The alliance between India’s two largest private carriers Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines – which if fully implemented would give the duo a nearly 58 per cent market share – will take six months to be fully operational, accordingto Kingfi sher Chairman Vijay Mallya. Already the two carriers were cooperating “very closely in many ways” but it was not as simple as it sounded to operationalise the agreement, signed by them last October, Mallya told the Press … [Read more...] about INDIA: Jet-Kingfisher alliance operational in 6 months

In an attempt to diversify its business exposure to the ongoing global economic contagion, Qantas Freight has launched a direct, weekly B747-400 freighter service between the US and New Zealand from February. “Our new freighter service will provide main deck capacity between the US east coast and New Zealand as well as from New Zealand into Australia, with connections to Asian ports including Bangkok, Hong Kong and Shanghai,” said group general manager Qantas Freight Stephen … [Read more...] about NEW ZEALAND: New US-NZ freighter service for Qantas

Japan Airlines, Asia’s biggest air carrier, said international cargo volume declined for five months in a row to November, when volume plummeted 25.1 per cent to 47,000 tonnes. During the first eight months of the fiscal year 2008, which started in April, international volume totaled 434,943 tonnes, down 7.8 per cent from the same period a year earlier. By comparison, JAL’s domestic cargo on year and year-to-date. Japan’s second-largest airline, All Nippon Airways, … [Read more...] about JAPAN: Plummeting volumes for JAL and ANA

Thai Airways International said recently it had reached an agreement with Airbus to postpone the first payment for six A330 aircraft to be delivered in 2009 after being hit by the Thai airport closures and global economic crisis,according to Reuters. The Thai carrier had ordered eight A330 aircraft with six of them to be delivered this year, with the first due in April. The delivery of six A380 superjumbos is still on track for December 2010. The first payment will be postponed to April from … [Read more...] about THAILAND: Thai Airways delays Airbus payment