Prague Airport remains a safe place for travel as confirmed by the ACI Airport Health Accreditation (AHA) Certificate, re-assigned to Prague Airport for a high level of protective measures implemented, which ensures increased safety of passengers flying through Prague. The Certificate appreciates the fact that the set standards meet the requirements of international organizations in the aviation industry. “The airport has repeatedly demonstrated an admirable continuation of its efforts to provide a safe airport experience for all travelers which is in line with the recommended health measures established in the ACI Aviation Business Restart and Recovery guidelines and ICAO Council Aviation Recovery Task Force Recommendations,” Luis Felipe de Oliveira, ACI World Director General, stated in the reaccreditation letter. Prague Airport has maintained its accreditation for the next 12 months. The measures implemented have been in place since the spring of 2019, applied by Prague Airport as one of the first entities in the Czech Republic. “To obtain the Certificate, it was necessary, for example, to present information on all set measures and processes, including detailed records of cleaning and disinfection schedule, draft an overview of changes in passenger check-in procedures as well as share specific steps aimed at protecting the health of airport employees. In this regard, we have introduced our own sophisticated system for tracing contacts in the workplace. Therefore, I am immensely happy that the set protection measures work, eliminate health risks for travel and thus increase the safety of flying from Prague,” Jiří Pos, Chairman of the Prague Airport Board of Directors, said. Departure and arrival heck-in is performed under strict hygienic conditions. All passengers and visitors are obliged to wear FFP2 class respirators while inside the airport, to maintain a safe distance, and to pay thorough attention to hand hygiene and disinfection. For this purpose, over 300 disinfection tanks are located throughout the airport. Since June last year, a commercial test point has been run in cooperation with an external laboratory, where passengers can get COVID-19 tested before departure or after arrival. The airport is also subject to increased disinfection and cleaning of all busy areas, including passenger gates. “We inform passengers about the set measures in a number of ways, including airport announcements, repeated at regular intervals, alongside information signs located throughout the airport, and floor stickers in places where queues may form,” Daniel Otta, Customer Experience Manager, added. ACI Airport Health Accreditation (AHA) is an official certification program that is open to all member airports of this organization worldwide. Under the program, the ACI evaluates airports according to individual criteria and thus assesses their set protective measures and other tools they use in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Obtaining the accreditation then confirms that the airport is well prepared and that passengers can fly safely and with ease from the certified airports. At the same time, thanks to this accreditation, hygiene standards are being implemented throughout the aviation industry with the goal to increase the safety of travel, boost the confidence of passengers in accredited airports, and fuel the demand for air travel. Airports Council International (ACI) is a global industry association that brings together approximately 1960 airports in a total of 176 countries. It was founded in 1991 and aims to promote cooperation among members and other partners in the field of air transport.

French bee, the low-cost, long-haul airline (Groupe Dubreuil member) based in France, has taken delivery of its first Airbus A350-1000, on lease from Air Lease Corporation, to join its fleet and make the airline an all-A350 fleet operator. The aircraft is the first of two A350-1000s to be operated by French bee on route from Paris to Saint Denis de La Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean. The Airbus A350-1000s will complement the four A350-900 aircraft already in the French bee fleet, providing the airline with unrivalled operational flexibility and eco-efficient solutions for its network. The aircraft features 480 seats in a two-class layout (40 premium class and 440 economy class), providing all the comfort and amenities of Airbus’ Airspace cabin, including state-of-the-art, in-flight passenger entertainment (IFE) and full WiFi connectivity throughout the cabin. The A350 cabin is also the quietest of any twin-aisle aircraft. The A350-1000, Airbus’ largest widebody in the twin-engine category, features the latest aerodynamic design, a carbon fiber fuselage and wings, plus new fuel-efficient Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines, allowing the airline to fly long-haul destinations up to 16,000 km (8,700nm). Together, these elements translate into unrivalled levels of operational efficiency with 25% less fuel burn and CO2 emissions and 50% reduction in noise. Simultaneously, the Dubreuil group also takes delivery of another A350-1000 on lease from Air Lease Corporation intended for Air Caraïbes, bringing the number of Airbus aircraft in the group’s fleet to 15. At the end of November 2021, the A350 Family had received 913 firm orders from 49 customers worldwide.

Pan Am Flight Academy announced the expansion of their facilities to a new, and innovative facility located in the heart of Miami. Though Pan Am Academy will continue operations in its original location, adjacent to Miami International Airport, they are expected to move the operations team and eight (8) simulators to the new 67,654 SQFT, one story, state of the art facility in the first quarter of 2022. The 22 simulator bays in the new facility, coupled with Pan Am’s existing bays will increase total simulator bay capacity to 36 full flight simulators. Pan Am currently operates 20 simulators between its three Miami locations. Pan Am Flight Academy has operated in Miami since 1980 and today is one of the leading providers of aviation training for national and international airlines and aviation professionals. “This is one of many of our major investments in the company”, said Jeff Portanova, President of Pan Am Flight Academy. “The new facility translates into a high-quality service for our clients and operations team, an expansion of our growing business and an investment in cutting edge technology for all of our equipment and programs,” Portanova added. This year, 2021, has been a busy one for Pan Am Flight Academy. In March, it announced the upgrade of a second Boeing – 777, Level D, full motion flight simulator to embody the popular B777-200ER. Another announcement made mid-year was the acquisition of two additional B767-200 simulators, a B757-200 full flight simulator and an A757 flight training device. “This new facility is sure to complement and support our clients’ needs. We look forward to this new chapter in Pan Am´s history,” Portanova concluded. Pan Am Flight Academy is a commercial aviation training organization. As the only surviving division of the original Pan American World Airways, Pan Am Flight Academy can trace its instruction heritage to the earliest days of airline flight training. In 1980 Pan Am American World Airways opened its Flight Academy in Miami, Florida and is still the base of operations.

According to the Costa Rica Institute of Tourism (ICT), Costa Rica received 151,701 stopovers in November 2021, 51.5% more than the 100,102 stopovers received in October 2021. Costa Rica closed its borders to international arrivals as of March 19th, 2020, and reopened to international tourists arriving by air as of November 2020. It reopened its land borders in April 2021. Costa Rica consequently received 37,573 stopovers in November 2020. The 151,701 stopovers received in November 2021 were 61.8% of the 245,643 stopovers received in November 2019. Costa Rica received 86,348 stopovers from the USA in November, 56.9% of the overall total, and 10,434 stopovers from Central America. The volume of stopovers increased by 20.6% in the first eleven months of 2021, growing from 936,938 stopovers in the first eleven months of 2020 to 1,130,377 stopovers in the first eleven months of 2021. The 1,130,377 stopover visitors were 40.2% of the 2,812,086 stopovers received in the first eleven months of 2019. The number of stopovers from the USA increased by 91.9% in the first eleven months of 2021, from 389,115 stopovers in 2020 to 746,575 in 2021 while the number from Central America declined by 67.2%, falling from 195,717 in the first eleven months of 2020 to 64,140 in the same eleven months of 2021. The share of visitors from the USA grew from 41.5% in the first eleven months of 2020 to 66.0% in the first eleven months of 2021.

Airbus has firmed up an order for the purchase of four A350F freighter aircraft with the CMA CGM Group, a world leader in shipping and logistics. This order will bring CMA CGM’s total Airbus fleet to nine aircraft, including four A330-200F and one A330-200 to be converted into a freighter. The A350F is based on the world’s most modern long-range leader, the A350. The aircraft features a large main deck cargo door and a fuselage length optimized for cargo operations. Over 70% of the airframe is made of advanced materials resulting in a 30t lighter take-off weight, generating an at least 20% lower fuel burn over its current closest competitor. With a 109t payload capability (+3t payload/ 11% more volume than its competition), the A350F serves all cargo markets (Express, general cargo, special cargo…) and is in the large freighter category the only new generation freighter aircraft ready for the enhanced 2027 ICAO CO₂ emissions standards. Airbus SE is a European multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft in Europe and various countries outside Europe.