United's management has made little progress in its attempted negotiations with its several of its largest labor groups as part of its largest efforts to bring costs down. In his weekly message to employees, CEO Jack Creighton said the airline has had "positive discussions" with our pilots' union, but its talks with the International Association of Machinists and the Association of Flight Attendants "have not been as productive."
The new draft bill to create the future National Civil Aviation agency for Brazil was delivered to airlines this week by Carlos de Almeida Baptista, Brazil's acting minister of defense. The measure replaces the bill the government withdrew last December in order to amend several controversial items. Conscious of the urgency of the bill to help solve some of the industry's most pressing problems, Baptista's timetable calls for a meeting with airlines this week to obtain their input so the draft can be submitted to the legislators in 10 days.
GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) is stepping back from its order for the Fairchild Dornier 728 regional jet. A GECAS spokesman confirmed to The DAILY, "We have notified Fairchild Dornier that we have canceled our order according to the terms of our agreement." He noted that "the uncertainty surrounding the situation" was too great to keep the contract on the books. GECAS had ordered 50 728s, plus options for an additional 100 aircraft, for a total list value of $1.5 billion.
Cargolux Airlines yesterday announced a net profit of $15.4 million for 2001. Operating profit was $22.3 million on revenues of $731.1 million. Cargolux carried 433,096 tonnes of freight in 2001, and flew 3,768 million freight tonne-kilometers, 1.2% fewer than last year's total. However, this was a better result than the industry-wide FTK reduction of about 8%, the company said.
Rolls-Royce has secured a $530 million contract from Cathay Pacific for a Total Care maintenance package for the Trent 700 engines powering the airline's 20 Airbus A330s. The carrier's Trent 700 engines have flown more than 450,000 hours with the lead engine approaching 20,000 hours.
Cargolux Airlines yesterday an-nounced a net profit of $15.4 million for 2001. Operating profit was $22.3 million on revenues of $731.1 million. Cargolux carried 433,096 tonnes of freight in 2001, and flew 3,768 million freight tonne-kilometers, 1.2% fewer than last year's total. However, this was a better result than the industry-wide FTK reduction of about 8%, the company said.
With new fare reductions announced Monday by Gol and VASP on the Rio/Sao Paulo Shuttle ("Ponte Aerea"), industry analysts fear a new fare war may develop. Gol's lowest fare is 98 reals when booked electronically and 108 reals over the counter, with VASP lowering its fare from 138 to 120 reals, subject to space and other conditions. Passengers are pleased, but analyst Alexandre Cunha warns, "A fare war is not healthy for any carrier."
Boeing lost $1.25 billion in the first quarter as an accounting change took a $1.8 billion bite out of profits to push $578 million in earnings into the red, the company said yesterday. Revenues rose 4% to $13.8 billion. Boeing earned about $1.2 billion in the 2001 first quarter on revenues of $13.2 billion.
In an effort to bring its struggling airline business back into profitability, SAS has announced far-reaching changes to its operations. The airline said yesterday that it would drop 13 mainly intra-Scandinavian routes, of which six will be transferred to subsidiaries Wideroe, Air Botnia, Braathens and Spanair. In its mainline system, SAS will position its aircraft in three main bases -- Copenhagen, Stockholm and Oslo.
British Airways CEO Rod Eddington acknowledged yesterday that his airline likely will never gain antitrust immunity (ATI) with alliance partner American, as the U.S. and U.K. have no plans to renew serious open-skies talks in the near term. "We just have to recognize that we're not going to get ATI and we need to work within that constraint," Eddington told reporters in New York after his speech to the Wings Club.
Minnesota District Court ruled yesterday that it has no jurisdiction over the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association legal challenge of Northwest's use of background checks to fire employees.
BAE Systems' Victorville, Calif., maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility will use Avexus's Impresa maintenance planning software, the software company announced.
GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) is stepping back from its order for the Fairchild Dornier 728 regional jet. A GECAS spokesman confirmed to The DAILY, "We have notified Fairchild Dornier that we have canceled our order according to the terms of our agreement." He noted that "the uncertainty surrounding the situation" was too great to keep the contract on the books. GECAS had ordered 50 728s, plus options for an additional 100 aircraft, for a total list value of $1.5 billion.
As Colombia's No. 1 Avianca/SAM and No. 2 Aces consummate their operational integration in May, AeroRepublica will replace Aces in the No. 2 slot. Comparing AeroRepublica's position to that of David vs. Goliath, CEO Alfonso Avila's strategy will concentrate on business travelers and lower fares. Avila hopes to achieve both with fleet renewal, which involves five new leased MD80s at an investment of $40 million, due to bargain prices after Sept. 11.
Tokyo Narita airport's second runway opened today, with taxiways that bend and curve around land that local farmers refused to sell. This means the new runway and taxiway may not be used concurrently. Japan's transport ministry published pilot information that details even homes and trees on the occupied land.
U.S. Airports Change in Air Service Index Apr. 1-7, 2002 vs. Sept. 1-7, 2001 Top 200 U.S. Airports Change in Air Service Index Apr. 1-7, 2002 vs. Sept. 1-7, 2001 Airport Total Nonstop Onestop Twostop Abilene -18.4% -18.1% -21.4% -9.2% Akron/Canton -5.6% -5.9% -1.6% -15.3% Albany, NY -10.8% -8.1% -8.4% -23.8%
Minnesota District Court ruled yesterday that it has no jurisdiction over the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association legal challenge of Northwest's use of background checks to fire employees.
BAE Systems' Victorville, Calif., maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility will use Avexus's Impresa maintenance planning software, the software company announced.
Tokyo Narita airport's second runway opened today, with taxiways that bend and curve around land that local farmers refused to sell.This means the new runway and taxiway may not be used concurrently. Japan's transport ministry published pilot information that details even homes and trees on the occupied land.
United's management has made little progress in its attempted negotiations with its several of its largest labor groups as part of its largest efforts to bring costs down. In his weekly message to employees, CEO Jack Creighton said the airline has had "positive discussions" with our pilots' union, but its talks with the International Association of Machinists and the Association of Flight Attendants "have not been as productive."
China will hold the fourth China International Aviation and Aerospace Exposition in Zhuhai, one of the country's special economic zones, Nov. 4-10. More than 40 companies from the U.S., Canada and France, including Boeing and Airbus, have confirmed their attendance at the exposition. Two websites dedicated to the air show will be launched, at www.airshow. com.cn and www.airshowchina.com.
Rolls-Royce has secured a $530 million contract from Cathay Pacific for a Total Care maintenance package for the Trent 700 engines powering the airline's 20 Airbus A330s. The carrier's Trent 700 engines have flown more than 450,000 hours with the lead engine approaching 20,000 hours.
AMR Corp. yesterday reported a record first quarter net loss of $548 million, as weak yields did not offset improving traffic trends. This compares with a net loss of $43 million for the same 2001 period. In spite of what company executives describe as a "tough quarter," they say there are signs that financial performance is improving.
With new fare reductions announced Monday by Gol and VASP on the Rio/Sao Paulo Shuttle ("Ponte Aerea"), industry analysts fear a new fare war may develop. Gol's lowest fare is 98 reals when booked electronically and 108 reals over the counter, with VASP lowering its fare from 138 to 120 reals, subject to space and other conditions. Passengers are pleased, but analyst Alexandre Cunha warns, "A fare war is not healthy for any carrier."
