News for The Americas

LATAM Airlines Chile, via its official Twitter account, announced (22-Sep-2022) Chile's Government plans to remove mask wearing requirements for passengers on domestic services, effective 01-Oct-2022. International passengers will need to provide proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test to enter the country.

Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) surveyed (21-Sep-2022) travel and procurement leaders from Europe and North America, finding 54% say business travel has rebounded faster than expected, while 77% report they are spending more time troubleshooting traveller issues. Highlights include:

• 67% believe that once all their offices are open, hybrid work scenarios will dominate. Only 9% anticipate that all their colleagues will return to the office full time;
• 40% report that their companies have reduced their office space;
• 39% say their company is hiring more remote workers than they did prior to the pandemic;
• Almost four of five travel managers responding (79%) say remote working policies boost employee morale, while 72% believe these policies help with talent recruitment;
• 17% say the procurement and management of co-working spaces is fully-managed;
• 44% "don't know" how their company procures co-working spaces;
• More than seven in ten (71%) say they would gain from having the consolidated data from hotel, meeting and co-working bookings, with 67% noting it would be easier for employees to use validated corporate payment tools via a singular booking source;
• Nearly three-quarters (74%) say it would be easier for employees to book both hotels and co-working spaces at the same time in the same shopping/booking technology.

74% of survey respondents were from the US and Canada. [more - original PR]

Lufthansa City Center (LCC) reported (22-Sep-2022) its business travel segment is "recovering faster than expected", and forecasts the pre-pandemic level could be reached by the end of 2023 "if the development continues". Following "very strong recent bookings", the company expects to achieve 80% of the 2019 levels of turnover in 2022. Managing director Markus Orth stated LCC is currently detaching itself from the general development in the market with its strong recovery, highlighting the company "benefits greatly from its focus on medium-sized companies". Mr Orth said employees of medium-sized companies are currently going on much more frequent business trips compared to large corporations, while "a large number of high-revenue new customers were gained who were specifically looking for a TMC with a high level of consulting expertise". Mr Orth expects a "push in Asia" for 4Q2022, with demand for trips to China high and customers willing to pay the currently high prices. LCC also expects travel to Hong Kong and Singapore to continue to increase, while the "important North American business is also continuing to do well". [more - original PR - German]

Xiamen Airlines plans to operate the following 19 international services in Oct-2022 (Carnoc.com, 20-Sep-2022):

• Xiamen-Los Angeles: Twice weekly;
• Xiamen-Vancouver: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Amsterdam: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Sydney: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Melbourne: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Seoul: Three times weekly;
• Xiamen-Phnom Penh: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Manila: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Kuala Lumpur: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Singapore: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Bangkok: Twice weekly;
• Fuzhou-Tokyo: Weekly;
• Fuzhou-Jakarta: Weekly;
• Xiamen-Hong Kong: Four times weekly;
• Xiamen-Taiwan Taoyuan: Daily;
• Xiamen-Taipei Songshan: Three times weekly;
• Hangzhou-Hong Kong: Weekly;
• Fuzhou-Hong Kong: Four times weekly;
• Tianjin-Hong Kong: Twice weekly.

American Airlines announced (20-Sep-2022) plans to unveil new Flagship Suite premium seating onboard its upcoming A321XLR and Boeing 787-9 fleets. The suites will be installed on all A321XLR and 787-9 deliveries beginning in 2024, featuring privacy doors, chaise lounge seats and more personal storage space. The carrier also announced plans to refresh its Boeing 777-300ER fleet of 20 aircraft with Flagship Suite premium seating and new interiors designed by Teague. As a result of the announcement, premium seating across American's long haul fleet is set to grow by over 45% by 2026. [more - original PR

Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian reported business travel has recovered to 80% of pre-pandemic levels (The Detroit News, 16-Sep-2022). Mr Bastian noted business is conducted differently now compared to before COVID-19, which will affect the segment's recovery.

Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau stated the carrier is operating at 80% of pre-pandemic levels, with business travel continuing on an upward trend since Labour Day (Bloomberg, 16-Sep-2022).

Southwest Airlines forecast (15-Sep-2022) 3Q2022 managed business travel revenues at down 26% to 28% from 3Q2019 levels, compared to previous guidance of down 17% to 21%. The carrier noted Aug-2022 business travel revenues were down 32% from Aug-2019 levels, adding business travel continues to recover slower compared to leisure travel demand. [more - original PR] 

Air New Zealand launched (17-Sep-2022) three times weekly Auckland-New York JFK service on 17-Sep-2022 with Boeing 787-9 aircraft. The carrier now serves seven destinations in North America, along with Chicago from 31-Oct-2022, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Vancouver. [more - original PR]

StarLux Airlines stated (13-Sep-2022) its A350-900 fleet is scheduled to enter service on Asia routes in 1Q2023 and commence Taipei-Los Angeles service from Apr-2023. [more - original PR - Chinese]