Marek Mazur is out as CEO of LOT Polish Airlines after just 38 days, according to press reports from Warsaw. His replacement, when named, will be the airline's fourth CEO since last fall ( ATWOnline, Feb. 15). Mazur told Polish television he did not know why he was let go, according to the Associated Press, but several reports indicated that the Ministry of the Treasury was against the appointment from the start and ousted Mazur once it secured the backing of "bankruptcy officers" on LOT's board.
European transport ministers, in addition to approving the EU-US open skies agreement last week, established an "equalization mechanism" or fund to ensure airlines launching new services over Siberia do not gain competitive advantage over those currently paying overflight charges. Last fall Russia agreed to phase out the charges by 2013 and said carriers starting new services before that date would be exempt ( ATWOnline, Nov. 28, 2006). The regulation will apply from Sept.
Embraer reported $390.1 million in 2006 net income, a 13% drop from the previous year, which the company attributed to rising costs and fewer deliveries. It reported net sales of $3.8 billion compared to sales of $3.83 billion in 2005, while the firm order backlog increased 11% to $14.3 billion.
Air Canada introduced subscription flight passes in the US allowing customers unlimited air travel for a flat monthly rate for three or six months or a predetermined number of flights during a 12-month period. Passes can be bought for specific zones in the US or the whole country and prices include airport fees, charges and taxes and feature AC's various fare/benefit levels ( ATWOnline, Oct.
EADS and Russia's United Aircraft Corp. signed four cooperation agreements last week in conjunction with Aeroflot's order for 22 A350 XWBs ( ATWOnline, March 23). The first establishes Russia's role in A350 construction and pledges 5% airframe participation ( ATWOnline, Dec. 11, 2006). "The discussions about which components of the aircraft will be designed and built in Russia are still ongoing," EADS said.
Airline Partners Australia's A$11.1 billion ($8.96 billion) bid for Qantas hit considerable turbulence Friday when Balanced Equity Management, which holds approximately 4% of the carrier, informed the Australian Stock Exchange that it would not accept the offer.
Hailing the new EU-US open skies agreement as "a harbinger of further liberalization," the US Dept. of State last week signaled that the Bush Administration is prepared to sign the deal on April 30, that there will be no congressional opposition and that late European conditions regarding delayed implementation and second-stage negotiations are acceptable.
Lufthansa flew 7.94 billion RPKs in February, up 8.5% on the year-ago month. Capacity grew 5% to 10.92 billion ASKs and load factor rose 2.3 points to 72.7%. Singapore Airlines flew 6.86 billion RPKs in February, a 6.9% climb from the year-ago month. Capacity was up 2.1% to 8.6 billion ASKs and load factor rose 3.6 points to 79.8%. Iberia flew 3.98 billion RPKs in February, a 7.5% increase from the year-ago month. Capacity was up 2.3% to 4.98 billion ASKs, lifting load factor 3.9 points to 80%.
ABX Air will buy a former American Airlines 767-200 and convert it to a freighter, the Ohio-based cargo carrier announced. Cost for purchase and conversion will be approximately $20 million and the aircraft will be available for ACMI charter service by early next year. "We intend to seize opportunities to add to our Boeing 767 fleet when they become available under attractive terms," ABX President and CEO Joe Hete said. ABX has 35 767s in service, including 29 for DHL. It plans to fly 42 of the type by early next year.
KLM launched six-times-weekly nonstop Amsterdam-Lima service Sunday aboard 777-200ERs, becoming daily Dec. 1. Through Saturday, Lima service was via Bonaire aboard MD-11s.
As part of an effort to reduce the risk of runway incursions, US FAA said Friday it is streamlining the certification process for technology that will allow pilots to view their aircraft's "own ship" position on runways and taxiways via a moving map display using GPS technology similar to GPS devices commonly used in automobiles.
A year "marked by increasingly complex and serious problems" ended with a stunning €405.2 million ($541.7 million) pre-tax loss for Alitalia, which nevertheless promised that it possesses sufficient cash to cover operational and financial costs "for a period well in excess of 12 months."
US District Court in Hawaii denied a request by Mesa Air Group to dismiss a complaint filed by its inter-island competitor, Aloha Airlines, which accused Mesa of predatory pricing and fraud ( ATWOnline, Oct. 17, 2006). Aloha and rival Hawaiian Airlines each allege that Mesa illegally used proprietary information acquired when considering acquiring or investing in the bankrupt island carriers for last summer's launch of its low-cost go! subsidiary.
US and European airlines largely hailed EU transport ministers' approval of the open skies agreement yesterday, though British Airways and Virgin Atlantic Airways led a chorus on the European side cautioning that the deal is just a "first step" toward creation of a truly open transatlantic air market by 2010.
GE Aviation said First Choice Airways selected the GEnx to power the four 787s it ordered earlier this month ( ATWOnline, March 8) with an engine order valued at more than $125 million. GE said the 830 GEnx orders from 28 customers are worth more than $10 billion.
Virgin Nigeria this week launched thrice-daily Lagos-Port Harcourt service aboard F50s. It also increased twice-weekly flights to Sokoto from Lagos and Abuja to thrice-weekly. Separately, it named Head of Planning Adeola Bali finance director.
Canada's airports and government, already under fire for high fees, yesterday were forced to defend against charges from a senior Canadian legislator that airport security is lax and little more than a "PR show."
Alenia Aeronautica yesterday delivered the first two carbon fiber fuselage sections of the 787 from its plant in Grottaglie. The central 8.5-m. section and the central-rear 10-m. section were loaded on Boeing's 747-400LCF and sent to Global Aeronautica's facility in Charleston, where they will be integrated before heading to Seattle. Alenia said it accounts for 14% of the 787's structure.
Delta Air Lines flew 7.94 billion system RPMs in February, a 2.6% increase over the year-ago month. Capacity rose 2.8% to 10.71 billion ASMs and load factor dipped 0.2 point to 74.1%. Domestic RPMs fell 5% to 5.65 billion against a 5% decline in ASMs to 7.46 billion, leaving load factor at 75.8%. International traffic rose 27.7% to 2.89 billion RPMs, capacity grew 27% to 3.26 billion ASMs and load factor was up 0.4 point to 70.3%. Ryanair transported 3.2 million passengers in February, up 24% from the year-ago month. Load factor fell 1 point to 77%.
Although unable to slow the momentum toward unanimous passage of the recently negotiated open skies agreement between the EU and US, UK Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander nevertheless salvaged a couple of concessions during yesterday's vote by the EU's Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council that established open skies and opened London Heathrow to competition.
El Al lost $44.4 million in 2006 owing to capacity increases driven by heightened competition and the war in Lebanon, Israeli business daily Globes reported. Sales rose 3% to $1.66 billion but the number of available seats climbed 21%.
US legacy airlines do not plan to ramp up capacity this year despite posting their best full-year financial results since 2000. "I think you'll continue to see very modest capacity growth, particularly domestically," Continental Airlines Chairman and CEO Larry Kellner told the JP Morgan Aviation and Transportation Conference, available via webcast, this week. The 11 largest US carriers (including America West Airlines, part of US Airways Group) reported a 1% decrease in domestic capacity in 2006.
Aeroflot yesterday followed up on its verbal commitment to the A350 XWB by signing an MOU with Airbus for the purchase of 22 of the model. CEO Valery Okulov promised reporters at a news conference last week that the carrier was close to a deal ( ATWOnline, March 16). Neither Airbus nor Aeroflot specified the type(s) of A350s ordered. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2015, SU said.
