KLM Lands in Lusaka
Dutch national carrier KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has confirmed it will launch a three times weekly service between Amsterdam and the Zambian capital Lusaka during summer 2012. The airline plans to use a 243-seat Airbus A330-200 on the service offering space for 30 World Business Class and 213 Economy passengers. The new service will commence on May 15, 2012 and will improve connectivity between Europe and the African country. In the past year an estimated 85,000 O&D passengers travelled between Europe and Zambia, with the only direct flight currently being offered by British Airways from its London Heathrow base on a three times weekly basis. The arrival of KLM on the route will provide a new routing opportunity for passengers, especially those aligned to the SkyTeam alliance of which KLM is a member. From February next year Emirates Airline will also serve Lusaka direct from Dubai, as a stop on its new flight to the Zimbabwe capital Harare. The Middle Eastern carrier is likely to pick up a large proportion of the Europe – Zambia traffic due to its extensive network across Europe and attractive connection at its Dubai International Airport hub.
Astraeus Appoints Administrators
UK ACMI specialist Astraeus Airlines ceased operations on November 21 and has appointed administrators. The carrier originally offered charter services to the travel industry alongside its ACMI activities but in recent years had focused purely on the wet-lease market with aircraft flying with bmi British Midland International, Iceland Express and Tonlesap Airlines, among others. “We battled hard to save Astraeus, but lower-than-expected levels of business during the summer of 2011, a lack of contracts for winter 2011-2012, and some extremely bad luck with a number of technical issues mean that we have no option but to cease all operations and put Astraeus Airlines in the hands of the administrators,” explained Hugh Parry, Chief Executive Officer, Astraeus. The airline’s last flight was on behalf of bmi from Jeddah to Manchester on the morning of November 21 and was captained by the airline’s famous pilot, Bruce Dickinson, the lead singer of the rock band Iron Maiden. He revealed he is “working on a plan to try to save Astraeus,” or at least create a “new business with new jobs for my friends and former colleagues at Astraeus,” taking a knock at the carrier’s Icelandic owner Eignarhaldsfelagid Fengur HF in the process. “Frankly, now Astraeus has been relieved of the business model imposed upon it by Icelandic owners, who, to be honest, perhaps did not fully appreciate the way the key commercial aviation markets operated, I see the potential for a viable operation should acquisition of the company prove achievable,” said Bruce Dickinson. “There is no reason why the original business model, which established Astraeus as possibly the best and most successful organisation in its sector, cannot be resurrected to the benefit of former employees and airline partners and clients alike,” he added.
Lufthansa Makes London Schedule Changes
German national carrier Lufthansa is to take over full responsibility for the Berlin Tegel – London Heathrow service currently flown by bmi British Midland International, although the route will still be flown this winter using a bmi aircraft. The subtle change to the route is certain to be a result of the expected sale of Lufthansa’s UK unit to International Consolidated Airlines group (IAG), the parent company of European rivals British Airways and Iberia. With effect from November 24, Lufthansa will take responsibility as the operating carrier on the Berlin Tegel – London Heathrow route, rather than simply codesharing on the bmi service. However, due to capacity constraints bmi will continue to fly the route using an Airbus 319 until the end of the Northern Winter schedule in March 2012. Similarly, Swiss International Air Line, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lufthansa, has taken over responsibility of the six times weekly Basel – Manchester that was previously flown by bmi. Lufthansa also plans to make a minor change to its new Frankfurt – London Gatwick service and from March 25, 2012 will replace the Boeing 737 that operates the twice daily service with a Bombardier CRJ700 on the morning rotation and an A319 on the evening flight.
Welsh Minister Pushes for Chinese Connection for Cardiff
Wales’ First Minister Carwyn Jones has this week revealed very ambitious plans to establish a direct air route into the country from China. Following a Welsh Government trade mission to the fast-growing economy in October, Mr Jones said such a link was “vital” in order to maximise Chinese investment opportunities into Wales, while also supporting indigenous businesses seeking to grow exports. According to a local newspaper report discussions are at a very early stage and there are suggestions that a service could be established without the need for Welsh Government subsidy. The report also suggests that a number of airlines are already in discussions with the Welsh Government for financial support for new air services with Delta Air Lines, Emirates Airline and Kingfisher Airlines all named in the story. “It is important we create trade opportunities through links between Wales and western China,” said Mr Jones after signing a memorandum of understanding with the Chinese city of Chongqing, committing Wales and the region to work more closely in areas such as trade and education. “However, it has got to be relatively easy to be able to travel between western China and Wales and making sure that happens is a key priority for us. There are currently no direct links at all between Chongqing and the UK. It is at an early stage, but we are moving forward on this. People might say that is very ambitious, but why not?” he added.
Wizz Air Boosts Capacity at Timisoara
Central and Eastern European low-cost specialist Wizz Air has revealed plans to expand its activities in the Romanian city of Timisoara. The budget carrier is to increase capacity on a number of its routes during summer 2012 boosting capacity by around 20 per cent and increase annual passenger traffic to over 400,000. The expansion will see additional flights to Dortmund from March 27, 2012 and more rotations to Forli, London Luton, Paris Beauvais and Rome Fiumicino from June 23, 2012. “This latest expansion is a further proof of our commitment to the Romanian market and specifically to the Banat region and is welcome news to the people living in Timis and the surrounding counties,” said John Stephenson, Executive Vice President of Wizz Air. “The resulting increases in air traffic will also have a further positive effect on the local businesses and employment.”
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