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With Thai Airways International’s cargo business struggling with reduced demand for global air freight, the carrier is reshuffling its freighter mix in an effort to keep operating costs down. “Thai’s dedicated cargo business is down a lot, but we are still doing good in belly-hold cargo,” Thai Airways’ executive VP for strategy and business development, Chokchai Panyayong, tells Aviation Week.
French President Francois Hollande has approached Germany with the idea of creating a joint blocking minority stake in the new company that would be created as a result of the proposed merger of BAE Systems and EADS, according to industry sources. That status could be achieved as a result of various complex transactions and would ensure more government influence beyond the golden share proposal suggested by EADS CEO Tom Enders.
Click here to view the pdf Aircraft Operating Costs and Statistics - 12 Months Ended March 2012 - Regional Jets Page 3 CRJ 700 Manufacturer: Bombardier
JetBlue Airways by the end of October expects to have equipped with automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) avionics the 35 Airbus A320 aircraft targeted for retrofit in an FAA-funded program.
Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association re-elected Martin Fraissignes, Chateauroux Air Centre, executive director; Bill Carberry, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, secretary and deputy director; and Denis Oliver, ELG Materials, treasurer.
Click here to view the pdf Nonstop Passengers Per Day Each Way - London Heathrow - Los Angeles Nonstop Passengers Per Day Each Way - London Heathrow - Los Angeles British Airways Virgin Atlantic
Air New Zealand is set to receive its first ATR 72-600 this month, part of a seven-aircraft order that will boost its regional turboprop fleet. During the airline’s annual shareholder meeting, CEO Rob Fyfe said the first of the -600s will be handed over within the next few weeks. An airline spokeswoman notes the aircraft must be ferried to New Zealand, and will conduct certification flights there, so it probably will not enter service until November.
An FAA decision on privatizing Puerto Rico’s Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juan could come as early as the first quarter of next year, one of the main bidders for the contract tells Aviation Week. The FAA opened the privatization project to public comment Sept. 18 and held the first hearing Sept. 28. The comment period ends Nov. 18, and the FAA’s decision is expected 30-60 days afterward, says Emmett McCann, managing director of Highstar Capital, which is an investor in the project.
United Airlines expects third-quarter mainline traffic to fall up to 2.5% year-on-year to about 49 billion revenue passenger miles (RPMs) as demand continues to decline on domestic and transatlantic routes, although improved traffic to Asia and Latin America and on regional services limits systemwide decreases to 1-2%. The carrier’s latest investor guidance shows that the Chicago-based carrier expects a 4.1-5.1% drop in transatlantic traffic to about 11 billion RPMs and a 2.8-3.8% fall in domestic mainline demand to about 25 billion RPMs.
Excluding retrofits or airworthiness-directive compliance, the worldwide market for overhauling Rolls-Royce Trent 700-series turbofans is projected at about $2 billion for the next three years, with Asian carriers accounting for the largest share of the work.
The years-long battle over aircraft subsidies continues with the EU asking the World Trade Organization (WTO) to penalize the U.S. $12 billion a year for allegedly maintaining illegal subsidies to Boeing. This claim mirrors a U.S. request placed last year seeking $10 billion in annual penalties against the EU for its own illegal subsidies to Airbus that the WTO is still reviewing.
Garuda Indonesia has decided that its low-cost carrier Citilink will operate turboprop aircraft it plans to order in November. According to Citilink CEO Arif Wibowo, Garuda’s board of directors has still to determine if the fleet will comprise ATR 72-600s or Bombardier Q400s. He says any deal will include 50 aircraft, but he declines to say how many will be firm orders and how many will be options.
Garuda Indonesia is contemplating new services to Russia after establishing its new Boeing 777-300ER fleet in Japan and the Middle East. The first of 10 777-300ERs destined for Garuda's fleet is expected mid-2013. A spokesman for the airline says the first two 777-300ERs will be used for services from Indonesia to Tokyo and to destinations in the Middle East. Garuda also has two Boeing 747-400s that it operates to Middle East destinations, such as Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, but it wants to phase them out.
Click here to view the pdf Aircraft Operating Costs and Statistics, 12 Months Ended March 2012, Regional Jets Pages 1 and 2 of 4 ERJ 135 Manufacturer: Embraer
The acrimony between American Airlines and its pilots union continues to grow with the carrier threatening an injunction to stop what it claims is an illegal work action and the Allied Pilots Association (APA) accusing management of creating “an operational nightmare” that is causing flight cancellations.
Alaska Air Group’s decision to launch its largest share repurchase program signals that the carrier has no intention of merging with, or acquiring, another operation, the airline’s managing director for investor relations tells Aviation Week. “We want to grow organically and be a strong, independent company,” says Chris Berry. “If something compelling comes our way, we’re obligated to look at it,” he adds, although he notes that no potential merger or acquisition target recently has presented itself.
