When Malev Hungarian Airlines ceased operations two weeks ago, leaving thousands of passengers stranded and tens of thousands ticket holders uncertain about the value of their reservations, people in Hungarian aviation were stunned. Emotions ran high and the political parties, typically, were blaming each other for the demise of the 66 years old national carrier.… Continue reading Replacing Malev – Easier Said than Done
Category: Airline corner
Casting an eye on the airline world
Ryanair Takes Budapest by Storm
With Malev gone from its home base, Ryanair was quick to try and fill the void… successfully it would appear. With its customary aggressive stance and no-nonsense approach to flying, the Irish company is establishing a base at Budapest Ferihegy Airport with five aircraft and 42 destinations. Agreement with the company operating the airport is… Continue reading Ryanair Takes Budapest by Storm
Ferihegy Airport, with 40% of its traffic gone, dragging its feet over the Ryanair solution
One would think that an airport that has just lost 40 % of its traffic due to the collapse of local airline MALEV would jump at the offer of Ryanair to take up the slack. Budapest Ferihegy has been leased to Hochtief but it is not a far fetched idea to surmise that their feet-dragging… Continue reading Ferihegy Airport, with 40% of its traffic gone, dragging its feet over the Ryanair solution
Malev failure – the Human Dimension
When an airline dies, it has an economic dimension that impacts a lot of other businesses. Some will suffer, others will benefit. But for those who lost “their” airline, the people who were in fact the airline, the failure is an emotional experience that leaves a deep, deep wound, something that may never heal completely.… Continue reading Malev failure – the Human Dimension
The Last Tow…
Failed MALEV’s leased aircraft were flown back to ILFC’s Shannon facility Friday afternoon. I can only imagine what the pilots must have felt as they took their “toys” back to the store… Here we have a sad picture of one of the MALEV turboprops being towed away from the ramp where they have stood, ready… Continue reading The Last Tow…
Ryanair to Open Budapest Base in Two Weeks With 31 New Routes
Ryanair to Open Budapest Base in Two Weeks With 31 New Routes, 2M PAX P.A., SAVING UP TO 2,000 JOBS FOLLOWING MALEV’S CLOSURE RYANAIR FARES START FROM €9.99/HUF2,000 FROM 17 FEBRUARY RYANAIR MEETING WITH HUNGARIAN GOVERNMENT AND BUDAPEST AIRPORT TODAY TO FINALISE RESCUE PLAN Ryanair, the world’s favourite airline today (3rd Feb) at a press… Continue reading Ryanair to Open Budapest Base in Two Weeks With 31 New Routes
MALEV Ceases Operations
After 66 years of almost continuous operations, MALEV Hungarian Airlines stopped all flights as of 0600 this morning. It is always a sad day when an airline stops operations, just like when any well known, big company closes its doors. There can be no doubt that most of us are reading the news of MALEV’s… Continue reading MALEV Ceases Operations
American Airlines in Chapter 11 Protection – Memories of Another Day
It was a sunny afternoon in Brussels when we gathered with Russ Chew of American Airlines and my boss from IATA in our little garden in Zaventem to discuss how to proceed with the implementation of air/ground digital link and controller/pilot digital link communications (CPDLC). American was deeply unhappy with the way the FAA was… Continue reading American Airlines in Chapter 11 Protection – Memories of Another Day
United Airlines first network carrier to introduce paperless navigation charts
United Continental Holdings, Inc. has announced that it is converting to paperless flight decks and deploying 11,000 iPads to all United and Continental pilots. The electronic flight bags (EFB) replace paper flight manuals, and as a first for major network carriers, provide pilots with paperless aeronautical navigational charts through an iPad app. Distribution of iPads… Continue reading United Airlines first network carrier to introduce paperless navigation charts
Low Fare Airlines – ATM Nightmare of the Future?
There are two distinct schools of thought about how low fare airlines will evolve in the future. According to departing IATA boss Bisignani talking to Aviation Week, in Europe the model used by the low cost carriers, namely opening new point to point connections to secondary airports, will run out of steam within a year… Continue reading Low Fare Airlines – ATM Nightmare of the Future?