United CEO: Business travel will return in full and completely recover
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby stated he believes business travel will return "in full" and will "completely recover once this is all over". Mr Kirby said: "Business travel is not about transactions, it's not about picking up phone and asking quick questions, which Zoom can replace". He added: "It's about getting to know people, getting to talk about their families, going out and having a drink or going to dinner - and that's where you develop those relationships, and relationships are really what drive business and what drive opportunity".
Lufthansa CEO reports clear return for short haul business travel
Lufthansa Group chairman and CEO Carsten Spohr stated "We are seeing very clearly that business travellers are coming back". He added: "Due to the major unprecedented bottlenecks in global supply chains, the boom has even increased since the end of the summer holidays". Lufthansa plans to raise domestic flight capacity in Germany by 30% overall in Sep-2021, with a further 15% increase in Oct-2021.
AirAsia Group: COVID has caused 'huge surge' in cargo demand
AirAsia Group president (AirAsia Digital) Aireen Omar stated COVID-19 has caused a "huge surge in demand for cargo and online shopping deliveries", adding it driving many new business opportunities and revenue streams. Ms Omar said: "We see huge potential, not only in our super app and fintech solutions, but also in our logistics, aircraft maintenance and ground services divisions".
Ryanair Group CEO: EU LCCs to 'drive demand for Airbus A320 family'
Ryanair Group CEO Michael O'Leary stated European low cost carriers "will drive demand for Airbus A320 family aircraft and not Boeing". As previously reported by CAPA, Ryanair stated negotiations with Boeing for a MAX 10 order, to follow its current deliveries for 210 Boeing 737-8200 aircraft, have ended without any agreement on pricing.
Virgin Australia CEO expects 'some constraints... as borders come down'
Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka said there are expectations that "there will be some constraints with respect to first movements as borders come down", noting "That's my expectation - it's not been mandated yet by the Government". Ms Hrdlicka added: "Everybody is wearing a mask inside the airport and on board the aircraft, and I don't expect that will change for some time".
SAA will need 'the right fleet' for intercontinental routes: CEO
South African Airways (SAA) interim CEO Thomas Kgokolo commented on the potential relaunch of intercontinental services to destinations such as Frankfurt and London. Mr Kgokolo said: "If we get the right fleet for those particular trips we should be able to minimise costs and become competitive". As previously reported by CAPA, SAA will resume domestic and regional operations from late Sep-2021.
Delta World Charter: Air charter sector adding new traveller type as airlines pull first class seats
Delta World Charter CEO Dmitriy Korshunov reported the air charter sector has "started to see a new type of traveller", in the form of high wealth individuals travelling for VFR and education reasons. Mr Korshunov also noted "many" legacy carriers have been "pulling out first class inventory from their aircraft", indicating they are "really struggling to get first class passengers on board". Private charters are increasingly being seen as "an alternative for CEOs", he added.
JetBlue CEO: Implementation of Northeast Alliance with American Airlines will continue
JetBlue Airways CEO Robin Hayes commented on the US Department of Justice's (DoJ) decision to file an antitrust lawsuit against the 'Northeast Alliance' strategic partnership between American Airlines and JetBlue. Mr Hayes responded to the DoJ claim that the alliance "amounts to a de facto merger between American and JetBlue in Boston and New York City", stating: "This is not at all like a merger with American - we have two different business models and are not working together on pricing".
Fiji Airways 'ready to start and fly tomorrow'
Fiji Airways CEO Andre Viljoen said the carrier is "ready to start and fly tomorrow". Mr Viljoen added that from 01-Nov-2021, or "whenever that date comes", the carrier is "ready to fly".
Norwegian Transport Ministry advisor: Govt 'should talk with Sweden and Denmark' over SAS role
Norway's Political Advisor in the Ministry of Transport Sverre Myrli said he believes the federal government "should talk with Sweden and Denmark" about the possibility of Norway having a larger engagement with SAS. Mr Myrli stated: "I think the [previous] government has been very passive at a time when SAS and its Swedish and Danish owners were very interested in getting Norway back on the ownership side last year".
Turkish Airlines chairman expects 'really challenging times for the next three months'
Turkish Airlines chairman İlker Aycı said he expects "there will be really challenging times for the next three months... because of the delta variant" of COVID-19. However, he added: "I'm very hopeful about the next year... the next season will be much better".
Australia Minister for Tourism: Airlines are saying that they want to see people who are vaccinated
Australia's Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Dan Tehan said Australia's airlines and Government are collaborating for vaccine requirements for international travel, noting "What we're seeing is that the airlines are saying that they want to see people who are vaccinated". Mr Tehan "It would be great" for the Australia-New Zealand trans-Tasman bubble to reopen, adding "we're in discussion with the Pacific Islands, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, the US, the UK on what those travel arrangements will look like".
Airlines UK CEO: US easing UK travel restrictions 'a major breakthrough'
Airlines UK CEO Tim Alderslade, in response to the reopening of international travel to the US for vaccinated UK citizens, stated "This is a major breakthrough which coupled with the removal of travel restrictions announced last week represents a substantial reopening of UK aviation". Mr Alderslade noted the US is "one of our most important markets and the air corridor is worth billions of pounds a year in trade and tourism".
Tourism Australia: Malaysia 'trade partners remain extremely optimistic' for pent up travel
Tourism Australia business development manager Malaysia Karen Saw stated within Malaysia: "Trade partners remain extremely optimistic regarding the pent-up demand and eventual resumption of travel to Australia". Ms Saw said: "Key competitors are increasing investment in marketing and distribution efforts to gain market share", reporting "We have also seen some competitor National Tourism Organisations commence recruitment, positioning themselves to compete for trade and consumer support".
BALPA: 'This summer the ramp up in flying has not been what we had hoped'
British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) stated "This summer the ramp up in flying has not been what we had hoped", noting "the confusing UK 'traffic light' system", as well as PCR tests "kept consumer confidence low and meant aviation remained in lockdown well after other sectors were allowed to resume trading". The union said although the barriers are being removed due to a change in government policy, "it has meant that many pilots have been grounded for a very long time".