Aviation

British Airways expected to announce suspension of 36,000 employees

IAG-owned British Airways is expected to announce a suspension of about 36,000 of its employees. The airline has reached a broad deal with Unite union that will include suspension of…

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Boeing to offer voluntary layoffs to employees amid coronavirus fallout

Boeing Co was set to offer employee buyout and early retirement packages, two people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, a bid to mitigate the financial fallout from the…

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British Airways suspends all Gatwick flights

British Airways will suspend all flights to and from London's Gatwick airport amid a collapse in demand due to the coronavirus. It follows EasyJet's suspension of flights after the government…

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EasyJet grounds its entire fleet

Britain’s biggest airline by passenger numbers, easyJet, has grounded its entire fleet of 344 aircraft. The Luton-based airline says its last flight operated on Sunday 29 March and there will…

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8 die as plane carrying medical supplies crashes upon take-off in Philippines – Reports

An IAI Westwind (RP-C5880) has been involved in an accident during take-off from Manila Airport. The airplane is said to have carried medical supplies. Sources say there were 8 people…

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Virgin Atlantic to seek bailout in coming days

Virgin Atlantic is expected to ask for a government bailout worth hundreds of millions of pounds in the coming days, the BBC understands. Requests for state aid are also expected…

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Gatwick to close north terminal as flights dwindle

London's second-busiest airport is to close one of its two terminals after a slump in flights triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Sky News has learnt that Gatwick Airport has decided…

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British airlines want to hand out vouchers rather than refunds for flight cancellations

Following the publication of data by the International Air Transport Association which indicates that global airlines stand to lose up to 250 billion dollars in lost revenue due to the coronavirus…

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Russia grounds international flights, Moscow to close all shops

The Russian government has ordered the civil aviation authority to suspend all regular and charter flights to and from Russia from March 27, the government said on its website. Russian…

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Wizz Air halts operations on three Romanian airports

Wizz Air, the biggest airline in Romania by number of passengers transported, announced that it would suspend all operations from its local bases in Timisoara, Craiova and Sibiu, from March…

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IATA predicts huge falls in aviation revenue

The International Air Transport Association has updated its analysis of the revenue impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the global air transport industry. Owing to the severity of travel restrictions…

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Turkish Airlines says 85% of its passenger planes idle

Turkish Airlines’ board chairman said on Sunday that 85% of the carrier’s passenger planes were not being used at the moment, after Turkey banned flights from more than 60…

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Emirates Airlines temporarily suspends all its passenger operations

Since the COVID-19 outbreak began, Emirates and dnata have been adapting operations in line with regulatory directives as well as travel demand. The airline has aimed to maintain passenger flights…

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British Airways pilots agree to take 50% pay cut

British Airways pilots are going to take a 50% pay cut in April and May as the airline battles to survive the coronavirus crisis. The drastic measures mean BA's 4,500…

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British Airways pilots to face pay cut due to coronavirus

British Airways pilots will face a 50% pay cut to their basic salary for April and May, as the airline seeks to reduce its cost to try survive the coronavirus…

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Air Canada to lay off more than 5,100 employees amid coronavirus outbreak

Air Canada is set to lay off more than 5,100 members of its cabin crews because of a decline in flights following the coronavirus outbreak, CBC News reported here late…

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Airline industry may not survive without state aid – Lufthansa

The airline industry may not survive without state aid if the coronavirus pandemic lasts a long time, Lufthansa warned on Thursday, predicting it would emerge into a “different world”…

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European Commission provides guidance on EU passenger rights amid coronavirus outbreak

In an effort to mitigate the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Commission has published guidelines to ensure EU passenger rights are applied in a coherent manner across the…

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Qantas suspends all international flights due to coronavirus pandemic

A Qantas aircraft takes off from Sydney Airport in Sydney, Australia, 19 March 2020. According to media reports on 19 March 2020, Qantas has suspended all international flights and will…

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Flights to Malta to be suspended as of March 21st – Reports

The Horizon Facebook Page, reports that a Notice to Airmen was issued tonight, where by it informed that following a decision taken by the Malta Health Authorities all passenger flights inbound…

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Emirates suspends flights to Malta, Porto and Larnaca

Emirates has suspended services to 30 destinations across its network in a bid to comply with travel restrictions introduced to prevent the spread of Covid-19 by air travel. The latest…

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Airlines slash more flights, Tui cancels the “vast majority” of its holidays

Travel restrictions and a slump in demand as a result of the coronavirus pandemic have forced airlines to lay off staff and cut more flights. On Monday, British Airways owner…

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EasyJet warns majority of fleet could be grounded as airlines enter critical week

On Monday morning, easyJet said it would continue to operate rescue flights for short periods "where we can" to repatriate passengers; however, it would also be cutting operations further. "These…

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Morocco suspends all international flights as cases increase

The Moroccan government suspended all international air routes to and from its territory until further notice. Morocco’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the decision in a press release on Sunday,…

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Aviation and air travel hit significantly by CoVid19 outbreak

The international travel industry faces a widespread shutdown over coronavirus fears after airlines announced new flight reductions and more countries introduced travel bans and isolation requirements. Travel businesses were hit…

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KLM to cut up to 2,000 jobs

KLM, the Dutch subsidiary of Air France-KLM, plans to slash up to 2,000 jobs and ask for government support as it cuts working hours by one-third for its entire staff…

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Norwegian Air to temporarily lay off half of employees due to COVID-19

Norwegian Air will cut 4,000 flights and temporarily lay off half of its employees as it struggles to deal with the effects of coronavirus on the travel industry. The…

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Air freight rates skyrocket amid passenger flight cuts

Air freight rates are skyrocketing after the grounding of many passenger flights in Asia has left shippers scrambling to book limited spots on cargo planes as Chinese industrial production restarts,…

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EU to suspend ‘ghost flight’ rules due to coronavirus

The European Union will temporarily suspend the regulations forcing airlines to run most of their flights, despite their passengers not turning up because of the new coronavirus (Covid-19) to secure…

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Ryanair suspends recruitment due to coronavirus outbreak, EasyJet cancels all Italian flights

Ryanair has decided to temporarily suspend all its recruitment decisions and salary increases because of the coronavirus crisis and the impact on its activity, according to an internal letter reported…

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Airlines facing turbulence

The crisis engulfing the airline industry deepened on Tuesday as carriers cancelled flights, withdrew earnings guidance and implemented austerity measures to cope with the travel slump caused by the coronavirus…

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Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max tragedy anniversary

Families who lost loved ones aboard Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 visited the crash site on Tuesday to mark the first anniversary of the tragedy, a day after interim results of…

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Lufthansa reduces its flight capacity by 50%

Due to the exceptional circumstances caused by the spread of Covid-19 and the resulting drastic decline in bookings as well as numerous flight cancellations Lufthansa Group decided to reduce the…

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Ferenc Liszt Intʼl in Budapest blocks flights from north of Italy

Ferenc Liszt International will stop accepting flights from Milan, Treviso, and Bergamo from Monday because of a lockdown there over the coronavirus, operator Budapest Airport said, according to a report…

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Trial to start of four men accused of shooting down Flight MH17 over the Ukraine

Four men go on trial in the Netherlands on Monday, in the first criminal case over the murder of 298 people on board Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which was shot…

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Should I take a flight? UN civil aviation agency issues guidelines on air travel

In response to fears surrounding the spread of COVID-19, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has published a list of questions and answers, designed to ensure appropriate planning and…

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El Al revenues could drop by $160 million due to coronavirus outbreak

Israeli flag carrier El Al currently expects revenues to plunge by $140-160 million between January and April due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, the airline said Sunday in a filing…

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Wealthy turning to private jets to escape coronavirus outbreak

Big businesses and wealthy people are chartering private jets for “evacuation flights” out of countries hit by the coronavirus outbreak. Adam Twidell, the chief executive of the private jet booking…

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Post Brexit UK to leave European Aviation Safety regulator

The UK will leave the European aviation safety regulator after the Brexit transition period, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has confirmed. BBC reports him saying that UK membership of the European…

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Norwegian airlines suspends flights between Oslo and Milan until May

Norwegian is suspending flights between Oslo and Milan until May, based on new travel guidelines from Norway's foreign ministry as well as health authority recommendations. “Based on travel advice…

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Flybe’s collapse could be ‘first of many’ airlines

The failure of Europe's biggest regional airline Flybe could be the start of more casualties, analysts predict. On Thursday, a global airline industry body warned the financial hit from coronavirus…

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Ryanair offers ‘rescue fares’ to ex-Flybe customers

Ryanair has launched a series of special offers to ex-Flybe passengers, following the company’s announcement that it went in administration on Thursday. Flybe, a British airline based in England, entered…

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Flybe goes into administration after coronavirus struggle

UK airline Flybe has collapsed after months of talks with the government failed to secure a crucial £100m loan and the deadly coronavirus slashed demand. One of Britain's largest airlines,…

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Brussels Airlines further reduces services to Italy

Brussels Airlines will further reduce its services to and from Italy due to the coronavirus outbreak, and the impact on flights, the Airline announced on Tuesday. As the overall changing…

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IATA reports serious declines in demand in airline business

IATA reported serious declines in demand due to the Coronavirus outbreak. The Financial Times report that the coronavirus epidemic has forced British Airways and Ryanair to cancel hundreds of flights, as…

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Emirates Group tells staff to take leave due to coronavirus

Dubai’s Emirates Group has seen a “measurable slowdown” in business due to the coronavirus outbreak and has asked staff to take paid and unpaid leave, reports Reuters based on an…

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European Commission opens in-depth investigation into €400 million Italian government loan to Alitalia

The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to assess whether Italy's € 400 million loan granted to Alitalia constitutes State aid and whether it complies with the rules on…

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Airlines at center of storm as coronavirus spreads

European airlines stepped up their warnings over the coronavirus outbreak, with British Airways-owner IAG and Finnair flagging a hit to profits and easyJet reporting a big drop in demand…

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Which countries currently have coronavirus travel restrictions in place?

International travellers are facing tighter restrictions at airports as the number of countries denying entry to passengers who have recently visited China, Italy and other regions with reported cases of…

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EasyJet and BA owner set to cut European flights because of coronavirus outbreak

EasyJet and the owner of British Airways are to cancel European flights because of the coronavirus crisis as global markets face their worst week since 2008. The budget airline and…

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Boeing lands in Moscow after cracked window emergency

A Boeing-777 passenger plane en route to Bangkok with more than 200 people on board has been forced to fly back to Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport because of a cracked cockpit…

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Heathrow third runway ruled illegal over climate change

Plans for a third runway at Heathrow airport have been ruled illegal by the court of appeal because ministers did not adequately take into account the government’s climate change commitments.…

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Brussels Airport police strikes will cause delays throughout the coming week

Actions by airport police that caused long delays at passport control on their first day on Friday look like being continued throughout the Carnival holidays, police unions said. On…

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Ryanair CEO calls for profiling of Muslim males at airports to prevent terrorism

Budget airline Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary called for the profiling of "males of a Muslim persuasion" at airports to prevent terrorism, in an interview on Saturday with British newspaper…

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Airbus plans to cut thousands of jobs throughout Europe

Airbus announced it planned to cut 2,362 jobs in its Defence and Space division, which is headquartered near Munich, over the next two years. The European multinational aerospace company will cut 829 jobs in…

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Qatar Airways hikes stake in BA owner IAG

Qatar Airways Group has revealed it now owns more than a quarter of shares in British Airways owner International Airlines Group (IAG) after upping its stake. Qatar Airways increased its…

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Australia’s former PM says Malaysia believed pilot downed MH370 jet in murder-suicide

MH370 flight, which went missing in March 2014 with 239 people on board, was downed by the pilot in a murder-suicide plot. The Beijing bound Malaysia Airlines jet went missing on…

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