Lithium batteries are everywhere. They are in our mobile phones and laptop computers; they power industrial equipment and mobility aids; they power temperature logging devices for our medicines and much more. But did you know that lithium batteries, this common-place power source, are also considered dangerous goods?

Because they meet the definition of a dangerous good in transport, there are Regulations to follow, even for passenger travel. The result of these Regulations is that many shippers of every day consumer products are unaware of the risks involved, not to mention the confusion for passengers travelling by air. Our members have asked us, through the Dangerous Goods Board and Dangerous Goods Training Task Force, to assist them in their ongoing safety awareness.

Multifaceted approach

The members of the dangerous goods board and users of the dangerous goods regulations had asked IATA for some guidance on lithium batteries. In response we developed, in conjunction with ICAO and member States, the lithium battery guidance document, now in its 3rd version.

In addition to this information, interested parties expressed a desire to have information targeted to specific workgroups.

• Warehouse personnel will benefit from an awareness poster, providing information to ensure employees are made aware of the items that may contain lithium batteries and the markings that may appear on packages.
• Shipper’s will benefit from a newly developed “Guidelines for Shipping Lithium Batteries by Air” booklet, which contains examples of properly completed packages and documentation along with a quick, on the job check sheet for Shipper’s of certain, smaller, lithium batteries.
• Finally airline passengers will benefit from a two-page CD wallet sized pamphlet, which contains information on what limits exist for their consumer goods in their baggage (number of spares, limits on power in checked, carry-on and on one’s person).

With all this information available, we want to ensure that people with questions always get the right answer. The response to this approach has been favorable and we continue to reach a wider audience with regard to the Dangerous Goods Regulations and specifically the risks and requirements regarding lithium batteries.

More information on the transport of lithium batteries

What you need to know about lithium batteries is a post from: Aviation news - Planegrazy

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Frankfurt Airport (FRA) is offering an additional 27 hectares of development land at CargoCity South. Fraport AG – the owner and manager of FRA – has issued a worldwide “Call for Expression of Interest” inviting the logistics industry to specify its locational and space requirements.

“Airfreight is booming due to the increasing integration of the German economy and the international division of labor. At the same time, global supply chains are becoming increasingly complex and requirements for efficient and expeditious cargo handling are rising rapidly. Therefore, we want to gear our offer of sites optimally to market demand,” said Herbert Mai, Fraport’s executive board member responsible for real estate. The call for expression of interest is amenable and transparent to meet the most diverse demands.

Project planning for approximately 30,000 square meters of hall space – about one third of the new development area – will be implemented in the first phase. The construction sites offer maximum variability in terms of size and shape, allowing freight halls from 3,000 to 25,000 square meters to be planned, explained Mai.

The new CargoCity South expansion area is as large as about 35 football fields and can accommodate logistics buildings with a total hall space of approximately 100,000 square meters. Furthermore, this area will provide sufficient office and parking space.

“Development of Frankfurt Airport’s CargoCity South is an unparalleled success story. Without efficient logistics infrastructure Germany’s export-driven economic upswing would be impossible. Therefore, we are optimistic that demand for logistics space at Frankfurt Airport will further intensify,” emphasized Mai. The first third of the new cargo area will come on stream between 2013 and 2014.

More information about Fraport’s Call for Expression of Interest at CargoCity South is available via: http://www.cargocity.frankfurt-airport.com

Frankfurt Airport Expands Cargo Hub is a post from: Aviation news - Planegrazy

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AirTran Airways and the city of Atlanta today announced the completion of a seven-year master lease agreement for facilities at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Specific terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“Finalizing our long-term lease with the city of Atlanta brings economic certainty to the airline and sets the platform for future growth,” said Bob Fornaro, AirTran Airways’ chairman, president and chief executive officer. “This agreement is good for the city, AirTran Airways and fans of low fares around the nation.”

The carrier is the second largest airline at the world’s busiest airport serving dozens of destinations around the country and throughout the Caribbean.

“AirTran Airways plays an important role at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport for the residents, business leaders and visitors to our City,” said Mayor Kasim Reed. “In addition, AirTran is deeply involved in the community. This agreement between the City of Atlanta and AirTran Airways is a strong example of how a robust public/private partnership can spur economic growth and prosperity for the Atlanta region.”

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Delta Air Lines  today filed applications with the European Commission and the U.S. Department of Transportation requesting permission to operate twice-daily year-round service between London’s Heathrow Airport and Boston, and daily year-round service between Heathrow and Miami.

The oneworld alliance, which includes American Airlines and British Airways, holds 47 percent of Heathrow’s takeoff and landing slots, while the Star Alliance, which includes United Airlines, US Airways, BMI and Lufthansa, accounts for 25 percent of Heathrow’s slots.

SkyTeam, whose members include Delta, Air France-KLM and Alitalia, holds only 5 percent of Heathrow’s slots.

Sounds to me like Delta is growing up from the sandbox and don’t know should they keep their Pampers on or off. Would be interesting to compare how much slots they have for example in Chigago, and BA is not sueing them from those slots.

Delta Air Lines Moves to Expand Competition at London’s Heathrow Airport is a post from: Aviation news - Planegrazy

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From a novice point of view, the history of the Irish budget airline is one of the greatest business success stories among the European airline industry. It is true that when you look at Ryanair’s expansion, you could not deny this fact. No other airline expanded so quickly in Europe – it is now hauling around 70M passengers across the continent. From the financial market’s point of view, Ryanair has a solid business model, one of the few able to turn a profit even throughout one of the hardest economic recessions. From the passenger’s point of view, it’s another story. Ryanair is the epitome of the “you get what you pay for” airline.

I’m glad to now have the opportunity to present Ryanair’s business model under a new light to Plane Grazy’s readers.

After covering Ryanair news and the evolution of its strategy for over a year, I’d now like to encourage you to take another look at Ryanair business model. My discovery is related to what Ryanair calls “marketing support”, which is actually the public money that has kept the company on track for the past 10 years. In most of analyses you’ve probably read, whether it be by journalists, bloggers, or even sometimes experts, there never was the mention of the importance of one fundamental element in Ryanair’s business model: the importance of subsidies.

Questionable Subsidies: Ryanair’s Backbone

If subsidies are so important, it is because they represent a very significant part of Ryanair’s revenues. One could say that subsidies are not illegal, and that most European airlines receive some. However, the fundamental difference between Ryanair and any other legacy airline is that Ryanair’s subsidies are more than questionable.In Europe, to legally receive public money, three conditions must be met.

1/ The company must declare all public aids to the European Commission. It’s a fact that Ryanair and its partners have never declared any of their grants. All regional chamber reports point this out.

2/ Subsidies have to be strictly limited to 3 years (5 years in special cases). Once more, Ryanair’s practices are illegal. The first contract between the French regional airport of Beauvais and Ryanair was signed in the very late 90’s. Ryanair has been operating out of Beauvais since 1997, which means that Ryanair’s been “subsidized” for 13 years now!

3/ Lastly, subsidies have to be regressive, which means that each year, the amount has to be significantly lower than the previous one. Here again, is a rule that Ryanair and its “partners” have never respected.

While Ryanair declared €663m of ancillary revenues in its last annual report in 2009, Ryanair earned more than €664m in subsidies the same year. It means that subsidies are at least as important as ancillary revenues and represent around 22% of Ryanair’s revenues.

In France for instance, French Regional Audit Courts have conducted investigations, which revealed that a total of 25 airports have signed unlawful agreements with Ryanair for an amount estimated around €35m. But Ryanair not only receives subsidies from French public authorities. Ryanair receives public money from almost every airport across Europe it operates from. Moreover, 7 investigations are currently underway over Ryanair’s European subsidies; it’s now legitimate to formulate serious doubts about the strength of Ryanair’s business model, but also about its sustainability. What if Ryanair’s subsidies were not legal? What if 22% of Ryanair’s revenues were based on illegal processes and undeclared public money?

Until now, subsidies have allowed Ryanair to withhold a strategic advantage over other airlines. But in the close future, Ryanair could meet difficulties. In fact, in France, Spain, and Italy several investigation have already begun.

This article is based on the e-note Ryanair Business Model Under a New light

Ryanair: How the Irish airline backed by public money conquered Europe is a post from: Aviation news - Planegrazy

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The International Air Transport Association (IATA) today outlined an agenda for Australian aviation that addresses infrastructure, training, environment and liberalization.

“Aviation contributes 500,000 jobs and A$6.3 billion to the Australian economy. It is critical that the next Australian government has a solid aviation policy to reap the broad economic benefits that aviation can generate,” said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA’s Director General and CEO in an address to the Australian National Aviation Press Club.

“Australia’s regional neighbors—India and China—are engines of growth, helping Asia-Pacific’s carriers to lead the industry’s recovery from the global financial crisis. With a coordinated national policy that builds on the key elements of last year’s National Aviation White Paper, much can be achieved,” said Bisignani.

Bisignani singled out infrastructure, training, environment and liberalization as priorities for the next Australian government:

• Sydney Airport costs: Since 2000, Sydney airport went from being the 34th most costly airport in the world to the ninth in 2009. That same year, the airport reported an EBITDA margin of 82%, even as the world’s airlines lost US$10 billion. “We need profitable airport partners. However, they must be effectively regulated so that they do not abuse their monopolistic position. The Productivity Commission’s review of Sydney Airport charges is an opportunity to re-balance the situation to deliver higher quality with greater cost efficiency,” said Bisignani.
• New Sydney Airport: “We have had over 50 years of studies on a new airport for Sydney. Whether you believe Sydney Airport will run out of capacity in 10 years or 20 years, a decision is now critical. Even 20 years is a tight timeline to build a new airport and the infrastructure to connect it to the central business district. Already 6% of the New South Wales economic activity is connected to the airport. We need a decision on a plan to maximize the capabilities of the current airport and to determine a location and timeline for the new airport. It is essential to ensure that the airport has the capacity to continue to effectively play its important role in the economy,” said Bisignani.
• Air Navigation: Bisignani noted that Eagle Award-winning Airservices Australia (ASA) has raised high industry expectations with their past success in pioneering the introduction of new air navigation technologies and the five-year pricing plan for 2005-2009. Both were done in close consultation with the industry. Bisignani challenged ASA to continue raising the bar by taking the same approach with new capital expenditure projects and the next long-term pricing agreement. “The 2005-2009 pricing agreement sets a new industry benchmark. The next agreement must be equally significant and should include three key elements: (1) cost reductions to airlines made possible by ASA’s successful management through the crisis; (2) an agreed capital expenditure program and (3) an approach to regional operations in line with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) principle of equality of opportunity and without international airlines subsidizing regional operations,” said Bisignani.
• Training: Bisignani encouraged Australia to enhance its leading role in providing training to support Pacific Island nations, India and China. “To maximize the economic benefits of these opportunities, Australia needs better coordination on strategy and standards.  For this, government and industry must be on the same page,” said Bisignani.
• Environment: The White Paper supported a global solution to environment coordinated through ICAO. “Australia is facing a difficult debate on the issue of emissions trading and carbon taxes. The industry is committed to cap emissions with carbon-neutral growth from 2020 and to cut them in half by 2050 compared to 2005 levels.  But Canberra must remember that aviation is a global industry. Domestic or regional solutions for aviation and climate change cannot deliver effective results. In line with the White Paper, Australia must take a leading role to ensure that aviation emissions are managed on a level playing field in a global framework under ICAO,” said Bisignani.
• Liberalization: Bisignani encouraged Australia to remove outdated ownership restrictions for international aviation. “Historically, airlines have profit margins of less than 1%, that is not sustainable. To fix this, we need to run this business like a normal business. Australia is a leader in aviation liberalization. The open aviation area with New Zealand has achieved what the US and Europe could not in their open skies discussions. And the removal ownership restrictions for domestic Australian operations benefited consumers with greater choice and lower prices. These results make the 49% foreign ownership cap for international operators very difficult to understand,” said Bisignani.

“No country knows better the importance of global linkages than Australia. Aviation has played a key role in linking this vast continent internally and to the rest of the world. This agenda for aviation will build a more competitive platform for aviation to deliver even greater benefits to the Australian economy and secure an even more important regional and global leadership role in driving the industry forward,” said Bisignani.

Agenda to Strengthen Australian Aviation is a post from: Aviation news - Planegrazy

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Aviation community is so great and also a bit fun to follow, reporters are very professionals and helpful to all people who are interested to know something about aviation. I also have this website only for the people who want’s to know the latest news from aviation industry, is it from the simulation genre or traveling, they still want to read about it, and that’s where we come to the sandbox.

Now I also want to give back to this great community. I’m offering free advertising space for one month to the relevant website. If you run aviation related website and want your ad to show up here, just contact me via contact page (upper part of this page). I ask nothing back, no money, no link exchange, just happy atmosphere 

Only restriction is that the ad should be 125px*125px so that fits to the sidebar. Nothing more.

Free advertising right here in Planegrazy.com is a post from: Aviation news - Planegrazy

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3. Top 2 offers for Planegrazy readers. No money involved ;)

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