Competition authorities in Austria and Germany approved Etihad Airways’ investment in Air Berlin. Last month, Etihad revealed plans to acquire a 29.21% stake in Air Berlin, making it the German carrier’s largest shareholder. The two carriers have put in place a reciprocal frequent flyer program agreement and plan to begin code-sharing following regulatory approval. The cooperation also includes aircraft maintenance in Duesseldorf and Abu Dhabi. Air Berlin, which had been flying from Berlin to Dubai, is moving that service to Abu Dhabi to enable the link.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to extend the FAA’s operating authority through Feb. 17, allowing congressional negotiators a few more weeks to resolve outstanding issues on a long-term bill to authorize the agency’s spending. A motion to appoint conferees is expected to be filed Jan. 25, says Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Asked whether this 23rd extension would be the last one, Mica says, “It’s the last one I’m doing … from a friendly standpoint.”
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 Others
Although Bombardier Aerospace reported 54 orders for commercial aircraft last year, the order total does not help the company’s commercial aircraft backlogs, which are falling short of the airframer’s own targets. For the year ended Dec. 31, Bombardier reported a total of 54 commercial aircraft net orders: 43 for the CSeries, seven for the Q400 and four for the CRJ Series.
Lufthansa Chairman Juergen Weber says the group should initiate much closer integration between its various airlines to take advantage of potential benefits much more aggressively. Weber, who was CEO until 2004, urged executives at a senior management meeting not to engage in fights between those who support more central control and those in favor of keeping responsibilities local.
Copa Airlines’ planned growth for 2012, which will increase capacity 20% from 2011 levels, will include new services to the U.S., the Caribbean and Central America. The new routes include Las Vegas McCarran International Airport, Curacao International Airport in the Netherlands Antilles and Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport in Liberia, Costa Rica. No launch dates have been announced, although the airline’s website is accepting reservations for late June.
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.
Jet Airways, India’s largest private carrier, announced sale-and-leaseback plans for about 10 Boeing 737s by March to enhance cash flows. Funds from the transaction in the next three months will be used to pay down debt, perhaps as much as $133 million, says M. Shivkumar, senior VP-finance.
Hawaiian Airlines could become the first domestic airline to code-share with JetBlue Airways and only the second of the New York-based carrier's 15 partners to do so, if the U.S. government approves a new deal between the two operators.
Perhaps the 23rd time will be the charm. The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to extend the FAA’s operating authority one last time today, paving the way for an agreement on the long-awaited reauthorization bill by mid-February. The current 22nd extension of the agency’s ability to operate expires Jan. 31. It was passed in September after the failure of lawmakers to agree on the FAA reauthorization bill prompted a two-week, partial shutdown that put more than 74,000 FAA employees and airport construction workers around the country out of work.
By Darryl Jenkins, Chairman, American Aviation Institute I've watched over a hundred airlines fold or merge since deregulation and administrations come and go. But what I see from the current Transportation Department (DOT) is more destructive to the airline industry's viability than anything I have witnessed before. DOT has become the biggest competitor to the U.S. airline industry.
Boeing has elevated Dinesh Keskar, president of Boeing India, to senior VP-Asia-Pacific and India for Boeing Commercial Airplanes, a new position. In this role, Keskar will head a sales organization, including contracts, marketing, revenue management and other support functions. He will continue in his current role until a a successor is named, says Shep Hill, president of Boeing International.
Reduced frequencies at Orlando, Baltimore, Chicago and Tampa feature heavily in new schedules for Southwest Airlines and its wholly owned subsidiary, AirTran Airways, that take effect in August. The new schedules also include four new routes for Southwest and one for AirTran, although by year-end the smaller carrier will operate a network that features 16 fewer cities than the 69 served when it was acquired by Southwest on May 2.
President Barack Obama’s budget release will be delayed a week until Feb. 13, an administration official confirms. “The date was determined based on the need to finalize decisions and technical details of the document,” the official said in an email, adding that in keeping with efforts to rein in the federal deficit, the administration will not distribute paper copies of the budget. The administration is supposed to submit its budget to Congress on the first Monday of February. The Obama administration has met that deadline just once—in 2010.
Startup companies working to scale up the production of biofuels from feedstocks ranging from non-edible plants to industrial waste gases have secured investment financing totaling almost $480 million. Waste-gas-to-biofuel company LanzaTech, founded in New Zealand and headquartered in Illinois, has closed Series C investment of $55.8 million, taking the total raised so far to $85 million.
LAN Airlines and Grupo TAM have asked Brazil’s securities and exchange commission to permit the share exchange just approved by both companies’ board of directors. Approval from the Comissao de Valores Mobiliarios (CVM) will enable LAN to issue TAM’s stakeholders 0.9 of a LAN share in exchange for each share they currently have in TAM. The stock swap is a key part of the two airlines’ merger, which they expect to complete by the end of March.
Click here to view the pdf Nonstop Segment Performance: Europe-U.S., 12 Months Ending June 2011, Ranked By Onboard Passengers Onboard ASMs % Chg. Seats Per Load
Virgin America is broadening its transcontinental reach with the planned expansion to Philadelphia International Airport, a US Airways hub. The San Francisco International Airport (SFO)-based Airbus narrowbody carrier plans to launch a twice-daily flight from its home airport on April 10, six days after inaugurating a three-times-daily service from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Ticket sales have already started.
