”

Read on to see the next famous face to be featured on a tail of a sleek Norwegian jet.

Lufthansa makes further concessions to EU Commission

Lufthansa has made further concessions today in the course of the intended acquisition of parts of the Air Berlin Group. The transaction is currently being examined by the EU Commission as the responsible merger control authority. In the so-called Phase One assessment, Lufthansa had already offered extensive commitments in particular by giving up slots. However, the Commission considers this to be insufficient and has clearly indicated that an acquisition of Niki and its integration into the Eurowings Group would currently not be approved. Based on this assessment, a takeover of Niki by Eurowings is no longer being pursued. 

Takeover of Niki no longer pursued

Offer to give up further slots for still intended takeover of  Luftfahrtgesellschaft Walter (LGW) 

Lufthansa has today informed both Air Berlin and its administrator that it intends to close the transaction excluding the acquisition of Niki. 

With regard to the still intended takeover of Luftfahrtgesellschaft Walter (LGW), Lufthansa would give up numerous slots in order to obtain merger clearance in Phase One. The revised commitments will be submitted to the EU Commission today.  

The Lufthansa Group maintains its plan of expanding its point-to-point business increasingly through organic growth of the Eurowings Group.

A share of the agreed purchase price for Niki has already been transferred to the company as bridge financing. The unpaid purchase price components will now be used for the organic capacity expansion in Niki's markets. Economically, this leads to a comparable result for the Lufthansa Group.

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Wizz Air Aviation 100 European Airline of the year

Wizz Air, the largest low-cost airline in Central and Eastern Europe, has taken the top prize of ‘European Airline of the Year’ at Aviation 100. The award was received by Owain Jones, Wizz Air’s Chief Corporate Officer, at the Airline Economics Growth Frontiers London 2017 conference gala dinner in London.

Aviation 100 praised Wizz Air for its outstanding year of growth, which has seen the airline achieve record passenger numbers, further expand its far-reaching network and announce a game-changing order of 146 Airbus A320neo Family aircraft at the Dubai Airshow. 

Winners of the high-profile awards, which recognize the year’s most outstanding performers in the aerospace industry, are decided primarily by an industry-wide survey sent out to a global distribution list of more than 10,000 names over a two-month period. Nominations for each category are also accepted and are judged using a combination of points awarded for specific criteria. Aviation 100 ranks the top ten performers in each category with the winner receiving a coveted outstanding achievement award.

Official Launch of the Air China Beijing - Brisbane Route

On 10th December 2017, Air China held a launch ceremony for the inaugural flight on its new route between Beijing and Brisbane. The ceremony was attended by a number of distinguished guests, including Andrew Hogg, Regional General Manager at North Asia at Tourism Australia; Nick Elliott, executive of Government Affairs Department at Tourism and Events Queensland; Charley Shen, director for Greater China Region at Tourism and Events Queensland; and Xulun Hou, vice president of Air China.

At the launch ceremony, Air China's vice president Xulun Hou remarked: "This new route between Beijing and Brisbane is Air China's sixth non-stop route between China and Australia. Brisbane is also Air China's third Australian destination, after Sydney and Melbourne. The establishment of this new route is part of Air China's global expansion of its route network and improvement of links between China and Australia. The launch of the route will provide a convenient transport link that should spur trade, business cooperation and tourism between Beijing and Queensland."

Leanne Coddington, CEO of Tourism and Events Queensland, stated: "This is the first ever air corridor between China's capital, Beijing, and Brisbane, the capital of Queensland state. This represents a major milestone for the state of Queensland. It is expected that the new route will carry almost 170,000 new visitors to Queensland over the next four years. The route makes it easier for Chinese tourists to reach Brisbane, which is a gateway to the Gold Coast, the Whitsunday Islands and other well-known travel destinations. Chinese visitors are now only half a day away from Queensland's mild climate, pristine beaches and jaw-dropping Great Barrier Reef."

The BIZclass is coming for Eurowings

Eurowings will be the first low-cost airline to offer a business class on selected long-haul flights at the beginning of the summer timetable 2018. 

The budget airlines has called its new premier offering BIZclass to represent a more modern and less stuffy image of the tradition 'business class' mantle. The airline will premiere its BIZclass poduct at the world's largest ITB travel fair in early March 2018 in Berlin. 

The airline in indicates the cabin and product will be introduced on flights some time during April 2018, the exact date still hasn't been finalised. 

On Tuesday 12th December Eurowings published a first photo of their new BIZclass via social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter. The announcement and photo was designed to be a sweet teaser to customers and indicate what they can look forward to on the carriers long-haul flights next year. 

Eurowings says BIZclass will offer seats with more legroom, more service and, of course, the seat itself is larger and more comfortable. The new BIZclass seat can be fully automatically transformed into a bed of about two meters in length allowing passengers to get a "full flat" bed at the touch of a button in just moments, perfect for relaxing during a long flight. 

Saudi Airlines receives its last Airbus A330

The national airline of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Airlines took delivery of its last Airbus A330-300 from the manufactuer in the French city of Toulouse yesterday.

The airline had ordered 50 new Airbus aircraft back on 24th June 2015, comprising of 20 A330-300s and 30 A320s, signing in the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, Chairman of the Council of Economic Affairs and Development, and former French President Francois Hollande.  

Saudi Airlines took the first plane arrived on 18th August 2016 and on Tuesday 12th December 2017 the airline took delivery of Airbus A330-300 number 20 at a special hand-over ceremony in the French city of Toulouse. 

The arrival of the new aircraft forms a powerful addition to the fleet of Saudi Arabia, which is currently witnessing unprecedented modernization and development as part of its transformation programme. 

The seat configuration for the Saudi Airbus is 30 seats in business class and 300 in economy. All the  seats are equipped with special screens that allow passengers to enjoy a wide variety of audio/visual entertainmnet for their flight. The carrier boasts it offers over 3000 hours of entertainment programs, passengers can enjoy.

Unhappy Qantas pilots over reregistering aircraft

There may be pilot trouble ahead for Qantas.  It appears according to local media that pilots of the Australian airline are more than just a little unhappy with the carrier's plans to fly Australian aircraft with lower-paid pilots employed by a subsidiary in New Zealand.

The antipodean airline will be operating operate extra flights between Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane and Auckland from March 2018 when code-share partner Emirates reduces its A380 trans-Tasman services.

We're being told that Qantas is converting seven Boeing 737 aircraft it has registered in New Zealand through its sister company Jetconnect to the Australian Qantas operating licence. However, pilots employed in New Zealand by Jetconnect will be the ones flying those Australian registered planes - making it the first time Qantas has regularly used 'foreign' employed pilots on local aircraft.

It is a move that has angered some of the flight crews in Australia,  with a pilots union saying Qantas is shifting to a model of using overseas crews working on lower pay and worse conditions than their Australian counterparts.  "This is not dissimilar to the Ryanair or Norwegian [Airlines] models that deploy contract crew, on varying conditions in bases around their network. -  The Americans and Europeans have fought long and hard against this model and we must guard against its emergence in Qantas."  Australian and International Pilots Association president Captain Murray Butt said in a letter to union members.

According to a Qantas spokesperson, pilots from Jetconnect would till only fly the same routes they already do, across the Tasman Sea. They would not operate domestic flights in Australia.   

The spokesperson reiterated that changing the registration of its 737 to Qantas' Australian Air Operators Certificate was simply a measure to better utilise the aircraft. "By registering these aircraft in Australia instead, we could make much better use of this down time by flying domestic sectors in between flying to New Zealand,"

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