Construction of the world's highest airport at 4,500 meters will start next month at Ali in the Tibet Autonomous Region in Southwest China. Located in the northwest part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the new airport is expected to be completed in October 2010 and operational in January 2011. It will have one runway that is 3,800 meters long.
US Airways, which has completed its $1.6 billion refinancing deal, says its interest rate will drop as much as 0.5% if the loan balance dips below $600 million or if Standard & Poor's and Moody's increase their rating of the facility to BB- and Ba3, respectively. That leaves it up to the rating services -- US Airways intends to pay down "substantially all of the principal amount" when the loan matures, seven years from now.
The gradual abolition of Siberian overflight charges will start on Sept. 1, the European Union Council of Transport Ministers said last week. The charges, which cost EU airlines about EUR300 million in 2006, will be completely eliminated by the end of December 2013. During the transition period, newly operated overflights by EU carriers will be free of payments, according to the draft agreement scheduled to be confirmed during the May 18 EU-Russia Summit in Samara, Russia.
American wants DOT to jump-start open-skies provisions of the liberalized U.S.-European Union aviation agreement by selective application of extra- bilateral authority. The agreement, approved unanimously last week by EU transport ministers and up for signature next month, would take effect March 30, 2008. This represents a slip from an earlier launch date, this fall, so that the liberalized rules will start with the beginning of the summer 2008 traffic season. The delay also gives the U.K. more time to complete London Heathrow Airport's Terminal 5.
Raytheon has completed the sale of its general aviation unit to a pair of private equity investors. The company announced Monday that it has closed on the $3.3 billion sale of Raytheon Aircraft to Hawker Beechcraft Inc., a new company formed by Canadian buyout firm Onex Corp. and Goldman Sachs affiliate GS Capital Partners.
Bangkok-based low-fare airline Thai Air Asia on Sunday increased its flights to Xiamen from four weekly to daily, a decision that CEO Tassapon Bijeveld credited to strong market demand for seats. Thai Air Asia launched flights to Xiamen in April 2005. Last year, the carrier's average load factor on the route was 90%. The carrier, which operates to 10 international and nine domestic destinations, projects it will carry 4.5 million passengers this year, up 19%.
SN Brussels Airlines and Virgin Express, which started operating under the single brand Brussels Airlines on March 25, said the combined revenue of both companies increased 5% to EUR892 million (US$1.19 billion) in 2006. Their activities generated EUR14.5 million (US$19.3 million) in operating profits. "The results are satisfactory, given the strong increase in fuel prices and the very competitive environment," said the carrier. -MT
The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) supports a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recommendation to drop plans to allow cell phones on commercial aircraft. Patricia Friend, AFA-CWA international president, said the use of phones in the cabin by passengers poses an unacceptable safety risk because it could make it easier for terrorists to communicate with one another. Flight attendants also believe cell phone use could promote disruptive behavior. She said most Americans agree that cell phones have no business being inside the cabin.
The United States' travel economy continues to lose millions of overseas visitors, costing America billions in revenue, according to new statistics released by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce.
The European Commission has decided to launch an in-depth investigation into a EUR27 million Spanish government loan to Industria de Turbo Propulsores (ITP) to finance the development the low- pressure turbine for the Trent 1000 aero engine, which will power the Boeing 787.
The Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO) has generated an impressive number of ATM concepts and blueprints in its three-year existence, but Director Charles Leader believes a new approach is needed to help JPDO bring some of these grand plans to fruition.
ALPA will ask the Transportation Security Administration for clarification of new rules on screening and cabin searches: All employees traveling as passengers must undergo screening at checkpoints; only working crewmembers can avoid searches, but deadheading crewmembers must enter through the public screening point. ALPA says TSA crafted the rules without soliciting the union's input, and it may ask for some changes to areas it finds "problematic."
More than five years after 9/11, security gaps at Canadian airports remain, according to a new Canadian Senate committee report. "Some of the most worrisome include the presence of organized crime at Canadian airports, inadequate background checks and access control for persons with access to aircraft, a lack of screening of mail and other cargo carried on passenger jets and reduced levels of policing at many airports since privatization," said the report, titled "Canadian Security Guide 2007 - Airports."
The provisional U.S.-European Union open-skies agreement could touch off a furious round of slot trading at London Heathrow, and airlines that have slots at the airport are sitting on a goldmine, Merrill Lynch analysts said in a conference call.
Japan Airlines and Thai Airways have agreed to expand their code-sharing agreement to include two daily flights between Bangkok and Krabi, in southern Thailand. The flights will be operated by Thai, subject to government approval. Over the weekend, JAL stopped code sharing on Thai's daily flights between Bangkok and Hat Yai, Thailand. JAL serves the new Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok from four routes -- Fukuoka, Nagoya, Osaka and Tokyo. -JLM
Officials from FAA and the Joint Program Development Office last week assured lawmakers that JPDO will soon issue two planning documents considered crucial to long-term ATC modernization efforts.
Emirates has been cleared to increase frequencies to the four cities it serves in Australia -- Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney -- from Dubai under negotiations just completed between the United Arab Emirates and Australia.
Hires former Sensis Corp. top executive Fred Messina as VP-corporate development with responsibility for "strengthening...strategic customer relationships [and] building business alliances."
Frontier executives estimate that year-over-year capacity from other carriers in Denver on markets that Frontier serves should drop 5% in May and 4% in June. In January, capacity in Frontier's markets from other carriers in Denver increased 9.2% year-over-year.
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 17-19 -- MRO 2007 Conference & Exhibition, Cobb Galleria, Atlanta, Ga. OCT. 17-18 -- MRO Asia 2007 Conference & Exhibition, Shanghai, China NOV. 7-8 -- MRO Europe 2007 Conference & Exhibition, Fiera Milano Congressi, Milan, Italy NOV. 28-29 -- A&D Finance Conference, New York, N.Y.
Atlantic Southeast Airlines executives say they've been informed the planes the carrier flies in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City "will migrate back to Atlanta." Delta reached a deal with ExpressJet to start flights with 10 Embraer ERJ-145XRs from the two destinations in June (DAILY, March 2).
