AviTrader Weekly News 2018-02-26

WEEKLY AVIATION HEADLINES
11
OTHER NEWS
proximity to Silicon Valley. Finnair began a seasonal
service to San Francisco during the summer
of 2017.
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA)
has released the first formal Opinion on the
safe operating of small drones in Europe and
which will become an important steppingstone
to the building of a wider regulatory
framework and a means to keep drone operations
safe. This Opinion will act as a platform
on which the European Commission can adopt
regulatory proposals later on in the year. The
European Commission has already chaired
a meeting with EU Member States on February
21. According to EASA’s Executive Director
Patrick Ky, “This regulation will enable the
free circulation of drones and a level playing
field within the European Union, while also
respecting the privacy and security of EU citizens,
and allowing the drone industry to remain
agile, to innovate and continue to grow.”
The EASA has provided an innovative means
for the regulation of drone operations where
rules are simplified, and focus is mainly on the
risks associated with a drone’s operation – for
example the risk associated would be greater
flying the same drone in a built up residential
area as opposed to open fields. The Opinion
is also charting new territory where aviation
and product legislation are combined: design
requirements for small drones (up to 25kg) will
be implemented by using the well-known CE
(Conformité Européenne) marking for products
marketed in Europe. Each drone will be
come with a package a consumer information
with the “do’s and don’ts” on how to fly
a drone without endangering other members
of the public. This Opinion follows a preceding
consultation document (Notice of Proposed
Amendment – published by EASA in May 2017)
and takes into account thousands of comments
received from private citizens, industry, operators
and national authorities obtained during a
four-month public consultation period.
While a record number of U.S. passengers were
recorded in 2017, an increase of 4.5% com-
pared to 2016 figures, the resultant increase in
volume has seen a drop in the level of satisfaction
experienced by passengers.
The result of an annual Air Travelers in America
Survey has revealed that of those passengers questioned,
only 81% were satisfied with their overall
experience, down from 85% recorded in 2016.
This drop is not seen as surprising given an increase
in crowding at airports and on flights,
mainly due to an improved economy and low
fares. All age groups and household income
bands saw an increase in numbers save for
those passengers who earned in excess of
$150,000 on an annual basis.
The greatest increase in passenger numbers
came from those persons falling within the
US$75,000 – US$99,999 income bracket, where
those people took an average 5.1 trips per annum,
compared with 3.4 trips in 2016.
According to John Heimlich, vice president and
chief economist at Airlines for America, “The
strides airlines are making to improve the flight
experience—from varying fares that can fit any
budget, in-flight entertainment options, gourmet
food offerings and advancements in technology,
both on the ground and in the air— are
resonating with customers and leading to more
Americans traveling more often by air.”
5,046 passengers took part in the survey. 2017
was a year blighted by a number of high-profile
incidents involving airlines and their passengers,
the most notable of which involved a passenger
who had been ‘bumped’ being forcibly
dragged off a United Airlines UAL flight, the
incident having been recorded by a fellow passenger
on their smartphone and which subsequently
went viral on social media.
Sardinia-based airline Meridiana is aiming to
become Italy’s premier airline under a new
name, Air Italy. The airline acquired the smaller
Air Italy in 2011 and will adopt its name and fly
as a new Air Italy. Alitalia, Italy’s previous flag
carrier, went into administration in May last
year and is now being auctioned off in parts to
other European airlines.
Meridiana is part owned by Qatar Airways
(49%) and Alisarda S.p.A which originally
owned the Sardinian airline Alisarda, which in
turn merged with Spanish carrier Universair in
1991 to form Meridiana. The new Air Italy has
put in place an aggressive rebranding and ex-
pansion program, aiming to attract up to 10 million
passengers by 2022. It plans to double the
size of the fleet by 202, commencing with the
acquisition of 20 new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft,
together with Airbus A330-200s and Boeing
787-8 Dreamliners.
The newly branded carrier also intends to expand
its routes domestically with new connections
between Milan and Rome, Naples, Palermo,
Catania and Lamezia Terme by May this
year. Internationally, the carrier will be aiming
to open new international flights with a daily
service from Milan to New York, and four flights
a week from Milan to Miami, both starting in
June, and from September, four flights weekly
from Milan to Bangkok. Three additional longhaul
flights should also be announced by the
year end, while in 2019 there are plans to add
long-haul flights from Rome.
Though Milan Malpensa is the airline’s international
hub, its headquarters will remain in Olbia,
Sardinia. The new airline plans to add several domestic
connections to Sardinia in addition to two
new direct flights to London and Moscow
Akbar Al Baker, CEO of Qatar Airways commented:
“We’re working to build an efficient airline
with high quality services that offers an alternative
to Italians and to all international tourists
who want to visit Italy.”
INDUSTRY PEOPLE
• Air Canada has named Jon Turner as Vice
President, Maintenance.
He is returning
to Air Canada after
working at other airlines,
most recently
Air Canada Express
partner, Sky Regional,
where he was President
and Chief Executive
Officer. In his role,
Jon Turner
Mr. Turner will assume
responsibility for managing and providing
strategic direction for Air Canada’s maintenance
programs, core engineering, fleet
management, control of technical safety
and airworthiness standards, maintenance