Corporate Travel News

Air New Zealand announced (25-Sep-2017) it will continue to operate seasonal nonstop Auckland-Ho Chi Minh City service, following strong customer demand. For the 2018 season (23-Jun-2018 to 23-Oct-2018), the airline will operate twice weekly, using its Boeing 787-9 equipment. This will be the third consecutive year of Vietnam operations. Air New Zealand chief revenue officer Cam Wallace says there has been a huge appetite for travel to Vietnam by New Zealanders, with travel "particularly strong in the July school holidays". [more - original PR]

Ethiopian Airlines CEO Tewolde Gebremariam, speaking at World Routes, stated (24-Sep-2017) the airline is in "the final stage" of establishing a new venture in Zambia with the southern African nation's government. Zambia Airways could launch as early as 2018 as a JV and is being formed after Ethiopian Airlines' Malawian Airlines venture and establishment of a hub in Lilongwe failed to live up to initial expectations. "The market is not as big as we thought, so we are now looking into Zambia", explained Mr Gebremariam.

Hobart Airport interim CEO Matt Cocker welcomed (25-Sep-2017) the announcement by Tigerair Australia that it will launch Hobart-Gold Coast service from 07-Dec-2017. Mr Cocker said the announcement comes a month after Jetstar Airways' introduction of nonstop service between Hobart and Adelaide, which is due to commence in early Nov-2017 and which sold 5000 seats within the first hour of going on sale. Mr Cocker said the new routes and the airport's runway extension project, due for completion in Mar-2018, shows the airport "continues to move strongly through an exciting transformation process". [more - original PR]

airberlin creditors committee announced (21-Sep-2017) Deutsche Lufthansa AG and easyJet as "selected bidders" for airberlin's aviation business, with negotiations to continue until 12-Oct-2017. Authority was granted to conclude one or more agreements with one or more of the selected bidders. With respect to the other business units of the airberlin group, sales negotiations with further bidders will be continued. [more - original PR]

Refining New Zealand announced (23-Sep-2017 ) the following update concerning the jet fuel supply for Auckland International Airport:

• Pipeline:
  • Final replacement section was completed and passed inspection late in the evening of 22-Sep-2017. Refining New Zealand said it is preparing to restart the pipeline and remain on track to deliver jet fuel into Wiri between 12:00 on 24-Sep-2017 and 12:00 on 26-Sep-2017. Settling, recertification and transport to the airport for use will take another 30 hours;
• Alternative arrangements:
  
  • Bridging of jet fuel supply from the refinery is continuing with further road tankers operating;
  • Coastal shipping is continuing, with a ship departing for Auckland early in the morning of 23-Sep-2017, carrying approximately 3.5 million litres of jet fuel, as well as diesel, petrol and fuel oil. [more - original PR]

Finavia SVP Joni Sundelin, speaking at World Routes, revealed (24-Sep-2017) Lucky Air will introduce a twice weekly Kunming-Chengdu-Helsinki service. The first regular flight into Finland from a Chinese carrier will commence on 10-Jan-2018, operated with A330-200 equipment. The Finnish airport operator has invested heavily in serving Chinese passengers and improving the customer experience at Helsinki Airport. "Having the first Chinese airline in Finland supports our goal to develop Helsinki Airport as an important air traffic hub between Europe and Asia", he said. Helsinki is already linked to Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Nanjing and Hong Kong by Finnair.

WOW air founder and CEO Skúli Mogensen, speaking at World Routes, stated (24-Sep-2017) that new generation airliners such as the A321neo and Boeing 737 MAX offer both opportunities and threats to the airline's business model. While the new generation airliners will allow passengers "to bypass Iceland" and take advantage of new nonstop transatlantic connectivity, they have also opened the door for the airline's own route development, for example its own flight from Keflavik International Airport, serving Reykjavik to Tel Aviv in Israel, is a 7hr 30min sector on a narrowbody aircraft. "We might not have considered this with a larger aircraft", he said, and noted that the arrival of new A321neoLR will open up further range options, especially smaller mid-sized cities that can't be served sustainably with widebody equipment. "Iceland has a great opportunity to now become a global hub", he added with network options both east and west.

Polynesian Limited d/b/a Samoa Airways requested (23-Sep-2017) approval from the US Department of Transportation to extend cabotage operations on Pago Pago-Manua Islands route through 14-Nov-2017, beyond a current deadline of 15-Oct-2017. The carrier pointed out it remains the only carrier able to provide transportation between the two points, preventing severe hardship to American Samoa residents. The Pago Pago-Manua Islands route is still without US carrier service and "there is no indication this will change". [more - original PR]

Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) entered (22-Sep-2017) into a 'Sister-Airport' agreement with Chongqing Airport Group to share expertise on operational and commercial development and tourism market development. The agreement aims to work cooperatively toward a direct service between the two cities. BAC GM airline and retail management Andrew Brodie stated: "Government support is essential to our success in developing more direct aviation ties with China". Brisbane Mayor Graham Quirk added this agreement "comes at a time when securing more direct flights from our largest international visitor market, China, remains a priority for Brisbane". Chongqing has a population of over 30 million. [more - original PR]

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines entered (21-Sep-2017) a new partnership with GetYourGuide, an online booking platform for tours and activities. The partnership means KLM customers can book over 30,000 tours and activities at more than 2500 destinations globally, directly through KLM's platforms. Most GetYourGuide tours and activities can be booked at less than 24 hours' notice and offer paperless tickets. The service is planned to roll out over the "coming days and weeks". [more - original PR - English/Dutch]