10 2015

http://www.ctvnews.ca
New Malaysia Airlines CEO warns of cutbacks,
layoffs
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia The new CEO of Malaysia Airlines
said its financial situation is more challenging than anticipated
and it will shrink in size as it tries to overcome a tarnished image
with the travel industry and the public.
Malaysia Airlines was battered last year by double jet disasters.
Its government owner has brought in a new CEO, former Aer
Lingus chief Christoph Mueller, to oversee a 6 billion ringgit ($1.7
billion) turnaround.
In a memo dated Tuesday, Mueller thanked Malaysia Airlines staff
for a warm welcome since he started work at the airline on May 1
but also noted parts of the organization seemed "depressed" and
customers say service is deteriorating.
Related Stories
Tourism on the rise in Malaysia, despite double plane disasters
Malaysia Airlines, Mueller said, is "suffering badly from a heavily
damaged brand reputation" in key markets with many people
avoiding the carrier because "they are frightened."
The carrier is moving ahead with a previously announced
overhaul that will involve cutting its staff by 6,000 or about 30
percent.
"Since the new airline will be smaller in size, we simply have not
enough work for all of you," Mueller said.
The airline had a good safety and service record before last
year's disasters but the tragedies, and the airline's handling of
the first one in particular, hurt its brand. A Malaysia Airlines jet
with 239 people on board went missing March 8 last year while en
route to Beijing and no trace of it has been found. In July, a
Malaysia Airlines jet was shot down over Ukraine, killing all 298
people on board.

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Mueller said the airline will soon mail out termination letters and new job
offer letters to those who will remain in the airline. That approach is being
taken because staff requested privacy in the handling of employment
matters, he said.
The CEO's memo was shown to reporters on Friday by the National Union
of Flight Attendants Malaysia, which protested the termination exercise by
mail as "obnoxious and arrogant."
It said its 3,500 members were now stressed and worried. The union has
written to Prime Minister Najib Razak, asking him to intervene and urging
the airline to offer short and medium-term layoffs as well as salary cuts
before a final termination exercise is carried out.
Mueller comes to the Malaysian job from a stint reviving Ireland's Aer
Lingus. He'll be the first foreigner to head the Malaysian state-owned
company. Analysts say he's an industry veteran "battle-hardened" from his
work carrying out corporate restructurings at other state-owned airlines,
including failed Belgian carrier Sabena.
He was dubbed "The Terminator" in Ireland because his German accent
made for easy comparisons to Arnold Schwarzenegger in assassin robot
mode as he outlined his plans to remorselessly fix Aer Lingus.
Mueller said in the memo that the airline's new business plan will focus on
cutting overall costs, which are up to 20 percent higher than its
competitors, and withdrawing from markets where it cannot be
competitive.
"Sometimes you have to retreat and regroup before growing again. And
that is the ultimate target. We want to grow again in the last phase of
restructuring," he said.
Mueller said he envisioned a new airline that is "safe, on-time and friendly"
that will be the new pride of Malaysia. He said endurance and faith are
needed for the turnaround program that will take three to five years.
"It is my duty to tell you today that the medicine is bitter and that the
fitness program which is required to bring us back into shape will cause a
lot of sweat and sometimes tears. But it will be rewarding in the end."

http://www.aopa.org
Pilot shortage: Yes or no?
Industry officials discuss forecasts, reality at OSU
conference
Can the United States provide enough pilots to meet industry needs in
the coming years? Industry officials debated the question of whether a
pilot shortage is imminent or a reality at a panel discussion on April 28.
The U.S. Government Accountability Offices February 2014 study on
pilot supply and demand basically concluded we could not see a pilot
shortage in the near term, said Gerald Dillingham, director of civil
aviation policy at GAO. Dillingham spoke at the National Pilot Supply
Summit, hosted by the Center for Aviation Studies at The Ohio State
University in Columbus.
Dillingham acknowledged that, even as GAO examined labor force
indicators, other factors are having an impact on pilot supply, such as
reduced numbers of military pilots coming into the civilian pipeline. He
said he doesnt believe the 1,500-hour rule for airline transport pilot
certification has been the prime driver, however. I would not support
that notion, he said, because the rule can be modified in any number
of ways to reduce the number of hours required to hold a restricted
ATP certificate, he said. He said the rule was definitely a contributing
factor, but not as much as some would have us believe that all of a
sudden this was going to cause people not to go into aviation
trainingWe didnt find any evidence that was the case.
Even so, the regional carriers will continue to have difficulty filling pilot
slots, Dillingham said. A shortage is a shortage. If youre saying the
regionals cant fill their slots, that is a shortage, he said.

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The RAND Corp.s report on pilot supply and demand found that
demand for pilots for the major airlines is already above 3,000
pilots per year and will stay between 3,000 and 4,000 per year
until the year 2020, when it will then rise to 4,000 to 5,000 pilots
per year, according to research fellow Mike McGee. The so-called
minors (defined in the report as including regional carriers plus
Part 135 operators) will need more than 5,000 pilots per year by
2018; 6,000 by 2020; and 7,000 by 2021, he said.
McGee said the longevity of this projected hiring spree is
something the industry has never experienceda 15-year hiring
spree above 3,000 pilots per year. Two-thirds of the demand is
driven by mandatory airline hiring, he said. Even if there is zero
growth at the majors, youre still going to see a significant hiring
increase that will last for the next 15 years.
Everyone is seeing flight cancelations at the regional airlines,
and many regionals dont have enough applicants to fill their
slots, McGee said. From a policy perspective, one of the major
things we saw isthere needs to be a cradle-to-grave career path
for pilots. We expect some of the major airlines, if they do not
own a regional, over the next few years will look at not only
expanding [flow-through] agreements but maybe buying their
own regional to ensure they have their own pipeline, he said.
Its no secret that general aviationa prime source of future
airline pilotshas a pilot shortage, said George Perry, senior vice
president of the AOPA Air Safety Institute. GA has been losing
6,000 private pilots per year for the last decade, he said. AOPA
has been working to reverse this trend, he said, pointing to the
associations advocacy at national and local levels on such
issues as medical certification reform and many programs
associated with growing and nurturing the pilot population.

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The cost of entry to flying is a significant barrier, and costs have
never been higher, Perry said. In the 1970s, a Cessna training
aircraft cost 1.5 times the national income, he said. Now it is 4.5
times that much. The entry-level pay for a regional airline first
officerin many cases $30,000 or lesscontrasted with large
amounts of college loan debt make the career hard to justify, he
said.
In the air transportation ecosystem, GA is the foundation that
provides airlines with a labor force, Perry said. However, the
health of GA has not proven to be a high priority for policy
makers, he said. The truth is to sustain a strong transportation
system, GA must also be viable to help future pilots take a first
step to their career paths.
The Air Line Pilots Association does not believe there is a
shortage of certificated pilots, ALPA Aviation Safety Chairman
Chuck Hogeman said. The big however needs to be included
with thatthere is a shortage of licensed, qualified pilots who are
willing to work for some of the pay and benefits offered by some
of the airlines and many [regional carriers] that actually need
those pilots, he said.
Todays pilots are no different than those who entered the
industry 40 years ago, but what were seeing [are] societal and
generational changes, Hogeman said. Weve got to find
opportunities to restore the passion for this industry.

http://www.thenational.ae
Etihad flight diverted to Dubai after security alert
An Etihad Airways flight from Cairo to Abu Dhabi
was diverted to the Al Minhad Air Base in Dubai on
Sunday morning, following a security alert.
The Airbus A321 was carrying 128 passengers and
seven crew, according to an Etihad Airways
spokesman.
No immediate details were available about the
security alert.
The alert was received by Etihad Airways at
approximately 8am, and it was at this time that the
aircraft was diverted, he said.
The plane landed after 9am at the Dubai air base
where passengers were disembarked from the
aircraft.
The flight had departed from Cairo at 3.49am
(5.49am UAE time).
Etihad Airways will release further information as
soon as it is available, the spokesman said.

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Emirates founding CEO Maurice Flanagan dies
One of Middle East aviations leading figures, Maurice Flanagan, has
died. Flanagan, 86, was the founding CEO of Emirates Airline.
In 1985, he led a 10-man team that launched Emirates with, as he
later described it, two leased aircraft, a $10 million grant and a strict
warning from the emirates government not to come back for more.
In 1990 he became group managing director of the Emirates Group.
He was the Groups executive vice chairman until his retirement in
2013.
Flanagan left British Airways in 1978 to become director and GM of
Dubai Airport services organization dnata during the early days of the
emirates economic development.
During his career with Emirates, Flanagan steered the young carrier
to become a leading international aviation player, espousing both
high standards of service and innovations such as IFE screens in all
classes of its aircraft. Emirates said he had been a vocal champion
for the benefits of competition and innovation.
On Tuesday, Emirates reported a 40% full-year profit increase of
$1.3 billion in 2014.
In a statement issued Thursday, Emirates noted his death with great
sadness at home in London.
Emirates Group chairman and CEO Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum
said, The Emirates Group, and Dubai, has lost a great friend today.
Maurice was a man of great character, and a legend in the aviation
industry. He was generous with his time, forthright in his views, and a
person who gave 110% to everything he did. It was a great personal
pleasure and privilege to have worked with him. His contributions to
dnata, Emirates and Dubai will always be remembered.