Source: ICAO Global passenger traffic recovered modestly in 2021, with the latest ICAO economic impact analysis of COVID-19 on civil aviation revealing that the number of passengers worldwide was 2.3 billion or 49 percent below pre-pandemic (2019) levels, up from the 60 percent drop seen in 2020. Global seat capacity offered by airlines improved by 20 percent during the same period, exceeding the growth in passenger demand. The overall passenger load factor in 2021 stood at 68 percent, compared to 82 percent in 2019, and airlines worldwide incurred losses of $324 billion following $372 billion in 2020 (see Fig.1). Continuing efforts by States to implement WHO and ICAO recommendations, including those issued by the ICAO Council’s Aviation Recovery Task Force [...]

Source: Eurocontrol Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, EUROCONTROL’s Comprehensive Assessment has been charting pandemic impacts on European aviation, using the latest traffic data to track the recovery across airlines, airports, States, ACCs and regional flows. Quick summary of the latest numbers 16,281 flights traffic on Wednesday, 12 January 2022 63 % flights of 2019 levels ↑ 233 cents/gallon fuel price - 39 % intra-European traffic vs 2019 Busiest airlines (Wed 12 January) Ryanair (905 flights); Turkish Airlines (888 flights); Lufthansa (669 flights); Air France (658 flights); KLM (521 flights). Busiest airports (6-12 January) Amsterdam (947 Dep/Arr flights); iGA Istanbul (916 Dep/Arr flights); Frankfurt (865 Dep/Arr flights); Paris CDG (857 Dep/Arr flights); Madrid Barajas (790 Dep/Arr flights).

Source: EASA The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) published the 11th edition of the European Plan for Aviation Safety (EPAS). EPAS sets out the strategic priorities and main risks affecting the European aviation system, and defines the necessary actions to mitigate them, with the primary objective of further improving aviation safety. EPAS is the regional aviation safety plan (RASP) for EASA Member States. It supports safety management at State level and constitutes the main input to the EUR RASP for the ICAO EUR Region. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have significant repercussions for the entire aviation sector. Accordingly, recovering from the crisis without adversely affecting the high level of safety performance is included as a new focus area within [...]

Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has appointed Frederic Leger as the association’s Senior Vice President for Commercial Products and Services. Leger served in the role on an ad interim basis since July 2021, when IATA’s Commercial Products and Services Division was created as part of an internal restructuring. He reports to Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General. Leger holds the concurrent position of President of IATA’s Cargo Network Services in the US, a responsibility he has held since May 2021. Leger joined IATA in 2005 as head of e-Invoicing Services. Since then, he has held various roles at the association with a focus on IATA’s commercial products and services and cargo. Most recently he oversaw the commercial performance [...]

Source: SESAR Two winners were recognised in the SESAR Young Scientist Award 2021, for the first time applauding both postgraduate and undergraduate achievements. Philippe Monmousseau’s work on performance-based assessments in air traffic management at the ENAC Academy in France secured the PhD award; and Chen Xia, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, become the first undergraduate to win for her thesis addressing conflict anticipation and resolutions to mitigate the risk of mid-air loss of separation.   Speaking about their successes, both see aviation as amounting to much more than the flight itself. “Air transportation is inherently multi-modal,” says Philippe Monmousseau, who followed “an unconventional approach to studying the air transportation system: leaving the plane aside and focusing on data generated by passengers throughout their trip.” [...]

Source: ACI-LAC GPA, an aviation transport consulting firm, joins Airports Council International Latin America and the Caribbean as a new World Business Partner (WBP). GPA is an aviation transport consulting company, founded in 1999, with more than 15 years of experience on providing its services to institutions, airlines, airports and other relevant agents of the sector. The foundations of GPA are firmly based on the belief that airports and airlines are a key business driver for any economy in the world, far beyond the direct impact of the infrastructure itself. Deep know-how on the interrelationship between economic and strategic aspects of the air transport sector and the airline industry is the spirit of their company. Doctor Rafael Echevarne, General Director [...]

Source: US DOT The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) awarded $5 million in grants to develop a diverse talent pool of aviation maintenance technicians. The Aviation Maintenance Technical Workers Workforce Development Grants were awarded to organizations that will teach technical skills and prepare participants to pursue aviation maintenance careers. “A career as an aviation maintenance technician opens a wide world of opportunity. These grants will allow us to reach and support individuals who may not had the chance to pursue this exciting career before,” FAA Deputy Administrator A. Bradley Mims said.  Grant recipients include: Macon County School District, Tuskegee, Ala.: $425,000 Pima County Community College District, Tucson, Ariz.: $490,000 North Orange County Community College District, Anaheim, Calif.: [...]

This webinar set for 20 January 2022 will review new and emerging technologies that are likely to bring enhanced security, greater efficiency and a better experience for passengers at the checkpoint. Speakers will discuss the potential for open architecture to bring about profound changes in aviation security screening, thanks to advances in artificial intelligence, machine learning and object recognition technology. The webinar will address: The potential for artificial intelligence and machine learning in aviation security Open architecture The impact of greater automation Ethical considerations Regulatory framework for new security solutions The speakers will be: David Pekoske, Administrator, U.S. Transportation Security Administration Tom Salter, Deputy Director for National Security Science and Research, UK Department for Transport John Abel, Technical Director, Office [...]

Source: UNWTO The important role that tourism will play in the recovery of national economies and global trade has been highlighted in the 2022 edition of the World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) report by the United Nations. Drawing on data from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), WESP underlines the sector’s importance for the world economy and particularly for developing economies, including Small Island Developing States (SIDS). After a global contraction of 3.4% in 2020 and a rebound of 5.5% in 2021, the world economy is projected to grow by 4% in 2022 and then 3.5% in 2023. Given its importance as a major export category (prior to the pandemic tourism was the third largest in the world, after fuels and chemicals), [...]

Source: ALPA The Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA), the world’s largest nongovernmental aviation safety organization, today vowed to keep flying safe as it prepares to implement the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) new guidance for operating aircraft in areas where AT&T and Verizon 5G signals will possibly interfere with critical safety systems onboard commercial passenger and cargo airliners. For years, ALPA and its industry partners have been raising the red flag on the aviation safety threat posed by the 5G C-Band spectrum that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) auctioned off without requiring safety mitigations. Initially intended to launch December 5, the launch was delayed to January 5 and then again by two weeks only after the Department of Transportation and [...]