German carrier Condor is to be taken over by the owner of LOT Polish Airlines. Condor, formerly a subsidiary of Thomas Cook Group, says its merger with LOT within Polska Grupa Lotnicza (PGL) will create "one of the leading aviation groups in Europe". Under its new ownership, it adds, Condor will "focus on further growth in Germany and neighboring markets" and become "the central pillar of the PGL tourism strategy and thus one of the leading European holiday airlines". The management team will remain in place and Condor will also retain its brand, while benefiting from "enhanced connectivity and operational synergies", it says. A bridging loan provided by German bank KfW – and guaranteed by the German federal government and the state of Hesse – will be repaid in full, says Condor. Rafal Milczarski, chief executive of PGL as well as LOT, states that the Condor takeover "fits perfectly" with the Polish group's strategy. The deal "secures the future of Condor" and "offers its employees, customers and partners stability and a great perspective", he adds. He indicates that the new owners will develop the Condor brand in Germany and also "introduce it to other European markets". Condor chief Ralf Teckentrup describes PGL and LOT as "stable, experienced and dynamically developing partners" and reassures customers that they can "safely plan their vacation flights with Condor". The merged airlines will have annual passenger numbers in excess of 20 million, says Condor, which expects the transaction to be completed in April once antitrust approvals have been secured and the German carrier has completed the "protective shield procedure" begun following the demise of Thomas Cook. PGL has an 80-strong fleet, including 15 Boeing 787s, and generated turnover of around €1.9 billion ($2.1 billion) in 2019. Condor, which Cirium fleets data lists as having 55 aircraft in service, meanwhile notched sales of €1.7 billion last year, making an operating profit of €57 million. Lazard and Pekao acted as investment banks, and White & Case as legal adviser, to PGL. Rothschild & Co was Condor's investment bank, and Noerr its legal adviser.

Source: Cirium

The successful completion of the 777-9’s 3h 51min maiden flight on 25 January signalled the start of at least a year of flight-testing for Boeing. The GE Aviation GE9X-powered twinjet, designated WH001, took off from Everett’s Paine Field at 10:09 local. After undergoing testing over Washington state, WH001 returned for a landing at Everett at around 14:00. The flightcrew for the test comprised 777/777X chief pilot Capt Van Chaney and Boeing chief pilot Craig Bomben. They undertook an initial test programme to evaluate the aircraft’s systems and structures, monitored in real time by the test team in Seattle. “The 777X flew beautifully, and today’s testing was very productive,” said Chaney. “Thank you to all the teams who made today possible. I can’t wait to go fly your airplane again.” Boeing says that WH001, which is the first of four dedicated 777-9 flight-test aircraft, is now undergoing checks ahead of resuming flight-testing “in the coming days”. It adds that it expects 777-9 deliveries to begin in 2021.

Source: Cirium

An Iranian passenger plane with 135 people on board has skidded off the runway and onto a road with its wheels still retracted -- and, miraculously, no one was hurt. Photos and videos from the scene on Monday in the Iranian city of Mahshahr show the Caspian Airlines plane grounded in the middle of the road, with traffic banked up and pedestrians on either side. The plane, lying flat on its belly, appears largely undamaged. All 135 people on board the plane were safely evacuated. Passengers appeared to help each other out of the twin-engine, single-aisle commercial jet, carrying children and suitcases. Some left through the main doors, while others climbed out emergency exits onto the plane wings. Emergency responders soon arrived on the scene, with firefighters spraying water onto the plane. All 135 people on board were unharmed and evacuated safely, reported semi-official news agency Fars, attributing a spokesman for Iran's civil aviation agency, Reza Jafarzadeh. Caspian Airlines Flight 6936 departed from the capital city, Tehran, early Monday and was set to land at Mahshahr Airport, in the country's southwest, when it skidded onto Mahshahr-e-Ahwaz highway, according to Fars. The cause of the incident is still under investigation. Caspian Airlines is based in Tehran. Its last major accident was in 2009, when a commercial flight crashed outside the city of Qazvin in northwestern Iran. All 153 passengers and 15 crew members on board died, making it one of the deadliest aviation accidents in the country's history.

Source: CNN