232015

UK regulator launches drone code

following Lufthansa near-miss
Alan Dron
Jul 22, 2015
Increasing numbers of near misses between unmanned aerial
vehicles (UAVs) and airliners in the UK have prompted the
countrys regulator to launch a new code of practice for UAV
operators.
The code, launched Wednesday with a Drone Safety
Awareness Day, immediately follows a near-miss between a
Lufthansa Embraer E-195 and an unidentified UAV on the
approach to Warsaws Chopin Airport on July 20.
Illustrating the dangers, the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
on Wednesday released details of one such incident, known
as an airprox, involving an unnamed airlines Airbus A320,
which came within an estimated 20 feet of a remotely
controlled mini-helicopter hovering over London Heathrow
Airport in July 2014. The A320 was at 700 feet, on short finals
to runway 09L.
The CAA has recorded three further instances of airproxes
between airliners and UAVs between May 2014 and March this
year.
There are increasing fears of a collision between a UAV and
an airliner. Many close calls have occurred near airports,
when airliners are at low altitude and speed, worsening the
potential effect of a collision.

In January, air traffic controllers (ATCs) at Dubai

International, the worlds busiest airport in terms of
international passengers, had to suspend all operations
for just under an hour after small UAVs were seen in the
vicinity of the runway. Neighboring Abu Dhabi has since
banned all drone sales to the public.
The CAA has launched its new code of practice in
conjunction with the UKs ATC provider, NATS and the
pilots union, BALPA, targeting the increasing number of
recreational drone users.
There have been UK guidelines in place for some time
for example, drones must always be kept within the
operators line of sight, not exceed a maximum altitude
of 400 feet, and be kept away from airports or airfields
but these are now being re-emphasized.
There is already criminal legislation in the UK that can
charge drone operators with recklessly endangering an
aircraft in flight, which can result in a prison sentence.
In April 2014, the CAA successfully prosecuted an
individual for flying an unmanned aircraft through
restricted airspace over a nuclear submarine base,
believed to be the first such prosecution worldwide.
We want to embrace and enable the innovation that
arises from the development of drone technology, but we
must ensure that this is done safely, with all airspace
users in mind, CAA director of policy Tim Johnson said
in a statement Wednesday.

It is imperative that people observe the rules

when operating a drone. Drone users must
understand that when taking to the skies they
are entering one of the busiest areas of
airspace in the world. When doing so, they
must be aware of the rules and regulations
for flying drones that are designed to keep all
air users safe.
The CAA has welcomed moves by drone
manufacturers to build geo-fencing
capabilities into their products. Geo-fencing
prohibits drones from being flown into preprogrammed geographical areas, such as
airport control zones. It can also set altitude
limits.
The CAA has also launched a dedicated
online resource where existing and potential
users can access advice on safe drone
operation.

Avianca Brasil joins Star Alliance

Avianca Brasil joined the Star Alliance in ceremonies at
So Paulo Guarulhos International Airport
Wednesday. Aviancas membership brings the number of
Star airlines to 28.
Today we are setting the future pace of our airline and
close a two year process, which saw us move to a new IT
platform, review and update our internal processes, and
specific training program for our employees to ensure
they can provide the best possible service to customers.
We are proud to be part of the most experienced airline
alliance and are pleased to put Brazil back on the Star
Alliance map, Avianca Brasil president and CEO Jose
Efromovich said.
Avianca Brasil is the fastest-growing airline in the country.
From 2010 to 2014 it increased in market share from 2.6%
to 8.4%. Until May, the airline continued this trend,
reaching a cumulative market share of 9%.
The airline adds 15 new destinations in Brazil to the
existing 12, which Star carriers already served, bringing
the total to 27.
Brazils TAM switched from Star to the oneworld alliance
in March 2014 after merging with oneworld member LAN
Airlines to form LATAM Airlines Group.

Airlines placing hope in biofuels

NEW YORK The number of global fliers is expected to
more than double in the next two decades. In order to carry
all those extra passengers, airlines are turning to a
technology very few can make work on a large scale:
converting trash into fuel.
They have no other choice.
As people in countries such as China, India and Indonesia get
wealthier they are increasingly turning to air travel for vacation
or business, creating an enormous financial opportunity for the
airlines. The number of passengers worldwide could more than
double, to 7.3 billion a year, in the next two decades, according
to the International Air Transport Association.
But many in the industry believe that without a replacement for
jet fuel, that growth could be threatened by forthcoming rules
that limit global aircraft emissions.
Its about retaining, as an industry, our license to grow, says
Julie Felgar, managing director for environmental strategy at
plane maker Boeing, which is coordinating sustainable biofuel
research programs in the U.S., Australia, China, Brazil, Japan
and the United Arab Emirates.
Cars, trucks and trains can run on electricity, natural gas, or
perhaps even hydrogen someday to meet emissions rules. But
lifting a few hundred people, suitcases and cargo 35,000 feet
into the sky and carrying them across a continent requires so
much energy that only liquid fuels can do the trick. Fuel from
corn, which is easy to make and supplies nearly 10 percent of
U.S. auto fuel, doesnt provide enough environmental benefit to
help airlines meet emissions rules.

Unlike the ground transport sector, they dont have a lot of

alternatives, says Debbie Hammel, a bioenergy policy expert
at the Natural Resources Defense Council.
That leaves so-called advanced biofuels made from
agricultural waste, trash, or specialty crops that humans
dont eat. United Airlines last month announced a $30 million
stake in Fulcrum Bioenergy, the biggest investment yet by a
U.S. airline in alternative fuels. Fulcrum hopes to build
facilities that turn household trash into diesel and jet fuel.
FedEx, which burns 1.1 billion gallons of jet fuel a year,
promised Tuesday to buy 3 million gallons per year of fuel
that a company called Red Rock Biofuels hopes to make out
of wood waste in Oregon. Southwest Airlines had already
agreed to also buy some of Red Rocks planned output.
These efforts are tiny next to airlines enormous fuel
consumption. U.S. airlines burn through 45 million gallons
every day. But airlines have little choice but to push biofuels
because the industry is already in danger of missing its own
emissions goals, and thats before any regulations now being
considered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and
international agencies.
The industrys international trade group has pledged to stop
increasing emissions by 2020 even as the number of flights
balloons. By 2050, it wants carbon dioxide emissions to be
half of what they were in 2005.

m.atwonline.com/airports-routes/austrian-airlinescease-vienna-dubai-services

Austrian Airlines to cease Vienna-Dubai

services

Kurt Hofmann
Jul 22, 2015
Lufthansa subsidiary Austrian Airlines will stop ViennaDubai services on Sept. 13 due to overcapacity. The
airline began serving the route in 1996.
Austrian Airlines said in a statement: The overcapacity,
built up in recent years, resulted in fierce price
competition as up to 800 seats per day were on offer. This
ultimately made the Vienna-Dubai route unsustainable for
Austrian Airlines.
Emirates Airline operates double daily services between
Vienna and Dubai with a Boeing 777-300ER.
Austrian Airlines CCO Andreas Otto said, The [767300ER] capacities, which will become available, will be
deployed for attractive, new destinations, such as Miami,
Mauritius and Colombo in Sri Lanka starting in October.

http://www.runwaygirlnetwork.com/2015/07
/22/airline-lounges-are-as-important-asever-including-in-economy/

Airline lounges are as important as ever

including in economy
The revitalisation of airport lounges is often a sign that
business and first class travel is booming and a series
of top-notch lounges are crowning a welcome trend, from
small airlines to larger carriers. Lounges are important to
passengers, particularly to the high value customers
airlines need to attract and retain in a competitive market.
At one end of the size and network spectrum, OpenSkies,
which operates all of three aircraft, opened its attractive
212 Orly Ouest lounge in Paris earlier this month. At the
other end, Singapore Airlines opened its vibrant new
SilverKris lounge in London Heathrows new terminal 2
this spring, adding another lounge option to the Star
Alliance hub at LHR and putting a stake in the ground
where the newer Gulf network carriers are also upping
their game, like with Etihads dedicated Heathrow
Residence lounge.
Cathay Pacific, with its suite of lounge options across
Hong Kong international airport The Wing, The Pier,
The Bridge, The Cabin, The Arrival has created a very
clever opportunity where it can close one of the lounges
completely for refurbishment (as it recently did with its
The Pier lounge, which reopened in late June) while the
remaining lounges take

up the slack.

Cathay also operates some of the best outstation lounges in the

world, often combining business and first class lounges into a
single facility (as at Paris Charles de Gaulle). Its signature noodle
bar, and particularly the cult favourite dan dan noodles, are
presented in CDG alongside a decent French Champagne and a
selection of petit fours, including some excellent macarons.
Virgin Atlantic has long been a candidate for best business class
lounge in the world with its London Heathrow Clubhouse which
contains a spa, hair salon, bar, restaurant, roof deck, hot tub,
music studio, TV wall, games area and library clearly believes
that its brand is well served by outstation lounges worldwide. Its
New York lounge is excellent, and it has just opened a new
Clubhouse in Terminal 2 at Los Angeles LAX, in the space where
the old Air France lounge used to be.
The fact that Virgin can share these airport products with partner
and part-owner Delta in some terminals is a plus for the strategy
of interweaving a bit of Virgin magic and Delta practicality.
Qantas, too, is an airline that relies on its branding in premium
classes. It has long operated the signature oneworld lounge in
Singapore, where its European flights used to stop before it
entered into a strategic partnership with Emirates, and its new
lounge is top-tier. But its ever-frosty relationship with Cathay
Pacific has meant that the airlines are only nominal oneworld
partners there and, indeed, in Hong Kong, where Qantas
combined business-first lounge is higher up the preference list
than Cathays business offerings for many passengers.

The global alliances, too, continue to play their part in

the lounge game, with the new LAX oneworld complex
(largely managed by Qantas) and Star Alliance facility
receiving But even the US airlines, whose lounges have
long been funded by paid club membership or affiliated
credit cards rather than as part of premium travel, are
getting in on the act.
JetBlues new JFK Terminal 5 outdoor rooftop lounge is
receiving rave reviews (and whichever genius named its
dog-friendly area the Wooftop deserves a raise),
while Delta has its open-air Sky Decks, opened in the
summer of 2013, and United has been investing in new
and refurbished United Clubs, including one in London
Heathrows new Terminal 2 that has been winning
significant praise.
Of course, its not just airlines. American Express is
continuing to introduce new lounges as a perk for its
Platinum and higher customers, where other cardholders
can enter for a fee. Amexs most recent lounge is a new
concept, the Centurion Studio in Seattle, a smaller space
than its Dallas or LaGuardia lounges, but one very much
with the same design language and service standards.
Houston is next on the Amex to-do list.
And, indeed, Turkish Airlines is planning to roll out a
transit lounge for connecting economy passengers in
Istanbul, where the airlines massive business lounge
complex has been highly rated since its opening in 2011.
Which airline will be next?
plaudits, as does the new SkyTeam lounge in Sydney.