Airline Risk Calculator (ARC)

All Nippon Airways (ANA) has signed a carbon dioxide removal (CDR) credit purchase agreement with US-based 1PointFive. Under the agreement, the Japanese carrier will buy 10,000t of CDR credits per annum for three years beginning in 2025 from 1PointFive's direct air capture plant currently under construction in Texas. The facility, named Stratos, is expected to be commercially operational in mid-2025. "Direct air capture is a vital and scalable carbon removal technology that is necessary to help society achieve net zero," 1PointFive president Michael Avery states. "The aviation industry can uniquely benefit from DAC as a pathway to removing carbon emissions securely, practically and on a large-scale." ANA says the deal is aimed at further diversifying its decarbonisation methods to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The CO2 captured for the airline will be sequestered in saline reservoirs that are not used for oil and gas production, it adds.

The US Department of Transportation has suspended its review of Allegiant Air and Viva Aerobus's proposed cross-border joint venture due to concerns about Mexico's implementation of the two countries' air services agreement. The airlines filed a joint application in December 2021 requesting immunity for alliance agreements covering flights between the USA and Mexico. The procedural schedule for the review originally set a 31 July deadline for DOT action, but the department says it is pausing its review and will "therefore not be able to meet this deadline because of outstanding questions relating to the continued implementation of the US-Mexico air transportation agreement". The message was conveyed in a letter from DOT assistant secretary for aviation and international affairs Annie Petsonk to Mexico's undersecretary for transportation Rogelio Jimenez Pons. Petsonk adds: "It is longstanding DOT policy that a necessary predicate for our consideration of grants of antitrust immunity is the de jure and de facto implementation of a fully liberalised air transport agreement. "As we have discussed in our consultations, recent actions the government of Mexico has taken affecting US carrier operations at [Mexico City's] Benito Juarez International airport have, in our view, called into question the existence of this predicate." She did not provide specifics about the "recent actions" in her complaint. Petsonk adds that the DOT cannot further consider the application until it receives additional information "demonstrating compliance with, and full implementation of" the US-Mexico air transportation agreement terms. "We remain eager to continue our work with your offices to resolve these issues," she adds. Mexico's competition regulator approved the proposed alliance in October 2022, and Allegiant had signaled that it hoped to implement it during the first half of 2023, pending DOT approval. While acknowledging the suspension of the process, both carriers have remained optimistic about their proposed alliance. "We hope the United States and Mexico can resolve their differences over the bilateral agreement quickly, so travelers from both countries can benefit from the Allegiant/Viva joint venture," Allegiant says in a statement. Viva Aerobus says in its own statement: "We are confident that Mexican and United States transportation authorities will collaborate to find a resolution, allowing the approval process to resume to form this important alliance that will bring important advantages and benefits to both countries, strengthening connectivity, stimulating tourism, and connecting millions of families in the largest international air market. "Through this venture the public will gain greater access to affordable airfares, new routes and destinations, and more convenient travel options that will allow them to enjoy the incredible leisure, entertainment and family experiences that await them in both countries."