EDMONTON, July 10, 2023 – Today, Flair Airlines, Canada’s everyday low-fare airline, kicked off its inaugural flight from Edmonton to Quebec City connecting the two cities together through direct flights for the first time ever. Flights will run twice weekly on Mondays and Fridays.
“We are excited to launch the first ever direct flight connecting Edmonton and Quebec City,” said Garth Lund, Chief Commercial Officer at Flair Airlines. “We look forward to offering Edmontonians more choice and affordable travel options as well as continuing our relationship with the Edmonton International Airport.”
One-way fares from Edmonton to Quebec City begin at $59 plus taxes and fees. All routes can be booked on the https://www.flyflair.com/ website.
Mexico City, July 8th, 2023.- Viva Aerobus has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for 90 Airbus (OTC: EADSY) A321neo aircraft. This is the third order Viva has completed with the European manufacturer, thus maintaining a single fleet of A320 family aircraft. The airline’s order book has now reached 170 Airbus aircraft which provides flexibility to continue growing and renewing its fleet, upholding it as one of the youngest in the Americas.
The A321neo offers unparalleled range and performance. By incorporating new generation engines and Sharklets, the A321neo brings a 50 percent noise reduction, and more than 20 percent fuel savings compared to previous single-aisle generation aircraft, while maximizing passenger comfort with the widest single-aisle cabin and large overhead stowage space.
The GTF engine uses a revolutionary geared fan technology that allows each part of the engine to spin at optimum speed, delivering the highest fuel efficiency and lowest greenhouse gas emissions.
These 90 Airbus A321neo aircraft powered by GTF engines will drive Viva’s domestic and international growth plans. This is particularly important since Mexico is expected to recover the US Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Category 1 rating in the coming months. It is also very relevant given the commercial alliance Viva signed with US carrier Allegiant back in December 2021, which will give more people access to new non-stop air transport between Mexico and the US.
Stadler and Azienda Transporti Milanesi S.p.A. (ATM) have signed another framework agreement for the supply of up to 50 TRAMLINK trams for the city of Milan. In a first call-off, ATM has ordered 14 high-capacity vehicles that will be financed with the PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan) fund. The fourteen vehicles will be delivered before 30 June 2026.
The medium-capacity TRAMLINKs are similar to the tramways to be delivered under the framework agreement signed in 2020 and that Stadler is currently manufacturing. They have three modules and are about 25 m long. ATM has already ordered 60 out of the 80 vehicles covered by this framework agreement. The first unit arrived in Milan on 1 December 2022 and, currently, is performing tests on the city’s tram network.
The high-capacity version of the TRAMLINKs is based on the above but features five modules and a length of 35 m. They are bi-directional and have an attractive open interior equipped with two specific areas for wheelchair users. The barrier-free low floor and four doors per side allow passengers to board and alight easily and quickly thus reducing stopping time. In addition, the innovative bogies allow the trams to run smoothly in the narrow curves. This significantly reduces noise to the benefit of passengers and residents.
Particular attention has been paid to the safety of passengers, drivers and pedestrians. The ergonomically designed driver’s cab maximizes the driver’s visibility. Additionally, the TRAMLINK is equipped with an anti- collision device that can intervene when it detects a potential collision situation with pedestrians, cars or other obstacles. No blind spot cameras guarantee the security throughout the whole vehicle. The excellent dynamics as well as the high levels of safety and comfort improve the travel experience.
The three unit FLIRT Akku used for the record journey has been developed by Stadler since 2016 as a local CO2 neutral mobility solution for the climate-friendly operation of unelectrified railway routes. The vehicle was approved by the German Federal Railway Office and introduced to the public for the very first time in 2018. Ever since when the FLIRT Akku test carrier has travelled around 15,000 kilometers in battery only operation, before setting the world record for a regional train journey in battery-only mode without additional charge now.
Climate friendly bestseller FLIRT
The first Fast Light Intercity and Regional Train was developed in 2002 at the request of the Swiss Federal Railways SBB for the Zug city railway. Ever since the unit was put into service, the FLIRT has turned into an international bestseller with over 2,000 vehicles sold. These vehicles are being operated in 20 countries in virtually all climate zones, from the equator to the polar circle, with 528 of them operating in Germany alone. The single-decker regional and intercity multiple unit convinces with its flexibility in the process. The trains are configured for normal and broad gauge tracks, with top speeds of 160 to 200 km/h. Thus, the FLIRT can be customized to any individual client requirements in terms of its drive technology, number of seats, passenger flow and interior design. The lightweight aluminum construction and common components help to keep the operating, energy and maintenance costs low. Besides electric, diesel or bi-modal drives, the FLIRT is also available with climate-friendly battery and hydrogen propulsion.
With the FLIRT Akku train sets, Stadler has developed a so called BEMU (battery-electric multiple unit) that will run as both a classic EMU (electric multiple unit) under overhead contact cable or battery-operated on un-electrified routes. This makes it optimal for partly electrified routes that currently still need to be served with diesel trains. Stadler had already won the first green technology tender in Germany and sold 55 FLIRT Akkus to NAH.SH, the Schleswig-Holstein Local Transport Association in 2019. In November 2021, another order for 44 vehicles followed from Deutsche Bahn Regio. In addition Stadler is also building the first hydrogen-powered FLIRT for the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority (SBCTA) in the USA.
Work at New York John F. Kennedy International Airport officially got underway Wednesday as Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) CEO Ed Bastian, and other officials ceremoniously broke ground on a $1.5 billion expansion and transformation of Terminal 4. The expansion will consolidate all of Delta’s operations into Terminal 4 at JFK – which currently operates out of Terminals 2 and 4 – enabling a more enjoyable and convenient travel experience for customers. The project will include the following enhancements:
A new Delta Sky Club in Terminal 4’s Concourse A.
Expanded seating areas and concessions.
Modern wayfinding.
New and upgraded restrooms designed with travelers in mind.
New check-in counters that will improve capacity and efficiency with state-of-the-art technology.
Installation of new self-service kiosks and self-bag check locations.
Updated baggage claim and arrivals areas.
New retail finishes.
Public art.
Delta continues to grow at JFK and in New York City at large, where it offers the most flights and seats of any carrier at JFK and LaGuardia Airport, with 400 total daily departures to 95 domestic and international destinations. The airline operates more than 160 average daily flights to 68 destinations worldwide from JFK alone. Since 2010, Delta has invested more than $3.5 billion in airport expansion and redevelopment in New York, including earlier projects at JFK and LGA. The airline is also undertaking a $3.9 billion project to consolidate Terminals C and D at LGA, with a state-of-the-art arrivals and departures hall set to open next spring.
Qantas will reignite its love affair with Rome, adding direct flights from Australia to the eternal city from the middle of next year. From 22 June 2022, Qantas will operate the only direct service between Australia and continental Europe, flying three return Sydney-Perth-Rome flights per week to meet demand over the European holiday peak season.
The new flight will cut more than three hours off the current fastest travel time to Rome using the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, with cabins designed specifically for long haul travel.
Customers will be able to combine Qantas’ Rome flights with its double-daily direct flights between Australia and London, meaning they will be able to fly in and out of different cities on one return ticket through to October 2022.
The Rome service will also give customers another option for reaching onward destinations across the Mediterranean and southern Europe through Qantas’ network of partners.
Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said strong travel demand since borders re-opened had given the Flying Kangaroo confidence to explore new destinations as travelers look to make up for lost time.
The new route is expected to entice more visitors to Western Australia and Qantas will partner with Tourism Western Australia to boost inbound tourism from Europe into Perth and regional WA, as well as promote Perth as an ideal stopover for Australians travelling to Europe from the east coast.
Qantas recently started new flights from Sydney and Melbourne to Delhi and re-started a number of existing routes from Sydney and Melbourne to destinations including Los Angeles, London and Singapore.
Fares for the new Sydney-Perth-Rome flights go on sale today starting from $1785 return. Qantas will operate two Points Planes (bookable until 21 December 2021) for Frequent Flyers with every seat in every cabin available to book as a reward seat on the inaugural flight to Rome on 22 June and on the first flight departing Rome on 23 June.
The seasonal route will operate from 22 June until 6 October. Qantas will offer connections to 16 destinations in Europe including Athens, Barcelona, Frankfurt, Nice, Madrid and Paris and 15 destinations within Italy including Milan and Venice.
CALGARY, Alberta & KANSAS CITY, Mo.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (NYSE: CP) and Kansas City Southern (NYSE: KSU) have announced they have jointly filed a railroad control application with the Surface Transportation Board (“STB”) regarding the proposed transaction to create Canadian Pacific Kansas City (“CPKC”), the only single-line railroad linking the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The comprehensive control application provides an overview of the proposed operational integration of the CP and KCS rail networks, the impact of that consolidation on the companies’ finances and labour needs, and the anticipated competitive and other benefits that will flow from providing shippers with new and better transportation alternatives. Information in the filing outlines the public and customer benefits a CP-KCS combination would bring, including more efficient north-south trade arteries to support the interconnected supply chains of the United States, Mexico and Canada.
In addition to the central foundation of the transaction to invigorate transportation competition and support economic growth across North America, the CP-KCS combination will generate many other public benefits, including:
The creation of more than 1,000 direct new jobs system-wide, including approximately 760 in the United States, over the next three years brought about by expanded rail operations across the combined network.
Capital investments in new infrastructure of more than USD$275 million1 over the next three years to improve rail safety and capacity of the core north-south CPKC main line between Louisiana and the Upper Midwest.
Avoidance of more than 1.5 million tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within five years due to the improved efficiency of CPKC versus current operations.
Diverting 64,000 long-haul truck shipments to rail annually with new CPKC intermodal services, eliminating another 1.3 million tons of GHG emissions over the next two decades, saving $750 million in highway maintenance costs.
Rail customers will not experience a reduction in independent railroad choices as a result of the CP-KCS combination. The joint control application reiterates the applicants’ commitment to keep all existing freight rail gateways open on commercially reasonable terms, including the Laredo gateway between the United States and Mexico, and shows how customers will not lose competitive routings because no new regulatory “bottlenecks” are being created. It also describes how the combined company will compete aggressively to attract traffic to its network via new single-line lanes between Canada, the Upper Midwest and the Gulf Coast, Texas, and Mexico.
More than 960 stakeholders, including more than 440 shippers, 186 smaller railroads, dozens of public officials, eight major ports, railroad labor unions representing both CP and KCS employees and 289 rail industry suppliers have written letters to the STB supporting CP’s proposed combination with KCS.
CP has agreed to acquire KCS in a stock and cash transaction representing an enterprise value of approximately $31 billion, which includes the assumption of $3.8 billion of outstanding KCS debt. The transaction, which has the unanimous support of both boards of directors, values KCS at $300 per share, representing a 34 percent premium, based on the CP closing price on Aug. 9, 2021, the date prior to which CP submitted a revised offer to acquire KCS, and KCS’ unaffected closing price on March 19, 2021.2
The transaction is subject to approval by shareholders of each company along with satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including Mexican regulatory approvals. Shareholders are expected to vote on the transaction later this year.
CP’s ultimate acquisition of control of KCS’ U.S. railways is subject to the approval of the STB. In April 2021, the STB determined it would review the CP-KCS combination under the merger rules in existence prior to 2001 and the waiver granted to KCS in 2001 to exempt it from the 2001 merger rules. In August 2021, the STB reaffirmed that the pre-2001 rules would govern its review of the CP-KCS transaction. On Sept. 30, 2021, the STB confirmed that it has approved the use of a voting trust for the CP-KCS combination.
The STB review of CP’s proposed control of KCS is expected to be completed in the second half of 2022. Upon obtaining control approval, the two companies will be integrated fully over the ensuing three years, unlocking the benefits of the combination.
While remaining the smallest of six U.S. Class 1 railroads by revenue, the combined company would have a much larger and more competitive network, operating approximately 20,000 miles of rail, employing close to 20,000 people, and generating total revenues of approximately $8.7 billion based on 2020 actual revenues.
For more information about the benefits of the CP-KCS combination, visit futureforfreight.com
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, OCTOBER 27, 2021 – The Port of Long Beach (POLB), the Utah Inland Port Authority (UIPA), and Union Pacific Railroad (NYSE: UNP) announced today a bold initiative that brings rapid relief from existing port congestion by optimizing rail deliveries between California and Utah.
The initiative is the first implementation of an agreement between POLB and UIPA that focuses on reducing congestion and cost associated with cargo movement through the corridor by optimizing the existing on- and near-dock rail system of the Port of Long Beach to reduce dwell times and improve the speed and consistency of rail deliveries to and from Utah.
Millions of TEUs of international goods are imported to or exported from the Intermountain West annually, but only 10% of this cargo currently moves by rail. This initiative aims to provide consistent, reliable movement of cargo on rail that improves fluidity and reduces delays of shipments already set to come to the Intermountain region, rather than increase cargo volume.
Loading 100 intermodal rail cars equates to 300 trucks off the road. An analysis by the Association of American Railroads concluded railroads are, on average, four times more fuel efficient than trucks and moving freight by rail instead of truck lowers greenhouse gas emissions by 75 percent.
Improving visibility of cargo is also a key component to untangling the supply chain and improving capacity. UIPA has announced the Intelligent Crossroads Network (“ICN”), a private 5G and artificial intelligence network built in partnership with QuayChain Technologies that will allow cargo tracking, monitoring and planning, and even greater efficiencies for users throughout the corridor connecting Long Beach and Utah.
Melbourne, Florida, September 20, 2021 – Embraer (NYSE: ERJ) Eve Urban Air Mobility Solutions and Helipass, SAS, today announced a new collaboration to accelerate and deploy electrical vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, also known in the market as EVA (Electrical Vertical Aircraft), across France and Europe. The partnership aims to fly Eve’s electric aircraft for a total of 50,000 flight hours per year. This could lead to an optional increase of 100,000 annual flight hours across Helipass’ network.
Helipass plans to open digital bookings on its platform to offer an innovative and seamless user experience to customers throughout its network. To support the expansion of this partnership, Eve will work with Helipass to develop training, on-site support, and technical publications to facilitate the launch of EVA commercial operations.
Following the commercial introduction of the EVA, which is planned for 2026, both companies will endeavor to launch Eve’s EVA aircraft across Helipass’ markets. These flights will include sightseeing, city and airport transfers, as well as a growing on-demand service.
Both parties will look into growing the service beyond this agreement to include additional use cases, as well as the requisite services needed to support the scalability of Urban Air Mobility (UAM) products in Helipass’ core markets.
Alstom’s first two Innovia 300 monorail trains for the Cairo Monorail project have arrived in Cairo after being completed at Alstom’s Derby UK factory, with propulsion systems application led by Alstom’s site in Trapaga, Spain. The dispatch of the first 8 fully automated, driverless cars out of 70 trains (a total of 280 cars) is a major milestone in the Cairo Monorail project, Egypt’s first two monorail lines, linking the New Capital City and 6th October City to Greater Cairo.
In August 2019, an Alstom-led consortium composed of Orascom Construction and Arab Contractors signed a €2.7bn contract to design, implement, operate, and maintain the two lines. The project includes a 54 km line connecting the New Administrative City with East Cairo and a second 42 km line connecting 6th of October City with Giza.
Both lines are expected to open in 2023. After the construction phase is completed, the Alstom-led consortium will provide 30 years of operation and maintenance (O&M) services for both lines.
Egypt is committed to developing and improving mobility services for its citizens, while reducing traffic congestion and environmental impact. The Innovia 300 monorail system allows fast construction of high-capacity lines at lower costs. Once maximum capacity is achieved, each of the two Cairo lines will be able to transport 45,000 passengers per hour in each direction. The Innovia 300 monorail system is equipped with Alstom’s proven Cityflo 650 communications-based train control solution. Benefits of this flagship technology include high reliability, flexible operation, shorter headways between trains, improved safety and reduced maintenance costs. The Alstom Mitrac propulsion system provides strong reliability and maintainability, and thanks to its permanent magnet motor, better energy consumption figures.
Alstom has been a partner to Egypt’s railways since 1971, continuously supporting the railway infrastructure development in the country. Over these years, Alstom Egypt has established a local talent pool and Center of Excellence (COE) related to signalling systems, power supply and maintenance workshops to support projects across its Africa-Middle East-Central Asia (AMECA) region. It is this rich heritage that has enabled Alstom to make a significant contribution to Egypt’s rail industry development. Today, Alstom employs approximately 500 people in Egypt with ongoing projects which includes the modernization of signalling system on the Beni Sueif – Assyut line.
Watch the Video of First two Alstom Innovia 300 Trains Delivered for Cairo Monorail!
