Singapore Airlines reached a deal with Boeing to defer the delivery of five 777s and one 747-400 freighter. Of the five 777s, two are firm orders and three are options. The 747-400 freighter aircraft that will be deferred also is a firm order. Deliveries of the two 777s on firm order, which had been due in August and September, are now planned for August 2003 and November 2002. The new delivery dates for the three 777s on option are between June 2006 and June 2008.
An Ecuadorian Boeing 727-100 crashed near Ipiales, Colombia, in the Andes mountains yesterday with 94 people on board. As evening approached, rescuers were still working to reach the wreckage. Tame Flight 120 departed Quito at 10:03 a.m. on a domestic flight to Tulcan, about 110 miles away and a few miles south of Ipiales. The plane was lost about 20 minutes later, soon after contacting Tulcan air traffic control, reports said. The Tulcan area was shrouded in fog at the time of the crash, and some reports said the destination airport was closed.
As part of its restructuring program, Malaysia Airlines (MAS) will separate its international passenger and cargo operations from its domestic operations. The change involves setting up a new company, which MAS will grant an exclusive concession to market the passenger capacity for international flights and cargo capacity for international and domestic services. MAS applied to the Securities Commission in Kuala Lumpur to transfer the listing status of the carrier to the new company, which will be a subsidiary of the airline.
WestJet posted C$9.4 million (US$5.9 million) in fourth quarter 2001 profit, up 14.3% from the same 2000 period. CEO Clive Beddoe said that the events of Sept. 11 caused only a slight decline in the company's load factor and yield, and that the airline is committed to taking delivery of more Boeing 737-700 aircraft this year. For the year ended Dec. 31, 2001, net profit increased 23.0% to C$37.2 million ($23.1 million).
Continental Express will furlough another 250 pilots, beginning in April at a rate of 50 per month. This follows by 10 days an announcement by Continental Airlines that it is furloughing 100 pilots. Combined, the number of pilots let go will reach 1,176 by next August, according to Patrick Burke, chairman of the ALPA unit, which represents the 6,800 pilots of Continental and Express. Continental has noted that only 539 of the 826 pilots furloughed are actually without jobs, with the balance moving to Express to fly small jets.
United in April plans to boost some of its Asia/Pacific service with the resumption of some flights and aircraft upgrades. The DAILY has learned the airline's nonstop Chicago-Beijing service, which was canceled last year, will resume in April with a Boeing 777. The airline expects to add a second Chicago O'Hare-Tokyo flight operated with a 747-400. Its second daily San Francisco-Tokyo flight will be upgraded from a 777 to a 747-400.
Spanish public works ministry on Friday fined Iberia EUR137,000 for canceling all flights on July 13 in response to a massive pilot resignation. The ministry said that contrary to Iberia's claims, passenger safety was not at risk, even though 99 of the company's 208 pilots decided to walk out, in the context of a long conflict with the airline's management. "The suspension of all flights was the only decision that we could make at the time and the situation justified it," Iberia Chairman Xabier de Irala said.
Conversion of the former El Toro Marine Corps facility to a commercial airport would help meet demand by Orange County, Calif., residents for air services, which threaten to overwhelm Los Angeles Airport, proponents of the county plan say. Representatives of the El Toro Local Redevelopment Authority (LRA), who met last week with DOT, FAA and Defense Department officials, rebutted claims by opponents of the proposed Orange County International airport (OCX) that airspace congestion based on service projections would exclude the airport from FAA funding.
Alaska Air Group reported a fourth quarter net loss of $36.4 million, including more than $60 million in government grants and one-time charges, but the airline is on track to restore its full schedule by early February. Excluding the special gains and charges, the company lost $62.9 million in the period, slightly more than analyst expectations. "Of course, it's always disappointing to produce negative results, but relative to the industry, we certainly can't complain," said CEO John Kelly.
British low-fare airline Go selected six routes it plans to fly from East Midlands Airport. The airline will operate to Faro, Malaga, Alicante, Belfast, Prague and Glasgow, starting March 14. Go will compete against BMI British Midland's new subsidiary Bmibaby on three routes to Malaga, Faro and Alicante. Bmibaby will start services March 23. Go said it will offer 10,000 tickets on about 500 flights for free and as introductory offers, starting at 25 British pounds, about US$36.
DOT Secretary Norman Mineta has led efforts to build a strong policy shop. A White House source now says the directive was "premature" and reflected a "failure to follow process from this end of the world." The directive was revoked by the OSTP "in order to allow for additional interagency consultation that may preclude the necessity for a formalized Interagency Working Group."
Boeing is putting together a supplier team to define the performance and economic and environmental requirements of the Sonic Cruiser concept. The company plans to announce technology team members during the first half of this year. This first round of supplier selections will not include decisions on design or manufacturing work.
UAL's Avolar business jet subsidiary "is open and doing business" a spokesman said Friday, adding that the company's plans to reach a deal with outside investors this quarter are on track. An article in Friday's USA Today headlined "United willing to fold business-jet venture," caused a stir about prospects for the startup fractional ownership program. The article focused on comments from union leaders who attended recent meetings with United CEO Jack Creighton.
Rejection on Friday by American/British Airways of the conditions outlined in DOT's order tentatively approving antitrust immunity for their alliance -- as well as for United/BMI British Midland -- led to cancellation by the U.K. of negotiations that were scheduled to begin today and cast into doubt U.S.-U.K. open skies. American and BA, which had pressed DOT for quick action, said, "The conditions laid down by the U.S. government do not make sense for either company. We will not acquiesce to unrealistic, and in our view, unnecessary demands.
The Airport Movement Area Safety System (AMASS) was credited Friday by the National Air Traffic Controllers Association for issuing alerts on two occasions at Boston Logan. In the first incident last June, a business jet that landed ahead of an Airbus A300 began to taxi but mistakenly remained on the active runway.
40 years ago Feb. 2, 1962: American this weekend shifts its Chicago operations to O'Hare from Midway, where traffic has fallen from 10 million-plus passengers in 1959 to 3.5 million in 1961, while O'Hare has risen from 2.1 million to 9.5 million. 10 years ago Jan. 29, 1992 : David Hinson, former chairman of Midway, which ceased operations in November 1991, has been named VP-marketing and business development at Douglas Aircraft. 5 years ago
American Trans Air has exercised options for two more Boeing 757-300s for delivery in 2003. ATA was the North American launch customer and said it is the only operator of the "performance enhanced" Rolls-Royce RB 211-535-E4C engines. Boeing Capital Corp. agreed to provide lease financing on the two aircraft, which have a list price of $166 million. The carrier operates five of the aircraft with a fleet-wide reliability of 99.5%.
Additional furloughs at United are likely in March. United's planned average aircraft block hours will be about 24%-27% below last year on a month-over-month basis. For the full year, block hours will be 22% below 2001. To date, UAL has furloughed 600 pilots.
FAA in the coming days plans to release individual carrier results from the special ATOS-based audits done on nine U.S. majors following the January 2000 crash of an Alaska Airlines MD-83 (DAILY, June 30, 2000). General summaries of the findings were put out in December 2000, and FAA originally planned to release the individual reports around the same time. But the carriers, fearful of a public backlash over some unflattering findings, lobbied successfully to have the release pushed off.
The outbreak of terrorism last fall continues to impact air travel in Europe, heightening a grave situation for the airport industry, reported Philippe Hamon, director general of ACI Europe. Medium-size and smaller airports showed traffic declines in double-digits at year's end and the five major airports, less affected, still reported traffic off 6.8% in December compared to last year. "Our industry is in severe difficulty."
French police stopped American and Charles de Gaulle Airport officials from using explosives detection devices that could have thwarted suspected terrorist Richard Reid's attempt to set off explosives in his shoes on an American flight in December, House aviation subcommittee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) said at a hearing on aviation security. The incident raises questions about international cooperation and uniform security procedures and equipment, he added.
Chile and Peru expect to sign an open-skies agreement by May, subject to final approval by Peru's president and Chile's congress. In the meantime, the neighboring countries will continue serving current routes and frequencies until March 31.
