Three Democratic U.S. Senators asked a federal watchdog to investigate if the head of 'the Federal Aviation Administration' violated his ethics agreement after he left his position as CEO of Republic Airways. On Thursday, Senators Maria Cantwell and Tammy?Duckworth asked if FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford had misled Congress?in his explanation of why he failed to divest?his substantial equity stake in?Republic before?October 7 - the date set in his ethics agreement. Senators claimed that "Beford deliberately held onto his shares until his airline completed a lucrative merger, likely boosting his holdings' value significantly." Bedford completed his divestiture by February. The FAA...

The global air travel industry is still severely affected by the Iran War. Many people are unable to fly to their destinations as planned after major Middle Eastern hubs such as Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi were closed. The latest flight information is listed below alphabetically: AEGEAN AIRLINES The largest airline in Greece will resume its flights to Tel Aviv on April 28 from Athens, Heraklion and Rhodes. Thessaloniki-Tel Aviv flights are cancelled until June 26. Riyadh will resume its flights on June 21. The flights to Beirut will be cancelled until June 26. Flights to Dubai until June 29....

Portugal's government asked Air France-KLM and Germany's Lufthansa on Thursday to submit binding offers?for a minor stake in flag carrier TAP. This set up a 'tight competition' between the two European airline groups after the initial, closely matched bids, which were the only ones it received. Portugal revived TAP’s long-delayed Privatisation in July. It aimed to sell a 44.9 percent stake to a strategic partner to improve the carrier’s global network and competetiveness. A further 5% was reserved for employees. By the end April, the government will issue formal invitations to the two airlines. They will then have until the...

U.S. Airlines are experiencing their highest passenger numbers in history, packing more people into their planes to boost revenues. Yet, in a cruel irony, a war thousands miles away is destroying profits due to a crippling fuel cost burden. United Airlines has cut its profit forecast for the full year by about a third. Alaska Air retracted its entire outlook. Delta Air Lines canceled its growth plans for the quarter while Southwest Airlines refused to update their full-year forecast, saying that it "wouldn't be productive at this point." Fuel costs have risen faster in each case than airline fares. This...

Lufthansa has announced plans for "Economy Basic", a new fare in Europe that will add a new option to the'struggle of passengers with size restrictions on carry-on luggage. The German airline group announced on Thursday that those who want to bring more baggage can add carry-on and checked luggage as an?add-on service within this special fare, or select a fare with increased?baggage allowances. The new low-cost fares will be available online from May 19 for all brands, starting with the first flights in April. The new fares will offer a discount on the existing "Economy Light", which will also include...

The 'Iran War' has pushed up jet fuel prices, which have impacted American Airlines' profit margins. Since the start of the conflict, jet fuel prices have almost doubled, leaving airlines unable to adjust their ticket prices and spiraling costs. U.S. and Israeli strikes?on Iran disrupted the Strait of Hormuz traffic, a crucial?corridor? for global oil supply, triggering?the aviation industry's greatest shock?since COVID-19?. The cost increase has affected the profit margins in the U.S. even though the demand is steady. To offset some of the costs, airlines have increased fares, reduced capacity and raised fees for services such as checked bags....

Lufthansa Group announced plans for an "Economy Basics" fare, which adds a new spin to the 'fighting between 'passengers over size restrictions on carry-on luggage. The German airline group announced on Thursday that those who want to bring more baggage can add it as an add-on. The new low-cost fares will be available online from May 19, for all brands including Lufthansa and?SWISS. The "entry-level" fare is designed to complement the existing "Economy Light", which would then be enhanced with a rebooking option for a small fee. Lufthansa said that the enhanced fare structure allows for a "clear and transparent"...

The German airline 'Lufthansa' lost its appeal against a court ruling on Thursday that invalidated EU approval for state aid it received during the COVID epidemic. This confirmed a victory for Ryanair, the rival. The European Union Court of Justice rejected Lufthansa’s appeal. It upheld a General Court decision that invalidated the European Commission’s decision to clear recapitalisation of the airline. In a?statement, the court said that the Court of Justice dismissed Lufthansa’s appeal today and upheld the General Court’s ruling. The original ruling was made in 2023, following a legal challenge by Ryanair. "We note the European Court of...

?U.S. Airlines are experiencing their highest passenger numbers, packing more people on their planes, and boosting revenue. Yet, in a cruel contradiction, a war thousands miles away is torching profit through a crushing burden of fuel costs. United Airlines has cut its full-year forecast of profit by about a third in the last week. Alaska Air retracted its entire outlook. Delta Air Lines canceled?planned growth? for the quarter while Southwest Airlines refused to update their full-year forecast, saying that it "wouldn't be productive at this point." Fuel costs have risen faster in each case than airline fares. This is the...

American Airlines and Alaska Air Group are in initial discussions to expand their partnership. This could include bringing Alaska into American's transatlantic or transpacific joint business agreements. Sources said that the talks are still in the early stages and may change. They center around allowing Alaska Airlines to join American's global joint ventures, such as those with British Airways, Iberia, Finnair, and Finnair, a Finnish airline, across the Atlantic and Japan Airlines, across the Pacific. These joint ventures are popular with airlines because they enable partners to coordinate schedules, fares and share revenue for international routes. This so-called "metal neutral"...

A number of U.S. legislators expressed concern about a possible federal government rescue of bankrupt Spirit Airlines. The Republican chair of the Senate Commerce Committee called it a "terrible idea." Ted Cruz, a senator from Texas, said in a social media post that "this is an absolutely horrible idea." He said that "the government knows nothing about running a failing budget airline." Reports said that the Trump administration was close to a deal that would save low-cost airline Spirit Airlines. The deal could include up to 500 million dollars in government-backed funding to help Spirit Airlines exit bankruptcy. This is...

Southwest Airlines predicted a second-quarter loss below analysts' expectations on Wednesday as rising jet fuel costs due to the war in Iran have pushed up costs and reduced margins. In extended trading, the shares of?company fell 2.9%. According to data compiled by LSEG, the Texas-based carrier is expecting a profit per share between $0.35 and $0.65 during the April-June period. This mid-point is below analysts' expectations, which were for a profit of 55 cents. After U.S. and Israeli strikes on 'Iran,' the Strait of Hormuz was closed. This caused a rise in jet fuel prices for airlines worldwide. Jet fuel...