General News
Below are links to stories of general interest in relation to aviation and airports.
787 grounding likely to be months, and notice given of delay to delivery of planes
Boeing is finally telling some of its customers not to expect the 787s they have ordered to be delivered as scheduled. While for some that is a big problem, for others it a relief that they will not have to take the aircraft just yet. Norwegian Air Shuttle was the first airline to confirm it has been alerted by Boeing. Deliveries of its first two aircraft, previously scheduled for April and June, are affected, and there is no new delivery date. The 787 grounding is likely going to be a matter of several, if not many, months, rather than a short-term issue that can be resolved quickly. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has indicated that it will take weeks to identify the root causes of thermal runaway. Other airlines due to get their 787s in the next few months including BA, TUIfly, China Southern Airlines, Air China and Aeromexico. Boeing had planned to deliver more than 60 aircraft this year and was about to raise the monthly production rate to 10 from 5 by year-end.
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Airbus A350 to avoid Boeing 787-style lithium-ion batteries and revert to tried and tested nickel-cadmium
Europe's Airbus is considering whether to drop lithium-ion batteries and switch back to traditional nickel-cadmium ones on its A350 passenger jet as investigators probe Boeing Dreamliner 787 safety incidents. There is consideration of whether the powerful but delicate backup energy systems are technically "mature", or predictable. Locating the reason for the battery fires is not proving easy, and some believe the technology is not yet mature enough for safe use. The US National Transportation Safety Board has said it does not yet know the cause. of the fire. There is concern that short circuiting in one cell of the battery spread to other cells, which was not meant to happen. The A350 would be the second large passenger jet to fly on lithium-ion batteries for backup electrical power after the Dreamliner. Last week Airbus said it had a plan B for its battery and time to respond to any rule changes, though nickel cadmium batteries are heavier, but only minimally - about the same on the A350 to one adult male passenger out of between 270 and 350 passengers.
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How climate change policy and Government forecasts mean new runways should be out of the question
The Aviation Environment Federation (AEF) has produced a policy briefing arguing that climate change considerations should rule out building any new runways in the UK. The paper shows how the latest official forecasts indicate that both passenger demand and CO2 will exceed the levels deemed compatible with the Climate Act by the Government’s independent climate advisers, the Committee on Climate Change, unless new constraints are imposed on aviation emissions. The growth in air passengers and in aviation carbon emissions exceed the levels required by the Climate Act even in the DfT's so-called "constrained" forecasts, released this January. The constrained forecasts are for future air passenger demand with no new runways being built, with Air Passenger Duty (APD) continuing, and with carbon costs being incorporated into ticket prices though the EU ETS or a comparable global scheme. So even with these constraints, the UK's aviation carbon emissions would be too high. Let alone with more runways.
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ONS figures show UK tourism deficit was £13.8 billion in 2012 (cf. £13.7bn in 2011 and £14.9bn in 2010)
The ONS reports that during 2012, UK residents made an estimated 56.6 million visits abroad, unchanged from 2011. Holiday visits fell 2% while those for business rose 2% and to visit friends or relatives rose 3%. Visits to Europe were broadly the same as 2011 but those to longer haul destinations were down (by 5% to North America and 2% to 'other countries'). UK residents spent £32.6 billion on visits abroad in 2012, an increase of 3% from 2011. By comparison, during 2012, overseas residents made an estimated 31.1 million visits to the UK, which is 1% more than in 2011. Holiday visits by overseas residents remained broadly the same, whereas visits for business and to visit friends or relatives both rose by 2%. Earnings from visits to the UK in 2012 year to date were £18.7 billion, 4% higher than in 2011. So UK residents spent £32.6 billion abroad, cf. £18.7 billion spent by overseas visitors here - giving a tourism deficit of some £13.9 billion for 2012. The deficit was £13.3 in 2011 and £14.9 in 2010.
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Study in Germany found significantly cheaper to make domestic trips by rail, not by air
The German newspaper Die Welt reports on a study which found that within Germany, it was generally much more expensive to fly that to take the train. They compared a number of routes, and found significant savings, with as much saved as 50% or more. The new study was undertaken between May to September and looked at 540 trips, with 270 flights with the corresponding number of rail journeys compared. The ten routes were selected with the highest volume of passengers. It emerged that travellling by rail between Munich and Frankfurt was 42% of the fare compared to the same route by air. On the Frankfurt-Hamburg route the saving was 57%, and between Hamburg and Munich 63.3%. On the route between Cologne/ Bonn-Berlin there were the greatest savings with 77.2%. They conclude that within Germany is makes financial sense to go by rail and not fly.
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Patrick McLoughlin says taxpayer will not pay £30 billion for a new hub airport
Speaking at the Commons Transport Select Committee on 11th February, the Transport Secretary, Patrick McLoughlin said that the estimates for a new hub airport for the UK were up to £80 million. A report by Oxera reported recently that a new 4-runway hub airport could need up to £30bn of public subsidy, mainly to cover road and rail links. Mr McLoughlin called these “very substantial figures” and said “We do not generally subsidise airports . . . I am not looking for ways of spending extra money on something provided by the private sector". Airports in the past have had public subsidies, through road building paid for by the public purse, that benefits the airport. He highlighted how much of the UK’s aviation infrastructure was privately funded. Boris gave evidence, at the same session, promoting his view that there was a need for a new hub, other than Heathrow, and this should be at one of two sites in the Thames Estuary, or at Stansted.
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Boris targets Arab states in bid to raise £80bn for a new airport
Boris Johnson plans to take a week-long tour of the Gulf states in mid-April, to drum up financial backing for his plans for a new international airport. He intends to visit Dubai, Qatar and Kuwait to raise up to £80 billion. He still wants a Thames estuary mega-hub airport, but his senior aides consider expansion of Stansted a more realistic option. Boris says a new hub airport, wherever it is, could be delivered with private finance and operated as a viable commercial business. His £80 million estimate covers the cost of terminals, runways, ancillary facilities and rail and road access. He was inspired by Hyderabad’s “aerotropolis”,30% funded by money from Gulf states. Mr Johnson also announced a team of experts including British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid, designer of the Olympic aquatics centre,to draw up plans for a hub east of London. Other advisers include Pascall+Watson, which designed Heathrow Terminal 5 and the redevelopment of St Pancras station, and Atkins, which worked on the Olympics.
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Head of Qatar Airlines, Al Baker, joins Heathrow board as its 2nd Qatari member
The head of Qatar Airways who has said the prospects for the UK economy would be “catastrophic” without a third runway at Heathrow has joined the board of the airport’s parent company. He joins Ali Bouzarif, who is from the Qatar Investment Authority, taking up the two seats handed to Qatar Holding in return for the 20% stake it bought in the airport conglomerate last October. The two men have been appointed to represent the interest of the sovereign wealth fund and its investment. Their appointment has not yet been announced by Heathrow, and they are not yet listed on its Board members website. Qatar Airlines is part-owned by the Qatari royal family. The appointment of Al Baker has the potential to anger other airlines, particularly rivals from the Middle East, as some may fear he may hold more sway when further slots become available. Qatar owns the Shard, part of Canary Wharf, part of Barclays, the Olympic Village, part of Sainsburys, part of the Stock Exchange, Harrods etc.
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Flybe & Ryanair agree possible deal for new Irish carrier – “Flybe Ireland”
Flybe and Ryanair have agreed a deal which could see the creation of a new carrier under the Flybe Ireland brand, with Ryanair transferring 43 European routes and 9 Airbus A320 aircraft and injecting €100m into the airline. The agreement is part of Ryanair’s package of concessions submitted to the European Commission in its latest attempt to win approval for its takeover bid for Aer Lingus. Ryanair would also transfer “the requisite number of flight crew, aircraft engineers, management and facilities”, to the new Flybe Ireland, and “the required number of slots to operate the 43 routes”. Flybe would purchase the Flybe Ireland brand for €1 million, and Ryanair would inject €100 million of cash into the carrier, as well as the forward sales cash from the 43 routes. Flybe Ireland would retain the right to use the Aer Lingus brand for up to 3 years after the transaction. The European Commission has expressed concerns about the negative consequences for competition if Ireland’s two main airlines are allowed to combine.
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Willie Walsh knows there will be no Heathrow 3rd runway. He is against a Thames hub, or a new runway at Gatwick or Stansted.
Speaking at the Business Travel Show in London, Willie Walsh said the government's strategy to increase airport capacity in the south east would fail. He said the Airports Commission would have little impact, and also that there will not be a third runway at Heathrow. He is planning his future business strategy without one, content to have more slots at Heathrow, so other airlines there cannot get them. He is against a new runway at Gatwick or at Stansted, and says BA would not pay anything towards either. “I am not going to spend one penny on new runways at Stansted or Gatwick.” He is also against a new Thames estuary hub airport. "Building a new hub airport would be “economic suicide” as it would never be able to secure commercial funding and the charges to airlines were likely to be “excessive” to pay for the project." You can see why Simon Burns told the aviation industry to find some agreement among itself, on what it wants. They are truly divided.