US FAA last month granted the City of Chicago an extension to July 31 to submit a plan to privatize Chicago Midway. The city filed the extension application after current Mayor Richard Daley, who will leave office in May, said his administration was "not going to move" on MDW privatization, preferring that his successor "make that decision." A $2.5 billion deal to privatize MDW collapsed in early 2009 amid the global financial crisis.
Frankfurt is maintaining its timeline for opening its fourth runway on Oct. 30 when the IATA 2011-12 winter schedule begins. A timer on operator Fraport's website shows the countdown for the first landing on the runway in days, hours, minutes and seconds. The 2,800-m.-long runway will allow for parallel takeoff and landing operations and raise FRA's capacity by 50% from 83 to 126 movements per hr.
Airports Council International said collective passenger numbers at the world's airports were expected to have risen 6% year-over-year for full-year 2010 while freight volumes were estimated to have increased more than 15% compared to 2009.
IATA last month outlined a new, significantly different airport security checkpoint paradigm that calls for pre-screening passengers prior to issuing a boarding pass to divide them into three levels of risk classification and aims to enable them eventually to "walk uninterrupted" through an airport.
Major airports on both sides of the Atlantic were walloped by severe winter weather over the holiday period and London Heathrow operator BAA came under particular scrutiny for its handling of the snow, which left thousands of passengers stranded for days. Images of passengers spending Christmas weekend sleeping on terminal floors at LHR and other European airports became ubiquitous on global television.
Hong Kong Airlines will launch daily A330-200 Hong Kong-Singapore Changi service Jan. 15. Delta Air Lines launched four-times-weekly 757 Tokyo Narita-Palau service and daily 767-300ER Nagoya-Honolulu service. The airline said it plans to add new routes to Guangzhou and Tokyo-Haneda in 2011, and expand service to Beijing, Manila and Shanghai. Finnair will launch daily Helsinki-Delhi service Jan 6.
Continental Airlines said it reached a tentative agreement with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers representing 9,300 CO flight attendants. A ratification vote is expected in the coming weeks. "The negotiation teams were able to reach a fair agreement that is another positive step forward as we work to combine our companies,” said CO VP-Inflight Service Sam Risoli.
Korean Air will launch its first A380 service in May 2011 with the entire upper deck of the aircraft devoted to business class flyers. The configuration is designed to give business flyers “exclusivity like they’re traveling in their own private jet,” according to Senior VP-Passenger Business Division Walter Cho.
Lufthansa said Monday it will create 4,000 jobs for its Germany-based locations in 2011. LH is looking to hire 2,200 flight attendants in Frankfurt and Munich, as well as 900 ground personnel, 270 student pilots, 300 apprentices and other technical staff. LH CEO Christoph Franz said the carrier is expanding because of increased passenger capacity owing to more regional routes and the use of the Airbus A380 on long-haul flights.
The RIA Novosti news agency reported Monday that the Russian Investigation Committee said "technical failure or violation of fire safety rules" could be the likely causes of a Jan. 1 engine fire and explosion aboard a Kogalymavia Airlines Tu-154B-2 as it taxied for takeoff Jan. 1 at Surgut in Russia. The fire destroyed the jet, killing three and injuring 39.
The air transport industry experienced a "disappointing" 2010 in terms of fatal accidents and passenger fatalities according to UK-based Ascend, which reported increases in both categories over 2009. The fatal accident rate worsened "from about one per 1.5 million flights overall in 2009 to one per 1.3 million flights last year," while the number of fatal accidents increased 22%, from 23 in 2009 to 28 in 2010.
US National Transportation Safety Board's investigation of last week's overrun of an American Airlines Boeing 757-200 at Jackson Hole, Wyoming is ongoing, but the airline will not be allowed to participate because it did not follow protocols when it handled the aircraft's digital flight data recorder, according to NTSB.
Qantas is expected to announce the restart of Airbus A380 flights on its key Los Angeles to Sydney and Melbourne routes this week. Based on indications from reservations systems, the airline could resume operations Jan. 17.
Bombardier Aerospace announced that Utah-based SkyWest Airlines ordered four CRJ700 NextGens. The aircraft will be flown by SkyWest under the Delta Connection banner in a dual-class configuration with 65 seats. Based on the list price of the type, the contract is valued at approximately $148 million.
Airbus and Boeing rang in the New Year with aircraft orders from easyJet and CIT Aerospace, respectively. EasyJet confirmed it reached an agreement with Airbus to exercise options covering 15 A320 aircraft valued at $1.1 billion at list prices for delivery between 2012 and 2014 and to convert an existing order for 20 A319s into the larger A320 model.
If IATA’s financial forecast for 2010-11 turns out to be accurate (see cover story, p. 26), the airline industry just enjoyed a record net profit. So why aren’t more people smiling? Could it be because by the time anyone realized there was a party going on it was already half over? IATA is predicting that earnings will fall 40% next year on higher oil prices, stable yields and more capacity, meaning the up cycle may have peaked in its first year.
Air China and CFM International reached an agreement to establish an MRO under a 60/40 joint venture following three years of negotiations. The two companies received Chinese government approval, and will now form Sichuan Services Aero Engines Maintenance Co. in Chengdu, China. Lufthansa Technik AERO Alzey signed an exclusive agreement with Air Mauritius covering MRO of the carrier's fleet of PW127 engines powering its ATR aircraft.
Emirates SkyCargo completed its first paperless flight aboard a 777-300ER from Mauritius to Dubai, processing all shipments carried by the aircraft electronically. AirBridgeCargo Airlines took delivery of its 11th Boeing 747F, its eighth -400F. The lease will commence on Dec. 24 for the aircraft, which will be utilized to support its existing route network and to "keep pace with a year of record-breaking growth," the carrier said.
All Nippon Airways and Hawaiian Airlines reached a codeshare agreement under which ANA will place its NH code on Hawaiian's daily Tokyo Haneda-Honolulu service aboard a Boeing 767-300ER. The codeshare covers cargo shipped direct from Haneda to Honolulu, and also aims to tap the market for freight between local cities throughout Japan and other Asian cities, and US cities beyond Honolulu, ANA said.
Garuda Indonesia completed its financial restructuring with creditors by finalizing a re-worked $277 million debt agreement with the European Export Credit Agency. Garuda decreased its debt from $868 million in 2005 to $464 million (as of Nov. 30) through a combination of payment, debt buy-back and equity conversion strategies. The $277 million, which was used in part to fund six Airbus A330s in 1996, was restructured to allow repayment through 2016.
Singapore Airlines will begin to operate its daily Los Angeles-Tokyo Narita-Singapore service with an A380 beginning March 27, a move that will offer passengers 100 additional seats on each flight versus the 747 currently operating the route.
