Spirit Airlines has recalculated and increased the number of markets it believes are conducive to its market-stimulation model for route expansion, which could have ramifications for the number of aircraft the South Florida-based, low-cost carrier will need in the future. Spirit generally looks for “high-fare” markets in which it believes a 25% reduction in fares can stimulate new demand by more than 200 passengers a day each way while producing double-digit operating margins.
While Virgin Australia is not yet ready to add more widebody aircraft, when it does place another order, it will probably be for Airbus A330s because of their ability to serve both domestic and Asian routes, an airline executive says.
General Electric (GE) has revealed plans to launch new variants of its recently certified H80 turboprop as part of an aggressive push to challenge Pratt & Whitney Canada’s market dominance. The two derivatives of the H80 are the H75 and H85. The H75 engine will be rated at 750 shp and the H85 engine will be rated at 850 shp. Although no specific applications have been identified, GE says that like the H80, the H75 and H85 will be aimed primarily at the agricultural, commuter, utility and business turboprop market.
Click here to view the pdf Top Carriers: Cheju - Seoul, July 15-21, 2012, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Top Carriers: Cheju - Seoul, July 15-21, 2012, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Daily Each Way Depts. Share ASKs (000) Share Seats/Dept.
The FAA is resisting a U.S. Transportation Department (DOT) recommendation to develop validation processes for the data it collects under a voluntary, non-punitive reporting program for air traffic controller safety concerns. Provisions intended to safeguard the confidentiality of controllers who report such concerns through the FAA’s Air Traffic Safety Action Program (ATSAP) result in an excess of unsubstantiated data, according to a DOT Inspector General (DOT IG) report.
Republic Airways officially canceled its remaining four firm orders for Embraer E-190s, months after indefinitely deferring delivery of those aircraft. Republic had six firm orders for E-190s as of the first quarter 2012, according to an Embraer report. Republic has taken delivery of two of the aircraft, leaving a backlog of four. The second-quarter report, however, listed only two firm orders for E-190s–the two that had been delivered to Republic.
Transport ministers from Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago are seeking approval from their governments to create a bilateral team to study options to keep Air Jamaica’s brand alive.
A U.S. Appeal Court on July 24 upheld the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) new requirements on airline price advertising, ticket refunds and post-purchase price increases—a decision with ramifications beyond the preservation of the new rules, which already have been implemented. Most critically, by upholding the scope of the department’s regulatory authority, the court’s decision clears the way for the department to require airlines to provide all their ancillary fee information to global distribution system providers and online travel companies.
A slight dip in Rockwell Collins’s third-quarter aftermarket sales should reverse course in the fourth quarter on the strength of increased air transport business, company CEO Clay Jones reports.
Airlines that want to transport cargo directly from the EU to the U.S. can ask the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to amend their security programs to let them follow EU standards equivalent to those in the U.S., as long as the agency agrees their countries meet specific requirements. Through its National Cargo Security Program, TSA “has developed an extensive and comprehensive review process to determine whether a country’s specific security requirements are commensurate with those required by TSA,” a TSA spokesman says.
Click here to view the pdf Top Carriers: Sapporo Chitose - Tokyo Haneda July 15-21, 2012, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Top Carriers: Sapporo Chitose - Tokyo Haneda July 15-21, 2012, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Daily
As Europe’s Seventh Framework research program enters its closing stages, the European Commission (EC) is looking for advanced air transport concepts as part of its sixth and final call for proposals. The EC also is seeking proposals for a high-speed aircraft flight-test program as well joint aeronautics research with Russia. The call closes in November.
The FAA is expected within weeks to issue a request for proposal (RFP) for sites to test UAV technologies in civilian airspace. State, local and University officials expect the RFP by the end of July or early August and awards by the end of the year. Recent legislation requires the FAA to integrate UAVs into civilian airspace by Sept. 30, 2015, and the six test sites are a key step toward that goal.
Indonesian state-owned carrier Merpati Nusantara has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) covering financing to acquire 20 C212 turboprop passenger aircraft made by state-owned airframer Indonesian Aerospace (IAe). Merpati will buy five 24-seat C212-200 and 15 28-seat C212-400s, says a senior IAe official, adding that the first, a -200 turboprop, will be delivered early next year. The official says IAe already had an agreement to sell Merpati 20 C212s, but the latest MOU is significant because it includes financing.
Airlines are expressing increasing interest in creating “fare clubs” in which customers pay an annual fee for unique access to discounted ticket prices, says the co-author of a newly released annual tally of the amount of ancillary revenue that airlines are collecting worldwide.
California Pacific Airlines has received its first Embraer 170 aircraft and will begin flight crew training within the next few weeks, but the Carlsbad, Calif.-based aspiring carrier plans to ask the U.S. Transportation Department (DOT) for more time to get its business off the ground.
Gogo intends to upgrade its inflight connectivity services on United Airlines’ premium service fleet to improve wireless access for passengers. The service provider will begin the upgrade, which involves the installation of hardware and software on the 13 Boeing 757-200s that comprise the United p.s. fleet, in early 2013, the company tells Aviation Week.
An early-out provision in AMR Corp.’s “last, best and final offer” to its flight attendants union could reduce the number of furloughs required to meet management’s new $195 million cost-savings target from the labor group. The Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) board has sent the offer to its membership for a vote, which closes Aug. 19.
The U.S. Transportation Department says it will not give airlines more time to comply with new rules on the consistent assessment of baggage fees on interline and code-share itineraries being implemented July 24, but will exercise some discretion in penalizing carriers for violations.
