Latest News
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Bloomberg News reports that Brookfield and GIC are close to a binding offer for National Storage.
Bloomberg News, citing sources familiar with the situation, reported Sunday that Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) and Singapore's GIC were close to making a binding bid for National Storage REIT. The deal could value the Sydney listed company at around 4 billion Australian Dollars ($2.65 billion). The report stated that the parties were finalizing the details of the deal, which could be announced as early as Monday. Brookfield and GIC had also made good progress in their due diligence process on National Storage. The report states that the price for the binding offer will likely be the same in November as the conditional offer. Could not verify immediately the report. National Storage REIT announced last month that it received an A$4.02 Billion buyout offer by a consortium consisting of Brookfield, Singapore's GIC and other companies. This would have been the largest real estate privatisation in Australia. ($1 = 1,5067 Australian Dollars) (Reporting and editing by Andrea Ricci in Bengaluru)
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Canada's Air Transat suspends flights after pilots union strikes notice
Transat AT, a Canada-listed tour operator, announced on Sunday that Air Transat, Canada, will suspend its flights from December 8 to 9 after receiving a 72-hour notice of strike by ALPA, the union which represents the 700 pilots at the company. Air Transat's pilots may begin their strike as early at 3:00 am. Air Line Pilots Association said that the strike would begin at 3:00 AM ET on December 10. The Canadian leisure carrier deemed the strike announcement "premature", given the progress made at the bargaining tables. It said that it had offered compromises including a salary increase of 59% over five years, and improved working conditions. Bradley Small, Chair of the Air Transat Master Executive Council, said: "There's still time to avoid striking, but unless there are significant improvements at the bargaining tables, we may strike to get a modern contract." Transat AT reported that Air Transat was working with the union in order to avoid a strike, but it will stop all operations on December 9th to ensure passengers and crews are not left stranded. Transat AT Inc. offers Air Transat as a brand. Reporting by Abu Sultan in Bengaluru and Shivani Tana; editing by Andrea Ricci
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American Airlines asks for notices regarding the bankruptcy of Spirit Airlines
According to a court document, American Airlines has filed an appearance notice in the bankruptcy proceedings of Spirit Aviation and requested that all notices and documents be served going forward. Spirit filed for bankruptcy a second-time in August as it struggled to deal with its dwindling reserves of cash and increasing losses. The airline stated that it was looking at all possible options in its restructuring, including a merger and sale of the business. American Airlines filed a request in the Southern District Court of New York on December 5, requesting to receive all notices, including operating reports and plans of reorganization, as well as liquidation statements. Spirit and American didn't immediately respond to a comment request. Spirit Airlines has previously stated that they are considering all options to ensure the future of their airline. Spirit actively explores all possible opportunities. The merger or sale of Spirit could maximize value. Spirit stated in a SEC filing in October that the company was actively involved in discussions with several interested counterparties. The U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year rejected a request from American Airlines to overturn a judicial ruling that found the company's scrapped U.S. Northeast Partnership with JetBlue Airways in violation of federal antitrust laws. JetBlue and United Airlines have partnered in a partnership since then. You can also Both airlines' websites allow travelers to book flights. Spirit Airlines urged the U.S. Transportation Department in June to reject the collaboration of United and JetBlue. Spirit Airlines said it was anti-competitive and that other large airlines would pursue similar deals. Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York, editing by Andrea Ricci
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American Airlines asks for notices regarding the bankruptcy of Spirit Airlines
According to a court document, American Airlines has filed an appearance notice in the bankruptcy proceedings of Spirit Aviation and requested that all notices and documents be served going forward. Spirit filed for bankruptcy a second-time in August as it struggled to deal with its dwindling reserves of cash and increasing losses. The airline stated that it was looking at all possible options, including a merger and sale of the business. American Airlines filed a request in the Southern District Court of New York on December 5, requesting to receive all notices, including operating reports and plans of reorganization, as well as liquidation statements. Spirit and American didn't immediately respond to a comment request. Spirit Airlines has previously stated that they are considering all options to ensure the future of their airline. Spirit actively explores all possible opportunities. The merger or sale of Spirit could maximize value. Spirit stated in a SEC filing in October that it was actively in talks with several interested counterparties. (Reporting from Doyinsola Oladipo in New York, editing by Andrea Ricci.)
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Southwest Airlines fined $11 million by the US for holiday meltdown in 2022
The Trump Administration announced Saturday that it would waive a $11 million fine on Southwest Airlines, as part of the $140 million settlement for the airline's meltdown during a busy travel season in December 2022. Southwest Airlines in December 2023 will pay $35 million in cash and $90 million worth of travel vouchers for passengers who are delayed by at least 3 hours in reaching their final destination due to an airline issue or cancellation. This is because the airline handled the meltdown which stranded over 2 million passengers. In a written order, the U.S. Transportation Department cited Southwest Airlines' decision to invest more than $1 billion into its operations since the 2022 crash to improve performance and reliability as the reason for its decision to waive the remaining $11 millions of the fine due by January 31. Reporting by David Shepardson, Editing by Chizu nomiyama
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Merz and Macron to discuss fate FCAS fighter jet in the week of December 15, says industry source
A source in the industry said that the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and the French President Emmanuel Macron plan to discuss the fate the troubled Franco German fighter jet project FCAS – or SCAF – during the week of December 15. The Future Combat Air System (FCAS), a 100 billion-euro ($116-billion) project that was floated over eight years ago, is mired in disputes among the companies concerned about workshare and prized technologies. A source with knowledge of the project said earlier this week that the defence ministers from the participating countries, Germany, France, and Spain, will meet on the 11th to discuss it. The German government spokesperson refused to comment on the exact date but only said that the appointments made by the chancellor will be made public at the appropriate time. The French government did not respond to a request for comment. The French government was not immediately available for comment.
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Bloomberg News reports that Indian and US investigators will meet next week to discuss the Air India crash.
Bloomberg News reported that India would send investigators next week to the United States to review data collected on the fatal Air India crash in June, with the National Transportation Safety Board. The report cited people with knowledge of the situation as saying that Indian investigators planned to share their findings, which included any information they gleaned from cockpit voice and flight recorders. Could not verify immediately the report. The report stated that the meeting would take place at the NTSB headquarters in Washington D.C. Other parties, including Boeing representatives, will also be present. Boeing referred all comments to the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau. NTSB, India’s civil aviation ministry, and the AAIB didn't immediately respond to requests for comments. Shortly after takeoff, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner departing from Ahmedabad in India and heading to London began to lose thrust. The 242 passengers and 19 people on the ground were all killed, except for one. (Reporting and editing by Aidan Lewis, Aurora Ellis and Yazhini MV from Bengaluru)
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IAEA: Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant temporarily lost electricity overnight
The International Atomic Energy Agency reported on Saturday that Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant temporarily lost all of its off-site electricity overnight. It cited Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi. Since March 2022 when Russian forces seized much of the southeast Ukraine, this nuclear plant - Europe's biggest - has been under Russian authority. The plant is currently not producing electricity, but it relies on external power in order to keep the material cool and prevent a meltdown. IAEA reported that the plant had been reconnected after a 30-minute outage to a power line of 330 kilovolts (kV). The Russian-installed plant management said that the 750 kV power line, which was also previously disconnected, was now back in operation. Stable power supply was restored, they added. The management stated that radiation levels were normal. IAEA said that widespread military activities over night affected Ukraine's power grid, and caused operating nuclear power plants to reduce their output. Reporting by Gnaneshwarrajan and Yazhini MV in Bengaluru, Editing by Aidan Lewis & Bernadettebaum
INSIGHT-Airline pilots, crews voice issues about Middle East paths
In late September, an experienced pilot at lowcost European airline Wizz Air felt anxious after discovering his airplane would fly over Iraq in the evening amidst mounting tensions in between nearby Iran and Israel.
He decided to query the decision given that simply a week previously the airline company had deemed the route risky. In action, Wizz Air's. flight operations team told him the respiratory tract was now. thought about safe and secure and he had to fly it, without giving further. explanation, the pilot said.
I wasn't really delighted with it, the pilot, who requested. privacy from worry he might lose his job, told Reuters. Days. later on, Iraq closed its airspace when Iran fired missiles on Oct. 1 at Israel. It confirmed my suspicion that it wasn't safe.
In response to Reuters' questions, Wizz Air stated security of. team and guests was its utmost top priority and would not be. jeopardized in any situations, adding its choices on. where to fly are based upon rigid threat assessments in. partnership with third party intelligence experts.
Our aircraft and crews will only fly in airspace that. has been considered safe and we would never ever take any dangers in this. regard, Wizz Air likewise stated in a statement.
Reuters spoke with four pilots, 3 cabin team members,. 3 flight security specialists and 2 airline executives about. growing safety concerns in the European air market due to. intensifying tensions in the Middle East following Hamas' attack. on Israel in October 2023, that triggered the war in Gaza.
The Middle East is a key air corridor for airplanes heading to. India, South-East Asia and Australia and in 2015 was. criss-crossed day-to-day by 1,400 flights to and from Europe,. Eurocontrol data reveal.
The safety debate about flying over the region is playing. out in Europe mostly since pilots there are safeguarded by. unions, unlike other parts of the world.
Reuters evaluated 9 unpublished letters from four European. unions representing pilots and crews that revealed worries. about air safety over Middle Eastern countries. The letters were. sent out to Wizz Air, Ryanair, airBaltic, the European. Commission and the European Union Air Travel Safety Firm (EASA). in between June and August.
No one should be required to operate in such a harmful. environment and no business interests ought to surpass the. safety and well-being of those on board, checked out a letter,. resolved to EASA and the European Commission from Romanian. flight team union FPU Romania, dated Aug. 26.
In other letters, staff gotten in touch with airline companies to be more. transparent about their decisions on routes and demanded the. right to refuse to fly an unsafe route.
There have actually been no casualties or accidents impacting. industrial aviation connected to the escalation of stress in the. Middle East considering that the war in Gaza erupted last year.
Air France opened an internal examination after one of its. business aircrafts flew over Iraq on Oct. 1 during Tehran's. rocket attack on Israel. On that event, airline companies scrambled. to divert lots of aircrafts heading towards the affected locations in. the Middle East.
The ongoing stress between Israel and Iran and the abrupt. ousting of President Bashar al-Assad by Syrian rebels at the. weekend have actually raised issues of additional insecurity in the. region.
The use of missiles in the region has actually revived memories of. the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 over eastern. Ukraine in 2014 and of Ukraine International Airlines flight. PS752 en route from Tehran in 2020.
Being accidentally shot-down in the chaos of war is the top. worry, three pilots and two air travel security professionals informed. Reuters, together with the threat of an emergency landing.
While airline companies consisting of Lufthansa and KLM. no longer fly over Iran, carriers including Etihad,. flydubai, Aeroflot and Wizz Air were still crossing. the country's airspace as recently as Dec. 2, information from tracking. service FlightRadar24 show.
Some European airlines including Lufthansa and KLM permit. crew to opt-out of paths they do not feel are safe, but others. such as Wizz Air, Ryanair and airBaltic do not.
AirBaltic CEO Martin Gauss stated his airline meets an. worldwide safety standard that does not require to be changed.
If we begin a right of rejection, then where do we stop? the next person feels dissatisfied overflying Iraqi airspace. since there's stress there? he informed Reuters on Dec. 2 in. response to queries about airBaltic flight security talks with. unions.
Ryanair, which intermittently flew to Jordan and Israel. until September, stated it makes security choices based on EASA. guidance.
If EASA says it's safe, then, honestly, thank you, we're not. thinking about what the unions or some pilot think, Ryanair CEO. Michael O'Leary told Reuters in October, when asked about staff. security concerns.
EASA stated it has actually been involved in a number of exchanges with. pilots and airline companies on route security in current months worrying. the Middle East, including that disciplining staff for raising. security issues would run counter to a simply culture where. staff members can voice concerns.
INSUFFICIENT REASSURANCES
One Abu Dhabi-based Wizz Air pilot told Reuters he was. comfy flying over the conflict-torn area as he thinks. the market has a really high safety requirement.
However for some pilots and crew members operating at budget plan. airlines, the peace of minds of the companies are insufficient.
They informed Reuters pilots should have more option in refusing. flights over potentially hazardous airspace and requested more. information about airline security evaluations.
The reality that Wizz Air sends out emails asserting that it's. safe is unimportant to commercial employees, checked out a letter from. FPU Romania to Chief Operating Officer Diarmuid O'Conghaile,. dated Aug. 12. Flights into these conflict locations, even if they. are rescue missions, ought to be performed by military workers. and airplane, not by industrial crews.
Mircea Constantin, a previous cabin team member who represents. FPU Romania, stated Wizz Air never provided a formal action to this. letter and similar ones sent out earlier this year, however did send out. security assistance and updates to staff.
A pilot and a cabin crew member, who decreased to be named. for worry of vindictive action, stated they got warnings from. their companies for declining to fly on Middle Eastern paths or. hiring ill.
CONGESTED SKIES
Last month, 165 rockets were launched in Middle Eastern. dispute zones versus just 33 in November 2023, according to the. latest readily available information from Osprey Flight Solutions.
However airspace can just be enforcably limited if a nation. picks to shut it down, as in the case of Ukraine after. Russia's major intrusion in 2022.
Several airline companies have decided to briefly suspend flights to. locations like Israel when stress increases. Lufthansa and British. Airways did so after Iran bombarded Israel on April 13.
But this limits the airspace in use in the currently crowded. Middle Eastern skies.
Selecting to fly over Central Asia or Egypt and Saudi Arabia. to prevent Middle Eastern locations is likewise more expensive as planes. burn more fuel and some nations charge greater overflight costs.
Flying an industrial aircraft from Singapore to London-Heathrow. through Afghanistan and Central Asia, for example, cost an. airline $4,760 in overflight charges, about 50% more than a route. through the Middle East, according to two Aug. 31 flight plans. examined .
Reuters might not call the airline company as the flight plans are. not public.
Some private jets are avoiding the most important areas.
At the minute, my no-go areas would be the hotspot points:. Libya, Israel, Iran, just because they're sort of captured up in. it all, stated Andy Spencer, a Singapore-based pilot who flies. personal jets and who previously worked as an airline pilot.
Spencer, who has two decades of experience and flies through. the Middle East routinely, stated that on a current flight from. Manila to Cuba, he flew from Dubai over Egypt and north through. Malta before refuelling in Morocco to circumvent Libyan and. Israeli airspace.
EASA, concerned by industry experts as the strictest local. security regulator, issues public bulletins on how to fly safely. over dispute zones.
However these aren't necessary and every airline chooses where. to take a trip based on a patchwork of government notifications,. third-party security consultants, in-house security groups and. info sharing in between carriers, leading to divergent. policies.
Such intelligence is not usually shared with staff.
The opacity has sown fear and skepticism amongst pilots, cabin. team and travelers as they question whether their airline company has. missed something providers in other countries understand, stated. Otjan de Bruijn, a former head of European pilots union the. European Cockpit Association and a pilot for KLM.
The more information you offer to pilots, the more. informed a decision they can make, said Spencer, who is likewise an. operations expert at flight advisory body OPSGROUP, which. deals independent functional guidance to the air travel industry.
When Gulf players like Etihad, Emirates or flydubai all of a sudden. stop flying over Iran or Iraq, the industry sees it as a. reliable indication of danger, pilots and security sources stated, as. these airlines can have access to detailed intelligence from. their federal governments.
Flydubai told Reuters it operates within airspace and. air passages in the area that are approved by Dubai's General Civil. Air travel Authority. Emirates stated it continuously monitors all. routings, changing as required and would never ever run a flight. unless it was safe to do so. Etihad stated it only operates. through approved airspace.
Passenger rights groups are also asking for tourists to. get more details.
If guests decrease to take flights over conflict zones,. airline companies would be disinclined to continue such flights, said. Paul Hudson, the head of U.S.-based passenger group Flyers. Rights. And guests who take such flights would do so. informed of the threats.
(source: Reuters)