Category: Coronavirus (Page 16 of 33)

Emirates Re-Opening Worldwide Lounges Beginning With Cairo

November 28, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

**Throughout the day, lounge staff will sanitise each seat and table after customers leave. In addition, the lounge will be sanitised and fumigated regularly.**

Emirates is re-opening its lounges around the world, beginning with the Emirates lounge in Cairo International Airport. In the coming weeks, Emirates’ customers can look forward to once again enjoying Emirates lounge services in other destinations including New York’s JFK International and Manchester Airport.

The airline has redesigned its lounge offering and introduced additional health and safety measures. The new protocols will be rolled out in each lounge.

The buffet offering will be changed to an a la carte service with contactless menus activated by QR code. Throughout the day, lounge staff will sanitise each seat and table after customers leave. In addition, the lounge will be sanitised and fumigated regularly.

All employees working in the lounge will be wearing masks and social distancing protocols are in place throughout the lounge. Seating capacity will be halved as every other sofa seat is left unoccupied. To ensure food safety, catering staff will be wearing masks, gloves and personal protective equipment (PPE). Newspaper, magazines and other reading materials will not be available to minimise the risk of infection by touch.

The Emirates lounge in concourse B in Dubai International airport is also open with a redesigned service and designated First Class area. In the recent months, Emirates has been introducing services aimed at providing customers with a safe and seamless airport experience. The integrated biometric path at Dubai International airport is the latest in a host of initiatives by Emirates, allowing customers to go from check-in to boarding purely by facial recognition.

Emirates continues to gradually reinstate its signature services after rigorous review and careful redesign to ensure the health and safety of customers and employees.

On board, the celebrated A380 Onboard Lounge and Shower Spa have resumed operations, while Emirates’ onboard dining experience has returned to its signature service while observing strict hygiene protocols.

Emirates customers can travel with peace of mind with the airline’s flexible booking options and multi-risk travel insurance, including COVID-19 coverage on every flight. Emirates has also implemented a comprehensive set of measures at every step of the customer journey to ensure the safety of its customers and employees.

Emirates is re-opening its lounges around the world beginning with the Emirates lounge in Cairo International Airport. The airline has redesigned its lounge offering and introduced additional health and safety measures. The new protocols will be rolled out in each lounge.

Mesa Air Group Enters New Contract with American Airlines

November 26, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Mesa Air Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: MESA) announced that it has finalized a new contract, which replaces the previous agreement with American Airlines, to operate 40 CRJ-900’s for a five-year term beginning January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2025. Under the previous contract 30 CRJ-900 aircraft were set to expire in 2021 with an additional 17 expiring in 2022.

“I want to express my appreciation to the American Eagle team leaders who worked with us on this new contract,” said Jonathan Ornstein, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Mesa Air Group. “This new contract will help to position Mesa for long term stability and improved performance on our American operation. This year has been difficult for our entire industry due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but I’m thankful that despite the obstacles, American has chosen to continue its long-standing relationship with Mesa.”

“I want to thank everyone involved for making this deal happen, especially our employees, who have shown unmatched professionalism and dedication throughout this difficult year,” said Brad Rich, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “Efficiency and flexibility have been the pillars of our operation and the key to our low-cost structure. We are optimistic about our relationship with American and believe this new contract will be beneficial to both parties.”

KiwiRail Announce Trains Have Resumed Service on Wairoa-Napier Line

November 23, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Log trains are running again on the Wairoa-Napier line from this weekend.

Services were suspended earlier this year as a result of COVID-19’s impact on the forestry industry.

KiwiRail Chief Operating Officer Todd Moyle says the first train will run tomorrow (November 21).

“We’re pleased to get the service up and running again.

“However, with the track now back in regular use, people travelling in the area will need to take special care around level crossings. Those crossing the tracks should expect trains at any time and from either direction.

“Initially there will be two return trains each weekend. Each train is expected to consist of 24 wagons, the equivalent of 24 truckloads of logs.

“Over time, as log volumes increase, we expect to run trains daily.

“There are significant numbers of forests in the Wairoa catchment that are reaching maturity.

“Harvest volumes in the Hawke’s Bay region are predicted to reach 3.3 million tonnes per annum in the next few years and remain at high levels until the mid-2030s, so we know there is a demand for rail.

“Rail infrastructure investment has multiple, long-term benefits, some of which are not immediately obvious.

“For example, moving more logs by rail instead of trucks reduces road maintenance costs and congestion and improves road safety – particularly on regional roads like those between Napier and Wairoa which were not designed for heavy trucks.

“Given trains have 70 per cent fewer emissions than trucks per tonne of freight, it also helps reduce transport emissions.”

The line was rebuilt with $6.2 million provided to the project through the Provincial Growth Fund.

Delta Only U.S. Airline to Block Middle Seats Through March 30, 2021

November 22, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

The health and safety of our customers and employees remains our top priority. The Delta CareStandard encompasses more than 100 protective measures, such as sanitizing every flight, a comprehensive employee COVID testing program, and the use of industrial-grade HEPA filters that extract more than 99.99% of particles, including viruses. Read more about the Delta CareStandard.

Taking the Stress Out of Flying

Delta is making it easier to plan and book your next trip.

Delta launched a new interactive map on delta.com that gives customers the power to search, view and click-to-book their desired destination all in one place, giving full control and a better understanding of current travel restrictions and what to expect upon arrival.

The data is curated from government agencies and the International Air Transport Association to provide detailed insight into quarantine and testing requirements, travel forms and paperwork, local health information, local COVID-19 guidelines, and links to necessary forms and applications needed prior to travel.

In addition to a new trip planning tool, we’re offering greater flexibility if you ever need to change your plans, including:

No change fees for a U.S. domestic ticket or domestic award ticket, excluding Basic Economy fares.
No change fees for all domestic and international tickets purchased through Dec. 31, 2020, even if scheduled to travel next year.
Extending the use of travel credits through December 2022 for travel originally scheduled to depart before March 31, 2021 (if the ticket was purchased before April 17, 2020).

JetBlue Lands Slots for London Expansion

November 21, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Article from The Motley Fool.

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended many airlines’ strategic plans. Yet other airlines — especially those with strong balance sheets and a focus on the leisure market — are forging ahead with their plans, seeing the pandemic as an opportunity to gain market share from weakened rivals.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) is firmly in the latter camp. While the company has deferred some aircraft orders, it still plans to take delivery of its first Airbus A321LR next year, allowing it to launch its long-awaited service to London. Earlier this week, one of the last puzzle pieces fell into place, as the airline was granted slots allowing it to operate up to three daily roundtrips to London starting in the summer 2021 season.

Click the link below to read the full story!

https://www.fool.com/investing/2020/11/21/jetblue-lands-slots-for-london-expansion/

Emirates Ups A380 Deployment, Adding UK and Russia Services

November 18, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Emirates announced plans to operate its popular A380 aircraft four times a day to London Heathrow from 27 November and six times a week to Manchester from 2 December, and to deploy additional A380 services to Moscow from the current two-a-week, to a daily service from 25 November.

Emirates will also increase flights to Birmingham and Glasgow from the current four-a-week to daily services at both cities, from 27 November and 1 December respectively. Emirates’ services to Manchester will increase from the current eight-a-week to 10 flights per week from 1 December, of which six will be served by an Emirates A380 and four with a Boeing 777-300ER. At London Heathrow, Emirates’ current twice daily A380 and once daily Boeing 777 flights will become four daily A380 services from 27 November.

These represent a significant expansion of Emirates services to the UK, following the recent establishment of the UK-UAE air travel corridor which has led to increased demand. Under the air travel corridor, travellers entering the UK from the UAE will not longer be required to quarantine, which is a boon for travellers, and speaks to the UAE’s rigorous and effective pandemic response. In the other direction, UK travellers heading to Dubai can opt to do their COVID-19 PCR tests 96 hours in advance of their flight, or to do the test on arrival in Dubai, adding to the ease of travel.

Emirates’ enhanced services to Moscow will also meet increased demand from travellers seeking to holiday in Dubai, or at popular island destinations within easy reach through Dubai, such as the Maldives.

Dubai is open for international business and leisure visitors. From sun-soaked beaches and heritage activities to world class hospitality and leisure facilities, Dubai offers a variety of world-class experiences for visitors. In 2019, the city welcomed 16.7 million visitors and hosted over hundreds of global meetings and exhibitions, as well as sports and entertainment events. Dubai was one of the world’s first cities to obtain Safe Travels stamp from the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) – which endorses Dubai’s comprehensive and effective measures to ensure guest health and safety.

Flexibility and assurance: Emirates’ booking policies offer customers flexibility and confidence to plan their travel. Customers who purchase an Emirates ticket for travel on or before 31 March 2021, can enjoy generous rebooking terms and options, if they have to change their travel plans. Customers have options to change their travel dates or extend their ticket validity for 2 years.

COVID-19 PCR testing: Emirates customers who require a COVID-19 PCR test certificate prior to departure from Dubai, can avail of special rates at clinics across Dubai by simply presenting their ticket or boarding pass. Home or office testing is also available, with results in 48 hours.

Free, global cover for COVID-19 related costs: Customers can now travel with confidence, as Emirates has committed to cover COVID-19 related medical expenses, free of cost, should they be diagnosed with COVID-19 during their travel while they are away from home. This cover is immediately effective for customers flying on Emirates until 31 December 2020, and is valid for 31 days from the moment they fly the first sector of their journey. This means Emirates customers can continue to benefit from the added assurance of this cover, even if they travel onwards to another city after arriving at their Emirates destination. For more details: www.emirates.com/COVID19assistance

Health and safety: Emirates has implemented a comprehensive set of measures at every step of the customer journey to ensure the safety of its customers and employees on the ground and in the air, including the distribution of complimentary hygiene kits containing masks, gloves, hand sanitiser and antibacterial wipes to all customers. For more information on these measures and the services available on each flight, visit: www.emirates.com/yoursafety

Tourist entry requirements: For more information on entry requirements for international visitors to Dubai visit: www.emirates.com/flytoDubai

Boeing Says More Freighters Needed to Support Global Supply Chains

November 17, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Boeing [NYSE: BA] today released its biennial World Air Cargo Forecast (WACF), reflecting COVID-19 impacts and opportunities as well as substantial long-term demand for freighters over the next two decades.

Enabled by a rebound in global trade and long-term growth, the WACF forecasts demand for 2,430 freighters over the next 20 years, including 930 new production freighters and 1,500 freighters converted from passenger airplanes.

According to the new forecast, world air cargo traffic will grow at 4% per year over the next 20 years. This growth is influenced by trade and growing express shipments to support expanding e-commerce operations. With these developments and the proven need for dedicated freighter capacity to support the world’s transportation system, the global air cargo fleet is expected to grow by more than 60% through 2039.

“Freighter operators have been in a unique position in 2020 to meet market requirements for speed, reliability and security, transporting medical supplies and other goods for people and communities around the world,” said Darren Hulst, vice president of Commercial Marketing. “Looking ahead, dedicated freighters will be even more critical to compete in air cargo markets; they carry more than half of air cargo traffic, and airlines operating them earn nearly 90% of air cargo industry revenue.”

In addition to projecting long-term demand for freighters, the WACF provides insights into air cargo performance during the pandemic, including the following:

– E-commerce, which was growing at double-digit rates prior to the pandemic, has accelerated its impact on the air cargo market as more businesses shifted to online selling platforms. Year to date through September, express carriers increased traffic by 14%

– Passenger belly cargo, which in 2019 accounted for about half of the world air cargo capacity, was significantly reduced when airlines parked thousands of planes. Freighter operators responded by operating above normal utilization levels, and traffic for all-cargo carriers grew 6%

– So far in 2020, approximately 200 airlines used more than 2,000 passenger widebody aircraft for cargo-only operations to generate cash flow and support global supply chains. These passenger freighters have taken up some of the capacity shortfall and, in some cases, generated quarterly profits for carriers despite minimal passenger operations

Mesa Air Completes Second Closing On Secured Loan Facility

November 16, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Mesa Air Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: MESA) today announced that it has completed a second closing through its previously disclosed five-year Loan and Guarantee Agreement under the Coronavirus Air, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).

The Loan Agreement provided a secured term loan facility of up to $200 million. On October 30, 2020, Mesa borrowed $43 million under the facility and today, completed a second closing to borrow an additional $152 million. These funds may be used for general corporate purposes and operating expenses, to the extent permitted by the CARES Act.

“I’d like to again express my sincere gratitude to everyone involved in making this deal happen. Our people have been working very hard to ensure Mesa and its employees are prepared to weather this storm”, said Jonathan Ornstein, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “These additional funds will substantially benefit our airline and the communities we serve as we continue to navigate the obstacles created by the pandemic”.

In connection with the additional $152 million drawn under the facility, Mesa issued warrants to the U.S. Treasury to purchase 3,819,095 shares of common stock, no par value. The Warrants have a five-year term from the date issued, were issued pursuant to the Warrant Agreement, and have substantially identical terms to the warrants issued on the initial closing.

Happy 100th Birthday, Qantas Airlines!

November 15, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services (QANTAS) today marks 100 years since it was founded in the Australian outback.

On 16 November 1920, two veterans of the Australian Flying Corps, Hudson Fysh and Paul McGinness, together with local grazier Fergus McMaster, founded what would later become the national carrier.

This happened just 17 years after the first powered flight by the Wright Brothers, two years after the end of World War One and at the tail end of the last major global pandemic, the Spanish Flu.

The new airline focused on conquering the “tyranny of distance” that was a major barrier to the growth of modern Australia. Its early chances of success were uncertain, to the point early backers called their investment “a donation”.

Initially carrying mail between outback towns, the airline was flying passengers to Singapore by the 1930’s. By the end of the 1940’s its strategic importance saw it nationalised and in the 1960’s, it was an early adopter of the jet aircraft that mainstreamed global travel. Qantas invented business class in the 1970’s, switched to an all-747 fleet in the 1980’s, was privatised in the 1990’s, founded Jetstar in 2004, went through major restructuring in 2014 and, by 2020, had recently completed several important ‘firsts’ in non-stop travel to Europe and the US.

Qantas is the oldest continuously-operating airline in the world and the only one that (normally) flies to every single inhabited continent on earth.

Planned centenary celebrations have been significantly scaled back due to the impact of COVID-19, but Qantas will still mark the occasion with a low-level flyover of Sydney Harbour on the evening of its anniversary.

The flight path is expected to pass near Rose Bay where our Empire Flying Boats took off for Singapore between 1938 and 1942.

Qantas Chairman, Richard Goyder, said: “The history of Qantas shows it’s no stranger to a challenge or a crisis. That’s often when its role as the national carrier has really come to the fore.

“We want to use this moment to say thank you to all those who have supported Qantas over the years. And, in particular, to the many people who have dedicated some or all of their careers to this great company.”

Qantas Group CEO, Alan Joyce, said: “Around the world, Qantas is probably best known for its safety record, endurance flying and long list of aviation firsts. But for Australians, there’s nothing quite like seeing the flying kangaroo at the airport, waiting to take you home. We hope to be doing a lot more of that in the months and years ahead.”

Southwest Airlines Adding Service to Sarasota Bradenton Airport

November 15, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) today announced plans to expand its Florida service by adding flights at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport (SRQ) in the first quarter of 2021. Sarasota will be the carrier’s tenth airport served in the State of Florida and is the tenth airport in a list of new places to join the Southwest route map in the coming eight months as the carrier furthers its reach of friendly policies, iconic Hospitality, and value and comfort. Service details including the initial flight schedule and fares for Sarasota-Bradenton will be announced soon.

“We’ll arrive in Sarasota-Bradenton as Southwest marks 25 years of serving the Sunshine State. Our Customers who choose SRQ will land closer to their preferred beaches and business meetings, benefiting from our added investment in the growing region between our longtime cities of Tampa Bay and Ft. Myers,” Steve Goldberg, Southwest Airlines Senior Vice President of Operations and Hospitality said. “Locals who fly Southwest can also pair their preferred airline and airport, and get in the air faster with a shorter drive to SRQ.”

“We are thrilled to welcome Southwest Airlines to the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport (SRQ). This is especially significant during these challenging times in aviation,” Rick Piccolo, President, CEO of the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport said. “Southwest’s low fares and renowned customer service will provide the bi-county community, as well as our inbound visitors, with access to the vast network of destinations that Southwest Airlines serves.”

Previously announced Southwest service to Miami begins on November 15.

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