Aviation Report

Researchers are proposing a frequent flyer tax to pay for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the airline industry. A new paper from the International Council on Clean Transportation proposed the tax as a way to fund some of the $121 billion that needs to get invested every year to decarbonize flying. "Varying the levy based on flying frequency focuses the tax burden on wealthier frequent flyers and helps ensure that people with lower incomes are not priced out of air travel because of climate policy," the study's authors, Xinyi Sola Zheng and Dan Rutherford, wrote. A sliding fee for flights beginning at $9 for the second flight and $177 for their twentieth in a given year would raise $121 billion -- versus a flat tax of $25 per ticket for all flights. For the study's authors, the tax is a way to avoid penalizing people in lower income brackets and shifting the load to the wealthiest 10 percent of the world's population. Not only would the revenues come from wea...

  The safety pilot has his hands off the controls during an Xwing demonstration flight. Image Credits: Xwing Xwing has scored another win two months after it completed its first gate-to-gate autonomous demonstration flight of a commercial cargo aircraft. The company said Thursday it has raised $40 million at a post-money valuation of $400 million. The company is setting its sights on expansion — not only tripling its engineering team, but eventually running regular fully unmanned commercial cargo flights. Xwing has been developing a technology stack to convert aircraft, including a widely used Cessna Grand Caravan 208B, to function autonomously. But it’s had to solve a few problems first: “the perception problem, the planning problem and the control problem,” Xwing founder Marc Piette explained to TechCrunch. The company has come up with a whole suite of solutions to solve for these problems, including integrating lidar, radar and cameras on the plane; retrofitting the servomotors ...

France moved one step closer this weekend to banning short-haul flights in an attempt to fight the climate crisis . A bill prohibiting regional flights that could be replaced with an existing train journey of less than two and a half hours passed the country's National Assembly late on Saturday, as Reuters reported . "We know that aviation is a contributor of carbon dioxide and that because of climate change we must reduce emissions," Industry Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher told Europe 1 radio, according to Reuters. The measure now has to pass the French Senate, then return to the lower house for a final vote. It would end regional flights between Paris's Orly airport and cities like Nantes and Bordeaux, The Guardian explained . It would not, however, impact connecting flights through Paris's Charles de Gaulle/Roissy airport. The bill is part of a legislative package which aims to reduce France's emissions by 40 percent of 1990 levels by 2030, Reuters report...

Image Credits: Thomas Jackson / Getty Images The energy giant Shell has joined a slew of strategic investors — including All Nippon Airways, Suncor Energy, Mitsui and British Airways — in funding LanzaJet, the company commercializing a process to convert alcohol into jet fuel. A spin-off from LanzaTech , one of the last surviving climate tech startups from the first cleantech boom that’s still privately held, LanzaJet is taking a phased investment approach with its corporate backers, enabling them to invest additional capital as the company scales to larger production facilities. Terms of the initial investment, or LanzaJet’s valuation after the commitment, were not disclosed. LanzaJet claims that it can help the aviation industry reach net-zero emissions, something that would go a long way toward helping the world meet the emissions reductions targets set in the Paris Agreement . “LanzaJet’s technology opens up a new and exciting pathway to produce SAF using an AtJ process and will he...

ZeroAvia , the company that’s on a mission to move the world to zero-emission, hydrogen-fueled flight, has just received some corporate jet fuel in the form of a new $21.4 million cash infusion. The investment came from the Bill Gates-backed Breakthrough Energy Ventures and the Ecosystem Integrity Fund , which led the company’s latest round, alongside previous investors Amazon Climate Pledge Fund, Horizons Ventures , Shell Ventures and Summa Equity . Aviation is a huge contributor to the carbon emissions that cause global warming, and the industry, along with shipping, will be one of the hardest to decarbonize. Electrification technologies have yet to account for ways to propel aircraft or move massive seafaring vessels, and a consensus is emerging among technologists that hydrogen will be the best solution to ensure zero-emissions flight can become a reality. “I’m a big believer in hydrogen from the perspective that if I have enough zero carbon hydrogen, and it’s cheap enough, then ...

Singapore Airlines is said to be considering a new route next month — what media reports are calling a "flight to nowhere." Flights that take off and land from the same place — in this case, Singapore Changi Airport — may start as early as next month, according to a report in the local Straits Times and elsewhere. Singapore Airlines has not confirmed the flights and told CNBC that "none of these plans have been firmed up." But if it does debut destination-free flying, it will not be the only carrier in Asia that's doing it. No official announcement Such flights could be seen as a way to help the embattled national carrier of Singapore cope during a year of record losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, reports claim, while also allowing residents of the small nation a chance to leave the island — if only for a few hours. Singapore Airlines, which is routinely ranked among the world's best, has been hit hard by the global pandemic, since it does not operate...

Being able to lie completely flat on a plane is the travelling dream, but until now it is reserved for those able to fly business class. But a new design by a start-up company has created a double-decker style cabin featuring two tiers of seats, which would mean every passenger could have a lie-flat seat. Zephyr Aerospace initially came up with the plans to give passengers more space, but the concept would also allow travellers more isolation, which could give travellers more confidence in flying following the coronavirus crisis. The design means standard plane cabins could accommodate two levels of passengers using the same amount space meaning holidaymakers wouldn’t have to sit shoulder-to-shoulder with other passengers. Photographs of the bunk bed-style plans reveal that passengers could sit above and below each other in rows, accessing the top level by pulling out a cleverly concealed staircase. The seats would be built in rows of 2-4-2 across the cabin, so airlines wouldn’t ha...

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To airlines, passengers and the aviation community: We know lives depend on the work we do, and our teams embrace that responsibility with a deep sense of commitment every day. Our purpose at Boeing is to bring family, friends and loved ones together with our commercial airplanes—safely. The tragic losses of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 and Lion Air Flight 610 affect us all, uniting people and nations in shared grief for all those in mourning. Our hearts are heavy, and we continue to extend our deepest sympathies to the loved ones of the passengers and crew on board. Safety is at the core of who we are at Boeing, and ensuring safe and reliable travel on our airplanes is an enduring value and our absolute commitment to everyone. This overarching focus on safety spans and binds together our entire global aerospace industry and communities. We’re united with our airline customers, international regulators and government authorities in our efforts to support the most recent investigation,...

The Dutch cabinet is planning to introduce a €7 tax charge on all air tickets. Ministers had earlier considered introducing a €3.80 tax charge on European flights and €22 for intercontinental flights but that plan has been dismissed for being too complicated, RTL said on Friday. Tax minister Menno Snel said earlier he considered it odd that flying is tax free, considering train, car and bus travel are taxed. The government hopes the introduction of a tax on flying will encourage people to use more environmentally friendly alternatives. The proposal has now been sent to the Council of State for its recommendations and if all goes according to plan, the tax will be introduced in 2021. Europe-wide Ministers would prefer the introduction of a Europe-wide tax on flying and if that becomes a reality, the Dutch tax plan will be dropped. The Netherlands first introduced a tax on flying in July 2008 but the airline industry soon said it had encouraged Dutch passengers to use cheaper ...

I am writing today to talk with you about Saver fares, which is a new product Alaska Airlines recently launched. Many of you have written or called us asking for a better understanding of the rationale behind this decision, and I'd like to provide some context for why we launched a new fare class with fewer benefits than other Alaska Airlines products. Saver fares are designed for a specific type of traveler - one who prioritizes price above all else, and not the elite Mileage Plan™ benefits you've come to know and love. Saver fares offer cost-conscious guests the absolute lowest fare possible. The trade-off is that these tickets are not refundable, not changeable, and not eligible for front-of-cabin seat selections or complimentary upgrades - even as an elite member. We resisted launching Saver fares, but in recent years the offering of Basic Economy fares by other airlines have become popular among cost-conscious flyers and we started to lose business to the com...

Boom Supersonic has raised $100 million from an array of Silicon Valley investors to help it build a supersonic airliner. It’s a large amount of money by tech industry standards but only a small step in aerospace down a road that will require billions of dollars more to realize Boom’s vision. The Series B round brings Boom’s total funding to $141 million. The round was led by Laurene Powell Jobs’ Emerson Collective and includes the Y Combinator Continuity Fund, Caffeinated Capital and SV Angel, as well as unnamed founders and early backers of Google, Airbnb, Stripe and Dropbox. Boom is one of three upstart companies seeking to reboot supersonic flight for civilians. Aerion and Spike are developing business jets while Boom is aiming larger: a 55-seat, three-engine commercial plane. Essentially its plan is to slice off airlines’ business class cabins and deliver that lucrative clientele to their destinations at Mach 2.2—and at identical or lower airfares. Boom is naming the plan...

Sea-Tac Airport, it’s not just for travelers anymore. On Friday, the Port of Seattle launched a program allowing visitors past security, even if they aren’t booked on a flight, to greet loved ones at their gate or to see them off. The visitors — up to 50 each day — can also dine at one of the airport’s restaurants or shop in the so-called air-side area of its terminal. The “SEA Visitor Pass” program  allows those without tickets to reach the domestic-travel gates provided they meet Transportation Security Administration (TSA) requirements, according to the Port of Seattle. Sea-Tac is one of the first airports in the nation to reintroduce the practice since it was suspended in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.  The program gives visitors access to passenger-only areas that lie beyond the security checkpoints run by the federal government. “For me it is nostalgic,” Lance Lyttle, managing director at Sea-Tac,   said by phone. “As a child I used to go to the a...

OCTOBER 11TH marks a new milestone in international aviation. Or rather, the return of an old one. Singapore Airlines has relaunched the world’s longest commercial-airline route, a flight between Singapore and Newark International Airport, which is just outside New York. The 10,400-mile flight will take about 18 hours and 45 minutes, eclipsing by nearly an hour the current longest flight, between Auckland and Doha on Qatar Airways. Singapore ran flights to and from Newark until 2013, when it scrapped the route amid rising oil prices that cut into profitability. These days, oil prices are nearly as high as they were then, and yet ultra-long-haul flights seem to be making a comeback. The Auckland-Doha route kicked off last year. In March, Qantas launched a non-stop service between Britain and Australia, currently the world’s second-longest route at 17 hours. In November, Singapore Airlines plans to begin a non-stop flight from Singapore to Los Angeles, with the Singapore-bound flight...

TWO decades ago, David Neeleman founded JetBlue Airways, promising to “bring humanity back to air travel.” It has since grown to become one of America’s largest airlines. But stories of poor service and a lack of humanity still abound in the country’s aviation industry. And so it appears that Mr Neeleman is back and preparing to launch a new airline. Airline Weekly, a magazine, reports that Mr Neeleman, with $100m in financial backing, plans to create a new carrier called Moxy. The airline will aim to fill a niche in the American market by offering low-cost direct services between smaller airports, while providing more comfort and perks than the country’s no-frills budget airlines. In some ways, it is an ideal time to enter the market. As Airline Weekly points out, every major  American airline is currently profitable. The industry has not lost money in more than a decade. The Moxy team noted in a presentation seen by Airline Weekly that the American economy grew by more tha...

EasyJet Plc is working with a U.S. engineering startup to develop a fully electric commercial plane within a decade, the low-cost British airline said Wednesday. Founded last year by a team of engineers and battery chemists, U.S.-based Wright Electric is setting its sights on designing an aircraft that can fly 335 miles. That would cover 20 percent of the passengers EasyJet flies today, the airline said in a statement. Since demonstrating that the technology works in a two-seater plane, Wright has worked with EasyJet this year to scale up to commercial proportions. Battery-powered planes offer a way to reduce fuel costs, typically among the biggest expense for airlines and proportionally more so for short-distance carriers like EasyJet. Being first to market with an electric aircraft potentially gives the Luton, England-based carrier a leg up against rivals such as Ireland’s Ryanair Holdings Plc in an ultracompetitive market. EasyJet’s average flight time is under two hours, s...

Social business leader KLM, the airline that kickstarted the modern customer-support-via-social-media revolution, has 150 people dedicated to serving clients via social. And each of them represents almost $170,000 in annual revenue. Perhaps social’s not a money sink anymore. klm“Social is more and more becoming a profit center,” KLM’s social media manager Gert-Wim ter Haar told me today in Prague. “It’s first about service, then brand and reputation, but also about commerce … we have to make money.” In addition to finding lost items, soothing bruised egos, and solving customer service issues, KLM social agents now can almost entirely manage new client bookings via Twitter, Facebook, or other social media. They’ll get desired flight details, timing, provide information on pricing, and, if the client is agreeable, provide a direct link to a payment page. As soon as the credit card is processed, the KLM agents are notified and tell the client that their ticket is booked. This...

When airlines need to cancel flights because of weather or other problems, they’ll sometimes delete flights carrying leisure passengers, who tend to pay lower fares than business travelers and are more likely to accept a rebooking rather than demand a refund, says the Wall Street Journal. Just 20% of leisure passengers get refunds, compared with 30% of business travelers. Airlines try hard to avoid cancellations, in part because of the cost of refunds and wasted food but also because if seats are given to rebooked passengers, they can’t be sold to last-minute, full-fare business passengers.

If you think that you've been seeing some funny-looking airliners in the past couple of months, you're not imagining things. On February 18th, a United Airlines Boeing 737-800 made the world's first commercial flight by an aircraft equipped with fuel-saving Split Scimitar Winglets. Regular blended winglets are now quite common on commercial aircraft, as they improve aerodynamics and thus reduce fuel consumption. Made by Aviation Partners Boeing, the Split Scimitar Winglets reportedly do an even better job – when retrofitted onto United's existing Next Generation 737 Blended Winglets, they should reduce fuel consumption by two percent per aircraft. The airline plans to add the new winglets to its entire fleet of 737, 757 and 767 airliners. By doing so, it estimates that it will save "more than 65 million gallons [246,051,780 liters] of fuel a year, equivalent to more than 645,000 metric tons [710,991 tons] of carbon dioxide and $200 million per year in jet...

GULLIVER will soon fly from Heathrow to Milan on a British Airways Airbus A319. That flight has a one-in-4.8m chance of crashing. Shortly after he is jetting from Heathrow to JFK on a Virgin-operated A330. Chance of crashing? One in 5.4m. That means that he could apparently expect to fly on the route for 14,716 years before plummeting into the Atlantic. These figures come courtesy of “Am I Going Down?”, a recently released iPhone app that claims to calculate the odds of a disaster on a particular flight. Users input three variables: the departure and arrival airports, the airline, and the type of plane used. The app's maker hasn't responded to requests to give a little more detail of its methodology, but one presumes that it is a simple weighting of the proportion of crashes associated with each of those variables in the past. There are, of course, countless holes in such a simplistic approach. How does one decide the relative importance of the make of plane, airline or...