JSSI Bizav Index Shows March Drop, Predicts Lift in May

“March marked a tipping point in business aviation, when the full impact of the Covid-19 crisis was felt industrywide,” said JSSI president and CEO Neil Book. “As the world economy began to shut down, so did business jet travel,”

In fact, JSSI’s latest quarterly business aviation index revealed that flight hours in March fell 12.9 percent month-over-month and were the lowest recorded for that month since 2008. Flight hours were down 5.7 percent year-over-year in the first quarter, it added.

According to the JSSI index, the sudden drop-off in March flight activity was particularly apparent in North America, falling 25 percent from a year earlier. Europe, however, bucked the trend with a 5.1 percent year-over-year increase due to the “frenzy of business aircraft activity in the region that preceded the impending closure of international borders,” JSSI said.

JSSI’s flight hour data by aircraft type reflects that the most substantial drop in March activity occurred for large-cabin jets, which recorded a 15.5 percent decrease from February. It saw “less pronounced” utilization declines in other aircraft types.

Book said JSSI expects April flight hours to be down more than 75 percent, but anticipates an increase this month “as a number of countries begin to slowly open back up.”

EBAA Backs European Commission on ADS-B Deadline Delay

The European Commission (EC) has agreed to push back the June 7 deadline for ADS-B equipage until December 7, citing the difficulties that operators have faced in meeting the mandate during the Covid-19 pandemic. “The outbreak of the pandemic of Covid-19 virus and the resulting impact on the aviation sector has led to unforeseeable obstacles for aircraft operators to pursue their activities to bring the aircraft in compliance,” the EC stated.

This will ensure the ability of aircraft to continue performing sensitive operations, the EC added, stating that the move would provide operators that had planned to retrofit their aircraft between now and June the necessary time to line up a slot at an avionics shop.

The decision drew strong support from the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA). “EBAA has always supported ADS-B surveillance technology, and while some of our members are already compliant, there are some who will have difficulties meeting requirements in the crisis,” EBAA secretary-general Athar Husain Khan said. “The extra time will go a long way in easing some of the burdens on operators and help the business aviation sector continue to play its vital role in the fight against Covid-19 and the post-crisis European recovery.”

Covid-19 Spurs Aviation Fuel Loyalty Program Changes

With business aviation flight hours curtailed as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, several aircraft fuel providers have altered their customer loyalty programs.

Avfuel said it will preserve, through 2021, the tiers of its Avtrip members who earned gold or platinum status for 2020. While its program points never expire, those who have not earned reward status of 5,000 points by year-end will see their points roll over in 2021.

Miami-based World Fuel Services is offering its participating FBOs an expiration extension for their FlyBuys point banks during this period and allowing them free rein on how best to distribute those points to flight departments. It is also giving away points to help operators earn training opportunities or use as invoice credit.

Phillips 66 sees no changes to its WingPoints Rewards, as its points never expire. The same is true of Titan Aviation Fuels, the U.S. distributor of Shell-branded fuels, and its Shell Aeroclass Rewards. A Titan spokesperson told AIN that it is working on new promotions with its FBOs and hopes to provide members with bonus point incentives in the coming months.

Major FBO operator Signature Flight Support said it is currently evaluating temporary modifications to both its Signature Loyalty and its Epic Fuels Bravo Rewards programs. Atlantic Aviation also expects to announce some changes to its Atlantic Awards plan later this month.

U.S. Lawmakers Call For Task Force To Shape Travel Safety

Two U.S. senators are moving to safeguard air travel once the Covid-19 pandemic eases and people begin to step on airplanes again. Introduced by Massachusetts Democrat Edward Markey and Connecticut Democrat Richard Blumenthal, the Restoring Safety in the Skies Act of 2020 would establish a government task force to develop guidance and recommend requirements surrounding logistics, health, safety, and security issues involved with air travel during and after the coronavirus pandemic.

The task force would be jointly coordinated through the Departments of Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, and Transportation and involve airports, airlines, aviation workers, and public health experts, among others. It would have six months to submit a final report with recommendations.

“Air travel has been uniquely affected by the current pandemic,” said Markey, who is a member of the Senate Commerce Committee. “That’s why experts across all of the relevant agencies and groups must come together to address the immediate challenges to safety in our skies, as well as start planning for the ‘new normal’ after the coronavirus subsides.”

“As we look beyond this crisis, the recommendations, plans, and guidelines of the task force will chart a clear path to resuming safe, responsible operations and travel,” agreed Blumenthal, who also is a member of the Commerce Committee.

IBAC Adjusts To Effects of Covid-19

Despite the effects of Covid-19 and various stay-at-home restrictions, the International Business Aviation Council (IBAC) is progressing on a variety of initiatives while continuing to accomplish hosting educational sessions and performing more than a half-dozen audits for the International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS-BAO) program. “The International Standard for Business Aircraft Handling (IS-BAH) and IS-BAO programs teams have shown genuine commitment and resilience these past few months,” wrote IBAC director general Kurt Edwards in an update on the Montreal-based organization’s website.

Specifically, IBAC conducted its first remote IS-BAO audit on March 30 of a Stage 3 operator based in Alaska by an auditor located in Atlanta. In all, IBAC has performed seven remote audits, with six more pending. It has also reformatted its two-day, eight-hour-long, in-person workshops to four-day, four-hour-long live webinars. It has held those workshops in the Asian and North American time zones and is planning one for the European/Middle East time zone.

In the meantime, IS-BAH global registrations at Stage 1 are nearing 230 locations since the program’s launch, with 111 of those achieving Stage 2 and three earning Stage 3. IBAC is also conducting virtual audits for IS-BAH registrations.

U.S. Senate Panel to Probe Harm of Covid on Aviation

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee will take a closer look at the harm the Covid-19 pandemic has wrought on the aviation industry during a hearing this week that will include the participation of manufacturing, airlines, and airport representatives. Scheduled for Wednesday, the hearing, “The State of the Aviation Industry: Examining the Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic,” will address the current status of the industry, challenges resulting from the Covid crisis, and the implementation of the CARES Act.

This week’s slate includes Aerospace Industries Association president and CEO Eric Fanning, Airlines for America president and CEO Nicholas Calio, and American Association of Airport Executives president and CEO Todd Hauptli.

The hearing comes as manufacturers have furloughed and laid off numerous workers, slowed production, and deferred deliveries. GE Aviation on Monday told employees that plans call to shrink its workforce by 25 percent, and several manufacturers last week reported slowed production and deferred deliveries. In addition, the toll on airlines continues to mount with the International Air Transport Association quantifying lost revenues this year at $314 billion. Airports also have faced their difficulties as flights have slowed to a trickle at many facilities, prompting the FAA to cut hours at more than 90 air traffic control towers.

Air Ambulance Crews Adjust To Covid-19 Ops Conditions

Flying in masks and gloves, as well as distancing from cabin crew, is the new normal for emergency medical helicopter pilots. In a virtual town hall held recently by the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS), a trio of air ambulance executives explained how their organizations are handling pilot safety in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The executives said all of their organizations were focused on a series of best practices regarding the use of personal protection equipment (PPE). They have also taken steps to separate flight and air medical crews, avoid patient contact, and stay out of hospitals, while also modifying aircraft when possible with cockpit/cabin dividers, as well as using cabin air filters and aircraft decontamination. 

None of the operators said they were experiencing pilot shortages due to Covid-19 quarantining or aircraft shortages stemming from the time required to decontaminate aircraft—about 45 minutes at the end of each patient transport. “We’ve been focusing on trying to keep [pilot] stress levels down,” said Ben Clayton, chief safety officer for the Life Flight Network.

GE Aviation To Shrink Workforce by 25 Percent

Further voluntary and involuntary layoffs at GE Aviation will see its 52,000-strong global workforce shrink 25 percent as the company institutes plans over the “coming months” to shave its cost base by $1 billion this year, company CEO David Joyce wrote to employees yesterday. The plans, said Joyce, include $2 billion in “cash actions” in 2020 and follow a “comprehensive strategy” under development to resize the business to match its forecast for the commercial aviation market. 

The decision follows an announcement on March 23 to slash the company’s U.S. workforce by 10 percent. At the time, the company also instituted temporary layoffs affecting 50 percent of its U.S. MRO employees for 90 days. GE Aviation estimated the move—along with a hiring freeze, the cancellation of the salaried merit increases, a “dramatic” reduction of all non-essential spending, and a significant decrease in its contingent workforce—would save it between $500 million and $1 billion. Since March 23, however, market “realities” have dimmed, as aircraft manufacturers plan reduced production into 2021.

“While extremely difficult, I am confident this is the required response to the continued contraction of the industry and its protracted recovery,” said Joyce, who on March 23 said he would forego a salary of his own this year. “I am equally confident the industry will recover over time and that we will be positioned to win.”