At 39, former corporate lawyer and IndiGo president, Aditya Ghosh, knows what he wants from his airline - operational discipline and staff with the right attitude. Read More »

Finally, the air freight business has some good news. The International Air Transport Association (IATA)’s latest five-year forecast, issued in October, said international air cargo is expected to increase at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 4.1% to 2018, with the Middle East-Asia route recording the highest annual growth rate of 6.2%. Read More »

Last month, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) released its latest five year industry forecast. It projected international freight volumes should increase at an annual compound rate of 4.1% to 2018, and that the fastest growing routes would be between the Middle East and Asia, at 6.2%. Read More »

Despite the increasing numbers of new generation, fuel efficient commercial jets entering airline fleets that need less maintenance less often, the business of Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) continues to expand in the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. Read More »

One of Eastern Europe’s major airline maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO)providers has taken its first major step into the Asian market, finalizing a deal that will see it set up extensive operations at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. Read More »

Today’s generation of MRO engineers grew up with computers at home, cell phones in their pockets and, more recently, smartphones and tablets as a part of their everyday lives. Read More »

Boeing Shanghai wins over Silk Way West

Full Service Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facility, Boeing Shanghai Aviation Services Co ltd, has signed an agreement with cargo carrier, Silk Way West Airlines, for line maintenance. Based in Baku, Azerbaijian, Silk Way West serves businesses in Britain, the Middle East and South Korea, China and Hong Kong. It has a fleet of two B747-8s,three B747-400s, two B767-300s and Ilyushin and Antonov aircraft. Read More »

Fleet expansion at Singapore’s spunky regional budget airline, Scoot,has set the route planners looking north for more business into Japan. Read More »

As a new Australian Transport Safety Bureau-led search for the missing Malaysia Airlines MH370 aircraft commenced in the southern Indian Ocean last month it emerged that finding a comprehensive solution to track all aircraft in real time could proving to be as challenging as the hunt for the lost B777 and its passengers and crew. Read More »

A new Australian organization, the Meta National Commercial Aerospace Hub, aims to bring together Australia’s aerospace businesses and industry researchers to better promote Australian commercial aerospace expertise in the region and beyond. Read More »

The airline business may be volatile, but when it comes to financing the thousands of new airplanes on order, business could not be better, said Boeing Capital Corporation’s managing director of capital markets and leasing. Read More »

To Kuala Lumpur from Germany by way of the Emerald Isle. Is Aer Lingus chief executive, Christoph Mueller, the man who will resurrect Malaysia Airlines? That is certainly the word from several reliable sources in the Malaysian capital as the airline moves closer to becoming fully owned by state sovereign fund, Khazanah Nasional. Read More »

Etihad Airways continues to the surprise the industry. Its latest development is Etihad Airways Partners, which aims to save members money through joint procurement and equipping while offering its member passengers improved networks, schedules and enhanced frequent flyer benefits. Read More »

On the face of it, the dramatically lower oil prices of the last three months look good for Asia-Pacific carriers as they battle tough times on the profitability front. Until the demand fall off began in June, the average price of jet fuel was around $123 a barrel for the region’s airlines. Read More »

On the face of it, it is the airline bargain of a life time. Last month, Virgin Australia CEO, John Borghetti, dug into the corporate change purse and exchanged A$1 (US$ 0.88) for the 40% of Tigerair Australia Virgin Australia Holdings (VAH) did not already own. Read More »

Pan Am joint venture opens Bangkok training centre

All Nippon Airways and low-cost Thai airline, Nok Air, have announced the establishment of a flight training school in partnership with the Pan Am International Flight Academy and a local university. Read More »

In the next five years, the fastest growing air cargo routes will be between the Asia and the Middle East, at 6.2% per year, said the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in its new industry forecast to 2018. Read More »

At press time, Indian low-cost carrier, IndiGo was expected to have firmed up its record-breaking $26 billion Memorandum of Understanding for (MoU) 250 A320neo jets, a senior executive familiar with the deal told Orient Aviation. Read More »

Cathay Pacific Airways (CX) will not change its opposition to the establishment Jetstar Hong Kong said a senior executive last month. Cathay believes the proposed low-cost carrier (LCC) remains a “branch office of Qantas” and fails to meet the legal definition of a local entity needed to obtain an Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC). Read More »

Thai Airways International’s (THAI) third president since last December, Siwakiat Jayema, is seeking approval for a four billion baht (US$126 million) cost cutting program that includes eliminating 6,000 jobs by 2018 from the flag carrier’s bloated payroll. Read More »

Qantas Airways has reached a four-year pay deal with its aircraft engineers, which includes an 18-month wage freeze, followed by annual increases of 3%. Read More »

ExxonMobil and Pratt and Whitney have signed a commercial agreement to test the energy provider’s new synthetic jet engine oil, Mobil Jet Oil 387, on the engine manufacturer’s PurePower engines. Read More »

Boeing has reported third-quarter net income of $1.36 billion, up 18% or $200 million, compared with a year ago, with the manufacturer’s commercial airplanes unit performing strongly. Its revenue increased 15% year-on-year, to $16.11 billion. Deliveries rose 9%, to 186 commercial aircraft, in the reported three months. Read More »

Virgin Australia said in October its hitherto domestic-only subsidiary, Tigerair Australia, may fly on international routes to better compete with Jetstar in the low-cost market - subject to regulatory approval. But chief executive, John Borghetti, said the growth plans of the Tigerair domestic fleet are “likely to be reduced”, given the “ongoing subdued consumer demand” in the Australian market. Read More »

Privately-run mainland low-cost carrier, Spring Airlines, has received regulatory blessing to launch an initial public offering (IPO) to fund its rapid fleet expansion. By year end, the profitable Shanghai-based carrier plans to trade one billion shares on the city’s stock exchange to collect about 2.5 billion yuan ($41 million) for the purchase of nine A320s and three A320s. Read More »

Full service carrier, Bangkok Airways, had its US$400 million initial public offering (IPO) enthusiastically oversubscribed by institutional and retail investors when it offered 520 million new shares to the market in late October. Read More »

Tigerair Singapore will sublease 12 of its A320s to Indian low-cost carrier, IndiGo, as part of the process of “right sizing” its operation, said the Singapore based budget carrier. Read More »

BRANDING: Cathay Pacific Airways has updated its logo, the brushwing. It will no longer sit constrained inside a box and has been gently harmonized and set free, the Hong Kong carrier. Read More »

In July, Asia-Pacific airlines carried an aggregate total of 22.2 million international passengers, an encouraging 4.7% increase compared with the same month last year. Read More »