Eurowings will offer passengers the option of paying extra to keep the middle seat vacant, throughout the entire cabin, on all flights within Europe, after carrying out a "successful" trial of the measure. Lufthansa Group's low-cost unit says it has been testing the initiative for several weeks and it has "met with an exceptionally high level of interest". More than 5,000 free middle seats have been sold during the trial, adds the carrier. It has therefore decided to make the option available on all seat rows and across all of its European routes. "The positive feedback during the test phase showed us very clearly that our guests often want more comfort and distance on board," states Eurowings chief executive Jens Bischof. "Ultra-low-cost no longer works since[the Covid-19 pandemic, at least not in our home market Germany." Charging extra to keep the middle seat free and enable passengers to feel more socially distanced on board "will become a very important product for travel in the future", adds Bischof. Subject to availability, Eurowings passengers will be able to block the middle seat next to them for a fee starting at €18 ($21) per flight. There is no mandate requiring airlines in Europe to keep the middle seat free as a means of ensuring onboard social distancing. The European Commission in May issued guidance recommending that airlines should find ways of socially distancing passengers based on the "technical constraints" of aircraft cabins, but it stopped short of requiring seats to be blocked. IATA had warned on 21 April that the adoption of social-distancing measures on aircraft would make the economics of flying impossible. The association argued that if airlines were required to leave their middle seats free, their maximum load factor would be 66% when most carriers require 70% to operate profitably. Charging extra for a guaranteed empty adjoining seat could help airlines win back passenger confidence while simultaneously providing carriers with an additional ancillary revenue stream.

Source: Cirium

The world’s first GE Aviation-powered Boeing 777 made what is expected to be its final flight today when it was ferried from London Heathrow into retirement by British Airways. The aircraft (MSN27105, G-ZZZA) was the sixth 777-200 built and the first powered by GE90 engines. It made its first flight on 2 February 1995 registered N77779 and, along with the second GE-powered aircraft (G-ZZZB), participated in the airframe/engine flight-test programme for this version of the 777. BA was launch customer for the GE-powered 777 in August 1991, selecting the US engine over the rival Trent 800 from UK manufacturer Rolls-Royce, and the Pratt & Whitney PW4000. At the time, the selection of GE power was a surprise but was part of a wider deal which included the sale of BA’s engine overhaul plant. After testing, G-ZZZA was delivered to BA on 20 May 1996, six months after the airline received its first 777 (G-ZZZC) the previous November. According to Cirium fleets data, prior to today’s retirement flight, the airframe had accumulated 100,254 flight hours and 20,557 cycles. The positioning flight was to BA’s St Athan storage and maintenance facility in South Wales. It is one of five of the original “A” market 777-200s delivered to BA prior to the introduction of the higher-weight and longer-range 777-200ER series. Like many of BA’s aircraft, G-ZZZA has been in storage at the airline’s Heathrow base since March this year in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. Although Boeing offered a three-way engine choice on the original 777 family, it concluded an exclusive tie-up with GE for the GE90-115B when it launched the -200LR/300ER in February 2000. This arrangement continued on the -200LR-based 777F and exclusivity was extended to the updated 777X, which is powered by the GE9X. Cirium fleets data shows that to date, Boeing has delivered 1,239 GE-powered 777's and holds a firm backlog for over 350 more, including 62 -200LR/300ER/777Fs.

Source: Cirium

LATAM Airlines has disclosed that "substantial doubt" exists about its ability to continue as a going concern. The Chile-based airlines group, which on 26 May filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the USA, states in a 19 August US Securities and Exchange Commission filing that the unknown duration of the coronavirus pandemic makes "uncertain" the satisfaction of the company's liabilities and the funding of ongoing operations. "There is no assurance that the company will be able to emerge successfully from Chapter 11," LATAM states. "If the company is unable to generate additional working capital and or raise additional financing when needed, it may not be able to reinitiate currently suspended operations as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, sell assets or enter into a merger or other combination with a third party." LATAM has, as of 19 August, secured a commitment for $2.2 billion in debtor-in-possession financing – an important step in securing the funds it needs to continue operating. The DIP loan consists of three tranches. Oaktree Capital Management and its subsidiaries have committed to covering the entire A tranche, which seeks to raise up to $1.3 billion. The B tranche, which targets government financing, seeks to raise up to $750 million; so far there have been no commitments. Costa Verde, Qatar Airways and Eblen Group have committed $900 million to C tranche DIP funding, which seeks to raise up to $1.15 billion. As with other airlines in the region, LATAM was hit with significant losses in the second quarter of 2020. Passenger revenue was down 94% year-over-year in the quarter as a result of a 96% decrease in traffic. LATAM had a net loss of $890 million in the second quarter, compared with a $62.8 million net loss in the second quarter of 2019. The airline had an operating loss of $694.8 million in the quarter; in the second quarter of 2019 LATAM had an operating profit of $40.2 million.

Source: Cirium