In a press conference in Edinburgh yesterday, Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary announced that the airline is to drop five routes from Edinburgh Airport, after it failed to persuade its owner, BAA, to reduce its fees.

The announcement means that 300 jobs will be lost, one of its seven aircraft will be withdrawn and flights from Edinburgh to Berlin, Malmo, Murcia, Ibiza and Tallin will be dropped.

The airline will continue to fly to 35 destinations from the airport, but will carry 300,000 fewer passengers this summer from last year’s. O’Leary warned that if Ryanair is unable to secure “more competitive terms” by the time it is due to renew its five-year contract with the airport this October, then it may have to drop more routes.

BAA is in the process of finding buyers for the airport after it was ordered to by the Competition Commission, so this announcement will not help the situation. Final offers are expected by April.

O’Leary said: “While Ryanair remains committed to Edinburgh Airport (and with 1.5m passengers and 35 routes, we continue to be one of the largest airlines operating to/from Edinburgh), BAA Edinburgh cannot continue to ignore the competitive marketplace, where airports all over the UK and Europe have been reducing costs and lowering charges in return for traffic growth.

“We hope even at this late stage that BAA Edinburgh will realise that the way to grow traffic and jobs is by working with Ryanair to lower passengers fares, not raise them.”

A part-time poker player had $160,000 (£101,000) worth of jewellery stolen from her when she was made to put her handbag away in the hold of the plane on the way from New York’s JFK airport to Las Vegas via Pheonix, Arizona.

Ms Lambert, 69, persuaded security staff to let her on the flight with her bag which contained the expensive jewellery, so as not to let it out of her sight. Staff at the gate allowed her to board the plane, but an airline worker approached her before take-off and ordered her to hand it over to be placed in the hold.

She said that she complied with the order because other passengers were waiting to take their seats, but she was ‘nervous’ about handing it over.

When she and her boyfriend landed in Phoenix for their connection to Las Vegas, they found that the bag had been emptied of the jewellery, which included a ladies’ diamond-encrusted Rolex watch worth $40,000 (£25,000), a 6-carat diamond ring set in white gold worth $60,000 (£38,000), and a $25,000 (£16,000) diamond ring with blue sapphires.

“I told the gate attendant: ‘Listen to me, I have more than $100,000 worth of jewellery here,’” she said.

“[The worker] looked at me and said: ‘You have a choice. You can either get off the plane . . . or [give over the bag] and take your seat. Nobody’s going to touch your luggage,’” she told the New York Post.

A spokesperson for US Airways said the request had been made because they were late for the flight and the overhead storage space was full; and that she had also been given the option to remove the items before the bag was taken away.

“We take this very seriously and are investigating with law enforcement,” the spokesperson said.

Mrs Lamberg has offered a $10,000 (£6,400) reward for the recovery of her jewellery.

In an unpopular decision worldwide, the European Union has decided that its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) will not cease. Airlines fear that retaliatory measures by other countries will cause a trade war, with flights taxed more than once by different authorities, which will cost the customer enormously.

Europe claims that it is prepared to be flexible within its framework, but completely dropping the scheme is out of the question.

Speaking at the Aviation Leadership Summit at the Singapore Airshow, Siim Kallas, vice president of the European Commission said: “Europe will implement its system with difficulties, with conflicts, with court cases, whatever, the system will be introduced. We’re not trying to dominate the world. The EU has asked for years and years, there must be a world solution for carbon emission.”

He added: “We are serious about negotiating and we have people who are active in finding solutions.”

Under the scheme, airlines will be allowed a certain amount of carbon emissions, but over a certain limit they will then have to purchase ‘carbon credits’, if they do not cooperate, they will face hefty fines.

Chinese airlines have already been banned from joining the scheme by the State Council, with America and India also voicing their opposition. Representatives from at least 27 countries are due to meet in Moscow next week to discuss the situation and possible retaliation.

Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong said an airline flying direct from Singapore to Europe pays more than an airline flying to an intermediate point and then on to Europe, which is one of the reasons for opposing the scheme.

Asia Pacific Airlines said  it fears that there will be a trade war between continents, which will leave airlines stuck in the middle of the battle.

Etihad Airways is the latest airline to introduce a new charge to its passengers to cover the cost of the ETS, charging $3 per passenger for flights into and out of Europe.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways president and chief executive officer said: “As an airline we are strongly opposed to the unilateral measures imposed by the European Union on our flights into and out of Europe, especially as they include areas outside European airspace.

“We have invested many millions of dollars to ensure we operate a young and highly efficient fleet but are still being penalised.”

Despite this opposition, many governments are in fact in favour of a carbon emission trading scheme, however they believe it should be worldwide and not imposed by the EU.

All Airbus A380s have been ordered to be checked following cracks that were found in the wings of aircraft belonging to Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Air France.

The cracks were found during inspections last month, and although Airbus insist that the cracks are minor and pose no threat to passenger safety, the European Aviation Safety Agency has ordered all 67 of the aircraft in service to be examined.

The inspections will take place gradually and will not be taken out of service. An Airbus spokesman said in January that “micro-fissures show up regularly on an airplane. There’s nothing abnormal, and of the 67 aircraft in service, only a small number are concerned.”

Qantas did ground one of its A380s last month however, following a maintenance inspection which revealed dozens of tiny cracks in its wings, similar to the cracks in metal brackets Airbus found in two A380s last month.

The German weekly Der Spiegel reports the cost to fix these cracks is expected to be around one million euros (USD 1.3 million) per aircraft.

Snow at airport picture by Flickr user susansimon

This half term could be a snowy one, as forecasters expect snow in the east and north east of England tonight, and in western parts of England, touching on Wales tomorrow. The cause is a -15c blast from Siberia which is to last at least until this weekend. The resulting weather could cause travel disruptions, especially to flights.

Heathrow won’t want a repeat of last week’s cancellations made in anticipation of bad weather. Around 90,000 passengers are expected to fly from the airport this weekend, one of the busiest so far due to the school holidays. An airport spokeswoman said: “We are watching the weather very closely.”

Tim Hewson, chief forecaster at the Met Office said: “Whilst there is uncertainty regarding where the heaviest and most persistent snow will fall, accumulations of up to about 10cm are possible in the worst affected regions. As a result there could be some disruption to travel.”

Passengers due to travel tomorrow and this weekend are advised to check the status of their flights with the airlines before setting off.

The Highways Agency has 500 gritters on standby to cope with any snow on the roads.

Chinese airlines have been banned from complying with the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), and are also banned from raising air fares or adding new charges to cover the cost of the scheme.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China issued a directive, authorized by the State Council, to notify all domestic airlines of the ban. A statement on the State Council’s website said: “Without the approval of relevant government departments all airlines in China are prohibited from participating in the EU’s emissions trading scheme.”

It added: “China will consider adopting necessary measures to protect the interests of Chinese individuals and companies, pending developments.”

China is not alone in its opposition to the scheme, the US, Russia and India are also against it; with the US Congress expected to pass a bill to formally oppose the scheme in the next few weeks.

It is estimated that Chinese airlines would have to pay 800 million yuan ($125 million) this year towards the scheme. This figure could be up to four times higher by 2020 as Chinese flights to and from Europe increase.

However, the EU ambassador to China, Markus Ederer, said that with free credits taken into account, the added cost per passenger on a flight from Beijing to Brussels would be only 17.5 yuan or 1.9 euros.

“I leave it to you to make a judgment on whether this is too much for saving the Earth, combating climate change and making headway together,” he said.

Meanwhile, some foreign airlines have started to include the cost in their air fares. US carrier Delta has added a $6 surcharge for return flights between the US and Europe, and Germany’s Lufthansa indicated it would raise its fuel surcharge.

There are also some analysts which say that Chinese airlines may actually pay the tax so as to avoid damaging business in Europe and to keep flight routes open.

American Airlines is to cut around 15% of its workforce by getting rid of 13,000 jobs.

It’s Parent, AMR, had filed for bankruptcy in November and said it needs to cut staff costs by 20%, restructure debt, aircraft leases, and ground older aircraft.

It hopes to start negotiations with unions shortly as it also plans to change contracts, health benefits and pensions. Unions have responded by saying that the plans are worse than expected and they plan to fight the proposed changes.

In a letter to employees, chief executive Thomas W Horton said: “We are going to use the restructuring process to make the necessary changes to meet our challenges head-on and capitalise fully on the solid foundation we’ve put in place.”

Over 20,000 passengers have been left stranded after Barcelona-based airline, Spanair cancelled 647 flights due to financing problems.

Options are being offered by UK based low cost airlines, Easyjet and Ryanair to passengers hit by the cancellations. Spanair also said it was working with Vueling, Iberia and Air Europa to find alternatives for passengers.

The airline made the decision to cancel flights when applications for government-backed loans fell through and talks with Qatar Airways about taking a stake in the company ceased.

The airline said it was finalizing an agreement with IATA to get refunds for those with tickets that had yet to travel; and a statement on its website advised customers with reservations to contact their credit card company, insurance company or travel agency.

The Spanish government says it is taking legal action against the airline for suspending its flights without proper warning, a case which could result in a 9million euro fine.

Spanair was the country’s fourth largest airline, and this situation has led to suggestions that Europe’s debt crisis may spark airlines from the Mediterranean to the Baltic to consider mergers or risk failure.

A plane which damaged runway tarmac lights in severe weather conditions caused 35 flights to be cancelled from Abu Dhabi yesterday, and delayed hundreds more.

The Etihad Flight EY045 to Dublin veered off its line in dense fog as it prepared to take off from the southbound runway at 3.19am. The Airbus A330-200 was carrying 208 passengers and crew, but none were injured, however there was some damage to the aircraft’s tyres.

According to flightstats.com, at least 35 flights were cancelled and 150 were delayed by over an hour.

There is growing opposition to the European Commission’s Emission’s Trading Scheme (ETS), which came into force at the beginning of the year.

China has already threatened legal action and declared it will not cooperate with the scheme. The most recent opposition has come from India, who has warned retaliatory measures are being considered. A meeting between delegates from the countries against the ETS is to be held in either New Delhi or Moscow in the near future, the result of which could affect flights to hundreds of destinations.

Chris Goater, a spokesman for the International Air Transport Association (IATA), said: “Retaliatory measures have been mentioned, and they must be avoided. It could result in a patchwork of different taxes on aviation, with airlines being taxed by two or three different governments. Airlines already have incredibly thin profit margins, so they could certainly result in higher air fares.”

The cost of the tax is being passed onto customers, as this month, Ryanair introduced a fee of 21p (€0.25) per person per flight to cover the cost of the ETS. A spokesperson for the airline, Stephen McNamara, warned that if other airlines hold off doing this, then they will be forced to raise their prices sharply when they finally do, which will impact more so on customers.

Lufthansa said it expects the scheme to cost it around £109 million this year, and has increased its fuel surcharge on European and long-haul flights by £2.50 and £8.40 respectively.

Flights have become much more expensive already with the introduction of the Air Passenger Duty Tax, billed as an environmental tax when it was introduced in 1994. There are calls for this to be lowered to offset the new ETS.

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