Latest News
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Spirit Airlines sells Chicago airport gates to American Airlines at a cost of $30 million
Spirit Aviation has agreed to transfer two airport gates for $30 million to American Airlines after a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge for the Southern District of New York granted the company's Monday request. Spirit filed for bankruptcy a second-time in August as it struggled to deal with its dwindling reserves of cash and increasing losses. The company has rejected over 80 leases and left 14 airports. Spirit Airlines has decided to optimize its network and no longer need all four preferential gate at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. It will keep two gates, while American Airlines gets two gates. According to a court filing in November, Spirit operated approximately 32 departures on peak days from O'Hare. Since then, the number has been halved. A court filing stated that the price of $15 million for each gate was considered reasonable by both parties, based on market conditions and "lengthy good-faith negotiations". (Reporting and editing by Doyinsola Oladipo, New York)
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Carmakers and rental firms urge EU not to mandate EV fleet targets
BMW, Toyota and other automakers and leasing companies from Europe have urged the European Commission to not set mandatory targets on electric vehicle purchases by corporate fleets. They argue that it would be prohibitively expensive and counterproductive. On December 16, the EU executive will unveil a number of proposals that could allow more flexibility for the European automotive sector to meet CO2 emission targets and ease an effective ban on sales of new internal combustion engine vehicles in 2035. The package will include plans for corporate fleets such as company cars which account for 50-60% or the new car sales in Europe. In a letter sent to Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission and other Commissioners, the 67 signatories stated that the major obstacles to the adoption of EVs are high purchase and operation costs as well as a lackluster charging infrastructure. In the letter, it was stated that a mandatory target could be "highly detrimental" and that companies would have to choose between retaining older cars for longer or reducing their new vehicle purchases due to high costs. Instead, it said that the key to success in European countries where the EVs are updated the fastest is a combination between incentives and investments in charging infrastructure. Second-hand EVs also need incentives, as many leased vehicles are sold after two to three years. The signatories include BNP Paribas Arval, Societe Generale Ayvens and Avis Bolt and Hertz, as well as some national rental and lease associations. Climate Group, a campaigning association, supports a mandated goal and points out that more than 120 companies have committed to 100% electric fleets. These include EDF, Ikea and Siemens. Lobbying has been frenetic for the EU's Automotive Package, whose publication has been delayed a week. (Reporting and editing by Jan Harvey; Philip Blenkinsop)
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Tanzanians are urged to stay at home in anticipation of protests
Tanzania's Government warned on Monday, that the planned protests for Tuesday were illegal and would amount to a coup attempt. Security forces had been deployed in large numbers throughout major cities. Following the violent suppression during the October elections, in which hundreds of people were killed, activists and the opposition called for protests against the government on Tuesday. "Those protests were not allowed and are illegal... this is not a demonstration, it is a coup," said Home Affairs Minister George Simbachawene in a press briefing held in Tanzania's commercial heartland Dar es Salaam. "Our security organs are going to handle them." The U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights called on authorities to respect the fundamental rights before the planned demonstrations. They also demanded the lifting of an nationwide protest ban and warned against excessive force. Seif Magango said that security forces should allow Tanzanians the right to peaceful assembly and speech and not use force to disperse gatherings. Stay at home! The October protests were sparked by the exclusion from the presidential elections of the leading opposition candidates. Samia Hassan, the incumbent president with almost 98% of the votes, was declared to be the winner. The government acknowledged that people died, but did not provide its own death count. It rejected claims that the police used excessive force. In a video that was posted on X Monday, Mwigulu Nchemba, the Prime Minister, urged people to remain at home without mentioning directly the anticipated protests. He said that the government advised all citizens, who do not have an urgent need on December 9, to take the day off and enjoy it at home. Those whose jobs require them to work at their desks are exempt. Police said that Friday, any protest would be illegal as authorities had not been notified in writing by the organisers. Witnesses reported that heavy police and military deployments were visible Monday along major highways in Dar es Salaam, and Arusha to the north. Hassan appointed a commission for the investigation of election-related violence, but he has denied repeatedly that security forces had acted in an improper manner and accused protesters to try to overthrow government. Last week, the United States announced that it would be reviewing its relationship to Tanzania due to concerns over violence against civilians and religious freedom. Vincent Mumo Nzilani (Writing) Editing Elias Biryabarema Peter Graff Aiden Lewis
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Congress is considering requiring the US military to report near-misses and use helicopter safety alerts in close proximity to DC airport.
According to the annual defense policy legislation, which was unveiled on Sunday night, U.S. Military helicopters that are conducting training missions will need to send out alerts to commercial aircraft near Reagan Washington National Airport in order to avoid collisions. A Black Hawk Army helicopter that was on a training flight and not using the ADS-B safety system collided in January with an American Airlines regional plane near an airport outside Washington. 67 people were killed. The 3,000 page legislation would also require that the Pentagon disclose to Congress how many near misses military aircraft had with commercial planes in the past 10 years, and to issue future reports on incidents. The bill doesn't specify what type of alerts military helicopters would be required to use. The Defense Department can only waive this requirement after a thorough risk assessment has been conducted and the risks to commercial aircraft have been addressed. The Senate Commerce Committee passed a bill in October requiring the use of ADS-B following the collision that occurred in January. The annual defense bill, on the other hand, requires a feasibility report on installing ADS-B in all military helicopters. Ted Cruz, chair of the Senate Commerce Committee in October, said that the bill "closes an unsafe loophole which allowed military aircraft to fly in domestic skies and not communicate their position to other pilots quickly and accurately like commercial aircraft." Both partisan lawmakers and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy questioned the Federal Aviation Administration's failure to take action for years in response to close calls with military helicopters near Washington Reagan National Airport. The bill would mandate safety reviews at Reagan National Airport and other major airports, and direct the Army Inspector General's Office (AIG) to conduct a safety audit. In April, the FAA announced that government helicopters would be required to use ADS-B near Reagan National. After a close call, the FAA banned the Army from flying helicopters around the Pentagon in May. FAA also took steps to increase separation between jets and helicopters. Senator Maria Cantwell of the Commerce Committee, who sponsored the bill as well in October, cited a NTSB report from March which stated that there have been 15,200 incidents since 2021 involving commercial aircraft and helicopters near Reagan National, including 85 close calls. Cantwell's and Cruz’s offices declined comment on the provisions of the defense bill.
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Minister: Morocco will open two deepwater ports in 2026 and 2020
Nizar Baraka, the Equipment and Water Minister, said that Morocco would open a deepwater Mediterranean port in 2019 and an Atlantic port in 2028. The North African nation is aiming to duplicate the success of Africa’s largest port, Tanger Med. Baraka said in an interview that the Nador West Med project, currently under construction in the Mediterranean, will be operational by the second half 2026. He said that the industrial zone will cover 800 hectares and be expanded to 5000, which is more than Tanger Med. The port will host Morocco's first liquefied gas terminal - a floating gas storage and regasification (FSRU) unit - connected by a pipe to industrial hubs to the northwest. Morocco is pushing investments in renewable energy and natural gas to reduce its dependence on coal. Morocco is also building a port worth $1 billion in Dakhla on the Atlantic Coast, which is in the disputed Western Sahara. Baraka stated that the facility would be surrounded with 1,600 hectares of industrial land and 5,200 acres of farmland that will be irrigated using desalinated drinking water. Baraka stated that the port would be completed in 2028, and it will be the deepest port in Morocco at 23 meters. He said that such depth would be ideal for heavy industries that process raw materials from Sahel-based countries. Officials have promoted Dakhla to landlocked Sahel countries as a gateway to global trade. Baraka stated that both Nador and Dakhla will have quays for exporting green hydrogen as soon as production begins. Nador and Dakhla will be Morocco's third- and fourth-deepwater ports, after Tanger Med, a port for energy, bulk cargo, and phosphate exports on the Atlantic. Official figures indicate that by 2024, the industrial zones around Tanger Med will host 1,400 companies employing 130,000 workers in sectors such as automotive, aeronautics and textiles. Baraka stated that Morocco also considers building a port at Tan-Tan, on the Atlantic, in partnership with green hydrogen investors. Baraka stated that "we are conducting studies in order to determine the size of the port." (Reporting and editing by Aiden Lewis; Ahmed Eljechtimi)
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Orban: Turkey will guarantee the flow of Russian gas into Hungary
Orban announced on Monday that Recep Tayyip Erdoan, the Turkish president, and Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister had agreed that Turkey would guarantee that Russian natural gas could continue to flow into Hungary. Hungary's reliance on Russian gas since the beginning of the Ukraine conflict has been criticized by several European Union allies and NATO members. Hungary has signed a 15 year deal with Russia in 2021 to purchase 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas per annum. Last year, Hungary increased its purchases from Gazprom, importing approximately 7.5 billion cubic meters of Russian gas through the Turkstream pipeline. Orban, in a state-run channel M1 broadcast press conference, said: "Today, I agreed with President Erdogan that you will guarantee the route, so that we can ship (gas) from Russia into Hungary." Orban said that Hungary had received 7.5 billion cubic metres of gas via the Turkstream pipeline this year. Orban had pushed for an exemption to U.S. sanctions after a friendly meeting in Washington with President Donald Trump. Orban met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the end November in Moscow. On Facebook, he said he was in Moscow to "ensure Hungary's energy supplies are secure for the winter and the next year". (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis; Anita Komuves)
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Greek farmers protest EU funding delays by blocking borders, airports and roads
A nationwide protest on Monday, triggered by delays in funding, saw Greek farmers shut down an airport on Crete's island. They also blocked roads and crossed the border and threw rocks at police. Local media reported that protesters had deployed thousands of trucks, tractors and other vehicles in at least twenty blockades throughout the country. Police used tear gas to disperse a group protesting farmers at Heraklion Airport in Crete who were throwing stones and forcing their way onto runway. This halted air traffic. A second group, near the Chania Airport in Crete, smashed windows of police cars with shepherd's crooks. The police officials confirmed that the perpetrators had been identified, and they would be prosecuted. After a scandal involving the corruption of state employees and some farmers who lied about land ownership in order to receive payments, Greek farmers are facing a 600-million euro ($700-million) shortfall. The audits are still ongoing and have caused delays in subsequent payments. Farmers and stock breeders are struggling with an outbreak that has caused hundreds of thousands to be culled of sheep and goats. Prokopis BANDZIS, a farmer protesting on Lesbos island, said: "We have no help. Climate change has affected production in a big way. And the corruption scandal is causing people to get huge amounts of money who are not even involved with farming." "I want justice. "Those who were involved in the illegal subsidies must be held accountable for their actions." Kyriakos Miastotakis, Prime Minister Kyriakos, who was criticised for the scandal, asked farmers to stop the blockades, and said that the government is ready to talk. The government acknowledged that payments were delayed and has promised to pay out 3.7 billion euro ($4.3 billion) in this year to farmers. But protests persist. Farmers in the north disrupted traffic on Monday at the Promachonas border crossing with Bulgaria and Kipi, respectively. Customs officials at the Kipi border crossing said only trucks and passenger cars with sensitive cargo were allowed to pass. In southwestern and Central Greece, farmers also set up roadblocks to try and block the Volos Port this week. The entrance to Mytilene port on Lesbos was blocked by hundreds of farmers. $1 = 0.8584 Euros (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis; Edward McAllister and William Maclean).
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A powerful 7.6-magnitude quake strikes Japan's Northeast region
The powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.6 that struck Japan's northeast late Monday prompted tsunami warnings and evacuation orders. The Japan Meteorological Agency said that a tsunami of up to three metres (10 feet), could strike Japan's northeastern coastline after an earthquake estimated at 7.6 magnitude occurred offshore, at 11:15 pm (1415 GMT), according to the JMA. JMA reported that tsunami warnings had been issued for Hokkaido and Aomori prefectures, as well as Iwate. A 40cm tsunami was observed in Aomori’s Mutsu Ogawara port and Hokkaido’s Urakawa port before midnight. The agency said that the epicentre was located 80 km (50 mi) off the coast in Aomori Prefecture at a depth 50 km (30 mi). Japan is among the most earthquake-prone nations in the world, with an average of one tremor every five minutes. East Japan Railway has suspended certain train services in this area which was also affected by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake in March 2011. The country is located in the "Ring of Fire", an arc of volcanoes, oceanic trenches and volcanic craters that partially surrounds the Pacific Basin. It accounts for approximately 20% of all earthquakes of greater than magnitude 6.0. (Reporting and editing by Kevin Liffey, Chang-Ran KIM and Mariko Katsumura)
Zelenskiy confirms that drones were seen near his path on flight to Ireland
The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy confirmed on Monday that drones unidentified had been seen near his flight path during his recent trip to Ireland.
"There will be a probe... He told reporters that there were indeed drones.
He said that he had become used to the situation.
Irish media reported Thursday that up to five drones were operating near the path taken by the presidential plane.
The Journal, the first to report the sighting of drones at Dublin Airport, stated on its website that it reached the exact location where Zelenskiy’s plane had been expected to be, at the exact time when the plane was due to pass.
The Irish Times reported that the aircraft was in no danger and arrived a little early. (Reporting and editing by Kevin Liffey, Tomaszjanowski, and Yuliia Dyesa)
(source: Reuters)