Air Travel & Airline Industry & Business News by Skift

Airport Security Gap and 6 Other Aviation Trends This Week

Sarah Enelow-Snyder, Skift

This week in aviation, we took a closer look at what the recent stolen-plane incident means for airport security. In the cabin, passengers get their way with the overhead bins.

5 hours ago

Air Canada Tries to Minimize Disruption as Chief Operating Officer Leaves

Frederic Tomesco, Bloomberg

Air Canada may be losing a key player to Air France-KLM, but the loss doesn't have to be catastrophic.

23 hours ago

Ryanair Unions Accuse the Airline of Bullying

Aine Quinn, Bloomberg

Some unions wrote to Ryanair's large investors claiming that the budget airline uses “bullying as a management tool." The carrier called it an attempt "to generate fake news." Glad to hear negotiations are making progress.

1 day ago

Air France Unions Aren’t Happy With Newly Appointed CEO’s Big Salary

Chris Bryant, Bloomberg

Smith isn't getting a gigantic pay bump for moving to Air France-KLM even with the kind of resume he's bringing over. The unions should probably accept that this is the cost of doing business in European aviation these days.

1 day ago

Airlines Recoup $500 Million in Blocked Funds From African Countries

Richard Holmes, Skift

Accountants at Emirates, British Airways, and South African Airways must be breathing a sigh of relief. A combination of economic carrots and airline sticks — smoothed over by IATA diplomacy — has helped international carriers recoup more than $500 million in blocked funds from African governments since the start of 2018.

2 days ago

Air France Unions Don’t Want Outsider Ben Smith of Air Canada as New CEO

Phil Serafino and Carol Matlack, Bloomberg

The Air Canada president gets high marks within the aviation industry. But predictably the French unions will put up a fight against his selection as CEO. He's already getting a good glimpse of what the future holds.

2 days ago

Ryanair Pilots Make Push to Resolve Strike Impacting All of Europe

Áine Quinn, Bloomberg

CEO Michael O'Leary has a reputation for being hard-nosed when it comes to labor. Let's see how far the pilots can go to get what they want at the negotiations table. Nobody is sleeping.

2 days ago

Google Finds Customer Service Beats Loyalty Programs

Grant Martin, Skift

It's no surprise that travelers are starting to place a higher priority on customer experience over loyalty programs, considering how uncomfortable air travel has become. Google's data just proves it.

3 days ago

Let’s Not Get Carried Away With New Airport Security Procedures

Brian Sumers, Skift

Last week's stolen plane tragedy in Seattle made for great television. It also scared some travelers. But let's call it what it was: a fluke.

3 days ago

Blackstone May Take a Stake in the Loyalty Program of India’s Jet Airways

George Smith Alexander and P R Sanjai, Bloomberg

Jet Airways is in a race to raise cash as its pile of debt balloons. Blackstone is reportedly discussing a valuation of around $400 million to $500 million for the Indian carrier's loyalty arm, but the bigger financial picture remains troubled.

3 days ago

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Boosts Its Bets on Southwest and Delta

Katherine Chiglinsky, Bloomberg

It sounds like Warren Buffet is not spooked by higher oil prices. That probably bodes well for everyone else invested in airlines.

3 days ago

Video: Why Southwest Airlines Needs a Super-Fast Website

Hannah Sampson, Skift

Southwest Airlines wants to keep its passengers happy, booking quickly, and coming back. In this video, Chief Revenue Officer Andrew Watterson explains some of the ways the airline achieves that goal.

4 days ago