Ireland's CityJet to open a Brussels base in 2017

Brussels Airlines takes delivery of first A320neo

Brussels Airlines (SN, Brussels National) took delivery of its first A320-200neo, OO-SBA (msn 11600), on November 1 after the first-ever new-build aircraft for the Belgian carrier was flown from Toulouse Blagnac to Brussels National. It is the first of five A320neo to join its fleet as part of a Lufthansa Group order.

Brussels Airlines becomes Lufthansa Group's latest A320neo operator following Lufthansa, Lufthansa CityLine, Eurowings, Swiss, and Austrian Airlines. Equipped with 180 seats, OO-SBA has not yet entered scheduled service according to Flightradar24 ADS-B data with Brussels Airlines saying in a press release that it would "carry out a few remaining upgrades on the aircraft in the coming weeks, after which the first commercial flight will take place." Replacing the smaller A319-100s in its fleet, the carrier expects all five A320neo to be delivered by the end of 2024.

Having recently returned two wet-leased CRJ1000s to CityJet (WX, Dublin International), the Belgian carrier currently has an all Airbus fleet with sixteen...

Spain’s Air Nostrum, Ireland’s CityJet form “holding group”

Air Nostrum (YW, Valencia Manises) and CityJet (WX, Dublin International) have announced the creation of a European regional alliance, called the Strategic Alliance of Regional Airlines (SARA), which the airlines described in an announcement on October 17 as a “holding group”.

The move comes more than five years after a tie-up between the two regional carriers was first outlined, but it does not as yet imply a direct merger between them. In March, the European Commission approved for the second time the creation of a joint venture combining the activities of the two airlines, expected to pave the way for a full merger.

According to the announcement, Air Nostrum’s shareholders own 80% of SARA, while CityJet’s own 20%. The alliance is made up of three airlines - also including Air Nostrum subsidiary Hibernian Airlines (HG, Dublin International) - as well as the Copenhagen Kastrup-based unit CityJet A/S, the MRO company ANEM and crew training unit ANTO, both based in Valencia, and three other companies providing services to the...

SAS eyes leisure market with more in-house, year-round ops

Ex-TAP CEO Ourmières-Widener sues Portuguese state - report

Christine Ourmières-Widener, a former chief executive of TAP Air Portugal (TP, Lisbon), will contest her dismissal earlier this year in court, sources told the business daily Jornal de Negócios. Her lawyers have reportedly filed a compensation claim of EUR5.9 million euros (USD6.3 million).

Ourmières-Widener, who is French and who in July became CEO of Air Caraibes (TX, Pointe à Pitre) and French Bee (BF, Paris Orly) parent Groupe Dubreuil, was Group CEO at TAP from June 2021 to April 2023. Before that, she was chief executive of flybe. (2002), having previously held senior posts at CityJet, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, and Air France.

When she was fired from TAP, she accused Portugal’s auditor general (Inspeção-Geral de Finanças - IGF), which was investigating a severance payment of EUR500,000 (USD535,000) handed the previous year to a former executive board member, of “discriminatory behaviour”. At the time she hinted at, “in due time, legal consequences” in retaliation, in an effort to restore her “honour and reputation”.

This was...