Source: US Department of Transportation Omicron concerns drive steepest drop from most recent pre-pandemic corresponding month since April 2021   U.S. airlines carried 46.3 million scheduled service passengers in January 2022 (preliminary), 33.2% more than in January 2021 and 34.0% fewer than in pre-pandemic January 2020, according to data filed with the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) by 23 airlines that carry more than 90% of passengers. Domestic passengers (41.2 million) made up 89% of total enplanements, and international passengers (5.1 million) accounted for 11% of total enplanements. Systemwide Passengers January 2022 passengers:  46.3M Change from January 2021:  33.2% (11.5M) Change from pre-pandemic January 2020:  -34.0% (-23.8M) Change from April 2020 low:   144.9% (43.3M) Table 1: Systemwide Percent Change in [...]

Source: IATA Key points: Industry-wide cargo ton kilometers (CTKs) had softened in the three months to January 2022. CTKs rose 7.2% year-on-year, but this is weaker than the previous three months period (16.0%) and seasonally adjusted CTKs fell by 0.7% quarter-on-quarter. Drivers of air cargo are currently mixed. While trade and economic activity continue to expand, business and consumer confidence have eased. The inventory-restocking cycle still has ground to cover, but the conflict in Eastern Europe threatens CTKs growth. Air cargo capacity remains on a slow but steady upwards trend, mainly driven by the return of belly capacity. Even though load factors have eased somewhat in H2 2021, air cargo rates have increased to new heights View full report 

Source: House Committee on Transportation Today, Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Sam Graves (R-MO), Chair of the Subcommittee on Aviation Rick Larsen (D-WA), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Aviation Garret Graves (R-LA), and 25 of their colleagues on the Aviation Subcommittee requested the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) provide bimonthly updates on the agency’s ongoing 5G efforts and progress. In the letter, the members wrote: “It is critical that the concerns of all parties involved be taken seriously and the sharing of critical safety data be prioritized. Additionally, early and open lines of communication with all involved parties must be strengthened in order to [...]

Source: ICAO The ICAO Council made progress last week on adopting new Amendments to several safety-related Annexes of the Chicago Convention in relation to new international standards for electronic pilot licenses, flight operations, and continuing airworthiness responsibilities. In most cases the new standards will become applicable on 3 November 2022. Amendment 178 to Annex 1 – Personnel Licensing of the Chicago Convention introduces new provisions for the use of electronic pilot licenses, which are increasingly being used by ICAO Member States. It sets out a new common format to provide for simplified license verification by other States. By assisting in the wider adoption of e-licenses, the amendment will also reduce the number of printed licenses in circulation and realize cost reduction and [...]

Source: TSA The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recognized its top performers and most effective teams during the TSA Honorary Awards celebration, which was held virtually this year. “The TSA workforce continues to represent the very best of resilience and innovation in protecting our nation’s transportation systems. It is a privilege once again to recognize those who stepped forward and made significant contributions in meaningful ways in support of the agency,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. “I am proud to congratulate them for their outstanding work on behalf of TSA.” “Blogger Bob” Award In memory of Curtis “Bob” Burns, who was dedicated to building a social media presence for TSA as “Blogger Bob,” this award recognizes an employee or team who [...]

Source: IATA ACI EUROPE (Airports Council International) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) called for all remaining COVID restrictions applying to intra-EU and Schengen area travel to be dropped, including all testing requirements, the need to present proof of vaccination, or complete a Passenger Locator Form (PLF). This includes dropping mask-wearing for travel within or between States where it is no longer required in other indoor environments. COVID-19, and specifically the Omicron variant, is now pervasive throughout all of Europe, and population immunity is at such levels that the risk of hospitalization or death has dramatically reduced, especially for vaccinated people. States are adopting surveillance strategies to ensure public health, in the same way as they do for other [...]

Source: ALTA The Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) is pleased to announce that Brazilian law firm Fenelon Advogados is now a consulting member. Headquartered in Brasília, capital of Brazil, and with unit in São Paulo, Fenelon Advogados specializes in advising clients in the resolution of conflicts related to complex public and private law issues. The firm was founded by Ricardo Fenelon Jr., former director of the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) and professor of Aeronautical Law at the Brasiliense Institute of Public Law (IDP). “Fenelon Advogados has the mission of providing legal services with maximum efficiency, guided by principles of ethics and transparency. For ALTA it is essential to have consulting members with a high level of [...]

Source: US Department of Transportation Scheduled passenger airlines add 5,375 full-time equivalents for 9th consecutive month of job growth U.S. Airline Employees Headcount (Full-time and Part-time Employees) U.S. airline industry (passenger and cargo airlines combined) employment increased to 733,491 workers in January 2022, 3,411 (0.47%) more workers than in December 2021 (730,080) and 16,848 (2.25%) fewer than in pre-pandemic January 2020 (750,339). The January 2022 figure is the highest industry headcount since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. U.S. scheduled-service passenger airlines employed 450,065 workers in January or 61% of the industry-wide total. Passenger airlines added 5,285 employees in January for a ninth consecutive month of job growth dating back to May 2021. American Airlines led scheduled passenger carriers, adding 1,319 [...]

Source: US Department of Transportation U.S. airlines carried 674 million passengers (not seasonally adjusted) in 2021, 82.5% more than in 2020 (369 million, unadjusted). U.S. airline passenger enplanements in 2021 remained 27.3% below pre-pandemic 2019’s 927 million (unadjusted). System-wide 2021 enplanements comprised 612 million passengers on domestic flights and 62 million passengers on international flights. U.S. airlines carried 68.1 million systemwide (domestic and international) scheduled service passengers in December 2021, seasonally-adjusted, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ (BTS), up 0.2% from November 2021, but down 13.4% from pre-pandemic December 2019. BTS reported 60.9 million domestic passengers and 7.2 million international passengers on U.S. airlines flights in December 2021. U.S. airline traffic reports are filed monthly with BTS. See the [...]

Source: ALPA Delta pilots picketed at Delta’s largest hub in Atlanta, Georgia, to protest the airline’s scheduling practices that have caused pilots to fly long days or work additional days to keep the airline running. With spring break and the summer travel season approaching, the Delta pilots are demanding improvements to schedules that impact employees and passengers alike. “We’re picketing today because it’s time for Delta management to fix our schedules,” said Capt. Jason Ambrosi, chairman of the Delta Master Executive Council of the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA). “We’ve flown record amounts of overtime during the pandemic to help Delta operate its schedule and get our passengers safely to their destinations. In many cases, pilots are flying long [...]