Up My Alley

A passenger with a mask waits at an airport. (Photo: Pexels)  The International Air Transport Association (IATA), a trade organization that is made up of 290 airlines around the world representing 82% of worldwide traffic, has intensified its efforts to inform the traveling public about the actual level of risk that is involved in traveling on commercial aircraft. Medical Advisor Dr. David Powell on Aug. 23 took part in a question-and-answer session promoted by Aviation Week to report the results of the most recent published and unpublished scientific studies that have researched the actual incidence of COVID-19 proximity spread onboard an aircraft. Read more on Airlinegeeks .

Arthur Ashe Stadium, Flushing Meadows (foto Twitter @usopen) Mancano ormai pochi giorni all’inizio del Masters 1000 e dello Slam più improbabili di sempre, quelli che la USTA, la Federtennis Americana, ha voluto cocciutamente organizzare anche in mezzo alle grandissime difficoltà causate dall’epidemia di COVID-19. A partire da sabato 15 agosto i tennisti hanno iniziato ad arrivare nella “bolla” di Flushing Meadows dove si giocheranno uno dopo l’altro prima il Western&Southern Open, torneo combined normalmente di scena a Cincinnati, e lo US Open. Il resto dell'articolo è su Ubitennis .  

  Alitalia’s first flight to Washington Dulles in 2019 (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Ben Suskind) After a decision by the Italian government last March to renationalize Alitalia following a failed series of attempts to find an international partner willing to buy a stake into the struggling flag carrier, no official business plan for the future of Alitalia has been proposed by the team that has been put in charge of relaunching the airline. After much internal struggle resulting from the deep political ramifications of the nomination, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte confirmed the names of the two men that will be at the helm of the company. Fabio Maria Lazzerini, former Chief Business Officer of the old Alitalia, will assume the role of CEO, while the new chairman will be Francesco Caio, who is also the current chairman of Italian oilfield services company SAIPEM. Read more on Airlinegeeks.com

A British Airways A320neo landing. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson) After reaching a deal with its pilots securing a 20% pay cut during the COVID-19 crisis, an 8% average pay reduction in the long-term and 270 redundancies, British Airways is pushing ahead with its plan to change the terms and conditions for more than 10,000 among cabin crew, engineers and airport staff. The airline has issued redundancy letters for approximately 10,700 employees, 6,000 of which will be voluntary redundancies with 4,000 being “forced out,” according to Unite,  one of British Airways workers’ union.  Read more on Airlinegeeks,com  

In questa situazione che si sta lentamente trasformando da emergenza distopica a nuova normalità, il tennis si appresta a mandare in scena uno dei suoi eventi più importanti in quella che fino a pochi mesi fa era uno degli epicentri della pandemia di COVID-19. Un’impennata di casi in Spagna ha appena costretto ATP e WTA a cancellare uno dei loro tornei cardine, ovvero il Mutua Madrid Open, ma dall’altra parte dell’oceano, al Billie Jean King National Tennis Center di Flushing Meadows, i preparativi continuano febbrilmente per ospitare un inedito “double header” composto dal Western&Southern Open, solitamente ospitato al Lindner Family Center di Mason, Ohio, e il tradizionale US Open. Sotto la guida del Dottor Brian Hainline, Chief Medical Officer della NCAA e membro del Board della USTA, è stato approntato un protocollo sanitario per limitare al massimo le possibilità di contagio tra i partecipanti al torneo e tutte le migliaia di persone che servono per far funzionare l’imponente