Tag: Lima

Alstom Signs Contract to Supply Metropolis Trains to the City of Santo Domingo

August 23, 2021 / WIL BALDWIN

Santo Domingo, August 23, 2021 – Alstom will manufacture, supply and commission eight (8) new three-car Metropolis trainsets for Line 1 of the Santo Domingo Metro serving the capital of the Dominican Republic. The international public tender, managed by the Oficina Para el Reordenamiento del Transporte (OPRET), and financed by the Agence française de développement, is a priority project for infrastructure development in Santo Domingo and to increase the transportation capacity of the country’s capital city.

Line 1 of the Santo Domingo metro, conceived to improve mobility in the north-centre-south city corridor, serves 16 stations across 14.5 kilometres. The new trains that Alstom is supplying will be able to operate in multiple units, coupled with each other or with the trains of the fleet previously acquired by OPRET, allowing capacity to be adapted to demand: 6-car configurations at peak times and 3-car configurations at off-peak times.

The new trains will have the same features, functionalities and characteristics of the Metropolis trains that currently operate in the Santo Domingo Metro, such as wide doors, wide corridors and a low floor for an optimal flow of passengers. In addition, the new trainsets will have additional features and technological improvements to enhance the passenger experience and optimize operations and availability, including LED lighting in the passenger area, Wi-Fi connection for the uploading of multimedia files and data transmission to the control unit, as well as improvements in the passenger information and alert system, train control and self-diagnosis systems.

The new trains will be manufactured at Alstom’s plant in Santa Perpetua, Barcelona, Spain, and the first two trains will arrive at the port of Santo Domingo approximately 18 months from the signing of the contract. These new trains will join the 25 Metropolis trains that Alstom previously supplied to Santo Domingo Metro for Line 1 and the 21 Metropolis trains supplied for Line2, since 2009, for a total of 138 cars.

Globally, more than 6,000 Metropolis cars have been sold across the globe, including to cities such as Barcelona, Amsterdam, Mumbai, Chennai, Montreal, Singapore, Buenos Aires, Lima and Santiago de Chile.

American Airlines Announces Additional Schedule Changes in Response to COVID-19

March 15, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ: AAL) will implement a phased suspension of additional long-haul international flights from the U.S. starting on March 16. This suspension will last through May 6. This change is in response to decreased demand and changes to U.S. government travel restrictions due to coronavirus (COVID-19). The airline will:

Reduce international capacity by 75% year over year — from March 16 to May 6
Continue to operate one flight daily from Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) to London (LHR), one flight daily from Miami (MIA) to LHR and three flights per week from DFW to Tokyo (NRT)
Continue short-haul international flying, which includes flights to Canada, Mexico, Caribbean, Central America and certain markets in the northern part of South America, as scheduled

In addition to the international changes, the airline anticipates its domestic capacity in April will be reduced by 20% compared to last year and May’s domestic capacity will be reduced by 30% on a year over year basis.

International Route Changes

By region, the new schedule changes include the following:

Asia, effective March 16

American will suspend all remaining flights to Asia, except for three flights per week from DFW to NRT

Australia and New Zealand, effective March 16

Suspending service from Los Angeles (LAX) to Auckland (AKL) effective March 16, which was slated to end seasonal flying on March 28
Suspending service from LAX to Sydney (SYD) effective March 16

Europe, phased suspension

American will continue to operate one flight daily from DFW to LHR and MIA to LHR
Suspending flights from New York (JFK), Boston (BOS), Chicago (ORD), and LAX to LHR gradually over the next seven days to reaccommodate passengers and crew
LHR, Dublin (DUB) and Manchester (MAN) flights from Charlotte (CLT), Philadelphia (PHL) and Phoenix (PHX) will be suspended faster, as these airports are not approved gateways by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Final eastbound flights from CLT, PHL and PHX will be on March 15; final westbound flights returning from LHR, DUB and MAN will depart March 16
Continued suspensions in other parts of Europe, as previously announced, including the delayed start of some seasonal routes as well as flights to and from Amsterdam (AMS), Barcelona (BCN), Frankfurt (FRA), Madrid (MAD) and Munich (MUC) Paris (CDG) and Zurich (ZRH) through early May, or later, based on guidance from the U.S. government and customer demand

South America, effective March 16

Suspending service from JFK and MIA to Rio de Janeiro (GIG) and Georgetown, Guyana (GEO)
Suspending service from DFW, JFK and MIA to São Paulo (GRU)
Suspending service from DFW and MIA to:
- Chile: Santiago (SCL)
- Colombia: Bogota (BOG)
- Ecuador: Guayaquil (GYE) and Quito (UIO)
- Peru: Lima (LIM)
Suspending service from MIA to:
- Brazil: Brasilia (BSB) and Manaus (MAO)
- Colombia: Barranquilla (BAQ), Cartagena (CTG), Cali (CLO), Medellin (MDE) and Pereira (PEI)

These capacity reductions assume no slot waivers are in place other than those previously granted. At airports where demand exceeds airfield and/or terminal capacity, access is governed by slots that grant airlines permission to take off and land at specific times. Given the decrease in demand related to COVID-19, American has requested temporary relief from this usage requirement — otherwise known as requesting a slot waiver — to better align capacity with demand without the risk of losing valuable takeoff and landing slots for the future. American will continue to review its network and make adjustments as needed if waivers are granted.

Hampton Celebrates Rapid Global Expansion to 2,500 Hotels

August 11, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

Brand remains category leader after 35 years as it enters new markets and achieves largest pipeline in brand history

MCLEAN, Va. – This month, Hampton by Hilton continues to lead the upper-midscale category worldwide as the brand celebrates its 2,500^th open hotel with Hampton by Hilton Lima San Isidro in Peru. The milestone opening demonstrates Hampton’s successful global growth strategy over the past 35 years – high-quality and thoughtfully designed accommodations, award-winning customer service culture and value-added amenities – all backed by the industry-leading 100 percent Hampton Guarantee^™. Hilton’s largest brand now offers nearly 260,000 rooms worldwide across 27 countries and territories.

And, with more than 700 properties and more than 93,000 rooms in its pipeline – the largest ever in brand history and within the Hilton enterprise – Hampton is helping propel Hilton’s growth during its dynamic 100^th anniversary year.

“Hampton by Hilton’s enduring global success as a guest favorite is a testament to the brand’s pioneering nature, high guest service standards and robust expansion efforts,” said Shruti Gandhi Buckley, global head, Hampton by Hilton. “The opening of Hampton’s 2,500^th property demonstrates the brand’s winning growth strategy, based on three core pillars: commitment to delivering unparalleled customer service, category leading product and amenity innovation and Hilton’s ongoing investment in the brand.”

A key to Hampton by Hilton’s global success is the brand’s regionalization of hotel prototypes and room designs to meet the diverse needs of its customers. Though each property is unique based on local market-based variations, each stay comes with consistent friendly and thoughtful service, complimentary hot breakfast, free WiFi and a passionate commitment to guest satisfaction backed by the 100 percent Hampton Guarantee, making the brand a favorite for travelers worldwide.

Hampton by Hilton celebrates its 2,500th open property with the brand’s first hotel in Peru, Hampton by Hilton Lima San Isidro

The C-27J Spartan Lives Up To Expectations In Peru

May 14, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

*A C-27J of the Fuerza Aérea del Peru (FAP) flying over the AndesA C-27J of the Fuerza Aérea del Peru (FAP) flying over the Andes*

February 2019, the Peruvian Government officially declares a state of emergency for the northern coastal regions of Peru. An unusual amount of seasonal rainfall has triggered severe flooding and mudslides throughout the northern regions destroying roads, collapsing bridges, and forcing school closures. Entire towns are being evacuated.

The Sistema de Atención Móvil de Urgencia (SAMU) and the Seguro Integral do Salud (SIS) Health Department call in the C-27J Spartan for urgent transportation of patients, including premature babies and badly injured people out of the otherwise unreachable area of Huánuco, 1,900 mt above sea level. A timely action and long hours of activity were key to saving lives and the suite of advanced avionics that equips the Spartan with the increased night vision capability provided by the Night Vision Goggles (NVG), have given pilots the possibility of landing and taking off throughout the night.

*The advanced glass-cockpit of a peruvian C-27J Spartan in flight*

In 2017 the Peruvian government sent a C-27J in support of disaster relief following the earthquake in Ecuador and again to support evacuations during the raging fires in Chile.

*A FAP Spartan during an evacuation of civilians in 2017*

The Fuerza Aérea del Peru has successfully flown over 5,000 hours with their Spartans since the first aircraft landed, in March 2015, at the International Jorge Chavez airport in Lima, home of the Grupo Aereo N°8 (transport wing).

In these 5,000 flight hours the C-27J has bravely met the most challenging conditions moving comfortably between coastal areas at 19°C to forests at 38°, to mountains at 5°C, landing smoothly on semi-prepared strips at either 100 feet or 11,500 feet above sea level. The versatility of the aircraft was also challenged by the diversity of missions required: from delivering humanitarian assistance to medical evacuations, monitoring of illegal activities, and support to firefighting duties in areas that would otherwise be reached only by river navigation in over 6 days!

*Take-off with high rate of climb from a small airport in Peru*

To keep this kind of fleet availability in such demanding operational scenarios, you need to rely on a very high standard of customer support guaranteed by non-stop commitment, highly specialised personnel on-site, dedicated logistics and very efficient remote technical assistance service.

Ryanair Co-Founder Plans Third Latin Airline

May 10, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

Low-cost Viva Air plans NYSE listing within two years
Budget carriers are disrupting transport across Latin America

Rendering of an Airbus A320neo Viva Air aircraft Source: Airbus SE

Viva Air, the Latin American group of carriers owned by a founder of Ireland’s Ryanair Holdings Plc, has plans for a third airline in the region plus an initial public offering, to cash in on strong demand for discount air travel.

The company aims to sell shares in New York within two years, Viva’s biggest shareholder, Declan Ryan, said in an interview in Lima. The shares could also be listed on another exchange, such as Colombia’s, he said.

Click the link for the full story from Bloomberg!

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-05-10/ryanair-co-founder-plans-third-latin-airline-followed-by-an-ipo