Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced the appointment of Brendan Sullivan as IATA’s Global Head of Cargo with immediate effect. Sullivan has worked in air cargo for 20 years including spending 14 years at IATA. Since January, he has been acting Global Head of Cargo alongside his role as Head of Cargo Operations and E-Commerce. Recent achievements include leading two key IATA initiatives: The One Source platform: This provides comprehensive information on infrastructure capabilities critical to taking advantage of special cargo and e-commerce activities. The IATA FACE Campaign: This builds the next generation of air cargo leadership by attracting, developing, and retaining young talent within the air cargo industry. Over 200 cargo professionals are engaged in the [...]

Source: Hermes - Air Transport Organisation Effective leadership and cooperation among aviation stakeholders is essential to rebuilding the aviation industry from the COVID-19 pandemic. As a forum for industry thought leaders, Hermes Air Transport Organization has facilitated discussion on this topic.  Briefs from 14 industry associations were received by Hermes, contributing to a report with recommendations for promoting leadership and collaboration.  As Dr. Kostas Iatrou, Director General of Hermes states, “I am pleased that despite the challenges that commercial aviation faces we have the participation of 15 organizations. Now more than ever leadership plays a critical role for the relaunching of the industry. The recommendations will help all industry stakeholders to move forward.” The industry associations are in strong agreement [...]

Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released research on the training requirements for the aviation workforce as the industry starts to recover from the COVID-19 crisis. According to a global survey of some 800 human resources (HR) leaders in the aviation industry responsible for learning and development, right-skilling existing workers and ensuring that new hires from outside aviation can quickly acquire the necessary skills will be key to successfully building the post-pandemic workforce. To achieve this, training programs will need to be adapted, with around half the HR respondents stating that their top priority is to assess available workforce skills and map these against their organization’s competency requirements. This will form the basis for the required training curriculums. [...]

Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that both international and domestic travel demand showed marginal improvements in May 2021, compared to the prior month, but traffic remained well below pre-pandemic levels. Recovery in international traffic in particular continued to be stymied by extensive government travel restrictions. Because comparisons between 2021 and 2020 monthly results are distorted by the extraordinary impact of COVID-19, unless otherwise noted all comparisons are to May 2019, which followed a normal demand pattern. Total demand for air travel in May 2021 (measured in revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs) was down 62.7% compared to May 2019. That was a gain over the 65.2% decline recorded in April 2021 versus April 2019. International passenger demand [...]

Source: UNWTO The global vaccination rollout and increased adoption of digital solutions for safe travel should lead to a rise in international mobility over the weeks and months ahead, the latest data from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) indicates. According to the newest edition of the Travel Restrictions Report from the United Nations specialized agency for tourism, as of 1 June, 29% of all destinations worldwide have their borders completely closed to international tourism. Of these, more than half have been completely closed to tourists for since May 2020 or longer, with the majority of these belonging to the Small Island Development States of Asia and the Pacific. In comparison, just three destinations (Albania, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic) are completely [...]

Source: ACI Airports Council International (ACI) World and ACI EUROPE have today announced that Istanbul Airport is the first airport in the world to be reaccredited through the Airport Health Accreditation programme. Accreditation is granted for 12 months. Istanbul Airport was first in the world to be accredited in 2020 and now the airport is the first in the world to be reaccredited for another 12 months since ACI opened the programme reaccreditation in June. The programme is supported by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). It has been updated this year and remains aligned with the latest ICAO Council Aviation Recovery Task Force (CART) Recommendations and with the ACI EUROPE Guidelines for a Healthy Passenger Experience which are, in [...]

Source: European Commission The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to assess the proposed acquisition of Air Europa by IAG, under the EU Merger Regulation. The Commission is concerned that the proposed transaction may reduce competition in the markets for passenger air transport services on Spanish domestic routes and on international routes to and from Spain. Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, responsible for competition policy, said: “IAG, which flies with Iberia and Vueling among others, and Air Europa are leading airlines in Spain. They are also key providers of connectivity between Spain, the rest of Europe and Latin America. We will carefully assess whether the proposed transaction would negatively affect competition on domestic, short-haul and long-haul routes to and from Spain, possibly leading to [...]

Source: ALPA The Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA) today issued the following statement after the U.S. House of Representatives passed the INVEST in America Act: “We applaud the House passage of the INVEST in America Act, which will provide unprecedented investment in our nation’s transportation infrastructure and includes strong labor protections and Buy America rules. Passage of this bill means we are one step closer to creating and sustaining good union jobs, improving the quality of life for workers and their families, and ensuring America will remain economically competitive for years to come. “We also thank the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for its work on this legislation, including addressing the significant hazards associated with the transport of lithium [...]