Brazil ignoring the aviation sector’s woes

The news from Latin America hasn’t been good for some time now but there are occasional rays of sunshine. Take Brazil: for the fifth consecutive month, demand in the country for air transport grew. July figures indicated a growth of 3.83%.

The statistics have just been released by the Brazilian Association of Airlines, which compared the month to the same period in 2016. Brazil also increased its load factors by 0.62% to achieve 83.97%. The number of passengers carried, meanwhile, grew by a useful 4.43% to reach 8.6m.

As for carrier market share, Gol takes first place with some 37.58%, followed by Latam with a 32.24% slice. Blue took 17.38% whilst Avianca Brazil weighed in with 12.8%. This pattern was repeated in the full year, where Gol continues to lead with 36.33%, followed by Latam (32.46%) and Blue (18.37%).

Similarly, international air traffic to and from Brazil grew in July by a healthy 18.82%.

 

TNA brings new towbarless tug to the market

The latest in the TowFLEXX 5-Series, TNA is calling the new tug is the industry’s “most advanced and versatile remote controlled electrical towbarless aircraft tug in its class.” This newest tug combines the best in manoeuvrability, adaptability, practicality and tow capacity – can tow a wide variety of aircraft sizes.

The new heavy-duty configuration of the established 5-Series tug has a towing power of up to 75 tonnes (165,000 pounds) maximum take-off weight. Its strong prime movers have a tractive motor power up to 80 tonnes (176,000 pounds). This model is especially designed to cope with significant stress and can handle aircraft on steep inclines or other unusual harsh conditions, such as offshore helicopter platforms.

“Customers have been asking for an affordable and compact tug system, especially in the heavy-duty weight range of 100,000 to 150,000 pounds MTOW, and we’ve responded by introducing a smart and powerful electrical aircraft tow vehicle, making it much easier to overcome slopes and inclines and operating under tough environmental conditions,” said Michael Turwitt, Managing Partner of TNA Aviation Technologies. “The TowFLEXX HD features a special transmission and gear drive combined with many features that deliver unique functionality normally not even found in bigger and more expensive conventional tow tugs,” he added.

The launch date coincides with the arrival of the improved standard 5-Series configuration with many 2018 model year updates.

Canada’s Cargojet sees revenues rise

Canadian overnight air cargo carrier, Cargojet, has announced a revenue increase of 11.2% in the first half of 2017, compared to the previous year, to $88.2m.

Adjusted EBITDA earnings were up 9.3% over the previous year, at $24.6m.

The operator said revenues came from increased volumes from existing overnight customers, contractual annual price increases and fuel surcharges. This was partially offset by a decrease in charter revenues.

President and CEO, Ajay Virmani, said the increase was a product of Cargojet’s strategy to improve aircraft utilisation and to maximise margins, adding: “We continue to prudently manage our operating costs and look for further route network optimisation opportunities.”

Cargojet handles around 1.3 million pounds of cargo every business night across North America using a fleet of 18 all-cargo aircraft.