PR: FAA Proposes $185,750 Civil Penalty Against Kingfisher Air

Release Date: December 31, 2009
For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: 202-282-8010
Secretary Napolitano to travel in the coming weeks to build on these efforts

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano today announced that she is dispatching Deputy Secretary Jane Holl Lute, Assistant Secretary for Policy David Heyman and other senior Department officials on a broad international outreach effort to meet with leaders from major international airports in Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and South America to review security procedures and technology being used to screen passengers on flights bound for the United States.

“As part of the ongoing review to determine exactly what went wrong leading up to Friday’s attempted terrorist attack, we are looking not only at our own processes, but also beyond our borders to ensure effective aviation security measures are in place for U.S-bound flights that originate at international airports,” said Secretary Napolitano. “Because I am fully committed to making whatever changes are necessary to protect the safety of the traveling public, I am sending Deputy Secretary Lute and Assistant Secretary Heyman to work with our international partners on ways to collectively bolster our tactics for defeating terrorists wherever they may seek to launch an attack, and I will follow up on these efforts with ministerial-level meetings within the next few weeks.”

Deputy Secretary Lute and Assistant Secretary Heyman will first travel to Europe , departing on Monday. While there, they will brief European authorities on the findings of President Obama’s aviation security review and then report back to Secretary Napolitano on their discussions on enhancing international security measures.

Following the attempted attack on Christmas Day, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) issued a directive for additional security measures to be implemented for last point of departure international flights to the United States , such as increased gate pat-downs and bag searches. At the direction of the flight crew, passengers may also be asked to follow additional instructions, such as stowing personal items, turning off electronic equipment and remaining seated during certain portions of the flight.

Other security measures implemented have included the deployment of additional law enforcement at airports, air marshals, and explosives detection canine teams. TSA will continue to work with airline and law enforcement authorities, as well as federal, state, local and international partners to put additional security measures in place to ensure that aviation security remains strong. For more information on current security measures, visit www.tsa.gov.

Paris, 03 June 2009 – 13:21 local time
Archbishop Of Paris Press Release
INTER-RELIGIOUS PRAYER CEREMONY FOR THE 228 VICTIMS OF FLIGHT AF 447 OF 1ST JUNE 2009, AND FOR THEIR FAMILIES AND FRIENDS – NOTRE-DAME DE PARIS – WEDNESDAY, 3 JUNE 2009 AT 4PM
Versão brasileira abaixo

The ceremony will be attended by ~~~~inal André Vingt-Trois, Archbishop of Paris and President of the Bishops Conference of France, Grand Rabbi Haïm Korsia, the Jewish Chaplain for Air Personnel, Mr. Mohammed Moussaoui, President of the French Council of Muslim Faith, Metropolite Emmanuel, President of the Assembly of Orthodox Bishops of France and Pastor Claude Baty, President of the Protestant Federation of France.

In addition to the Grand Rabbi Haïm Korsia, the Catholic, Protestant and Muslim Chaplains of Paris-Charles de Gaulle will attend: Father Francis Truptil, Father Gérard Sqarcioni, Father Baudouin Tournemire, Pastor Jean Pierre Dassonville and Imam Hazem El-Shaffei.

This ceremony has been prepared together with Air France. It will be a moment of contemplation and prayer for the families and friends of the victims, in a spirit of unity among people from every country and religious belief. Readings will therefore be made in French, English and Brazilian. Prayers will be accompanied by hymns in French, Latin and German by the Choirs of Notre-Dame de Paris and Air France.

At the start of the ceremony, His Eminence ~~~~inal Vingt-Trois will propose that the families and friends of the victims carry 228 lighted candles to the altar, each one symbolizing a victim.

The families may then take the candle away with them after the ceremony.

Music and Readings:

Introit from Requiem op. 9, by Maurice Duruflé (Choir of Notre Dame)
Psalm 42 Wie der Hirsch, by Felix Mendelssohn (Air France Choir)
Reading: Lamentations 3, 17-26
Psalm 129 (Choir of Notre Dame and congregation)
I have waited for thee O Lord. My soul hath relied on his word
Reading from the Gospel according to Saint Luke (Luke 23, 33-53)
Johann Sebastian Bach, Chorale Ich harre des Herrn (from Cantata BWV 131) (Choir of Notre-Dame)
Felix Mendelssohn, Da nobis Pacem (Air France Choir)
Kyrie, from Requiem op. 9, by Maurice Duruflé (Choir of Notre-Dame)
Giuseppe Verdi, Requiem, Libera me Domine – (Air France Choir)
The poem Footsteps in the Sand by Brazilian poet Ademar de Barros will be read at the end of the ceremony.

(Extracts)

One night, I dreamed a dream, I was walking along the beach with my Lord. Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life. For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, one belonging to me and one to my Lord. When the last scene of my life shot before me, I looked back at the footprints in the sand. There was only one set of footprints. I realized that this was at the lowest and saddest times of my life. This always bothered me and I questioned the Lord about my dilemma. “Lord, You told me when I decided to follow You, You would walk and talk with me all the way. But I’m aware that during the most troublesome times of my life there is only one set of footprints. I just don’t understand why, when I need You most, You leave me”.

He whispered “My precious child, I love you and will never leave you, never, ever, during your trials and testings. When you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”

Português

Arcebispado de Paris

Celebração inter-religiosa de prece
Para as 228 vítimas do vôo AF 447 de 1° de junho de 2009, para suas famílias e seus entes próximos

Catedral Notre-Dame de Paris – Quarta-feira 3 de junho de 2009 às 16 horas
Na presença do ~~~~eal André Vingt-Trois Arcebispo de Paris e presidente da Conferência dos Bispos da França, do Grande Rabino Haïm Korsia, capelão Israelita do ar, do Sr.Mohammed Moussaoui, presidente do Conselho Francês do Culto Musulmano, do Metropolita Emmanuel, presidente da Assembléia dos Bispos Ortodoxos da França e do Pastor Claude Baty, Presidente da Federação Protestante da França.

Além do Grande Rabino Haïm Korsia, dos capelões católicos, protestantes e musulmanos de Roissy estarão presentes: o Padre Francis Truptil, o Pastor Jean Pierre Dassonville e o Imame Hazem El-Shaffei.

Esta celebração foi preparada conjuntamente com a Air France. Ela será um tempo de recolhimento e de prece para as famílias e os entes próximos das vítimas, dentro de um espírito de aproximação entre os homens de todos os países e de todas as religiões. Na ocasião serão feitas leituras em francês, inglês e português. A prece será acompanhada por cânticos em francês, latim e alemão da Maîtrise de Notre-Dame de Paris e do Coral da Air France.

No início da celebração, Mgr Vingt-Trois vai propor aos membros das famílias e entes próximos de levarem 228 velas acesas diante do altar. Elas simbolizam cada um e cada uma dos desaparecidos.
As famílias serão convidadas a conduzir esta vela no final da celebração.

Músicas e Textos da celebração:

Intróito do Requiem de Duruflé (Maîtrise de Notre Dame)
Salmo 42 Wie der Hirsch de Felix Mendelssohn (Coral da Air France)
Leitura do Livro das lamentações de Jeremias (Lm 3, 17-26)
Salmo 129 (Maîtrise de Notre Dame e assembléia)
Eu deposito minha esperança no Senhor, eu tenho a certeza da sua palavra
Evangelho de Jesus Cristo segundo São Lucas (Lc 23, 33-53)
Coral de Johann Sebastian Bach, Ich harre des Herrn (trecho Cantate BWV 131) (Maîtrise Notre-Dame de Paris)
Felix Mendelssohn, Da nobis Pacem (Coral da Air France)
Trecho do Requiem de Maurice Duruflé, Kyrie (Maîtrise de Notre-Dame)
Giuseppe Verdi, Libera me Domine – trechos do Requiem (Coral da Air France)
Um poema “Passos sobre a areia” de Ademar de Barros, poeta brasileiro, será lido no final da celebração.
(trechos):

Uma noite, eu tive um sonho,
Eu caminhava pela praia, lado a lado com o Senhor, deixando uma dupla pegada na areia, a minha e a do Senhor.
Veio-me a idéia – era um sonho – de que cada um dos meus passos representava um dia da minha vida. (…) Mas observei que em certos lugares em vez de duas pegadas, havia apenas uma. Então, dirigindo-me ao Senhor, ousei repreendê-Lo:
“O Senhor nos havia no entanto prometido de estar conosco todos os dias!
Por que não cumpristes a vossa promessa?
Por que me deixastes sozinho no pior momento da minha vida?
Nos dias em que eu mais precisava da vossa presença.”
Mas o Senhor me respondeu:“Meu amigo, os dias em que tu vês uma única marca de passos sobre a areia, são os dias em que Eu te carreguei.”

Demand Improvements Continue in March – Expect Volcano-Related Dip in April
Geneva – The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that March 2010 international scheduled air traffic showed continued strengthening of demand. Compared to March 2009, passenger demand was up 10.3%, while cargo demand grew 28.1%. Both are improvements from the 9.0% and 26.3% growth for passenger and freight demand recorded in February.

These are strong gains, but the data is being compared to March 2009, which was the low point for international air travel during the recession. “March results show that the pace of the upturn is strong. But the trauma of the recession is not over. The industry has lost two years of growth, and passenger and freight markets are still 1% below early 2008 highs. Nonetheless, the pace of improvement, based on an improving global economic situation, is much faster than anybody would have expected even six months ago,” said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA’s Director General and CEO. IATA noted that the International Monetary Fund revised global GDP growth forecasts from 3.0% to 4.3% for 2010.

With a 78.0% load factor recorded in March, passenger load factors remain at record highs. While demand expanded by 10.3% in March, capacity increases stood at 2.0%, boosting the load factor and creating much tighter supply and demand conditions. Global capacity remains 3-4% below pre-crisis levels.

International freight markets are also experiencing tighter supply and demand conditions. The 28.1% improvement in demand outpaced the 5.3% capacity expansion in March. This drove freight load factors to 57.1% — the highest since November 2002 when international freight load factors stood at 58.8%.

International Passenger Demand
Regional demand patterns continue to reflect the asymmetrical nature of the economic rebound.

• Asia-Pacific carriers posted strong demand growth of 12.6%, against a capacity expansion of 1.3%. The strength of the rebound in the region’s economies is supporting Asia-Pacific’s demand improvement. China’s economy grew by 11.9% in the first quarter while India’s economy is growing by 7.0%. There is also greater optimism for a return to economic growth in Japan.
• European carriers posted traffic growth of 6.0%, considerably weaker than the global improvements, but better than the 4.0% growth in February. This is the result of sluggish home economies and continuing high unemployment rates. European carriers reduced capacity by 0.8% compared to the previous year.
• North American carriers posted a traffic growth of 7.8%, lagging the global average, although considerably improved from the 4.4% recorded in February. Uncertainty over government budget cuts and tax increases is dampening demand for air travel, compared to other regions, particularly Asia-Pacific. North American carriers posted the highest load factor among the regions (81.6%) as a result of continuing careful capacity management.
• Middle Eastern carriers recorded the strongest traffic growth at 25.9%. While economic growth of 5% in the region is supporting some of this increase, a large part is attributed to market share gains on long-haul markets, connecting passengers over Middle Eastern hubs. Load factors of 76.2% were slightly below the global average.
• African carriers are now starting to see improving growth, having suffered market share declines for several years. During March, demand was up 13.6% and load factors grew to 67.4% for the month.
  Latin American carriers posted the weakest growth of any region, increasing only 4.6% in March. This is in sharp contrast to February when the region’s carriers grew by 8.5%. The reduction is largely due to the impact of the earthquake in Chile.

International Cargo Demand

Global air freight is now within 1% point of recovering to its previous high point of early 2008. International air freight volumes shrank by over one quarter during the second half of 2008. The upturn in the business inventory cycle has almost eliminated that decline, although the upturn for international air freight has taken twice as long as the collapse.

Despite the sluggish US economy, North American carriers have seen an international freight rebound (+32.2%). Both export and import volumes are very strong in the emerging economies of Asia-Pacific (+34.1%) and in Latin America which recorded the strongest growth at 47.9%.

European carriers showed the weakest improvement in freight demand at 11.7%, largely due to the slow economic recovery in the region.
The strong traffic recovery is expected to show a dip in April as a result of the eruption of an Icelandic volcano in April that saw the shutdown of large portions of European airspace over a six-day period. “European carriers were already showing the weakest recovery from the financial crisis through March. The volcanic ash crisis hit the weakest part of the industry the hardest. The majority of the US$1.7 billion in lost revenues was by Europe’s carriers. Passenger confidence is not affected and we expect a quick rebound. The combined impact of lost business and added costs will certainly hit the bottom line,” said Bisignani.

March Aviation Traffic Results

Notes for Editors:

• IATA (International Air Transport Association) represents some 230 airlines comprising 93% of scheduled international air traffic
• Explanation of measurement terms:
• RPK: Revenue Passenger Kilometres measures actual passenger traffic
• ASK: Available Seat Kilometres measures available passenger capacit
• PLF: Passenger Load Factor is % of ASKs used. In comparison of 2009 to 2008, PLF indicates point differential between the periods compare
• FTK: Freight Tonne Kilometres measures actual freight traffi
• AFTK: Available Freight Tonne Kilometres measures available total freight capacit
• FLF: Freight Load Factor is % of AFTKs used
• IATA statistics cover international scheduled air traffic; domestic traffic is not included
• All figures are provisional and represent total reporting at time of publication plus estimates for missing data. Historic figures may be revised
• International passenger traffic market shares by region in terms of RPK are: Europe 37.6%, Asia-Pacific 28.8%, North America 15.2%, Middle East 11.0%, Latin America 4.1%, Africa 3.3%
• International freight traffic market shares by region in terms of FTK are: Asia-Pacific 44.9%, Europe 24.7%, North America 15.9%, Middle East 10.4%, Latin America 2.8%, Africa 1.3%