February 2021 – Flightbuddy

Covid: Airline industry travel pass ready within weeks

The International Air Transport Association is expecting its digital Covid Travel Pass to be ready within a number of weeks. The new digital pass will be an app that verifies that a passenger has had the Covid-19 tests or vaccines required to enter a country. It will also verify where the passengers had the vaccine administered and that it carried out by an approved authority. Vinoop Goel, IATA’s regional director of airports and external relations has said that "The key issue is one of confidence. Passengers need to be confident that the testing they've taken is accurate and will allow them to enter the country. And the governments need to have the confidence that the tests that the passengers claim to have been one which is accurate and meets their conditions." IATA said the Travel Pass is designed in a modular way so it can work with other digital solutions that are under trial around the world. The App will be available on iOS and Android, it is expected to be free to passengers. Singapore Airlines was the first airline to start trials of the travel pass in December. Source https://www.bbc.com/news/business-56165563 https://www.iata.org/en/pressroom/covid-19-news/

By Thomas Dixon|February 25th, 2021|Uncategorised|Comments Off

Peach Aviation introducing free Covid-19 testing

Peach Aviation is introducing free Covid-19 testing for domestic passengers departing Tokyo and Osaka from February 21 to March 31. Travellers departing from Osaka Kansai and Tokyo Narita airports on the Japanese low-cost carrier will be eligible to redeem a saliva-based PCR test kit. Requests must be made at least ten days before departure and no later than March 21, reported the Mainichi. The PCR test will need to be sent and received by biotech company SS Dnaform at least three days prior to departure. Travellers will then be notified of their results by email, with the option of flight changes or credit if the test comes back positive, according to Peach Aviation’s Japanese website. “We’d like to guarantee that our flights are safe and strive to revitalise regional economies,” a Peach Aviation spokesperson told The Mainichi. The new offering comes as daily Covid-19 cases in the world’s third largest economy fall below one thousand cases for the first time since November, reported the Japan Times. Domestic carriers significantly scaled back flights during the last surge. Earlier, flag carrier Japan Airlines announced it would operate 52 per cent of its normal domestic schedule this month. Meanwhile, All Nippon Airways, the country’s largest airline, said it would fly just 55 per cent of its normal schedule, according to analytics company CAPA Centre for Aviation. flypeach.comTags: ANA, Japan Airlines, Peach https://www.businesstraveller.com/business-travel/2021/02/16/peach-aviation-rolls-out-free-covid-19-testing/

By Thomas Dixon|February 25th, 2021|Uncategorised|Comments Off

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British Airways partners with Dettol

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British Airways partners with Dettol

British Airways has partnered with the creators of hygiene brand Dettol as part of its “ongoing commitment to keep staff and customers safe”. The airline is collaborating with Reckitt Benckiser, the makers of Dettol, to provide a range of its cleaning products to customers from March 2021. The updated cleaning protocols are supported by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. The Dettol products will be used both in the air and on the ground. At Heathrow Terminal 5, for instance, there will be hand sanitiser stations positioned at all check-in desks, self-service bag drop, lounges and departure gates – the current sanitisation stations will be replaced with Dettol products. Additionally, Dettol antibacterial wipes, cleaners and sprays will be used to keep surfaces clean at the airport and in British Airways’ lounges. Passengers will also be given a packet containing an antibacterial wipe as they board the aircraft. The Dettol products are proven to kill 99.9 per cent of bacteria and coronavirus according to The American Journal of Infection Control. Carolina Martinoli, British Airways’ Director of Brand and Customer, said: “As we look forward to welcoming our customers back on board, we are proud to announce our partnership with Dettol, a trusted and well-known disinfection brand. At the start of the pandemic, we introduced a number of protective measures at each step of the customer journey, and we think our partnership with Dettol is a great addition.” Rahul Kadyan Executive Vice President of Global Business Solutions for Reckitt Benckiser (RB) added: “Our collaboration with British Airways is exciting, since we both share the same objective to help protect travellers. This is an ideal partnership for RB, and Dettol, to help drive high standards in hygiene and [...]

By Thomas Dixon|February 17th, 2021|Uncategorised|Comments Off

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Another Covid-19 casualty as Namibia’s national carrier ceases operations

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Another Covid-19 casualty as Namibia’s national carrier ceases operations

Air Namibia has become the latest casualty of the Covid-19 pandemic, with all flights grounded and future bookings suspended. The state-owned flag carrier confirmed the move in a Facebook post, directing affected customers to email refunds@airnamibia.aero or callcentre@airnamibia.aero for more information. Windhoek-based Air Namibia began life as South West Air Transport back in 1946, and in recent years operated a fleet of Airbus A319 and A330s, as well as Embraer ERJ 135ER regional jets. Business Traveller reviewed the carrier’s business class service on the long-since-terminated Gatwick-Windhoek route back in 2007. There are no direct, nonstop flights between the UK and Namibia, and the country is currently on the government’s list of banned destinations aimed at stopping the spread of the South African variant of Covid-19. https://www.businesstraveller.com/business-travel/2021/02/15/namibias-national-carrier-ceases-operations/

By Thomas Dixon|February 15th, 2021|Uncategorised|Comments Off

‘Big three’ Chinese carriers predict 30 billion yuan loss in 2020

Air China, China Eastern, and China Southern predict they will collectively lose more than 30 billion yuan (US$4.65 billion) in 2020. The state-owned carriers, known as China’s ‘big three’, blamed the loss on low market demand and a significant fall in willingness to travel, according to the Global Times. The announcement comes in spite of strong domestic demand across the world’s second largest economy in the second half of 2020. Although slightly hampered by outbreaks towards the end of the year, Chinese domestic travel has for the most part recorded levels not seen since pre-pandemic days. On the other hand, international traffic to China has fallen more than 80 per cent due to strict government controls, reported the Global Times. Flag carrier Air China expects a net loss of 13.5-15.5 billion yuan for 2020, compared to a net profit of 6.41 billion yuan the year before. China Eastern predicts a net loss of 9.8-12.5 billion yuan, compared to a 3.19 billion yuan profit in 2019. Meanwhile, China Southern, the country’s largest carrier, estimates a net loss of 7.91-10.86 billion yuan, compared to 2.65 billion yuan profit in 2019. The three carriers’ fortunes are unlikely to turn anytime soon as local governments impose further domestic restrictions ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays. The period is typically the country’s peak travel season. The state-owned carriers, known as China’s ‘big three’, blamed the loss on low market demand and a significant fall in willingness to travel, according to the Global Times. The announcement comes in spite of strong domestic demand across the world’s second largest economy in the second half of 2020. Although slightly hampered by outbreaks towards the end of the year, Chinese domestic travel has for the most part recorded levels not seen since pre-pandemic [...]

By Thomas Dixon|February 2nd, 2021|Uncategorised|Comments Off

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All regular Passenger services at Air Transat have been suspended until the end of April, this follows the introduction of new arrivals rules by the Canadian government.

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All regular Passenger services at Air Transat have been suspended until the end of April, this follows the introduction of new arrivals rules by the Canadian government.

Air Transat has suspended all regular passenger services until the end of April, following new arrivals rules introduced by the Canadian government. From February 3 all international flights must arrive into Canada through just four airports – Montréal-Trudeau International Airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, Calgary International Airport, and Vancouver International Airport. In addition to this a new hotel quarantine requirement for all travellers arriving into the country is set to come into force “As soon as possible in the coming weeks”. Arriving passengers (with a few limited exceptions) will have to quarantine in government-approved hotels for three nights, at their own cost. In a statement Air Transat said: “We’re receiving a high volume of questions and calls about this announcement and its impact on our operations. We know that it’s causing a great deal of concern among our customers currently at destination or who planned to travel in the coming weeks, and we’d like to assure them that we’re doing everything we can to ensure that this situation beyond our control has the least impact possible on them. That includes making sure that we have a sufficient number of repatriation flights and available seats to return all our customers back home as soon as possible.” The Canadian government has also suspended all flights to and from Mexico and Caribbean countries until April 30, effective from January 31. All passengers arriving into the country must show negative pre-departure Covid-19 test results – a rule that is also being extended to arrivals by land (with limited exemptions for example for commercial truckers). For its part Air Canada has suspended flights to the Caribbean and Mexico “at the request of, and to support Government of Canada Covid-19 mitigation [...]

By Thomas Dixon|February 1st, 2021|Uncategorised|Comments Off

Monthly Archives: February 2021