SR Technics said Vietnam Airlines extended an existing MRO agreement covering 23 CFM56-5Bs powering the airline's A320s for a further three years to 2012.
Frontier Airlines reported a 16% year-over-year fall in March unit revenue to 8.37 cents on an 11.32% decline in yield to 10.49 cents. It flew 716.1 million RPMs during the month, down 24%, against a 19.7% fall in capacity to 897.6 million ASMs. Load factor dropped 4.6 points to 79.8%.
US Airways reported a first-quarter net loss of $103 million, narrowed from a net deficit of $237 million in the year-ago period, and said it made "significant improvements" absent special items.
Gulf Air said it has decided not to exercise an extended dry-lease option on four 777-300ERs it currently is wet-leasing from Jet Airways. "After careful analysis of various commercial and other business considerations, Gulf Air has decided not to pursue the dry-lease option for the foreseeable future," it said. Aircraft are under wet lease for six months each ( ATWOnline, March 5).
Virgin Blue delayed the delivery of two 361-seat 777-300ERs for its V Australia operation because of the slowdown in air travel. The fifth and sixth -300ERs have been rescheduled from 2010 to 2011 and 2012. In a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange, Blue said it still planned to take the "seventh" 777 in the second half of 2010. V Australia has three 777-300ERs in service operating from Brisbane and Sydney to Los Angeles and it expects to start Sydney-Perth-Johannesburg service this year.
OB10, a b2b global invoicing network, said Lufthansa is implementing its electronic invoicing with the objective of using the service "to generate tax-compliant invoices, thereby reducing invoice management costs both in Germany and internationally."
AAR signed a seven-year agreement with CSA Czech Airlines to provide rotable component repair services on a flight-hr. basis for the carrier's's nine 737-400s and 10 737-500s.
JetBlue Airways posted first-quarter net income of $12 million, turned around from a net loss of $10 million in the year-ago period, and predicted it will "earn a profit every quarter this year."
Lufthansa Cargo will park two additional MD-11Fs in October, meaning around 30% of its fleet will not be operational. Currently, four of its 19 MD-11Fs are parked. From October, it will operate just 13 ( ATWOnline, April 3).
Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air parent Alaska Air Group lost $19.2 million in the first quarter, narrowed from a $37.3 million deficit in the year-ago period, and announced a $15 charge for the first checked bag.
Swiss International Air Lines yesterday named Chief Network and Distribution Officer Harry Hohmeister to succeed Christoph Franz as CEO on July 1, when Franz will become Deutsche Lufthansa deputy chairman and CEO and chairman and CEO of Lufthansa Passenger Airlines.
Air Nostrum unveiled a comprehensive "action plan" as it posted a pre-tax first-quarter loss of €22 million ($28.5 million) on a 9% drop in passengers and a 16% decrease in revenue. A year-ago figure was unavailable. The plan could lead to the loss of 589 jobs, or 26% of its workforce, and includes a reduction of its fleet by up 10 aircraft to 59 and an 18% cut in flights. Unprofitable routes will be abandoned and the level of free services in economy will be reduced. Cabin crew on its 50-seat aircraft will be halved to one.
Vietnam Airlines posted a first-quarter pre-tax profit of VND24 billion ($1.3 million), according to a statement cited by Dow Jones that provided no year-ago comparisons. VN's 2008 pre-tax profit was $14 million ( ATWOnline, Jan. 9). First-quarter 2009 revenue was VND6.12 trillion on a 5% fall in passenger numbers to 2.3 million. Load factor rose 11 points to 88%.
US FAA said yesterday it is withdrawing its proposal to keep information on bird strikes private and will "make its entire bird strike database available on a public website" Friday. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, who oversees FAA, said yesterday that he disagreed with the proposal to keep the information private. He told The Washington Post, "I think all of this information ought to be made public and. .
China Eastern Airlines, which reported a company-record loss of CNY13.93 billion ($2.04 billion) in 2008, is committed to engineering a turnaround through cost control, targeted expansion and SkyTeam membership despite the threat of insolvency.
AirTran Airways parent AirTran Holdings posted record first-quarter net income of $28.7 million, reversed from a $35.4 million loss in the year-ago period, signaling "the first steps in a long recovery for our company and our industry," Chairman, President and CEO Bob Fornaro said.
EADS and Airbus signed a contract with Russian Technologies State Corp.'s VSMPO-Avisma Corp. for the supply of titanium to Airbus and other EADS divisions until 2020. Deal covers die forging parts for all existing Airbus aircraft plus the A350 and finalizes an agreement reached last summer ( ATWOnline, July 16, 2008).
Pratt & Whitney signed a five-year Engine Management Program agreement with Vietnam Airlines covering on-wing performance monitoring services for 58 PW4000 and V2500 engines.
Ryanair yesterday threatened to close its base at Dusseldorf Weeze, where it bases six aircraft and handles 2.5 million passengers per year, if a decision by the OVG Court in Munster to restrict the airport's operating hours is not overturned by April 29. The LCC said it stopped accepting bookings yesterday on all flights affected by the change in operating hours. It opened the base in 2007 and added a fifth and sixth 737-800 last winter.
BAE Systems Asset Management will remarket eight Avianca MD-83s powered by JT8D-219s and one Pratt & Whitney 4060-powered 767-300ER operated by the Colombian airline.
ATR announced the launch of its Door-2-Door support service, a program under which it will take "full responsibility for the management of the airlines' requests for spares and technical documentation, up to and including the completed handover delivery process." Customers will have one point of contact for all parts and services while the manufacturer will "deliver spare parts on the very doorstep of where they are needed," it said.
Cargolux reported a net loss of $61 million in 2008 owing to markdowns in its interest rate and fuel derivative portfolio and a $119 million fine owed to the US Dept. of Justice for its role in fixing cargo rates ( ATWOnline, April 10). It lost $47.1 million in 2007. The airline improved on an operating level, however, posting an operating profit before financing costs of $13.8 million, reversed from a loss of $33 million the prior year.
Drops in both business travel and economy class yields dragged Continental Airlines to a $136 million first-quarter loss, widened 65.9% from an $82 million deficit in the year-ago period. "It was a very tough quarter, no matter how you look at it," Chairman and CEO Larry Kellner said yesterday in a conference call with analysts and reporters. But the carrier sees some light on the horizon as it firms its plans to join Star Alliance by Oct. 25 and "the rate of decline in RASM appears to be decelerating compared to the first quarter," according to President and CFO Jeff Smisek.
