The national law firm of Eckert Seamans Cherin and Mellott, LLC plans to expand its Washington office with the addition of at least five attorneys who will form the firm's newly created Aviation and Aerospace Law Practice. "We are bolstering our presence in Washington, and enhancing our existing regulatory practice in one of the most important legal markets in the nation," said CEO Tim Ryan.
FAA needs to establish -- and adhere to -- a detailed schedule to make sure that the agency's enormous telecommunications replacement program stays on course, the U.S. Transportation Dept.'s Inspector General said last week.
The Essential Air Service program's $200-per-passenger subsidy cap no longer applies to the community of Alamogordo, N.M., after the U.S. Transportation Dept. and the Federal Highway Administration recalculated the distance between Alamogordo/Holloman AFB and Albuquerque to 211.05 miles (DAILY, April 10).
The mayors of 11 small Texas cities served by American are calling for the mayors of Fort Worth and Dallas to consider how changes to the Wright Amendment would hurt service to other Texas cities.
The U.S. Transportation Dept. yesterday issued a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking yesterday seeking to further clarify proposed changes to foreign investment rules and top department officials believe the changes will satisfy most congressional critics of the original proposal who were concerned about safety and security issues.
Mexicana won from the U.S. Transportation Dept. an exemption to serve Phoenix from Mexico City, Leon (El Bajio) and Guadalajara (DAILY, April 18). The carrier plans to use Airbus A320s or Boeing 757s for the flights [OST-2006-24499]. Meanwhile, Mexicana's former sister carrier, Aeromexico, won an exemption for the Durango-Los Angeles route (DAILY, April 24). The carrier will serve the route twice weekly with Boeing 737-700s [OST-2006-24558]. -ARS
AAR is preparing to capture more business at newest Indianapolis base by securing additional long-term contracts for airframe maintenance. The company moved into the Indianapolis facility after United vacated the building in 2004. AAR's deal included the lease of 10 out of 12 hangars. Currently, six hangars are in use, ahead of company projections of four hangars being used at this stage (DAILY, March 24, 2006).
The final Environmental Impact Report on improvements to Long Beach Airport has been released with only minor changes. Comments were received from almost 300 individuals, businesses, local agencies, cities and organizations. The EIR and responses to all comments are required under the California Environmental Quality Act. The city provided 219 responses in a 247-page report and four pages of clarifications and revisions.
Mexican regional carrier Aerocalifornia last week dismissed 524 employees, or 87% of its work force, only three weeks after being grounded by Mexico's civil aviation authorities for alleged safety flaws (DAILY, April 10 & April 17). No reason for the dismissals were given by management, nor are they required under social security regulations. Most dismissals centered on the carrier's operations base in La Paz, Baja California, which includes maintenance and ticketing. The move leaves only 225 administrative employees on the payroll.
Aviation leasing tycoon Domhnal Slattery yesterday launched the Embraer Phenom small business jet program in Europe with an order for 50 firm and 50 optioned orders for a mix of the six- and nine-seat light jets.
Emirates cargo division has set its sights on Brazil and South America, signing a deal this week with Scand Air Cargo to serve as Emirates' cargo sales agent (CSA) in Sao Paulo.
SkyWest posted an 84% rise in first-quarter profits as costs were driven down by economies of scale resulting from its purchase last year of Atlantic Southeast Airlines. But the carrier also had slight pressure on its margins from operational challenges and fuel expenses. Net income was $34.6 million, compared with $18.8 million a year ago. Revenues shot up 118% to $742 million, up from $340 million.
Northwest as early as this month may place an order for small jets for its new Compass subsidiary following the pilots' union approval yesterday of a new contract with the airline.
FAA has entered the fray surrounding the location of Mesa Air's Go at Honolulu Airport. In a letter to HDOT Deputy Director Brian Sekiguchi, FAA's Western-Pacific division asked that he submit information on the Commuter Terminal plan before implementation.
The Cayman Islands government recently signed a deal with Lufthansa Consulting to do a top-to-bottom review of the carrier to determine the future strategy for the small airline.
Forward Air recently reported record revenues for the first quarter, and net profit was also strong with a 26.4% increase to $11 million. The company's operating revenues rose 18.4% to $82.3 million, its highest total ever. Operating profit grew 26.9% to $17 million. Forward Air contracts to provide time-definite ground transportation for air cargo operators. Airport-to-airport operations grew 22% during the first quarter, with average weekly tonnage up by nearly 14%. Logistics revenue was up 2%.
More Essential Air Service opportunities are up for grabs, and the U.S. Transportation Dept. is taking proposals from carriers interested in operating EAS for communities in New York and Alaska. Plattsburgh and Saranac/Lake Placid for the past two years received air service from CommutAir. The carrier received sbout $1,507,928 in subsidies annually to operate three roundtrips daily to Boston with Beech 1900D aircraft. The two-year EAS term for the new carrier would start Sept. 1 [OST-2003-14783, -2000-8025].
Alaska Airlines was recently awarded another slot at Long Beach, Calif., Airport, allowing it to add a fourth daily roundtrip flight to Seattle, beginning July 4. The carrier applied for additional slots at Long Beach last December after American announced it would leave the airport, making four slots available. Under a series of allocation guidelines, Long Beach Airport authorities awarded one slot each to Alaska and Federal Express, and two slots to JetBlue. There are no more slots open for commercial jet service at the airport.
United is losing one of its top officers in charge of airport operations as part of another senior management reorganization at the carrier, which will put a new executive in charge of airports and cargo.
RegionsAir on July 27 will suspend its American Connection service between Paducah and St. Louis. The carrier sent a notice to the U.S. Transportation Dept. about its intent to stop serving Paducah, which is an essential air service community. It is unlikely, however, that RegionsAir will be forced to continue the service, as Mesaba already flies Paducah-Kentucky as Northwest Airlink.
Rising fuel costs and the timing of the Easter holiday caused EasyJet's loss for the first half of the fiscal year to widen, but the carrier remains confident of sustaining profitability for the full year, as its new CEO is zeroing in on yield optimization and network strategies. EasyJet's pre-tax loss plummeted 86% from GBP22 million for the first six months of 2005 to GBP44 million (US$81 million) this year. Revenues grew 14% to GBP630 million from GBP553 million as operating costs rose 16% to GBP602 million.
