Source: US DOT U.S. airlines employed 706,504 workers in April 2021, 6,531 fewer than in March 2021 (713,035) and 48,591 fewer than in March 2020 (755,095). The April industry numbers consist of 592,931 full-time and 113,573 part-time workers. The largest March to April reductions among major airlines were American Airlines, down 2,410 employees, and SkyWest Airlines, down 2,329 employees.  From the start of the pandemic in March 2020, the largest employment reductions were Delta Air Lines, down 24,321 employees, and United Airlines, down 23,632 employees. From March 2020 to April 2021, Federal Express added 24,392 employees.   Regulations require airlines to report employment numbers to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics for employees who worked or received pay for any part [...]

Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released April 2021 data for global air cargo markets showing that air cargo demand continued to outperform pre-COVID levels (April 2019) with demand up 12%. As comparisons between 2021 and 2020 monthly results are distorted by the extraordinary impact of COVID-19, unless otherwise noted, all comparisons to follow are to April 2019 which followed a normal demand pattern.   Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometers (CTKs*), was up 12% compared to April 2019 and 7.8% compared to March 2021. Seasonally adjusted demand is now 5% higher than the pre-crisis August 2018 peak. The strong performance was led by North American carriers contributing 7.5 percentage points to the 12% growth rate in April. [...]

Source: ALTA The Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) is committed to working for a more diverse and inclusive aviation and today reinforces this conviction with the affiliation of our CEO to the group of advocates in IAWA, the International Aviation Women’s Association. José Ricardo Botelho, ALTA’s Executive Director & CEO, highlights: “I am honored to be an advocate at IAWA, an association with 33 years of work focused on promoting the achievements and impact of women in aviation and inspiring young women to join the industry. I am convinced that the near future of aviation is more diverse and much more creative, efficient and agile. From ALTA we will further strengthen ties with IAWA to continue developing [...]

Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) called on the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to maintain the critical separation between politics and aviation safety issues. The call followed the latest development in events following the incident when Ryanair FR4978 was intercepted over Belarus Airspace and forced to land in Minsk. On 2 June EASA replaced its recommendation (Safety Information Bulletin) for European airlines to carefully assess the risk of flying in Belarus airspace with a blanket prohibition (Safety Directive) on European aircraft entering Belarus airspace. “Aviation safety must never be politicized. IATA condemned the actions of the Belarus government and called for an independent investigation. Banning European aircraft from using Belarusian airspace with a Safety Directive is also [...]

Source: European Commission Joint Press Release on the Conclusion of the ASEAN-EU Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the European Union (EU) and its Member States have concluded the negotiations on the ASEAN-EU Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement (AE CATA) at the Extraordinary ASEAN-EU Senior Transport Officials Meeting held virtually on 2 June 2021. The AE CATA is the world’s first bloc-to-bloc air transport agreement and will bolster connectivity and economic development among the 37 member states of ASEAN and the EU. Under the agreement, airlines of ASEAN and the EU will have greater opportunities to operate passenger and cargo services between and beyond both regions. Airlines of ASEAN and the EU will be able [...]

Source: US DOT The Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) today released U.S. airlines’ April Fuel Cost and Consumption numbers. Fuel consumed by U.S. airlines scheduled service: April 2020                     447 million gallons March 2021                   1.0 billion gallons April 2021                     1.0 billion gallons U.S. airlines used 3.7% more fuel in April 2021 than in March 2021 to reach the highest monthly consumption level since March 2020. In April 2021, airlines used more than twice the amount of fuel that they did in April 2020 and 70% of the amount they used in April [...]

Source: ICAO Aircraft CO2 emissions standards adopted through ICAO have been applied by EASA for its latest type certificate issuance – for the new Airbus A330-941neo. The new standards were adopted by countries through ICAO in 2017, and they became applicable globally as of January 2020. “These ICAO requirements are designed to assure that the latest CO2reduction technologies are included in all new aircraft type designs, a critical priority with respect to further reducing the impact of aviation on the global climate,” emphasized ICAO Secretary General Dr. Fang Liu. EASA’s application of the new ICAO provisions assures the aircraft is compliant with the latest and most stringent environmental standards, addressing the full spectrum of aircraft impacts on the environment and [...]