Palm Springs International Airport is betting that its $50,000 contribution to a community advertising campaign will lead to new service and expanded frequencies. The Palm Springs Desert Resorts Convention and Visitors Authority (CVA) has created a $500,000 pot to launch an advertising campaign designed toward visitors from Chicago, Portland, San Francisco and Seattle. The CVA contributed $200,000, while the airport, along with the cities of Rancho Mirage, Indian Wells, Palm Desert and La Quinta and the airport added $50,000 each.
Horizon will continue flying Essential Air Service at Pendleton, Ore., albeit at a different subsidy rate, which takes effect April 3. The carrier will receive $748,440 in annual subsidy until April 30 to connect Pendleton to Portland. Horizon will carry Alaska, Continental and Northwest's codes on the flights [OST-2004-19934].
After four years and spending $1 billion, the Dept. of Homeland Security has implemented entry capability at most ports of entry, but it has not implemented a biometric exit capability or a suitable alternative under the US-VISIT program, according to Government Accountability Office testimony. As of December 2006, US-VISIT was operating entrance capability at 115 airports, 14 seaports and 154 of 170 land ports of entry, said Randolph Hite, director-information technology architecture and systems issues, before the House Subcommittee on Homeland Security.
Air Pacific and Harmony Airways got the nod for their Canada-U.S.-Fiji code share. Harmony will carry Air Pacific's code on Vancouver-Honolulu flights, while Air Pacific will put the Canadian carrier's code on its Honolulu-Nadi services. The code share is set for a March 25 launch [OST-2007-27195].
Appointed Duncan Koerbel president and elected former Fairchild Dornier Corp. Chief Operating Officer John Wolf to the board as lead director and board liaison.
Anac, in an effort to prevent the troubles that plagued the nation's airports during the Christmas/New Year's season, last week put into action its emergency plan for the Carnival period -- Feb. 14-21 -- when traffic normally swells 15%.
Northwest projects 2006-10 operating profits totaling nearly $7.2 billion on the strength of the cost-cutting moves and strategy changes it made in Chapter 11.
U.K.-based business class carrier Silverjet says it has selected Akzo Nobel Aerospace Coatings to apply its new livery to the carrier's aircraft. The first Silverjet Boeing 767 painted in the new livery rolled out of the Maastricht, Holland, facility in December, and ANAC and Silverjet will soon begin applying the livery to the carrier's entire fleet of 767s.
Air France Industries has secured a maintenance deal from Air Mauritius to support seven Airbus A340s and two A319s. The five-year agreement for component support services builds on a relationship the MRO provider has with the airline since 1999.
Analysts at Raymond James are cutting JetBlue's operating profit estimate for the first quarter by about $7 million after the carrier experienced disruptions last week during snowstorms that hit the Midwest and Northeast. They estimate that JetBlue canceled roughly half the number of flights that Frontier canceled during the snowstorms in Denver in late December. They also pointed out that JetBlue's brand image shouldn't be affected in the long term by the typical industry disruptions the carrier experienced during the storms. -LR
While IATA is frustrated by most air navigation service providers, the group says a handful cooperate with airlines very well and should be models for the rest of the industry. Airservices Australia, Nav Canada, Austrocontrol, and Romania's ROMATSA are among those cited by IATA as working closely with airlines on issues such as modernization and charging.
Subsidiary SkyWest Airlines tapped Casey Madsen to become Midwest Connect regional director for SkyWest, ahead of the new partnership between the airlines that will launch April 1.
FEB. 20 -- The Royal Aeronautical Society Capital Branch Winter Lecture and Annual General Meeting featuring FAA Administrator Marion C. Blakey, The Boeing Company auditorium, Arlington, Va., 703-739-6700 or 703-693-1678 FEB. 20 -- International Aviation Club Luncheon featuring Nigel Page, senior VP-Emirates, Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel, Washington, email: [email protected]
Korean Airlines on March 15 will begin to carry Delta's code on its flights between Seoul and Mumbai, India. The carrier's SkyTeam partners, Northwest and CSA, meanwhile, will begin code sharing on CSA's flights from Prague to Duesseldorf and Brussels next month.
Opponents of Virgin America continue to argue Virgin Group still supplies the bulk of the new carrier's financial backing, and they are using that rationale to persuade the U.S Transportation Dept. not to reverse its tentative decision to reject Virgin America's request to launch service. American, Delta, US Airways and the Air Line Pilots Association all filed public comments regarding Virgin America's lengthy response to DOT's tentative rejection of its application.
Airbus believes Chinese carriers will need to order more than 3,000 commercial aircraft through 2025, as the fleet will more than triple in size by then. Of these aircraft, more than 2,000 will be single-aisle. Passenger aircraft dominate the total with a market value of $289 billion. About 400 new freighters will be required, Airbus estimates.
Republic Airways Holdings' chief executive doesn't foresee any surprises in firming up the company's agreement with Delta in that carrier's Chapter 11 process, and sees the two sides being close to forging a "mutually agreed outcome." CEO Bryan Bedford noted when questioned by analysts last week regarding the Delta deal that Republic really didn't have anything to talk about until the bankruptcy court approved the deal.
Delta is expected to announce this week seasonal nonstop flights between Fresno and Atlanta beginning in June. The airline will use a Boeing 737-800 for four weekly flights during the summer.
Appointed Mike Ferverda chief operating officer of Mesa's new joint venture with Shenzhen Airlines in China, named Tom Bacon VP-Planning and promoted Jorn Bates to COO-Freedom Airlines, Gary Appling to VP-technical services and purchasing, Jeff Bethune to VP-financial planning and analysis and Adam Wilensky to director-planning.
Air Plus Comet, which took over routes previously held by Air Madrid (DAILY, Jan. 30), last week launched "urgent and humanitarian" weekly flights to return to Spain passengers still stranded in Ecuador by Air Madrid's suspension. "Ecuador is one of the countries with the largest number of stranded passengers ticketed on Air Madrid," the airline said. It is working with the Ecuadorian government to operate frequencies well into April to carry the balance of some 2,500 stranded passengers.
Oregon's Port of Portland generated 30,436 jobs, $1.75 billion in wages, salaries and economic impact, along with nearly $180 million in state and local taxes in 2006, according to a new study. Aviation activities at Portland International, Hillsboro and Troutdale airports generated 18,712 jobs, $899 million in personal income and more than $90 million in state and local taxes, said the study, conducted by John C. Martin Associates, LLC.
Despite the congressional recess, high-level FAA staffers are meeting this week with House and Senate committee staff to explain their hybrid funding plan for modernizing ATC (DAILY, Feb. 16). When Congress reconvenes Feb. 26, FAA Administrator Marion Blakey plans a series of one-on-one sessions with lawmakers to discuss the controversial combination fuel tax/user fee plan. Finding out "what the concerns are may lead to some good ideas" to improve the legislation, Blakey says.
