Rolls-Royce signed a 180 million pound (US$256.5 million) engine repair and overhaul contract with charter carrier Britannia Airways to maintain the airline's fleet of RB211-535E4-powered Boeing 757s.
American last week exercised the right to purchase two additional Boeing aircraft -- one 757-200 and one 737-800 -- for delivery in the first half of 2002. Both aircraft were part of the airline's larger fleet order, for which American was obligated to exercise options this month. American has 107 aircraft on order for delivery through 2003, and holds the purchase rights for an additional 61 Boeing aircraft for delivery through 2003. When these airplanes are delivered, American will have a total of 123 757s and 113 737s in its fleet.
AeroMexico's Harald Bomberg, U.S. senior VP, will retire from the airline by yearend after nearly four decades in the airline industry. No replacement has been named. "We are very sorry to see Harald leave the airline, but he has certainly earned his retirement," said AeroMexico CEO Arturo Barahona. "Under his leadership, AeroMexico has expanded its presence in the U.S. and built a first-class operation. Bomberg joined AeroMexico in 1997 and grew its U.S. operation. Among his many roles, Bomberg had been head of Latin America for Lufthansa.
America West remains singularly focused during the next year on improving its struggling operation, but senior executives warned yesterday that it still faces high fuel costs and soaring overcapacity at its second largest hub, Las Vegas. The airline's operations hit a low point this summer as its flight completion factor for July was a dismal 94%. Most airlines complete more than 99% of flights. President Doug Parker reported that September brought much improved results and the airline's reshuffled group of senior executives is committed to a long-term turnaround.
Embraer signed an agreement with Russia's TsAGI, an aviation research center, to develop its aircraft programs. Embraer has been using TsAGI's wind tunnel since last June to fine tune its ERJ 170/190 regional jet series, and has used Russian computer-based aerodynamic and aeroelastic laboratories.
Sun Country has signed a one-year contract extension with AeroThrust Corp. worth $3 million to provide engine maintenance services. Sun Country operates 14 Boeing 727s and three DC-10s and will lease eight 737-800s with delivery beginning in January.
SAS took delivery of its 11th Boeing 737-800 last week. The aircraft was the airline's first to have an "intra-Euro" cabin configuration. The new seating system, developed by Boeing, allows the airline to change the number of seats in its business and economy classes, depending on demand. The plane has powered, "variable-geometry" seats that can be moved from standard six-abreast economy seating to a spacious five-abreast business-class configuration. The SAS 737-800 will seat 132 to 150 passengers and feature an "extra-large lavatory" with two windows.
Fine Air Services Corp. obtained final approval last Friday for a two-year, $55 million line of secured financing from Banc of America, its current lending institution. The credit was approved by a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge in Miami, where Fine Air and its subsidiaries, including Arrow Air, have been operating under Chapter 11 reorganization protection since Sept. 27 (DAILY, Sept. 29). "This credit facility ensures that Fine Air will have substantial financial resources during the entire reorganization process," the airline said.
AeroMexico's U.S. gateway list will increase to 12 on Dec. 12 when it inaugurates three weekly flights from Ontario, Calif., to Guadalajara and Mexico City. Flights will be operated with MD-82 aircraft.
Top 25 Domestic City-Pair Markets Over 750 Miles First Quarter 2000 Long 4Q99 Average Haul Mkt Nonstop Pax Top Carrier Rank Rank City-Pair Mileage Per/Day (% Share) 1 2 Los Angeles - New York 2,467 6,992 American (35.1) 2 3 Fort Lauderdale - New Yo 1,068 6,903 Delta (33.4) 3 5 New York - Orlando 947 6,639 Delta (44.6)
Air Transport Association Cargo Traffic September 2000 Revenue Ton Miles (000) September September % 2000 1999 Change Domestic Freight 880,045 889,257 (1.0) Mail 165,121 163,208 1.2 Total 1,045,166 1,052,465 (0.7) International
Emilio Cabrera, newly appointed CEO of Aerolineas Argentinas, said he will try to renegotiate as soon as possible about $250 million of the carrier's debt that carries interest rates over 10%. He also is asking employees to consider voluntary retirement and will review routes to cut those not breaking even. The airline's debt totals $874 million and only a cash injection of $208 million from its majority Spanish shareholder in July managed to keep it flying. Cabrera's intention to cancel routes is strongly opposed by flight attendants.
Cathay Pacific and Internet firm Tenzing Communications yesterday said they successfully demonstrated inflight e-mail and Internet use on a Boeing 747. Text messages and a digital photograph were sent as part of the test on a flight from Hong Kong to Seoul. When the service is available in the second quarter of 2001, Cathay said it will be the first airline to offer passengers inflight e-mail and Internet service across its fleet.
United is introducing wireless booking and ticketing, the first airline to offer the service. The new service is offered by United NetWorks, a division of United NewVentures, a subsidiary of UAL Corp. The booking tool lets registered travelers purchase an electronic ticket for United, United Shuttle or United Express flights originating in the U.S. Travelers also can view itineraries and check departure times and seat assignments. Preferred seating, meal and wheelchair requirements are also part of the wireless feature.
While there may be no end in sight to the U.S. presidential race, a breakthrough could occur today in the tight Washington Senate race between Republican Sen. Slade Gorton, chairman of the Senate aviation subcommittee, and former Rep. Maria Cantwell. Washington state election officials will be counting ballots today and are not expected to finish before Thursday or Friday, although trends could be evident today when ballots are counted for King County, which includes Democratic stronghold Seattle.
AirTran Holdings received a firm commitment from Boeing Capital Services Corp. to provide financing to the carrier that, when signed and combined with internally generated funds, will be enough to pay off the $150 million of the carrier's outstanding 10.25% senior notes due April 2001 and the $80 million of outstanding 10.5 senior secured notes also due April 2001. Thanks to the deal with Boeing, the airline will terminate the outstanding tender offers and solicitations for the notes that started Oct. 27.
China has refuted media reports that political reasons has caused the government to put on hold a plan to buy 30 Airbus A320s. An official at the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) speaking to The DAILY said there is no plan to place orders for any aircraft at the moment, since the consolidation of 34 airlines is in progress. He indicated that any plans to buy new aircraft from Europe and the U.S. only will be finalized once the mergers are completed. This is expected to be during the third quarter of 2001.
Varig traffic for September jumped 20.4% to 2.3 billion revenue passenger kilometers after rising 19.6% in August. Traffic is up 11.0% so far this year and freight volume rose 15.6%, including 16.9% in September. Passenger load factor was 75.4% internationally and 63.3% on domestic routes. Varig carried 909,192 passengers last month, a rise of 12.3%.
TWA Chairman Gerald Gitner was named to the board of Factory Card Outlet Corp. The Illinois-based company operates 177 retail stores selling party supplies and greeting cards. Factory Card Outlet filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in March 1999 and is currently operating as a debtor-in-possession.
Two studies released recently, both partially funded by United, tout the benefits of airline consolidation and globalization. Even though both reports were released within days of each other and buttress United's position with respect to the potential merger with US Airways, United officials said their support for academic studies is nothing unusual. The reports would have been completed "regardless of what issues were on the table for United," a spokeswoman told The DAILY.
Lockheed Martin Air Traffic Management said the Argentine air force has declared its new ATC system fully operational. The Lockheed Martin SkyLine system is now available for unrestricted use to control air traffic at the Ezeiza Air Control Center serving Buenos Aires. It allows controllers to perform area, approach and traffic flow functions, integrating data from four different radars and making it available to all working positions.
TRAFFIC DATA FOR OCTOBER 2000 RPMs Change ASMs Change In From In From Load Airline Billions 10/99 Billions 10/99 Factor Northwest 6.49 +3.2% 8.62 +2.4% 75.2% TWA 2.23 +3.7% 3.13 +3.5% 71.2% United 10.94 -0.4% 15.38 +0.2% 71.1%
