Atlas Air this week signed a lease with the Alaska CargoPort for 4,491 square feet of warehouse space and 5,342 square feet of office space. The move aims to unite Atlas Air's Anchorage operations, enabling the carrier to lower costs at its transpacific cargo hub. Atlas Air will move its operations to the CargoPort by yearend. The carrier operates an average of 70 flights per week from Anchorage.
Virgin Atlantic plans to relocate its U.S. call center operation to Stamford, Conn., in January. Moving from Norwalk, Conn., the call center will occupy a 22,000-square-foot building. More than 150 employees will move to the new facility, with more than 250 remaining in Norwalk. "When we moved to Norwalk five years ago, we expected that we had enough space for at least 10 years," said Executive VP David Tait. "We have grown faster than we ever could have predicted.
United Chairman Jim Goodwin yesterday reported that the carrier's operations "are back to normal" and that he plans to ramp up its schedule to the capacity levels it flew before its summer labor dispute. The airline was forced to start reducing its capacity beginning in April due to a pilot shortage across its system. During the summer, United had removed thousands of flights from its schedule -- the equivalent of 32 aircraft at one point. The airline has now increased the level to roughly 24 spare aircraft, but by Jan.
American wants an exemption to fly Chicago-Cancun nonstop on a seasonal basis. The carrier plans Saturday and Sunday service on the route from Feb. 3 through March 25, using Boeing 737-800 aircraft configured for 134 passengers. No U.S. carrier operates nonstops on the route, American noted, although several carriers offer one-stop service. (Docket OST-00-8101)
The Teamsters and AirTran plan to sign a new five-year contract today in Washington. The deal, ratified Oct. 9, affects about 350 aircraft mechanics and inspectors.
National Transportation Safety Board sent investigators Monday to look into the crash of a twin-engine Cessna 335 in Jefferson County, Mo., that killed Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan and two others, including his son who was the pilot of the piston-powered aircraft. Member Carol Carmody, who heads the team, said the pilot had filed a flight plan and was operating under instrument flight rules.
AIRCRAFT TRANSACTIONS FOR AUGUST 1 - 3, 2000 Seller/ New Type / Previous Operator Owner Engine Operator Rheintalflug Air Jamaica Bombardier DHC-8-100 Holdings Dash 8/ PW121 Embraer American American Embraer
Creation of Potomac Air will ensure that DC Air is ready to launch once the United-US Airways merger is approved, Potomac told DOT yesterday, rebutting AirTran's comments on the proposed US Airways subsidiary. Potomac's "carefully crafted transition plan" is designed to ensure a "smooth and efficient transfer" of divested US Airways operations at Washington National Airport following the merger, with DC Air operating as an "independent carrier" at DCA.
Delta earned $273 million in its fiscal fourth quarter, excluding one-time items, down 3.2% from the year-earlier period due higher fuel costs, but revenues soared thanks to strong traffic and a yield management system. Counting the unusual items, Delta's net income of $133 million down 52.3%. The airline took a $141 million non-cash, charge, reflecting the decline in fair value of certain equity instruments and change in accounting for premiums paid on fuel hedges.
Cooperation agreements between Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines, as well as accords between Austrian and SAS on frequent flyer programs, scheduling, code sharing and pricing are expected to undergo intense scrutiny after the European Commission sent out "letters of serious doubts" to the three carriers involved. Industry sources expect the EC to ask for a high price if it is to approve the two agreements, which are vital to the development of the Star Alliance in Europe.
KLM and Transavia plan to boost their Amsterdam-Portugal services next year. Starting Jan. 1, KLM will operate twice-daily nonstop service between Amsterdam and Lisbon, replacing the current circle route via Oporto. Transavia will introduce once-daily Amsterdam-Oporto nonstop roundtrips beginning April 1. The changes are due to rising levels of traffic between the Dutch and Portuguese capitals, the airlines said.
Southwest and its Transport Workers Union have put talks on hold because of a federal mediator's scheduling conflict, but they plan to resume negotiations at the end of October, said Southwest spokeswoman Linda Rutherford. TWU and Southwest have been in talks for more than 10 months. Saying he did not want employees to suffer because of the talks with TWU and because he did not foresee a quick resolution to the contract dispute, Southwest CEO Herb Kelleher as of Oct.
Taiwan will lift the 51-year ban on air links with China at the end of the year. A study undertaken and completed by the Taiwanese government's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has recommended that the ban should be lifted, with the islands of Matsu, Penhu and Kinmen initiating the first air links. With the proposed opening, trade could start on small scale, according Fu Dong Cheng, director of MAC's economic affairs department.
SkyWest will begin Salt Lake City-Phoenix service Dec. 1 with one daily roundtrip and a second to be added Jan. 31. Both will supplement existing service by partner Delta. SkyWest on Dec. 1 will launch service from Salt Lake to Albuquerque with three daily roundtrips and to Minneapolis/St. Paul with one. On Jan. 31, it will start Salt Lake-Sacramento service, offering two daily roundtrips. All flights will be operated with Canadair Regional Jets.
Virgin Atlantic has confirmed that it is talking to several sources that might supply it with additional Boeing 747-400s for its expansion plans. The airline said it wants to open "a couple of new routes" every year over the next few years and target daily services on the existing network without such flights. Virgin recently ordered two new 747-400s and stated that it is interested in buying Airbus A3XXs. It did not confirm or deny reports that it was negotiating to take over 747-400s from rival British Airways.
Ranking House Transportation Committee Democrat James Oberstar (Minn.) told the opening session of a China/U.S. aviation symposium this week in Washington that strong aviation competition from Chinese aviation will benefit both China and the U.S. "U.S. airlines need strong competition," he said. It is important that Chinese aviation master certain aviation management practices, such as yield management and code sharing, Oberstar said, so that when U.S. airlines come into China, the industries of both countries will reap rewards.
U.S. National Carriers Traffic as of September, 9 Months 2000 (000) September September % 2000 1999 Change Air Wisconsin Revenue Passenger Miles (000) 99,277 98,937 0.3 Available Seat Miles (000) 176,480 148,827 18.6 Load Factor (%) 56.3 66.5
Delta today will unveil plans to invest $1.6 billion to renovate and expand its New York Kennedy terminal facilities. CEO Leo Mullin will appear at a news conference with Gov. George Pataki to discuss the details of what is expected to be one of the largest airport investments in Delta's history. Separately, Delta and its SkyTeam partners today will extend an invitation to CSA Czech Airlines.
DOT granted Consorcio Aviaxsa an exemption for Houston-Monterey, Mexico, service. The carrier filed an application in March 1998 to add scheduled authority to its charter carrier permit, on which DOT has not acted. It also has exemption rights for scheduled service from Monterey to Las Vegas and Los Angeles. (Docket OST-00-8018)
AirTran will begin new Pittsburgh-New York LaGuardia, Chicago Midway and Atlanta service Dec. 12. The carrier initially will operate three daily nonstop flights from Pittsburgh to New York, three to Chicago and two to Atlanta.
GetThere Inc. has extended its online corporate travel booking system into the European market by introducing new functions that enable businesses to develop customized online travel systems in French and German. GetThere claims to be the first global vendor to develop features within its booking tool, called DirectCorporate, that allows for the appropriate language, currency and calendar dates of a respective region to be displayed, while also providing schedules and negotiated rates with European carriers.
Travelocity.com launched of the first worldwide mobile flight booking tool, as well as a rebooking capability. Consumers can access the wireless flight booking tool for more than 95% of all airline seats sold, and flight booking is available through Travelocity.com's mobile commerce partners, including AT&T Wireless Services, British Telecom, Nextel and Vodafone, and wireless hand-held devices from OmniSky and Palm. The company also plans to introduce its flight rebooking tool through its partners by the end of the month.
LanPeru has begun daily service from its Lima hub to New York, using Boeing 767-300s under a wet-lease agreement with LanChile. The flights connect in Miami in both directions. LanPeru also will expand domestically with new service between Lima and Juliaca.
"judiciary authority" to decide the aircraft engine noise dispute between the U.S. and the European Union and that, as in most courts, the council's decision can be appealed. In an interview, Kotaite said that ICAO "in this case, will not sit as a political body but like a judge and the decision can be appealed to the International Court of Justice." ICAO is "now in the judiciary process," he said, and judiciary procedures are under way. The EU has appealed the Article 84 filed by the U.S. against its new noise rules barring Chapter 3 hushkitted aircraft, and the U.S.
AirTran Holdings' third quarter profits soared 127% to $8.9 million due to record revenues, strong traffic growth, and solid cost control. The comparison does not include a one-time gain in 1999 due to a litigation settlement. Despite a 97% increase in fuel expenses, the airline's net income topped analysts' average estimate and was the company's seventh consecutive profitable quarter before special items. "We learned how to manage our revenue and have found the formula that works best for us," CEO Joe Leonard told The DAILY yesterday.
