This week’s top air transport stories include American Airlines’ flight attendants overwhelmingly authorizing potential strike action; in addition, American was fined a record $4.1 million for tarmac delays by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
American Airlines flight attendants authorized potential strike action, in a nearly unanimous vote. Of those participating, 99.5% were in favor, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) announced. The 26,000 flight attendants represented by APFA are seeking a 35% raise at the date of signing and yearly increases of 6% thereafter.
American Airlines was fined a record $4.1 million for tarmac delays by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)—the largest fine ever issued for such violations. The penalty covers 43 domestic flights between 2018-2021 that kept passengers on the tarmac for over three hours without providing an opportunity to deplane, in violation of the agency’s rule. All seven days in question involved severe weather, mostly at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW).
In other airline news, China’s three largest airlines struggled to return to profitability in the first half of 2023, although losses were cut significantly following the lifting of border restrictions. The big three of Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines join China Express and Hainan Airlines in reporting losses. Juneyao Airlines and Spring Airlines are the only Chinese carriers to have posted profits for the first six months of the year.
In regulatory news, the European Union Safety Agency (EASA) appointed Director of Strategy and Safety Management Luc Tytgat to succeed Executive Director Patrick Ky from Sept. 1 on an interim basis.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Moldova suspended Air Moldova’s air operator’s certificate (AOC) after the flag carrier was unable to field a single operational aircraft. The airline is in the midst of a financial restructuring and has not flown since May 2023.
The African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC), which is overseeing the liberalization of intra-African aviation, has signed a strategic partnership with the State of Qatar aimed at strengthening Africa’s aviation sector.
In ATC news, travelers heading to and from the UK last weekend faced long delays and disruption on a busy public holiday after UK air traffic control (ATC) provider NATS had to impose traffic flow restrictions because of a technical problem. The issue meant that controllers had to resort to manually inputting flight plan details, severely limiting both departing and inbound flights. The problem coincided with the Late Summer Bank Holiday in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
In aircraft news, A new version of the Superjet 100 (SSJ100) regional jet took off for the first time from the airfield at Yakovlev’s factory in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, located in Russia’s Far East, on Aug. 29. The aircraft stayed airborne for 54 min. and climbed to 3,000 m (9,800 ft.), flying at a speed of up to 343 kph (213 mph).
Argentinian LCC Flybondi took delivery of its 13th Boeing 737-800, with 189-seats in single-class configuration. It flies to 17 domestic destinations and three international points in Brazil—Rio de Janeiro Galeao International, São Paulo Guarulhos International and Florianópolis Hercelio Luz airports.
In sustainability news, a Minnesota coalition has formed to meet SAF demands of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP). The first-of-its-kind coalition includes Delta Air Lines, water treatment company Ecolab, power utility Xcel Energy and Bank of America. Leading the coalition, regional economic development agency Greater MSP Partnership says the Minnesota SAF Hub is the first in the U.S. to involve collaboration across an integrated value chain, from feedstock sourcing and processing to fuel production and its use at MSP, in a multi-phase approach to scaling SAF availability.
In airport news, the Airports Corporation of Vietnam awarded a Vietnam-Turkey consortium VND35 trillion ($1.45 billion) to build part of what will become the country’s largest airport—Long Thanh International Airport. The first terminal, which will be built within 39 months, is set to be capable of handling 25 million passengers per year and 1.2 million metric tons of cargo annually. Expected to be fully operational by 2050, Long Thanh Airport—located approximately 25 mi. east of Ho Chi Min City—will have an annual capacity of 100 million passengers and 5 million tons of cargo. Long Thanh is set to replace Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport.
Royal Schiphol Group said the first six months of 2023 “marked the beginning of a turnaround for passengers, employees and the airport’s future plans” as it published first-half (H1) numbers for Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. H1 passenger numbers at Schiphol reached 28.7 million—up from 23.8 million in H1 2022—but still well below the 34.5 million recorded in H1 2019, before COVID-19 wiped out travel demand.
