News from the sky: Aeroflot, Oman Air, Emirates, Icelandair, Hainan Airlines, Aegean Airlines, Aer Lingus, Ewa Air, etc….

Aer Lingus strengthens Ireland from Nice this summer. Operating a daily flight between Nice and Dublin, Aer Lingus will operate a route to Cork from 17 April next at a rate of 2 flights per week (Wednesday / Sunday).

EWA Air renews its fleet and welcomes 2 new ATRs. The purchase of two ATR 72-600s was validated at the ATR manufacturer’s headquarters in Toulouse on Friday 28 December last, in the presence of Marie Joseph Malé, Chairman and CEO of Air Austral and President of Ewa Air, and Ayub Ingar, Deputy CEO of Ewa Air. The two ATRs are resuming Ewa Air’s initial flight schedule this week. The first aircraft, F-OJZA, made its very first commercial flight on Wednesday, January 2, 2018 on the Mayotte – Diego – Nosy Be route. The second, F-OJMZ, will travel its first passengers on Friday 4 January between Mayotte and Majunga in Madagascar.

Oman Air extends the Maldives until 28 April 2019.

Air Mauritius is expected to join forces with South African Airways (SAA), RwandAir and Kenya Airways probably by March 2019. In the form of a joint venture, this should enable Air Mauritius to reduce its costs while expanding its air network and exploring other routes.

Served in winter by Aeroflot on Moscow Sheremetyevo at the rate of 9 flights per week (16 in summer) and Moscow Vnukovo (daily in summer) the company S7 airlines announces that it will operate 3 flights per week during the winter of 2019 between Nice and Moscow Domodedovo. This is the consequence of the agreement concluded in autumn 2018 by the authorities and representatives of various French and Russian airlines. The number of companies able to operate on the Moscow – Nice and St Petersburg – Nice routes will be reduced to three and two respectively, which will lead to increased competition for this offer. Air traffic between Nice and Moscow is currently estimated at more than 130,000 passengers per year. According to the CRT Côte d’Azur Russian market ranks 10th among foreigners. Its contribution to foreign visitors is currently over 5% of overnight stays. S7 Airlines is Russia’s third airline founded in May 1992 in Ob, a town near Novosibirsk. A member of the Oneworld alliance since 2010, it serves more than 80 destinations in 20 countries.

Emirates has just announced the return of My Emirates Pass, a seasonal card that allows customers to take advantage of discounts and exclusive offers at more than 500 points of sale in the United Arab Emirates. From January 1 to March 31, 2019, Emirates passengers will be able to enjoy the privileges of My Emirates Pass with the offer partners upon presentation of their boarding pass and a valid ID. They will be able to access a range of promotions: up to 30% discount on spa treatments; up to 50% discount on outdoor activities such as water sports and access to night golf courses; up to 50% discount in several gourmet restaurants and up to 30% discount in the largest department stores.

The Greek airline Aegean Airlines has announced the launch of a promotional campaign at a reduced price from eleven French airports. To benefit from discounts of up to 40%, you must book the flight before January 12, 2019 for travel between March 1 and October 26, 2019.

Star Alliance and Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Co. Ltd (CAN) have agreed to allocate space for the construction of a Star Alliance branded lounge at the airport. A memorandum of understanding to this effect was signed by Jeffrey Goh, CEO of Star Alliance and Qiu Jiachen, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport. This is an important milestone for Star Alliance and Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, as it is the basis for the development of common check-in and boarding facilities, services for connecting passengers and Star Alliance lounge at Terminal 1 for the ten Alliance member carriers serving this dynamic market. Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport will thus become an Alliance hub in the People’s Republic of China.

Building on the success of its previous editions, the airline Korean Air will relaunch its breakfasts in 2019 in collaboration with the Korean Tourist Office for travel agents specialising in the destination. These sessions take place on a quarterly basis and the next one is already announced in February – date to be specified. In Korean Air’s offices, about ten professionals meet in the early morning to discover South Korea and Korean Air through short and dynamic presentations.

Icelandair presents a new beer on board, inspired by Iceland’s unique winter light. An opportunity for passengers to celebrate this special season during their flight. Named after the reflections of Icelandic snow -Snæbjört (snie-bioert) – is in itself a reference to the Icelandic Winter. With its light golden colour, it is intended to celebrate this season of full snow in Iceland and the few rays of sunshine that manage to take over the long night of Iceland’s winters. Brewed with American hops Azacca, Mosaic and El Dorado as well as American Ale yeast, this beer offers Icelandair passengers its fruity taste with delicate pineapple, mango and passion fruit aromas. Produced by the iconic Irish brewery Boyne, Icelandair’s new beer brings passengers the best of traditional beer with this original recipe. It also has an alcohol content of 5%, a nice nod to the average Icelandic temperature.

On December 20th, Hainan Airlines announced the official launch of the Shenzhen-Paris flight. The airline will operate a Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the new route, with two round trips per week. Hainan Airlines flight HU757, the first flight of the company’s new Shenzhen-Paris route, will depart Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport at 1:15 a.m. Beijing time on December 21 and land at Zurich Airport the same day at 7:15 a.m. local time.