Delta Airlines on Wednesday took delivery of its first Airbus A321neo aircraft, delivered from Airbus’ European A321 Final Assembly Line location in Hamburg, Germany.
Following some additional modifications and technical work in Atlanta, the aircraft is set to enter service in May.
The delivery is the first of 26 A321neo’s — the neo is short for new engine option — that are set to be delivered to Delta’s fleet this year. Following the addition of 30 more neo’s in August, Delta’s book now totals 155 purchase commitments through 2027.
Following delivery of Delta’s current A321neo orders, the airline’s A321 fleet will grow to 282 planes. The aircraft will be manufactured at the same facilities in Mobile, Ala., and Hamburg, Germany.
“The delivery of our first A321neo helps to usher in the next era of premium domestic service at Delta,” said Mahendra Nair, Delta’s S.V.P. of Fleet and Tech Ops Supply Chain. “Not only do these aircraft offer the best customer experience in the industry, but these fuel-efficient airplanes further demonstrate our commitment to a more sustainable future.”
Replacing a Workhorse of Ages Past
The neo looks to replace Delta’s aging narrowbody fleet utilized for domestic operations, with the primary focus on its Boeing 757-200 aircraft, which has an average age of 24 years. In addition, the A321neo intends to replace the airline’s older A320 aircraft, with an average age of 25.
By replacing older aircraft, the neo will not only add much greater operational efficiency to Delta’s fleet, but it will also greatly assist in the company’s aim to become carbon neutral.
“Adding these aircraft strengthens Delta’s commitment to replacing older fleets with more sustainable, fuel-efficient jets, and offers the best customer experience in the industry,” Delta Senior Vice President for Fleet and TechOps Supply Chain Mahendra Nair said in a statement last year. “Delta appreciates the extensive partnership with the Airbus team in support of our strategic growth plans, and we look forward to continuing to work together throughout the recovery and in the years ahead.”
Assisting in the aircraft’s great operational efficiency is the aircraft’s Pratt & Whitney PW1100G powerplants, which, according to Delta, achieve 20% better fuel efficiency over Delta’s current A321ceo counterpart.
“The GTF-powered A321neo joins more than 200 Pratt & Whitney-powered aircraft in Delta’s fleet today” stated Rick Deurloo, Pratt & Whitney Chief Commercial Officer.
As well as improvements in efficiency, the aircraft will offer a much greater customer experience as a result of Delta’s effort to incorporate personalization and seamlessness. The 194-seat configuration will include 20 domestic First Class seats, 42 Delta Comfort+ seats and 132 Main Cabin seats, all with memory-foam cushioning. Additionally, the new domestic First Class seat features more privacy, workspace and storage. Each passenger will have access to Delta’s wireless in-flight entertainment system and powerports located at each seat, as well as their fast streaming Wi-Fi throughout the cabin.
On top of that, the aircraft includes spacious overhead bins, winged headrests, thoughtful finishes and more.
Chase Hagl grew up in Twin Falls, Idaho. His love and passion for Aviation landed him in Orem, Utah where he obtained a B.S. in Aviation Management with a minor in Business Management from Utah Valley University. Chase currently works as a flight attendant in Charleston, SC and is also the primary Inflight ASAP ERC representative for startup airline, Breeze Airways. His experience in the aviation industry spans back four years, working in areas including agriculture application, customer service, maintenance, and flight ops. In his free time, Chase enjoys road biking, astronomy, and flying.
Dubai Airport Closes Northern Runway for Refurbishment
A flydubai Boeing 737 departs from Dubai International. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Hisham Qadri)
Dubai Airports has confirmed plans to close Dubai, The United Emirates’ International Airport northern runway for a 45-day period between May 9 and June 22, 2022, to carry out refurbishment that will ensure continued safety and efficient operations.
While regular runway maintenance at the airport is scheduled on a weekly basis, more extensive upgrades such as the one planned require a complete closure of the runway.
Since Dubai International Airport is a dual runway operation, the hub will continue to welcome guests throughout this period. However, a number of flights will be redirected to Dubai World Central (DWC) — Dubai’s second airport — to limit the impact on service during the closure period.
Dubai Airports has advised passengers who are due to travel into or out of Dubai during the closure period to check with their respective airlines the airport and/or terminal of arrival/departure ahead of their journeys.
The last time this level of work was carried out on the northern runway was in 2014 — while the southern runway underwent similar improvements in 2019.
FlyDubai to Operate from Dubai World Central
Meanwhile, Flydubai will operate flights to select destinations from Dubai World Central (DWC) in order to provide more travel options to passengers during the northern runway refurbishment project announced by Dubai Airports.
The carrier will operate flights to 34 destinations from DWC during the period of the refurbishment project to ensure minimum disruption to passengers’ travel plans.
During this period flights to five of these destinations will also be available from Dubai Airport.
Flights to all other flydubai destinations will continue to operate from Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport.
Flydubai’s chief executive officer, Ghaith Al Ghaith said, “As we saw in 2019, runway enhancement programs continue to support the long-term vision for Dubai as it reinforces its position as one of the world’s leading aviation hubs. We look forward to the completion of the northern runway refurbishment program and the efficiencies it will bring to our home at Dubai International (DXB). With flydubai flights operating to select destinations from DWC, we aim to provide our passengers with as much choice as possible to travel across our network with minimum disruption as more countries open up for travel.”
Flights to 34 destinations from flydubai’s network of more than 90 destinations will operate from DWC during the runway refurbishment project including flights to Kuwait City, New Delhi, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; Mumbai, India; Muscat, Oman; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
Following the completion of the runway refurbishment project on 22 June 2022, flydubai will resume its flights to all destinations from Dubai International (DXB).
Passengers traveling from DWC will enjoy complimentary parking at the airport. In addition, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) will provide complimentary bus service between all terminals at Dubai and DWC every 30 minutes.
Victor Shalton's love for aviation can be traced to when he was 11-years-old. As a seasoned aviation writer, he takes pride in providing the best aviation coverage around the globe and is passionate about advancing his skills in the aviation space. In addition, he loves travelling, writing, arts and while his speaking engagements have taken him around the world, he is proud to call Nairobi home.
A LATAM Boeing 777 on approach to Amsterdam.
(Photo: AirlineGeeks | Fabian Behr)
From April 1, LATAM Ecuador will start a new route between Quito, Ecuador and Bogotá, Colombia with a frequency of 5 weekly flights. This new route that will link the 2 South American capitals will operate on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
LATAM Ecuador’s CEO, Mónica Fistrovic, guaranteed that this new route will stimulate tourism between Colombia and Ecuador, as well as trade, production and other different objectives where connectivity is key.
The new route announcement is evidence that the LATAM Airlines Group is committed to continuing to connect Ecuadorians and promote Ecuador in other international destinations. For his part, the Ecuadorian Tourism Minister, Niels Olsen, pointed out that the Ecuadorian government is working to improve national and international connectivity.
Airlines — as strategic allies — for growing tourism and demand help the return to frequencies and routes that existed before the pandemic.
According to El Universo, this new route will be operated according to the following schedule:
ROUTE
FLIGHT
DAY
DEPARTURE TIME
ARRIVAL TIME
BOG-UIO
LA 1443
Tuesdays and Sundays
20:07
21:45
UIO-BOG
LA 1442
Tuesdays and Sundays
17:15
18:45
BOG-UIO
LA 1441
Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays
09:37
11:15
UIO-BOG
LA 1440
Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays
07:00
08:30
In this way, LATAM Ecuador strengthens its international network, making Ecuador more visible as a tourist and commercial destination.
LATAM Airlines Group’s Reorganization Plan
LATAM Airlines Group obtained the approval of the Disclosure Statement by the Court in the United States.
Bankruptcy Judge from the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, James Garrity, ruled that creditors may begin voting on the Reorganization Plan submitted to the Court on November 26, 2021.
This represents a fundamental step for LATAM’s exit from Chapter 11. At the hearing, the judge heard arguments about a dispute between the airline and a group of creditors.
On March 10, some LATAM Airlines Group’s creditors said that one airline’s unit should be blocked from collecting $1.3 billion from another airline subsidiary because the claim was never a valid loan.
It should be remembered that this resolution occurred after the Court approved the modification and the new consolidated DIP credit agreement text between LATAM and its financiers on March 15.
The Court also set the Confirmation Hearing for May 17 and 18, in which the Court will evaluate the definitive Reorganization Plan. According to a statement issued by LATAM, the airline expects to successfully emerge from the Chapter 11 Procedure during the second half of 2022.
As a result, the group will be able to access $3.7 billion in liquidity and refinance its existing DIP credit agreement.
Last week, the Court approved the commitment and support agreements in provision for the reorganization and financing plan proposed by LATAM. These settlements represent approximately $5.4 billion in committed funds.
The three things Juan Pedro loves most about aviation are aircraft, airports, and traveling thousands of miles in just a few hours. What he enjoys the most about aviation is that it is easier and cheaper to travel around the world and this gives you the opportunity to visit places you thought were too far away. He has traveled to different destinations in North, Central, South America and Asia. Born, raised and still living in Perú, Juan is a lawyer, soccer lover, foodie, passionate traveler, dog lover, millennial and curious by nature.
The first look at the Greater Bay Airlines 737.
(Photo: Oriental Daily)
Greater Bay Airlines — a brand-new airline in Hong Kong — received its second Boeing 737-800 aircraft, after being granted the Air Transport License in February. The new aircraft has registered with registration B-KJB and leased from China’s ICBC Leasing. According to local media, the aircraft was owned by Norwegian Air International beforehand.
“This is encouraging and exciting news to us and the recent granting of the ATLA license represents another big step forward for the airline,” Algernon Yau, CEO of the airline said in a statement.
Greater Bay Airlines has leased three Boeing 737-800 and expecting the delivery of the third aircraft by 2022. According to its website, the airline has planned to own a fleet of seven Boeing 737-800 by 2022 and more than 30 aircraft by 2026.
Despite the second aircraft having been delivered, the airline hasn’t unveiled the schedule of its maiden flight. Hong Kong is facing the fifth wave of coronavirus and carrying out the most restrictive travel rules. Yau believed the quarantine rules need to be lifted before the airline launched. The airline has expected to start operating last October but failed to receive the Air Transport License last year.
“I think we would need around three months in advance,” Yau added.
Greater Bay Airlines criticized the Hong Kong carriers for neglecting the Chinese market. Earlier, the airline said that it will “committed to contributing the continual aviation development of Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area.” Greater Bay is the area adjacent to Hong Kong — a market that has a population of 85 million. The airline has applied to operate 104 destinations across Asia.
Airlines around the globe have started recovering after the pandemic, but Hong Kong’s travel restrictions have left the aviation industry behind. After two years of the pandemic, Cathay Pacific, Greater Bay Airline’s potential major competitor, is still battling against a strong headwind, revealing that it carried 31,253 passengers in February, a 98.9% decrease compare to the pre-pandemic in February 2019.
According to Cathay Pacific, it operated below 2% of pre-covid levels in February and the environment remains “very challenging”.
Lifting Travel Restrictions
In the meantime, Hong Kong International Airport has revealed that it handled 86,000 passengers in February, significantly lower than the pre-pandemic levels. The airport recorded 5.89 million passengers in February 2019.
However, Hong Kong Government has shown a sign of lifting its restrictions, allowing the flights from nine countries, including Australia, Canada, France, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, the U.K. and the U.S. to fly to Hong Kong again from Apr.1. Earlier, flights from nine countries have been banned from entering the city based on “place-specific and flight suspension mechanism”, due to Omicron variant concerns.
In addition, the Hong Kong government has relaxed its quarantine rules, and Hong Kong residents coming from foreign countries need to take seven days quarantine instead of 14 days hotel quarantine.
A Delta CRJ-200 (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
If you have read my articles in the past, then you know I love out-of-the-way airports, airlines and aircraft and would do almost anything to adventure to a new city or fly on a unique, rare aircraft type. So in continuation of this series, which I call my “Unique Connection Series”, I will go over a unique flight between two cities using a small, unusual airport as a stopover. The uniqueness of the connection might be referring to the small size of an airport, a unique aircraft type or both.
Overview
For this unique connection, I will be starting at Detroit’s Metropolitan Wayne County Airport and flying to Minneapolis’ St. Paul Airport — using the small Essential Air Service (EAS) community of Iron Mountain, Mich. as my connection point. I will be flying on Delta Air Lines operated by SkyWest on a 50-seat regional Bombardier CRJ-200, neither of which are rare or unique in the United States, but the fact this trip will bring me through an EAS community definitely qualifies it as “unique”.
SkyWest operates flights to many EAS airports under the Delta Connection banner, none of which were announced to be terminated in SkyWest’s massive 31 destination cessation last week —which consisted of only United Express branded destinations. At the time of writing this trip report, this particular unique connection along with the other Delta Connection branded EAS destinations are safe for the time being.
Although Delta and SkyWest do operate in many EAS cities, only two are timed correctly for connections between the airline’s hubs in a single day; Escanaba and Iron Mountain, both of which are in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and are actually 50-miles apart from each other. Another EAS city in the Upper Peninsula does connect to both of Delta’s Midwest hubs, Sault Ste. Marie, but at the time of writing this, the timing of the flights requires you to stay overnight for it to work.
In Escanaba, you can only connect there in the evenings going westbound from Detroit to Minneapolis. For Iron Mountain, you can connect here in either direction between the hubs, westbound in the mornings, and eastbound in the afternoon and evenings. In this article, I will be going westbound from Detroit to Minneapolis, using Iron Mountain as my connection point as explained above.
Day of the Flight
On the morning of the flight, I arrived in Detroit on another Delta flight, so there was no need to re-clear security and my connection was just about two hours. I relaxed and had a good breakfast in the terminal before heading through Detroit’s famous humming hallway to the B and C gates where all the Bombardier CRJ-200 flights depart.
The departure board for the morning flights (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
Once I arrived at the gate I saw my chariot for today’s flights; N447SW, a CRJ-200 that was delivered directly to SkyWest back in September 2002. The only time it spent away from the airline was a brief seven months during the pandemic when it was parked in Tucson, Ariz.
My aircraft for today (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
The good news for this flight is you have no risk of missing a flight and getting stranded in the middle of nowhere. Just like in my previous Unique Connection Series articles, this aircraft will take me all the way from the starting point to my final destination — which in this case is Minneapolis/St. Paul.
The empty gate area for my flight to Iron Mountain (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
Boarding started, nothing special just like every other Delta flight, and I took my place for the first flight in seat 10D. This trip was taken at the end of September, so I opted for a right-side window seat in order to get some wonderful views of Lake Michigan as we flew over, as well as the fall colors I hoped to catch upon landing. There were only 11 passengers on this flight up to Iron Mountain on a 50-seat jet, which is the reason the EAS program exists. Without the program and its subsidies, no airlines would fly a 50-seat jet nearly 350-miles with only 11-people on it, the program is a lifeline to communities all over the country.
Before boarding, I made sure to switch to a window seat towards the rear of the aircraft. I’m sure it’s not often you hear people wanting to move further back, but I prefer it on the CRJ-200s as it gives you a nice view of the wing, flaps and even the engine if your far back enough.
My view from seat 10D on the CRJ-200 (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
Pushback, engine start-up and a taxi to the runway for my flight to Iron Mountain. Before I knew it we had rocketed off the runway in Detroit towards the northwest bound for the Upper Peninsula.
On takeoff from Detroit-Metro (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
It was a pretty average flight, up to cruising altitude of 28,000-feet and made our way across Michigan and upper Lake Michigan. Service consisted of Goldfish crackers or biscoff cookies and a mini water bottle, pretty good for an aircraft this size, as I’ve had a lot less service on longer flights using bigger aircraft. We then were above Traverse City, Mich. and Grand Traverse Bay including Mission Point.
Flying passed Mission Point (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
At the tip of that point of land, in the picture above is Mission Point, which is located along the 45th Parallel, meaning I was halfway between the Equator and the North Pole. The CRJ-200 doesn’t have WiFi or inflight entertainment to speak of, but with a view like that, I really didn’t need it and spent most of the flight looking out the window. Before long the coastline of the Upper Peninsula was coming into view and we had begun our descent.
The coastline of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
As we got closer to the ground, I started to see exactly what I was hoping for, which was fall foliage. The brown, yellow and red leaves slowly became more clear the closer we come to the ground.
The fall colors of the Upper Peninsula (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
Just before touching down in Iron Mountain, we flew over the Menominee River — which surrounds the airport and the community on Iron Mountain on three sides. This river also represents the border between Michigan and Wisconsin, which means Iron Mountain is on a peninsula, within a peninsula.
Flying over the Menominee River (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
We touched down at the Ford Airport in Iron Mountain at 8:44 A.M. local time, making the flight time from takeoff to touchdown one hour and seven minutes. It was a brief five-minute taxi to the parking gate where I was happy to see no jetway — meaning we would deplane out onto the ramp.
Pulling into the gate at Iron Mountain (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
This would be the 35th EAS Airport that I have visited, and the third in the state of Michigan I have seen. The others in Michigan that I have visited include Muskegon and Manistee, the latter of the two on Cape Air’s inaugural flight. Every EAS airport terminal I have been to has its own flair or unique design to it. At Iron Mountain, the architecture of the roof is what stands out the most.
The inside of the terminal was nothing fancy, but it was unique. There was a glass wall separating the sterile and non-sterile areas of the airport, the only way to get access between the two was through the TSA checkpoint or an alarmed door that the airline employees opened for arriving passengers to exit out of. Through the glass wall, I could see the baggage claim, which here was essentially a window they open where you can grab your bags. I do apologize for the quality of that baggage claim picture, the photo got a bug as I was transferring it from my camera.
The ‘Baggage Claim’ area in Iron Mountain (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
I saw a few passengers talking to loved ones over the phone in the gate area, while the other person stood just on the opposite side of the glass in the airport lobby. This was fun seeing that and is certainly a unique aspect of this airport.
There was no restroom in the gate area once you went through security, so they only sent people through as they got closer to the departure time. The gate area was simple, with no permanent desk foundation or counter. The gate consisted of a simple single computer and a boarding pass scanner on a rolling table, which was wheeled out as the flight was ready to board.
The gate area in Iron Mountain (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
No Public Address (PA) system in the gate area either, just someone talking as loud as they can, and yet despite this it didn’t feel unprofessional and actually added a bit of class doing things the really old-fashioned way. Before I knew it, the Delta agent began the boarding process, and I headed out for my flight to Minneapolis on board the same aircraft that brought me here.
Walking out to my aircraft in Iron Mountain (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
I find that the smaller the airport it is, the nicer and more friendly people working there are, and that was certainly the case here. Everyone was so accommodating, and the gate agent even helped me with my seat assignment so I would have a better view on takeoff from Iron Mountain, I took my seat in 10A and buckled in for the short flight to Minneapolis.
The startup, and a short taxi over to the runway for takeoff. I could see the curvature of the runway in Iron Mountain from my seat as we turned onto the runway which was nothing alarming, most runways have dips and hills in them all of which are regulation. They are usually hard to see unless you are looking at them from the right angle, which I was this time.
Looking down the runway as we taxi for takeoff (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
We proceeded to take off from Iron Mountain not even an hour after landing, and I saw why the gate agent recommended a seat on the left side; a view of the river. In regards to the picture below, to the left of the river is Michigan and to the right is Wisconsin.
The Menominee River (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
On this flight over to Minneapolis, there are 26 total passengers which is more than double that of the first flight, but still not a lot considering the aircraft can hold 50. We quickly climbed up to our cruising altitude of 24,000-feet for this short flight over to Minneapolis.
Leaving behind Iron Mountain as we head to cruise (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
For this flight, the service was again a small water bottle and biscoff cookies, but instead of goldfish, there was a bag of pretzels. Still impressed by the service on a flight this short hop, the single flight attendant did a good job attending to passengers’ needs.
Before I knew it we had begun to descend and I could see downtown Minneapolis off the left side of the wing.
Downtown Minneapolis off the left side of the aircraft (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Joey Gerardi)
We touched down on the runway in Minneapolis/St. Paul at 10:23 A.M., which was 48-minutes after leaving Iron Mountain and 2-hours and 46-minutes after taking off from Detroit. By no means is this faster than the nonstop flight between the cities which can sometimes be under 90-minutes.
With spring break coming up for many schools across the country and pilot shortages looming, a unique connection could be your saving grace. If your hub-to-hub flight gets canceled or you miss a flight, this unique connection may just be the way of saving your vacation once the nonstop flights are completely full. On the other hand, you could just stop to see a place you’ve never been and probably have never heard of until now.
So, the next time your travel try connecting somewhere new and unique, you may just like where you end up.
A video trip report of this article can be found below. Some information and facts have been changed since the video’s creation in January 2022, this article has the most up-to-date information regarding this specific flight and was fact-checked on March 20, 2022.
Joey has always been interested in planes for as long as he can remember. He grew up in Central New York during the early 2000s when US Airways Express turboprops ruled the skies. Being from a non-aviation family made it harder for him to be around planes and would only spend about three hours a month at the airport. He was so excited when he could drive by himself, the first thing he did with his driver's license was get ice cream and go plane spotting for the entire day. He graduated from Western Michigan University in 2022 with a B.S. in Aviation Management & Operations and a Minor in Business, and currently works for a major airline in his hometown.
China Eastern Boeing 737-800 Crashes in Southern China
A China Eastern Boeing 737-800 (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Lei Yan)
Editors Note: This is a developing story. We will provide updates as more information becomes available.
On the afternoon of March 21, a China Eastern Boeing 737-800 flying domestically from Kunming to Guangzhou crashed in a mountainous of Southern China. According to official sources, the aircraft had 123 passengers and 9 crew members on board flight MU5735. As of the time of publishing, local authorities have not provided any more information regarding the crash.
The aircraft went down in the Guangxi province, which lies on the country’s border with Vietnam, outside the city of Wuzhou, at approximately 06:22 am UTC.
According to the data from Flightradar24, flight MU5735 flew normally during the first hour of flight. Then, the aircraft experienced a violent descent from 29,000 feet down to 3,000 feet within three minutes. After that, the signal of the aircraft was lost.
The aircraft, a Boeing 737-800 registered B-1791, was delivered to China Eastern in 2015 and had a paint scheme with a special peacock livery, a symbol of the Yunnan province. The Boeing 737 was configured as a two-class cabin with 150 economy class seats in a 3-3 configuration preceded by 12 business class seats in a 2-2 format.
China Eastern is one of the three state-owned airlines in China and has rich experience operating the Boeing 737-800. According to data on planespotters.net, China Eastern Airlines Group operates 291 of this type of aircraft.
Based on the images and videos posted on social media, there appears to be a large area on fire at the ridge of a mountain. Officials said that the rescue team is gathered and on its way to search for survivors.
Last month, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) celebrated 100 million continuous safe flight hours since the nation’s last major accident in 2010. At this time, the clock will almost certainly be reset.
The United States Federal Aviation Administraiton, FAA, released a statement saying, “FAA is aware of reports that a China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 plane crashed this morning in China. The agency is ready to assist in investigation efforts if asked.”
Thus far, China Eastern and Boeing have not provided any comment. China Eastern changed its website to black-and-white shortly after the accident, as did the Boeing China website.
Lei is from Inner Mongolia, China, and now lives in Guangzhou. He grew up in an aviation family, where his passion began. During his time at Penn State University, he studied Industrial Engineering specializing in operations research, and he graduated with an honor’s thesis on airport gate assignment optimization. Now, he is a Purchasing Manager with Procter & Gamble. In his free time, he enjoys flying, reading, and wandering around the city.
Frontier Shelves Wichita Service For Immediate Future
A Frontier Airlines A320neo at the gate in Denver. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Tom Pallini)
Wichita Airport will once again go without Frontier Airlines as the ultra-low-cost carrier announced that was going forward with suspending all service to Wichita. The airline had previously expected to resume Wichita-Las Vegas service using Airbus A320neos on April 1, but now says that a lack of available aircraft will prevent that from happening.
The airline had peaked in late 2020 and early 2021 when services to both Las Vegas and Denver were conducted from the Kansas city. The airline has been servicing Wichita since flights to Denver, which it started in August 2018.
However, the routes that Frontier operated were already served by a plethora of competitors. The airline initially went head-to-head with United in 2018, decreasing Denver-going passengers’ airfare by 29% when the low-cost airline arrived on site. However, since then, Southwest utilized the market shifts caused by the period of fluctuating demand resulting from Covid-19 to launch its own Denver to Wichita flight, which didn’t help Frontier and created a surplus of capacity as a result. Frontier would exit the Denver to Wichita market in September as a result of that increased competition.
On the Las Vegas route, Frontier had actually used the Covid-19 period to its own advantage launching the additional Wichita going service. However, this route would only be seasonal and would face low-cost competition from Allegiant Air and Southwest Airlines, who had both operated the route prior to the pandemic’s start.
Wichita Airport Authority Air Service and Marketing Manager Valerie Wise noted the loss, saying, “We certainly are disappointed that Frontier is leaving, especially now that passenger demand is increasing and more seats are needed.”
This marks the second time that Frontier has exited the Wichita market, following the November 2012 departure of the airline citing lack of demand. Back then, the airline served Wichita with two daily flights using Lynx Aviation Bombardier Dash 8-Q400s. The airline had excited with only United left as the serving connection between the two cities.
The removal of Frontier still leaves Wichita with some low cost carrier service and competition on both the Denver-Wichita and Las Vegas-Wichita. Allegiant and Southwest continue to provide service to Las Vegas and Southwest continues to challenge United to Denver as well as offer flights to Phoenix and St. Louis. Allegiant continues to serve additional flights to Phoenix/Mesa, St. Petersburg (FL) and seasonal service to Destin, Los Angeles and Orlando-Sanford.
The remaining airlines are the traditional legacy three of American, United and Delta with services to their respective hubs. Alaska rounds out the airline listings, with one daily flight to Seattle. Despite the loss of Frontier, Wichita continues to show a strong recovery as January passenger traffic increased 74.87% in year-over-year performance in 2022. The airport hosted 93,307 passengers and saw the number of scheduled flights also increase by 31.7% with 801 departures over the calendar month.
Frontier notes that they will maintain hopes to return when aircraft are available for the carrier to use on routes out of the city.
Although Ian McMurtry was never originally an avgeek, he did enjoy watching US Airways aircraft across western Pennsylvania in the early 2000s. He lived along the Pennsylvania Railroad and took a liking to trains but a change of scenery in the mid-2000s saw him shift more of an interest into aviation. He would eventually express this passion by taking flying lessons in mid-Missouri and joining AirlineGeeks in 2013. Now living in Wichita, Kansas, Ian is in college majoring in aerospace engineering and minoring in business administration at Wichita State University.
A Jet Airways Boeing 777-300ER (Photo: Uday Bararia via Wikimedia Commons | https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jet_Airways_India_.jpg)
Jet Airways has provided an update on how far it has progressed in resuming operations. After a new set of promoters – the Jalan-Kalrock Consortium – injected capital into the bankrupt airline, the carrier’s second stint is anticipated to begin this year. Jet officials are working to obtain the essential clearances and are optimistic that scheduled flights will begin soon.
On March 17th, the Jalan-Kalrock Consortium issued an official statement stating that Jet Airways’ relaunch efforts are “progressing nicely.” Jet’s staff is stated to be collaborating closely with the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), the Government of India, and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to ensure that all essential approvals are obtained.
The carrier is preparing for the requisite proving flight to obtain the AOC. Obtaining clearances from the appropriate authorities can take a long time, and Jet’s statement attempts to illustrate the complexities of the procedure, saying, “Restarting an airline is a complex exercise that must be done meticulously, in coordination with the Regulatory Authorities and we are well underway with this process. The timeline reflects the typical duration of an AOC process however we fully expect to have the proving flight and AOC well in advance of the filed timelines.”
The airline has set a March 22 deadline for revalidating the AOC. It marks the end of a 270-day period that began on June 22, 2021, when the National Companies Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved its resolution process.
The Extension
According to a report in the Business Standard, insiders familiar with the situation said the procedure has taken longer than expected due to delays in aircraft leasing. Initially, they planned to lease the planes through GIFT City in Gujarat, but this proved to be more expensive than leasing them abroad.
The airline, on the other hand, has stressed that the extension has nothing to do with the aircraft’s registration, saying, “Further, there is no regulatory requirement of taking an aircraft outside India for the purpose of re-registration. We are working with multiple aircraft lessors as well as aircraft manufacturers to source aircraft that will be inducted into the Jet Airways fleet over the next three to five years.”
The Timeline
Jet Airways has been in the process of being resurrected for some time. In April of this year, the airline filed for bankruptcy in a dramatic manner. Jet Airways’ Committee of Creditors, led by the State Bank of India, proclaimed the Jalan-Kalrock consortium the airline’s new owners in October 2020, as efforts to bring the crashed carrier back to life gained traction.
The NCLT approved Jet’s restoration proposal in June 2021, and since then, its promoters have been striving to put the broken parts back together in order to resuscitate the airline. Jet’s management team has been meeting with important airports to discuss slot allocations and to consider issues such as the location of its future headquarters.
Much has happened in the last few months alone, from planning fleet development and debt settlement ahead of the launch to opening employment applications and selecting a new CEO. While restarting the airline was never going to be easy, many former Jet fans are wanting to see it resurrected as soon as possible.
Putu Deny Wijaya was always an aviation enthusiast by heart, growing up in Indonesia where air transport is very vital. His first love is The Queen of The Skies, serving the trunk routes between Jakarta and Denpasar. He brought along this passion with him throughout college by conducting his bachelor study abroad in the Netherlands for the purpose of experiencing a nonstop 14-hour long-haul flight. For Putu the sky's the limit when talking about aviation. He hopes that he would be able to combine his passion for aviation and knowledge of finance at the same time.
Drawing of a Boeing 737-800 in Aeroitalia livery. (Credit: Aeroitalia).
Today there are only three Italian airlines with an Air Operator Certificate (AOC), ITA Airways, Air Dolomiti (part of the Lufthansa group) and Neos Air. At the beginning of 2020, there were six active Italian airlines, but difficulties linked to the pandemic and crises that have never been resolved led to the suspension of the AOC for Air Italy (as of Aug. 25, 2020), Alitalia (as of Oct. 15, 2021), EGO Airways S.p.A. (from Jan. 4, 2022) and Blue Panorama Airlines (from Mar. 10, 2022).
In this disastrous scenario for Italian commercial aviation, however, there are still those who believe in it. This is the case of Francesco Gaetano Intrieri, a former consultant of the Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport from 2018 to 2019, who has a dream to bring forward his airline, called “Aeroitalia”. Intrieri will have the role of CEO and the airline will focus at first on Italy starting as a charter company and then in 2023 make long-haul flights to South America, the real goal of the airline. The fleet soon will consist of six Boeing B737-800 aircraft, the first of which has already been delivered and repainted with the airline’s livery that recalls the colors of the Italian flag along the entire fuselage. The other aircraft are expected to arrive next summer.
The company’s headquarters are in Rome and Aeroitalia’s hub could be Rome Fiumicino airport. At the moment the employees would be fifty, mostly coming from Alitalia and Air Italy. The aim is to help those who have lost their jobs and are former employees of Italian airlines that have now gone bankrupt. According to the CEO at the end of 2023, the goal is to hire about 2,000 employees.
But how do you marry a fleet of only B737-800s, for short/medium-haul, to reach South America in the future? According to Intrieri, Aeroitalia will not be a low-cost company, but it will pay particular attention to the costs of its business, without “any waste and carrying out everything in a transparent way”.
The South America objective is clear looking at who is financing the Aeroitalia project, namely German Efromovich, former owner of the Colombian national airline Avianca and the French banker Marc Bourgade, active in the field of leasing and financing in air transport. The initial investment seems to be about 180 million euros for the next three years and the airline is expected to start flight operations between spring and summer 2022. Therefore, the take-off, initially scheduled for March, has been postponed as the release of the AOC will presumably take place, not before April.
However, some doubts remain about the figure of Efromovich who, despite the great merit of having bought and restored the Colombian airline Avianca in receivership in 2004 was involved in 2017, in the Panama papers scandal and at the end of May 2019 was ousted from the Avianca group, after the it was taken over by United after the default. The Efromovich family’s assets are estimated at $1 billion.
Vincenzo graduated in 2019 in Mechanical Engineering with an aeronautical curriculum, focusing his thesis on Human Factors in aircraft maintenance. In 2022 he pursued his master's degree in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Palermo, Italy. He combines his journalistic activities with his work as a Reliability Engineer at Zetalab.
A JetStar A321 in Sydney (Photo | AirlineGeeks | Hisham Qadri)
Update on March 18 at 10:30 a.m. ET
On March 16, the Australian Senate delayed further the release of their report to Oct. 20, citing no reasons, but this time committing to the release of its interim report on March 30. The decision to delay the report’s release was made on March 16, the very day before its expected release. The delay is the second since the inquiry began on Dec. 2, 2019.
The Australian Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee were due to release the report on March 17, 2022, having originally been allowed an extension from the original due date of November 30, 2021. Although it’s hoped this report will conclude a multi-year inquiry into the current state of Australia’s general aviation industry, the pattern of delays is beginning to suggest the conclusion will not be so soon.
The inquiry has given particular attention to aviation in rural, regional, and remote Australia, considering the operations, effectiveness and impact of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) as well as other similar agencies, such as the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB).
CASA and ATSB Under Scrutiny
For many years, CASA has been at the receiving end of much criticism from Australia’s aviation sector, with notable complaints toward its safety regulations as being excessive and leading to increasingly expensive costs that plague the industry. According to the Senate Committee website, the report will address the committee’s view of the effect CASA’s aviation safety framework is having on the Australian GA industry, including whether the regulations are fit for purpose, as well as the economic impacts on the sector.
The ATSB has also been receiving heavy criticism for perceived unfairness and biased outcomes. Its investigation into the South Australia June 2017 fatal accident involving a charity Angel Flight SOCATA TB-10 Tobago was labeled “demonstrably wrong” by Angel Flight CEO Marjorie Pagani after its report claimed that charity flights from the organization were up to seven times more likely to end in a fatality as compared to other private operators.
Ms. Pagani defended the charity stating “we had three experts look at this — two of Australia’s top statisticians and an analyst — all of who conclude that it is grossly, demonstrably wrong,” adding “they have counted less than half our flights in order to arrive at this statistical conclusion.”
The ATSB admitted to not interviewing any Australian pilots who have flown for Angel Flight, despite suggesting organizational pressure on pilots contributed to the accident. It relied solely on information obtained from the United States despite the differences in both regulations and operations of Angel Flight.
Australian Industry Disappointed with CASA
In Nov. 2020, a five hour public hearing on the state of Australian GA heard evidence from nine groups, including the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) Australia, which portrayed CASA as failing to keep aviation in Australia safer than countries with simpler safety systems, such as the United States and Papua New Guinea, despite the heavy and complex regulations of CASA.
Additionally, during the same hearing, it was alleged that CASA’s liaison with the industry amounted to little more than show, with Phil Hurst, CEO of the Australian Aerial Application Association (AAAA) claiming the consultation process with CASA as an “appalling window-dressing”, adding “the consultation consists of CASA telling you what they’ve decided and then you trying to talk them down off the high building.”
An interim report released on December 10, 2020, released no comment on the inquiry, stating that due to the COVID-19 pandemic “the inquiry has not progressed as far as the committee had intended. The committee, therefore, submits this letter to satisfy the committee’s commitment to reporting back to the Senate”.
It is hoped by many in the industry that the final report, if not further delayed, will finally address the perceived shortcomings of CASA and begin a process of simplifying regulations, reducing maintenance and safety-related costs, thus making it easier for aviation in Australia to grow.
Mike’s love affair with flight and mechanical objects in the sky began at an early age, fascinated by space documentaries and the vintage Flight Simulator ’95. He currently works as an instructor for UAVs and is training to receive his Private Pilot Licence with the goal of working in manned flight instruction. An avid reader of all things aviation and manned space flight, Mike stays close to developments in aerospace while reminiscing and sharing the rich history of flight with others. He loves writing, engineering and science.
