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Summaries of, and links to, the latest aviation news stories appear below. News is archived into topics
For a daily compilation of UK articles on national and regional transport issues, see Transportinfo.org.uk | For more stories about specific airports see Aviation Environment Federation Transport & Environment Anna Aero TravelMole Press releases from CAA IATA BA Ryanair easyJet Jet2.com For climate change ECEEE news and Guardian Climate and NoAA monthly analysisCheck Hansard for reports on Parliament |
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Latest news stories:
Lobbying going on for Birmingham Airport ahead of 2012 aviation policy consultation
Birmingham Chamber of Commerce have "demanded" that Birmingham Airport is made a priority when the policy is announced, and they want policy to let Birmingham to take pressure off Heathrow. Birmingham C of C and the airport are already starting to build up pressure and the PR for the airport to influence government thinking before the next aviation policy consultation in 2012. There will be much more of this sort of thing in coming months ....
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Biggin Hill Airport withdraws plans for scheduled passenger services
The airport has backed down from plans to operate a mainline scheduled passenger service from the site. The managing director said the plans were abandoned because airlines usually want to operate from where they already have a base. Biggin Hill would continue to concentrate on the executive air travel business. They want air taxi services which would be very small aircraft allowing passengers to pay for their seats, rather than the whole aircraft.
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Do air cargo carriers need new thinking? IFW article
Air freight companies say air cargo carries less than 5% of worldwide goods shipments, (by tonnage?) but about 35% of the world's goods' value. Also that the value per kg of goods shipped by air has been increasing year on year for the past 10 to 12 years. Yet they have very small profit margins. This IFW article goes into how airlines could get more money and increase their profitability by cutting the profits of the freight forwarders.
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Belfast residents celebrate legal victory over City Airport planning agreement
Local residents affected by aircraft noise are celebrating a landmark legal victory in their campaign for tougher noise controls at the airport. A High Court judge quashed a decision by the previous Environment Minister in Dec 2010 to remove a clause in the airport’s planning agreement which effectively limited the number of passengers who could fly from the airport. Now the Department will have to reinstate the seats for sale limit - 2 million per year
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SSE RESPONDS TO GOVERNMENT’S AVIATION POLICY CONSULTATION
SSE has submitted its 40 page, detailed response to the Scoping Document consultation. It has five key areas, including the need to prioritise air travel so that it is focused on meeting the needs of UK business rather than catering predominantly for the UK leisure market. And the need for an independent environmental watchdog to monitor the impacts of airports rather than having to rely upon information provided by the airport owner.
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Director of transport policy at BP sceptical about aviation biofuels
The air transport industry may be deluding itself if it believes biofuels are the panacea for carbon footprint reduction. High fuel costs as well as competing demand make it unlikely that biojet will deliver the promised CO2 reductions within a desired timeframe. It is unclear even how the targets for road transport biodiesel will be met. Many biofuels have a carbon footprint not much better than fossil fuels, even without indirect land use impact.
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GACC finds Gatwick Master Plan contains serious misrepresentations and is deeply flawed
The GACC committee finds the master plan contains several serious misrepresentations. It conceals the increase in noise that will occur from a rise in number of flights by 60%. It says the aviation industry contributes £53 billion to UK's economy per year, while the DfT gave the figure of £9 billion. They have committed the elementary economic error of using gross turnover rather than net output. It omits mention of jobs exported due to outward-bound tourism and makes over optimistic jobs claims.
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Dan Glass – the “super-glue airport expansion fighter” – goes down well in Toronto
Dan Glass — the UK climate activist who super-glued himself to Gordon Brown — has been catapulted into the Canadian spotlight after being barred from speaking in the US by the FBI. Dan, with many others, was central to the successful campaign to halt a Heathrow 3rd runway. Dan spoke to a receptive gathering of anti-airport activists in Toronto, who are fighting the long-proposed Pickering airport, sharing details of strategies that worked so well.
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Ryanair plans huge growth in European passenger numbers with 300 new planes
Financial Times article
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Hacan Clearskies says membership has risen ahead of controversial trials at Heathrow
HACAN has seen a sharp surge in the number of residents wanting to join after BAA revealed plans for it to use both runways simultaneously if planes are running just 10 minutes late. The 4 month trial starts on November 1st and a second next summer from July 1st. Hacan and the Richmond Heathrow Campaign descended on stations during rush hour on October 18th, handing out leaflets to commuters across the borough. People are urged to complain if concerned.
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Thames Estuary and Marshes SPA – one of the top 5 UK sites for wintering or migrating birds
The salt marshes on the Peninsula are part of the Thames Estuary and Marshes Special Protection Area, designated for its internationally important populations of wintering birds. The site regularly supports some 33,000 wintering waterfowl, of which avocets and ringed plovers occur in internationally important numbers. In summer, there are important breeding populations of avocets, marsh harriers, Mediterranean gulls and little terns.
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Global warming ‘confirmed’ by independent Berkeley Earth Project study
A new analysis by a US scientific group, the Berkeley Earth Project part funded by climate sceptics, has concluded the earth really is warming, and it is not bad data giving wrong figures. They found the same land warming trend seen by groups such as the UK Met Office and Nasa. "Climategate" in 2009 involved claims global warming had been exaggerated. This study was done to overcome fears climate researchers had not been entirely open with their temperature data.
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Frankfurt airport temporary ban on night flights between 11pm and 5am
A court in Germany has ruled that Frankfurt airport cannot have any night flights, after 30th October, between 11pm and 5am. The total ban will stay in effect until the German Federal Administrative High Court in Leipzig can weigh in on the decision. Lufthansa Cargo says the ban will kill off its business, which has 11 of the total 17 night slots, and uses 8 - 10 of them. They want 23 night movements by 2020. A new Frankfurt runway is due to open on 21st October.
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Will the High Speed 2 rail line reduce emissions? Comments to AskLeo&Lucy
Leo & Lucy, writing in the Guardian, are doing a bit of "crowd sourcing" to get lots of view on views and evidence on whether High Speed 2 would cut UK carbon emissions, or cut UK domestic fligths, or not.
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Heathrow now has 12 airside bedrooms so transit passengers can sleep comfortably
Now passengers at Heathrow can enjoy their hours in transit in comfort under a duvet and away from the crowds in a soundproof cabin - complete with bed, shower, television and even a mini-bar. The rooms, which also have free wi-fi, are the first airside bedrooms in Britain. Airports like Schiphol have airside hotels available to passengers. But nothing before at Heathrow despite about three million transfer passengers passing through Terminal 3 alone every year.
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BAA opts to sell Edinburgh airport for £500m and keep Glasgow
BAA is putting Edinburgh Airport up for sale with an estimated price tag of about £500m. They chose Edinburgh instead of Glasgow, as it would fetch a higher price, is performing better and would be easier to sell. Bidders include GIP (owns Gatwick), Manchester Airports Group, Borealis Infrastructure, and Macquarie. BAA is now starting sale preparations and expects to formally approach the market in the New Year in order to agreeing a sale by Summer 2012.
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Aviation industry turn on Greening over her opposition to 3rd runway – by John Stewart
The aviation industry is furious over the appointment of Justine Greening as the new transport secretary, and immediately swung its publicity machine into action, saying she is "compromised". That’s what not agreeing with BA is called? The industry is making a lot of her perceived conflict of interest of representing a constituency under the flight path. They don't like having a transport secretary who doesn’t share their view on a key aspect of aviation policy.
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New minister – Justine Greening – compromised over Heathrow expansion, says Willie Walsh
The Telegraph reports Willie Walsh taking the first possible opportunity - predictably - to complain about the appointment of Justine Greening, saying it is a "scandal" and she will not maintain a neutral position on aviation. He will write - together with the CEOs of the Airport Operators Assn and of ABTA - to her asking for APD to be scrapped. Their letter will also call on the Government to launch a study on the value of Heathrow as a hub airport.
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Air France Says Come Fry With Me to Paris in Jet Fueled by Old Cooking Oil
Air France has flown an Airbus A321 passenger aircraft from Toulouse to Paris Orly airport (354 miles) with a fuel mix comprising 50% used cooking oil in both engines. They claim this was the "greenest" ever, due to the low carbon fuel, and due to helpful air traffic control and continuous descent approach (CDA) the plane flew the shortest available route. All this may have cut CO2 emissions to 54 grams per passenger per kilometre, about half the usual level.
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Justine Greening Named As Transport Secretary
Putney MP Justine Greening has been announced as new transport secretary, after Philip Hammond stepped in to fill the void at the Ministry of Defence following Liam Fox's resignation. Greening was elected to Parliament in 2005 and was made economic secretary at the Treasury following the 2010 general election. Greening was a vocal opponent of Labour's plans to build a 3rd runway at Heathrow. Many of her constituents live under the Heathrow flight path.
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Ryanair plans to scrap toilets to make room for more passengers on flights
Ryanair officials want to remove 2 or 3 toilets on each of the budget airline's planes to make room for up to 6 extra seats and cut costs. They are proposing only one lavatory on its aircraft in order to reduce a typical £40 budget ticket by about £2. Under the plans announced yesterday, up to 200 passengers and six crew would be forced to share toilets, which would inevitably lead to long queues or even embarrassing accidents. Some flights are up to 4 hours +
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The Soundscape Project for children around Heathrow to experience peace and quiet
The Soundscape Project has been set up by Julia Welchman, after years of campaigning and researching the impact of high noise levels on young children's education. The project aims to give children the chance to experience time in quiet environments, with the chance to hear each other well, and listen to the quiet sounds of nature, like grasshoppers, wind in the branches, and falling leaves - which they cannot experience in their noisy, overflown playgrounds.
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Gatwick master plan consultation launched, with runway in prospect after 2020
The new Gatwick master plan, published today, contains plans for a possible new runway some time after 2020. “If that were ever to become a serious threat it would be fought tooth and nail by GACC, with support from hundreds of thousands of people throughout Surrey, Sussex and Kent, said Brendon Sewill, GACC chairman. “But we believe it will never happen. It is Government policy that no new runways should be built in the South East. The official forecasts show that the London airports will not be full until 2030, and it would make no commercial or environmental sense to build a new runway while there is still unused capacity. If oil prices rise the date may well be much later."
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BAA airports passengers up 1% in September compared to last year. Heathrow up 1.4%
September Heathrow pax up 1.4%. Stansted down 4%. Edinburgh up 3%. Glasgow up 3.2%. Domestic pax down -7.2%. Over the past 12 months, Oct 2010 to Sept 2011 total BAA pax up 3.3%. Heathrow pax up 4.8%. Stansted down - 3.2%. Edinburgh up 6.1%. Glasgow up 2.5%. Air transport movements this September were unchanged in September, giving a slightly higher average load factor. Over the past 12 months, ATMs rose 1.9% compared to the 3.3% rise in passengers.
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Jeff Gazzard on “Are biofuel flights good news for the environment?”
Jeff Gazzard, from the Aviation Environment Federation, commenting on the Guardian's page entitled "Are biofuel flights good news for the environment?" sets out just how misguided and unrealistic the aviation industry's claims on biofuels are. The entire aviation industry would require at least 2,810 million barrels by 2030 at current growth rates. At 42 gallons per barrel that's roughly 118,000 million gallons. Biofuels cannot acheive this.
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Virgin plans for new aviation fuel made from waste gas from steel production
Virgin Atlantic is to develop a low carbon aviation fuel, which it hope will have half the carbon footprint of the standard fossil fuel alternative. It is developing the fuel with LanzaTech and claims it is a breakthrough. The fuel will use waste gases from industrial steel production which will be captured, and chemically converted (Fischer Tropsch) using Swedish Biofuels technology for use as a jet fuel. The gas otherwise would be burnt/vented to produce CO2.
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Has Green Become the New Red in America? – by John Stewart
John was denied entrance into the USA on 29th September, after arrival at New York JFK airport, and six hours of questionning by the FBI, the American Secret Service and immigration officials. He asks "Just why are the authorities so keen to silence environmentalists?" The Bush Administration promoted the practice of excluding people from the US because of their beliefs: ideological exclusion. Has green become the new red, with environmentalists targetted?
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Without a new airport, British businesses will be left behind – says Boris
Boris writes in the Telegraph that "We cannot go on as we are, with Heathrow as the UK's major hub airport. The place is bursting at the seams." "China's biggest airline, China Southern, does not serve the UK because there aren't enough slots at Heathrow". "Every week, there are 17,500 seats on planes bound for mainland China from Frankfurt; 15,000 on planes from Paris; 11,000 from Amsterdam and only 9,000 from Heathrow." And he now supports "Heathwick".
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Willie Walsh attacks ‘Heathwick’ plan – high speed rail linking Heathrow and Gatwick
The head of IAG has dismissed plans for a new super-airport covering Heathrow and Gatwick as lacking credibility. The DfT has revealed that they are looking at plans to create a linked hub, bringing Heathrow & Gatwick together. The airport's Whitehall code name is Heathwick. Walsh says this would be difficult to deliver and more expensive than a 3rd runway at Heathrow. As part of an aviation review, the DfT is also considering joining Northolt with Heathrow.
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The only way to fry? First commercial British flight fuelled by used chip fat is met by naked protesters
In response to the Thomson biofuel flight, using 50% used cooking oil in one engine, three Plane Stupid activists staged a naked protest - showing that biofuels are not green, and the Thomson PR exercise is bare faced cheek. Thomson intends, after a 6 week gap, to have many more biofuel flights in 2012. They hope to use used cooking oil, but the airline may have to use other fuels, as it is not likely to get enough of the oil - which is already much in demand.
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Barred from America – John Stewart on US refusal to allow him to visit America
John Stewart, Chair of AirportWatch and of HACAN, was denied entry to the USA on 29th September, though no reason was given and he qualified for entry under the US visa waiver scheme. John questions how a a mysterious call was made by some person or some organisation which had access to the flight's passenger list, alleging that he had made threats to the President; a call that ensured that he would be subject to detailed questioning at JFK.
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BAA ordered to sell Glasgow or Edinburgh airport before selling Stansted
BAA has been told by the Competition Commission that it must sell either Edinburgh or Glasgow before it sells Stansted. Earlier this year it had said BAA should sell Stansted first, but BAA appealed which has caused delay. So now the sale of one of the Scottish airports must be brought forward, and will begin soon, as it will take longer for Stansted to be sorted out. BAA says it is now clearer than ever "that Heathrow & Stansted serve different markets."
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Heathrow and Gatwick airports: Ministers mull rail link to form a single hub from the two combined
The DfT confirmed ministers will be studying the idea of a 180 mph rail link between Heathrow & Gatwick, while government reviews its aviation policy. BAA is opposed, saying it faced "seemingly insurmountable technical, operational, political financial challenges, and would take many years to deliver". The aim would be to improve connectivity between the two, so both Heathrow could focus on profitable long haul, and low budget carriers would choose cheaper Stansted. BAA, British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair are opposed. Gatwick in favour.
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Official opening for new 124 metre extension of Aberdeen Airport runway
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Camelina derived oil contributes to Spain’s first commercial biofuel flight carried out by Iberia
An Iberia Airbus A320 has flown its first commercial flight, using a blended jet biofuel from camelina, from Madrid to Barcelona. It burned around 2,800kg of a mixture of 75% Jet A-1 fuel and 25% camelina in both engines. The camelina was grown in the US and supplied and processed by a variety of US companies. This is part of Spain’s pioneering ‘Green Flight’ programme to advance the use of biofuels in aviation. Iberia claims the fuel cut CO2 emissions by 20%.
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UK first as Thomson Airways’ three-year biofuel commercial flight programme finally takes off
A Thomson Airways Boeing 757-200 made the UK’s first commercial flight using biofuel. Using a 50/50 blend of used cooking oil and conventional jet kerosene in one engine, it flew from Birmingham to the Canary Islands. Thomson claims it has pledged to use feedstocks that do,'t compete with food or natural resources and have significantly lower total lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions than conventional fossil jet fuel.(But not quite how they will achieve this feat).
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Residents around Luton fear airport development plans will increase noise
Luton Borough Council, the main shareholder of London Luton Airport , is considering the airport’s future. At an Executive meeting, it said it wants to increase the annual passengers to 18 million - almost double the current number, with a view to increasing up to 30 million passengers a year in due course. This would cause more road congestion and more noise across flight paths in the area, including Stevenage, Hitchin and Baldock.
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European Court’s Preliminary Opinion Supports Legality of EU Law That Curbs Aviation Pollution
A transatlantic coalition of environmental groups applauded today’s European Court of Justice’s Advocate General’s preliminary opinion, which supports Europe’s right to tackle carbon emissions from airlines that use its airports. The coalition said the preliminary opinion was very encouraging. The Court is expected to hand down its final opinion in early 2012. The opinion says that airlines excluded from the ETS would have an unjustfied competitive advantage.
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European Court of Justice rules that EU ETS is legal and does not infringe sovereignty
The European Court of Justice has ruled that the EU ETS is compatible with international law. The ETS does not infringe the sovereignty of other States and is compatible with the relevant international agreements. The ATA, some US airlines, supported by IATA and many others brought a case before a UK court, which had in turn asked the EU court whether this extension of the ETS is valid in light of a number of international agreements.The opinion is not binding.
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Green campaigners condemn Thomson Airways’ biofuels flight
The UK's first commercial flight to be powered by biofuels headed off to the Canary Islands and a storm of controversy. The flight from Birmingham had one engine running on a mixture of 50% standard fuel and 50% biofuel made from waste cooking oil. Environmental campaigners said the pilot project was a gimmick that would end up harming the environment. FoE said biofuels won't make flying any greener, but their production is wrecking rainforests, pushing up food prices and causing yet more climate-changing emissions.
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Thomson Airways’ test biofuels flight from Birmingham to Lanzarote is a hollow PR stunt
Thomson Airways’ test biofuels flight from Birmingham to Lanzarote is a hollow PR stunt that paves the way for rainforest destruction. Thomson today launches the 1st UK commercial flight run on biofuels. The biofuels Thomson will now use include virgin plant oil from the US and babassu nuts from Brazil. Both are in short supply so Thomson is likely to use unsustainable alternatives. Their publicity aims to persuade the travelling public and government, erroneously, that these biofuel flights produce less CO2 and are "greener" than usual.
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Boris Johnson rows back from his £40bn Estuary airport
Boris says he is no longer committed to an estuary airport & hinted that new high-speed rail links could be the answer. He now concedes there may be alternative ideas to "Boris island" but it is "extremely superficially attractive." And "More and more freight is now coming by air. If London is going to remain competitive we have to think about air capacity." He blamed "nimby activists" for problems securing a location for airport expansion.
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Non EU countries and airlines continue to warn of retaliatory action against EU ETS
IATA says there is a risk that countries outside the EU could take retaliatory action against the EU's ETS. On 6th October an advocate general to the European Court of Justice will issue an opinion on a request by US airlines for non-European carriers to be excluded from the ETS. This should give a steer on the subsequent ruling by the ECJ, which the EC is confident will side with the EU rather than the US airlines. They want a scheme run through ICAO.
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IATA global passenger data for August show ‘Air traffic demand slowing up’
IATA figures show the rise in global air passenger demand is slowing down. Demand grew in August by 4.5% compared to Aug 2010. This is down 1.6% compared to the rise in July. Compared to July, August showed a total passenger drop of 1.6%, including a 1.8% fall in interntional markets. Passenger capacity dropped by 1.3%. European airlines showed the highest growth in August, up 7.9% compared to Aug 2010, an 8.2% increase in capacity and 83.9% load factor.
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Birmingham Airport Urges Government to Rethink APD
BIRMINGHAM Airport and other regional airports and airlines have joined forces to urge the Chancellor of the Exchequer to abandon the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to APD following its decision to reduce taxation on long haul flights from airports in Northern Ireland. In a joint letter sent to Mr Osborne, they welcomed the Chancellor’s decision and said it trusted this would pave the way for reductions on services from all the UK regions outside of London.
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Heathrow runway trial will relax noise limits and cause more noise for many
People living under Heathrow flight paths face increased noise after the introduction of new runway rules. BAA is to trial a scheme allowing the use of both runways simultaneously from July to Sept 2012. Currently, those living under the flight path have a respite from noise when the runways alternate at 3pm. Under the trial, which will also run from November to February, the threshold for triggering emergency dual use of the runways will be lowered. Residents could face increased noise from losing some of their respite periods.
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Manston airport dragging its heels over its night flight plans
Manston airport continues to want night flights, to keep it in business. It makes out that without being allowed more, the airport would not be able to deliver on its (fairytale) Master Plan. In Oct 2010 Ramsgate Town Council held its own mini-consultation and rejected night flights, and in Nov 2010 a report from consultancy Bureau Veritas on the airport's proposals concluded the costs outweigh the benefits. Still no news from the airport on night flying plans.
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John Stewart, UK’s “most effective environmentalist” barred from entering US
Environmentalists from across the US and Europe are surprised and outraged that John Stewart, voted the UK’s most effective environmentalist, was questionned for 6 hours and barred from entering the US. John was invited to the US by a coalition of environmental organisations for a one month speaking tour, but was turned back at JFK airport. John, who does not have a criminal record and meets the requirements for the US Visa Waiver program, had his visa waiver rescinded mid-flight. The tour will go ahead, but using videoconferencing so John and Dan Glass can speak at the meetings as planned.
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Brussels slammed for bad science on biofuels
Environmental NGOs have written to the EC President, José Manuel Barroso, demanding action on 5 scientific studies that question the energy benefits of biofuels, as a row over a land use report by the EU's scientific advisors escalates. The best avialable science was dismissed by the EU. The 5 world-class studies for the EU all agree the Indirect Land Use Change effects of biofuels "could not only negate the expected carbon savings, but even lead to an increase in emissions."
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US Air Force to buy 11,000 gallons of alcohol-to-jet fuel from GEVO
A US company called GEVO in Silsbee, Texas, is converting alcohol (made from wheat) to isobutanol, and then converting this into alcohol-to-jet (ATJ) fuel. It will provide the USAF with up to 11,000 gallons of 'alcohol-to-jet' (ATJ) fuel, which will be used to support engine testing and a feasibility flight demonstration using an A-10 aircraft. Gevo then hopes to become "a supplier of homegrown and renewable jet fuel to our armed services."
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Belfast City residents welcome concession of airport court case but are cautious about inquiry move
Residents have reacted cautiously to news that the Environment Minister is considering modifying the noise regulations governing the operation of the airport. He has announced an inquiry which will investigate how the current planning agreement between the Department and the airport can be altered. The Department is dropping its defence in a legal battle with Belfast City Airport Watch over the planning agreement. Over 11,000 people are affected by aircraft noise.
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BRITISH AIRWAYS TO GET BIGGEST CO2 PERMIT HANDOUT UNDER EU ETS
The UK government has announced that BA will get 10.34 million free carbon permits next year, or around 6% of the total allocated to airlines under the ETS. DECC allocation figures show how the UK's share of 56.7 m free carbon permits will be divided up between 249 registered airlines. BA gets around €112 million. easyJet, due to receive 4.7 million permits, will get the 2nd biggest hand-out. UK carriers will receive almost a third of the total 176 million.
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Out of the Deep Fat Fryer … Thomson Airways and its first biofuel flight
With Thomson Airways re-launching their attempts to get regular biofuels flights from Birmingham Airport, green campaigners are raising concerns that new “Sustainable Aviation Biofuels” are actually likely to be more damaging for the environment. After dropping plans to fuel flights with used cooking oil due to insufficient supply, Thomson are now going to be using virgin plant oil from a number of sources, none of which should properly be classified as sustainable.
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John Stewart refused entry to USA for speaking tour, due to visa problem
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Thomson Airways plans its biofuel flight on 6th October, using a mix of oils as sufficient used cooking oil was not available
Thomson will be flying its delayed first biofuel flight on 6th Oct from Birmingham to Arrecife. It was delayed from 28th July when supplies of used cooking oil could not be obtained in time. Thomson has put out a position paper on biofuels. Like other airlines, is getting a test flight with biofuels, hoping to persuade its customers and government that it is being "green" and environmentally responsible. Thomson hopes to have a daily flight using biofuel.
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AirportWatch response to the Aviation Scoping Document Consultation
The DfT has consulted on its scoping document, to develop a "Sustainable Framework for UK Aviation". This consultation closed on 20th October. There will be a further, full, consultation next March on the developing policy, for planned adoption by government in March 2013. AirportWatch has produced a range of supporting evidence documents, to back its arguments, and these as well as the AirportWatch response are now available. Also excellent, detailed and closely argued responses from a range of AirportWatch member organisations, arguing for a truly environmental responsible and sustainable future UK aviation policy.
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Cuts to air passenger tax scandalous, says AirportWatch
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APD cut on flights from Northern Ireland
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Newcastle Airport expands in £3.2m investment with extension to the terminal
Plans have been unveiled for a £3.2m investment to extend the airport for the first time since 2004. The terminal will have a 5,000sq ft annex which will house the new security checks, cutting the time passengers spend queuing. Work may start in October, in phases, with the project scheduled for completion in spring 2012. The extension comes after work to refurbish the departure gates. The airport hopes the work will increase international trade links.
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Chinese airline aims for biofuel flight this year using jatropha
Air China plans to make a maiden test flight across the Pacific some time later this year, using biofuel from jatropha. In July the China National Petroleum Corp announced that it had delivered 15 tons of jatropha oil to Air China. Air China is expected to use a Boeing 747 powered by Pratt & Whitney engines on the test flight, and Boeing has agreed to partner with the Beijing-based carrier to provide technical support.
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BA buys 6 pairs of slots at Heathrow from bmi
British Airways has bought the slots from bmi, which now gives it 45% of the slots at the country’s major airport. This has increased speculation that the International Airline Group (IAG) of which BA is a part, could buy more slots from the loss making bmi or even take over the whole airline. The 6 pairs of slots, estimated to cost between €100m and €150m, will be used to expand both BA’s short and long haul services, possibly including new destinations.
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New ‘greener’ plane – the Boeing 787 Dreamliner – to be delivered
UK airlines have welcomed the much-delayed arrival of the "green" plane - the 787 Dreamliner. It is 3 years behind schedule due to production difficulties, but the first has now flown from Seatle to Japan to join the fleet of Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways. Its first passenger flight will be Tokyo to Hong Kongat the end of October. Thomson Holidays will get 11 next year, BA has ordered 24, with the first due to arrive in 2013, and Virgin gets 15 in 2014.
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EasyJet founder, Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, to launch new airline Fastjet.com
Sir Stelios says he is preparing to launch a new airline called FastJet. He still holds a 38% stake in easyJet. But this has been dismissed by some in the industry as a bluff. It has not been revealed whether the new venture will be a low-fares carrier competing with easyJet or a medium, long-haul or premium airline. Sir Stelios continues to believe easyJet should be trimming capacity but its Board is planning for growth and buying new aircraft.
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September 27th 2011. Earth Overshoot Day. We are now operating in overdraft in our use of the natural world.
From an ecological standpoint, we have effectively spent our annual salary, with a quarter of the year still to go. Global Footprint Network’s preliminary 2011 calculations show we're using resources at a rate it would take between 1.2 and 1.5 planets to sustainably support. If we carry on the course estimated by moderate UN projections for increasing population and consumption, by well before 2050 we will need the capacity of two Earths to meet our level of demand.
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Biofuels May Push 120 Million Into Hunger, Qatar’s Shah Says
Biofuel policies in countries from Australia to the US may push 120 million people into hunger by 2050 while doing little to halt climate change, said an advisor to Qatar’s food security program. So-called 1st-generation biofuels from commodity crops compete with food for land use and fertilizers, resulting in higher grain prices and increased deforestation. “The first generation, we should never have done it,” but those who invested to them are committed.
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Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division Flies Harrier on 50% Biofuel Blend
The NAWCWD performed the first bio-fuel flight test in an AV-8B Harrier on 21st September, over NAWCWD's land ranges in the upper Mojave Desert. The Harrier was put through a range of testing manoeuvres, and performed without problems. There were no anomalies detected that would prevent the Navy from using the biofuels blend for the AV-8B. The US military are at the forefront of work on aviation biofuels, so they are not dependent on conventional oil imports.
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French campaigners against a huge new airport at Nantes to hold rally for cycles and tractors in Paris on 12th November
The campaigners against the building of a new airport outside Nantes in South West France will be travelling by bicycle and tractor to Paris - leaving Nantes on 6th November and arriving in Paris on 12th November where there will be a big rally. Opponents of the proposed airport say it is not needed, it will destroy 2,000 hectares of good farmland, and do much harm. Campaigners from other countries are invited to join the cycle ride and/or the rally in Paris.
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Aviation industry going to biofuels made from alcohols, some from food crops
Jet fuel can be made by combining two alcohol molecules. The aviation biofuel industry can see there will be a time delay in getting fuel from jatropha, camelia etc but it could produce fuel from alcohol faster. Some from corn or sugar cane, as well as non-food crops and woody biomass. Aviation accounts for 12% of the fuel used by the entire transport sector. Global aviation fuel demand may reach 7.6 million barrels/day in 2012, up from 6.8 m barrels in 2007.
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Easyjet lifts profit forecast and pays special dividend
Easyjet has increased its estimate for full-year profits and announced a special dividend for shareholders. It said it had been helped by an increase in business travellers and now expects annual profits of £240m-£250m, up from a previous forecast of £200m-£230m made in July. It says it has particular strength on city routes used by business and short-break leisure travellers. It expects its fuel bill to be £220m higher in 2012 than in 2011.
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Aviation industry publicity onslaught on “lack of direct flights from UK threatening growth” scare
The media is awash with stories about how the UK economy is allegedly being damaged by insuffient routes to the far East, and how the only way to rectify this problem (other than the more logical one of airlines laying on these routes if they are sufficiently profitable) is to build more runways and expand Heathrow. A report by Frontier Economics was commissioned by BAA to show this, and is being used as a way to gain some publicity as the Scoping Document consultation ends on 20th October.
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IATA says global airline profits will fall by 29% in 2012 to $4.9 billion
IATA says the industry's earnings are likely to fall to $4.9bn in 2012, from $6.9bn this year. Since it expects revenues to increase, this is mainly due to rising costs. It expects European carriers' profits to drop by 80% to $300m due to the debt crisis. Profit forecasts for 2011 are now higher than they were, as the number travelling rises and in the period Jan-July, the global passenger number was up by 6.4% over that period in 2010. Profitability at 1.2% net margin.
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Cambridge Econometrics study shows the UK missing carbon targets for years, while aviation emissions grow
The Cambridge Econometrics website contains a lot of detail about anticipated future UK carbon emissions. The previous CO2 reduction goal - a 20% reduction in CO2 emissions between 1990 and 2010 - has been decisively missed despite the recession. On current policies the UK is set to miss the carbon budget targets narrowly in the first two budget periods but by a wider margin in the 2018-22 and especially the 2023-27 periods. Aviation emissions continue to grow in each budget period.
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Cost for airlines of joining EU ETS €1.1bn in 2012, says Thomson Reuters Point Carbon
The cost for airlines of joining the EU ETS in 2012 will be approximately €1.1 billion using a carbon price of €12/ tonne, or a total of €10.4 billion between now and the end of 2020, according to Thomson Reuters Point Carbon and RDC Aviation. The EC is expected to issue 176 million allowances to airlines for free for 2012, and airlines are forecast to need to buy 88 million more. The 27 flag-carriers in the EU will get, on average, 61% free. Those with substantial long-haul networks fare better; Air France/KLM, BA, Lufthansa and Iberia on average will be allocated 81%.
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Ethics and tourism conference – can so-called “sustainable” tourism be “ethical”?
There was a conference recently, in Madrid, organised by the World Tourism Organisation, entitled the first International Congress on Ethics and Tourism. This report shows that though there are a great many words and worthy statements about ethical tourism, little has actually been achieved, partly due to the rapid rate of growth. There are very few case studies of successes. The Code for Ethics has often been little more than a marketing ploy.
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Aviation industry won’t take no for an answer on Heathrow expansion
The government has made it quite clear that it will not support a 3rd runway at Heathrow. Despite this, BA recently in their LDF response, asked Hillingdon Council to block development, except airport-related development, around the airport to leaveroom for expansion. The council refused on 7th September. Also BAA is holding onto the houses that it purchased when it was expecting to build a 3rd runway, presumably because it too has not given up on expansion.
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US and Australia sign key aviation biofuels accord
The US FAA and Australia’s Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism have reached a Memorandum of Understanding to continue research and development of biofuels. The MOU calls for both countries to exchange information about policies, programs, projects, etc and to conduct joint studies in areas such as fuel sources and environmental impacts. One of the areas of concern and focus is feedstock readiness – if producers can ramp up on scale fast enough.
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Telegraph articles pressing for more Heathrow and south east airport expansion
The Telegraph is publicising a new report by Frontier Economics, for BAA, hoping to show that the economy is dependent on more south east airport growth, and more routes from Heathrow to China. The articles come during the last month of the Government Scoping Document consultation on production of new UK aviation policy. The government has ruled out new runways in the south east, though encouraging growth in air passengers at regional airports.
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Newquay Airport: Passenger numbers down and down, subsidy up and up
Newquay airport gets a msssive public subsidy it is. Passenger numbers were supposed to be 550,000 and rising by 2012. Instead they are 239,246 and falling (figures based on provisional statistics for August 2011, annualised). Meanwhile the official subsidy from Cornwall Council has risen to £3.5m, though cynical observers might consider this only part of the story.
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Lydd airport says “Lydd Airport ‘could take strain off Gatwick and Heathrow’ “
Airport managers say they can become an operation big enough to save people a trip to Gatwick or Heathrow if they can expand. The public inquiry ended on 16th September. Opponents argued Lydd Airport was not needed and objected on the grounds of environment, safety and need. The airport hopes to become a local regional airport, serving local people, and provide some much-needed jobs to the local community. Permission for the runway extension has been given.
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Wake up… we need Boris Island, ministers are told
One of Boris Johnson's advisers, Daniel Moylan, has launched an attack on the Government to force them to "wake up" to the need for new airport near London. He claims the Coalition's aviation policy is wrong and London risks no longer being considered a "world city" if the need for increased air capacity in the South-East is ignored. Boris says a new Thames airport Thames would be "the most powerful single statement we could make about the ambition of this country".
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