Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) criticized the decision by the US Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Biden Administration to raise the cost of air travel by mandating airlines provide financial compensation to travelers for flight delays and cancellations, in addition to their current care offerings. According to yesterday's announcement, the rule will be issued later this year. DOT's Cancellation and Delay Scoreboard shows that the 10 largest US carriers already offer meals or cash vouchers to customers during extended delays, while nine of them also offer complimentary hotel accommodations for passengers affected by an overnight cancellation. "Airlines work hard to get their passengers to their destinations on time and do their best to minimize the impacts [...]

Source: US DOT For the first time in U.S. history, DOT initiates a rulemaking that would require airlines to compensate passengers and cover certain expenses for controllable delays and cancellations FlightRights.Gov, the newly-expanded DOT dashboard first launched last summer to hold airlines accountable to passengers, shows that few airlines currently provide any compensation for airline-caused delays or cancellations The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today announced plans to launch a new rulemaking that is aimed at requiring airlines to provide compensation and cover expenses for amenities such as meals, hotels, and rebooking when airlines are responsible for stranding passengers. After a two-year DOT push to improve the passenger experience, the ten largest airlines guarantee meals and free rebooking on the [...]

Source: IFALPA The 77th Conference of the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations (IFALPA) has closed, and these are the results of the elections. Congratulations to all newly elected officers, welcome back to all returning officers, and a sincere thank you to all outgoing officers. ELECTION OF EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OFFICERS EVP Technical & Safety Standards (TSS) – Cpt Uwe Harter, Germany EVP Professional & Government Affairs (PGA) – Cpt Al Gaspari, United States ELECTION OF EXECUTIVE VICE-PRESIDENTS (REGION) EVP Africa/Middle East (AFI/MID) – Cpt Souhaiel Dallel, Tunisia EVP Caribbean & North America (CAR/NAM) – Cpt Rod Lypchuk, Canada EVP Europe (EUR) - Pending ELECTION OF REGIONAL VICE-PRESIDENTS Africa & Middle East (AFI/MID) AFI/North – Cpt Sabbredine Salaa, Algeria AFI/East – [...]

Source: ALTA March represented a new milestone for LAC. However, the economic slowdown expected for the region could affect demand for air transport In March 2023, Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) exceeded for the third time passenger carried in 2019. The region had reached this milestone in September and December 2022. Precisely, until the end of last year the region led the global recovery of passenger traffic, but, so far this year and for the third time in a row, Africa takes that place with 101.7% of 2019 passengers, reports the Passenger Traffic Report prepared by the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA). "March showed a slight recovery compared to the two immediately preceding months but economic forecasts [...]

Source: ACI The plan is funded by Montreal International with the support of the Government of Canada, the Government of the Canadian province of Quebec, and the City of Montreal Airports Council International (ACI) World launches the Sustainability Expansion Plan, funded by Montreal International with the support of the Government of Canada, the Government of the Canadian province of Quebec, and the City of Montreal. The plan sees continued investment in the city of Montréal, the World Capital of Civil Aviation, and in the sustainability of airports as essential enablers of economic growth and prosperity. The launch was celebrated with government officials and top aviation and investment representatives at the ACI World Cocktail Reception on 4 May 2023, at the [...]

Source: ALPA Today, leaders of the world’s largest airline pilot organizations addressed the global media to counter and expose the aggressive and illogical corporate-led lobbying campaign that targets regulators and reduces aviation safety. Top leadership from the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations, the European Cockpit Association, and ALPA provided a critical update on the recently established global pilot coalition created to prevent airlines and manufacturers from pursuing plans to remove pilots from the flight deck—a profit-driven scheme that poses a significant safety risk. The global pilot community, including the Associations of Star Alliance Pilots, the Oneworld Cockpit Crew Coalition, and the SkyTeam Pilots Association, are united in the fight against reduced-crew operations. Working together, we are doing everything [...]

Source: ICAO To help countries better prepare for future pandemics, ICAO contributed to a new initiative that was launched by the World Health Organization (WHO) to provide guidance on integrated planning for “responding to any respiratory pathogen such as influenza or coronaviruses.” The new Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats Initiative, or PRET, incorporates the latest tools and approaches for shared learning and collective action established during the COVID-19 pandemic and other recent public health emergencies. Through the initiative, WHO will use a mode of transmission approach to guide countries in pandemic planning, given that many capacities and capabilities are common among groups of pathogens. PRET answers the call for technical guidance and support for promoting and strengthening integrated preparedness and [...]

Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced strong demand growth in air travel for March 2023. Total traffic in March 2023 (measured in revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs) rose 52.4% compared to March 2022. Globally, traffic is now at 88.0% of March 2019 levels. Domestic traffic for March rose 34.1% compared to the year-ago period. Total March 2023 domestic traffic was at 98.9% of the March 2019 level. International traffic climbed 68.9% versus March 2022 with all markets recording healthy growth, led once again by carriers in the Asia-Pacific region. International RPKs reached 81.6% of March 2019 levels while the load factor at 81.3% exceeded the March 2019 level by 10.1 percentage points. “The calendar year first quarter ended on a [...]

Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for March 2023 global air cargo markets showing a continued decline against previous year’s demand performance. This trend began in March 2022. Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometers (CTKs*), fell 7.7% compared to March 2022 (-8.1% for international operations). This was a slight improvement over the previous February’s performance (-9.4%) and half the rate of annual decline seen in January and December (-16.8% and -15.6% respectively). At this point, it is unclear if this is a potentially modest start of an improvement trend or the upside of market volatility. Irrespective of this, March performance slipped back into negative territory compared to pre-COVID levels (-8.1%). Capacity (measured in available cargo tonne-kilometers, [...]