Serbian national carrier JAT Airways wants the U.S. Transportation Dept. to let it start nonstop service from Belgrade to New York Kennedy and Chicago O'Hare through a wet-lease arrangement with a U.S. carrier operating Boeing 767s. JAT is still negotiating the wet-lease deal but told DOT it needs authority effective May 1 through April 30, 2006, or until DOT takes final action on JAT's application for a foreign air carrier certificate.
Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) President David Plavin will step down at the end of the year, Plavin said in a letter to ACI-NA members Wednesday. Plavin, the former director of aviation for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, has led the airport industry group since January 1996 and was credited by some with being instrumental in securing funding streams for airports through AIR-21 reauthorization legislation.
KLM plans to take delivery next month of its first Boeing 777 equipped with an e-mail and short messaging service (SMS) for passengers in business and economy class. The new service also will be available on the six Airbus A330s that will be joining the KLM fleet starting in August. "Future enhancement of this service, which may include in-seat Internet access, will depend on developments in the industry and the feasibility and reliability of such services," the airline said.
Continental yesterday reported a $206 million fourth quarter net loss, including $32 million in one-time charges, and is now focused on winning $500 million in labor concessions by management's self-imposed Feb. 28 deadline.
Recaro Aircraft Seating named former Airbus executive Manfred Egner as its new chairman. "We will continue to build on Recaro's strengths as an innovative seat supplier with a clear customer focus and flawless customer support and add the factor of 'speed' to it," he said. Egner previously served as VP-manufacturing at Airbus and was chairman of Aircabin.
Fraport AG plans to start negotiations with unions on cost-cutting opportunities next week, as the company prepares for the renewal of a service contract with its prime customer Lufthansa. Frankfurt's airport operator did not disclose the financial target, but is faced with the airline's demand to identify part of a EUR300 million savings program with third-party suppliers. -JF
The Austrian Airlines Group yesterday acquired 62% of Slovak Airlines through a EUR2.8 million (US$3.6 million) injection into the flag carrier of the new EU member state, a move that will help Austrian remain competitive as it trims its Bratislava operations.
Delta yesterday entered the aviation record books after reporting a massive $2.2 billion loss for only the last three months of 2004 and a whopping $5.3 billion deficit for the full year, making it the airline's worst results ever.
The European Commission Wednesday approved Germany's plan to use state funds to further develop regional airports in the country's less-affluent regions from now until 2006. Some 40 airports would be eligible for funds under the plan. "Most of these airports have less than 50,000 passengers a year, while some serve around 1 million people," the EC said.
Rockwell Collins has added seven new languages to its Airshow 4000 moving map display and flight information system for business jets. The new languages are Chinese, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Russian. Languages already offered for the system are Arabic, English, French, German and Spanish. "We believe the addition of these new languages will help us expand our presence in Europe and Asia, and focus on companies with multi-lingual requirements," said Tim Rayl, senior director of Airshow Systems.
Colgan Air beat out SkyWest and several other regional carriers to fly Continental Connection turboprop flights out of Houston, reviving a relationship with Continental that ended in 1999. The Manassas, Va.-based carrier will replace SkyWest's nine 30-seat Embraer Brasilias with 34-seat Saab 340Bs March 3 when service to Del Rio, Texas begins. Eventually Colgan will fly to 14 cities from Houston as Continental Connection. Colgan currently flies 18 Saab 340Bs, and plans to acquire more of those planes for the Continental flying.
Southwest may start service to one additional city in the fall after the launch of Pittsburgh service in May, but "we will wait until the last minute to make that decision," said CEO Gary Kelly, given the industry turmoil. He is already planning to add several more cities in 2006, but still aims for 10% capacity growth each year.
Southwest this week retired its last Boeing 737-200, the same model of aircraft the airline used to launch service 33 years ago. Aircraft N95SW got a farewell ceremony in Dallas after spending 21 years flying in Southwest colors, having joined the 45-aircraft fleet in May 1983 at a time when the airline flew to 22 cities and served 9.5 million customers.
The European Commission this week confirmed plans to launch an in-depth investigation aimed at ensuring that Alitalia's rescue does not involve illegal state aid -- in spite of Italian government lobbying for a fast-track approval of the plan (DAILY, Jan. 14). Alitalia last received state aid in 1997 and the EU's "one time, last time" principle bars any more handouts.
Aviation fuel for international flights will be exempted from Peru's general value added tax and the selective consumption tax as part of new legislation to bolster air and sea transport services. In practice, "goods for the use or consumption of passengers and crew members on board of air or sea carriers serving international transportation routes are to be given the same favorable tax treatment as export commodities," explained Peru's minister of foreign trade and tourism Alfredo Ferrero.
Swiss Finance Minister Hans-Rudolf Merz said yesterday that Swiss International Air Lines "needs a strong partner," just days after the airline announced another round of cost-cutting and lay-offs.
Sunk by high fuel costs and intense domestic competition, American parent AMR Corp. yesterday posted a $387 million net loss, and executives predicted it will report another deficit for the first quarter.
Editorial Corrections: The United Spinal Association supports JetBlue's request to be exempted from the U.S. Transportation Dept.'s requirement to provide space in the cabin to stow folded wheelchairs. The DAILY incorrectly reported that UPA opposed JetBlue's application (DAILY, Jan. 18). . . . Midwest Airlines is one of the largest U.S. operators of the Boeing 717. The name of the airline was misidentified in an earlier story (DAILY, Jan. 18).
Dragonair recorded an all-time high in passenger and cargo volumes last year with double-digit growth for both segments. The airline carried 4.5 million passengers, a 49.2% increase, while cargo jumped 26.8% to 342,413 tons. Dragonair CEO Stanley Hui said the carrier's overall performance was encouraging although the operating environment was challenging.
