Jet Airways yesterday expanded its codeshare arrangement with Brussels Airlines and added its code to SN-operated services from/to Birmingham and Madrid. Centralwings will launch four-times-weekly Krakow-Amsterdam service and a Hamburg-Birmingham flight at the end of March.
Lufthansa Systems and Frontier Airlines signed an eight-year contract under which Frontier will implement LHS's Lido Operations Center flight planning optimization program.
US aerospace industry civil aircraft sales jumped 16% this year to $53 billion, nearly matching the value of military aircraft sales, Aerospace Industries Assn. President and CEO Marion Blakey said yesterday in Washington. US aerospace industry sales will total $198.8 billion in 2007, up 8.5% over 2006. Addressing the AIA Year End Review and Forecast Luncheon for the first time since stepping down as FAA Administrator this fall, Blakey said revenues from civil aircraft sales should climb 13% to $60.4 billion in 2008, exceeding military aircraft sales for the first time since 2002.
Egyptian government reportedly has cancelled a plan to sell a 20% stake in EgyptAir. The daily Al-Ahram, citing Civil Aviation Minister Ahmed Shafiq, said the government changed course after the airline confirmed a profit of $91.3 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2006, a 17% improvement over the prior year.
Olympic Airlines will be prepared for liquidation. Greek Minister of Transport Kostis Hadzidakis is planning the closure of the loss-making carrier next year and wants to replace it with a new airline under a new name and with a much smaller fleet. The Greek government also is looking for private investors, according to press reports. "We do not want a blueprint of Olympic, where the state has full control," Hadzidakis was quoted as saying. According to preliminary plans, the new carrier would operate with a fleet of 20 aircraft instead of the current 42.
Volga-Dnepr Group, parent of outsize airfreight specialist Volga-Dnepr Airlines and scheduled cargo carrier AirBridge Cargo, reported a 49.6% increase in revenue to $720 million for the first nine months of the year. The company did not reveal its costs or income. "Our growth is based on our successful 'cargo supermarket' concept of offering a wide range of air transportation services to our customers and providing efficient information and customer service," President Alexey Isaikin said.
Alitalia yesterday accepted nonbinding bids from Air France KLM and Air One parent AP Holding and a consortium led by Italian attorney Antonio Baldassarre, taking a critical step in a protracted effort to sell off a majority stake of the beleaguered airline.
Boeing booked 95 new orders this week, taking its year-to-date tally to a record net 1,144. Qantas firmed up its order for 20 787-9s, and the manufacturer booked Boeing Business Jet commitments for one 737 and one 787-8. There were 73 aircraft ordered by unidentified buyers comprising 68 737s, four 777s and one 787. The firming of the QF 787 order takes orders for that type to 783 with 56 yet to be inked for a total of 839. Boeing's net orders this year are made up of 649 737s, 16 747s, 36 767s, 129 777s and 314 787s.
The US Senate's Environment and Public Works Committee approved a comprehensive bill that would establish a carbon emissions cap-and-trade program from 2012 governing a wide range of industries, including airlines, sending the proposed legislation to the Senate floor for a vote by the full chamber.
Vietnam Airlines placed an order for five ATR 72-500s with deliveries starting at the end of 2009. The aircraft, configured with 70 seats, will be used both to expand its current fleet and to replace its ATR 72-200s. VN currently operates seven -200s and three -500s. It added the ATR 72-500s in 2001. "The growth of Vietnam Airlines is tied to its successful partnership with ATR," Chairman Nguyen Sy Hung said. "This partnership has led to the development of a strong regional network connecting remote and small regions to main hubs."
Cathay Pacific Airways placed an order for eight A330-300s to be delivered in 2010-12, Airbus and Rolls-Royce announced yesterday. The Trent 700-powered aircraft will join a fleet of 48 -300s operated by CX and Dragonair, including three leased aircraft scheduled for delivery next year. Both carriers will receive new planes. Rolls said the engine order was worth approximately $280 million at list prices.
El Al's recent order for four 737-800s ( ATWOnline, Dec. 6) is part of the airline's twofold strategy to reduce the average age of its fleet and reduce the number of fleet types, according to Chairman Israel Borovich. The carrier eventually aims to operate just the 747-400, 777-200 and 737NG. It currently flies the 777-200ER and would like to add the -300 in the future, Borovich confirmed to ATWOnline. It plans to retire its 757s.
EU and Ukraine last week officially opened negotiations on a Common Aviation Area agreement. If successful, Ukraine will harmonize its legislation with European standards and implement a large part of the European aviation acquis communautaire. The EU has signed similar agreements with western Balkan countries and Morocco. According to EC data, some 2.1 million passengers traveled between the EU and Ukraine by air in 2006, an increase of 21% over 2005.
British Airways flew 8.84 billion RPKs in November, up 2.4% from the year-ago month, against a 1.6% rise in ASKs to 12.09 billion. Load factor rose 0.6 point to 73.1%. US Airways Group flew 4.75 billion RPMs in November, a 4.6% decrease from the year-ago month. Capacity fell at the same rate to 6.1 billion ASMs and load factor slipped 0.1 point to 77.8%. US said consolidated passenger RASM increased 2%-4% year-over-year.
Frontier Airlines is cutting its workforce by 10%, or an estimated 100 positions, and will determine if its fleet needs to be "right-sized" in light of escalating operating costs and fuel prices. In addition, the company today was set to begin operating its new regional subsidiary Lynx after receiving final approval from the US Dept. of Transportation yesterday. "They can start flying anytime," a DOT spokesperson told ATWOnline.
Berlin Tempelhof, Germany's oldest airport, will close on Oct. 31, 2008, the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig ruled this week. Several airlines complained about the decision, which is tied to the construction of the new Brandenburg facility, which should be in operation by 2012. The City of Berlin withdrew Tempelhof's operating license to prepare for next fall's closure. THF, which counts Brussels Airlines and Cirrus Airlines as two of the few scheduled carriers still flying there, is famous as the site of the Berlin Airlift in 1948-49.
Miascor Catering, a joint venture in the Philippines between Gate Gourmet, Citadel Holding and Malaysia Airlines, recently broke ground for a new catering facility at Diosdado Macapagal International, also known as Clark International. First phase is to feature a 1,000-sq.-m. building designed for 1,200 meals daily, allowing for expansion to 5,000 meals per day. Scheduled to open in June 2008, the new kitchen will occupy 3,000 sq. m. of land.
Copa Airlines secured financing from Private Export Funding Corp. for the purchase of two 737-800s, for which preliminary commitments for comprehensive long-term US Export-Import Bank guarantees have been obtained, the carrier said. Lead arranger was J.P. Morgan Securities. Aircraft are worth $146 million at list prices and are scheduled for delivery in May and November 2008.
Five US states, the District of Columbia and the City of New York filed a formal petition with the US Environmental Protection Agency yesterday calling for new rules to regulate emissions produced by commercial aircraft, a sign that US airlines could be thrust into the center of environmental politics much like their European counterparts.
Goodrich agreed to make its Aerostructures facility in Foley, Ala., part of Boeing's Network Service Center program. Contract calls for shop repair and overhaul of thrust reversers on 737s and 777s.
Lufthansa Flight Training will extend its Vienna simulator center with the addition of a Q400 simulator from CAE. Austrian Airlines subsidiary Tyrolean Airways will be one of the principal users of the new simulator, which should go into operation by next summer. Tyrolean operates 10 Q400s.
Tiger Airways has flown into the black while claiming to have the second-lowest unit costs in the world. Speaking exclusively to ATWOnline, Tiger CEO Tony Davis, who has been tight-lipped on the airline's profit performance, said: "We have been cash flow positive for two years and profitable for the last two quarters." He also declared yesterday that Tiger now "has the world's second-lowest ASK costs" behind AirAsia and issued a warning to Australia's Jetstar Airways: "We are reducing our costs all the time."
El Al will purchase four new 737-800s, one of which will be delivered next year with the remainder arriving in 2009, according to a statement from the carrier cited by Reuters. El Al yesterday confirmed to ATWOnline that it will acquire the four aircraft, but it was unclear whether it is a new order or a confirmation of previously placed options or purchase rights. Separately, El Al and American Airlines applied to US and Israeli authorities to begin codesharing. El Al and AA passengers will have access to Israel from 28 North American destinations, up from the current five.
Emirates said it raised $297 million to finance the acquisition of two 777s through a lease arranged by Doric Asset Finance & Verwaltungs. Transactions covering a 777-200LR delivered last month and a -300ER scheduled to arrive this month involve 10-year operating leases with extension options. Norddeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale and Dr. Peters Group also were involved in the arrangement.
Asia's largest and most successful low-cost airline appears set to become the largest A320 operator in the world as well. AirAsia yesterday placed an order for 25 firm A320s plus 25 options, bringing the commitment of the group (Malaysia AirAsia, Thai AirAsia, Indonesia AirAsia) to 175 firm aircraft and 50 options. The contract was signed at the Langkawi Airshow by AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes and Airbus COO-Customers John Leahy.
