Spirit Airlines’ pilots have agreed to work fewer hours as part of a deal that will prevent the airline from needing to lay off 600 of pilots. The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) says nearly half of Spirit’s pilots will “temporarily work fewer hours each month” to prevent the layoffs, which would start as soon as 1 October. On that day, US airlines that received financial aid through a US government coronavirus relief bill can begin laying off staff. The bill prohibits airlines that took money from laying off workers until then. “Spirit Airlines’ pilots and management worked together to reach an agreement that mitigates the remaining furloughs planned for October 2020,” Scott Vallach, chairman of ALPA’s Spirit Airlines council, says. “Effective immediately, the 600 planned furloughs have been cancelled.” ALPA notes that airlines industry-wide have warned more than 11,000 US pilots that they may lose their jobs come October. More broadly, some 80,000 US airline industry jobs may be at risk due to looming downsizing, according to carriers. “Currently, dozens of other ALPA pilot groups are exploring various furlough mitigation plans to preserve as many jobs as possible until the industry recovers,” the union says.

Source: Cirium

Thailand's Central Bankruptcy Court could decide on 14 September whether the country's flag carrier will be permitted to restructure under business rehabilitation. Thai Airways on 25 August concluded three days of court hearings, following its filing for business rehabilitation back in May. The first hearing was held on 17 August, and among other things, criticism was levelled against one of the rehabilitation planners, EY Corporate Advisory Services. In addition, the court set dates for two additional hearings, on 20 and 25 August. At the 20 August hearing, one of the 16 creditors which had previously raised objections to Thai's rehabilitation plan withdrew that objection. On 25 August, another creditor, Data Products Toppan Forms, an ATM card manufacturer, presented its witnesses to the court. The court also scheduled the next hearing for 14 September, 10:00. Thai Airways said in a same-day statement: "Today's process of investigating complaints has been smooth and promising." The court said at yesterday's hearing that it had gained enough information from witnesses to give a verdict but will allow seven days for parties to file an objection, the Nikkei Asian Review reports, citing local media. If there is no objection, the court will decide on 14 September whether to approve the rehabilitation. If the court approves the airline for business rehabilitation at that hearing, Thai Airways' legal execution department will notify all creditors about the registration procedure for submitting debt settlement requests. It will also invite creditors to hear details about the rehabilitation plan.

Source: Cirium

Lufthansa Group is strengthening its rules on the use of onboard face masks by only exempting passengers from wearing them if they provide a medical certificate explaining their reasons and a recent negative Covid-19 test result. Face coverings have been compulsory on all flights operated by Lufthansa Group carriers since the beginning of May. While exceptions were previously made for passengers who presented a medical exemption certificate, from 1 September these passengers must also present a negative Covid-19 test result taken up to 48 hours before their flight.
"The new rules on the compulsory wearing of masks now ensure even better protection for all passengers," states Lufthansa. The airline group says it will inform passengers about the new requirement through its carriers' websites and social media channels as well as via email and SMS, in order to "give customers the opportunity to adapt to the changed rules in good time".

Source: Cirium