Ending six years of public debate, the UK government approved construction of a third runway and sixth terminal at London Heathrow but simultaneously imposed stricter environmental targets and rejected the introduction of mixed-mode operations (landings and takeoffs on the same runway) on the existing runways as an interim measure. The government also indicated support for construction of a high-speed rail line between London and Scotland via a new international interchange station at LHR that would "unlock" the airport for the rest of the country.
Etihad Airways will launch thrice-weekly Abu Dhabi-Athens service at the beginning of June aboard a two-class A320. Route will be five-times-weekly from October and daily in 2010. Bmi said it will terminate its London Heathrow-Jersey service on March 28, citing poor financial performance. Also, bmi regional will launch thrice-daily Birmingham-Aberdeen service on March 29. It is bmi regional's first route to BHX. Bmibaby will cease operating the route on March 27.
SkyWest Airlines and Atlantic Southeast Airlines flew 1.35 billion RPMs in December, a 3.3% drop from the year-ago month. Capacity declined 9.1% to 1.72 billion ASMs and load factor rose 4.6 points to 78.2%. Hawaiian Airlines flew 652.8 million RPMs in December, down 0.4% year-over-year. Capacity rose 2.8% to 821.4 million ASMs and load factor dropped 2.6 points to 79.5%. Norwegian said December yield fell 29% year-over-year to NOK0.64 ($0.09). It flew 515 million RPKs, up 20%, against a 25% increase in ASKs to 697 million. Load factor fell 3 points to 74%.
Brussels Airlines said 40% of passengers departing from Brussels opted for self check-in last year, a 30% increase year-over-year. Of those passengers, 55% checked in online and 45% used an airport kiosk.
SkyEurope Airlines received a one-month extension to Feb. 15 on a €15 million ($19.8 million) loan granted in December 2007 and a €10 million loan from last September from York Global Finance.
Cathay Pacific Airways announced that it reached an agreement with Airport Authority Hong Kong to delay the completion of its new cargo terminal by up to two years to mid-2013 ( ATWOnline, Dec. 2, 2008).
SR Technics reached a deal with easyJet to provide 157 intermediate layover checks on the carrier's A319 fleet. Work will take place in Zurich via a dual HMV line allowing for two simultaneous checks. Each check will take 14 days and all are scheduled between mid-March 2009 and summer 2015. Heroux-Devtek yesterday said Fokker Services awarded its Landing Gear Division a contract to manufacture replacement landing gear components for F100s. Valued at $15-$24 million, the contract calls for aftermarket kits including piston and cylinder components.
Royal Australian Navy yesterday agreed to assist in the investigation into two air data inertial reference unit failures aboard Qantas A330s after initially denying that the joint Australia/US naval communications base in Exmouth, Western Australia, was to blame because it uses different frequency bands ( ATWOnline, Jan. 8). The Harold E. Holt naval base uses very low frequency signals to communicate with US Navy and RAN submarines and it was reasoned they were too weak to penetrate an aircraft fuselage.
American Airlines plans to recall 24 furloughed pilots in February, a spokesperson told the Associated Press. It will mark the first time in eight months that AA has added pilots.
Gulf Air plans to ground five former SAS A340-300s and start a fuel hedging program in order to cut costs, according to the Arab Air Carriers Org. A340 lift will be replaced by four 777s. Gulf also plans to take delivery of four A330s and five A320s this year.
Pinnacle Airlines subsidiary Colgan Airways ordered 15 Q400s valued at approximately $432 million for delivery between August 2010 and April 2011. The order represents conversion of 10 conditional orders and the exercise of five options from an original order placed in 2007. Colgan will operate the aircraft under its existing capacity purchase agreement with Continental Airlines ( ATWOnline, Oct. 8, 2008).
All 150 passengers and five crew evacuated successfully from a US Airways A320 that executed an emergency water landing in the Hudson River on the west side of Manhattan following an apparent bird strike yesterday afternoon in what appears to be the first controlled ditching of a US commercial aircraft in more than 50 years.
Airbus booked 777 net aircraft orders in 2008, topping Boeing's 662 net orders, but like its rival reported a significant drop-off from the previous year, when it recorded 1,341 net orders. The 2008 orders, valued at $100 billion, comprised 472 A320 family aircraft, 163 A350s, 138 A330s/A340s and nine A380s. The net total also includes cancellation of five A310s.
ST Aerospace subsidiary STA Engines will provide GE Aviation with on-wing support for GEnx-1Bs and -2Bs under a 20-year deal announced yesterday. STA will employ GE material and repair processes from its facilities in Singapore and the US, and GE will offer technical support including training manuals and equipment.
Air Canada announced a tentative three-year labor deal covering approximately 5,000 customer service and sales employees represented by the Canadian Auto Workers. AC President and CEO Montie Brewer said that all of AC's labor agreements are up for renewal this year.
The US Dept. of Transportation yesterday issued its final order for alleviating congestion at New York LaGuardia and said that airlines have until Feb. 2 to identify which flights they will give up voluntarily in order to reduce total scheduled operations from an average of 75 per hr. to 71 from May 31 to Oct. 24. The proposal was announced last month after DOT's effort to conduct slot auctions at New York-area airports was halted by the US Court of Appeals ( ATWOnline, Dec. 23, 2008).
Ryanair announced expansions at its Edinburgh, Bristol and Alicante bases representing five additional 737-800s and an investment of $350 million. Edinburgh will double to four -800s in March and will see new service launched to Rome Ciampino (four-times-weekly on March 30), Limoges (twice-weekly on March 30), Carcassonne, Leipzig (both thrice-weekly on March 31), Malta (twice-weekly on March 31), Poitiers and Zadar (both twice-weekly on April 1). Frequencies will be increased to Alicante and Dusseldorf Weeze.
Airbus began construction on the A350 XWB final assembly line in Toulouse yesterday, with President and CEO Tom Enders saying the manufacturer "is making steady progress" on the next-generation aircraft program and is on track "for first delivery in 2013." The 74,000-sq.-m. factory is where the fuselage and wings will be joined, Airbus said, while aircraft testing and cabin equipping will be completed in the nearby A330/A340 facility.
Indian government appears to be softening its stance on foreign direct investment in the country's airlines as they contend with large losses and overcapacity. Civil Aviation Minister Prafel Patel told reporters this week that "there is a more reasonable case now than there was 3-4 years ago" to allow foreign carriers to acquire up to 25% of an Indian carrier. Kingfisher Airlines has been a strong proponent of investment liberalization ( ATWOnline, Nov. 18, 2008). "There is no clarity on the issue.
Spairliners, the Air France and Lufthansa Technik A380 component joint venture, won a 10-year deal with Qantas to provide component support on QF's A380s, its first with a third party. Contract calls for the repair and replacement of some 750 components stocked in Spairliners' Hamburg depot and covers all 20 A380s ordered by QF. Spairliners is expected to provide component support for a total of 47 A380s.
UK CAA yesterday reiterated its "strong support" for the Competition Commission's provisional decision requiring airports operator BAA to sell off London Gatwick and Stansted and either Edinburgh or Glasgow International ( ATWOnline, Dec. 18, 2008).
Lufthansa Group flew 11.27 billion RPKs in December, down 0.1% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 1.3% to 14.86 billion ASKs, lowering load factor 1.1 points to 75.8%. SAS Group airlines flew 2.22 billion RPKs in December, down 12.5% year-over-year. Capacity fell 10.2% to 3.42 billion ASKs and load factor dropped 1.7 points to 64.8%. SAS Scandinavian Airlines flew 1.64 billion RPKs, down 9.4%, against a 5% fall in ASKs to 2.48 billion. Load factor declined 3.2 points to 66.1%.
Turkish Airlines Chairman Candan Karlitekin told ATWOnline in Istanbul that despite the weak economic environment, THY is projecting growth in 2009 resulting in 26 million passengers plus an additional 5 million from its SunExpress subsidiary.
United Airlines yesterday said it will offer Aircell's Gogo inflight Internet service onboard premium service transcontinental flights between New York JFK and California in the second half of this year. Technology will be available for a flat fee of $12.95 on 13 757s flying between JFK and Los Angeles and San Francisco.
