Spirit pilots yesterday said they have ratified a four-year contract. The new contract includes a 20% wage increase in its first year and improvements in other benefits, according to the Air Line Pilots Association. -AS
United's new separate low-cost carrier, which yesterday named its first executive, plans to serve 37 U.S. cities with a fleet of 134 aircraft, according to a preliminary internal plan for the carrier obtained by The DAILY.
Messier-Bugatti formed a joint venture with Tracer Repair and Overhaul to repair and overhaul wheels and brakes for customers in North and South America. sssssssThe new company -- Messier-Bugatti Tracer (MBT) -- has FAA/JAA certified repair stations in Milwaukee, Wis., and Miami, Fla. MBT offers wheel and brake service for both business and commercial aircraft. Messier Bugatti is a part of France's Snecma Group.
Air Canada plans to offer seasonal daily nonstop service from Toronto to Copenhagen for an expected jump in summer traffic. The flights will be offered from May 27 until Oct. 24 and will be operated with Boeing 767-300s. The seasonal flights complement the carrier's year-round service to Scandinavia via London Heathrow, offered in cooperation with its Star Alliance partners, SAS and BMI British Midland, and via Frankfurt in cooperation with Lufthansa. -SL
All Nippon Airways warned yesterday it expects a fiscal 2002 net loss of 35 billion yen (US$295 million) -- more than double November estimates -- and will cut 1,200 staff to save costs. ANA also says it won't reach the 15 billion yen profit forecast last fall, and instead likely will post a four billion yen (US$34 million) operating loss at the hands of intense fare competition and high advertising, and market costs to boost sagging demand.
Transportation Trades Department (TTD) is up in arms over a provision in the omnibus appropriations bill that would delay until October a mandate that air cargo operators strengthen cockpit doors.
Crude oil prices yesterday closed at nearly $36.50 per barrel, bringing more bad news to U.S. airlines with small fuel hedges in place. Every $1 change in crude prices adds $450 million to the industry's fuel bill, according to Merrill Lynch, which forecast that 2003 industry fuel expenses will reach $12 billion. Southwest and Northwest are both 100% hedged below $30 per barrel in the quarter.
San Francisco International Airport on March 3 plans to officially open its new AirTrain automated people mover, able to move 3,000 people per hour throughout the airport. The AirTrain will have nine stations linking the new international terminal with existing terminals, parking garages, and the SFO rental car facility. The AirTrain, the last major piece of the airport's master expansion plan, aims to reduce airport traffic by 23% annually
Thai Airways International's first Boeing 777-200 featuring an upgraded cabin and new inflight entertainment system will roll out in October next year. The airline is investing US$97 million to upgrade the business-class and economy-class cabins of its fleet of eight 777s. A new IFE system, with individual viewing screens at each seat, will also be installed in both classes.
US Airways yesterday applied at DOT for route authority to operate nonstop flights between Mexico City and both its Charlotte and Philadelphia hubs. The airline wants approval to begin Charlotte service in October and Philadelphia in early 2004. Service from both cities will be operated with Airbus A319s. Subject to U.S. and Mexican government approvals, Mexico City will be the airline's 22nd jet destination in the Caribbean and Latin America and the sixth addition to that network in as many months. -SL
Airbus and Tenzing have completed their first test of email services using Inmarsat Swift 64 service over a Rockwell Collins L-band Satcom antenna. The system provides hardware and software from Airbus, Rockwell Collins and Tenzing to deliver email capability and Internet access for passengers. An Airbus official claims using existing products, such as the L-band, will drive down the costs and time needed for installation. An Airbus A318 was used for the testing. -LR
FAA Administrator Marion Blakey told controllers yesterday that their last contract agreement provided only about half the productivity and cost-savings benefits that were promised. Speaking at a National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) conference in Washington, D.C., Blakey said although "everyone involved tried very hard," many of the productivity gains have not materialized "and the contract proved very expensive." The contract also caused "internal disruption" that "affected morale through the agency," Blakey said.
DOT Secretary Norman Mineta today will make his first public appearance since he was hospitalized last November for recurring back problems. Mineta and Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge will participate in a U.S. Coast Guard 'Change of Watch' ceremony in Washington, D.C. The event formally recognizes the change in civilian leadership over a military organization. The Change of Watch represents a transfer of oversight of the Coast Guard from Mineta to Ridge.
Controllers' union chief John Carr leveled fresh criticism at DOT Inspector General Kenneth Mead over comments Mead made recently about rising controller payroll costs. At a National Air Traffic Controllers Association conference yesterday, Carr pointed out that the annual budget for the IG's office has jumped from $38 million in fiscal 1997 to $63 million in fiscal 2004, which is the same 65% increase that Mead quoted for the FAA's operations budget.
Pan Am affiliate Boston Maine Airways will offer new nonstop service March 20 from Manchester, N.H., to Bangor, Maine, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. The airline also plans service from Manchester to destinations in Canada, including Saint John, New Brunswick and Halifax, Nova Scotia. Boston Maine flies 19-seat British Aerospace Jetstream 31s. -LR
United Senior VP-Maintenance Ron Utecht on Friday said he plans to retire after his 60th birthday on March 5, concluding a 39-year career with United. He will stay in his post until a successor is selected.
New York jet fuel spot prices ended last week at $1.12 per gallon, increased from the beginning of the week and up 87.0% from a year ago, according to Deutsche Bank Securities. Crude oil traded near $37 per barrel.
Thai Airways International resumed twice-daily Bangkok-Phnom Penh service recently, after it was suspended Jan. 30 in the wake of political riots in Cambodia and retaliation in Bangkok (DAILY, Feb. 11). Thai and Cambodian government officials found it safe to resume flights following a review of the situation.
Iberia in March will reduce capacity measured in available seat kilometers by 4% on European and domestic routes, the Spanish airline said Friday in Madrid. "This reduction could be extended to the following months, if necessary," the carrier said. The move follows Iberia's delay of the delivery of three Airbus 320 family aircraft, which were initially due in the first half of 2003. Iberia said it was registering a decline in domestic and European bookings because of uncertainty about a conflict in Iraq. -MT
Mesa Airlines is attempting to avoid another $3.5 million in maintenance costs as it works with engine suppliers General Electric and Rolls-Royce to cover costs of unexpected maintenance. The airline was hit with those costs in its fiscal first quarter, and reported a $3.1 million engine maintenance charge in its 2002 fourth quarter earnings (DAILY, Dec. 2, 2002). "We have a new contract with GE to smooth out those expenses," Mesa CEO Jonathan Ornstein said last week. "We're having similar discussions with Rolls."
UPS recently launched its new service between Hong Kong and its intra-Asia hub in the Philippines as part of the fifth-freedom services granted last fall under the new U.S.-Hong Kong bilateral deal. Four carriers won interim clearance to use U.S.-Hong Kong cargo frequencies ahead of a final decision on the routes (DAILY, Nov. 25).
