Australian Aviation ’s Post

The comment section has lots of mention drawing parallels with regards to the volatility of operating an airline in particular within India. Although geographically different, the rapid rise of new airlines and an equally fast free fall is something to learn from. An airline needs to be sustainable for it to be profitable in the long run, and continue to operate. It cannot grow at a rate faster then it can generate revenue.

Turkish Airlines: 83.4 million passengers in 2024 ✈🇹🇷 🌐 According to a statement from the Turkish national airline, the number of passengers carried by Turkish Airlines reached 83.4 million in 2024, a 2.1% increase compared to the same period of the previous year, largely due to significant international expansion until 2024. Although the airline increased its overall passenger numbers, the airline's network load factor decreased by 0.4 percentage points to 82.2 percent compared to 2023. This figure is 81.8 percent for international flights and 85.8 percent for domestic flights. The company also transported two million tons of cargo and mail, an increase of 20.6% year-on-year. During 2024, Turkish Airlines achieved unprecedented growth, announcing new routes and expanding its already extensive fleet. During the year, the airline launched flights to Melbourne and Sydney in Australia, re-established flights to Afghanistan after a three-year hiatus, and began flights to Denver and Dallas-Fort Worth. Turkish Airlines is currently the only European airline operating flights to Europe from Melbourne and Sydney. In December 2024, the airline carried 6.4 million passengers on its network, an increase of 5.3% compared to the same month in 2023. By the end of 2024, the airline operated a fleet of 492 aircraft, consisting predominantly of Airbus and Boeing aircraft. . The airline has ordered an additional 342 aircraft from manufacturers. Turkish Airlines , Turkish Airlines

Passenger airlines are airlines dedicated to the transport of human passengers; they typically operate a fleet of passenger aircraft that may be either owned outright by an airline company or leased from commercial aircraft sales and leasing companies. Passenger airlines can be mainline, with flights operated by the airline's central operating unit, or a regional airline that operates regionally over shorter non-intercontinental distances. Passenger airlines may also be low-cost carriers that provide basic and less expensive services. The charter airlines operate outside regular schedule intervals or major airlines with at least one billion U.S. dollars in revenue.

Irish air carrier Ryanair has reduced its passenger forecast due to delays in Boeing delivering new aircraft. Europe's largest low-cost airline anticipates attracting 206million customers in the 2026 financial year, equivalent to 3 per cent annual growth.

Express Cargo Airlines Adds Second Boeing 737-300F to Fleet - Express Cargo Airlines, an Indonesian cargo operator, has expanded its fleet with the addition of a second Boeing 737-300F, serial number 28200. The aircraft was acquired from fellow Indonesian operator Black Stone Airlines, marking another step in Express Cargo Airlines’ growth strategy. - https://lnkd.in/dRwhbBVs

Express Cargo Airlines Adds Second Boeing 737-300F to Fleet - Express Cargo Airlines, an Indonesian cargo operator, has expanded its fleet with the addition of a second Boeing 737-300F, serial number 28200. The aircraft was acquired from fellow Indonesian operator Black Stone Airlines, marking another step in Express Cargo Airlines’ growth strategy. - https://lnkd.in/dRwhbBVs

Mesa Airlines Sells 18 E175 Aircraft to United Airlines - Mesa Airlines, a US-based regional carrier, has entered into an Aircraft Purchase Agreement with United Airlines to sell 18 E175 aircraft. The transaction is valued at US$229.1 million in gross proceeds, with 10 of the aircraft to be leased back to Mesa, ensuring continuity in its operations. - https://lnkd.in/dRag2-Er

Hungary Airlines takes flight: New national carrier obtains licences. Hungary Airlines, a newly established national airline, has officially launched operations following the issuance of its Air Operator Certificate (AOC). The airline, tasked with managing a state-owned Airbus A330-200F freighter, began test flights in December 2024 and completed additional practice flights in early January 2025. The A330-200F, a 2014-vintage aircraft previously operated by Qatar Airways, was in service with low-cost carrier Wizz Air until late November 2024, Cargo Facts reported. The freighter recently conducted maintenance in Shanghai and is now preparing to resume cargo flights between Hungary and China, Világgazdaság wrote. A strategic shift in air cargo operations According to AIRportal.hu, Hungary Airlines was founded in 2021 as Universal Translink Airline Hungary (UTA) and later rebranded in April 2024. The company has been instrumental in air cargo operations between China and Hungary, with a base at Budapest Airport’s Cargo City. In addition to the A330 freighter, the airline uses leased aircraft to support its growing logistics network. The majority owner of Hungary Airlines is Wu Jiang, a Chinese businessman who resides in Hungary. Wu holds over 50% of the company’s shares. Other stakeholders include Beijing-based UTL Digital Logistics Co. Ltd. and the Hungarian state-owned Air Hungary Szolgáltató Plc., which became a minority shareholder in November 2024. Leadership and future ambitions Hungary Airlines is led by a team of experienced professionals, including Wu Jiang, co-founder Duan Bo, and Hungarian aviation experts Gábor Talabos and Gábor Varga. The addition of Borbély Tibor Péter, chairman of Air Hungary, to the management team, highlights the airline’s close ties to the government. In late 2024, Hungary Airlines made headlines when its president, Duan Bo, signed a memorandum of understanding with Boeing to acquire 737 MAX passenger aircraft. While details remain scarce, this move signals the company’s ambitions to expand beyond cargo operations. Strengthening Hungary-China connectivity As Hungary’s national carrier, Hungary Airlines aims to bolster trade and transportation links between Europe and Asia. With its strategic location and state-of-the-art fleet, the airline is poised to play a key role in strengthening Hungary’s position as a logistics hub in the region. With its inaugural flights now underway, Hungary Airlines marks a new chapter in the nation’s aviation history. Related articles: BREAKING: New Hungarian airline founded with Chinese help New Hungarian airline set to launch by late 2024! Featured image: illustration, depositphotos.com https://lnkd.in/dMBYvwnR

Time to bite the bullet. The failure of Rex in Australia’s aviation market is really only a sideshow to the biggest issue of maintaining an effective duopoly in the Australian market. Nonetheless, it could well trigger the necessary difficult decisions that the government is finally going to have to make. It might seem strange to talk about maintaining a duopoly at a time when questions are being raised about whether there is space for three airlines in the market (which, under the right circumstances, I believe there is). But for as long as there has been commercial domestic aviation in Australia, that has been the underlying strategy governments have sought to achieve. It worked pretty well up until Ansett collapsed in 2001, but since then it has been decidedly rocky, as Virgin Blue emerged and grew, morphing to Virgin Australia then finally collapsing in 2020 – leaving us again with only one national airline. Even before that, Virgin had only survived thanks to solid investments from several foreign airlines with a great interest in Australia’s domestic market. After Ansett failed, then the GFC struck, the overriding aim of successive governments throughout the second decade of this century was to secure a viable primary national airline, the flying kangaroo. To this end, Alan Joyce was remarkably effective in securing Qantas’ future. Today, the airline is pretty much invincible, even bulletproof as Mr. Joyce once described it. Qantas’ power is in its full service and low-cost suite of jet operations, its frequent flyer program, a stranglehold on domestic freight, a mightily powerful regional airline proposition, complete dominance of the corporate and FIFO travel market, all complemented by a formidable international array of partners. It’s undoubtedly good for Australia to have that sort of reliable operation. Today though it is time for federal government policy to bite the bullet. It is not enough to have a duopoly where one airline is in a position where it could easily blow its competitor out of the market. Not that Qantas would not want to do that, but it could. It’s a far more attractive proposition to be the strong party in a duopoly rather than a monopolist, with all the regulatory attention that would involve. Read the full article on the News & Comment section of our website: https://lnkd.in/gg5aQEgF