Ryanair announced the closure of its Valencia base, following through on its threat in a dispute with the Valencian regional government ( ATWOnline, April 21). The LCC said it will pull more than 70 weekly flights from the airport on Nov. 4 and invest $140 million in another base set to be unveiled this week.
Allegiant Air parent Allegiant Travel Co. reported a $4.9 million third-quarter profit, down 30.3% from $7 million in earnings during the year-ago period, citing "aggressive capacity management" as the principal reason for its continued profitability.
Lufthansa was the only carrier to confirm its interest in bidding for Austrian Airlines Group by the Tuesday deadline, Austrian competition authorities confirmed yesterday.
UPS posted third-quarter net income of $970 million, down 9.9% from $1.08 billion in the year-ago period, and CFO Kurt Kuehn warned, "We anticipate a challenging environment for a number of quarters going forward." Revenue increased 7.4% to $13.11 billion while expenses lifted 9.4% to $11.48 billion, producing an operating profit of $1.63 billion, off 4.4% from $1.63 billion last year. International package revenue, which is highly dependent on UPS Airlines, rose 16.6% to $2.95 billion. "Export volume per day increased 7%. .
Air France KLM Chairman and CEO Jean-Cyril Spinetta "evoked the possibility of zero growth in capacity for the company in 2009 and 2010" while meeting with trade unions this week, an AF KLM spokesperson told Reuters. Regarding reports that the company was looking to trim jobs, the spokesperson said it "remained determined to keep jobs whenever possible." AF KLM projected a 2% year-over-year capacity increase for both the upcoming winter schedule and summer 2009, according to press reports, but dropped the winter guidance to 1.7% last month.
Iberia raised its stake in British Airways to 9.07%, or 104.6 million shares, the UK carrier said yesterday. Increase comes one week after IB had upped its holding to 8.07%.
American Eagle pilots represented by the Air Line Pilots Assn. ratified an "unprecedented" 16-year contract. According to unit chairman Herb Mark, the contract, which becomes amendable at the end of 2012, "increases quality of life wherever possible but includes no concessions."
Aeroflot informed Russia's Ministry of Transport that it wishes to bid for the state's 25.5% stake in rival S7 Airlines. SU CEO Valery Okulov wrote in a letter to Transportation Minister Igor Levitin, "For the consolidation of domestic flights, we are working out the possibility of obtaining the S7 airline," Russian media reported. An S7 spokesperson told reporters that the carrier had received no notification from Aeroflot.
AirTran Airways posted a third-quarter net loss of $107.1 million, reversed from a $10.6 million profit in the year-ago period, due in part to losses of $41.5 million related to its fuel hedging program owing to the recent fall in oil prices.
New alliance created and controlled by the state and Russian Technologies to replace AiRUnion will comprise 10 regional airlines, be registered as a public corporation and eventually be called something other than Russia Airlines (a working name), RT head Sergei Chemezov told journalists, The Moscow Times reported. Moscow Vnukovo will be the carrier's principal base, with the Moscow city government holding the remaining 49% of the new company ( ATWOnline, Oct. 22). It also will have bases in St.
Record revenue helped JetBlue Airways minimize its third-quarter losses as the New York JFK-based LCC reported a $4 million deficit that represented a reversal from the $23 million profit posted in the year-ago quarter but a sound result compared to its domestic competitors.
International Aero Engines announced an order from Grupo TACA for V2500 SelectOne engines to power an additional 15 A320 family aircraft. Contract includes the V2500Select aftermarket agreement and is valued at $400 million at list prices. TACA currently flies 37 V2500-powered aircraft and is awaiting delivery of four more, giving it a 19-aircraft backlog with IAE.
US Airways reported a third-quarter net loss of $862 million, reversed from a profit of $177 million in the year-ago period, and like other US carriers cited fuel hedging charges as a principal cause.
Gol and Varig parent Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes said losses on its fuel hedges and gains on currency hedges would result in a BRL48 million ($22.1 million) charge against its third-quarter results, which it is scheduled to report Oct. 27. It expects to report an operating margin of -1% to 1%.
Spirit AeroSystems won a contract with Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. to design and build the pylon for the Mitsubishi Regional Jet. Financial terms were not disclosed. First delivery of the MRJ is slated for 2013.
Alaska Air Group, like several US counterparts, suffered a third-quarter loss owing to a decline in the mark-to-market value of its fuel hedges, reporting an $86.5 million deficit that compared to an $81.8 million profit in the third quarter of 2007. Excluding special items, which also included fleet transition costs from the phaseout of Alaska Air's MD-80s and the CRJ700s at Horizon Air and gains related to the deletion of inactive loyalty program accounts, AAG posted net earnings of $39.9 million, down 49.4% from a similarly calculated $78.8 million last year.
Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation announced yesterday that airlines will have until March 31 to pay their present outstanding fuel bills to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and, in addition, will be able to procure their fuel on credit until that date ( ATWOnline, Oct. 20).
Croatia Airlines ordered four A319s, Airbus announced. New aircraft will be powered by CFM56-5s and seat 132 in two classes. It already operates eight A320s. No delivery date was announced.
Boeing's third-quarter net income plunged 38% to $695 million from $1.11 billion last year, and Chairman, President and CEO Jim McNerney conceded that the machinists' strike "had a major impact" on earnings.
Austrian Airlines Group's privatization continued to be in doubt yesterday as reports that Lufthansa presented the only offer for state holding company OIAG's 42.75% stake went unconfirmed by both AAG and LH. Austrian has said it will make an announcement Monday. A Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology spokesperson said on Austrian radio that there is one potential bidder, while other reports suggest LH, S7 Airlines and even Air France KLM want more time or further talks before presenting a bid.
IATA DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani warned Middle East and North African carriers that they are not immune to the current industry crisis and urged them to focus on efficiency and expanding commercial freedoms.
Mokulele Airlines was flying again yesterday, one day after shutting down following a US FAA inspection that revealed cabin crews were not properly trained on the use of life preservers and fire extinguishers. "They grounded all the planes and conducted intensive training for all of their staff," an FAA spokesperson told ATWOnline. Mokulele recently signed an agreement with Republic Airways to operate up to four E-170s for inter-island service in Hawaii. It currently operates 56 daily flights to seven Hawaiian destinations.
British Airways yesterday completed the move of flights designated for London Heathrow's Terminal 5 over to the new facility, including services to/from Denver, Boston, Montreal, Calgary and Toronto. More than 80,000 flights and 11 million passengers have used T5 since its March opening ( ATWOnline, July 14).
JetBlue Airways operated its first flights from New York JFK's new Terminal 5 yesterday, with an arrival from Burbank at 5:05 a.m. inaugurating the facility. All JetBlue departures, in addition to all domestic and international arrivals that pre-clear US customs, will operate out of the new facility. The 635,000-sq-.ft. terminal has 26 gates on three concourses, 65 self-serve kiosks, 40 check-in counters and a central security checkpoint with 20 screening lanes. It can accommodate up to 250 daily departures.
Vueling Airlines reported an €18.7 million ($24.8 million) operating loss through the first nine months of 2008, reduced from a €38.4 million negative EBIT in the year-ago period, Reuters reported. Sales rose 32.2% year-over-year to €354.4 million and passenger numbers were up 2.1% to 4.7 million.
