Jaunted

Pilots / Airline News / Embraer / → All Tags

By 2020, Pilots May Fly Solo in the Cockpit

It’s reassuring that on pretty much every commercial flight, there are two people in the cockpit in control of all the levers, switches, and buttons that make the airplanes go up and down. The only downside to the two-person crew is that it’s twice as expensive to operate the flight, and that’s why one airline manufacturer is thinking about cutting down on the cockpit seats.

Embraer—best known in our mind for supplying JetBlue with their smaller aircraft—is thinking about launching single pilot planes in or around 2020. This will come at a time when new air traffic systems are launched across the United States and Europe. Right now they’re the only airplane manufacturer that has publicly acknowledged that they are considering this idea, so don’t expect them to be too friendly with the airline pilot union at any tradeshows.

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New Airlines / Azul / David Neeleman / Embraer / → All Tags

All You Ever Wanted To Know About Azul

A Jaunted Exclusive

Is it just us, or does there seem to be next to no information out there about David Neeleman's new airline Azul? You know, the one that could launch next month and shake up the entire South American aviation market?

Turns out, there's plenty of dirt; it's just that it's all in Portuguese. So we decided to dust off our academic caps and--with the help of Google--translate the lengthy FAQ about the new carrier posted on its official website. While we're not sure if these "questions" were posed before or after financial panic gripped the planet, here are the highlights:

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New Airlines / Azul / David Neeleman / Embraer / → All Tags

Neeleman's Azul Cleared To Fly In Brazil

A Brazilian aviation official says that David Neeleman's slightly mysterious, potentially awesome airline Azul has been government certified, clearing the way for an on-time first flight in December.

According to the Associated Press:

Azul has yet to inform Brazilian regulators of the routes it intends to fly, [an aviation] agency spokeswoman said, but it is expected to begin with the Rio de Janeiro-Sao Paulo route and expand from there.

The airline hopes to quickly make inroads into Brazil's market with low-price tickets and features such as leather seats and in-flight live satellite television.

The airline already has at least one jet ready to fly, which means we're now obsessively refreshing Azul's website, hoping to get the early word on destinations and prices as soon as tickets are available.

Related Stories:
· Brazil Approves Azul Airlines [AP, via IHT]
· New Airlines: Azul's Livery Revealed [Jaunted]

[Photo: Azul]

Election 2008 / Sarah Palin / JetBlue / Embraer / → All Tags

Sarah Palin Returning Campaign Plane To JetBlue

Just like the politician who put it to use, Sarah Palin's campaign Embraer 190 will quietly slink back to its ordinary routine now that the election is over. The jet, which was specially tricked out for the GOP, made its final trip of the season on November 5, ferrying the Palin clan back to Alaska after they were on hand for John McCain's concession in Arizona.

The 100-seat jet was scheduled to fly back east to JFK on Thursday, and for the time being, it's simply a spare. A JetBlue spokesman tells USA Today:

On November 12 it will go to our Embraer paint shop in Nashville to be fully repainted with JetBlue livery. The jet returns to revenue service mid-November once repainted.

Just because the livery is gone, though, doesn't mean diligent planespotters can't pick out the only jet to ever serve a female Republican veep candidate: Look for tail number N239JB next time you're transiting T5.

Related Stories:
· Palin Plane Returned to JetBlue [USA Today]
· McCain Concedes Close to Home [Jaunted]

[Photo: Stephen Toernblom, JetBlue]

David Neeleman / New Airlines / Airlines / Embraer / Azul / Brazil Travel / → All Tags

Neeleman's Azul May Fly Before '09

Last we heard, the new Brazilian carrier Azul, from JetBlue founder David Neeleman, was planning to start flights in January 2009. But an article we just came across on the Dow Jones Newswire (but sadly can't link to 'cause of a pay wall) says the airline is looking to move that first flight up to December 2008.

The report continues:

"They (Azul) talked to us and managed to bring forward the delivery of three or four planes from January 2009 to December of this year," said Embraer CEO Frederico Fleury Curado.

Azul has ordered 76 Embraer 190 and 195s and it has also agreed to lease two of the mid-sized planes from JetBlue. So far only one has the Azul livery: It's been named "O Rio de Janeiro continua Azul," a line from a Gilberto Gil song.

Oh, and by the way, another news report (linked below) says Azul is interested in building an airport in Sao Paulo. We're not holding our breath on that one!

Related Stories:
· Azul Wants to Build an Airport [El Mundo, in Spanish]
· Azul coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Azul]

Midwest Death Watch / Midwest Airlines / Airline Bankruptcy / Airline Fees / Embraer / → All Tags

Midwest Death Watch Trifecta: Cash Infusions, Outsourcing and Bag Fees

Struggling carrier Midwest Airlines has sealed a deal for $60 million in new financing, and has inked another bargain to add 12 regional jets to its fleet, while trimming its 717 holdings. The carrier has already secured $40 million of the promised money--needed for paying off debts to airports, among other things--and it also got a $15 million loan from Republic Airways, the company Midwest has hired to operate those dozen regional jets.

The outsourcing of the Midwest Connect service starts on October 1, which means another couple hundred employees will be furloughed--on top of the 1,200 jobs already cut this summer. The airline says that's to train its people on the new Embraer 170s that Republic flies; the Midwest pilots' union has its doubts:

Management [has] restated its continued intent to wring drastic, draconian concessions from our pilots, holding our very jobs hostage as part of its deal with Republic.

But the airline simply doesn't need as many pilots working because it's also renegotiated a lease with Boeing. Midwest will return 16 of its 25 717s to their manufacturer. That means just nine planes will be kitted out with the new seats announced in August.

Oh, and one last thing: Midwest will start charging $15 for your first checked bag on flights October 21 and later.

Related Stories:
· Midwest Airlines Announces Progress on Restructuring Plan [Official Site]
· Midwest Pilots Express Outrage at Airline's Deal [PRNewswire]
· Midwest Makes More Cuts [WTMJ]
· Midwest Death Watch coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: phantom kitty]

Copa Airlines / New Routes / 737 / Embraer / E-190 / → All Tags

What Fuel Prices? Copa Adds New Routes, New Planes

Continuing the trend of foreign carriers that are doing just fine despite doom and gloom in the US aviation market, Copa Airlines is adding new service to cities across South America and the Caribbean and will add six new planes to its fleet by the end of this year.

All the new routes will be out of Tocumen International Airport in Panama, the airline's long-time base, and will serve Aruba, Bolivia, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela. Service starts in December.

On the aircraft front, six new Boeing 737s will bring the Copa fleet up to 43 planes. The carrier also already owns more than a dozen Embraer 190s, which are about to get really popular in Brazil.

Related Stories:
· Copa Airlines Announces Expansion Plans [Official Site]
· New Routes coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: egmb757lover]

David Neeleman / New Airlines / Airlines / Embraer / Azul / Brazil Travel / → All Tags

New Airlines: Azul's Livery Revealed

David Neeleman's new Brazilian airline, Azul is chugging right along. The latest word is that the first flights will happen in January of 2009, and to tide us over, the carrier has released its new "corporate identity."

Yet again, we're seeing a lot of JetBlue in Azul. For starters, the livery on these Embraer jets looks familiar. B6 paints its E190s the same way, with blue on the bottom, white on top and a fancy tail pattern. Both airlines also have their web addresses stamped on the sides of their planes. Azul uses the Helvetica typeface--you've seen it at American Apparel, on American Airlines and on the NYC subway--while JetBlue works a slightly different sans serif face--called DIN--to get that jet-set look.

Inside, the similarities continue. Two-by-two leather seats are standard, and Azul plans to be the first Latin American airline with live TV in-flight. (Which JetBlue subsidiary company is providing it? LiveTV.)

Now, we're not saying all this copying is a bad thing; if the JetBlue model ain't broke, don't fix it. Want to join us in Brazil around, say, January 2009 to give Azul a try?

Related Stories:
· Neeleman's New Airline Name Sounds Familiar [Jaunted]
· Top Secret Airline Watch: Neeleman Hard at Work in Brazil [Jaunted]

David Neeleman / New Airlines / Airlines / Embraer / Azul / Brazil Travel / → All Tags

Neeleman's New Airline Name Sounds Familiar

The contest to name David Neeleman's new airline is over, and though Samba was the favorite among Brazilians, the airline mogul is instead going with the second-place name Azul ("Blue"). Of course, his previous venture was JetBlue. Must have a thing for airline names that match his eye color.

Now that the name is out of the way, Neeleman can focus on equipping his 76 new Embraer planes with leather seats and live satellite TV, two of the amenities that helped JetBlue earn so much customer loyalty soon after its first flight in 2000.

The new website for the airline, voeazul.com.br, doesn't offer much just yet, though you can fork over your email address for updates. We've already submitted ours, hoping Neeleman will ping us the second he makes another blue move.

Related Stories:
· Top Secret Airline Watch: Neeleman Hard at Work in Brazil [Jaunted]
· David Neeleman Confirms His Brazilian Airline [Jaunted]

David Neeleman / New Airlines / Airlines / Embraer / Voce Escolhe / → All Tags

Top Secret Airline Watch: Neeleman Hard at Work in Brazil

David Neeleman is hard at work on his new Brazilian airline, which he hopes to have airborne by 2009. But he needs your help!

In a Branson-esque move, he wants you to pick the name for his new airline, which is temporarily called Você Escolhe (You Choose). All you gotta do is head to the airline's website and pick from names like Azul, Samba, Viva and Abraço. In exchange for voting, you're entered to win a lifetime pass for two on the new carrier.

Neeleman's not stopping with just the name. According to the site, they'll also be putting more stuff up for vote: possible routes, on-board amenities and even the uniforms.

One amenity you won't need to worry about, says O Estado de Sao Paulo, is live TV. The newspaper reports that it'll be part of the new airline, and that in-flight cell phone service may be in the works, too--though it's currently forbidden in Brazil.

Related Stories:
· Você Escolhe [Official Site, in Portuguese]
· Airline Passengers Can Already Make Cell Phone Calls [O Estado, in Portuguese]
· New Airlines coverage [Jaunted]

David Neeleman / New Airlines / Airlines / Embraer / → All Tags

David Neeleman Confirms His Brazilian Airline

UPDATE: The airline will have leather seats and individual seatback LiveTV, a la JetBlue. There's even a contest to name it. Check out the website for David Neeleman's new airline here (in Portuguese).

David Neeleman himself has finally confirmed his plans for a new Brazilian airline...plans we've been watching closely and speculating on for a while now.

The founder of JetBlue Airways announced a new Brazilian airline on Thursday, to begin operating next year with three jets and eventually grow to a fleet of 76 planes flying nationwide.

JetBlue chairman David Neeleman said the opportunity is clear: Latin America's largest nation has a growing passenger travel market dominated by two airlines that face little domestic competition and charge high prices.

"The prices that people pay here in Brazil are 50 percent higher than the prices people pay in the United States. ... Brazil is a country that needs more competition and a different kind of competition."

The as-yet-nameless airline has 36 E-195 jets on order from Embraer. Neeleman confirmed that he has "raised US$150 million (€95 million) for the venture so far from investors in the United States and Brazil." So he hasn't mentioned Branson yet. Yet! There's always room for more to be revelead. You never know...

Related Stories:
· Founder of JetBlue Airways to start new Brazilian airline [AP/IHT]
· Top Secret Airline Watch: Embraer Confirms That Neeleman's Planning Something [Jaunted]
· David Neeleman coverage [Jaunted]

Richard Branson / David Neeleman / New Airlines / Embraer / E-190 / → All Tags

Top Secret Airline Watch: Embraer Confirms That Neeleman's Planning Something

Looks like David Neeleman really is up to something down in Brazil. His go-to airline manufacturer, Embraer, confirmed to the AP that the ex-JetBlue CEO is looking to buy some mid-range jets.

Neeleman isn't talking about his plans, and JetBlue insists it has nothing to do with a possible new carrier in South America. (We of course are dreaming of a collaboration with Richard Branson.)

The two major airlines in Brazil use bigger planes than the E-190s Neeleman is shopping for. But he certainly has experience with the 100-seaters his looking to buy: JetBlue flies the same planes on shorter, in-demand routes in the US.

Related Stories:
· Embraer Confirms Talks to Sell Jets [AP, via IHT]
· Neeleman's Latest Moves in Brazil [Jaunted]
· A Neeleman-Branson Airline? [Jaunted]