WestJet will introduce service to London, Ontario, from Calgary, starting Feb. 7. The service will fly nonstop and connect from Winnipeg with destinations throughout Western Canada. WestJet also will add twice-daily nonstops between Winnipeg and Edmonton Feb. 7. Bill Lamberton, VP-marketing and sales, said London is WestJet's 21st destination and will allow customers "the luxury of avoiding travel congestion in Toronto when flying between London and Western Canada."
America West yesterday amended its federal loan application for a second time in an effort to secure desperately needed funding. The carrier's amended application includes a revised loan structure that reduces the loan guarantee portion from $400 million to $380 million, or approximately 85% of the $445 million loan, and now includes lenders with "no material interest in or exposure to the company." It also revised its seven-year business plan to reflect actual 2001 financial performance, "which is better than forecast in the company's original application."
Roberto Dromi, former minister of public works in Argentina's Menem administration, has been subpoenaed by a federal judge in Buenos Aires to testify this week in the seven-year-long trail stemming from alleged "gutting" of Aerolineas Argentinas. Lawyers are attempting to show how the carrier was deprived of equipment and material assets when it was managed by Iberia on behalf of Spanish shareholders who bought it after privatization in 1990.
Jonathan Howe will rejoin Zuckert Scoutt&Rasenberger after his four-year term as director general of the Airports Council International expires on Jan. 1. Howe will be a senior policy adviser and executive VP of Farragut International, the firm's consulting affiliate.
Northwest plans to slowly add capacity back to its network in coming months and has already decided not to furlough as many pilots as previously expected. Both Northwest and American will call back workers. "We will be bigger in January than we were in December," President Doug Steenland told The DAILY in Detroit this week. A lot of Northwest's growth will be determined by "underlying economics," Steenland said, and decisions are made on a month-to-month basis.
Continental next spring plans to resume its daily service between Cleveland and London Gatwick and boost seasonal service to Florida. The airline will begin Cleveland-London flights on April 15, a month ahead of schedule, officials said. The route was suspended after Sept. 11, but CEO Gordon Bethune said the decision to resume the flights in April is due to the "tremendous support" from the Cleveland business community. The route will be served with Boeing 757s in a two-class configuration.
Mexico's Aerolitoral, which serves 33 destinations in Mexico and 9 in the U.S. from its base in Monterrey, has entered into a code-sharing agreement with Delta. According to Aerolitoral CEO Raul Saenz, "this should enhance service for both companies by offering passengers new and better flight options."
Dutch Transport Ministry has approved of a EUR24.9 million compensation payment to KLM to cover lost revenues immediately after the Sept. 11 events. KLM had applied for EUR52 million.
American's cargo division reported new tonnage records last week. On Dec. 11, American's flight from Madrid to Miami moved 45,280 pounds in 12 positions of revenue freight, with three positions occupied by baggage. On Dec. 13, the carrier broke the record again, moving 49,674 pounds on the same route. Both flights were served with Boeing 767-300s.
Transbrasil, grounded recently, is unable to get the Brazilian government to guarantee payment of its $4.5 million debt to Petrobras for fuel, and industry analysts in Brazil this week see no way for Transbrasil to fly again. The company has a $330 million debt, no liquid assets, its last three aircraft were sold to pay back salaries and the airline has lost all credibility with consumers. Its chances for recovery are negligible even if Brazil would give aid to the country's airline industry.
Northwest plans to expand its dedicated airport security checkpoints for exclusive frequent flyers from the previously announced 25 to 30. The airline currently operates 19. The dedicated security checkpoint lanes accommodate customers traveling on business class and domestic first class, and WorldPerks customers who have reached premier status. Lanes are now operating at Northwest's Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul and Memphis hubs and in Seattle, Los Angeles and Chicago O'Hare.
The new PW6000 engine for the first production Airbus A318s is running into fuel burn problems that could delay its introduction into service. The PW6000-powered A318 was to be delivered to ILFC in late 2002. A Pratt&Whitney spokesman said yesterday, "We do have an efficiency problem in the high-pressure compressor," but the engine company said it is "not prepared to comment on a potential time delay." Pratt also would not comment on "what the fuel burn miss might be" although reports from Toulouse indicate it is about 6% over specifications.
Boston-Maine Airways received final approval from FAA to start Part 121 scheduled passenger air service. The Portsmouth, N.H.-based airline company has operated as a Part 135 charter carrier since its formation in March of 1999. The carrier intends to operate Jetstream 31 turboprop service in cooperation with Pan Am. Already delayed several times, Boston-Maine will launch state-subsidized air service from Baltimore/Washington Airport to the two western Maryland cities of Hagerstown and Cumberland (DAILY, Nov. 26).
JetBlue yesterday added its 10th flight between New York Kennedy and Fort Lauderdale and its fifth between JFK and West Palm Beach. Tomorrow it will add a third flight between JFK and Fort Myers and the airline plans to add a fifth daily JFK-Orlando flight Feb. 8 and a fourth JFK-Tampa flight March 10.
Nikko Hotels International recently joined Northwest's WorldPerks frequent flyer program. Nikko Hotels is operated by JAL Hotels Company, a subsidiary of Japan Airlines.
NTSB members were briefed Monday on a review of the board's controversial probable cause in American Eagle's ATR icing accident.The French and the FAA had asked the board to reconsider the probable cause. Indications are that the review found problems with the original decision. It remains to be seen whether new Chairman Marion Blakey will vote for changing or preserving NTSB's original, though possibly flawed, conclusion.
Airport industry groups already are looking ahead to fiscal 2004, when current funding rules passed under AIR-21 expire, according to a top industry lobbyist. Todd Hauptli, senior VP for legislative affairs for American Association of Airport Executives and Airports Council International-North America, said yesterday that everyone should expect "another hard battle between appropriators and authorizers" over funding levels and spending guarantees.
Japan Air System awarded a 10-year fleet management contract valued at $204 million to Pratt&Whitney Aftermarket Services for the 18 PW4074 powerplants on its Boeing 777 aircraft.
While carriers serving Washington National airport are waiting to hear from DOT on when they can resume additional pre-Sept. 11 services, US Airways has listed on its website nonstop flights to at least two points that are not authorized under Phases 1 and 2 of restarted DCA operations.
Air France took delivery of the first of eight Airbus A330-200s. The newly delivered aircraft will enter service by yearend on the Paris-Boston route. The second A330 will start on the airline's daily Paris-Toronto flight on Jan. 6. The aircraft will have a three-class configuration and feature new business-class seats. The A330s will replace Air France's A310-200s and -300s, as well Boeing 767-300s. The new A330s are powered by GE CF6-80E engines. Air France now operates all existing Airbus models and is a launch customer for the A380.
Moody's Investors Service recently downgraded the long-term unsecured debt rating of Boeing and the long- and short-term debt ratings of Boeing Capital Corp. Moody's said the downgrades reflect "the potential negative implications of the materially weakened commercial aerospace market" on Boeing's and BCC's operating performance. The ratings agency acknowledged that Boeing has taken "aggressive action" to respond to the difficult business environment, and growth in defense and space units should also provide an important offset.
United and Northwest yesterday introduced an interline electronic ticketing agreement that lets customers use one e-ticket for travel on both carriers. The deal makes it easier for passengers to re-book from one carrier to another rather than being required to convert to paper tickets.
Air Sahara, India's third-largest domestic airline after Indian Airlines and Jet Airways, has decided to go ahead with its fleet expansion plans. The group has come up with financial means to finance fleet acquisition. CEO Uttam Kumar Bose said the company would acquire four new planes, two Boeing 737-700s and two brand new 737-400s, by the end of December on dry-lease basis. The majority of the capital needed would be met by internal accruals, and the rest would be raised by borrowing from financial institutions.
