easyJet reveals first new destinations from Bordeaux base

The European Commission is considering granting United Kingdom-based carriers more time to comply with the EU control and ownership clauses in case of a no deal Brexit on March 29, 2019, EURACTIV has reported.

A senior official said that the Brussels administration was willing to set a new deadline for compliance extending beyond the date of Brexit itself to avoid an immediate halt of all intra-EU flights by UK-based carriers.

"It may set a date by which corrective measures or actions by the competent licensing authority shall be implemented, failing which the carrier concerned shall no longer be entitled to exercise its right to operate intra-Union air services," the source said.

Under EU law, only carriers registered in and controlled by entities from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, and Iceland can operate flights within the entire bloc, regardless of which country's AOC they hold. Following the exit of the United Kingdom from the bloc, British carriers will no longer automatically hold that right.

easyJet, the British airline with the largest exposure to intra-EU routes, has already...

Aigle Azur (ZI, Paris Orly) is set to end its only domestic service from Lyon St. Exupéry to Nantes on January 12, 2019, Routes Online has reported.

According to the ch-aviation capacity module, the route is currently operated 13x weekly with A320-200 aircraft.

The route is also operated by HOP! (A5, Paris Orly) and easyJet (U2, London Luton).

Following the termination of its last domestic route, Aigle Azur will concentrate its capacity predominantly on its key France-Algeria market. It currently operates 74 weekly roundtrips between these countries and serves six destinations in Algeria.

According to the ch-aviation fleet module, Aigle Azur currently operates eight A320-200s and two A330-200s.

Delta Air Lines (DL, Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson) is emerging as the most likely industry partner to team up with struggling Alitalia (AZ, Rome Fiumicino), La Stampa has reported.

The Italian government intends to conclude the talks regarding the new ownership structure of the flag carrier by the end of February. The negotiations are led by the state-owned railway operator, Ferrovie dello Stato (FS), which is likely going to be the main stakeholder in the restructured carrier.

FS' executives will reportedly be making a trip to Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson to meet with Delta's management shortly. The American carrier declined to comment on the report.

A partnership with Delta would most likely concentrate on Alitalia's long-haul network. For this reason, FS prefers it to deals with Lufthansa Group or easyJet, which would likely insist on a restructuring and cuts related to Alitalia's short-haul business.

Earlier, the Italian government also sought to approach Chinese partners for a 20-30% stake in restructured Alitalia, although so far these plans have not resulted in an...