Gol opened its R$30.5 million ($14.1 million) Aircraft Maintenance Center in Confins Friday and said the facility will allow it to stop using third-party maintenance providers. Annual cost reductions from performing its own maintenance are expected to be $2 million, with further revenue generated by performing maintenance for other airlines. "In a moment of expansion, Gol will reduce its aircraft expenses and obtain another source of future revenues," Technical VP David Barioni said. It will operate a fleet of 62 737s by year end, an increase of 20 from the end of last year.
Chinese airlines have been forced to cut fares to Tibet by up to 55% following the opening of the Qinghai-Tibet railway, according to China Daily, as concern grows among carriers over the impact of rail expansion. The paper reported that nine flights operated by Air China, Sichuan Airlines and China Southern Airlines have been discounted 45%-55% since Sept. 13. The Qinghai-Tibet railway opened July 1 and the train fare between Chengdu and Lhasa is CNY331 ($41) with a sleeper fare of CNY712. Airlines now are offering fares on the route at CNY975.
Korean Air will today launch thrice-weekly Seoul-Vienna flights aboard 777-200s and said it "initially plans" to operate the service until Oct. 27. Continental Airlines said it plans to launch seasonal Cleveland-Paris Charles de Gaulle flights in 2008, marking the first direct service on the route. AirTran Airways will launch daily services from Chicago Midway to Miami and Palm Beach on Feb. 7 aboard 717-200s and 737-700s.
Bmibaby will expand its operation at Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and Nottingham East Midlands next summer with the addition of two 737s and redeployment of another pair, the airline announced, adding it is in "advanced discussions with its airport partners regarding potential route expansion opportunities." It currently has 17 aircraft based at the four British airports, where it is "experiencing proven solid growth in line with our financial forecasts," according to MD Crawford Rix.
Atlantic Southeast Airlines pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots Assn., set up a strike center at an undisclosed location in Atlanta in apparent frustration over the status of four-year-old contract negotiations.
US Airways named Thomas Chapman VP-congressional and federal affairs effective Oct. 16. Currently legislative counsel for Southwest Airlines, Chapman replaces the retiring Rosemary Murray. Pratt & Whitney Canada appointed John Saabas executive VP and Benoit Brossoit senior VP-service centers and operations. Saabas, previously senior VP-engineering and operations, will be responsible for engineering, operations, quality, service centers, customer support and marketing. Brossoit, previously VP-service centers, will provide "strategic direction" and report to Saabas.
Midwest Air Group said its August yield rose 8.6% to an estimated 14.6 cents. Passenger RASM surged 17.5% to 11.5 cents. Midwest Airlines and Midwest Connect flew 361.7 million consolidated RPMs in August, up 18.1% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 9.2% to 460.5 million ASMs and load factor increased 6 points to 78.6%.
The dream run for North American LCCs has slowed, reports Sydney-based aviation think tank Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation. According to CAPA Executive Chairman Peter Harbison, "the rate of growth of low-cost carriers in North America has stagnated for the past three years." He noted that LLCs' market share "has now been stuck on 18% of total frequencies (representing approximately 26% of total seats) for three years, after surging from 13% of total frequencies from September 2001 to September 2004."
TAM on Friday concluded the public distribution of R$500 million ($231.3 million) worth of nonconvertible debentures. The three banks coordinating the operation, the first public offer of debentures of an airline company in Brazil, reported that the 50,000 debentures offered were subscribed and integrated by a total of 140 investors. "The purpose of the issue is to use the resources to finance aircraft components for future fleet expansion," TAM said. "As previously announced, the expectation is to end 2006 with at least 96 aircraft, reaching 127 aircraft at the end of 2010."
SAS Cargo became the eighth airline to join Cargo Portal Services, the Unisys-operated online booking portal that gives freight forwarders free Internet access to member carriers' schedules and space availability and the ability to book and confirm shipments in real time. CPS membership includes American Airlines, Air Canada, Austrian Airlines, KLM, Northwest Airlines and United Airlines. Continental Airlines is in the process of going live.
US District Judge Victor Marrero issued an injunction Friday that prevents Northwest Airlines flight attendants from striking or engaging in other disruptive work actions, stating that such actions could cripple the bankrupt carrier and unduly damage the US transportation system.
JetBlue Airways launched thrice-weekly New York JFK-Houston Hobby service aboard A320s. It also announced it will start daily JFK-Cancun service on Nov. 30, also aboard A320s. Ryanair announced the suspension of thrice-weekly London Luton-Brest, London Stansted-Deauville, Nottingham East Midlands-Nimes and Shannon-Nantes services during the winter schedule starting in November and lasting through February. It cited a dearth of advance bookings for the decision. Specific dates for suspension and resumption vary slightly.
Air Canada launched twice-weekly flights to Las Vegas from Edmonton aboard an A319 and from Winnipeg aboard a CRJ705 operated by Jazz. Also, AC signed a deal with ITA Software to develop a new reservation management system for deployment late next year.
Rolls-Royce will supply engines for the 50 ERJ-145s ordered by Hainan Airlines Group ( ATWOnline, Aug. 31). The order, which includes 100 engines and long-term TotalCare services, is valued at $500 million.
Northwest Airlines mechanics, represented by the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Assn., who went on strike in August 2005 are eligible for unemployment benefits following a reversal this week by the Minnesota Court of Appeals. A lower court had ruled that custodians and cleaners were eligible but the mechanics were not, a decision reversed when the higher court ruled, "It is undisputed that Northwest's terms imposed on AMFA members of both crafts constituted 25% wage reductions, as well as benefit cuts.
Air France KLM CEO Jean-Cyril Spinetta said yesterday that "KLM has started to discuss a cargo joint venture with China Southern" but cautioned that "the talks are in the initial stage," according to Reuters. Beijing is encouraging foreign airlines to set up cargo JVs with Chinese companies in order to meet the nation's explosive growth in airfreight demand.
Boeing delivered the first 747-400ERF to China Cargo Airlines, the China Eastern Airlines/China Ocean Shipping Group joint venture. China Cargo's fleet is composed of six MD-11Fs and one leased 747 freighter, and it uses belly space on China Eastern passenger flights. The aircraft delivered to China Cargo will carry a maximum payload of 124 tons and has a maximum range of 4,970 nm.
Hainan Airlines ordered 15 additional 737-800s, completing the distribution of the 150-aircraft order placed by China Aviation Supplies Import and Export Group ( ATWOnline, April 12), Boeing announced yesterday. The 150 737-700s/-800s are worth approximately $10 billion at list prices and will delivered to Air China (25), China Eastern Airlines (20), China Southern Airlines (30), Shandong Airlines (12), Shanghai Airlines (13), Shenzhen Airlines (10), Xiamen Airlines (15) and Hainan (25) between this year and 2010.
Mesaba Airlines was dealt a setback by a US District Court judge in Minneapolis who determined the company could not reject its collective bargaining agreements with union employees as part of its bankruptcy proceedings. In July, a bankruptcy court judge granted Mesaba authority to reject the deals as part of its effort to reduce labor costs by 10.4% over a six-year period ( ATWOnline, July 17).
Delta Air Lines this week unveiled "the industry's first two-class domestic flight experience to feature [on-demand] digital entertainment," a result of the carrier's decision to fold its low-cost Song subsidiary and reintegrate the 48 757s and portions of the Song inflight product into the mainline fleet ( ATWOnline, April 6).
Aerospace Products International announced that JetBlue Airways selected API's Electronic Supply Program to manage the inventory of shelf-life-limited chemicals and other products at the carrier's line stations.
Aeroflot announced that Accenture has completed an audit of the carrier's organizational structure, IT systems and management processes. Aeroflot said the examination "determined key priorities and tasks in a field of information technologies and pointed out perspectives for future development."
Qantas has been given the green light by Australia's competition regulator to work closely with its offshore low-cost subsidaries based in Singapore. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission issued a ruling authorizing Qantas to enter into a cooperation agreement with Orangestar Investment Holdings, the holding company for Jetstar Asia and Valuair. The decision follows preliminary approval granted in May ( ATWOnline, June 1).
British Airways is offering advance registration for the Clear registered traveler program on its website. Clear is scheduled to launch at BA's New York JFK Terminal 7 this fall. Applicants will complete an online form before going in person to an "enrollment station" where they will submit fingerprints and iris scans. The program is open to US citizens and permanent foreign residents and will cost $79.95 per year, plus a $27-$30 fee to the US Transportation Security Administration. It will be the first private RT program at a US airport, BA said.
US House Judiciary Committee dealt a blow this week to those seeking repeal of the Wright Amendment with the removal of language in the Wright Amendment Reform Act exempting it from antitrust challenges.
