FRANKFURT – Lufthansa has named Carsten Spohr as the new group CEO. Spohr, 47, will replace Christoph Franz who is becoming chairman of Swiss pharmaceutical group Roche.
GIL SPEED REMEMBERED: A memorial service for Gilbert W. Speed will be held March 13 at 2 p.m. Pacific at the Westwood United Methodist Church (not to be confused with the Wilshire Methodist Church), at 10497 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, Calif. A reception, at a location to be announced, will immediately follow the service. Speed, the founder of Aviation Week affiliate SpeedNews, passed away on Jan. 22 at age 81.
American Airlines Group (AAG) is sticking with first quarter guidance that has it boosting passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM) 2% to 4% in the period after boosting revenue passenger miles (RPMs) 3.8% in January on a 2.3% increase in available seat miles (ASMs). Reporting the combined American Airlines and US Airways operational results, the carrier saw a 2.9% boost in domestic RPMs and a 6.7% increase in international RPMs. The mainline network flew 4.2% more RPMs, while the regionals combined to drop 0.1%.
Click here to view the pdf Aircraft Operating Statistics: 12 Months Ended September 2013, Turboprops and Regional Jets (Sorted By Seats Per Departure) Aircraft Stage Seats/ Aircraft Carrier In Flee
Singapore’s aviation regulator has stepped up inspection of Indian carriers following the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) decision to downgrade India’s air safety rating. The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) says that Indian carriers will need to address any major findings of deficiency and safety risks spotted during safety audit operations in order to continue operations in the city state, according to an official of the Indian Civil Aviation ministry.
Singapore-based regional LCC Scoot will use its first 787 aircraft—a 787-9 due for delivery in November—on routes that include Japan, Taiwan and Australia, Scoot CEO Campbell Wilson tells Aviation Week. Wilson adds that the expanding northeast Asia market will suit the new aircraft’s capability—and better help feed into the carrier’s increasingly close ties to its Singapore-based narrow-body LCC cousin, Tigerair. “The links we are establishing with Tiger will take us to a higher level in the region,” he says.
Introducing the Aero 100 Airfare Benchmark Index Designed for anyone with risk on the future level of airfares – for example Airlines, Banks/Credit Card Companies, Corporate Travel Managers, etc. The Aero 100 Airfare Benchmark Index tracks daily airfares within the domestic airline market. The Aero 100 delivers financial risk mitigation and protection against constant fluctuation of airline ticket prices by providing the price settling mechanism for Commodity Futures Contracts.
Ethiopian Airlines is poised to order 20 narrowbodies within six months, which could see it upgrade to Boeing 737 MAXs or switch from its all-737 narrowbody fleet to a dual fleet with the introduction of A320neos.
Click here to view the pdf Top Carriers: Durban-Johannesburg, January 15-21, 2014, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Top Carriers: Durban-Johannesburg, January 15-21, 2014, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Daily Each Way
Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, already one of the more expensive airports in its class for airlines, will see passenger enplanement costs skyrocket if planned cutbacks by United Airlines aren’t mitigated with new service or other non-airline revenue. United has announced plans to cut nearly 60% of its Cleveland departures by mid-year (DAILY, Feb. 4), and one immediate result will be higher costs for all operators.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has delivered a lukewarm review of the FAA’s efforts to accelerate the delivery of performance-based navigation (PBN) procedures as part of the NextGen program. The assessment comes as Congress reviews the agency’s progress in implementing the 2012 FAA Modernization and Reform Act, elements of which were designed to boost PBN availability to help convince airlines of the fuel- and time-savings they can attain by equipping with NextGen avionics to use the procedures.
Allegiant Air, no stranger to the upgauging trend sweeping through U.S. fleets, is giving its Airbus A319s rave reviews, and plans to stick with a fleet growth strategy that will soon see the carrier have more of the smaller Airbus narrowbodies than A320s, executives report. After adding two A320s last month, the carrier is up to seven of the 177-seat Airbus narrowbodies and three 156-seat A319s.
Introducing the Aero 100 Airfare Benchmark Index Designed for anyone with risk on the future level of airfares – for example Airlines, Banks/Credit Card Companies, Corporate Travel Managers, etc. The Aero 100 Airfare Benchmark Index tracks daily airfares within the domestic airline market. The Aero 100 delivers financial risk mitigation and protection against constant fluctuation of airline ticket prices by providing the price settling mechanism for Commodity Futures Contracts.
The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) is denouncing allegations that it is a “flag of convenience” for airlines, describing reports questioning its safety, regulatory performance and capability as “misguided,” “derogatory” and “not factual.”
DUBAI — Lufthansa Technik and UTC Aerospace Systems have expanded their Boeing 787 component agreement to include work on interior products , sensors and integrated systems. Their MRO cooperation for Dreamliner components started in 2011 when UTC appointed Lufthansa Technik a licensed 787 MRO provider. Then in November 2013 the two companies expanded their long-term agreement with a rotable-provisioning and MRO service agreement for UTC-manufactured nacelle components. That agreement covers nacelles on GE and Rolls-Royce engines.
The Kuwait National Assembly said Feb. 5 it has asked its legislative and legal affairs committee to investigate a Kuwait Airways Company (KAC) plan to purchase 25 Airbus aircraft. The inquiry, approved 36-21, would see the committee probe all transactions being undertaken by state-owned KAC, including a plan by recently ousted chairman Sami al-Nasef to purchase five used Airbus aircraft from Jet Airways of India, according to a transcript of the parliamentary session.
South African Airways (SAA) will improve its access to the Australian market thanks to a new code share with Virgin Australia, although the deal is not reciprocal and Virgin will still link to South Africa via Singapore Airlines. SAA operates a flight from Johannesburg to Perth, and under the new agreement it will place its code on Virgin Australia domestic flights from Perth to eastern cities Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne.
Virgin Australia has signaled that it will record a substantial loss for the six months through Dec. 31, confirming that upcoming earnings reports for this period will make grim reading for both of Australia’s major carriers.
LONDON — The U.K. National Air Traffic Services (NATS) will introduce a time-based separation system for aircraft arriving at London’s Heathrow Airport. NATS says introduction of the system, set for spring 2015, will help cut delays and reduce cancellations at the city’s busiest airport, particularly during strong headwind conditions, considered the biggest cause of flight delays.
