Pontifications: Ukraine impact on commercial aviation https://leehamnews.com/2022/02/28/pontifications-ukraine-impact-on-commercial-aviation/
martes, 1 de marzo de 2022
HOTR: Airbus responds to Qatar lawsuit; (Update): Boeing statement on Russia-Ukraine
HOTR: Airbus responds to Qatar lawsuit; (Update): Boeing statement on Russia-Ukraine https://leehamnews.com/2022/02/28/hotr-airbus-responds-to-qatar-lawsuit/
Boeing is Building Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS)-11+ Satellite Using Advanced Techniques to Deliver Unrivaled Capability at "Record-Breaking Speed"
press release
EL SEGUNDO, Calif., March 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Boeing has begun building the latest version of the Wideband Global SATCOM satellite system, WGS-11+, using advanced techniques to effectively integrate the latest commercial technology while enabling a high-paced five-year schedule that will deliver years faster than similar clean-sheet designs.
"We're moving at record-breaking speed to deliver the unmatched resilience, efficiency, and throughput WGS-11+ offers our warfighters," said Col. Matt Spencer, Space Systems Command Geosynchronous Earth Orbit and Polar Division Senior Materiel Leader. "Boeing's ability to rapidly integrate the latest commercial technology into our infrastructure gives us a competitive edge on the battlefield."
Boeing and the U.S. Space Force completed the system's critical design review in late 2021, officially launching the program's production phase. Leveraging additive manufacturing, rapid prototyping, agile development and other advanced techniques, Boeing has created cost and schedule benefits, while boosting system performance.
"We're printing more than a thousand parts for WGS-11+, giving us the capability to introduce customization in a way that improves system performance, without requiring extensive integration times or customized tooling," said Troy Dawson, Boeing Government Satellite Systems vice president. "We understand how important speed is to the mission. That production speed translates to effectiveness against threats. As we continue to invest our technology and processes, we know that a similarly capable satellite could be delivered even faster."
WGS-11+ showcases an evolution in phased array technology. Based on Boeing's advances on its commercial 702X software-defined satellite payload, it is capable of generating hundreds of electronically-steered beams simultaneously, providing users with more than twice the mission capability compared to satellites within the existing WGS fleet.
Like 702X, each individual beam is shapeable and can be uniquely tailored to any operation, enabling increased mission flexibility and responsiveness. Narrower beam widths with dual polarization unique to WGS-11+ help protect against jamming and interference while allowing greater frequency reuse.
When it joins the constellation of ten WGS satellites, WGS-11+ will substantially increase throughput capacity of essential communication services for the U.S. government and its allies. It is scheduled for delivery in 2024.
As a leading global aerospace company, Boeing develops, manufactures and services commercial airplanes, defense products and space systems for customers in more than 150 countries. As a top U.S. exporter, the company leverages the talents of a global supplier base to advance economic opportunity, sustainability and community impact. Boeing's diverse team is committed to innovating for the future and living the company's core values of safety, quality and integrity. Learn more at www.boeing.com.
Air Passenger Numbers to Recover in 2024
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) expects overall traveler numbers to reach 4.0 billion in 2024 (counting multi-sector connecting trips as one passenger), exceeding pre-COVID-19 levels (103% of the 2019 total).
Expectations for the shape of the near-term recovery have shifted slightly, reflecting the evolution of government-imposed travel restrictions in some markets. The overall picture presented in the latest update to IATA’s long-term forecast, however, is unchanged from what was expected in November, prior to the Omicron variant.
“The trajectory for the recovery in passenger numbers from COVID-19 was not changed by the Omicron variant. People want to travel. And when travel restrictions are lifted, they return to the skies. There is still a long way to go to reach a normal state of affairs, but the forecast for the evolution in passenger numbers gives good reason to be optimistic,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
The February update to the long-term forecast includes the following highlights:
- In 2021, overall traveler numbers were 47% of 2019 levels. This is expected to improve to 83% in 2022, 94% in 2023, 103% in 2024 and 111% in 2025.
- In 2021, international traveler numbers were 27% of 2019 levels. This is expected to improve to 69% in 2022, 82% in 2023, 92% in 2024 and 101% in 2025.
This is a slightly more optimistic near-term international recovery scenario compared to November 2021, based on the progressive relaxation or elimination of travel restrictions in many markets. This has seen improvements in the major North Atlantic and intra-European markets, strengthening the baseline for recovery. Asia-Pacific is expected to continue to lag the recovery with the region’s largest market, China, not showing any signs of relaxing its severe border measures in the near future.
- In 2021, domestic traveler numbers were 61% of 2019 levels. This is expected to improve to 93% in 2022, 103% in 2023, 111% in 2024 and 118% in 2025.
The outlook for the evolution of domestic traveler numbers is slightly more pessimistic than in November. While the US and Russian domestic markets have recovered, the same is not true for the other major domestic markets of China, Canada, Japan and Australia.
“The biggest and most immediate drivers of passenger numbers are the restrictions that governments place on travel. Fortunately, more governments have understood that travel restrictions have little to no long-term impact on the spread of a virus. And the economic and social hardship caused for very limited benefit is simply no longer acceptable in a growing number of markets. As a result, the progressive removal of restrictions is giving a much-needed boost to the prospects for travel,” said Walsh.
IATA reiterates its call for:
- The removal of all travel barriers (including quarantine and testing) for those fully vaccinated with a WHO-approved vaccine
- Pre-departure antigen testing to enable quarantine-free travel for non-vaccinated travelers
- Removing all travel bans, and
- Accelerating the easing of travel restrictions in recognition that travelers pose no greater risk for COVID-19 spread than already exists in the general population.
Regional Variations
Not all markets or market sectors are recovering at the same pace.
“In general, we are moving in the right direction, but there are
some concerns. Asia-Pacific is the laggard of the recovery. While
Australia and New Zealand have announced measures to reconnect with the
world, China is showing no signs of relaxing its zero-COVID strategy.
The
resulting localized lock-downs in its domestic market are depressing
global passenger numbers even as other major markets like the US are
largely back to normal,” said Walsh.
Asia-Pacific: The slow removal of international travel restrictions, and the likelihood of renewed domestic restrictions during COVID outbreaks, mean that traffic to/from/within Asia Pacific will only reach 68% of 2019 levels in 2022, the weakest outcome of the main regions. 2019 levels should be recovered in 2025 (109%) due to a slow recovery on international traffic in the region.
Europe: In the next few years, the intra-Europe market is expected to benefit from passenger preferences for short-haul travel as confidence rebuilds. This will be facilitated by increasingly harmonized and restriction-free movement within the EU. Total passenger numbers to/from/within Europe are expected to reach 86% of 2019 values in 2022, before making a full recovery in 2024 (105%).
North America: After a resilient 2021, traffic to/from/within North America will continue to perform strongly in 2022 as the US domestic market returns to pre-crisis trends, and with ongoing improvements in international travel. In 2022, passenger numbers will reach 94% of 2019 levels, and full recovery is expected in 2023 (102%), ahead of other regions.
Africa: Africa’s passenger traffic prospects are somewhat weaker in the near-term, due to slow progress in vaccinating the population, and the impact of the crisis on developing economies. Passenger numbers to/from/within Africa will recover more gradually than in other regions, reaching 76% of 2019 levels in 2022, surpassing pre-crisis levels only in 2025 (101%).
Middle East: With limited short-haul markets, the Middle East focus on long-haul connectivity through its hubs is expected to result in slower recovery. Passenger numbers to/from/within the Middle East are expected to reach 81% of 2019 levels in 2022, 98% in 2024 and 105% in 2025.
Latin America: Traffic to/from/within Latin America has been relatively resilient during the pandemic and is forecast to see a strong 2022, with limited travel restrictions and dynamic passenger flows within the region and to/from North America. 2019 passenger numbers are forecast to be surpassed in 2023 for Central America (102%), followed by South America in 2024 (103%) and the Caribbean in 2025 (101%).
|
Passenger numbers, Share of 2019 |
2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Industry-wide |
47% |
83% |
94% |
103% |
111% |
International |
27% |
69% |
82% |
92% |
101% |
Domestic |
61% |
93% |
103% |
111% |
118% |
Asia Pacific |
40% |
68% |
84% |
97% |
109% |
Europe |
40% |
86% |
96% |
105% |
111% |
North America |
56% |
94% |
102% |
107% |
112% |
Africa |
46% |
76% |
85% |
93% |
101% |
Middle East |
42% |
81% |
90% |
98% |
105% |
South America |
51% |
88% |
97% |
103% |
108% |
Central America |
72% |
96% |
102% |
109% |
115% |
Caribbean |
44% |
72% |
82% |
92% |
101% |
Source:IATA/Tourism Economics Air Passenger Forecast, March 2022
Russia-Ukraine Conflict
The forecast does not calculate the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In general, air transport is resilient against shocks and this conflict is unlikely to impact the long-term growth of air transport. It is too early to estimate what the near-term consequences will be for aviation, but it is clear that there are downside risks, in particular in markets with exposure to the conflict.
Sensitivity factors will include the geographic extent, severity,
and time-period for sanctions and/or airspace closures. These impacts
would be felt most severely in Russia, Ukraine and neighboring areas.
Pre-COVID-19, Russia was the 11th largest market for air
transport services in terms of passenger numbers, including its large
domestic market. Ukraine ranked 48.
The impact on airline costs as a result of fluctuations in energy
prices or rerouting to avoid Russian airspace could have broader
implications. Consumer confidence and economic activity are likely to be
impacted even outside of Eastern Europe.
Airbus publishes agenda for 2022 Annual General Meeting
PR
Airbus SE (stock exchange symbol: AIR) has published the agenda for its Annual General Meeting (AGM) taking place on 12 April 2022, with resolutions including the proposed appointment of a new director and the renewal of the Board mandates of Chief Executive Officer Guillaume Faury and two other directors.
One resolution proposes the appointment of Irene Rummelhoff as a non-executive director, replacing Carlos Tavares whose Board mandate expires at the close of the AGM and hasn’t sought re-election. Irene Rummelhoff is Executive Vice President Marketing, Midstream & Processing at Norwegian energy company Equinor ASA and a member of its Corporate Executive Committee. Her extensive expertise in the energy sector, including in the field of energy transition and renewables, would bring important skills to help the Company achieve its long-term sustainability goals.
The resolutions also include the proposed re-appointment of Guillaume Faury as an executive member of the Board, along with non-executive members Catherine Guillouard and Claudia Nemat.
Airbus Board mandates are renewed every year in blocks of four, for terms of three years, in order to ensure a smooth transition of the Board’s composition. This also avoids large block replacements of directors at any single AGM. With these proposed renewals and new appointment, the Company would increase the proportion of female directors on the Board to 33% from 25% currently.
Also on the voting agenda is the proposed payment of a 2021 gross dividend of € 1.50 per share, as communicated in the Full-Year results disclosure on 17 February.
The set-up of the 2022 AGM in Amsterdam reflects the improved COVID-19 situation compared to last year and the latest guidelines in the Netherlands. Registered shareholders are welcome to attend while the option remains to vote remotely by proxy. Any changes to the organisation of the event will be communicated via the AGM page of the Airbus website.
Documents for the AGM, including the Information Notice with a full agenda, are available online at: https://www.airbus.com/en/investors/annual-general-meetings