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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
Private investigators seek to salvage airplane after deadly Washington crash
Investigators prepare to push forward on Friday with efforts to obtain the two aircraft involved in a crash in Washington that killed 67 people and raised questions about air safety in the U.S. capital.
Fresh from recuperating the so-called black boxes from the American Airlines plane that crashed into the Potomac River after hitting an Army Black Hawk helicopter on Wednesday, scuba divers intend to salvage the aircraft and discover extra parts on Friday, Washington's fire department said.
Overnight, boats will remain on scene for security and surface searches from regional, state, and federal regional partners, it stated.
The National Transportation Security Board is studying the cockpit voice recorder and flight information recorder from the CRJ700 plane, which brought 60 travelers and four crew members, all of whom died in the crash. The 3 members of the helicopter crew likewise passed away.
Authorities have actually not determined a factor for the accident, which occurred as the regional jet was attempting to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
The military stated the optimum elevation for the route the helicopter was taking is 200 feet (61 meters) however it might have been flying greater. The crash happened at an elevation of around 300 feet, according to flight tracking site FlightRadar24.
Senator Maria Cantwell, the top Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, questioned the safety of military and industrial flights separated by as low as 350 feet (107 m). vertically and horizontally. She likewise advised the government to. reassess allowing many helicopter flights next to such a. hectic airport.
Radio interactions showed that air traffic controllers. notified the helicopter about the approaching jet and ordered it. to alter course.
One controller rather than 2 was handling regional plane and. helicopter traffic on Wednesday night at the airport, a. situation deemed not typical however thought about appropriate for lower. volumes of traffic, according to a person briefed on the. matter.
American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said the pilot of. the American Eagle Flight 5342 had about six years of flying. experience. The Bombardier jet was run by PSA Airline companies, a. regional subsidiary.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the helicopter was flown. by a relatively knowledgeable crew of three soldiers who were. using night-vision safety glasses on an annual training flight. Authorities said they were grounding other flights from the Army. unit involved in the crash and would review training. workouts in the region.
President Donald Trump suggested without proof that. variety efforts promoted by Democrats could have played a. function. Trump, a Republican politician, has sought to do away with diversity,. equity and inclusion (DEI) programs because entering into workplace on. Jan. 20.
His comments drew criticism from Democrats.
How can he make these brash statements when an. examination is barely under way? stated Rev. Al Sharpton,. president of the National Action Network civil rights group. It. does not matter if these were DEI works with or Ivy League hires. What. matters is the families who are grieving, who do not wish to see. this minute politicized by a president set on peeling back DEI. policies.
Among the crash victims were people from Russia, China,. Germany and the Philippines, including young figure skaters and. individuals from Kansas, the state from which the traveler flight. took off.
Virginia Guv Glenn Youngkin informed Reuters that more than. half of the victims' bodies had actually been recovered by Thursday. The. airport is simply throughout the river from Washington in Virginia.
(source: Reuters)