Aeromexico is boosting the amount of service it offers in the Mexico-Los Angeles market and is growing its prospects in the Mexico-Chicago market with two new services the airline hopes to bring on line next month. The airline intends to launch flights between Morelia and Chicago and between Puebla and Los Angeles on Dec. 1. Morelia-Chicago would fly twice weekly, while Puebla-Los Angeles would operate three times weekly. Aeromexico would use Boeing 737-700s on both routes [OST-2006-26325].
Air Midwest launched an introductory fare sale on essential air service routes it will soon take over from Scenic, signaling that the carrier transition is underway that scheduled service for Las Vegas-based carrier will end soon (DAILY, June 13). Air Midwest will begin flying US Airways Express service between Merced/Visalia, Calif., and Las Vegas on Nov. 19. On the same date, it will assume EAS flying at Ely, Nev., from Scenic, operating an Ely-Cedar City, Utah-Las Vegas service.
Air Asia Chairman Pahmain Rajab disposed of his 11% stake in Tune Air, the major shareholder in the Malaysian low-fare airline. The sale was initially planned next month. Tune Air's existing shareholders -- Air Asia CEO Tony Fernandez, Deputy CEO Kamarudin Meranum and Director Abdul Aziz Abu Bakar -- have acquired Pahmain's stake. Pahmain, meanwhile, will remain chairman of Air Asia.
LAN affiliate LAN Peru posted a 9.9% increase in annual revenues this year to $300 million, up from $273 million last year. LAN Peru spokesman Juan Luis Kruger said sales this year were boosted by promotional fares on domestic routes -- traffic on Lima-Arequipa went up 34% in August and Lima-Iquitos 16%.
Mesaba's management tells pilot union leaders the carrier plans to recall 20 furloughed pilots this month. However, those recalled are being told that furloughs could occur again in a few months "depending on attrition and if and when any growth occurs," says the Air Line Pilots Association. Pilots are currently evaluating a tentative agreement ALPA's negotiators recently reached with management.
Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary says ancillary revenues should account for 20% of the carrier's overall revenues in the next four years. That estimate, he says, doesn't include potential revenue from online gambling or onboard mobile phone use, which Ryanair wants to debut next year.
International Aero Engines plans to start building the SelectOne upgrades for its V2500 engines in December, with testing scheduled early next year to meet the targeted 2008 debut date.
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association expects FAA policies and programs to receive closer scrutiny from Democrat-controlled oversight committees. NATCA said it is "looking forward to more checks and balances from the Hill when it comes to the FAA." The union welcomes a "new direction" from Congress and says the "key will be collaboration and fair debate on all sides of aviation issues," one of which will be the impending FAA reauthorization debate.
Spanish airport authority Aeropuertos Espanoles y Navegacion Aerea (AENA) decided to reinstate Iberia as a ground-handling operator at Barcelona El Prat Airport. The news that Iberia had lost its license to a rival group led by Spanish tourism group Globalia caused a wildcat strike that had severe operational and legal consequences last July (DAILY, July 31 & Aug.17) and prompted AENA to reverse its decision.
Delta and CSA next month will launch new code-share services where CSA will carry Delta's code on flights between Prague and Belgrade, Serbia, Skopje, Macedonia, and Stuttgart, Germany. Delta will put the "OK" code on Atlanta-Prague service that will launch May 2 [OST-2000-8207].
In Asia, China is the largest source of tourists, with outbound travel tripling in the past five years and forecast to double in the next five, according to the Travel Industry Assn. of America. China and India will become the major focus of tourism development worldwide, including in the U.S. The association has a new report on Chinese and Indian travel trends due out in a few weeks.
The Democrats' takeover on Capitol Hill should make it easier for Continental and American to push through the amendments they want to make to new pension laws, industry sources tell The DAILY.
Low-fare airline Air Asia called on the Malaysian government to open up the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore route to the carrier. Air Asia CEO Tony Fernandez said if an airline was able to operate a route, it should not be stopped because of the national carrier, referring to Malaysia Airlines. "Singapore has to be given to Air Asia. To stop us from operating to Singapore because of MAS is tantamount to protecting the national carrier," Fernandez noted.
Delta yesterday unveiled plans to recall an additional 1,000 flight attendants next year to accommodate its international expansion plans. The latest recall is scheduled to begin in January with as many as 500 previously furloughed flight attendants scheduled for training in the first few months of the year. Delta has added or announced more than 70 new international routes since fall 2005, with many of the routes beginning this year and during 2007.
The National Transportation Safety Board says it won't hold a public hearing during its Comair Flight 5191 crash investigation. The public docket for the case should be available in January 2007, and a public board meeting to consider a final report and determine a probable cause should occur in late spring or early summer.
CAE executives are still in discussions with FedEx regarding two Airbus A380 simulators the carrier ordered in July now that the airline has canceled its order for 10 planes and opted for Boeing 777 freighters. Management noted CAE doesn't see any "large exposure" from the A380, noting it has delivered a simulator to Qantas. "We're paid up on the work we've done," said CEO Robert Brown. He noted CAE had a "similar situation" for a couple of A380 simulators at Emirates. CAE has also delivered two simulators to Airbus.
Security is now the main priority (97%) for IT investment next year, according to 97% of airports surveyed by SITA. The strong resurgence worldwide in air traffic means that alongside security-related IT solutions, airports' other top priorities are operational solutions (93%) to manage the flow of passengers and aircraft, and passenger and baggage processing systems (73%), said SITA's Annual Airport IT Trends Survey, written with Airports Council International and Airline Business.
