Source: IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA) welcomes the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ratification of the Montreal Protocol 2014 (MP14), a move that will strengthen the global legal deterrent against unruly and disruptive passenger incidents onboard flights. "IATA welcomes the leadership shown by the UAE in ratifying MP14. Not only will this give the UAE authorities important new powers in dealing with unruly passengers that land in the country, but as a major aviation market and ICAO Council member, it will also encourage other States to ratify MP14. Ensuring greater international harmonization and strengthening the legal deterrent against unruly and disruptive passengers who pose a threat to passenger and crew wellbeing and safety onboard is a priority for the [...]

Source: ACI ACI World and SITA's latest Airport IT Insights Survey reveals accelerated digitalization will be key to more resilient and agile airport operations Airports Council International (ACI) World and SITA today announce the results of the latest 2022 Airport IT Insights Survey, revealing how airports are ramping up their investment in technology to digitalize their operations and streamline the passenger journey through more self-service options. ACI World and SITA have collaborated for the past 19 years on the Airport IT Insights Survey, the most extensive study of IT trends within the global airport industry. The report reveals that with the quicker than expected recovery of air travel demand, Chief Information Officers (CIOs) are eager to leverage IT solutions to fortify [...]

Source: TSA The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced the award of three orders for a combined total value of up to $1.3 billion for Computed Tomography (CT) scanners to include up to 426 base, 359 mid-size, and 429 full-size units, if all options are exercised, for deployment across TSA checkpoints starting Summer 2023. Analogic Corporation will provide base-size units. IDSS Holdings will provide mid-size units. Smiths Detection Incorporated will provide full-size CT X-ray systems. "These CT units represent sophisticated technology that helps our professional, dedicated and highly skilled workforce detect new and evolving threats to improve aviation security," said TSA Administrator David Pekoske. "Deploying these units across our security checkpoints as expeditiously as possible will also improve checkpoint efficiency and [...]

Source: US DOT The U.S. Department of Transportation today released its updated February 2023 Air Travel Consumer Report (ATCR), which includes airline consumer complaint data for December 2022 and calendar year 2022. The previous version of this report excluded this data due to additional time needed to review and process consumer complaints. Complaints About Airline Service In 2022, the Department received 77,656 complaints. This is up 55.3% from the 49,991 complaints received in 2021, down 24.3% from the record high 102,560 complaints received in 2020. Of the 77,656 complaints received in 2022, 24,647 (31.7%) concerned flight problems (including complaints about lack of reimbursements for costs associated with flight problems), 19,983 (25.7%) concerned refunds, and 12,007 (15.5%) concerned baggage. In December [...]

Source: ALTA Paraguay, Panama and Brazil are the only countries in Latin America and Caribbean where there are currently projects for the production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), the input that will allow the aviation industry to largely reach the goal of zero net emissions by 2050, shared José Ricardo Botelho, ALTA's Executive Director & CEO, during the Civil Aviation General Directors Meeting, hosted by the South American Regional Office of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). During his presentation, Botelho addressed two major challenges: first, the urgency of increasing the availability of SAF, as the global industry will require an annual production of 449 billion liters to supply itself by 2050. Secondly, high procurement prices, as by March 20, [...]

Source: TIACA The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) announced that the fifth edition of the Air Cargo Sustainability Awards is now open for applications. The competition aims to recognize outstanding businesses and industry initiatives leading the way to a more sustainable air cargo industry. CHAMP Cargosystems, a leading industry IT solution provider, has generously committed to continue sponsoring these awards. "We renew our call to everyone in air cargo for fresh ideas to maintain our momentum in creating a sustainable future for our industry," says Chris McDermott, CEO of CHAMP Cargosystems, the exclusive sponsor of the Awards. "We are delighted to be sponsoring these important sustainability awards once again and look forward to receiving many high caliber entries this year." [...]

Source: ALTA In February 2023, 27.5 million passengers were carried, representing 98% of passengers for the same month in 2019. This figure reflects a slight advance compared to January this year, when the region reached 96% of its pre-pandemic levels, but a setback vs. December 2022 when 100% of passengers carried in 2019 were reached, report data from the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association's (ALTA) February 2023 Traffic Report. Africa again led the global recovery with a 101% growth in passengers carried and, for the first time, the Middle East practically reached its pre-pandemic levels, exceeding Latin America and Caribbean, which was, until December, the region with the strongest recovery. Data from our region In February 2023, international [...]

Source: FAA New ASCENT Grants Total $19 Million for Work on Noise and Other Environmental Issues America's best aviation minds will look for new ways to reduce aviation noise this year. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has awarded $19 million to 14 universities across the country as part of the Aviation Sustainability Center (ASCENT). "Research is the gateway to breakthroughs. With the best minds, we can reduce noise and fly with net-zero emissions by 2050," said Acting FAA Administrator Billy Nolen. The noise-related projects include: Noise Reduction for New Aircraft Examine the potential noise reduction benefits of an over-wing jet engine design concept: $300,000 to Georgia Institute of Technology. Simulate sonic booms in realistic environments to inform the development of noise [...]

Source: US DOT The Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) today released U.S. airlines’ February 2023 fuel cost and consumption numbers indicating U.S. scheduled service airlines used 1.307 billion gallons of fuel, 7.5% less fuel than in January 2023 (1.413 billion gallons) and 1.3% more than in pre-pandemic February 2019. The cost per gallon of fuel in February 2023 ($3.23) was down 5 cents (1.7%) from January 2023 ($3.28) and up $1.25 (63.1%) from February 2019. Total February 2023 fuel expenditure ($4.22B) was down 9.0% from January 2023 ($4.63B) and up 64.6% from pre-pandemic February 2019. Fuel cost and consumption statistics are not adjusted for inflation or seasonality. Year-over-year increases in fuel consumption and cost for February 2023 [...]

Source: ACI-LAC (Scroll down for Spanish version) ACI-LAC invites all its members to join the webinar on "Eliminating Architectural Barriers @ Airport Terminals". It is the aspiration of every airport operator, government, the authority having jurisdiction, and the design and construction industry to design and build facilities that are 'free' of architectural barriers for persons with disabilities.  We, the professionals and facilitators of the air travel industry, have the responsibility to assure our airports (no matter size and function) provide full access to all their facilities, including persons with disabilities. People with disabilities are those who have an impairment that limits them to do certain activities such as vision, movement, communicating, learning, hearing, etc.  In many countries, the Americans with [...]