Aviation.


Martin Banks has been a journalist for over 40 years, working in Brussels since 2001 where he has covered EU politics, initially for European Voice and more recently for The Parliament Magazine plus a raft of other titles. He also writes about other topics including culture and travel. Prior to coming to Belgium he had worked in regional (including a 6 year stint as Chief Reporter for the 2nd biggest selling regional in the UK) and national journalism in the UK since 1980.

24 September 2020

“The crisis is an opportunity to foster a more resilient industry” says Emirates’ Jean-Pierre Martin

Jean-Pierre Martin, General manager Emirates Belgium and Luxembourg, communicated with the European press and stated that Emirates’ approach was based on a three-pronged plan of action. […]
23 September 2020

IATA proposes mandatory Covid-19 test before departure

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) called for the development of rapid, accurate and affordable COVID-19 testing for all passengers before boarding a plane as an […]
16 September 2020

Airlines for Europe issues an urgent call for an EU-wide common approach to travel restrictions

Airlines for Europe (A4E), Europe’s largest airline association, is urging EU leaders to adopt a common approach to travel restrictions. The goal would be to better […]
14 September 2020

TAP Air Portugal announces new routes for the 2021 summer

For the summer of 2021, TAP Portugal aims to launch six new routes for the summer of 2021: Ibiza and Fuerteventura, in Spain; Oujda, in Morocco; […]
10 September 2020

Eurowings introduces “temperature discount” on all Italy destinations

German vacation airline Eurowings has launched a campaigned called “temperature discount” where the discount is calculated based on the monthly average temperature of the destination. The […]
9 September 2020

airBaltic resumes flights to 9 European cities

On Monday, September 7th, airBaltic announced that it was resuming flights between Riga and nine additional destinations. In total, airBaltic now connects Riga with 35 destinations […]
8 September 2020

Emirates completes 1.4 billion refunds requests

Since March, Emirates has returned more than AED 5 billion (US$ 1.4 billion, € 1.2 billion) in Covid-19 travel refunds. This number accounts for 90% of […]
4 September 2020

Ryanair traffic falls 53% to 7 million passengers in August

Travel restrictions continue to be updated week by week. Civil aviation across the world keep struggling to have the same number of passengers they once did. […]
28 August 2020

Brussels Airlines restricts
exemption from masks

Belgian company Brussels Airlines has recently adapted its general Conditions of Carriage. The airline has decided to restrict the exemption from the obligation to wear a […]
26 August 2020

Virgin Atlantic offers free Covid-19
insurance for all bookings

Virgin Atlantic has introduced a Covid-19 insurance coverage which applies automatically to all existing and new bookings, starting from 24 August 2020 until 31 March 2021. […]
23 August 2020

European Commission approves €290 million Belgian support to Brussels Airlines in the context of the Covid-19 outbreak

The European Commission has approved a €290 million Belgian aid measure to support SN Group, which is composed of SN Airholding and its sole subsidiary Brussels […]
20 August 2020

Eurowings launches free
middle seat bookable from €18

German airline Eurowings offers new innovative services and products in response of the constantly changing aviation sector and consumers’ needs. For instance, Eurowings is the first […]
20 August 2020

European Commission approves €133 million liquidity support to SATA airline

The European Commission has approved €133 million support to SATA Air Açores. This aid will help the airline to fulfil its public service obligations and ensure […]
17 August 2020

Cathay Pacific Group: less 98.7% of traffic in July 2020

The Cathay Pacific Group released its traffic figures for July 2020. The data reflect the substantial capacity reductions caused by a sharp decrease of the demand, […]
17 August 2020

Middle East: Aviation sector
on its knees due to Covid-19

According to new data released by IATA, the impact of the lockdown imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic on the Middle East aviation sector and economies has […]
13 August 2020

Covid-19 testing soon possible at Brussels Airport in mobile lab

There will be a mobile lab at Brussels Airport where passengers can get tested on Covid-19. This will enable passengers returning from a red zone to […]