Issue 4

20 Feb 20
Welcome to issue 4 of The Travel Case. Please see below the latest news bites from the airline world.

For the latest updates on the Coronvirus please click here 

News In Brief
777X first-flight success
The world’s largest twin-engine commercial aircraft, the Boeing 777X, took to the air for the first time on Saturday 25 Jan, for its maiden test flight. Boeing says it expects to deliver the first 777X next year. The aircraft so far has won 340 orders and commitments from carriers including ANA, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Etihad, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines
Big UK expansion for Lufthansa
A “substantial” extension of its UK route network this year by the Lufthansa Group will see the German carrier plus group members Brussels Airlines and Austrian Airlines offering more capacity north and southwest of England to Europe 
New regional expansion for Eastern
New services between Teesside International Airport and Belfast City, Dublin, London City, Cardiff and Southampton beginning in March have been announced in a regional expansion by Eastern Airways.
Air Italy goes out of business 
Indications of a shareholder rift at Air Italy emerged last week as the Qatar Airways-backed carrier said it was suspending operations from 25 February and was entering liquidation.

It comes almost two years after the airline was created as a rebrand of Meridiana and also follows Air Italy securing further investment two months ago from Qatar Airways, which acquired a 49% stake in parent company AQA Holding in September 2017
El Al returns to Stansted
A five-times-a-week service between Stansted and Tel Aviv Ben Gurion International Airport is being launched this summer by El Al Israel Airlines. The carrier last operated scheduled services from Stansted in 2009.
Cape Town rejoins Virgin network
A new, daily seasonal service between Heathrow and Cape Town is being launched by Virgin Atlantic next winter, followed closely by British Airways. Taking off on 25 October, the Virgin flights will be operated by Boeing B787-9 Dreamliner, complementing the existing daily service to Johannesburg.
Newcastle – Munich from Lufthansa
operating since the 3rd February by Lufthansa for its Newcastle – Munich service, one of two new European routes out of the German hub. The second, to Estonian capital Tallinn, was launched in November. Both are served by the Airbus A319. Munich’s other new destination, Tallinn, with flights on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, is also an important business destination as it is considered the economically strongest city in Estonia and is home to the largest banking sector in the Baltic states.
Aeroflot A350s and 777s spearhead three-year expansion
Aeroflot Group is nearing delivery of its first Airbus A350-900, a central part of the Russian operator’s fleet modernisation and international expansion strategy for the next three years.It will receive its first 316-seat Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-powered A350 at the end of this month, gradually using the twinjet type to replace its A330s.

London City bonus from Flybe

Demand from business travellers has spurred Flybe to increase peak-time capacity on flights to London City (LCY) from Edinburgh from 1 December. The enhanced service will use a 98-seat Embraer E190 from partner Stobart Air.

The winter programme runs to 28 March 2020 sees a total of nine routes out of Edinburgh, operating up to 208 flights a week including 24 flights a week to London City.
AND FINALLY: Every cloud…
Proving every cloud does have a silver lining, the recent bad weather has produced some new flying feats, as reported by Aviation Week.

Among them, a BA B747-400 operating BA112 broke the unofficial record for fastest subsonic transatlantic flight with a New York JFK – Heathrow crossing in less than 5hr.
News bites taken from Business Travel News website

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