News From Around The World

Richard Maslen April 28, 2011

OAG FLIGHTTIMES LANDS ON SMARTPHONES

OAG, a leading global provider of aviation intelligence, has released its OAG FlightTimes on iPhone, BlackBerry and Android devices. This mobile app has the capability to display published flight schedules for every airline and airport in the world and will enable them to provide their customers with the convenience of flight schedules at their fingertips, while at the same time offering the opportunity to brand the app and customise the content, such as by airport or airline, to meet their specific business strategies. This app can simply be downloaded from individual airport or airline websites or from appropriate app stores, and users are then able to search for flights by route, by airport or by flight number. Search results can be saved, and saved flights are automatically updated when next accessed, so the user will always see the most current scheduled operating times. Results include details about the carrier, flight number, departure and arrival airports, terminals, total travel time and stops. “OAG FlightTimes is just one our innovative new services developed to help our industry customers stay ahead of the competition and offer their customers more value and convenience,” said John Grant, Executive Vice President of OAG parent UBM Aviation. “Our mobile apps utilise leading-edge smartphone technologies and OAG’s best-in-class schedules data to deliver the most accurate information anywhere, anytime.” FlightTimes is based on OAG’s renowned database with schedules for over 1,000 airlines and more than 4000 airports and is refreshed daily with up to 50,000 updates.

SAS AND ANA SIGN CODESHARE DEAL

SAS Scandinavian Airlines and All Nippon Airways (ANA) have signed a codeshare agreement on flights between between Europe and Japan. As of May 23, SAS’s customers will be able to book ANA operated flights between Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Sapporo, Osaka and Fukuoka, which will begin to operate with a SK flight code, alongside ANA’s own NH code. Meanwhile, ANA will also add its code to SAS's Tokyo to Copenhagen flights and at a later date SAS flights from London to Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm; Frankfurt to Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm; and from Munich to Copenhagen and Oslo.

DUBAI INTERNATIONAL REPORTS TRAFFIC GROWTH

Dubai Airports has announced its March traffic results for Dubai International, reporting a 5.8 per cent increase in year-on-year passenger numbers and a 3.7 per cent contraction in international freight volumes. During March, 4.2 million passengers passed through the world’s fourth busiest airport for international passenger traffic, up 5.8 per cent compared to 3.97 million during the same month in 2010. Aircraft movements for the month totalled 27,674 in March 2011, up 6.3 per cent from 26,037 recorded in March 2010. During the first quarter of 2011, 12.3 million passengers passed through the airport, up 7.0 per cent from 11.5 million during the first three months of 2010. The largest increases in total passenger numbers in March were recorded on routes to and from AGCC (+137,255 passengers), Indian subcontinent (+84,300 passengers), Asia Pacific (+25,071) and Russia and the CIS (+21,165 passengers). Passenger totals on Middle Eastern routes dropped 23,240 while a decline of 24,402 passengers was recorded on African routes as traffic was affected by political unrest in those regions. In terms of percentage passenger traffic growth, Eastern Europe saw an almost four-fold increase due to new services albeit from a small base, Russia & CIS passenger numbers rose 19 per cent as a result of flydubai’s ongoing expansion into that region and North American traffic volumes increased 10 per cent as Emirates Airline doubled the frequencies to Houston and Los Angeles year-on-year. International airfreight volumes sagged 3.7 per cent at Dubai International in March as traffic dropped from 193,054 tonnes in the same period in 2010 to 185,921 tonnes. The decline is largely attributed to the air cargo traffic boom seen in 2010 as the global economy rebounded from the 2009 downturn spiking freight volumes as companies across the globe cleared inventories. During the first quarter of 2011 air cargo volumes are down 2.2 per cent as Dubai International handled 507,282 tonnes versus 518,636 tonnes recorded during the same period last year.

STUDY CLAIMS VOLCANIC ASH AIR SHUTDOWN WAS RIGHT DECISION

Concerns about aircraft safety during the eruption of an Icelandic volcano in 2010 were well founded, according to a new scientific study released this week. Ash particles from the early part of the eruption were especially sharp and abrasive, posing a possible threat to aircraft flying through the cloud, says the report which was published in the latest issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. The findings follow investigations by researchers at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark and the University of Iceland in Reykjavik. They also claim these particles were so small they could have melted quickly inside jet engines, potentially causing them to fail mid-flight. The outpour of ash from Eyjafjallajökull caused the largest closure of European airspace since World War II, with losses estimated at between €1.5 billion and €2.5 billion.

DNATA REVEALS NEW BRAND IDENTITY

Dnata, the global air services provider which offers ground handling, cargo, travel, IT solutions and flight catering services, this week unveiled a new company philosophy and fresh visual branding after having undergone a global brand realignment following a period of unprecedented growth worldwide. A new company vision, mission and set of values have been created to encompass dnata’s diverse portfolio of businesses and unify over 20,000 employees around the world. These will also act as a spring board for future expansion including the launch of a corporate travel service in India next month, capturing the essence of the company as a global player. The brand refresh comes during one of dnata’s most successful periods in its 52 year history, as the company has transitioned from regional to global status. Over the past six years, the organisation has quadrupled in size and now has a global footprint across 73 airports, in 37 countries across five continents. “Today is the beginning of a new era for dnata, our customers and our staff,” said Gary Chapman, President, dnata. “The brand refresh represents the start of our journey as a global, unified company. It has been an insightful and creative process which will further enhance our customer offering through our values of ‘service excellence’ and ‘delighting customers’.” Despite the recent global economic downturn, dnata continues to expand. The recent acquisition of Alpha Flight Limited, which provides flight catering and retail services for over 100 airlines worldwide, catapulted the company’s international flight catering business to its current position where it is now present at 62 airports in 12 countries. This significant milestone was complemented by the 2008 acquisitions of a 23 per cent share in worldwide corporate travel company, Hogg Robinson Group (HRG) and 49 per cent of the global outsource provider, Mind Pearl.