Airline, Organisations & Operators,

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) welcomed progress by states towards a long-term aspirational goal (LTAG) of net-zero aviation carbon emissions by 2050 in line with the Paris Agreement’s temperature objectives. This is noted in the summary of discussions for the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) High Level Meeting held in preparation for the 41st ICAO Assembly later this year.
“The ICAO High Level Meeting’s support of a long term goal for states that is in line with the aviation sector’s net-zero by 2050 commitment is a step in the right direction. A formal agreement at the 41st ICAO Assembly would underpin a common approach by states to decarbonize aviation. That’s critical for the aviation industry. Knowing that government policies will support the same goal and timeline globally will enable the sector, especially its suppliers, to make the needed investments to decarbonize,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
In October 2021, IATA member airlines committed to net zero emissions by 2050. The path to achieve this will involve a combination of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), new propulsion technology, infrastructure and operational efficiencies, and carbon offsets/carbon capture to fill any gaps.
“Net zero by 2050 will require a global transition for aviation to new fuels, technologies and operations. The significant investments to get there will need a solid policy foundation aligned with a global way forward. That is why it is so important for states to carry the momentum of the High Level Meeting through to a formal agreement at the 41st ICAO Assembly in a few weeks,” said Walsh.

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Passengers travelling through Gatwick this summer will be able to take advantage of a number of special offers, competitions and seasonal drink choices, as part of the airport’s new campaign – ‘Explore Like Never Before’.
The campaign, which officially launched this week, includes special offers on World Duty Free products, such as up to 50% off selected spirits, and savings on this season’s top fragrances with the Reserve & Collect service.
Wetherspoons, in both the North and South Terminals, are selling a special guest ale – ‘Summer Sun’ – a pale, hoppy beer produced by Twickenham Brewery, while Juniper & Co. in the North Terminal has launched a range of five summer cocktails exclusive to Gatwick, including a non-alcoholic option.
As passengers await their flight, they will also be able to enjoy in-terminal activities, including a tombola with a range of prizes to be won, or grab a pre-holiday photo in one of Gatwick’s giant deckchairs.
Families may even get to meet the airport’s new mascot, Gary Gatwick, who made his first public appearances in the terminals yesterday.ADVERTISEMENTAirlines are getting in on the summer fun too, with Wizz Air running a competition with a chance to win a £500 flight voucher, while passengers can also win a family bundle which includes sun care from Boots, WHSmith children’s toys and books, Shake Shack and Wagamama vouchers and Gatwick shopping vouchers.
Nick Williams, Head of Retail Operations, Gatwick Airport said: “With a busy summer holiday period expected – the first since 2019 with unrestricted travel – it’s fantastic that so many of our retailers and restaurants at Gatwick are able to help our passengers celebrate, with some great offers and exclusive products available.
“We know there have been some challenges with travel recently and while our teams are working incredibly hard to ensure passengers get away on their holidays with ease, we are excited that once people reach the departure lounge, we have plenty here to help families relax and get their holidays off to a great start.”
Earlier this month, Gatwick announced the opening of two new LEGO stores (North and South Terminals) and a Kidstop pop-up (North Terminal), as well as the return of Itsu and Ted Baker in the South Terminal.
For those not flying over the summer, there will be further opportunities to meet Gary Gatwick and take a photograph in one of the giant deckchairs, with Gatwick sponsoring Crawley Pride, taking place at Goffs Park between 19 – 21 August.

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“We welcome the Irish Commission for Aviation Regulation (CAR) decision to push back on Dublin Airport’s proposed outrageous average 68% price increase. But even under the regulator’s revised proposal, the average price cap is still some 11% above 2022 levels. With strong demand for air travel now back, IATA is predicting traffic to and from Ireland to recover in 2023, well ahead of CAR’s prediction, which could allow for the charges increase to be cut further over the period to 2026.
There is also no excuse for a repeat of the delays seen at Dublin airport this summer. It is now critical that Dublin Airport accelerate delivery of urgent Pier and stand capacity infrastructure within its Capital Investment Programme. If the airport is unable to service demand because it has not prepared properly, the CAR must ensure the airport is not rewarded for its failures. We will provide more information to the CAR on these and other matters ahead of the final determination.” – Willie Walsh, IATA Director General.

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The President of Emirates Airline and the CEO of Heathrow Airport held a constructive meeting this morning. Emirates agreed the airline was ready and willing to work with the airport to remediate the situation over the next 2 weeks, to keep demand and capacity in balance and provide passengers with a smooth and reliable journey through Heathrow this summer.
Emirates has capped further sales on its flights out of Heathrow until mid-August to assist Heathrow in its resource ramp up, and is working to adjust capacity.
In the meantime, Emirates flights from Heathrow operate as scheduled and ticketed passengers may travel as booked.

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Airlines are overlooking half a billion pounds in untapped ancillary revenue from travellers desperate for assurance they’ll actually board their flight, according to new research by tech company Zamna.
The independent market research, which polled over 2,000 UK consumers, found that three in four (76 per cent) are willing to pay their airline an additional fee on top of their ticket price for a complete travel documentation check against destination regulations, before arriving at the airport.
So concerned about arriving at the airport with the correct travel documentation – such as a passport check against border rules, destination entry forms, VISA, proof of vaccination and health certificates – survey respondents were, on average, willing to pay £5.32 for preflight peace of mind.  This equates to at least £510 million of secondary revenue ready and waiting for airlines savvy enough to adopt a solution amidst extreme levels of disruption still hitting airports and travellers across the world.
What’s more, while £5.32 was the average amount flyers were happy to pay for a pre-flight travel documentation check, 35 per cent of consumers were in fact willing to pay up to £10 for the assurance of such a service.
Aside from making a cash injection and a much-needed boost to the financial recovery of airlines, the survey also highlighted that 64 per cent of respondents believed airlines should be doing more to help them ensure their flight-related paperwork is in order before leaving home for the airport, while only 16 per cent believed the responsibility lies with the passengers alone.ADVERTISEMENTWorries about the correct documentation topped the list of traveller concerns, rating higher than staff shortages, reports of airport chaos in the media, and fears that the airline could go bust, while significantly more people wanted airlines to provide a document check over a full refund if they can’t board their flight.
“With the industry struggling to sustain losses of £9.54 billion now is the perfect time to highlight as much as half a billion pounds in potential revenue to airlines – and that’s just in the UK alone,” comments Irra Ariella Khi, CEO of Zamna.  “Aside from the financial gains, a huge portion of the pain felt by airlines and travellers alike can also be eased with simple, available tech improvements that digitise document handling in advance. However, much of the new tech being introduced by airlines and airline groups is just not working; the need for more equipment and behavioural changes generated by the solutions causes pain for all, whether that’s downloading a new app, having to print a document or present a QR code. The passport is the only globally recognised identity document and we have been travelling on it for decades; it should be, and is, the only thing one needs to travel with total confidence if the tech is right.”
For airlines to access additional new revenue of this scale, warns Khi, any improvements implemented must also be ubiquitous to all travel-related tech platforms such as global distribution systems (GDS), passenger service systems (PSS), and customer relationship management (CRM) rather than proprietary. “It’s so important that new technology solutions in this field are industry-wide, affect all airlines positively, and are inclusive of passengers – avoiding costly and limiting vendor locks, and instead serving a global price-sensitive, Covid-exhausted audience. It must also allow airlines to be prepared for whatever is thrown at them with evolving markets, ever-updating regulations, and changing customer requirements,” she explains.
In addition to yielding greater profit margins through the implementation of ubiquitous tech-powered solutions, the right technology creates the chance for airlines to improve operational efficiencies, not to mention the prospect of reducing the risk of heavy regulatory fines resulting from providing incorrect passenger data to governments. Coupled with fine avoidance, technologies now exist to alleviate some of the airline staff resourcing issues that have caused airport congestion. Slow and labour intensive check-in processes can be accelerated or completely by-passed by removing many of the manual checking procedures required at the airport itself. This means that long and slow-moving queues of UK travellers and the increased need for airline staff that we have all seen of late, would be a thing of the past with the adoption of the available solutions.
“We’re entering a new era of travel and airlines need to get on board,” adds Khi. “Tech that supports the bottom line, while assuring passengers and reducing pressure on airline staff is the key to airlines securing recovery.”

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The International Air Transport Association (IATA) expressed concern that a premature return to pre-pandemic slot use rules in the EU this winter risks continuing disruption to passengers.
The European Commission has announced it intends to return to the longstanding 80-20 slot use rule, which requires airlines to operate at least 80% of every planned slot sequence. Global slot rules are an effective system for managing access to and the use of scarce capacity at airports. The system has stood the test of time and while airlines are keen to restart services, the failure of several key airports to accommodate demand, coupled with increasing air traffic control delays, means a premature return to the 80-20 rule could lead to further passenger disruption.
The evidence so far this summer has not been encouraging. Airports had the 2022 summer season schedules and final slot holdings in January and didn’t evaluate how to manage this in time. Airports declaring that full capacity is available and then requiring airlines to make cuts this summer shows the system is not ready for reviving “normal” slot use this winter season (which begins at end of October).
“The chaos we have seen at certain airports this summer has occurred with a slot use threshold of 64%. We are worried that airports will not be ready in time to service an 80% threshold by the end of October. It is essential the Member States and Parliament adjust the Commission’s proposal to a realistic level and permit flexibility to the slot use rules. Airports are equal partners in the slot process, let them demonstrate their ability to declare and manage their capacity accurately and competently and then restore the slot use next summer,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.

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marhaba, part of dnata and one of the world‘s fastest growing passenger services providers, is launching new summer experiences across its global network of airport lounges.
At its lounges at DXB’s Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and Terminal 3, marhaba has partnered with Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital to offer an exclusive range of travel products with summer designs created by children aged between 5 and 11, with all profits going to the hospital. The special products include notebooks, bookmarks, and postcards.
Steve Allen, CEO of dnata Group, commented: “marhaba’s airport services are soaring in popularity this summer as travellers seek a smooth journey to and from their destination of choice. As the brand continues to expand from Dubai, we’ve recently launched meet & greet services at five Australian airports and opened a new lounge in Zurich, Switzerland, in time for the peak travel season.
“At dnata we are proud to support local community partners and our work with Al Jalila Hospital offers travellers the opportunity to purchase something unique this summer, in support of an important cause.”
Dr Mohamed Al Awadhi, Chief Operating Officer, Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital, added: “Al Jalila Children’s is an inspiring, child-friendly world. We strive to create a stress-free environment where our young patients can participate in a range of activities regardless of their condition. We would like to thank dnata for providing our young patients a platform to express their artistic abilities and create an exclusive merchandise for marhaba which will be seen by people from all over the world.” ADVERTISEMENTPassengers accessing marhaba lounges in Singapore, Manila, Melbourne, Karachi, Geneva and Zürich can also expect a host of additional summer products, all locally-tailored, including new menu items, and unmissable giveaways, throughout a highly-anticipated season for international travel.
In July marhaba will also launch a summer competition. Its global lounge customers will be provided with materials to design a postcard based on their ‘dream’ summer holiday destination. Completed designs will be displayed within local lounges as travel inspiration, and will also admit a passenger one entry to a travel-themed prize draw, including holidays in Dubai and Switzerland inclusive of five-star hotel stays, flights, and marhaba services.

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Gatwick Airport has announced two new retail offers for passengers, with LEGO stores and a Kidstop pop-up opening ahead of the school summer holidays.
World famous construction toy brand, LEGO, opened a store in each of Gatwick’s North and South Terminals this week – among its first standalone stores in a UK airport. The new outlet, operated by Lagardère Travel Retail UK, offers departing passengers popular products ranging from iconic lines such as the London Bus to LEGO channel exclusives, including LEGO Republic Gunship and LEGO Hogwarts Castle.
Key LEGO themes including Duplo, City and Architecture are also available, alongside internationally recognised licenses such as Harry Potter, Marvel and Star Wars.
Meanwhile Kidstop – a Gatwick-specific pop-up store operated by WHSmith, offering children’s books, travel games and toys – opened in the North Terminal on 4 July.
Pam McCarthy, director of retail, Gatwick Airport said: “Having a worldwide brand such as LEGO opening stores at Gatwick is fantastic news for the airport and our passengers. It shows the high demand of retail space at Gatwick and we are sure passengers will love being able to purchase LEGO’s exciting products, whether to keep the kids entertained during the flight, as gifts when visiting family and friends, or as a souvenir of a UK holiday. ADVERTISEMENT“Kidstop is another great addition to the North Terminal, offering passengers a range of fantastic products to keep children busy – perfect for last-minute purchases as we head into the school summer holidays.”
Marion Engelhard, managing director, Lagardère Travel Retail UK said: “We are thrilled to open LEGO stores in both terminals, thanks to a great partnership with both Lego and Gatwick Airport. Stores will feature fan favourites alongside some new and exciting exclusives, providing a great, entertaining start to the day for passengers!”
Annette Rosendahl, head of travel retail development, LEGO said: “We are very excited to see the first LEGO® Airport stores opening in July in the UK and at the same time being able to finally introduce our new store design platform to the Travel Retail channel as well. This is a fantastic opportunity to inspire and engage passengers in Gatwick North and South Terminals, and adding an offer for all ages, all genders and all passion points in the LEGO Stores will be a great and fun start of the journey in Gatwick Airport.”
The stores are the first new offering at Gatwick since InMotion opened in both the North and South Terminals at the turn of the year.
Meanwhile Ted Baker, located in Gatwick’s South Terminal, reopened on 8 July for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic, meaning the high-end clothing retailer will now have a presence in both terminals. The airport’s South Terminal Itsu store will also reopen later this month, offering passengers sushi, salads and more.

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