“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” It’s certainly been a tale of two carriers this week, with mixed fortunes for Norwegian and Etihad.
Following the Norwegian government’s decision to withhold further support from the airline, Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA has applied for Irish Examinership as it seeks to reduce its debt, right-size the fleet and secure new capital. This reorganisation process protects the assets of the Norwegian group while allowing the company to focus on the right-sizing of the group and is expected to take up to five months.
Jacob Schram, Norwegian CEO, commented: “Our intent is clear. We will emerge from this process as a more financially secure and competitive airline, with a new financial structure, a right-sized fleet and improved customer offering.”
Meanwhile, following the normalisation of diplomatic ties between the UAE and Israel, Etihad continues to develop its links with the country.
In October, Etihad became the first GCC carrier to operate a commercial flight to and from Tel Aviv. It has now confirmed that it will launch daily scheduled year-round flights to the city from 28 March 2021.
Now the airline has signed an MOU (pictured) with EL AL to deepen cooperation in areas of cargo, engineering, loyalty, destination management and the optimal use of pilot and cabin crew training facilities.
Gonen Usishkin, Chief Executive Officer of EL AL Israel Airlines, stated: “This MOU is only the start and we believe that together, the two flag carriers will be able to provide our mutual customers with the best possible product and service.”
