Also, In the Skies: 29 Hot Aviation Happenings (Not About United) in Week 15

This weekly post is my ‘round tuit’. Included are stories which caught my eye and others which I couldn’t cover in-depth during the week, but thought Flight Chic readers would want to know about.

The aviation news wasn’t all about the United fiasco this week, though that mess did take up a big chunk of the conversation.

1. 50 years after the first 737 took flight, the new 737 MAX 9 enjoys a beautiful take-off.

 

2. Alexandre de Juniac, Director General and CEO of IATA will be the keynote speaker at this year’s Aviation Festival in London.

With a host of VIPs on the agenda, this event gets more un-missable each year.

3. Some things (like design) have value beyond measure.

4. BA has no immediate plans to charge customers for meals on long-haul flights.

No immediate plans.

5. More than LEVEL at play.

6. Speaking of LEVEL, more than 100,000 seats sold already.

7. BA’s systems failure couldn’t have come at a worse time.

8. Airports Council International (ACI) calls for solutions to the electronics ban.

While the United debacle has drawn our attention, we must not forget that the electronics ban is still causing headaches for the industry and for passengers.

We should be concerned by this lack of transparency surrounding the Service Bulletin which the FAA issued about the fire-safety risks of putting banned devices in the hold.

It is not in keeping with FAA standards over the years. The Administration usually publishes safety notices and other information which could impact the industry as a whole. A reversal of this practice can have serious long-term repercussions on aviation safety.

9. Norwegian aerospace supplier will save Boeing up to $3 million of each Dreamliner with 3D printed titanium parts.

10. Trump changes his mind about Ex-Im bank.

11. This is an interesting app: AirLinked

Not sure that I would ever use it, but what do you think. Would it work for you?

12. Air Mattress sounds familiar.

Don’t get me wrong, I like both of these ideas.

13. Danish investor buys 20% stake in airBaltic

14. Ryanair opens C-Check facility in Spain.

15. What you need to know about jet fuel prices:

After a short dip in March, Jet Fuel prices are rising again (higher this April than in April of last year). But they are still much, much lower than they have been over the past seven years.

16. Delta recruits Seattle Chef to raise standards of Sky Club fare.

There’s been a lot of news about food this week. I’m not sure whether that’s just me gravitating to those stories or whether we’ve been collectively seeing comfort after the United thing.

17. EU approves Rockwell Collins takeover of B/E Aerospace.

What this industry really needs is more consolidation.

18. Lufthansa Systems’ newest app will get you to the gate on time.

19. Eurowings introduces faster bag drop.

20. Canadian Airports install NanoLumens LED boards.

“The NanoLumens display is very slender with a minimalistic design that looks really good in the installation environment.”

21. Hungry? Many, many tasty options available at Copenhagen Airport.

22. A new Brexit passport proposal has won Dezeen’s unofficial design competition and I’m not sure how I feel about it.

Then again, nobody asked me and my passport is quite happy dressed in EU marron.

23. Belfast Airport goes solar.

24. Brasil approves 100% foreign ownership of airlines. (In Spanish)

25. As Wi-Fi improves on the ground, can the air keep up?

26. How might airlines improve their digital retailing?

27. lol

28. Avgeeks and LEGO fans, feast your eyes:

29. And this…

Whether you’re on holiday or working, may week 16 be relatively uneventful.