The Allied Pilots Association at American has asked management to join it in requesting help from the National Mediation Board to iron out a new collective bargaining agreement. The two have been in negotiations for more than 16 months. The APA will wait until close of business today to hear management’s response before contacting the NMB on its own.
While some Mexican carriers already resorted to surcharges to offset high fuel prices, Jorge Luis Moya, VP of Mexico’s air transport chamber, Canaero, admits some airlines will soon increase fares to offset rising costs.
Air New Zealand is asking the U.S. Transportation Dept. for authority to carry bmi’s code on its scheduled service between Los Angeles Airport and London Heathrow. The code share would begin on March 30. Air New Zealand requested that DOT expedite the process and award the code-share authority by monthend, so that bmi could begin to promote the service to its customers [DOT-OST-2008-0011].
German carrier Air Berlin last week applied to the U.S. Transportation Dept. for authority to operate its own services to the U.S. Air Berlin currently code shares with sister carrier LTU on that carrier’s Duesseldorf-New York/-Miami/-Fort Myers and Berlin-Melbourne, Fla., services (DAILY, Nov. 8), although the carriers won the authority from DOT only last month.
Starting in 2014, driver’s licenses presented as identification by U.S. passengers before boarding aircraft will have to comply with tougher federal security regulations, the Dept. of Homeland Security says. Improved security features for the so-called REAL ID driver’s licenses include verification of the license holder’s Social Security number and immigration or citizenship status. The licenses will have to be tamper-resistant, and issuing agencies must verify electronically all identification documents provided by license applicants.
The British Air Line Pilots Association (BALPA) will convey concerns to British Airways management today that its members will be offered less than favorable employment terms with new BA airline OpenSkies. OpenSkies is expected to fly from New York to Brussels and Paris by yearend. Separately, BALPA and the Irish Air Line Pilots Association (IALPA) have agreed in principle to facilitate the organization of Ryanair pilots after 18 months of strategizing on how to represent the new breed of pan-European airlines.
The Travel Industry Association is joining forces with the University of South Carolina and the Commerce Dept. to study Chinese travel preferences. The study will poll 10,000 Chinese citizens to gauge the potential of the long-haul Chinese travel market and its potential for the U.S. travel and tourism industry. Chinese travelers to the U.S. spend an average of $6,000 per trip — more than other international visitors to the country.
You can now register online for AVIATION WEEK events. Go to www.aviationweek.com/conferences or contact Lydia Janow, 212-904-3225 or 800-240-7645 ext. 5 (U.S. and Canada only) FEB. 12-13 — Defense Technology and Requirements, Washington, DC FEB. 13-14 — ATC Demand Management, New York, N.Y. MARCH 4 — Laureates, Washington, D.C. MARCH 12-13 — Aircraft Data, Phoenix, Ariz. APRIL 15-17 — MRO/MRO Military/AVIATION WEEK’s Interiors, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
TAM and LAN expanded their code share last week by extending the agreement to LAN Peru. TAM last week began to sell flights operated by LAN Peru between Sao Paulo and Lima with the option of connections to Arequipa and Cusco, while LAN Peru will offer flights to various Brazilian state capitals and cities served by TAM, reported DAILY affiliate AvNews Latin America & Caribbean.
British-headquartered engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce will cut its work force by 2,300 employees as it tries to offset the increasing cost of raw materials and the continuing effect of the weak U.S. dollar. The job cuts “focus on overhead and support functions,” according to the company. The ranks will be decreased at various plants in a manner still to be determined.
With airline consolidation a growing reality, the Master Executive Council of Delta’s pilots has been meeting for two days to form a union strategy in the event of a merger. The Atlanta-based unit of the Air Line Pilots Association opened its Strike Operations Center and mobilized its tactical arm, the Strike Preparedness Committee, which is equipped to organize the type of picketing and lobbying efforts that helped quash US Airways’ hostile takeover bid for Delta.
Sales processed through the Airlines Reporting Corp. rose 3.5% in 2007 to $79.9 billion. Total fares were up 2.8% to $69.3 billion — $32.2 billion in international fares and $37.1 billion in domestic fares. Total taxes and fees rose 7.8% to $9.8 billion. For December, total sales rose 1.6% to $4.4 billion. International fares were up 5.7% to $1.8 billion, while domestic fares were down 2.8% to almost $2 billion. The industry was 97.5% e-ticket-compliant by the end of the year.
Pinnacle this summer will replace Atlantic Southeast Airlines as the Delta Connection carrier operating the Atlanta-Cozumel route. The airline this week filed an application with the U.S. Transportation Dept. for an exemption to fly the route. Three carriers can be designated for ATL-CZM, and Delta and ASA hold two of the three designations.
Having just set a record for its order intake, Airbus is bracing for a reduction this year. One of the big market forces in 2008 was expected to be demand by U.S. airlines to replace their aging fleets, now that those carriers are starting to show operating profits. But Louis Gallois, CEO of Airbus parent Airbus, wonders whether that will really happen. He points to high oil prices and a gloomy U.S. economic outlook as signs the buying spree may not materialize.
JetBlue Airways will launch flights from Boston to Jacksonville, Fla., March 15, becoming the only airline flying jets in the market and adding the Florida city as its sixth destination in the state. The airline will offer up to 28 daily flights from Boston to Florida with the new service, charging startup fare specials of $69 each way.
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association yesterday said attrition caused by the retirement of veteran controllers could result in “chaos” in the air traffic control system by summer. Staff shortages at Chicago, Atlanta, New York Kennedy and the Southern California TRACON have created a “dangerous situation” at those airports, said Patrick Forrey, NATCA president. “FAA continues to downplay the seriousness” of the situation, he added.
Lufthansa achieved record passenger volume and load factors last year, with the cargo business also ending the year on the rise. The airline group transported 62.9 million travelers, including the 6.5 million carried by Swiss. Lufthansa’s own 56.4 million passenger number represented a 5.6% increase from 2006 figures. Load factors for the airline averaged 77%, or 1.8 percentage points more than in the previous year, and the freight business grew 2.6%.
