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2016 aviation outlook includes airport improvements, longer routes and safety concernsNew airplanes, changes in frequent flier rules coming in 2016
Huge airline profits.
New planes.
Longer Routes
Improved Airports
Heightened attention to safety.
Throw in an estimated 3.7 billion passengers for 2016 … and you’ve got a seriously busy aviation year ahead.
Air travelers hate to waste time, so let’s get to the details:
Airlines
Fuel prices: Record profits to continue?
Most airlines are already having a happy new year as they rake in massive profits thanks to ultra-low fuel prices.
In the United States last July through September, domestic airlines reported profits of $9.3 billion, according to U.S. government statistics.
And, yep, that’s after taxes. Globally, profits are “unprecedented”said Chris Sloan, founder and president of AirwaysNews.com
But things aren’t perfect.
The number of miles airlines sell per seat are actually down — especially on routes with premium long distance destinations in Asia and South America, Sloan said.
Average airfare for 2016
average projected round-trip airfare in 2016: $375
That’s 61% lower than 1995 in inflation-adjusted U.S. dollars
Source: International Air Transport Association
Will airlines pass some of these profits to consumers by lowering fares?
Not likely.
Aviation consultant Shukor Yusof of Malaysia-based Endau Analytics said there’s no incentive “for airlines to reduce fares because of low oil prices because they’re doing well and the demand is there.”
However, low fuel costs do allow legacy airlines like American and Delta to directly take on ultra low-cost carriers like Spirit, Sloan said, “resulting in downward pressure on fares.”
The average round-trip fare (without surcharges and taxes), according to the International Air Transport Association, is projected to be $375 in 2016.
That’s 61% lower than it was in 1995, adjusted for inflation.
American Airlines’ new frequent flyer rules take effect in 2016.
Seats: More legroom
More seats with extra legroom are coming to more U.S. domestic carriers.
But you’ll have to pay for it.
Alaska Airlines plans to add more seats with extra legroom on 60 of its airliners in 2016.
American Airlines says it’ll debut more seats with legroom in a special section called “Premium Economy” on international flights.
Mileage programs: New award calculations
The trend toward linking frequent flier perks to how much money you spend — rather than how many miles you have — continues in 2016.
The next airline to adopt the policy is American Airlines.
Beginning in the “second half of 2016 … award miles for travel on American marketed flights will be calculated based on what you pay for your ticket,” its website says.
Low-cost airlines: New winners
AirlineRatings.com named the best low-cost airline for the new year in each region of the globe.
In the Asia Pacific, the winner was Scoot.
In North and South America, it was Virgin America.
South Africa’s Kulula.com won for Africa and the Middle East.
Norwegian got the nod in Europe.
Airplanes
COMAC C919: Chinese aviation vies for global footing
This is the year the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, COMAC, takes to the air with its C919 in its bid to compete with Boeing and Airbus.
It’s one of the largest production airliners ever designed and manufactured in China.
The new plane is expected to take flight
Boeing and Airbus shouldn’t be worried in the near term, say analysts.
But as China’s air travel market explodes in coming decades, 2016 might be looked at as the year COMAC made its first big move as global player.
Boeing 747: Farewell tours begin
Air France will retire its entire fleet of 747s in January 2016, after flying jumbo jets for 46 years, striking an emotional blow to aviation enthusiasts everywhere.
“It’s with great sadness that the reign of the ‘Queen of the Skies’ is coming to an accelerated end,” said airline analyst Sylvester Pittman of airlineguys.com.
“Many other airlines, including Delta, have announced the retirement of this iconic aircraft.”
The Jumbos are getting edged out by more efficient wide-body airliners that burn less fuel while flying long distances.
The super-efficient Airbus A320neo is expected to begin service in 2016.
Airbus A320neo: Introductory tours begin
Qatar Airways was supposed to be the first airline to fly Airbus’s super-efficient single-aisle A320neo, but in a last minute switch-a-roo, Airbus told Dow Jones Business News it’ll be Germany’s Lufthansa instead.
The plane — which burns 15-20% less fuel than existing models — is expected to enter service for the first time in early 2016.
Airbus A350XWB: New tech displaces old
aviation, the uber-advanced Airbus A350XWB family of airliners is kind of a rock star.
So much so, Airbus sent one on a festive tour of North and South America last summer to show it off.
What’s so special?
Other than its sleek swept-back wings and curly wingtips, it’s the overall engineering.
More than half of the plane is made of strong, lightweight carbon fiber composite, instead of traditional aluminum.
The plane is so efficient that — with only two engines — it flies many routes that used to be reserved for older four-engine airliners.
In 2016, the A350 begins its first regular service in the United States, as Qatar Airways starts its route linking Doha with Philadelphia.
Bombardier calls it “the first all-new single-aisle plane in 30 years.”
After many delays, the Canadian plane manufacturer is finally expected to deliverits first CSeries aircraft — the CS100 — to Swiss International Air Lines in 2016.
It’s smaller than a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320, but larger than a regional jet.
“It has struggled mightily to get sales, and Bombardier has found itself in financial trouble trying to support it,” saidaviation/travel analyst Brett Snyder.
“But the aircraft’s performance looks to be solid, and there’s the potential for a rumored order from United on the horizon.”
Boeing 737MAX: More of more
It’s kind of like a 737 … to the max!
Thanks to sophisticated CFM International LEAP-1B engines, this plane is 40% quieter and 20% more fuel efficient than its namesake.
“Its wing shape and engine positions smoothly direct air into and around the engine, providing additional efficiency,” said David Parker Brown, founder of airlinereporter.com.
The first 737Max rolled off the factory line in Renton, Washington, on December 9.
Boeing test pilots are expected to fly it for the first time early in the new year.
Delivery is expected to the 737MAX’s first customer, Southwest Airlines, in 2017 — half a century after the original 737.
Airports
Technology Helpful or creepy?
Electronic beacons sense when your smartphone enters an airport.
Then the beacons send you messages to guide you to nearby places, like restaurants and airline gates.
More airports and airlines will start using these kinds of apps in 2016.
One global survey reports 81% of airports plan to invest in beacons and other sensors in the next three years.
Germany: More delays to huge
huge project.
Sorry, but this won’t be the year when the new Brandenburg airport opens in Berlin.
The ambitious project was originally supposed to open in 2011.
Delays have been blamed on construction problems.
Oh well, maybe in 2017.
New York: LaGuardia upgrades, finally
The first major steps toward rebuilding of the ancient and much-maligned LaGuardia Airport are set to begin in 2016 — a $4 billion project that will last four to five years.
Airlines now using the airport’s four terminals eventually
well, maybe in 2017.
New York: LaGuardia upgrades, finally
The first major steps toward rebuilding of the ancient and much-maligned LaGuardia Airport are set to begin in 2016 — a $4 billion project that will last four to five years.
Airlines now using the airport’s
four terminals eventually will share a giant, modern unified terminal with convenient connections to ground transit.
“LaGuardia is always working at capacity, so any extra ‘ingredient’ to the LaGuardia ‘soup’ creates delays,” said aviation analyst Phil Derner, of NYCAvation.com. “I don’t think it will create air-traffic delays so much, but there will be delays for passengers during the transition.”
New Jersey: iPads coming to Newa
Newark
At Newark Liberty International Airport,United Airlines’ Terminal C is getting a huge, $120 million makeover.
Get this: they’ve promised to have an iPad stationed at every seat at 55 different eateries spread across the terminal’s 100,000-square-foot space.
It’s set to open in 2016.
Los Angeles: Easier domestic-international
At Lax a new building connecting domestic terminals with the airport’s international terminal is set for completion in 2016.
This will eliminate the hassle of walking outside or riding a shuttle to change planes from domestic flights to flights in the international terminal.
It’ll also let domestic passengers connect to international flights without having to suffer going through security lines again.
Brazil Olympic upgrades
Rio de Janeiro’s Galeao airport is gearing up for the 2016 Olympics in August.
The airport is putting up a new building for arrivals and departures, along with 26 new jet bridges and dozens of new passenger check-in desks.
Routes
Vietnam: More service
Low cost airline Vietjet Air is expected to become increasingly aggressive in opening new markets in Vietnam, which aren’t serviced by legacy carriers, said analyst Yusof.
Cuba-U.S.: More access
Havana and Washington have restored direct, regularly scheduled commercial flights between the United States and Cuba for the first time in more than half a century.
More access
Havana and Washington have restored direct, regularly scheduled commercial flights between the United States and Cuba for the first time in more than half a century.
Assuming aviation regulators can work out the details, a flood of tourism from the states is expected in 2016.
Culled from Cnn
