Air France-KLM Group flew 15.8 billion RPKs in June, up 7.8% on the year-ago period. Capacity grew 4.6% to 19.39 billion ASKs and load factor gained 2.4 points to 81.5%. The group carried 6.2 million passengers, a 6.1% increase, of which 4.5 million were on the European network. Cargo activity continued to suffer from the weakness of European exports and posted a 1.1% decrease while capacity rose 4.3%, sending load factor down 3.5 points to 64.7%.
Ryanair will launch new routes from its Shannon base to Bristol and Nantes, bringing the number of destinations it serves from the airport to 16. The daily flight to Bristol will start Oct. 30 and the new route to Nantes will operate three times a week from Nov. 1. In addition, the carrier will increase frequency from one to four flights per week on its Frankfurt route from Oct. 31.
SAS Braathens is guilty of predatory pricing in an attempt to drive low-fare rival Norwegian off the Oslo-Aalesund route, according to Norway's competition authority, which proposed fining the carrier NOK30 million ($4.5 million). According to Reuters, the authority found that SAS Braathens set fares at levels too low to recover costs. The airline already is challenging an NOK20 million fine for abuse of market position on the Oslo-Haugesund route.
Yesterday's terrorist attacks in London are unlikely to have a serious or lasting impact on transatlantic travel to the UK and Europe, according to JP Morgan's Jamie Baker, who said in a report released Thursday that he expects "a temporary slight decline in UK demand, [with] little to no decline for broader Europe." Baker noted that following the terrorist attack in Madrid in March 2004, "US and European carriers serving Spain experienced little to no lasting demand degradation."
Rockwell Collins Aviation Services was selected by AirAsia to provide service and support for the Collins avionics on its new fleet of A320s. Under the 15-year price-per-flight-hour agreement, CAS will furnish maintenance support on 60 A320s with options on a further 40.
Asiana Airlines was hit by a 24-hr. strike by many of its unionized pilots. According to the Associated Press, around 300 of the 527 union pilots participated in yesterday's walkout but the carrier was able to operate its schedule using its 300 nonunion pilots and union pilots who did not participate in the strike. The pilots are seeking increased job security and reduced flying hours, AP reported. Korean Air pilots are conducting a campaign against their own airline, utilizing work-to-rule tactics to protest for better benefits, the news agency added.
American Airlines flew 12.67 billion RPMs in June, up 7.8% over the year-ago period. Capacity climbed 2.8% to 15.29 billion ASMs and load factor gained 3.8 points to 82.8%. For the six months ended June 30, RPMs rose 7.1% to 68.02 billion, ASMs increased 1.5% to 87.75 billion and load factor was up 4.1 points to 77.5%. Delta Air Lines flew 11.12 billion RPMs in June, up 4.7% over the year-ago period. Capacity grew 4.3% to 13.57 billion ASMs and load factor gained 0.3 point to 82%.
The European Commission launched infringement proceedings against six member states, citing their "failure to meet all their obligations" under the EU's new passenger rights legislation covering flight cancellations, denied boarding and long delays that became effective Feb. 17.
DBA announced last week that Germania Express, which is owned by businessman Hinrich Bischoff, has quit its 64% stake in DBA that was taken up in March in a deal that saw DBA assume Gexx's fleet and routes ( ATWOnline, March 18). DBA Supervisory Board Chairman and main investor Hans Rudolf Woehrl said he and Bischoff decided to go their separate ways as shareholders but to continue to work together. A DBA spokesperson told this website that financial terms of the deal have not been released and that Bischoff does not plan to sell his majority interest to another company.
Boeing delivered a total of 85 commercial aircraft in the second quarter, consisting of three 717s, 59 737NGs, four 747s, one 757, four 767s and 14 777s. In the 2004 second quarter, the company delivered 75 commercial aircraft: Three 717s, 50 737NGs, four 747s, four 757s, three 767s and 11 777s. For the six months ended June 30, Boeing reported a total of 155 commercial aircraft deliveries, up slightly over the 151 recorded in the prior-year period.
OpenPages announced that Hawaiian Airlines has selected its Sarbanes-Oxley Express for its Sarbanes-Oxley compliance initiatives. The carrier will deploy SOX to automate its ongoing test and review of its internal controls documentation in order to reduce the time and resource costs associated with Section 404 and 302 compliance.
Aviareps launched a UK-based subsidiary, Airline Centre UK Ltd., with an office in London. First client is Air Namibia, which has been represented by the company since 1999 in the German market.
Irish Aviation Authority and UK National Air Traffic Services said they welcomed what they described as a "ground-breaking" report by independent consultant The Solar Alliance that could lead to the establishment of a Functional Airspace Block in Irish-UK airspace.
SkyTeam partners Delta Air Lines, Air France, Alitalia, CSA Czech Airlines, KLM and Northwest Airlines filed a response to comments on their application for antitrust immunity with the US Dept. of Transportation. "The only comments filed opposing the application were filed by American Airlines, based on its claim that the DOT's decade-long policy approving immunized alliances and seeking to open aviation markets and improve international air services through Open Skies Treaties has been a mistake," Delta Senior VP-Government Affairs Scott Yohe said.
Farelogix Inc., a provider of independent faring and multisource distribution technology to the global travel industry, and Miami-based travel technology vendor PASS Consulting said they plan to market and distribute the PASS Virtual Travel Organizer travel agency point-of-sale application as a preferred POS integrated with the Farelogix FLX Platform.
The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Assn yesterday reversed itself and asked the National Mediation Board to release the union from contract talks with Northwest Airlines, citing the carrier's refusal to "take contract negotiations seriously." In May, the union successfully blocked a similar request by Northwest. If NMB grants AMFA's request, it then will offer to arbitrate a settlement. Should either party reject this, the Board will declare an impasse, initiating a 30-day cooling-off period after which the airline can impose a contract and the union may strike.
EasyJet took delivery of its 50th new A319 in Hamburg. The LCC's first A319 was delivered to its Geneva base in October 2003. Since then it has converted seven of its 13 bases--Basel, Berlin, Dortmund, Gatwick, Geneva, Paris Orly and London Stansted--into all-Airbus operations. Nottingham East Midlands and Bristol will be converted later this year. With the latest delivery, the easyJet fleet numbers 105 aircraft with a further 70 Airbus jets still to be delivered. Average aircraft age will decrease from the current four years to 2.2 years by the end of 2007.
AEA Secretary General Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus warned that the high fuel costs currently in place will fundamentally affect the airline industry and said a proposed development tax will only worsen the situation. "Whether by introducing a supplement to the fare, clearly signaled to the passenger as fuel-related, or by adjusting the pricing model to reduce the number of seats sold at the lowest fares, revenue-boosting measures will be starting to affect passenger behavior, introducing another note of instability into our business," said Schulte-Strathaus.
US Airways announced that the 30-day period for alternative offers on its proposed merger with America West Airlines ended without any competing offers being submitted. The two airlines expect to close the merger in late September or early October.
Etihad Airways named Robert Strodel as the Abu Dhabi-based airline's first CEO. Strodel previously was head of cargo and mail for the two-year old carrier. Prior to that, he worked for Lufthansa and founded Lufthansa Cargo India in 1996, according to Etihad. He also managed an aviation consulting firm in Germany. Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saif Al Nahyan, chairman of Etihad and DG of the Civil Aviation Dept. of Abu Dhabi, said Strodel "has contributed substantially to the considerable success Etihad has enjoyed.
Guggenheim Aviation Partners, a US-based aviation investment firm acting on behalf of the Guggenheim Aviation Investment Fund, has placed an order for six 747-400ER freighters valued at approximately $1.37 billion at list prices, Boeing confirmed yesterday. The order had been added to Boeing's website but was attributed to an unidentified customer, as previously reported on this website ( ATWOnline, July 4). Deliveries will begin in late 2006 and continue through the first half of 2008.
Continental Airlines flew 7.23 billion RPMs in June, up 7.6% over the year-ago period. Capacity climbed 7.2% to 8.8 billion ASMs and load factor gained 0.3 point to 82.2%. For the six months ended June 30, RPMs increased 9.7% to 38.4 billion, ASMs rose 4.8% to 49.07 billion and load factor jumped 3.6 points to 78.3%. In June, Continental said both consolidated and mainline passenger RASM are estimated to have increased 6%-7% compared to June 2004. For May 2005, consolidated passenger RASM gained 9% compared to the year-ago period and mainline passenger RASM rose 9.5% from May 2004.
Alaska Airlines appears to have switched suppliers for an order for up to seven 737-400 passenger-to-freighter and passenger-to-Combi conversions. A year ago, the carrier announced it had selected a team comprising InterContinental Aviation Services of Taiwan, the Flight Structures Inc. unit of B/E Aerospace and Boeing to perform the conversions on five of its 737-400s in a deal valued at $15 million ( ATWOnline, July 16, 2004). Yesterday, however, Pemco Aviation Group said it would perform conversions on five Alaska 737-400s, with options on two additional aircraft.
The management of Vietnam Airlines has been given the green light to pursue a conservative growth strategy that should see the state-owned carrier boost its fleet to up to 70 aircraft by 2015 from 38 today. The airline also expects to be operating pure freighters within 10 years and to carry 8-9 million passengers, according to Chairman Nguyen Sy Hung, who spoke with ATWOnline in Hanoi. VN transported 5 million passengers in 2004 and is expecting a 20% increase for 2005, making it one of the fastest-growing carriers in the region.
