Japan Air Lines plans to boost flights on some of its major China and Vietnam routes in response to strong demand in these markets, the carrier said recently. From June 2, JAL will add an extra five weekly round-trips between Tokyo Narita and Beijing, increasing the frequency on this route to 19 flights a week. Tokyo-Guangzhou flights will be boosted from 11 to 13 weekly, beginning May 31.
Airbus says it is identifying suppliers for its A350 much earlier in the design process, reflecting its new supply chain philosophy of fewer partners that offer more incorporated packages. Suppliers for electrical, air and hydraulic systems are being selected a year earlier in A350 development than in previous programs, Airbus VP-Procurement Strategy Henri Hereus said last week during a presentation at the company's Toulouse headquarters. Hereus also noted suppliers would be judged on "capacity to manage a supply chain."
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Ingrid Lee at [email protected] MAY 7 -- Greater Washington Aviation Open, GWAO, Lansdowne Resort, Leesburg, Va., [email protected] MAY 8-10 -- ATCA/FAA/NASA/JPDO Technical Symposium, Atlantic City, N.J., 703-299-2430, fax: 703-299-2437, gail.hanline@ atca.org MAY 8-10 -- 52nd Annual Corporate Aviation Safety Seminar, Tucson, Ariz., 703-739-6700, fax: 703-739-6708.
Alaska Air Group is making changes to its senior management team, shifting the roles of three executives while announcing the retirement at the end of this year of Kevin Finan, executive VP of operations. Brad Tilden, the group's CFO and executive VP of finance, has assumed responsibility for the planning, revenue management and corporate real estate departments and his title will change to executive VP of finance and planning. He also maintains his CFO title.
Interisland Hawaiian airline Go! is having an effect on regional airfares, which is one reason why four of the five largest U.S. fare decreases in the fourth quarter were at Hawaiian cities served by the carrier. Go! launched service last summer, and in fourth quarter 2006, the largest decreases in U.S. average fares were at Lihue (-21.5%), Kona (-18.6%), Kahului (-17.5%) and Honolulu (-10.8%), according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
Southwest Airlines is celebrating the one-year anniversary of allowing its customers to have an open dialogue with airline employees on its blog --Nuts About Southwest -- at www.blogsouthwest.com.
Copa Airlines intends to inaugurate flights from Panama City to Washington Dulles and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, on July 15. In 2006, more than 50% of the tourists who visited the Dominican Republic visited Punta Cana. Pedro Heilbron, CEO of Copa, says the carrier is "committed to offering more direct flights to more cities throughout the Americas." Copa will offer daily flights to Washington and two weekly flights to Punta Cana, both with 737s. -JLM
Airbus CEO Louis Gallois says there needs to be more transparency both inside Airbus and between the airframer and its "mother company" EADS. He notes it should be an absolute mandate for Airbus to overcome the national issues that complicate relations between the countries participating in the company. If it cannot do this, Gallois warns that Airbus will be a regional company rather than a global company.
Last week was a big one for Boeing in terms of aircraft sales, with the manufacturer announcing 43 new orders in the seven days through April 25. The largest order came from Air Canada, which boosted its 787 order by 23 aircraft (DAILY, April 25). Lessor Oak Hill Capital Partners ordered six 777 freighters, and SpiceJet signed a contract for 10 737-800s. Four unidentified 737 orders brought the total to 43.
Qatar Airways is promoting its first flights to the U.S. - scheduled for this summer - during this week's Arabian Travel Market in Dubai. It also is kicking off a U.S. media campaign to tout its new flights to New York Kennedy and Washington Dulles airports from Doha beginning in June and July, respectively.
Online travel consumers are booking more international and domestic trips this year, more obscure destinations are being chosen, and travelers have expanded the lead-time between booking and traveling, according to Travelocity.
Northwest Airlines has reached a tentative contract agreement with the Association of Flight Attendants that allows the airline to "continue to achieve the required $195 million in cost savings needed from our flight attendants," says Mike Becker, the airline's senior VP of human resources and labor relations. The agreement gives the flight attendants an unsecured claim of $182 million in Northwest's bankruptcy procedure. The union's Master Executive Council will now decide whether to present the agreement to its membership for a ratification vote. -JLM
San Francisco airport plans to have a registered traveler program up and running by October. The airport is putting out a request for proposals for a vendor to build and operate its registered traveler program.
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) APRIL 17-18 -- MRO Military 2007 Conference & Exhibition, Cobb Galleria, Atlanta, Ga. APRIL 18-19 -- MRO 2007 Conference & Exhibition, Cobb Galleria, Atlanta, Ga. OCT. 17-18 -- MRO Asia 2007 Conference & Exhibition, Shanghai, China
Spirit last week filed for authority to operate daily service to Barranquilla and Bogotá in Colombia as part of the continued expansion of its Fort Lauderdale hub [OST-2007-28057]. The airline recently has boosted its international offering with new service to Haiti, St. Maarten, Costa Rica and Venezuela and will launch to Peru and Trinidad and Tobago next month. -ARS
Mexico's Department of Transportation (SCT) suspended Mexican charter airline Republic, following a major investigation that determined it did not meet the high safety standards demanded by relevant authorities in "the areas of operations, technical training and maintenance." Specific mention was made of two "deteriorated" 130-passenger Boeing 737-200s, as well as the fact that none of the employees originally hired to run the company are still working there. SCT has given the company 60 days to clean up its act or else face final suspension. -LZ
Airbus wants by mid June to reach deals with unions representing 10,000 workers whose jobs could be lost in the Power 8 restructuring plan, with negotiations expected to begin next month.
Queretaro, one of four alternate airports in Central Mexico that funnels traffic to the nation's capital, expects passenger numbers to grow 100% by yearend. The airport handled 150,000 passengers in 2006, 60% more than in 2005. Its facilities are now being used by Avolar, Republic Air, Aeromar, Alma, Viva Aerobus and Continental.
Weak growth in the U.S. domestic market during the first quarter was offset by surging international business, express giant UPS reported this week. Overall, net profit dropped 13.5% to $843 million during the quarter, with operating profit down 12.7% to $1.4 billion. These results include an impairment charge of $221 million due to the accelerated retirement of some Boeing 727 and 747s, and another of $68 million related to a voluntary retirement program. Excluding these special items, net profit would have increased 5.3%.
Sun Country Airlines, based in Minneapolis, says CEO Shaun Nugent has resigned for personal reasons. T. Jay Salmen, who served as president and CEO of Sun Country from 2002 to 2006, has been brought back to serve as interim CEO. Salmen is the president of Petters Aviation, one of Sun Country's owners. On April 13, Sun Country named Stephen Spellman, president and CEO of Champion Air, as its new CFO/COO.
