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Russian Aeroflot remains China’s ‘Favorite International Airline’

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Russia’s Aeroflot has been once again named the Favorite International Airline in China. The award was given to Aeroflot for the third consecutive year at the Flyer Award Ceremony 2019. The award ceremony was held today in Shanghai, the economic capital of China.

The awards are supported by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). Winners are selected by the jury and by votes from frequent flyers and travelers.

The awards recognize outstanding participants in China’s dynamically developing tourism market. Previous winners include leading global airlines, including carriers that hold Skytrax 5-Star Airline status.

Aeroflot retained the title of Favorite International Airline at the competitive Flyer Awards due to its key competitive advantages: high service quality and flexible fare policy.

“The recognition of Aeroflot as the Favorite International Airline in China is confirmation of the effectiveness of our strategic efforts in China,” Aeroflot CEO Vitaly Saveliev said. “We offer our customers a wide route network and one of the youngest fleets in the world. Millions of Chinese passengers choose our airline for affordable ticket prices, convenient transit via our hub airport Sheremetyevo and high-quality service. Further development of service on Europe-Asia transit routes – one of the most competitive aviation markets globally – is one of Aeroflot’s key goals, along with the active expansion of the domestic route network.”

Aeroflot’s convenient routes encompass four key locations in China: Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Guangzhou. Aeroflot continuously adds new services oriented at the Chinese market. Earlier Aeroflot signed a partnership agreement with Alipay, China’s most popular payment system.

Aeroflot’s official website has a Chinese-language interface. Passengers receive menus in Chinese, and the in-flight entertainment system is available in Chinese. Onboard announcements are made in Chinese and the menu offers a special Asian set.

Aeroflot consistently enjoys wide recognition and popularity among consumers in the Chinese market. In January, Aeroflot was named Best China – Europe Transit Airline at the 2019 Stars Awards in China.

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The next big thing in global tourism

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Enchanting tourist attractions, unique diplomatic stature and a thriving airliner have placed Ethiopia, Land of Origins, on top of the world when it comes to tourism growth.

According to the World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) annual review, the country saw the highest tourism growth in the world (48.6%), surpassing the global average growth rate of 3.9% and the African average of 5.6%. During the period, the sector supported 2.2 million jobs and contributed US$7.4 billion to Ethiopia’s economy, an increase of US$2.2bn on 2017.

The timeless charm of Ethiopia’s natural, cultural and historical tourist attractions has been driving an influx of tourists from far and wide. As the land where mankind, coffee and the Blue Nile trace their roots, Ethiopia has always been a fascinating destination for holidaymakers.

The country’s UNESCO-registered heritages including the majestic obelisks of Axum, the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela and the fortified historic town of Harar, among others, have always remained tourist magnets, drawing visitors in droves. And add to this the magnificent scenery and the unique wildlife riches, some of which are found in the country only.

As the Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing & Exhibitions (MICE) tourism blossoms around the world, Ethiopia is also uniquely positioned to reap the benefits, owing to its unique place in Africa’s diplomatic landscape. Ethiopia today the city stands among the top capitals in the world, hosting major regional and global conferences.

As the main hub of the Pan-African carrier, Ethiopian Airlines, Ethiopia also enjoys convenient air connectivity with multiple destinations in Africa and the rest of the world, making travel to the country easier than ever before. The connectivity options the airline offers to travelers has made Ethiopia ever more accessible to the whole world, and has facilitated the influx of tourists.

The airline’s catalyst role has never been more impactful, especially in promoting tourism, as alluded to by Gloria Guevara, President & CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council concerning the exceptional growth of Ethiopia’s tourism. “Ethiopia’s Travel & Tourism boom was one of the great success stories of 2018. It has exceeded our sector’s global and regional comparisons to record the highest level of growth of any country in 2018”, Gloria Guevara notes. “This has been driven by the very strong performance of aviation in the country and the development of Addis Ababa as a dynamic and growing regional hub.” Africa’s largest carrier today spreads its wings to 120 destinations throughout the world, with half the destinations in Africa. Thanks to Addis Ababa’s strategic location at the center of the East-West lane and the ever-expanding service of Ethiopian Airlines, the city has emerged as the major gateway into Africa surpassing Dubai.

Besides its wide connectivity and multi-award winning signature services, the flag carrier’s cutting –edge technologies are adding a definite wow factor that is enabling the influx of tourists savor the beauty of the nation and designate the east Africa’s nation as a home away from home! Ethiopian Mobile App enables international travelers secure eVisa within 4 hours and elevates travelers to a high degree of personalization and end to end travel experience through mobile devices.

Global passengers can apply e-Visa and book their flights, pay online using credit or debit cards, mobile money, e- Wallet and bank transfer. They can also check-in and issue boarding pass as well as self-board. Passport and Ethiopian App suffice all the way to experience seamless travel to and from Ethiopia. The excellence of Ethiopian is also manifest in its hospitality and award winning service. The carrier has been certified by SKYTRAX as Four Star Global Airline.

As Ethiopia keeps leveraging its edge as a destination of choice for holidaymakers, and as Addis Ababa continues to augment its place as the diplomatic capital of Africa and the flourishing hub of Ethiopian Airlines, the sky will be the limit to its tourism growth in the years to come.

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United Airlines plans nonstop service between New York/Newark and Cape Town

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United Airlines today applied with the U.S. Department of Transportation for authority to begin new service between New York/Newark Liberty International Airport and Cape Town International Airport. United plans to operate nonstop three-times weekly flights to Cape Town starting in December 2019.

“We are always looking at ways to expand our industry-leading international route network to offer our customers more convenient options. We’re thrilled to announce the addition of Africa to our global route offering,” said Patrick Quayle, United’s vice president of International Network. “This new flight will provide customers with the only nonstop service between the United States and Cape Town.”

United’s nonstop service between New York/Newark and Cape Town will decrease the current travel time from New York to Cape Town by more than four hours and provide customers from more than 80 U.S. cities with easy one-stop access to Cape Town. If approved, United’s service between New York/Newark and Cape Town will be operated with Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft featuring 48 seats in United Polaris business class, 88 seats in United Economy Plus and 116 seats in United Economy.

Proposed Flight Schedule, Beginning December 15, 2019*

From To Depart Arrive Aircraft
New York/Newark Cape Town 8:30 p.m. 6:00 p.m. +1 Boeing 787-9
Cape Town New York/Newark 8:50 p.m. 5:45 a.m. +1 Boeing 787-9

*Subject to government approval

Cape Town is the oldest city in South Africa and the country’s center of trade and commerce. Located at the shore of Table Bay, the city is home to some of the most popular attractions in South Africa including Table Mountain, Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront. Travelers to South Africa often begin their African journey in Cape Town before touring the Cape Winelands, viewing the African penguins at Boulder Beach or traveling beyond Cape Town to explore South Africa’s natural beauty including its many national parks, game reserves and beautiful coastlines and beaches of the KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape provinces.

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Plane spotted in California has the size of a football field

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The world’s largest airplane made its first test flight on Saturday in California.

Stratolaunch Systems Corporation, founded by Paul G. Allen, today successfully completed the first flight of the world’s largest all-composite aircraft, the Stratolaunch. With a dual fuselage design and wingspan greater than the length of an American football field, the Stratolaunch aircraft took flight at 0658 PDT from the Mojave Air & Space Port.

Achieving a maximum speed of 189 miles per hour, the plane flew for 2.5 hours over the Mojave Desert at altitudes up to 17,000 feet. As part of the initial flight, the pilots evaluated aircraft performance and handling qualities before landing successfully back at the Mojave Air and Space Port.

“What a fantastic first flight,” said Jean Floyd, CEO of Stratolaunch. “Today’s flight furthers our mission to provide a flexible alternative to ground launched systems. We are incredibly proud of the Stratolaunch team, today’s flight crew, our partners at Northrup Grumman’s Scaled Composites and the Mojave Air and Space Port.”

The test team conducted standard aircraft testing exercises. Initial results from today’s test points include:

  • Performed a variety of flight control maneuvers to calibrate speed and test flight control systems, including roll doublets, yawing maneuvers, pushovers and pull-ups, and steady heading side slips.
  • Conducted simulated landing approach exercises at a max altitude of 15,000 feet mean sea level.

The Stratolaunch aircraft is a mobile launch platform that will enable airline-style access to space that is convenient, affordable and routine. The reinforced center wing can support multiple launch vehicles, weighing up to a total of 500,000 pounds.

“We all know Paul would have been proud to witness today’s historic achievement,” said Jody Allen, Chair of Vulcan Inc. and Trustee of the Paul G. Allen Trust. “The aircraft is a remarkable engineering achievement and we congratulate everyone involved.”

It landed safely back at the Mojave Air and Space Port as a crowd of hundreds of people cheered.



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Vietjet launches new service to Indonesia with Ho Chi Minh City-Bali route

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Vietjet today opens ticket sales for its new international route connecting the biggest city of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City with Bali (Indonesia). Vietjet is the first and only airline to operate this route, which will better link the two tourist-attraction cities to meet the increasing travel demands of local people and tourists as well as boosting the regional trade promotion and integration. Hongkognese will be more convenient to travel these two cities.

The Ho Chi Minh City– Bali route will operate five return flights per week, on every Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Sunday starting from May 29, 2019. Flying time is around 4 hours per leg. The flight departs from Ho Chi Minh City at 08:05 and arrives in Bali at 13:05. The return flight takes off from Bali at 14:05 and lands in Ho Chi Minh City at 17:05 (All in local times).

Vietjet Vice President Nguyen Thanh Son said: “Vietjet has the advantages of an expanding flight network and comfortable, friendly aviation services; therefore, I believe that the new route will not only create opportunities for people to travel by safe, civilized and modern air transport, but also connect two cities as known as two economic, cultural centers of Vietnam and Indonesia. The route will contribute to promoting tourism and economic integration in the region as well as introduce the images of Vietnam to the world.”

Bali – the popular tourist island of Indonesia and Asia is often called among travelholics as ––“Island of the Gods”, “Tropical Paradise” or “Dawn of the World”. Voted as the best tourist island in the world, Bali is a wonderful blend between the pristine, beautiful landscape with the local cultural, artistic and religious quintessence. Besides visiting Ubud Palace, discovering the famous town Bedugul with large Bratan lake, tourists can go surfing, ‘snorkeling’ diving or visiting endless terraced fields.

Vietnam, the country of thousand years of culture was always a favorite destination of many international tourists. If Hanoi capital is a representative of ancient culture, bold identity; Hue ancient capital is dreaming or Da Nang, Quang Binh are impressive wonders, Ho Chi Minh City is Vietnam’s largest economic, financial central, vibrant and modern travel destination. The culture exchange trend and retaining characteristics make image and beauty of one of the most dynamic cities of the S-shaped country.

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Nonstop between Washington Dulles and Acrra, Ghana grows on SAA

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Starting today, South African Airways (SAA) has increased its frequency on nonstop flights between Washington, D.C.-Dulles International Airport and Accra’s Kotoka International Airport to 5 days weekly.

SAA offers the only nonstop flight between Washington D.C. and Ghana and offers travelers convenient connections to and from over 100 cities across the U.S. and Canada through its Star Alliance partner, United Airlines via Washington, D.C.- Dulles.

South African Airways’ flights to Accra now operate 5 days a week with continuing service to Johannesburg, South Africa, operating on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday. SAA’s increase of flights on the route will also serve to support the partnership with Africa World Airlines by offering seamless connections between Accra and additional destinations in West Africa including; Lagos and Abuja, Nigeria; Monrovia, Liberia and Freetown, Sierra Leone. In addition, SAA will continue to operate flights between Washington D.C.-Dulles and Dakar, Senegal and onwards to Johannesburg, two days per week.

SAA’s flights between Washington-Dulles and Accra will be operated with both the Airbus A330-300 and the Airbus A330-200 aircraft. The A330-300 features 46 full-flat 180° beds with direct aisle access at every seat in Premium Business Class and 203 seats in Economy Class. The A330- 200 offers 36 full-flat beds in Premium Business Class and 186 seats in Economy Class. Customers traveling in both Premium Business Class and Economy Class will have on-demand audio and visual entertainment options, in-seat power ports, freshly-prepared meals, and complimentary bar service featuring South African wines.

For information, visit flysaa.com.

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Munich to Osaka now nonstop on Lufthansa

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Lufthansa launched a new service from Munich to Osaka on March 31 using an A350 aircraft. Along with the established flights operated by Lufthansa and All Nippon Airways to Tokyo, Munich Airport is now offering a second Japanese destination for the first time. With three daily connections, Munich Airport now ranks fifth in Europe in terms of flights to and from Japan.

From Europe, Japan’s third-largest city can be reached non-stop only from Amsterdam, Helsinki, London-Heathrow, Paris Charles-de-Gaulle and now Munich. Japan is one of the most important destinations in Asia – as demonstrated by the rising passenger figures. In 2018 a total of 200,000 passengers traveled in each direction between Munich and Japan.

Asian routes are the main source of growth in intercontinental traffic in the summer of 2019. “We believe that Munich Airport will establish itself as a convenient hub for travel to Asia in the coming years and see strong potential for further growth in this market segment,” says Oliver Dersch, Munich Airport’s Vice President for Traffic Development.

Lufthansa is also adding a daily connection to Bangkok starting in June 2019, complementing the existing service operated by Thai Airways. Moreover, Lufthansa is bumping up the frequency of its flights to Seoul from 6/7 to 7/7. From June onward, Lufthansa will increase its service to Singapore from five flights a week to a daily connection.

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How fast things can get lost… and found again at Frankfurt Airport

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New online search function speeds up processes in the Lost & Found Office at Frankfurt Airport

Fiddlesticks! The family has just settled into their seats in the plane and are full of excitement about their holiday. When suddenly the youngest child cries, “my teddy bear is gone!” Now what? It’s a shame that she’ll have to do without her favorite cuddly animal during the trip. But it would at least be great to know that it will be in safe hands in Frankfurt Airport’s lost & found office until they return―it would be a huge relief, in fact.

But how can they find out? Fortunately, it has just become considerably easier for the owners of missing objects to report their losses to the lost & found office online―any time of the day or night. With luck, the lost item will already be in the database. A new system now automatically compares search requests and returned items, identifies matches, and notifies owners as soon as their missing property turns up.

In the search portal on the airport website, it is possible to specify attributes such as the item’s brand, color, size, unique inscriptions etc. and when and where it was lost. A photograph of it can even be uploaded. “The new system greatly facilitates our work,” says Rike Krüger of the lost & found office at Frankfurt Airport. Passengers can easily select search parameters themselves. In the past, it was necessary for airport employees to laboriously copy this information from emails or faxes or call owners to ask for details. Especially on busy days, this can take awhile. “Travelers now enjoy an improved service. They can actively support the search process themselves and no longer have to constantly worry during their trip, hoping against hope that we will have found their property by the time they return,” adds Krüger. “We can now let them know right away as soon as their lost smartphone, backpack, umbrella, saxophone or whatever appears in our system.” The image analysis function will also be improved even further very soon; the software will then be able to automatically identify and correlate more attributes of missing objects. This will make it faster and more convenient both to submit search requests and to identify found items.

Once it’s clear that the lost & found office has a missing object, its owner has various options for recovering their property. They can of course personally retrieve it from the lost & found office right after returning, or else authorize someone else to do it for them. For a small fee and the cost of postage, the staff of the lost & found office will also send items to anywhere in the world.

Good to know

The Lost & Found Office at Frankfurt Airport is a service of Fraport, the airport’s operator. Its 10 employees deal with up to 70 returned items and 50 search requests a day. Currently about 10,000 objects are stored in the lost & found office in Terminal 1 located at the entrance to the Airport city Mall on Level 0. They range from items such as jewelry and electrical appliances, across clothing and accessories, toys and travel bags, all the way to curiosities such chainsaws, wheelchairs and microwave ovens. They are kept for three months and then auctioned off if they haven’t been claimed by that time. The proceeds are kept for three years, just in case owners make themselves known by then. The lost & found office is open to the public every day between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Passengers and visitors can find more information on the lost & found office and many other services on Frankfurt Airport’s website, Service Shop, or Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube social media pages.

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What is the discussion at the UNWTO / ICAO Ministerial Conference on Tourism and Air Transport?

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A Panel discussion is ongoing and a packed program are planned today for delegates in Sai Island, Cabo Verde attending the First UNWTO/ ICAO Ministerial Conference Tourism and Air Transport.

Air Transport and Tourism Policies: Regulatory convergence to maximize and balance their benefits

Air Transport and tourism depend heavily on each other and are essential engines of trade and economic growth for both developed and developing countries.

Despite the synergies, there can be conflicts between aviation and tourism policies due to the difficulties of States in balancing the interests of their airlines and the optimum development of their tourism industries. Separate sectorial policies result in a fundamental disconnect, which constitutes a severe deterrent towards the development of both sectors. How do we enhance policy coherence between the two sectors, harmonize the regulatory frameworks, and prevent separate sectoral policies? How can we strike a balance to maximize the overall benefits of tourism and air transport in the national economy?

What is the current status of Africa’s regulatory framework and what is its impact on tourism and air transport (the Lomé Declaration and the related Action plans both for Air Transport and for Tourism?

How can Africa benefit from and implement the joint UNWTO and ICAO Medellín Statement on Tourism and Air Transport for Development? How can the African Governments promote cooperation and compatible decision-making among transport and tourism authorities and other ministries in charge of related portfolios, including finance, economic planning, energy, environment and trade?

What are the challenges encountered by tourism stakeholders in reflecting tourism business interests in national and regional air transport policies?

Connectivity and Seamless Travel: Best practices to serve tourists and passengers

Aviation and tourism are a customer-focused economic sector.

While there is no single definition of air connectivity, it can be viewed as the ability of a network to move passengers involving the minimum of transit points, which makes the trip as short as possible with optimal passenger satisfaction at the minimum price possible. The realization of seamless travel can improve overall travel experience, which in turn fuels tourism demand.

With the recent launching of the Single Africa Air Transport Market (SAATM), open skies over Africa may soon be a reality, building the necessary regulatory framework to increase international intra-Africa travel.

How do we optimize the flow of passenger traffic through the air transport system? How can we generate sufficient demand for direct air services between African sub-regions, especially between the East-West coasts?

How well do current air service agreements (ASAs) contribute to connectivity and what are the prospects of air transport liberalization? What constitute the bottlenecks and slowdowns of seamless travel in the air transport system? What regulatory schemes can be used or developed to assure essential air services to Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS)?

What are the existing best practices and how could they be extended and adapted to other regions? What are the factors influencing airline choices for different market segments (the intercultural dimension)?

Funding and Financing for Development: Pragmatic measures to build a transparent, stable and predictable investment climate

Infrastructure deficiencies in the aviation and tourism sectors have long been an issue in Africa. While plans are in place to develop and modernize aviation infrastructure, relief is years away at best.

In the meantime, there will be lost opportunities for creating jobs and spurring economic growth. Another issue is the proliferation of taxes on tourism and air transport despite the fact that the industry recovers a vast majority of its own infrastructure costs through payments of user charges, rather than being financed through taxation.

Revenue raised by taxes can often be outweighed by the relinquished economic benefits as a result of dampened demand for air travel.

This Session will focus on

a) the creation of good governance and enabling the environment to build business confidence and encourage investments, and

b) the consolidation of planning and development efforts for aviation and tourism infrastructure in multi-modal and urban planning initiatives. What are the challenges of financing development projects related to the tourism and air transport sectors, particularly in LDCs, LLDCs, and SIDS?

What are the success stories in financing tourism and air transport projects? How do consumers perceive taxes, charges, and others levies and how to ensure transparency of taxes and charges to passengers and tourists?

Why is the limited volume of international public finance and assistance for development currently available for aviation and tourism infrastructure projects?

Travel Facilitation: Advancing visa facilitation in supporting economic growth 

Travel facilitation aims at maximizing the efficiency of border clearance formalities while achieving and maintaining high-quality security and effective law enforcement. Allowing passengers/tourists to cross international borders safely and efficiently contributes significantly to stimulating demand, enhancing the competitiveness of States, creating jobs and fostering international understanding.

In spite of the great strides made in recent decades in facilitating tourist travel in Africa, there is still room for considerable progress. For example, electronic visa processes and delivery could make travel more accessible, convenient, and more efficient without a diminution of national security.

States should also look into increasing cooperation on bilateral, regional and international travel facilitation regimes. How can new technologies be used to make travel more accessible, convenient and efficient? How to define and implement policies which facilitate international travel and tourism while ensuring the security and integrity of traveler identification and border controls?

How well do e-passports, e-visas and other documentation deal with emergent threats to security? How could the African States learn from other effective best practices?

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