Air New Zealand will launch two new routes across the Tasman from December this year and add an extra 15% seat capacity across all its Tasman services year on year.

Singapore Airlines has unveiled the next generation of regional cabin products for its new Boeing 787-10 fleet, which it says will “redefine travel on flights up to eight hours”.

Boeing can be excused for breaking out the Champagne after beating Airbus to supply 47 new 787 Dreamliner aircraft to American Airlines, following a tight contest with European rival Airbus, which had been pushing its latest models.

“This was a difficult decision between the Boeing 787 and the Airbus A350 and A330neo,” American Airlines president Robert Isom said in a statement. Isom thanked both manufacturers “for their aggressive efforts to earn more of American’s business”, explaining that “in the end, our goal to simplify our fleet made the 787 a more compelling choice.”

The decision comes as a double-blow to Airbus, as Hawaiian Airlines recently dropped an order for six A330neos in favour of the B787 Dreamliner.

American Airlines’ decision will more than double its B787 Dreamliner fleet. The new order for 47 B787s includes 28 options. The 47 Dreamliners are valued at more than USD 12 billion at list prices, making American Airlines the largest B787 customer. American Airlines is already the largest airline in the world. The world’s biggest B787 Dreamliner customer currently is Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA).

American earlier ordered 42 B787 Dreamliners and has been using them to open new routes around the world, including Asia Pacific and Europe.

“We are extremely honoured that American Airlines, is deepening its commitment to the 787 Dreamliner. This new order is a powerful endorsement of the 787 family’s unique passenger appeal and unmatched ability to help airlines open new routes and grow profitably,” said Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and chief executive Kevin McAllister.

Built with lightweight composite materials and powered by advanced engines, the B787-8 Dreamliner can fly 242 passengers up to 7355 nautical miles (13,620 km) in a typical two-class configuration. The B787-9, a stretch of the 787-8, can fly 290 passengers up to 7635 nautical miles (14,140 km).

|   Written by Peter Needham for GlobalTravelMedia |  ||  April 09, 2018   |||

For $9.5 million — including an $80,000 upfront deposit — space tourists would be able to float in zero gravity, grow food to take home as a souvenir and see 16 sunrises and sunsets every 24 hours aboard a modular space station that was announced Thursday during a California space summit. The first trip could come in just four years.

Geneva - The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has launched a new standardized global certification program to improve the safety and welfare of animals travelling by air. The Center of Excellence for Independent Validators for Live Animals Logistics (CEIV Live Animals) provides stakeholders across the air cargo supply chain with the assurance that CEIV Live Animals certified companies are operating to the highest standards in the transport of live animals.

As more middle-class people purchase vehicles, cities like Dhaka, Kathmandu, and Manila are getting stuck in ever worsening gridlock. This rickshaw is designed to modernize the more sustainable transportation option.

Tag flights — when an airline lands in one international city and then almost immediately takes off for another — are disappearing from aviation as more airlines launch ultra-long-haul nonstops that make the stop unnecessary. But Qantas will probably keep its Los Angeles-New York nonstop for awhile.

As legacy airlines seek to compete with scrappy, low-cost competitors across the Atlantic, some are ending a traditional perk on their cheapest tickets — free checked luggage.

At 8.31am, the first commercial Eurostar train from London to Amsterdam departed from St Pancras station.

Passengers on the maiden journey had paid as little as £35 one way for the 3 hour, 41 minute journey via Brussels and Rotterdam, though late bookers had only the option of Business Premier at £260.

Lufthansa and SWISS will be the first partner airlines to participate in the Singapore Airlines HighFlyer Programme. With effect from 2 April 2018, businesses that are members of the Singapore Airlines HighFlyer programme in Singapore and Australia can earn HighFlyer points when flying on Lufthansa and SWISS operated flights ticketed by Singapore Airlines on eligible sectors.