Category: Aviation and Travel

The proportion of women at the highest level of corporate roles in the aviation industry is 3%, which represents one of the lowest levels of female representation across all industries.[1] As of June 2018, 18 women held the role of CEO, President or Managing Director across all commercial airlines.

Obstacles to corporate roles can involve stereotyping in the recruitment process as to what are seen traditionally as female and male traits. These stereotypes can cause difficulties as incorrect assumptions may be made about a woman’s personality and skillset, leading recruiters to deem them a poor fit for the organisation.[2] The low visibility of women at the highest corporate levels can also make the environment seem unwelcoming to other women. This has led to a phenomenon called “Vertical Segregation,” whereby men predominantly work in senior management whilst women generally work in roles below this.

Given the low proportion of women recruited at these levels, some airlines such as Flybe (before being acquired by Virgin Connect), easyJet and TUI have taken steps to encourage women to become pilots. The then CEO of Flybe, Ms Christine Ourmieres won the Inspirational Role Model Award in June 2019 at the IATA Diversity and Inclusion Awards for raising the profile of aviation among young people and inspiring young women to join the aviation industry. She introduced the highly successful FlyShe initiative which received coverage both in the U.K. and abroad.[3] As part of the FlyShe initiative, female pilots and engineers spoke with pupils, produced educational materials for schools to host their own sessions and encouraged young women to consider high level roles as their future careers. They also provided two places for women on their engineering apprenticeship scheme.[4]

Other progressive examples include Air France hiring its first ever female CEO, Ms Anne Rigail in December 2018, and Zoom Air, an Indian regional airline hiring 9 female pilots out of an intake of 30. Another example of promoting the technical abilities of women is the ‘Chix Fix’ group of female technicians from the USA, which was formed in November 2018, to compete as the first all-female commercial airline team in the Aerospace Maintenance Competition. The competition takes place every year in the USA and provides an opportunity for current and future maintenance professionals to demonstrate their technical knowledge in aviation maintenance. The Chix Fix group competed to raise an awareness that aircraft maintenance is a career path for people of all genders.[5]

There are two promising strategies in diversifying high-level roles in the aviation industry in the long-term. The first involves active recruitment of women into executive level positions, providing support and assigning a mentor who can answer their questions regarding company or industry-specific issues. The second strategy involves introducing aviation as an achievable aspiration for young women through providing information at educational events. Critically, there is a need for a cultural change at the highest corporate level. The board itself needs to be outspoken in advocating the need for diversity.

It is important to break down stereotypes and increase the visibility of women in high level aviation roles, which in turn will result in an increase of female aviation professionals as role models for young women, increasing the number of talented women that thriving in high level corporate roles.

© 2020 Whitestone Chambers

www.whitestonechambers.com

law@whitestonechambers.com

[1] https://skift.com/2014/05/14/women-account-for-fewer-than-5-of-airline-ceos-around-the-world/

[2] Gaucher, D., Friesen, J., & Kay, A. C. (2011). Evidence that gendered wording in job advertisements exists and sustains gender inequality. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 101, 109–128

[3] https://www.iata.org/en/pressroom/pr/2019-06-03-01/

[4] https://www.aviationadr.org.uk/flyshe-flybes-new-campaign-to-encourgage-more-women/

[5]https://www.internationalairportreview.com/news/82492/five-times-the-aviation-industry-championed-gender-equality-in-2018/

On 7 November 2019, the European Court of Justice provided a preliminary ruling in Case C-379/18, between Deutsche Lufthansa AG and Berlin (Land of Berlin Germany), as to the interpretation of Directive 2009/12/EC in relation to airport charges [1].

Deutsche Lufthansa, in its capacity as an airport user, contested the approval of a new system of airport charges by Berliner Flughafen GmBH (BFG) for Berlin-Tegel Airport, which is managed by the Land of Berlin. The Land of Berlin as the independent supervisory authority had authorised a new system of airport charges with effect from 1 January 2015.

Accepting Lufthansa’s appeal, the referring court held that Lufthansa had standing to bring an action for annulment under German Law if the contested authorisation had an effect of giving rise to consequences under private law as the system of airport charges would directly affect Lufthansa in its capacity as a user. The following two questions were referred to the Fourth Chamber to provide a preliminary ruling:

(1) “Is a national provision which provides that the system of airport charges decided upon by the airport managing body must be submitted to the independent supervisory authority for approval, without prohibiting the airport managing body and the airport user from setting charges different from those approved by the supervisory authority, compatible with Directive [2009/12], in particular Article 3, Article 6(3) to (5) and Article 11(1) and (7) thereof?”

(2) “Is an interpretation of national law whereby an airport user is prevented from challenging the approval of the charging system by the independent supervisory authority, but can bring an action against the airport managing body and can plead in that action that the charges determined in the charging system are inequitable, compatible with the aforementioned directive?’”

With respect to the first question, the Fourth Chamber ruled that Directive 2009/12/EC precludes a national provision that permits an airport managing body from determining airport charges with an airport user that differ from those set by the independent supervisory authority. It ruled that Article 11(7) provides that the decisions of the independent supervisory authority should have a binding effect, without prejudice to parliamentary or judicial review. If the airport managing body and airport user were able to conclude independent contracts with each other that were separate from the independent supervisory authority, then its authority would be significantly reduced. Recital 2 of Directive 2009/12/EC required the establishment of a common framework regulating the essential feature of airport charges and the way in which they are set to promote the principles of consultation, transparency and non-discrimination of airport users, as laid down in Article 3, Article 6(1) and (2) and Article 7 of Directive 2009/12/EC.

Article 6(1) of Directive 2009/12/EC requires member states to make provisions for consultations between the airport users and the airport managing body as to the airport charges, whilst Article 6(2) of the Directive encourages member states to use a consensual approach while amending the system or level of airport charges, together with discussions as to the reasons for the proposed changes.

With reference to the second question, the court ruled that the interpretation of national law that an airport user can not challenge the decision of the independent supervisory authority that approves that charging system, but is able to bring an action against the airport managing body on the basis that the charges that the user must pay are inequitable, is precluded.

[1]http://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf;jsessionid=C83087CC12982726F6AAD6ACE80D3477?text=&docid=220810&pageIndex=0&doclang=EN&mode=lst&dir=&occ=first&part=1&cid=5338012

© 2019 Whitestone Chambers

www.whitestonechambers.com

law@whitestonechambers.com

A passenger charged €20 by Ryanair to bring an item of carry-on luggage onto the aircraft, the dimensions of which were in excess of that outlined in the company’s general terms and conditions, has been refunded the charge plus interest following the judgment of a Spanish mercantile court.

Ryanair had pleaded that the passenger’s carry-on luggage exceeded the limits set out in section 8.3.1 of their General Terms and Conditions of Carriage:

8.3.1.     You may carry one piece of carry-on baggage on the plane, which must be no larger than 40cm x 20cm x 25cm. [1]

The policy which came into effect on 1 November 2018 means that any baggage in excess of the above dimensions requires the passenger to pay a €14 supplement to upgrade to “Priority”. The passenger’s baggage was in excess of these dimensions and they had not paid the supplement, and consequently was charged €20 to take their carry-on luggage onboard the aircraft.

The judge characterised the charge as “abusive, adding that it “curtailed the rights that the passenger has recognised by law”, and declared it invalid in Spain.” [2] The ruling of the court resulted in the budget airline being ordered to return the €20 plus interest to the passenger, however, the passenger’s claim of €10 as damages was denied, as the judge ruled that no damages had been caused to the passenger.

This ruling follows the Italian antitrust authority fining Ryanair €3m and Wizzair €1m in February of this year in relation to their cabin baggage policies which were seen as amounting to increasing the price of tickets, but doing so in a non-transparent manner. [2]

In a statement on Wednesday, Ryanair said: “This ruling will not affect Ryanair’s baggage policy, either in the past or in the future, as it is an isolated case that misinterpreted our commercial freedom to determine the size of our cabin baggage.”

 

[1] https://www.ryanair.com/gb/en/useful-info/help-centre/terms-and-conditions/termsandconditionsar_696869348

 

[2] https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2019/1120/1094121-ryanair-hand-luggage-fee/

 

[3] https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-italy-ryanair-court/italy-court-suspends-fines-to-ryanair-wizz-air-over-hand-luggage-policies-idUKKCN1R91XI

© 2019 Whitestone Chambers

www.whitestonechambers.com

law@whitestonechambers.com

Virgin Galactic has recently become the world’s first publicly traded space tourism venture. It is a vertically integrated aerospace company within the Virgin Group, pioneering human spaceflight for private individuals and researchers.

Virgin Galactic (‘Galactic’) merged with venture capital firm, Social Capital Hedosophia in early October, prior to which Galactic had lost $138 million in the first nine months of that year. It had spent $100 million on research and development for testing rocket-powered space planes ahead of its first commercial flight scheduled for 2020.

The resulting company formed through the merger was named Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc. (“VGH”) and its common stock, units and warrants began trading under the ticker “SPCE” on 28 October 2019. Merging and trading as a public company are milestones on the path towards building a thriving commercial service business, with the projected worth of this public listing being $2.7 trillion by 2045 according to Merrill Lynch.[1] The deal has given the company a cash influx of $430 million which will ensure that there is sufficient funding while it finishes testing of its vehicle, SpaceShipTwo, which has been under development for more than a decade.[2]

The company plans to send paying customers in groups of 6 on scenic flights to space where they will experience weightlessness for a few minutes. The customers will also experience intense G-forces as the plane makes its way to more than 50 miles above Earth. 600 people already have tickets and have agreed to pay between $200,000 and $250,000 for their trips representing approximately $80 million in total collected deposits and over $120 million of potential revenues. The company is currently not taking any new customers, but its new financial filing has revealed that more than 3500 people have expressed an interest in purchasing tickets.[3]

One potential line of business for Galactic is in using space plane to conduct ultra-fast flights between cities. Sam Korus, an analyst at ARK invest, said that his research indicates that as many as 2.7 million people might be willing to pay up to $100,000 for a long-distance hypersonic flight to reduce their current travel time. According to his research, the market could scale to $270 billion in revenues annually.

Boeing has invested $20 million for a 1% stake in the company to aid the development of hypersonic transit. The companies will work together to broaden commercial space access and transform global travel technologies. The investment brings together two companies with extensive experience in the space industry. Virgin Galactic brings with it the ability to design, build, test, and operate a fleet of advanced aerospace vehicles; Boeing has unparalleled experience transporting people to orbit and building and operating large structures within that environment.[4]

© 2019 Whitestone Chambers

www.whitestonechambers.com

law@whitestonechambers.com

[1] https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/10/28/virgin-galactic-takes-space-tourism-public-with-historic-nyse-listing/

[2] https://edition.cnn.com/2019/11/13/tech/virgin-galactic-earnings/index.html

[3] https://www.virgingalactic.com/articles/virgin-galactic-completes-merger-with-social-capital-hedosophia-creating-the-worlds-first-and-only-publicly-traded-commercial-human-spaceflight-company/

[4] https://www.virgingalactic.com/articles/boeing-to-invest-in-human-spaceflight-pioneer-virgin-galactic/

 

A BBC Panorama investigation  into fuel tankering, the practice of filling aircraft with extra fuel to avoid having to refuel at destinations that have a higher fuel charge, has claimed that they have seen documents which show that up to six tonnes of extra fuel can be loaded onto a plane per flight. BA confirmed that it emitted 18000 tonnes of additional carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, last year, by indulging in this cost saving practice.

According to Panorama, a recent BA flight to Italy took three extra tonnes of fuel leading to an added 600 kg of carbon dioxide emission whilst only saving £40 in costs.

BA told the BBC that fuel tankering is standard practice within the industry to carry additional fuel due to operational, safety and price reasons. The industry-wide practice could mean extra annual emissions equivalent to a large European city.[1]  Whilst admitting that they sometimes indulge in fuel tankering to save money – such as when flying to Glasgow where fuel prices are 25% more expensive than Heathrow, they reasoned that fuel tankering was sometimes important for operational reasons and to save time. BBC Panorama states that for BA, fuel tankering applies largely to only short haul destinations where there are considerable fuel price differences between European airports.

The U.K. is currently a part of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS).[2] The EU ETS is a form of carbon pricing known as a ‘cap and trade scheme’ in which a limit on emissions is set and divided up into allowances, each equal to one tonne of CO2. Each year businesses must surrender sufficient allowances to match their emissions, with large fines imposed on those who do not. BA has committed to reducing carbon emissions by investing in new technologies and sustainable bio-jet fuels[3]. John Sauven, Greenpeace UK’s executive director has suggested the need for government-enforced reduction targets to ensure airlines take responsibility for the damage their emissions are causing. Eurocontrol, the body that coordinates air traffic control for Europe, has estimated that tankering in Europe produces an additional of 901,000 tonnes of CO2. BA have stated that they will carry out a review of its fuel tankering practices and CO2 emissions and has also ensured to offset all CO2 emissions from its UK domestic flights in accordance with the EU ETS by 2020.

© 2019 Whitestone Chambers

www.whitestonechambers.com

law@whitestonechambers.com

[1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-50365362

[2] https://spice-spotlight.scot/2019/04/05/the-eu-emissions-trading-scheme-and-brexit/

[3] https://www.britishairways.com/cms/global/microsites/ba_reports0809/pdfs/Environment.pdf

Bombardier, a leading manufacturer of planes and trains has reached into a definitive agreement to sell select assets to Spirit AeroSystems, one of the world’s largest tier-one manufacturers and suppliers of aerostructures. It is also acquiring aftermarket service businesses in Belfast, U.K.; Casablanca, Morocco; and its aerostructure maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility in Dallas, U.S.A. The deal involves assumption of liabilities, including pension obligations. The assets and after-market service business are being acquired for a cash consideration of $500 Million. Additionally, Spirit Aerosystems is assuming approximately $300 Million in net pension liabilities and approximately $290 Million of government grant repayment obligations, for a total enterprise valuation of $1090 Million, which is equals to 10 times the 2019 estimated adjusted EBITDA of the acquired business. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2020 and is subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.[1]

Spirit AeroSystems claims that the acquisition is in line with Spirit’s growth strategy of increasing Airbus content, developing low cost country footprint and growing their aftermarket business. The Bombardier operations will bring synergies by bringing engineering expertise and add to a robust track record of innovation. The Deal would be strategic for Spirit as the acquired business would bring a world-class aftermarket business which more than doubles Spirit’s geographic reach globally.

The move also benefits Bombardier in the sense that the move is part of Bombardier’s plan to shed its commercial aviation business and focus on its higher-margin business jets and rail division. The Belfast factory will continue to remain a major supplier to Bombardier’s business jet programmes.

A Spokesperson for Bombardier said that there would be no workforce adjustments and Bombardier’s employees will be transferred to Spirit including those at smaller operations in US and Morocco.[2] The Unite union is of the opinion that the acquisition has a hope for a positive future for Bombardier workers in Northern Ireland as Bombardier was once on the brink of insolvency and a new owner for the Belfast operations should bring some stability for the workforce and a long-term focus on the business. The GMB union said that it would be seeking talks with Spirit’s management ‘to get assurances on jobs, terms and condition and pensions.’[3]

The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. Spirit’s press release cautioned that the expected profits and revenues are only forward-looking statements and could be susceptible to uncertainty and changes in circumstance.

[1]https://www.spiritaero.com/release/137050/spirit-aerosystems-to-acquire-select-assets-of-bombardier-aerostructures-and-aftermarket-services-business

[2]https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/oct/31/bombardiers-belfast-factory-sold-to-spirit-in-850m-deal

[3]https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-50246299

© 2019 Whitestone Chambers

www.whitestonechambers.com

law@whitestonechambers.com

The dawn of the “flying taxi” will soon be upon us through the development and manufacture of the electrical vertical take-off and landing (‘eVTOL’) aircraft. The aircraft as envisaged will carry passengers from specially designed Skyports, enabling the use of eVTOL aircraft in built up areas. The Skyports are designed and built through the collaboration of specialists in architecture, design and engineering to produce landing and take-off sites capable of handling up to 1000 landings per hour in a small space; collaboration between Volocopter and Skyports has resulted in the creation of the world’s first full scale air taxi vertiport, which opened in Singapore on 21 October 2019.

Uber is one of the main competitors in the eVTOL industry, and it plans to “give riders the option of an affordable shared flight”. These aircraft would be autonomously controlled and would pick passengers up and drop them off in a similar way as to how the Uber Pool facility works.

The eVTOL aircraft must comply with the regulatory regimes in each country in which they operate. Singapore and China are places in which the Skyports co-founder and managing director Duncan Walker suggests the aircraft will launch faster, and that in other areas better progress must be made to promote the benefits of these aircraft to governments.

In relation to the regulation of these aircraft in Europe, on 2 July 2019, the European Aviation Safety Agency released its final “Special Condition”, which contains the framework for the Basic and Enhanced certification (aircraft capabilities after a critical malfunction of thrust/lift) for the small aircraft category which “covers aircraft with a passenger seating configuration of 9 or less and a maximum certified take-off mass up to 3175kg” [1].

However, there are currently problems limiting the benefits of this technology. The battery life of these aircraft limit them to short flights as the aircraft achieve a range of about 22 miles, with a maximum speed of 68mph, although prototypes are being designed that may achieve a range of 185 miles. As a result of this, short flights will be the current focus of these companies as there are many potential customers in cities such as London who would use the aircraft to travel to local airports and other destinations.

As these aircraft are developed and are programmed to be fully autonomous, the threat of cyberattacks will loom large, as the effect of an inflight disruption could prove disastrous. Companies using this technology must therefore have detailed plans in case of the event of a cyberattack, as well as a consideration as to whether cyberinsurance will develop to encompass such an event.

[1]https://www.easa.europa.eu/document-library/product-certification-consultations/special-condition-vtol#group-easa-downloads

© 2019 Whitestone Chambers
www.whitestonechambers.com
law@whitestonechambers.com

Police figures have shown that nearly 450 passengers have been arrested on suspicion of being drunk in the past 2 years. Freedom of information requests reveal that at least 245 people were arrested on suspicion of being drunk at a UK airport between 1 April 2017 and 31 March 2019.

Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport, reported the highest number of arrests within that time period with 103 passengers, followed by Gatwick with 81, Glasgow with 47 and Liverpool with 40 arrests. Greater Manchester Police and 3 other forces did not provide figures within the time limit so the final figure is expected to be higher. The ages of those arrested range between 20-58.

The figures emerged after a woman was arrested at Southend Airport for attacking an easyJet crew member. A similar incident took place at Bristol Airport with a man arrested on suspicion of being drunk on an aircraft and sexually assaulting the female crew members.

Chief executive of trade body Airlines UK has described the arrest figures as “ridiculous’’ and has also requested for the introduction of new laws to reduce the number of passengers who drink too much before and during flights.

Ryanair, Europe’s biggest airline, support the proposed changes and stated that “We continue to call for significant changes to prohibit the sale of alcohol at airports, such as a two-drink limit per passenger and no alcohol sales before 10am.’’

The sale of alcohol once a passenger has gone through international airport security in England and Wales is not regulated by licensing laws. A Home Office consultation on whether legislation should be amended closed in February without a decision being announced.

Legislation is important for several reasons, including setting standards and controls to govern the actions of people and groups in the public and private spheres. However, with Parliament otherwise occupied, there seems no sign of any changes any time soon.

© 2019 Whitestone Chambers
www.whitestonechambers.com
law@whitestonechambers.com