AeroContinente Chile agreed to pay 450 former employees for back salaries and benefits worth $750,000. Payments will be made in three monthly installments, with the first made last week, according to Jorge Ovalle Aldunate, attorney for the pilots union, who added that the agreement is guaranteed by adequate collateral, "and it removes the labor issue from any potential bankruptcy proceedings."
New York jet fuel spot prices ended last week at $0.56 per gallon, up 2.7% from the beginning of the week and down 32.9% from a year ago, according to Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown. Crude oil on Friday was trading around $19.50 per barrel.
Mesa Air posted a fiscal first quarter profit of $1.8 million, excluding one-time gains, largely due to its cost-plus contracts with its code-share partners. The airline's profit including gains from marketable securities was $4.9 million compared with a $5.7 million profit the year before. The airline's results were better than analyst expectations despite a revenue drop of 17% to $107.8 million. During the quarter, Mesa continued its regional jet expansion with two new Embraer ERJ-145s to the US Airways Express system.
U.S. carriers in 2001 improved their record for on-time arrivals to 77.4%, compared with the 72.6% they posted in 2000. For December 2000, the 11 largest carriers achieved an on-time record of 80.2% -- not as good as November's 84.8%, which DOT had attributed to reduced capacity following Sept. 11 -- a much better performance than the 62.8% in December 2000. America West topped the list, with 86.6%, followed by Continental, 82.9%, and American. 82.7%.
NTSB today plans to recommend that FAA require airlines to train pilots on the potential dangers of excessive rudder use and aircraft design limits in general, The DAILY confirmed. The move, first reported by The DAILY Jan. 8, is triggered by the American Flight 587 investigation that shows an airplane's tail could break as a result of excessive, repetitive rudder movements.
Air Canada yesterday reported a deep C$380 million (US$236 million) net loss in the fourth quarter, compared with a C$274 million loss in the year before, but CEO Robert Milton said there is a plan in place to hit profitability this summer. Air Canada posted a record full-year net loss of C$1.25 billion ($800 million). Before Sept. 11, the carrier suffered from high fuel prices and the weak North American economy and was hit even harder after the terrorist attacks.
Delta in recent days has shuffled 140 flights at Salt Lake City Airport during two four-hour blackout times during the Olympics, the carrier reported. The blackout times, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. MST today and Feb. 24, are to keep a 45-mile ring of restricted airspace around the Games clear of all commercial air traffic. Delta and Connection carrier SkyWest had 74 flights slated to arrive during those blocks and 66 to depart.
Belgium's Delta Air Transport is expected to announce a wet-lease agreement with British Midland shortly, for the operation of African routes. "An internal working group came to the conclusion that serving certain African countries is economically workable," said DAT managing director Johan Vanneste. In a first step, DAT would serve Kinshasa, Entebbe and Kigali, Vanneste said. The successor of bankrupt Sabena will not operate the routes itself but is planning to wet-lease aircraft from British Midland to keep costs down, industry sources said.
Democratic Illinois lawmakers yesterday said they expect stronger congressional support this session for legislation that would clear the way to expand Chicago O'Hare, leave Meigs Field open and encourage construction of a new airport in Peotone. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Rep. William Lipinski (D-Ill.) said they believe an open hearing of the National Aviation Capacity Expansion Act, which was introduced last year but blocked in the Senate, will give it a better shot at passing.
Six years behind schedule and well over budget, the U.K.'s new en route center at Swanwick went operational Jan. 27. An Airtours International Airbus A321 operating from Las Palmas to Birmingham became the first flight to be handled by the new GBP623 million center, which is operated by National Air Traffic Services.
Lee County, Fla., Port Authority secured the last permit needed to start construction of the new Midfield Terminal Complex at Southwest Florida Airport in Fort Myers. The $386 million project, slated for completion in 2005, will be built south of the airport's runway and includes a two-story, 28-gate terminal, a new taxiway, and related roadways. The project also includes creation of an off-site park that will preserve 7,000 acres of "environmentally sensitive land."
Low-fare airlines will play only a minor role in the short to medium term at Paris Orly Airport, after all but one no-frills airline were left out of the reallocation process of 20,000 yearly slots. The slots became available following the collapse of the former AOM-Air Liberte last year. According to industry sources, successor Air Lib will retain 8,000 of the 20,000 slots for its own operation. A total of 2,000 will go to French civil aviation authority DGAC for redistribution favoring services into French regions.
Hawaiian Airlines signed a 20-year contract with Pratt&Whitney Aftermarket Services to provide a fleet management program for its PW4060-powered 767-300ER aircraft. The contract covers 36 engines and has an estimated value of $325 million. Overhaul and maintenance work will be done at Pratt's Cheshire Engine Center in Connecticut.
Red-M of Wexham Springs, England, said it is working with tracking technology specialists Blue Tags to test an advanced wireless security system "that will revolutionize passenger process and security measures at airports around the world. Red-M said the test is taking place at Billund Airport, Denmark.
U.S. and Chinese officials yesterday concluded two days of informal talks in Beijing aimed at exploring whether there was "enough potential common ground" to move forward with formal negotiations, according to a U.S. official. U.S. officials found that there was "sufficiently positive" response from their Chinese counterparts to propose formal talks for late April, sources said. The Chinese agreed to check with their airlines and other parties and get back to the U.S.
Baltimore/Washington Airport's Pier B was evacuated for 90 minutes yesterday when FAA officials got word of a security breach. Initial reports said a baggage screener saw something suspicious in a carry-on bag, but did not stop the passenger in time. But Argenbright Security said that the screening device "malfunctioned and the suspected item was not a danger." Still, as a precaution, FAA ordered the evacuation and rescreening of some 1,500 people from the concourse, which is used only by Southwest.
A passenger's failed attempt to gain access to a United Boeing 777 cockpit during a flight from Miami to Buenos Aires early yesterday morning is perhaps the most compelling evidence yet that industry efforts to temporarily reinforce cockpit doors were prudent.
Fellow British no-frills airlines EasyJet and Go continued their rapid expansion in January. EasyJet carried 700,500 passengers, up 30.7% from January 2001. Its load factor improved to 81.9% from 74.3% but was lower than average in the last 12 months, 84%. Go carried 319,300 passengers, up 74.2%, but showed a comparatively weak load factor at 66.4%, versus 59.3% in January 2001.
JetBlue will launch its previously planned service from Washington Dulles to Oakland and Long Beach on May 1. The carrier will operate two daily flights on each route. JetBlue was planning to start the service late last year, but postponed it following Sept. 11. No airline currently serves Dulles nonstop from Long Beach or Oakland.
Continental last week took delivery of its ninth Boeing 767-400ER. The new aircraft features 35 BusinessFirst seats and 200 seats in economy, an increase of 63 seats from the carrier's internationally configured Boeing 757-200. The plane is the airline's third of 10 767-400ERs scheduled for delivery this year. Continental on Monday took delivery of its first 737-800 for 2002, bringing its total of the type to 74. Also on Monday, Continental took delivery of its third 757-300, the first this year.
A NASA blueprint document released this week calls for immediate action on a range of airspace modernization programs, refuting federal auditors who recently warned agencies to slow down such efforts. "If we act now, the American people and the U.S.
United Hub Profile Denver Origin and Destinations, Segment Summary and Top Nonstop Markets Origination and Destination Data 12 Months 12 Months Ended June Ended June 2001 1997 Denver Total (All Carriers) O&D Passengers 17,849,200 15,097,340 18.2% Passengers Per 24,451 20,681 Day Each Way
The cockpit security upgrade kit being developed by Timco and AIM Aviation Inc. (DAILY, Feb. 6) will use Honeywell's Spectra fiber to reinforce doors. "To minimize weight, we wanted a ballistic material that could be incorporated into our panel construction," said Timco VP-Engineering Rick Salanitri.
