Corporate Travel News For Europe/MEA

Copenhagen Kastrup Airport stated (11-Oct-2017) a 7.3% decline in domestic traffic led to the launch of a major campaign to increase traffic within Denmark, in conjunction with regional airports and domestic operators. CEO Thomas Woldbye said: "For many Danes, domestic flying has simply disappeared off the radar when it comes to travelling across the country". He noted a "lot of people" are unaware of the opportunity to travel to Sønderborg, Bornholm, Midtjylland and the other regional airports, pointing out: "We need to reverse that trend to connect up Denmark better". [ more - original PR - English/Danish]

Eurowings, via its official Twitter account, announced (11-Oct-2017) Mostar as the winner of its 'You Vote, We Fly' campaign. As previously reported by CAPA, the online poll called on passengers to vote on a new route for the carrier to operate in summer 2018.

TAP Portugal attributed (11-Oct-2017) strong growth on Brazil and US services to partnerships with Azul Linhas Aéreas Brasileiras, Gol Linhas Aereas, jetBlue and United Airlines. TAP reported its codeshare with Azul "brought" 65,000 passengers to TAP from Jan-2017 to Jul-2017. TAP's codeshare with Gol contributed 47,000 passengers. jetBlue contributed 35,000 while United accounted for 15,000 passengers during the period. [more - original PR - Portuguese]

Airport Operators Association (AOA) CEO Karen Dee (11-Oct-2017) responded to UK Chancellor Philip Hammond's comments on post Brexit EU-UK connectivity and the "theoretically" conceivable scenario of no EU-UK air traffic under a "no deal" Brexit. Ms Dee said: "The Chancellor is right that we will need a new legal framework the day after Brexit to ensure continuity of air services. With airlines putting tickets on sale up to 18 months in advance of the date of travel, it is vital that a transition deal is agreed as soon as possible to give consumers and businesses the confidence their future travel will be uninterrupted". [more - original PR]

Finnair repurchased (11-Oct-2017) the remaining equity stakes in Nordic Regional Airlines (Norra) from StaffPoint Holding Oy (StaffPoint) and Kilco Oy, subject to regulatory approval. StaffPoint and Kilco previously held 45% and 15% stakes respectively. Finnair director of operations Jaakko Schildt stated: "Our goal is to find a new, industrial partner to develop Norra's operations with us... the past few years have shown that the joint venture model works well for the domestic and Nordic markets". Norra operates a fleet of 24 ATR and Embraer aircraft serving Finnish domestic and Nordic and Baltic regional markets. [more - original PR - English] [more - original PR - Finnish]

Etihad Airways announced (11-Oct-2017) plans to commence three times weekly Abu Dhabi-Baku service on 02-Mar-2018, in response to "strong and growing demand for flights between the United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan". The airline will operate the service with A320 equipment configured with 16 business class and 120 economy class seats. The carrier noted the visa waiver programme for UAE nationals introduced in Azerbaijan in Nov-2015 and expanded to other GCC nations in early 2016 "prompted a surge in travel from across the GCC". [more - original PR]

Qantas confirmed (11-Oct-2017) Emirates will no longer operate services between Melbourne and Auckland and between Brisbane and Auckland, effective 25-Mar-2018. Qantas customers holding a valid ticket issued on/before 11-Oct-2017 for travel on/after this date who are affected by the changes will be permitted to rebook on Qantas services. [more - original PR]

Qatar Airways announced (11-Oct-2017) plans to introduce A330 equipment on Doha-Seychelles service, effective 29-Oct-2017. The aircraft is configured with 24 business class and 236 economy class seats and the change will increase capacity by 130%. [more - original PR - English/Arabic]

Ethiopian Airlines MD Ethiopian International Services Esayas WoldeMariam said the airline aims to increase Addis Ababa-Victoria Falls frequency to daily and deploy widebody aircraft on the service as traffic increases (NewsDay.co.zw, 10-Oct-2017). Mr WoldeMariam noted: "The number of tourists coming to Victoria Falls has increased because Ethiopian Airlines made a lot of investment to popularise that destination". The airline operates the route four times weekly with Boeing 737-700 and 737-800 aircraft, according to OAG.

Air Austral and Air Madagascar signed (09-Oct-2017) a strategic partnership agreement on 09-Oct-2017, formalising the terms and conditions of the acquisition of a 49% stake in Air Madagascar by Air Austral. Madagascar's Government will retain a 51% stake and appoint the airline's chairman, while Air Austral will propose a CEO. Air Austral will invest USD40 million in Air Madagascar and provide technical and operational expertise. The agreement triggers an interim phase of the implementation of the partnership, which will be concluded with a shareholder agreement scheduled to be signed at the end of Oct-2017. The partnership aims to make Air Madagascar a profitable and sustainable company providing competitive passenger and cargo services in domestic, regional and long haul markets. The parties also aim to improve the efficiency of Air Madagascar's subsidiaries. The transformation plan will be implemented in two phases over 10 years. The first phase of three years will focus on the recovery and restoration of business fundamentals. The second phase will concentrate on growth, including fleet development and new routes. The parties aim to improve services, strengthen business and administrative processes, develop systems and technology, strengthen human resources and management and develop new business partnerships with other companies. Recovery of the national carrier is expected to have a positive impact an all sectors of Madagascar's economy, particularly tourism. [more - original PR - French]