Corporate Travel News

Samoa's Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi confirmed an operating budget for Samoa Airways has been set and "tabled with the board" and it is maintaining a 12-Nov-2017 target for launch of service (Samoa Observer, 18-Aug-2017). The carrier has set Auckland, Sydney and Brisbane as initial routes, leased a Boeing 737 from IcelandAir and plans to expand to larger aircraft in the future.

Australia's Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester stated (17-Aug-2017) he is "relaxed" with people "wearing religious garments which are important to their faith" in places such as airports or on aircraft, and the "issue of identity is somewhat of a smaller point when it comes to our screening mechanisms and the security around our airports". According to Mr Chester, the "key issue in terms of aeroplane security is scanning of baggage to make sure that devices, which could potentially damage the aircraft, don't get on board the aircraft" rather than the person who is boarding an aircraft. [more - original PR]

Ryanair advised (18-Aug-2017) passengers to comply fully with its cabin bag rules, which the carrier said are "being repeatedly flouted", resulting in boarding delays during the peak summer season. Ryanair CMO Kenny Jacobs said: "Many customers are repeatedly exceeding our cabin baggage allowance and we will be left with no choice but to review our policy should this practice continue". [more - original PR] [more - original PR - French]

Delta Air Lines announced (20-Aug-2017) plans to launch three times weekly New York JFK-Lagos service on 24-Mar-2018, complementing four times weekly Atlanta-Lagos service. The carrier will deploy A330-200 aircraft on the route. SVP for trans atlantic Dwight James noted: "Nigeria has been a strategically important market for Delta over the past 10 years and is a mainstay in our African network. As we look ahead to the next decade, we are improving the product offering with the A330 and increasing the number of seats from Lagos". Arik Air previously operated the route in early 2017, according to OAG. [more - original PR]

Alliance Aviation Services Group announced (18-Aug-2017) the appointment of Marc Devine and Nicola Clark as company secretaries, effective immediately. Mr Devine joined the group in May-2016 as financial controller and was recently appointed as CFO while Mrs Clark has been with the group since 2008, and holds the role of executive assistant. Matthew Dyer has resigned from his full time roles as CFO and company secretary. He continues to work on various projects for Alliance Aviation Services Group. [more - original PR]

Auckland Airport stated (18-Aug-2017) Thai Airways' plans to increase Bangkok Suvarnabhumi-Auckland frequency from five times weekly to daily and introduce Boeing 787 equipment on the service in Nov-2017 will add 65,000 seats and inject NZD53 million (USD38.7 million) p/a into New Zealand's economy. More than 46,000 New Zealanders travelled to Thailand in the last year, with the majority being holiday makers. [more - original PR]

Kuwait Airways chairman Sami Al-Rasheed said the airline aims to increase market share in Kuwait from 35% to 50%, modernise its fleet and expand its network over the next five years (aviator.aero, 16-Aug-2017). The airline expects to require government support until it breaks even in 2021. The carrier retired four aircraft in Aug-2017 and intends to take delivery of one Boeing 777-300ER, ending the month with 25 aircraft. The airline plans to commence Taif service in Nov-2017 and is considering destinations in East Asia, Europe and the US.

Royal Air Maroc plans to commence three times weekly Casablanca-N'Djamena-Nairobi service with Boeing 737-800 equipment on 11-Oct-2017, replacing three times weekly nonstop Casablanca-Nairobi service operated with 767-300ER equipment (Airline Route, 17-Aug-2017). The airline does not hold local traffic rights between N'Djamena and Nairobi. The carrier also operates three times weekly Casablanca-N'Djamena service. The airline's Casablanca-Nairobi service is the only nonstop connection between Morocco and Kenya, according to OAG.

Armenia's General Department of Civil Aviation (GDCA) director Sergey Avetisyan stated Armenia will meet with China in autumn 2017 to discuss the issue of organising direct services between the nations (Armenpress, 17-Aug-2017). He said: "In autumn I will visit China and expect to sign new inter-state agreement. I plan to have meetings with the representatives of Chinese airlines to discuss the possibility to operate Armenia-China flight. If we successfully pass this stage, we don't rule out anything".