Embraer will make public an Advanced Range version of its E-170/-175 twinjets at next week's Regional Airline Association show. Like the E-179/-195 ARs previously unveiled, the AR variants will feature structural reinforcements and other improvements, allowing more fuel to be carried in existing tanks. This will translate into a 200-nautical-mile range increase.
It appears that Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) has lost a key battle in its bid to raise fees for 29 airlines that serve the facility. LAWA's fee hike for Terminals 1 and 3 carriers "is unreasonable" and "unjustly discriminates" against the carriers, ruled Richard Goodwin, a U.S. Transportation Dept. administrative law judge. He made the same ruling for airlines operating out of Los Angeles Airport's Tom Bradley International Terminal.
Bangkok-based low-cost carrier Thai AirAsia received the approval of the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China to launch daily flights to Shenzhen in July, using Boeing 737-300 aircraft. Shenzhen is a manufacturing hub in southern China and one of the fastest-growing Chinese cities. Thai AirAsia CEO Tassapon Bijieveld said the carrier's target market for the Shenzhen flights would be the Chinese.
Airbus has given the green light to the long-anticipated increase in single-aisle production, pushing output to 40 aircraft per month to keep up with strong demand. Although surging order intake in recent years made the decision an all-but foregone conclusion, Airbus officials were reviewing first whether the supply chain could keep pace with the higher output.
Lufthansa Cargo yesterday announced it has signed a deal with World Airways boosting the cargo capacity World operates for Lufthansa. The expanded 18-month contract will see World operating three MD-11 freighters between Europe and the U.S., beginning July 1. This agreement replaces the previous deal, which extended through October and required World to operate two MD-11 freighters for Lufthansa.
American revealed plans to use all of its remaining frequency awards for service to Colombia, which the airline believes should end efforts by competing carriers to claim American's unused frequencies. The airline said it will add 14 weekly frequencies to Colombia beginning in December, comprising one new route and additional flights on others. These flights would bring American's Colombia flights up to its full allocation of 42 per week. The airline previously said it intended to use the frequencies but had not detailed its plans.
GE Security plans to bring Phase II of its SRT Kiosk, designed to serve as a shoe scanner and explosives detection system, under the Registered Traveler program, to market in the fourth quarter of 2007, pending Transportation Security Administration (TSA) approval, said Daniel Mahlum, manager of the kiosk program.
Miami International Airport has opened a new eight-lane security checkpoint at Concourse E just in time for the summer travel season. The new checkpoint merges two areas in the concourse and the concourse satellite that will improve passenger flow through the screening process. The checkpoint can also handle flights that previously operated out of Concourse A in preparation for the opening of MIA's new South Terminal. -BW
Aeromexico's intention for Guadalajara-Houston became clearer this week as the airline detailed plans to serve 10 U.S.-Mexico markets at the U.S. Transportation Dept. The carrier in late April won designations from Mexico's Direccion General de Aeronautica Civil for the Guadalajara-Houston route, together with Cancun-Austin and Cancun-San Antonio awards. It laid out its service proposal for Cancun routes last week but did not mention the Guadalajara route (DAILY, May 15).
Faced with escalating costs in the O'Hare Modernization Program and airlines unwilling to contribute further, the City of Chicago turns to a further extension of its $4.50 passenger facility charge, from November 2015 through January 2022, to raise nearly $1.3 billion. This covers construction of two new runways, 9L-27R and 10C-28C, and extension of a future Runway 10L-28R. FAA expects to decide on the application by Sept. 4.
U.K. flights increased 4.2% in April, with the important transatlantic market seeing strong gains, according to National Air Traffic Services (NATS). Transatlantic arrivals and departures rose 6.1% in April, with transatlantic overflights increasing by 4.9%. Other international arrivals and departures rose 4.4%, with overflights up 14.2%. Of the international markets, flights to Turkey increased the most, up 22.1%. Flights to Poland grew 15.4%, Greece 13.6%, and Italy 12.7%.
Some of the U.S.'s busiest airports and metropolitan areas -- among them Atlanta, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, San Diego and Las Vegas -- will require additional capacity, which could see new airports in the next two decades to address an expected flood of passengers, said Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters.
Aeroflot is buying Finnair's last two Boeing MD-11s. The Finish carrier is replacing the aircraft with Airbus A330 and A340 aircraft. The MD-11s will be handed over in November next year and July 2009 at a cost of "several tens of millions of euros," Finnair says. The first of the four A340s Finnair has bought will arrive this month.
U.S. airports will need to spend $87.4 billion in the next four years on new infrastructure to keep pace with projected passenger and air cargo demand, according to a new Airports Council International-North America report. ACI-NA also unveiled its new "Passengers First Commitment" campaign, which it said will encourage airline competition, improve safety and security and enhance airport convenience and reliability by urging Congress to raise the cap on passenger facility charges from the current $4.50 to $7.50.
UAL Corporation's shareholders re-elected all of United's directors for a one-year term at their annual meeting. Each of the 10 directors standing for election was re-elected. In addition, holders of two classes of preferred stock, representing the pilots and machinists, re-elected labor representation on the board.
The Senate Commerce Committee today is expected to consider the Senate version of the FAA reauthorization bill. The bipartisan bill will be marked up in closed session.
ExpressJet rolled out the latest markets in its independent flying -- Monterey, Bakersfield, Birmingham, New Orleans and El Paso. Carrier CEO Jim Ream recently said ExpressJet would most likely begin releasing load factors for the branded flying in July after all the markets have logged at least one full month of service (DAILY, May 10).
TripAdvisor, an operating company of Expedia Inc., has acquired four travel media businesses, adding five new travel brands to its portfolio and more than 24 million monthly online visitors.
Questions from members of the European Parliament (MEP) to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff illustrate that the debate on passenger name record data transfer is far from resolved despite the looming July 31 deadline to reach a new accord. In a speech Monday to the European Parliament, Chertoff reiterated the importance of collecting PNR data in the fight against terrorism, but in a nod to European privacy concerns, he stressed that the data would be protected by the Congress and U.S. government agencies (DAILY, May 15).
Embraer believes most of the demand for aircraft in the 70-seat-plus E-Jet family will be for the largest members of group -- the 98- to 118-seat Embraer 190 and 195. Firm-order backlog for the 70-seat Embraer 170 stood at 30 aircraft at the end of the first quarter. The backlog for the slightly larger 78- to 86-seat Embraer 175 totals 70 aircraft. The Embraer 190's backlog has outpaced its smaller counterparts, with 262 aircraft set for delivery to customers. The -195 backlog numbers 39 aircraft.
