Australia wants to finish selling the Kingsford Smith International Airport in Sydney by the end of next month, despite concerns about the future of the now deserted Ansett Australia domestic passenger terminal. Ansett, which had a lease for the terminal until 2019, collapsed on September 14 after attempts by Air New Zealand to rescue the carrier failed. The airport sale, which was supposed to have been completed on September 24, was suspended after the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Japan's Civil Aviation Board gave All Nippon Airways permission to operate four Pratt & Whitney PW4090-powered Boeing 777-200ERs up to 207 minutes from the nearest suitable alternate airport. Similar 207-minute ETOPS waivers have been granted to several U.S. airlines by FAA.
Malaysia's government plans to offer cash incentives to try attract airlines to start operations to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). Minister of Transport Ling Liong Sik said the government had in principle agreed to the proposal and the plan had been submitted to the Treasury. The incentive would be based dollar for dollar on the airline's expenditure to promote Malaysia should it decide to fly to KLIA. Ling declined to give further details, saying that the package would be announced later this month, after the Treasury approves the budget.
A number of aviation and labor groups yesterday joined the National Air Traffic Control Association in criticizing an Executive Order issued last week that eliminated a commitment to keep air traffic control (ATC) as a federal function. Though White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card discussed the order on a weekend news program, the motive behind the order remains unclear.
China Eastern posted a 73 million yuan (US$9.73 million) profit for the first quarter of the year, compared with a 270 million yuan loss for the same period last year. Revenue rose 5.4% to 3.02 billion yuan, while passenger load jumped 6.7%. China Eastern credited cheaper fuel, plus an increase in passenger and cargo traffic. The airline projects improved performance for the rest of year with the continued recovery of the travel industry.
Chautauqua became the latest Delta Connection carrier yesterday, and ordered 22 new jets to position itself to replace Comair as Delta's major regional carrier in Florida. When the change is complete, Delta plans to expand its Florida operations significantly. Chautauqua bought 15 38-seat ERJ-135s and seven of the 50-seat ERJ-145s, and took options on another 30 planes. The first firm aircraft will enter service in November, with deliveries complete by December, 2003.
Ciaofly, a new low-cost carrier, will start serving London Luton and Parma (Italy) from Liege's Bierset airport in Eastern Belgium on July 1. Controlled by Belgian and Italian interests, the company operates a BAe 146 turboprop.
Frontier flight attendants last week voted by a narrow margin against union representation by the Association of Flight Attendants. Out of 423 eligible attendants, 201 voted in favor of AFA representation, just short of the 212 required. This was the third time that Frontier attendants have approached AFA seeking a representation vote.
Spanish carrier Iberia is expected to join the IBEX-35 stock index in Spain, according to market analysts. The index includes Spain's most liquid shares and is reviewed every six months. Iberia would be the only aviation industry company included in the index. -JF
Brazil's agency in charge of airport development and management, Infraero, does not expect to collect US$44 million owed since August by grounded Transbrasil. "The factors which led the company to its current crisis have not changed," Fernando Perrone, Infraero's president, said Friday in Brasilia. These include cancellation of international flights, a higher dollar exchange rate and lower airfares to compete with low-cost, no-frills airlines like newcomer Gol.
Lufthansa's May traffic was down 5%, the best monthly year-over-year result since the September 11 air terror attacks. The airline reduced capacity by 7.6% and improved load factor by 1.9 percentage points to 73.4%. Transatlantic routes continued to be the weakest part in the carrier's network, as traffic was down 10.9%, but domestic and European services also suffered, with traffic falling 4.2%. Lufthansa's business to Asia/Pacific was up 4.1% and traffic to the Middle East and Africa rose 1.6%. -JF
JetBlue will fit its Airbus A320s with EVASWorldwide's Cockpit Smoke Displacement System, becoming the first airline to do so, the supplier said. The device inflates to form two tubes -- one above the glare shield and one below, at instrument level -- through which clean cabin air is circulated. Pilots press their smoke masks against the tubes to get clear views of instruments or out the window.
JetBlue will fit its Airbus A320s with EVASWorldwide's Cockpit Smoke Displacement System, becoming the first airline to do so, the supplier said. The device inflates to form two tubes -- one above the glare shield and one below, at instrument level -- through which clean cabin air is circulated. Pilots press their smoke masks against the tubes to get clear views of instruments or out the window.
Air France and Alitalia last week signed a marketing agreement for their Europe-Argentina routes that includes codesharing and mutual benefits in their frequent-flyer programs. Alitalia recently cut its weekly flights from seven to six between Rome and Buenos Aires, and is now looking for a Latin American partner for codesharing to Uruguay. Aerolineas Argentinas heads the list of candidates.
Frontier flight attendants last week voted by a narrow margin against union representation by the Association of Flight Attendants. Out of 423 eligible attendants, 201 voted in favor of AFA representation, just short of the 212 required. This was the third time that Frontier attendants have approached AFA seeking a representation vote.
DOT yesterday named federal security directors (FSDs) for three airports, including Norfolk, Va., where federal agents last week arrested 21 persons who worked or had worked at the airport. The other airports were Columbus, Ohio, and Quad Cities airport of Moline, Ill. Quad Cities' FSD Julio Garcia, most recently national human resources manager for FAA, has 28 years experience in large-organization management but, unlike most FSDs named so far, does not have a law enforcement background.
Federal passenger security screeners, already in place at Baltimore-Washington Airport, will be deployed on June 25 to the Louisville and Mobile airports, the Transportation Security Administration said. TSA's Mobile Screening Force (MSF), as they did at BWI, will assume responsibility for all passenger checkpoints and gate-screening operations at the two airports while TSA hires and trains the permanent workforce for each airport. The MSF works alongside the new federal screeners as they undergo 60 hours of on-the job training.
Don't read too much into the rejection of a recently proposed contract by mechanics at Southwest, says Merrill Lynch, noting that labor-management relations at the carrier appear to be as rosy as ever. The investment house's analysts view the mechanics' vote late Thursday as "procedural," and not unlike what happened two years ago with the airline's ramp workers, who eventually ratified a deal without a strike or other action. "We don't see a strike" at Southwest "under any circumstances," the firm tells investors.
Argentina may soon be downgraded from Category 1 to Category 2 in the FAA's safety oversight assessment program, report sources in Buenos Aires, another casualty of the most severe economic crisis in Argentina's history.
China Eastern Airlines is set to be the first Chinese carrier to hire foreign pilots into its workforce with the hope of enhancing the flying standard of its pilots. The foreign hires will also be roped into the management of the flight operations division and be responsible for the training of the local pilots for the airline's wide body fleets and new single-aisle aircraft, which it has 11 Boeing 737-700s on order.
United Friday launched its second daily flight between Kona, Hawaii, and San Francisco. The service will be flown with a Boeing 757 with 24 first-class seats and 158 economy-class seats.
The Tijuana, Mexico, airport will be closed during evening hours for the next two months for runway renovations. The airport will be closed from 5:30 p.m. local time until 11:30 p.m. Renovations are expected to last for about 70 days, with the runways slated to reopen August 12. The airport said all airlines and Tijuana travel agencies have been notified of the closure and flights have already been rescheduled.
