Lufthansa Axes U.S. Route

The German carrier continues to face ongoing aircraft shortages as it awaits delivery of new Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 jets.

Ryan Ewing

Tuesday, October 29, 2024 at 09:41 AM ET

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Ryan Ewing

A Lufthansa Boeing 787 Dreamliner. (Photo: Lufthansa Group)

Lufthansa is cutting one of its newest U.S. routes. The German carrier continues to face aircraft shortages as it awaits delivery of new Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 jets.

According to Thrifty Traveler, the airline will halt service to Minneapolis/St. Paul, and its low-cost subsidiary, Discover Airlines, will take over. Lufthansa flights between Frankfurt and Minneapolis will end on April 29, 2025, less than a year after the service launched in June 2024.

Discover will operate an Airbus A330-300 on the route, albeit at a lower frequency. Weekly service will drop from five to four flights.

A Lufthansa spokesperson said aircraft availability constraints drove the decision. The carrier was operating a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner to Minneapolis.

“At the same time, delayed aircraft deliveries, punctuality issues at our hubs in Germany and regulatory disadvantages are impacting our core brand,” the airline group said in a Tuesday earnings release.”Lufthansa Airlines has therefore launched the ‘Turnaround’ program to address these and structural internal challenges.”

The carrier intends to resume flights to Minneapolis under the Lufthansa brand in the future.

Ryan Ewing

Ryan founded AirlineGeeks.com back in February 2013 and has amassed considerable experience in the aviation sector. His work has been featured in several publications and news outlets, including CNN, WJLA, CNET, and Business Insider. During his time in the industry, he's worked in roles pertaining to airport/airline operations while holding a B.S. in Air Transportation Management from Arizona State University along with an MBA. Ryan has experience in several facets of the industry from behind the yoke of a Cessna 172 to interviewing airline industry executives. Ryan works for AirlineGeeks' owner FLYING Media, spearheading coverage in the commercial aviation space.

Delta, CrowdStrike Trade Lawsuits Over July Meltdown

Delta and CrowdStrike sued each other for damages after $500 million in revenue was lost by the airline due to the IT company’s outages over the summer.

AirlineGeeks.com Staff

Monday, October 28, 2024 at 05:00 PM ET

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Ryan Ewing

A Delta Airlines Airbus A320 in Boston. (Photo: AirliineGeeks | William Derrickson)

Delta and CrowdStrike sued each other for damages following public arguments two months ago over which side was responsible for $500 million in revenue lost by the airline during the IT company’s outages over the summer.

A global IT outage on July 19 halted thousands of flights around the world due to a faulty update by the cybersecurity company, which impacted Microsoft operating systems. Delta was one of the last airlines to recover from the incident, which negatively impacted earnings for its third quarter.

A Blame Game

One page from a Fulton County, Georgia, court document posted to X/Twitter by aviation reporter Edward Russell on Friday showed Delta sued CrowdStrike for several offenses, including computer trespass, breach of contract, product defect, gross negligence and more.

In letters sent between the two companies publicly posted by reporters on X/Twitter, Delta previously alleged that CrowdStrike showed no sense of urgency for the damage it caused, and the company’s offers to assist the airline were too late.

AirlineGeeks reached out to the Superior Court of Fulton County requesting a full copy of the complaint issued by Delta. AirlineGeeks also reached out to Delta for additional comments.

Reuters reported CrowdStrike sued Delta in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia on Friday stating the carrier’s own response and technology caused delays in its ability to resume operations.

In a copy of CrowdStrike’s complaint obtained by AirlineGeeks, Crowdstrike stated that it moved as quickly as possible to remediate issues caused by a faulty update immediately after the incident. This included reverting the July 19 update 78 minutes after it was first deployed and working with customers to bring systems online as quickly as possible.

On July 22, CrowdStrike said it pushed automated techniques to speed up these repairs.

CrowdStrike stated that Delta’s delayed outage “has drawn regulatory scrutiny and raises concerns with respect to its compliance to federal statutes, rules and regulations.”

CrowdStrike said that as of March 7, 2023, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) required Delta and other aircraft operators to “[d]evelop network segmentation policies and controls to ensure that operational technology systems can continue to safely operate in the event that an information technology system has been compromised, and vice versa.”

CrowdStrike alleged Delta’s delayed recovery was the result of non-compliance with the TSA’s March 7, 2023 cybersecurity amendment.

“While we aimed to reach a business resolution that puts customers first, Delta has chosen a different path,” a CrowdStrike spokesperson told AirlineGeeks in an emailed statement. “Delta’s claims are based on disproven misinformation, demonstrate a lack of understanding of how modern cybersecurity works, and reflect a desperate attempt to shift blame for its slow recovery away from its failure to modernize its antiquated IT infrastructure. We have filed for a declaratory judgment to make it clear that CrowdStrike did not cause the harm that Delta claims and they repeatedly refused assistance from both CrowdStrike and Microsoft. Any claims of gross negligence and willful misconduct have no basis in fact.”

AirlineGeeks.com Staff

AirlineGeeks.com was founded in February 2013 as a one-person blog in Washington D.C. Since then, we’ve grown to have 25+ active team members scattered across the globe. We are all here for the same reason: we love deep-diving into the fascinating realm of the airline industry.

NTSB: ‘Chemical Smell’ Prompted Frontier A321 Emergency Landing

A Frontier Airbus A321 made an emergency landing on Oct. 5 in Las Vegas after crew members detected an unidentified odor, the NTSB said.

Ryan Ewing

Monday, October 28, 2024 at 03:50 PM ET

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Ryan Ewing

A Frontier A321 in Las Vegas. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

A Frontier Airbus A321 made an emergency landing on Oct. 5 in Las Vegas after crew members detected an unidentified odor, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report Monday.

The odor was initially noticed by the cabin crew, which described it as a “chemical smell” that was unidentifiable, the agency stated. Flight attendants reported the smell — which was only detected in the forward portion of the cabin — to the pilots before they noticed a similar odor.

Frontier flight 1326 was operating between San Diego and Las Vegas at 29,000 feet when the odor was first detected. The pilots later noticed the chemical, mildew-like smell in the flight deck.

According to the NTSB, the flight crew said the smell increased in intensity, later describing it as “burning rubber and/or petroleum products, such as plastics.”

The crew put on oxygen masks and began a smoke and fumes checklist. An emergency was declared and the crew began to descend toward Las Vegas.

With no smoke present in the cockpit or cabin, the crew opted to place the aircraft into an electrical emergency configuration, which limits various systems, including first officer-side displays and radios. The crew struggled to communicate with air traffic control as a result, instead using the aircraft’s No. 1 transponder to acknowledge instructions.

The A321 landed on runway 26L and was met by emergency vehicles. A nearby witness heard “two loud bangs in quick succession as the tires exploded about three seconds after touchdown. Then there was a large screen of smoke behind them and fire around the tires.”

Initial reports from airport fire crews stated that there was a fire on the aircraft’s No. 2 engine, which was extinguished. But the crew received no such indication, the report said.

The NTSB noted that flight data showed a fault on one of the fans that cool the avionics bay. None of the 197 passengers and crew were injured, and the aircraft remains out of service.

Ryan Ewing

Aer Lingus Plans Job Cuts, Fleet Reduction

Irish flag carrier Aer Lingus plans to cut jobs and reduce its already small Airbus A330 fleet in an effort to remain profitable.

AirlineGeeks.com Staff

Monday, October 28, 2024 at 03:37 PM ET

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Ryan Ewing

An Aer Lingus Airbus A330-300 (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

Irish flag carrier Aer Lingus plans to cut jobs and reduce its Airbus A330 fleet in an effort to remain profitable, according to an Irish Independent report.

The report stated that the airline’s CEO Lynne Embleton warned staff in a video message that the carrier’s profitability is hurting compared to other airlines owned by its parent group, International Airlines Group (IAG). An undisclosed source in the report stated that the cuts would be mostly achieved through attrition and a hiring freeze.

Embleton also told staff the carrier would ground one A330 aircraft and scale back the use of its A320 fleet by three aircraft to make room for eight additional Airbus A321XLRs, the report stated. According to AirFleets.net, Aer Lingus currently has 13 active A330s, 35 A320s, and eight A231s.

Embleton said that the XLRs are planned to “unlock much needed opportunities in North America,” while also addressing weaker parts of Aer Lingus’ network following the shift in business travel post-pandemic.

An Aer Lingus Airbus A320 sporting the carrier’s newest colors. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

An Aer Lingus pilots strike earlier this summer was expected to cost the airline almost $60 million, BBC reported.

Reaching Full Capacity

Adding to the carrier’s worries, an approaching passenger cap at Dublin Airport also threatens to slow expansion of the country’s dominant airport into an international aviation hub and damage Ireland’s economy, Reuters reported. The number of passengers at the airport was capped at 32 million annually after planners approved a second terminal to be built in 2007.

A news release from the airport on Oct. 3 stated that over 3.08 million passengers traveled through Dublin Airport in September, making it the busiest September ever in the airport’s 84-year history.

“So far this year, a total of 25.8 million passengers have passed through the doors of Dublin Airport – an increase of 5.3% on the same period in 2023,” the release stated. “With every passing month, Dublin Airport’s passenger numbers get closer to the 32 million cap.”

The airport warned that October is expected to be another busy month. However, it stated the outlook for autumn was shrinking due to some airlines deciding to reduce the scale of their operations because of the 32 million cap uncertainty.

“The Irish Aviation Authority’s (IAA) winter slot decision, which will cut the number of seats that airlines flying in and out of Dublin Airport can offer to passengers in the November to March winter period, will also begin to bite,” the release added. “However, it remains daa’s [Dublin Airport’s managing group’s] expectation that the 32 million cap will be exceeded in 2024.”

AirlineGeeks.com Staff

Spirit Slashes Q1 Capacity by Over 20%

The financially troubled ultra-low-cost carrier said last week that it plans to reduce year-over-year capacity in the midteens range in 2025.

Ryan Ewing

Monday, October 28, 2024 at 12:50 PM ET

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Ryan Ewing

A Spirit Airlines Airbus A319 prepares for landing. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

Spirit continues to trim capacity in an effort to conserve cash. The financially troubled ultra-low-cost carrier said last week that it plans to reduce year-over-year capacity in the midteens range in 2025.

In a Cirium Diio update filed on Friday, Spirit extended its schedule through May 21, 2025, while also cutting capacity by approximately 22% in the first quarter on a week-over-week basis.

The carrier’s January capacity will be down around 26%, February by 21%, and March by 18%. In September, Spirit also cut over 30 routes.

While the airline has added a batch of new routes, it is cutting several others. New services include Atlanta to Indianapolis, San Antonio, and Columbus, Ohio, along with New Orleans to Indianapolis, San Antonio, and Memphis, Tennessee, per aviation consultancy group Ailevon Pacific.

Route cuts include Columbus to Tampa, Florida; San Antonio to Tampa; Dallas/Fort Worth to San Antonio; and Richmond, Virginia, to Las Vegas. Many of the latest cuts are currently loaded on a seasonal basis; it is unclear if they will be extended.

Spirit has faced a slew of financial challenges in recent months and opted to sell 23 Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft by early next year. With the aircraft sale, the carrier hopes to boost liquidity by $225 million in 2025.

Ryan Ewing

LATAM Bolsters Fleet With More Boeing 787s

LATAM Airlines Group and Boeing announced on Monday an order for 10 787-9 Dreamliners with options for five additional aircraft.

Ryan Ewing

Monday, October 28, 2024 at 10:16 AM ET

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Ryan Ewing

A LATAM Airlines Boeing 787-9 departing LAX (Photo: AirlineGeeks | James Dinsdale)

LATAM Airlines Group and Boeing announced on Monday an order for 10 787-9 Dreamliners with options for five additional aircraft.

This latest order strengthens the carrier’s position as South America’s largest 787 operator, with 37 aircraft currently in its fleet. By 2030, the airline expects to have 52 787s.

“The Boeing 787 is a much more efficient aircraft, allowing us to continue growing sustainably while reducing our carbon footprint as we drive the growth of our operations. This order will enable us to receive at least two aircraft of this model each year from 2025 until the end of the decade,” said Ramiro Alfonsín, chief financial officer of LATAM Airlines Group, in a news release.

LATAM has several subsidiaries spread across Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, and Peru. The group’s widebody fleet also includes Boeing 767 and 777 jets.

Ryan Ewing

American Begins Its Longest-Ever Route

American’s inaugural Dallas/Fort Worth-Brisbane flight on Saturday clocked in at exactly 16 hours, per FlightAware tracking data.

Ryan Ewing

Monday, October 28, 2024 at 09:51 AM ET

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Ryan Ewing

American's first flight to Brisbane (Photo: Brisbane Airport)

American kicked off its longest flight to date on Saturday with new service between the carrier’s Dallas/Fort Worth hub and Brisbane, Australia. At 8,303 miles, the route eclipses the airline’s previous record-holder at 8,123 miles, Dallas/Fort Worth-Hong Kong, which ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dallas/Fort Worth-Sydney is nearly 1,000 miles longer than the carrier’s year-round route between Los Angeles and Sydney. American also operates seasonal flights from Dallas/Fort Worth to Auckland at nearly 7,500 miles.

The airline’s seasonal flights to Brisbane will operate daily on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The service began on Oct. 26 and continues through March 2025.

An American Boeing 787-9 in Brisbane (Photo: Brisbane Airport)

“Today’s arrival of American Airlines from Dallas-Fort Worth is a landmark moment for Brisbane and Queensland,” said Brisbane Airport CEO, Gert-Jan de Graaff, in a news release.“They say there are few things bigger than Texas. Well, Queensland is three times bigger than Texas, but we share industries like agriculture, energy, biotechnology and advanced manufacturing. From the Lone Star State to the Sunshine State, this new connection between two hubs unlocks incredible potential on both sides of the Pacific.”

Among the three major U.S. carriers, American’s Dallas/Fort Worth-Brisbane route is the fourth-longest by distance, according to Cirium Diio schedule data for November 2024. United holds the top two spots with its Houston-Sydney and San Francisco-Singapore flights, followed by Delta’s route between Atlanta and Johannesburg.

American’s inaugural Dallas/Fort Worth-Brisbane flight on Saturday clocked in at exactly 16 hours, per FlightAware tracking data.

Ryan Ewing

Czech Airlines Ceases Operations After 101 Years

Czech Airlines will no longer operate under the "OK" code with the remaining two Airbus A320 aircraft in the fleet operating under Smartwings.

Zach Cooke

Monday, October 28, 2024 at 09:38 AM ET

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Ryan Ewing

A Czech Airlines A319 landing at London Heathrow. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

European carrier Czech Airlines (CSA) officially ended operations on Saturday. The carrier, which inaugurated service in 1923 and joined the SkyTeam alliance in 2001, will no longer operate under its respective carrier code and brand, thus also parting ways with the SkyTeam alliance.

The Prague-based flag carrier has been dwindling in size since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Before shutting down, CSA has two Airbus A320 aircraft in its fleet.

The carrier returned its sole A330 in 2020 resulting in the loss of its long-haul network. While the airline had newer Airbus products on order with deliveries anticipated to begin in 2020, the new aircraft were never handed over to the flag carrier. Airbus sought financial compensation from CSA for lack of payment for the order.

While the carrier will no longer operate, aircraft and assets will be absorbed by Smartwings, which has a significant stake in the flag carrier. The company is also based in the Czech Republic and operates out of Prague. Smartwings currently operates 40 Boeing 737 aircraft and one Airbus A320. The two remaining A320 aircraft in the CSA fleet will be transferred over to the Smartwings fleet.

However, according to the Czech Republic publication Radio Prague International, the two CSA A320 aircraft, along with four new A220 aircraft, will continue flying in the CSA livery.

Leaving SkyTeam

SkyTeam made a statement regarding the shut down of operation by one of the oldest carriers in the world. However, the dwindling size of the carrier meant that SkyTeam didn’t believe there would be much of an operational change as “the departure of Czech Airlines from SkyTeam will have little impact on the overall network.”

The major alliance also stated that five other members will continue operations in Prague. Smartwings is not currently a part of any airline alliance.

Zach Cooke

Zach’s love for aviation began when he was in elementary school with a flight sim and model planes. This passion for being in the air only intensified throughout high school when he earned his Private Pilot Certificate. He then attended Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, earning his certificates and ratings to later flight instruct and share his passion for aviation with others. He now resides in the North East living out his dream as an airline pilot.

Delta Plans New Long-Haul Route

Delta is expanding its long-haul network yet again with a new South America route that is slated to begin in January 2025.

Ryan Ewing

Saturday, October 26, 2024 at 09:37 AM ET

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Ryan Ewing

A Delta A330-300 (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

Delta is growing its long-haul network with a new route set to begin in January 2025. The Atlanta-based carrier continues to expand its international portfolio in 2025, announcing seven new European routes just last month.

According to the most recent Cirium Diio schedule update, the airline plans to connect Boston with São Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport beginning Jan. 6, 2025. Flights are slated to operate three times per week on an Airbus A330-300 aircraft.

The airline’s partner LATAM operates the same route, which Delta may be replacing, according to airline insider JonNYC on Twitter/X.

A Delta spokesperson confirmed the route addition: “From January 6 to March 27, 2025, Delta will operate flights between Boston and São Paulo-Guarulhos, a route currently served by LATAM. Customers holding tickets for this route during that period will be automatically rebooked onto Delta-operated flights with no changes to their original departure dates.”

Outbound flights operate on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays, scheduled to depart Boston at 9:00 a.m. local time before landing in the Brazilian city at 8:45 p.m.

Return flights are scheduled overnight, leaving São Paulo at 10:45 p.m., and arriving in Boston at 6:40 a.m. the next day. Currently, the route is only scheduled between January and March.

The airline also serves São Paulo from its Atlanta and New York-JFK hubs.

Boston-São Paulo joins several recently-announced 2025 routes by the airline, including Salt Lake City-Seoul along with Minneapolis-Copenhagen.

Editor’s Note: This story was updated on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024 at 10:58 a.m. ET to add a statement from Delta.

Ryan Ewing

Spirit Slated to Cut Fleet by 11% in 2025

With the 23 A320s and A321s removed from its 2025 fleet plan, the carrier will have nearly 11% fewer aircraft by the end of 2025.

Ryan Ewing

Saturday, October 26, 2024 at 07:30 AM ET

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Ryan Ewing

A Spirit Airbus A321 (Photo: Shutterstock | Ron Adar)

Struggling Spirit is looking to bolster its liquidity next year as it embarks on an aggressive fleet shake-up. The ultra-low-cost carrier — which lost nearly $200 million in the second quarter — continues to face challenges as reports surface of a potential bankruptcy filing.

The airline’s fleet is set to change materially in 2025. By February, Spirit will remove 23 of its older Airbus A320 and A321 jets in a deal valued at $519 million.

In addition, the carrier is retiring its two remaining A319s in Q2 2025, though the current schedule only has the aircraft operating through early January.

Spirit expects year-over-year capacity to be down in the midteens range next year, it said in a Thursday 8-K filing.

Pratt and Whitney Issues Worsen

The airline continues to grapple with Pratt and Whitney engine issues on its newer A320neo-series aircraft. Currently, Spirit has 21 A320neos in storage along with one A321neo, according to data from Cirium Fleet Analyzer.

In the same 8-K filing, Spirit stated that it expects a year-over-year increase of A320neo-series aircraft removed from service due to the engine troubles. The carrier did not provide a specific figure.

Spirit published its latest fleet plan on Aug. 1, which does not include the 23 A320 and A321 removals. By year-end 2025, the airline’s fleet will include 219 aircraft in total. It plans to take delivery of six A321neo aircraft next year.

Excluding five retired A319s, Spirit’s current fleet consists of 212 aircraft. With the 23 A320s and A321s removed from its 2025 fleet plan, the carrier will have nearly 11% fewer aircraft by the end of 2025.

Ryan Ewing