Corporate Travel News For Europe/MEA

Aeroflot CEO Vitaly Saveliev said the carrier expects 20% to 21% growth in the Russian market, but noted it is possible that some Russian carriers will go bankrupt due to the low margin and low yield nature of the aviation business (Rossiya-24/TASS/ruaviation.com, 29-Dec-2017). He noted there are around 100 carriers with air operator's certificates in Russia, of which around 40 account for 99% of passenger traffic.

International Airlines Group (IAG) announced (29-Dec-2017) plans to buy assets of NIKI for EUR20 million and provide liquidity to NIKI of up to EUR16.5 million. The transaction is being made by a newly formed subsidiary of Vueling which will be incorporated as an Austrian company and run initially as a separate operation, subject to customary closing conditions such as the EC competition approval. The assets include up to 15 A320 family aircraft and a slot portfolio at various airports including Vienna, Dusseldorf, Munich, Palma and Zurich. The new company plans to employ approximately 740 former NIKI employees to run the operation. IAG CEO Willie Walsh stated: "NIKI was the most financially viable part of Air Berlin and its focus on leisure travel means it's a great fit with Vueling. This deal will enable Vueling to increase its presence in Austria, Germany and Switzerland and provide the region's consumers with more choice of low cost air travel". [more - original PR]

Emirates updated planned South Pacific summer 2018 operations, effective 25-Dec-2017, as follows (Routes Online, 29-Dec-2017):

• Dubai-Brisbane: Boeing 777-300ER replaces -200LR from 25-Mar-2018 on EK430/431. Overall, the carrier will operate daily each with 777 and A380 aircraft, while from 01-Jun-2018 to 31-Aug-2018, 777-300ER replaces A380 aircraft for a total of twice daily 777-300ER service;
• Dubai-Perth: 777-200LR replaces -300ER on EK424/425 from 25-Mar-2018 to 30-Jun-2018;
• Dubai-Melbourne: Twice daily A380 service replaces daily operate with both 777-300ER and A380 aircraft from 25-Mar-2018;
• Dubai-Sydney: New third daily nonstop service with A380 aircraft from 25-Mar-2018.

Australia's newly appointed Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton is expected to announced plans for major security upgrades to regional airports during Jan-2018 (ABC, 30-Dec-2017). Changes could reportedly include mandating more scanning of passengers and baggage at regional airports and in some more remote locations. Currently, there is no mandatory screening of passengers when an aircraft weighs less than 20 tonnes.

Enter Air signed (29-Dec-2017) an USD86.7 million contract with TUI Poland covering the sale of seats on services for the summer 2019 to winter 2019/2020 season. Under the contract, Enter Air will provide the tour operator with passenger and baggage carriage services. The contract expires on 30-Apr-2020. [more - original PR]

Norwegian Air Argentina plans to launch service from Buenos Aires to Tahiti (Radio NZ, 29-Dec-2017). Currently, the only air service between Papeete and South America is to Chile via Rapa Nui/Easter Island. French Blue and United Airlines, meanwhile, plan to operate to Papeete from San Francisco while Air France and Air Tahiti Nui operate from Los Angeles. There is reportedly concern in French Polynesia that there won't be sufficient tourist accommodation to cope with the additional capacity.

Alitalia stated online check in through the carrier's app, its website and self service check in kiosks reached 56% of total check in operations, with an average of 36,000 check in operations conducted via digital channels on a daily basis, compared to 28,000 at airport counters (traveltradedaily.com, 28-Dec-2017). Ticket purchase through the dedicated application is also seeing a rapid growth, with sales volumes steadily above EUR130,000 per day, a record result for the airline. The increase in online demand has resulted in the introduction of brand new features on the Alitalia application, currently the most popular check in channel.

Georgian Airways, via its official Facebook account, confirmed (28-Dec-2017) plans to operate new services from Tbilisi International Airport to Berlin, Dusseldorf, Paris, Brussels, Barcelona, ​​Bologna, Bratislava and Kazan, effective 25-Mar-2018.

Clear Harbour Airways plans to launch seaplane operations in the Channel Islands during 1H2018, initially connecting Jersey and Guernsey with a planned expansion to Alderney (Guernsey Press, 27-Dec-2017). The operator is currently evaluating its fleet options and will choose either DHC-3 Turbo Otter or DHC-6 float-equipped aircraft. The airline will cooperate with Harbour Air Seaplanes during its launch phase. Transport Licensing Authority president Barry Paint said that it had received the application on 21-Dec-2017, with the licence to be discussed in the new year.

Canary Islands Government reportedly requested Spain's Ministry of Public Works revise plans to construct a building connecting Tenerife-Sur Airport's passenger terminals and instead draw up plans to construct a new passenger terminal at the airport (Europa Press, 28-Dec-2017). The proposed linking structure is reportedly regarded as an inadequate solution to Tenerife's increasing passenger traffic accommodation problems.