Divers

🚉 Spain, September 2023: The second wave of railway liberalization faces challenges due to a lack of operational trains. José Antonio Santano announced routes from Madrid to Galicia, Asturias, Huelva, and Cádiz. No new competitors have trains ready before 2030, with Talgo's Avril models exclusive to Renfe. Operators like Iryo, Ouigo, and Arriva explore alternatives, but options are costly, with Talgo units priced at €45 million. The financial sustainability of the model is questioned as ticket prices strain the system.

🛩️ Norwegian Air Shuttle, March 2025, Oslo: The Norwegian government plans to sell its 65 million shares in Norwegian Air Shuttle, valued at 14 NOK each, totaling over €81 million. Currently, Norway holds over 6% of the airline, with its government pension fund owning nearly 9%. Geveran Trading Company, the largest shareholder, holds 14.5%. Despite past financial struggles, Norwegian Air now operates stably, recovering from prior over-expansion halted by the 2020 Covid pandemic.

🏨 Jaume Bauzá Andreu, presidente del Grup Bauzá y fundador de Protur Hotels, falleció el 3 de junio de 2025 a los 79 años en Son Servera, Mallorca. Fundó Protur Hotels en 1985, que hoy posee 18 hoteles, 17 en Mallorca y uno en Almería. El funeral se celebrará el 5 de junio. Su visión empresarial se extendió a sectores como construcción y distribución de combustible. Protur Hotels ocupa la posición 31 en cadenas hoteleras españolas.

🛩 Iberojet, June 2025, expands fleet with a new Airbus A330 after five years. Now, the airline boasts eight aircraft: five A330s, two A350s, and one A320. Their new A330, arriving from France, holds 299 passengers, fewer than their other A330s with 388 seats. The A350s accommodate 432 passengers. The expansion aligns with the summer peak, boosting flight frequencies and adding seasonal routes. Iberojet also focuses on ACMI leasing and combining passenger with cargo transport.

✈️ Aena aims to increase Chinese airline operations in Spanish airports, particularly Barajas and El Prat. By 2026, Aena projects 1.5 million Chinese passengers, doubling pre-pandemic levels and improving 70.8% from 2024's 878,000 users. Air China leads China-Spain routes, with expansions from China Eastern and Shenzhen Airlines. Barcelona and Madrid host several direct flights to Chinese cities. Partnerships with Chinese travel agencies and institutional support are sought to boost traffic.

🛩 Ryanair, summer 2024, Málaga-Costa del Sol: 18 planes, 2 more than last year, target 5.3 million passengers. 91 routes, including new destinations: Brno (Czech Republic), Münster (Germany), Teesside (England). New routes operational June, twice weekly flights. Elena Cabrera, Ryanair Spain spokesperson, highlights increased options for Spanish travelers.

✈ La tripulación de un Boeing 737 de El Al reportó una emergencia médica tras 4 horas de vuelo desde Tel Aviv a Barcelona. Dos pasajeros afectados, uno crítico, provocaron un recorte de ruta para un aterrizaje prioritario en la pista 06L. Controladores aéreos y personal del aeropuerto coordinaron asistencia médica en tierra. Se agradeció la colaboración de otras tripulaciones.

🚢 Alma Cruceros, a luxury cruise company, lost its only ship, Ocean Victory, just two weeks after operations began. The ship, with 93 cabins and a 186-passenger capacity, was seized on May 20 in Málaga due to unpaid debts to Lantimar Group. The maiden voyage was on April 18, 2025, from Las Palmas to Málaga. Failure to pay a court-imposed bond led to plans for auctioning the ship in Gibraltar.

🌋 Erupción en el cráter sureste del volcán Etna el 2 de junio de 2025 ???? provocó actividad estromboliana intensa, con explosiones y una colada de lava visible a varios kilómetros. Visitantes en rutas de excursión se alejaron rápidamente ????‍♂️. El INGV de Catania detectó un colapso en el flanco norte del cráter, con un flujo piroclástico. La lava descendió hasta 2,900 metros ????. Se emitió alerta roja para la aviación, aunque no hubo interrupciones en el aeropuerto de Catania.

✈️ Level, celebrating its 8th anniversary, offers special flights from Barcelona at just €8. This deal is exclusive to newsletter subscribers. In June, they will also host Flydays with special route prices. Now independent from Iberia, Level has transported over 3 million passengers, a 20% growth in the last year. Key numbers: 1.6 million passengers from El Prat (+33%), 900,000 from the U.S. (+28%), and 700,000 from South America and the Caribbean (+17%).