TNT International named Ian Butler, VP-networks and operations, Curtis Watson VP-sales and marketing, Mark O'Dell VP-finance and administration and Joe Schaffer VP-human resources.
FAA Southern Region selected Michael Willingham, director of the Sebring, Fla., Airport Authority, the 1999 General Aviation Airport Manager of the Year.
FAA plans to hold a workshop on runway incursion March 27-29 in Los Angeles, an agency spokesman said Friday. No date was set for a national event. DOT Secretary Rodney Slater testified last week on plans for a California and national conference. Transportation appropriations subcommittee Chairman Frank Wolf (R-Va.) wants the conferences to produce "focused recommendations" to reduce runway incursions.
Introduced Feb. 7 by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) for himself and 13 others, to amend Title 49, U.S. Code, to clarify application of the act known as the "Death on the High Seas Act" to aviation incidents. Commerce, Science and Transportation
FAA is preparing to fine Delta Aviation, Gaithersburg, Md., $75,000 for allegedly shipping an oxygen generator in an unmarked box on Federal Express. FAA said the oxygen generator did not have a safety device.
Atlantic Southeast Airlines will introduce nonstop Canadair Regional Jet service between Savannah, Ga., and its Dallas/Fort Worth hub, offering three daily flights, beginning July 1. On the same day, the Delta subsidiary will begin three daily nonstops between Amarillo, Texas, and DFW.
Qantas's first-half profit surged 52.2% as the carrier lowered its costs and consolidated several routes. The after-tax profit of A$338 million (US$213 million) included an extraordinary gain of A$82 million (US$52 million) from the sale of its Equant holdings and an abnormal tax credit due to a change in the corporate tax structure. Pre-tax profit rose 33.4% to A$473 million (US$299 million) on A$4.5 billion (US$2.8 billion) in revenues.
Uruguayan carrier Pluna observed its fifth year of privatization with profits of $3 million. Controlled 51% by Brazil's Varig and 49% by government of Uruguay, the airline had losses of $24 million the last year it was run by the government. When taking over the majority of shares, Varig secured support from its public-sector partners to increase productivity and cut costs, policies that lifted the carrier to profitability for the first time in its history.
U.S. National Carriers Traffic January, 12 Months 2000 (000) January January % 2000 1999 Change Air Wisconsin Revenue Passenger Miles (000) 90,699 76,069 19.2 Available Seat Miles (000) 161,015 125,528 28.3 Load Factor (%) 56.3 60.6
Delta unveiled plans yesterday to eliminate all turboprop aircraft from its Cincinnati hub, beginning Dec. 1. Working with subsidiary Comair, Delta said it will offer only jet service to and from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport, making the airport "the premier provider of regional jet service" in North America. Comair operates 90 Canadair Regional Jets, the largest RJ fleet in the world. Comair pioneered the RJ trend in the U.S. in 1993, when it launched RJ service from Cincinnati.
The British government has failed to make a case for a public/private partnership for the National Air Traffic Services, but a trust model, like the one adopted by Nav Canada, would "meet the main objectives of the public/private partnership, freeing NATS to borrow on the private market and separating the company more clearly from its regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority," a House of Commons panel said.
SAS placed orders yesterday for 12 Airbus A321-100s with options for 10 additional aircraft, for its domestic and European routes. The A321 represents a new size class in the SAS fleet and does not replace any existing type of aircraft. "The decision shows that we are serious about our expansion plans, said Chief Executive Jan Stenberg. The new aircraft will complement its new A330-300s and A340-300 which will be used on its long-haul routes. "We will also expand and take market share in traffic to and from Europe," he said.
Delta, AeroMexico and Air France plan to announce their partnership in April, along with the tangible benefits the alliance will offer passengers, according to Jorge Fernandez, Delta regional director-Latin America. "Of the 106 million passengers Delta carried last year, "between 6% and 8% corresponded to the Mexican market, which is a key part of Delta's expansion in Latin America," he added. Early this month, Delta inaugurated a flight from Atlanta to Cancun.
National Transportation Safety Board yesterday sent investigators to the crash site of an Emery Worldwide DC-8-71 cargo plane. It was the third takeoff crash and fourth hull loss for Emery since 1991, according to AvData Inc. of Wichita. The aircraft had just departed Mather Air Force Base, Calif., early yesterday when the crew reported problems with a shifting load and said it was returning to Mather to make an emergency landing. The DC-8, with captain, first officer and flight engineer aboard, crashed into an auto scrap yard one mile east of the airfield.
Negotiations are under way in Managua for Monte Limar Airport, owned by Spanish hotel chain Barcelo, to revert to the state in exchange for taxes owed Barcelo to the government. Barcelo operates a hotel nearby, but authorities claim it is not taking full advantage of the airport's facilities. The move is part of the government's plans to modernize airports at Puerto Cabezas, Bluefields and Corn Island, all needed to tap international tourism.
Ogden Corp., a minority stockholder in the consortium Aeropuertos Argentina 2000 (AA2000), is attempting to reconcile in the differences between majority shareholders, Argentina's Eurnekian group and Italy's Societa Esercizi Aeroportuali (SEA). According to DAILY affiliate Aviation Latin America&Caribbean, the dispute involves the shareholders' respective equity positions. AA2000 holds a concession contract from the Argentine government to manage and improve 33 airports.
Air New Zealand's six-month after-tax profit jumped 54% to NZ$127.2 (US$62.6 million) despite a significant increase in fuel prices. The carrier reported a strong boost in traffic during the period ending Dec. 31 thanks to its membership in the Star Alliance. The result includes non-recurring gains of about NZ$78.6 million (US$38.7 million) from trades with partner Ansett Australia. ANZ highlighted improved demand in Asian markets, "reflecting the strong recovery in the Asian economies." Load factors to Asia grew 8.2%.
National Investment Bank of Jamaica, which is handling the divestment process for the government, announced the short list of four bidders chosen among 13 for the concession to manage the island's Sangster Airport. They are Airport Development Corp. Consortium, Consortium for the 21st Century, HP Development Consortium and LCR and Vancouver Airport Services. The bank expects a final selection by mid-year.
Alitalia Chief Executive Domenico Cempella told a parliamentary hearing that Thai Airways could join the KLM/Northwest/Alitalia alliance. He is being quoted as saying that his airline "has targeted Thai for the past 15 years." KLM, Northwest and Alitalia "are working on this alliance." KLM declined comment on a statement by Northwest CEO John Dasburg, who confirmed talks with Thai.
Europe's largest online travel site, ebookers.com, signed multi-year, multi-million-dollar alliance with AOL Europe. The exclusive two-year agreement makes ebookers.com a "primary and preferred travel partner" across the AOL and CompuServe services in the U.K., Germany, France, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Austria and Sweden. Under the terms of the agreement, ebookers.com will pay $24 million in scaled payments over a two-year period. The payments are based upon the delivery of pre-agreed and guaranteed levels of advertising and promotion.
