IATA reported that the recovery in premium travel resumed in May following April's volcanic ash-driven slowdown, rising 18.7% year-over-year for the month, a sharp contrast from April's 1.1% growth.
Air China plans to renew its fleet by introducing more widebody aircraft, a move it said will improve its overall operational efficiency. The Beijing-based carrier said in a statement that it is holding talks with Boeing and Airbus for new aircraft orders. It is interested in both the 787 and the A350. MD-International Affairs and Cooperation Lou Yongfeng told ATW last month that the carrier's international ambitions currently are curtailed by a shortage of long-haul aircraft.
Boeing forecast demand for 30,900 new commercial aircraft valued at $3.6 trillion over the next two decades in its latest Current Market Outlook released yesterday, projecting the global fleet will expand 92.2% from 18,890 currently to 36,300 in 2029.
Boeing yesterday conceded that delivery of the first 787 to launch customer ANA could slip into 2011. In widely reported comments, 787 Program VP and GM Scott Fancher said that while the company is still planning to deliver the aircraft in the fourth quarter, the margin in the Dreamliner's flight test program schedule has been "pushed."
IFE Services won a contract from Thomas Cook Airlines UK to supply 32 of its 44 aircraft with the PlayStation Portable. The handheld entertainment consoles will come pre-loaded with a selection of movies, television programs, children’s shows and the latest PSP video games. The carrier will introduce the individual PSPs on its short- and medium-haul flights this summer. UK-based IFEServices said it signed PSP distribution deals with seven airlines and “advanced negotiations are currently ongoing with several more.”
The US and Laos yesterday signed a comprehensive open skies agreement to expand and liberalize their bilateral civil aviation relationship. The US has reached open skies agreements with nearly 100 countries.
Boeing yesterday tamped down expectations for large aircraft order announcements at next week's Farnborough Airshow, insisting it places little emphasis on show sales. In a blog post, VP-Marketing Randy Tinseth said the "so-called air show orders race" is not really a competition because "there's only one horse running." Airbus has a "different approach" in which it spotlights sales at air shows, he explained, noting that Farnborough "is but one week out of 52" for Boeing.
Asiana Airlines posted income before taxes of KWR14.7 billion ($12.1 million) for the second quarter, down 75.5% from a KRW60 billion pre-tax profit in the year-ago period owing mainly to a KRW74.3 billion net loss on foreign currency exchange.
Strong domestic market demand helped propel Chinese airlines to an aggregate net profit of CNY10 billion ($1.48 billion) in the first half of 2010, up 2.6% over income of CNY3.85 billion in the prior-year period. According to CAAC, China’s airlines transported a total of 126 million passengers for the first six months, up 17.6% over the same period in 2009, while cargo traffic climbed 38.6% to 2.6 million tonnes. Domestic carriers took delivery of 90 aircraft in the same timeframe.
Qantas Group announced yesterday that it brought forward deliveries of eight of its 50 787s on order to mid-2012, a move it said would allow it to speed the retirement of its 767s, give its low-cost carrier Jetstar a competitive edge and bolster its own domestic fleet.
The European Commission yesterday approved the proposed merger between British Airways and Iberia without imposing conditions as well as BA/IB's planned joint venture with American Airlines on transatlantic flights.
Lufthansa has taken a swipe at the EU Aircraft Fleet Recycling Assn. has a key role to play Delta Air Lines and Wayne County Airport Authority expanded their commitment American Airlines and American Eagle fuel consumption fell
The aviation industry spends around $20 billion annually on reducing CO2, or $10 billion for each of the 2% of CO2 for which it is responsible, Rolls-Royce Strategic Marketing Manager-Civil Aerospace Future Programs Paul Randall told the Eco-Aviation Conference. “That’s not bad for an industry that some say is environmentally irresponsible,” he added. “I’m willing to take a bet that no other industry spends so much. I certainly doubt that the manufacturers of cement spend $30 or $40 billion each year on lowering their CO2!”
Airlines do not want to compromise reliability and low maintenance costs in the quest for lower emissions, according to CFM International GM-Marketing Bill Brown. Speaking at the Eco-Aviation Conference, he said CFM surveyed 400 operators over four years as it developed the Leap-X and ontime departures and a hold on maintenance costs were the key operator expectations. He said CFM operators now are enjoying 99.98% dispatch reliability from an engine that has 31 applications with 480 million flight hr. of experience.
The US military is a vital ally, not a competitor, in the drive to develop and commercialize biofuels, according to experts at ATW's Eco-Aviation Conference in Washington last month. “The military needs airlines and commercial aviation needs the military" is how AltAir Fuels Principal Bryan Sherbacow put it, adding, “The military is working with the industry on a collaborative basis and there is a significant relationship benefit.”
Lufthansa believes that the 747-8, which will enter service late next year, will have almost the same fuel burn per passenger as the A380 on LH’s typical missions while the CSeries will outperform both.
Copa Airlines flew 533.8 million RPMs in June, up 10.6% year-over-year, against a 9% lift in capacity to 728.9 million ASMs. Load factor lifted 1.1 points to 73.2%. Affiliate Aero Republica flew 99.8 million RPMs, up 10.3% while capacity grew 3.9% to 138.5 million ASMs. Load factor improved 4.1 points to 72%. EasyJet transported 4.5 million passengers in June, up 9.4% from the year-ago month. Load factor rose 0.9 point to 87.2%.
Lufthansa will add a second A380 to its fleet this week, which will operate the daily FRA-Tokyo Narita route beginning Aug. 4. Two more A380s will join the carrier this year and another four will be added in 2011. Lufthansa Cargo will begin placing its last two parked MD-11Fs into service by year end. LHC operates a total of 19 MD-11s.
Six airlines formed a member-based, not-for-profit organization called Open AXIS Group to promote a standardized XML (eXtensible Markup Language) schema as the optimal electronic messaging structure for airline system connectivity used in content distribution. Members are Air Canada, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and US Airways. ATPCO has been invited to serve as the founding Allied Member and former Frontier Airlines VP Jim Young will serve as executive director.
