Hi Fly's first A380 customer is Thomas Cook Scandinavia

The first airline to lease Hi Fly's superjumbo Airbus A380 double-decker is.....not one anyone in the aviation industry was suggesting and guessing, it's Thomas Cook! 

The holiday airline is having to charter in the A380 at very short notice to operate a flight from Denmark's Copenhagen Airport to Larnaca in Cyprus for its Scandinavian subsidiary as they had sent the aircraft scheduled for the flight to a different destination to bring home passengers stranded by an IT issue. The A380 will also bring passengers back from Larnaca that had been scheduled to fly into Stockholm's Arlanda airport but is expected to return them to Copenhagen which is more suited to A380 operations. Tomorrow, Thursday the double-decker beauty is scheduled to cover another Thomas Cook Scandinavia flight from Oslo to Palma, Majorca. 

This change of aircraft will be a massive advantage for all of those lucky passengers, who were expecting to fly on an Airbus, but one of the A321 variety, now they will have the luxury of flying in the splendour of a former Singapore Airlines A380. 

“It has been important to find a solution for our customers. We have been bending over backwards to find a plane, the Airbus A380 was the only option. But we do not let the economy decide when it comes to our customers.” A spokesperson for Thomas Cook Scandinavia said.

Hi Fly's A380 positioned to Copenhagen early this morning, arriving at 4.11am  

Thomas Cook summer 2019 schedule released.

British holiday airline Thomas Cook Airlines released its full summer 2019 long haul programme a little earlier this week.  The new season includes some new destinations and increased schedules to others.  

The airline will fly from Manchester, London Gatwick and Glasgow to 13 destinations in the USA, the Caribbean and Mexico. The carrier will also strengthen its long-haul fleet with another Airbus A330-200.

The A330-200 will have fully refurbished premium and economy cabins, seatback in-flight entertainment and USB charging points and it is to be based at Manchester for the season.  Thomas Cook Group Airline has a fleet that includes seven A330-200s.

Seattle, which launched in May this year, will increase from two flights a week to three (the same frequency as San Francisco), Cancun will fly daily (same as New York) and 13 flights a week will go to Orlando at peak season, a growth of 21 per cent compared to summer 18. Montego Bay is a brand new long-haul destination.

Thomas Cook Airlines for sale...again?

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The Sunday Times has reported that British travel company Thomas Cook is looking at divesting itself of its airline, at least in part to a foreign investor.

The newspaper says that industry sources have told them discussions were at an early stage and that no change was likely in the immediate future. The newspaper declined to say who the 'industry' source was, or how close to the organisation they were,  but it is not the first time the company has been in talks to sell off the airline, either in whole or in part.  In April 2015 the very same Rupert Murdoch owned newspaper ran a story about Thomas Cook looking to flog the airline off as it tried to cut losses and tidy up the company balance sheet. At the time the airline said "We are definitely not desperate to sell our airline. There were no talks. There is no real news.". Although, a member of the Air101.co.uk team spoke to a contact working at the head office, who confirmed that tentative talks regarding starting negotiations for a joint venture had been made. 

Chinese conglomerate Fosun is already an existing shareholder in the group, around 12 percent, is looking to expand its holding, at least according to the Sunday Times.  A Thomas Cook spokesperson told the paper that the company had previously said it was open to industry consolidation but that it had “no current plans” to sell its airline.

Of course, shares in Thomas Cook has been on a steady decline since the middle of May and there is nothing like industry gossip on takeover or sell off plans to make the shares spike upwards.

More flights from Bristol for Easter 2019 with Thomas Cook.

The UK holiday airline, Thomas Cook Airlines has said it will be adding Easter 2019 flights from Bristol Airport, offering over 12,000 seats some top holiday destinations.

From the 3rd April 2019, the airline will introduce 10 additional flights a week until the end of the month, to destinations including Turkey, Tunisia, Egypt, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Majorca. 

Thomas Cook Airlines now flies to 25 sun and beach destinations from Bristol and has increased its number of seats on sale at Easter by 40% versus 2018. Commercial Director at Thomas Cook Airlines, Henry Sunley, said,  “This is a bigger Easter programme from Bristol than ever before, with our season traditionally ramping up from May 1. It’s great to be able to reward our customers who fly with us from Bristol airport with even more choice and we look forward to adding more destinations from Bristol in the near future.”

 “This is exciting news. The increased capacity for next year builds on the strong growth we are experiencing with Thomas Cook from Bristol Airport in 2018." said, Nigel Scott, Business Development Director, Bristol Airport. 

Cardiff Airport welcomes more Thomas Cook flights over Easter 2019

Cardiff Airport's managers have welcomed news that UK holiday airline Thomas Cook are going to be adding Easter 2019 flights from the Welsh airport for the first time.  

With 11 flights a week from April 3, 2019 until the end of the month, Thomas Cook Airlines has added over 15,000 seats to destinations including Turkey, Majorca, Tenerife, Lanzarote, Cyprus and a new route to Enfidha in Tunisia. Tickets are now on sale via www.thomascookairlines.com

Thomas Cook Airlines now flies to 12 sun and beach destinations from Cardiff and has over 120,000 seats on sale throughout 2019 (Easter and Summer).

Sweating it out for three hours on a plane that's going nowhere.....

Thomas Cook Airlines are facing a barrage of complaints from passengers left to sweat it out on a an aircraft scheduled to fly them from Zante to London Stanstead was delayed yesterday for three hours.

Flight MH1805 had been due to depart Zakynthos (Also known as Zante) at 2pm yesterday, however, passengers were initially told that due to the aircraft needing to be refuelled there would be a delay to boarding.  When the passengers were allowed to board the flight, they had to wait in their sets as a 'technical issue' had arisen. People on the flight say the aircraft didn't have any working air conditioning and temperatures were rising fast.

Travellers took to social media to vent, Kerry Shippey tweeted: “Nobody minds a delay, things happen, but keeping people in a tin can in 40 degree heat so that people are passing out and throwing up is taking things a little far don’t you think?”

New routes and more flights from Thomas Cook for summer 2018.

Thomas Cook airlines are gearing up for summer 2018 with a number of new routes and increased summer services, so perhaps now is the time to plan your summer get-a-way!   The airline will start flying to Varna in Bulgaria, Funchal in Portugal and Gerona in Spain from May next year, plus they have also increased flight frequency from a number of UK regional airports including Bristol, Newcastle and Belfast.

Origin Airport	Destination	Airport Code	Days of Travel
Bristol (BRS)	Gerona	(GRO)	Saturday
	Bourgas	(BOJ)	Wednesday
	Hurghada	(HRG)	Monday
	Paphos	(PFO)	Friday
	Prevesa	(PVK)	Sunday
	Arrecife	(ACE)	Thursday & Sunday
	Corfu	(CFU)	Monday & Thursday
	Heraklion	(HER)	Tuesday & Friday
	–
Manchester (MAN)	Funchal	(FNC)	Monday & Tuesday
	Gerona	(GRO)	Saturday
	Mytilini	(MJT)	Saturday
	Varna	(VAR)	Tuesday
	Thessaloniki	(SKG)	Wednesday & Sunday
	–
Birmingham (BHX)	Gerona	(GRO)	Saturday
	Hurghada	(HRG)	Monday
	Paphos	(PFO)	Friday
	Preveza	(PVK)	Sunday
	Thessaloniki	(SKG)	Sunday
	–
Newcastle (NCL)	Hurghada	(HRG)	Monday
	–
Glasgow (GLA)	Kos	(KGS)	Monday
	–
Belfast (BFS)	Antalya	(KGS)	Monday
	Dalaman	(DLM)	Monday & Thursday
	–
Luton (LTN)	Dalaman	(DLM)	Mon & Thurs
	Antalya	(AYT)	Tues & Fri
	–
Leeds (LBA)	Dalaman	(DLM)	Wed & Sat
	Antalya	(AYT)	Thursday & Sunday

Crying Thomas Cook Cabin Crew Tell Passengers They Are Lucky To Be Alive.

Photo from Mr Swan a passenger on the flight

Passengers on a Thomas Cook flight from Holguin in Cuba to Manchester were left trembling and frightened for their lives when the aircraft they were on developed an engine problem at take off.

The flight MT2653 had been scheduled to depart on Monday 27th November but had to abort its take off after flames were seen coming from the engine at the point of rotation following a loud bang from the power plant.  

One of the passengers on the aircraft said he could see flames through the window on the right-hand side.  “It was evident there had been some sort of explosion,” he said. The nose gear was already off the ground, “The pilot dropped the plane straight back down and applied the brakes so everybody was thrown forward and then back, and the plane skidded for some distance.” 

Mr Swan, the passenger then told media that the pilot then announced over the intercom that it was an emergency situation to the crew. "As he came back on you could hear that he was verbally shaken to the point where his voice cracked and he sounded like he was going to burst into tears. At that point, I realised it was very serious.”  He says the cabin crew were “visibly shaken” so much so that "One was actually crying,” adding  “That doesn’t fill you with a lot of confidence. I could hear crew saying to passengers that it was really serious and we were lucky to still be alive.”

New airline set up for Thomas Cook

Thomas Cook Airlines has launched a new airline, based in Majorca, to supplement its existing operations. Currently operating ongoing airlines in Germany, the UK and Scandinavia, Thomas Cook Group Airlines has applied for a new Airline Operator Certificate (AOC) in Majorca with the aim of scheduling the first flights from early 2018.

The new airline released the news yesterday and the new venture will be called Thomas Cook Airlines Balearics, which is part of Thomas Cook Group Airlines’ growth plans, giving it a new base in its most popular destination from which it can provide flights to support its other airlines, according to seasonal demand. The new base in Majorca will provide the Group with greater operational flexibility at a competitive cost while allowing it to maintain closer control over the quality and customer experience than its current third-party lease arrangements.

Thomas Cook Revised scheduled for 06 October 2017

Another strike for Thomas Cook's pilots has been confirmed for 6th October and is scheduled to start at 00:01 and last until 23:59 following failed talks between the airline and the BALPA union.

Thomas Cook as put together contingency plans, much like it did with the last pilot strikes, by rearranging and rescheduling its flights, details of which follow here.

More strikes ahead for Thomas Cook pilots

The most recent strike by members of the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa) working for Thomas Cook lasted for 24 hours after the union and the airline couldn't come to an acceptable understanding and agreement after days of talks. 

The airline had to reschedule some flight, as many as forty, but there could be more strikes on the way.  "Tortuous negotiations at Acas have failed to resolve the pay dispute between Thomas Cook and Balpa pilots" advised Balpa general secretary, Brian Strutton, “Whilst both sides have compromised there is still a considerable gap."

The union indicate they gave a long period of notice to Thomas Cook before conducting the industrial action and even eased their stance in light of recent metrological disasters.  “Balpa has given ample warning to enable Thomas Cook to change its schedules and minimise passenger disruption. I have also offered strike dispensations to help out in the hurricane-hit Caribbean. Our argument is not with passengers."

Thomas Cook Take Pilots To Court And Lose

Thomas Cook Airlines are so keen to work with the British Airline Pilots Association regarding the forthcoming strike and fractured relationship with staff, they took them to court.  

The expanding airline sought an injunction to prevent the unhappy pilots from taking the action scheduled for Friday. However, London’s High Court on this afternoon refused to block the industrial action.

A judge refused Thomas Cook’s request for an injunction to stop the strike,  “BALPA has always been confident in (last month‘s) decisive ballot result and was disappointed that Thomas Cook decided to challenge it legally rather than spending time and effort bringing an acceptable offer to the table,” Brian Strutton, BALPA General Secretary, said in a statement.

“However, we robustly defended our right to strike and the judge rejected Thomas Cook’s arguments about the wording of the ballot paper.”

Changes to Thomas Cook UK Airlines departure times on 8th September

Due to the strike action called by the pilots' union BALPA on the 8th from 0301 to 1500, Thomas Cook has rearranged and amended their schedule for affected flights.

The airline has not made any cancellations and has managed to reschedule or amend flight times for all flights and advise that even if the strike is cancelled the revised departure times below will not change.

Air Berlin Cancels Flights & Lauda Still Interested In Buying Niki

Air Berlin has cancelled a number of flights today due to 'operational' reasons and looks set to make some more late notice alterations to its timetable next week.

These fresh cancellations come on the back of the recent announcement that the airline was ending its services between Berlin and Abu Dhabi from mid-September. In a statement from Etihad said: “We have been advised that airberlin is cancelling its operations between Berlin and Abu Dhabi starting on September 15 to October 31, 2017. We are now re-booking our customers onto alternative Etihad flights from that date."

“In addition, due to market uncertainty, we have taken the decision to re-book our customers due to fly with airberlin, from November 1 onwards, onto alternative flights.”

There has been much speculation in the media that Air Berlin may be about to confirm further cancellations to its long-haul routes including those to the USA. 

Read more to find out what Niki Lauda thinks and whom the likely bidders are.

Thomas Cook Pilots To Strike on 8th September

Approximately 91% of pilots at holiday airline Thomas Cook Airlines have voted to take industrial action in a dispute over pay and conditions.

The vast majority of the 560 pilots at Thomas Cook are members of the British Airline Pilots Association, of which 91% have voted for strike action. 

Executives at BALPA have announced the strike will take place for twelve hours between 3.00am and 3.00pm on the 8th September this year. However, it is understood that talks between the union and the airline will continue.

AA to end Manchester - New York JFK route

It's been released that American Airlines will be ending its service between Manchester Airport and New York from next summer.

American Airlines have been at the airport for 31 years and also flies to Chicago and Philadelphia from the airport and say these routes will continue as planned.  The airline say they are cutting the New York service  to ‘maximise their fleet and profitability while matching customer demand’.

Will Lufthansa Buy 100 Air Berlin Aircraft? Ryanair's Not Happy. Could IAG be Interested? The Air Berlin Gossip Bubble

Lufthansa is in negotiations to buy a majority of Air Berlin's aircraft, with the backing of the German Government, which is, according to local media, looking for an aviation 'champion' to come to the rescue.   The German flag carrier may take upto 100 of the 140 Air Berlin fleet some analysts are predicting.  No comment on that theory yet from the German airline, although it is a possibility - with nothing being ruled out at this stage.   

Air Berlin's collapse may be a god send for Lufthansa and the other airlines in its group, if they takes up the chance to acquire slots at busy airports such as Berlin Tegel and Duesseldorf. The German national carrier is keen to defend its domestic position against the expansion of the low-cost carriers like Ryanair.  

Gatwick - UK's Worst Airport For Delays

Photo J Milstein  Gatwick Airport

THE World's busiest single runway airport and the second busiest in the UK, Gatwick, has been named as the worst for delays in the country. 

Passengers departing from the Sussex/Surrey airport suffered the longest average delays of 27 minutes, during summer getaways, according to a BBC analysis of figures collated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

These figures were collected during the last two summers (June to August) and combined to reveal the typical delays. It is perhaps no surprise that the airline with the longest delay was the budget carrier EasyJet. On average their passengers experience delays of 24 minutes when taking all summer flights into consideration, whether delayed or not. An EasyJet spokeswoman claimed "EasyJet operates the largest number of flights of any UK airline, flying over 78 million passengers per year. In 2017, EasyJet will operate 33% more flights than in 2011, with less than 0.8% delayed by more than three hours."

Drunk Scot Diverts Thomas Cook Plane

A Thomas Cook flight from Scotland to Turkey was diverted to London Gatwick yesterday after a disturbance on board.

The flight from Glasgow to Dalaman was forced to divert after the pilot called police due to drunken passengers.  Passengers on the flight said they saw police officers board the flight when it landed at Gatwick early on Wednesday morning and arrested a man.

A spokesman for Sussex Police said: "At 11.45am on Wednesday police went to a Thomas Cook flight which had just been diverted into Gatwick Airport on a flight from Glasgow Airport to Turkey. Officers arrested a man who was a passenger, on suspicion of being drunk on an aircraft. There are no reports of injuries or damage. The man is currently in custody for interview and further enquirers.

The Most Complained About Airlines

Passengers are now more than 40 times more likely to complain about Thomas Cook Airlines than they were in 2009, analysis of recent Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) figures has shown.

This was among the striking findings in a study of the past five years of statistics published by the CAA, the UK’s independent aviation regulator.

These include the unveiling of the most complained about airline to operate in Britain; the major airline whose complaint rates are so low they don’t appear in the published list; and statistics for Ryanair that may surprise some critics.

read more at The Telegraph