After recovering strongly in 2007, the transatlantic travel market is expected to slide back down because of a weak U.S. economy. According to Donald N. Martin & Co., which produces a periodic transatlantic traffic report, the forecast is for little or no growth in U.S. travel to Europe. Traffic to Europe was up 2.5% in 2005, 3.5% in 2006, and an estimated 2% in 2007. However, one positive development is the growth in the number of Americans carrying a passport, which is up 35% from three years ago to an estimated 81.4 million residents.
Sydney Airport parent Southern Cross Airports Corporation Holdings posted a 9% jump in its earnings to A$608.6 million (US$537 million) for the year ended Dec. 31, 2007. Total revenue for the airport was up 10.5% year over year, to A$760.5 million (US$670.1 million), driven by growth on international and domestic routes and the lease renewal for the fuel facility. Total operating expenses rose 12.8%, driven by higher security operating costs, which were recovered through higher aeronautical security revenues.
Speaking at the first National Conference on Civil Aviation last week in Delhi, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel made a plea to state representatives to rationalize their fuel tax structure. Lower taxes on air turbine fuel would encourage more air operators to fly in their states, Patel added. The conference was attended by chief ministers, ministers and chief secretaries and other senior officials from the Indian states. Some state governments have said they would consider rationalizing the state sales tax on jet fuel.
SITA, a provider of communications and software services to airlines, is creating a laboratory to prototype new technology. It intends to spend US$110 million this year on research and product development, and will be asking airline customers for ideas and to partner on pilot projects.
Austrian Airlines CFO Thomas Kleibl will resign at the next meeting meeting of the Supervisory Board on March 12. CEO Alfred Oetsch, subject to board approval, will take over his responsiblities on the Board of Management. Kleibl said he will remain available to the company in an advisory and support capacity during the transition.
In United’s latest labor strife, pilots are refusing to wear their hats to show their displeasure with corporate largesse, and the wage and work rule concessions they have made. The Air Line Pilots Association unit says that by removing their hats, they are “clearly displaying a form of civil disobedience.” New hires under probation are exempt from the hats-off directive. Union leaders instructed pilots to put their hats back on if a flight operations manager directly orders them to do it.
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American parent AMR Corp. elected Rajat Gupta, senior partner emeritus of McKinsey & Company, and Alberto Ibarguen, president and CEO of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, to the boards of directors of both the corporation and the airline.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) has chosen Thales to install its US$209.1 million Long Range Radar and Display System III (LORADS) air traffic control system at Changi Airport. The new system will feature technology that will allow air traffic controllers to safely handle rising air traffic beyond the next decade, said CAAS. LORADS III will use advanced surveillance and communications technologies to build in tighter safety nets and streamline air traffic management processes.
Continental says its booked load factor for the next six weeks is generally up from last year’s levels, proving that demand is holding strong. Domestic bookings are up one to two points, and Latin American bookings are up two points. Transatlantic and Pacific bookings are slightly behind last year, although the carrier expects this gap to narrow by the end of the first quarter. Overall, first-quarter load factor is expected to be up by about half a point.
Amtrak on Friday signed a tentative agreement with leaders of nine labor unions, possibly avoiding a strike of about 10,000 workers at 12:01 a.m. Jan. 30. The contract must now go to the rank-and-file for ratification. Don Griffin, director of strategic coordination and research for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, said the day before the tentative agreement was reached that a strike “would have a substantial effect on commuter operations from Boston to Washington, D.C.”
The Japanese government intends to finance about 30% of the development costs of the Mitsubishi Regional Jet. The MRJ project will cost 150 billion yen (US$1.4 billion), and Mitsubishi will decide in March whether it is feasible.
Copenhagen Airports will get a US$200 million cash infusion from majority owner Macquarie Airports for upgrades to the facility. Macquarie was being criticized for the state of disrepair at Copenhagen, and will upgrade items including aircraft stands, terminal lobbies and gate areas.
Europe’s low-fare carriers carried 120.7 million passengers with an average load factor of 82%, according to new statistics from the European Low Fares Airline Association (ELFAA). ELFAA’s 10 members – which include easyJet and Ryanair – saw passenger traffic grow almost 20% year over year, using 495 aircraft. Members had 19,500 employees, and the average fleet age was 4.6 years, it added.
Normalcy slowly returned to Buenos Aires’ airports after last week’s wildcat strike at Aerolineas Argentinas (DAILY, Jan. 16), but the fallout continued unabated. Two international and two domestic flights from Buenos Aires urban Aeroparque were canceled, though passengers were previously advised.
Lufthansa Systems, Lufthansa and Goodrich are developing a new electronic flight bag called EFB Next Gen to be installed in all Lufthansa aircraft by Lufthansa Technik. Designed to take the airline industry one step closer to a paperless cockpit, it will use Lido software and navigation charts powered by a laptop docking station and Goodrich touch screen.
Kim Day, the former executive director of Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), has been chosen by Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper to be the new manager at Denver Airport. Day will come to Denver later in the month to meet airport staff and the local community for a questions and answers session, said city spokeswoman Sue Cobb. “The plan is to have her aboard before current manager Turner West retires on March 31,” she added.
Code-share agreements with Delta, United and US Airways accounted for roughly 98% of Mesa’s consolidated passenger revenues for FY2007, while its inter-island Hawaiian airline Go accounted for the remaining 2%, the company reported in its 10-K filing. Go revenues for the year stood at $25.5 million, while the US Airways code share pulled in $576.3 million, United’s some $462 million and Delta about $250 million. Mesa’s loss widened to $81.6 million for the year, compared with $33.9 million a year ago (DAILY, Jan. 15).
FAA has a five-pronged plan to understand and combat aviation’s contribution to climate change, a senior agency official said this week in Washington. FAA is crafting a “careful plan” to study the issue and to move toward a “carbon neutral future,” said Daniel Elwell, FAA assistant administrator for aviation policy, planning and environment. The plan is in contrast to the “internationally unpopular path” the European Union is going down with its proposal to include aviation in its emissions trading scheme, he said.
Lloyd Aereo Boliviano (LAB), which recently tripled charter flights on trunk routes (DAILY, Jan. 16), next month will take delivery of two more aircraft to handle demand. Renewal of some international flights is estimated in four weeks with two aircraft now in maintenance. On the legal front, Air Transport Superintendent Wilson Villarroel on Monday scheduled a public hearing on the re-issue of LAB’s full commercial license this week.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) has asked Northwest and United management to be included in any merger discussions if “any significant progress” has been made.
A British Airways Boeing 777-200ER crash-landed at London Heathrow Airport yesterday injuring three passengers. The aircraft appears to have landed short of Runway 27L and plowed through the adjacent grass. Eyewitnesses reported that the aircraft drifted to the left and quickly downward on short final approach with the crew unable to keep on the extended runway centerline. The main gear collapsed and both engines are understood to have been significantly damaged. The 136 passengers and 16 crew left the aircraft over the escape slides.
Embraer has named LOT Polish Airlines as the unidentified customer for 12 of 175 regional jets carried in the 2007 order book. The airline, a long-time user of the 170/175 regional jets, also indicated through options and purchase rights it may buy a dozen more of the aircraft. LOT’s Embraer fleet currently stands at 10 170s and six 175s.
