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."
American Trans Air plans to launch daily, nonstop service between Chicago Midway and Charlotte, N.C. Beginning July 18, the carrier will offer three daily flights Monday through Friday and two flights each day on the weekend. "We have seen much demand for this particular route," said Don Moonjian, VP-marketing. ATA's regional carrier Chicago Express plans to start separate daily service between Chicago and Toledo, Ohio. The carrier will offer four daily flights with turboprop aircraft.
Delta yesterday reported a $397 million first quarter loss, including one-time items, but the carrier still believes it will become profitable in the second half of the year. Excluding unusual costs, the carrier reported a $354 million loss, compared to a $122 million in the same quarter last year. The loss was slightly worse than analyst expectations. The carrier recorded $43 million in one-time expenses, due to the carrying cost of grounded aircraft and surplus pilots and an adjustment of equity rights in Priceline.com.
Reflecting similar moves by British Airways, SAS and Deutsche BA, BMI British Midland said yesterday it will drop Saturday night restrictions and minimum stay requirements on all domestic flights from London Heathrow Airport. The airline will allow passengers to mix fares on flight sectors, and name changes on tickets are possible until two hours before departure. The lowest one-way fare is GBP29 (London-Belfast).
Cessna Aircraft, citing a drop in market demand for single-engine airplanes, will shut down the McCauley Propeller Systems operation in Vandalia, Ohio, and move some of the work to Columbus, Ga. "Market conditions over the last several months have made it necessary to adjust single-engine piston production schedules," the company said. "This weakened demand has resulted in excess staffing and plant capacity at Cessna's facilities at its McCauley" division.
United in February achieved its best mishandled baggage performance since 1984, partially due an upgrade of the carrier's BullsEye bag scanning technology. United recorded 3.28 mishandled bags per 1,000 North America customers, down from 5.29 in February 2001. Year-to-date through March, United's mishandled bag rate was 3.6, well ahead of its internal yearly goal of 4.7. Chris Schoenfeld, manager-ramp operations planning, called the performance "extraordinary."
Greg Taylor next Monday returns to United as senior VP-planning only weeks after he was reassigned within the US Airways management team. Taylor held the position of senior VP-planning at US Airways for several years, but CEO Dave Siegel earlier this year moved him to the position of president of the US Airways Express division. Prior to his work at US Airways, Taylor spent 23 years at United.
Aviation policy debate should include foreign ownership and control, Reid Van de Water, assistant secretary for aviation and international affairs, told the International Aviation Club yesterday. Van de Water opened the door to "exploration" of the issue, which has pitted open and protectionist economies and business and labor groups against each other.
Rockwell Collins yesterday reported net income of $58 million for the three months ended March 31, which is a slight decline from the same period last year despite the fact that the company's giant commercial segment saw revenues plummet by nearly 20%. Commercial revenues dropped to $352 million for the period, down 19% from the $436 million reported last year. The revenue decline was due mostly to a dip in avionics sales to the air transport market and, to a lesser extent, to lower sales of business jet and inflight entertainment products, the company said.
