The U.S. Transportation Dept. appears to be backing away from its threat to introduce congestion pricing at New York airports, industry sources tell The DAILY. Apparently DOT officials told the latest meeting of a special aviation rulemaking committee (ARC) that the department will not recommend congestion pricing as an option to reduce congestion at the airports.
Interior ministers from the 27 European Union states voted yesterday to admit nine more countries into the Schengen visa-free travel zone. At a meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council of the European Union, the ministers adopted a pending resolution to extend the Schengen area. The Council had decided on Nov. 8 that the nine countries had fulfilled all requirements for Schengen area membership.
The Transportation Research Board (TRB), a unit of the National Academies, is requesting proposals for ways to help airport operators measure their facilities’ effect of local air quality. The request for proposals, issued by TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP), seeks guidance on tools and techniques airports can use for measuring their emissions’ contributions to ambient air quality.
United yesterday revealed plans to boost its network out of Washington Dulles airport, adding nine new Northeast routes. Three routes – to Bradford, Pa., Jamestown, N.Y. and Parkersburg, W.V. – will begin Jan. 7. Flights to Clarksburg, W.Va. and Morgantown, W.Va. are scheduled to begin Jan. 21, while Altoona, Pa. and Johnstown, Pa. will begin Feb. 4. Beckley, W.Va. and Shenandoah, Va. routes will start Feb. 18. United Express will offer service through its regional partner Colgan Air with Saab SF-340s with 34 seats.
Cathay has added an eighth weekly cargo flight to Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, its first roundtrip exclusively between Hong Kong and DFW. Cathay had already added three weekly flights at DFW in July and August. The carrier’s existing seven flights all operate from Hong Kong to DFW to Atlanta and back to Hong Kong. The new flight will use a Boeing 747.
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has cut the debt portion of its A$1.5 billion bid to buy a 40% stake in Auckland International Airport Ltd. to make the deal more appealing. CPPIB’s original offer was for A$3.65 (US$3.18) per share, but there were concerns about the amount of debt that would be created under the sale. It moved the record date for its proposed offer to shareholders to Dec. 7.
Venezuela’s Santa Barbara Airlines on Dec. 29 will increase weekly long-haul frequencies between Caracas and Madrid from four to six, as well as add one on the Caracas-Tenerife route, boosting seat offer by 46% to a total 152,744 a year. Boeing 767-300 aircraft configured for 24 passengers in business class and 225 in economy are used on the routes.
U.S. sales of commercial aircraft will overtake military aircraft revenues next year for the first time since 2002, according to estimates issued yesterday by the Aerospace Industries Assn.
Air Canada saw its load factor dip by 0.9 points in November, although the Jazz unit reported a slight gain. Consolidated traffic rose 2.7% on a capacity gain of 3.9%, resulting in a load factor of 75.7%. Domestic traffic increased 3.5%, compared with a 3.9% capacity climb. Mainline traffic grew 2.1%, with capacity up 3.6%, with loads dropping 1.1 points to 76.1%. Jazz traffic was up 7.8% on 7% more capacity. Load factor gained 0.5 points to 72.2%.
Spirit will continue its push into Latin America with new flights to Cartagena, Colombia. The carrier won authority from the U.S. Transportation Dept. to serve the route late last month and in an announcement earlier this week said it was “working through the Colombian regulatory process in order to begin operating the first ultra-low-cost carrier service to Colombia.”
Combined traffic for the nine airports managed and operated by Mexico’s Grupo Aerportuario del Sureste jumped 15.2% in November 2007 from the same month last year.
The petition that state attorneys general filed with the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate aircraft emissions got the unequivocal support of the New York City Comptroller. William C. Thompson, Jr. said it is “imperative that the EPA utilize the full powers available to it to protect New Yorkers from the noxious effects of pollution around airports.” Four states and the District of Columbia filed a petition with the EPA on Wednesday.
Australia’s Canberra International Airport has received final approval to begin a A$250 million (US$217.9 million) program to replace the current terminal and upgrade area roads and parking.
Lufthansa’s surprise decision not to bid for Alitalia raises questions about its ability to participate in European airline sector consolidation in the near term. Europe’s second-largest airline may have difficulties keeping pace with its bigger rival, Air France-KLM, analysts noted yesterday.
Horizon is seeing an uptick in demand for seats on its Seattle-Portland shuttle thanks to floodwaters that shut down Interstate 5, the highway that connects the two cities. The carrier said in a statement it had to upgrade aircraft to meet that demand, from 37-seat Bombardier Q200s to 70-seat CRJ-700s for four roundtrip flights.
IATA next year plans to widen its involvement with airlines to help them become more fuel-efficient. The association has already been working with members to generate some quick fuel savings. If asked by a member, an audit team — IATA has about 30 consultants on hand — would go to an airline and assess everything from flight planning and aircraft operations to maintenance in an effort to identify savings and best practices. In some cases, airlines have even asked IATA to assist with implementing the recommendations.
Alitalia’s board of directors was due to unveil the names of confirmed bidders for the Italian government’s stake in the ailing flag carrier, after its meeting yesterday evening in Rome. As Lufthansa confirmed that it was pulling out of the race (See related story on Page 2). Air France-KLM emerges as massively outweighing the two other candidates — a consortium led by Carlo Toto, founder of Italian carrier Air One, and another led by Italian lawyer Antonio Baldassarre (DAILY, October 22).
The New York/New Jersey Port Authority’s flight delay task force report has identified 77 technical initiatives it claims can improve capacity, reduce delays and improve the travel experience for passengers in the event of a delay.
The seemingly endless torrent of orders for commercial aircraft isn’t far from beginning to subside, says Airbus’s chief salesman, John Leahy. By the end of November, the company had booked orders for more than the 1,111 aircraft that its customers signed for in 2005 — the previous record for the company and the industry — says Leahy. Airlines have ordered 6,000 aircraft in the past three years, about half as many as they are now operating. The market can’t go on like that forever. “This year is probably reaching the peak,” Leahy says.
Admitting that it has been running a “bad operation” while going through America West merger integration pains, US Airways says it will focus on getting back to the basics in 2008. President Scott Kirby told Calyon Securities analysts Tuesday that unit costs are a concern, and “it is expensive to run a bad operation, which we have for much of 2007.” However, that is about to change as the major integration work is now behind the airline, he said.
Pinnacle Airlines’ pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, authorized union leaders to strike if contract talks fail to produce an agreement and both sides are released by the National Mediation Board.
A new government report released yesterday faulted FAA’s approach to reducing runway incursions and increasing ramp safety, but FAA notes that its programs have helped cut incursion numbers.
