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AVIATION
Qatar Airways and SriLankan link up to Global Explorer
Oneworld members elect Qatar Airways and SriLankan Airlines
participated in the Global Explorer round-the-world fare offered by all
the alliance's members and selected other carriers.
 The move represents a first step by both airlines towards their
implementation into oneworld, which is on track for the year ahead -
when they will start participating in the full range of the alliance's
fares and offering all its other services and benefits.
Their oneworld joining dates will be announced in due course.
Meantime, Qatar Airways’ entire global network, covering 125
destinations in 71 countries worldwide from its Doha hub, and
SriLankan's entire global schedule serving 32 airports in 22 countries
will both now feature as part of Global Explorer, which is one of the
most popular round-the-world fares available.
As Qatar Airways and SriLankan Airlines start participating in Global
Explorer, Gulf Air withdraws its participation. Global Explorer tickets
issued before 28 February with sectors on Gulf Air will be honoured.
Qatar Airways and SriLankan's addition to Global Explorer expands the
worldwide reach of Global Explorer - which offers simple, flexible, and
great value round-the-world travel for trips of up to one year long - to
some 900 destinations in 160 countries.
Global Explorer also includes a number of airlines that have no links
with oneworld - Aer Lingus, Air Pacific, Alaska Airlines and its Horizon
Airlines sister, Meridianafly and WestJet. Flights carrying the Qantas
code but operated by Air Tahiti Nui, Jetstar, South African Airways and
Vietnam Airlines are included too, expanding the reach covered by the
fare further still.
The fare offers simple, flexible and great value round-the-world
travel for trips of up to one year. Four versions are available - for
trips of up to 26,000, 29,000, 34,000 or 39,000 miles. All are for
travel in Economy Class, but the 34,000 mile version can be used for
First or Business Class travel. Not all versions are available for
travel from all countries. Prices vary depending on the version chosen,
cabin class and country of purchase. For further details, see
www.oneworld.com's Global Explorer page.
Global Explorer is one of two round-the-world fares offered by
oneworld. The alliance's other round-the-world fare is oneworld
Explorer. This includes travel on the alliance's existing member
airlines and affiliates only. Uniquely, prices are based on the number
of continents visited, rather than on the distance flown.
oneworld is currently the holder of three leading international
awards for airline alliances - named the Best Airline Alliance by Global
Traveler in its GT Tested Reader Survey 2012 Awards for the third year
running, the World's Leading Airline Alliance in the 2012 World Travel
Awards for the 10th year running, and Australian Business Traveller Best
Airline Alliance in 2012 for the second year running. (Oneworld)
Iraqi Airways resumes Kuwait flights after two decades
An Iraqi Airways plane landed in Kuwait City for the first time since
Iraq's invasion of the emirate in August 1990, after a commercial
dispute was resolved.
Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and Transport Minister Hadi
al-Amari flew in on an Airbus A320, to a welcome from Kuwaiti Foreign
Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Sabah.
Kuwait and Iraq's national carriers reached an agreement late last
year to resolve a 22-year-old commercial dispute, with Iraqi Airways
agreeing to pay $500 million to Kuwait Airways.
Under orders from former dictator Saddam Hussein, Iraqi troops
invaded Kuwait in August 1990 but were driven out seven months later by
a US-led international coalition.
Kuwait Airways chief Sami al-Nisf, quoted by official news agency
KUNA, said the Iraqi carrier will make four flights a week to the
emirate, while only private Kuwaiti carriers are flying the route.
AFP
Japan’s ANA grounds Dreamliner fleet until May
Japan's All Nippon Airways said it was grounding its fleet of
Dreamliners until at least the end of May, with no end in sight to woes
for Boeing's next generation plane.
The airline is cancelling 1,714 flights in April and May, a period
that includes Japan's busy Golden Week holidays, taking the total
affected to more than 3,600 since the Dreamliner was ordered out of the
skies in January. Of the newly-announced cancellations, 1,250 are
domestic and 464 are international flights, including those bound for
Seoul, Seattle and Frankfurt. “Unfortunately, it includes Golden Week,
but we have decided to inform our customers in advance as the prospect
for their resumption is still unseen,” a company spokeswoman said. ANA
is Boeing's biggest Dreamliner customer so far, with 17 of the world's
50 operational 787s.
The next-generation aircraft has suffered a series of glitches
culminating in a global alert from the US Federal Aviation
Administration after two incidents involving the battery packs.
All operational 787s were grounded in January after smoke was
detected mid-air on a flight in Japan. That incident came just days
after the lithium-ion battery caught fire on a Japan Airlines-operated
plane parked at a US airport.
ANA's announcement is a further setback for Boeing, which has bet
heavily on the 787, hoping its lightweight carbon fibre body would
appeal to airlines desperate to clamp down on spiralling fuel costs.
Last week US operator United Airlines said it was taking its six
Boeing 787s out of service through June 5, except for the launch a
Denver-Tokyo route on May 12 if circumstances allowed.
That came as Boeing said it had proposed a fix for the battery
issues, but had not yet convinced US safety regulators it has a
sufficient handle on the problem.
On Friday, the Federal Aviation Administration said it was reviewing
a plan by the aircraft manufacturer after meeting with senior
executives.
“The safety of the flying public is our top priority and we won't
allow the 787 to return to commercial service until we're confident that
any proposed solution has addressed the battery failure risks,” the FAA
said.
Boeing had earlier said it was “encouraged by the progress” being
made in the battery probe, which it hopes will allow it to get its plane
back in the skies.
However, the extent of the problems and the potential complexity in
addressing them remains unknown, triggering mounting speculation on how
long the groundings will last.
Aviation expert Richard Aboulafia of the Teal Group said that if the
FAA accepted the Boeing fix, the 787 could be flying again in April, but
he added: “There's a very good chance that they won't.” “We don't know
to what extent it is a temporary fix and if it is accompanied by a
broader solution that's not going to work as a long-term fix,” he said.
Boeing said it was working around the clock with teams of hundreds of
experts on the issue, and working closely with the FAA and other
authorities.
The New York Times reported last week that Boeing had zeroed in on
how lithium-ion batteries could fail and concluded they would be safe to
use after making changes, such as adding insulation between the cells.
Japanese engineers said Friday they had identified the cause of fuel
leaks the plane had suffered, but were still working on the battery
problems.
The nation's transport ministry said the leaks were caused by
defective paintwork and impurities getting into a fuel valve, adding
that it had already ordered the airline to take measures to remedy the
problem.
Boeing halted 787 deliveries shortly after the planes were grounded
on January 16 but continued to produce 787s at a rate of five per month.
Last week, Boeing's European arch-rival Airbus said it decided to
drop lithium-ion batteries planned for the new A350 aircraft it is
developing and use heavier nickel-cadmium batteries instead.
AFP
Etihad signs a wet-lease contract with KLM
  Etihad Airways has signed a wet-lease contract with KLM Martinair
Cargo to provide the UAE flag carrier with a Boeing 747-400ERF
freighter.
This is one of the first milestones on a range of cooperation
initiatives between the partners creating ample cargo opportunities and
customer solutions.˙
The aircraft, with a payload capacity of 124 tons, will be used by
Etihad Cargo to link the two cargo hubs of Abu Dhabi and Amsterdam, and
to increase capacity to Frankfurt, Hong Kong and Dhaka.
It follows last October?s strategic partnership announcement in which
Air France-KLM and Etihad Airways said they would work together to
create value for each airline, which now also includes the cargo
business.
The Boeing 747-400 ERF delivery and commencement of operations are
scheduled for late March, taking Etihad Cargo?s freighter fleet to seven
aircraft.
The airline already operates two Boeing B777F, one Boeing 747-400F,
two Airbus A330-200F and one Airbus A300-600F.
Kevin Knight, chief strategy and planning officer at Etihad Airways,
said:˙ ?Extending our cooperation agreement with Air France-KLM to cargo
operations is an extraordinary opportunity and we look forward to
leveraging our combined expertise and freighter fleets to grow cargo
operations over our respective hubs.?
Etihad Cargo has an additional three freighters scheduled for
delivery in 2013 and 2014: one Boeing B777F and two Airbus A330-200F.
AFP
Air Lease orders 10 Boeing 777-300ERs
US aircraft leasing firm Air Lease Corporation has ordered 10
long-haul Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in a deal valued at $3.2 billion at
current list prices, the companies said Thursday.
“This order for 777-300ERs will help us meet the growing airline
demand for long-haul passenger airplanes,” John Plueger, Air Lease
president and chief operating officer, said in a joint statement with
Boeing. The jumbo 777-300ER is an extended-range version of the Boeing
777, capable of flying up to 14,490 kilometers (8,699 miles) and
carrying 386 passengers. In September, the Los Angeles-based Air Lease
announced a huge order of 75 Boeing 737MAXs, Boeing's new-engine
variation of the 737 under development. That order had a list price of
$7.2 billion.
Many tests before Boeing 787 flies again
The top US air safety administrator said it was still far from
allowing Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner to fly again with a proposed fix for
its faulty batteries.
“What Boeing has presented to us is a proposal that identifies a
handful of probable causes that are all in the battery itself,” Federal
Aviation Administration chief Michael Huerta told lawmakers.
“Once we approve the plan, we have to go though the process of
actually implementing the plan, which will involve a great deal of
testing, a great deal of further analysis and re-engineering before
these planes are back in the air.” Huerta said he expected to have an
FAA report next week on Boeing’s proposal.
All 50 of the world’s 787s were grounded on January 16 after the
lithium-ion batteries on Boeing’s new cutting-edge plane overheated,
causing a fire on an aircraft parked in Boston and inflight smoke on
another that forced an emergency landing in Japan.
AFP
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Air attendants of Sky aviation pose for
photos in front of a poster of the airline companys new
aircraft, the Sukhoi Superjet 100, during the launching ceremony
at Halim airport in Jakarta. Indonesia has certified
Russian-made Sukhoi civilian jets as airworthy, allowing the
export of the planes to the booming aviation market despite a
pending probe into a crash that killed all 45 onboard. AFP |
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