Tuesday 28 June 2016

Brexit: Flying into the unknown


Full article on economist.com

Despite predicting that a Brexit vote would not “have a material impact on our business”, International Airlines Group, the parent company of British Airways, has seen its stock price plummet by one-third since Friday. Shares in easyJet, the London-based low-cost carrier that relies heavily on open skies across Europe, have crashed just as dramatically. Even airlines at the heart of the European project are suffering: Lufthansa, Germany’s flag-carrier, is worth 17% less than it was before the referendum. Traders seem convinced that Britain’s divorce from Europe is bad news for the entire industry, whether due to the gloomy economic outlook, currency volatility, resurgent travel restrictions or the prospect of a full-blown break-up of the European Union...

Thursday 2 June 2016

Interview: Safwat Mosallam, EgyptAir CEO


EgyptAir close to placing large narrowbody order: CEO

EgyptAir could order a "considerable" number of narrowbodies within days, chief executive Safwat Mosallam says, standing by its fleet renewal plans despite plummeting demand for tourism in the North African country.

"It's an ongoing process. Maybe in a few days there could be a good announcement," Mosallam told Arabian Aerospace on the sidelines of the IATA AGM in Dublin. "Until we finish negotiations we cannot announce."

EgyptAir originally planned to order up to 70 aircraft in 2016, but re-assessed its needs following the bombing of Metrojet Flight 9268 in Sinai last October.