DHL Airways named Jeff Lucchesi senior VP-information services and chief information officer, responsible for telecommunications, technical infrastructure, business applications and electronic information.
Top 25 Domestic City-Pair Markets, O&D Passengers, Fourth Quarter 1998 1998 1997 Average Mkt. Mkt Passengers Top Carrier Rank Rank City-Pair Per Day (% Share) 1 1 Los Angeles - New York 8,486 American (33.3) 2 2 Chicago - New York 7,868 United (35.1) 3 3 Boston - New York 6,979 Delta (43.0) 4 5 New York - Washington 6,679 Delta (44.9)
American Eagle, regional affiliate of American, reported a 2.4% systemwide increase in may passenger boardings to 1.42 million, an 11.3% jump in revenue passenger miles and an 11.9% rise in available seat miles, setting records on boardings and capacity. As ad result, the systemwide load factor dipped 0.3 percentage points to 63.2%. American Eagle Airlines traffic grew 9.9% on 10.1% more capacity, depressing the load factor 0.1 point. Passengers flown rose 1.1%.
TWA's last, best offer to its International Association of Machinists union "will push the company to the limit of its financial resources," according to a study by Darryl Jenkins, Director of the Aviation Institute at George Washington University. Jenkins concludes that the financially stretched airline cannot offer any more than the $350 million it now has on the table. "With few if any available credit lines and only $200 million in the bank, a strike could bankrupt the airline.
SITA enhanced its aircraft data-link service to provide VHF radio coverage to every country by extending its VHF Aircom ground station network to cover the U.S., Canada and Jamaica. With the change, SITA becomes the only air ground service provider offering a single interface to worldwide VHF data link services, the organization said. SITA also will launch the next generation of global aeronautical data-
Top 25 Domestic City-Pair Markets Under 750 Miles O&D Passengers Fourth Quarter 1998 1998 1998 Nonstop Average Sht Hl Mkt Mileage Pax Top Carrier Rank Rank City-Pair Per Day (% Share) 1 2 Chicago - New York 723 7,868 United (35.1) 2 3 Boston - New York 183 6,979 Delta (43.0)
A six-man management team from Emirates headed by Peter Hill will attempt to reshape Air Lanka into a more competitive carrier. Work on a total image change and product revamp has started and will be unveiled in the third week of July. Hill, recently appointed chief executive of Air Lanka, said a new corporate identity program is in progress. "After 20 years in operation, Air Lanka needs a fresh look.
Service to two airports is included in the Federal Transit Administration's bus rapid transit (BRT) demonstration program, DOT said. Among the 10 communities selected are Boston, with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's 3.8-mile "Silver Line" running to and through downtown to the South Boston Piers and Logan Airport and the Washington Dulles Airport corridor in Northern Virginia.
Northwest and its flight attendants are continuing contract talks today with the National Mediation Board in Washington. Flight attendants, represented by the Teamsters, will decide whether to ask for release from mediation once the talks are concluded. The union voted last weekend to strike if there is no resolution in this round of negotiations. Northwest made some movement on the compensation issue, Danny Campbell, secretary/treasurer of Teamsters Local 2000, told The DAILY.
An arbitrator has ruled that American Eagle flight attendants who were denied the full amount of annual raises were entitled to back pay, effective the date of their hiring anniversary. Flight attendants, members of the Association of Flight Attendants, were employed by Simmons Airlines between Aug. 1, 1994, and April 14, 1995, now part of American Eagle.
Croatia chose Lockheed Martin Ocean, Radar&Sensor Systems to provide an integrated surveillance system to meet its civil and military needs, the company said. The $94 million contract includes construction Syracuse of five long-range, dual-use FPS-117E(1)T radars with associated display consoles and five Monopulse Secondary Surveillance Radars. The equipment will provide air traffic control radar coverage of all Croatian air space as well as that of neighboring Bosnia-Herzegovina. Work is to be completed in two years.
CCAIR, which flies as US Airways Express in the southeastern U.S., adopted the merger agreement with Mesa Air Group at a special shareholders meeting. CCAIR will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Mesa Air Group after closing conditions and procedures. CCAIR shareholders will receive 0.6214 shares of Mesa common stock for each share of CCAIR common stock.
Air Jamaica leased an Airbus A340-300 from International Lease Finance Corp. for use on scheduled flights between London Heathrow and Montego Bay/Kingston, replacing an A310-300 leased from Airbus. Air Jamaica leases two A320s and two A321s from ILFC.
Cathay Pacific continued to slash its flight schedule in the runup to the negotiating deadline with its pilots at noon tomorrow local time. If pilots and management, meeting in Hong Kong, fail to reach a last-minute agreement, the carrier maintains it will begin to lay off pilots. "We are sticking firm to the deadline," said Cathay spokesman Gus Whitcomb.
Financially strapped Varig received some encouraging news when a local court ruled that the airline should receive at least 2.2 billion reals (US$1.2 billion) from the government in compensation for losses incurred during a period of regulated fares. Varig's complaint alleges losses from the 1986 freezing of air fares that was supposed to stabilize the Brazilian economy. Officials believe the ruling will help the carrier's financial situation and its struggle with $1.8 billion in local and foreign currency debts.
Cincinnati-based Comair, which flies as Delta Connection, saw a 26.7% gain in May traffic on 26.5% more capacity, which grew the load factor 0.2 percentage points. Passenger boardings jumped 17.8% for a record high of 617,140. Year-to-date traffic grew 24.5% and capacity 22.1%, boosting the load factor 2 points. Passengers flown climbed 17.2%.
British Midland Chairman Michael Bishop told The DAILY that rival British Airways Chairman Bob Ayling has done "a good job," because he was "the first to tackle some core route problems."Despite their ongoing battle at London Heathrow, Bishop credits Ayling with managing the carrier's challenges, and as a result, he said, BA will remain one of the world's top airlines.
President Clinton signed into law the Fastener Quality Act. The bill was enacted in 1990, but last year Congress, with input from the General Aviation Manufacturers Association, amended it to exempt aviation fasteners subject to FAA oversight. Ed Bolen, GAMA president, said, "Without action by the Congress and approval by the President, the Fastener Quality Act would have imposed an unnecessary burden on aviation manufacturers."
FAA Administrator Jane Garvey asked the private, non-profit RTCA to assist in overhauling the certification process by helping implement 15 recommendations to make it less lengthy, less costly and more user- friendly. Recommendations issued earlier this year came from the RTCA Certification Task Force co-chaired by Anthony Broderick, former FAA associate administrator for regulation and certification, and Ed Stimpson, vice chairman of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association.
LanChile's May traffic jumped 16.3% on 8.9% more capacity compared with the same month last year, raising the load factor 3.8 percentage points to 59.1%. The airline saw the most growth in international traffic, up 28.6%, while domestic revenue passenger miles plunged 14.3%. LanChile Chief Operating Officer Luis Ernesto Videla attributed the domestic decline to difficult economic conditions in Chile. Cargo volume rose 35.3% to 133.4 million freight ton kilometers.
FAA should modify its Automated Radar Tracking System (ARTS) to make sure controllers are able to identify and track non-transponder-equipped aircraft, the National Transportation Safety Board said. The board said it is "concerned about the lack of conspicuity of primary targets in ARTS systems." Increasing primary targets' visibility to controllers is "essential to enhancing flight safety," it said.
TWA's assertions about Northwest controlling Continental and the effect of the proposed Alitalia/KLM/Northwest alliance on competition are "fallacious," Continental told DOT. TWA's request two weeks ago that DOT analyze the effect of such an alliance on Continental-Alitalia competition should be denied, Continental said. Northwest "does not control Continental" and "will not control Continental" during a 10-year period covered by agreements, the Houston-based carrier said. Northwest has restricted ownership of 14% of Continental's equity and 46% of its voting stock.
Dallas/Fort Worth Airport broke ground yesterday for a new facility that can deice 53 airplanes simultaneously without threat of runoff. Jeff Fegan, executive director of the airport, said the facility will enable airlines to maintain service during inclement weather "while thoroughly protecting the surrounding environment." The runoff will be collected at nine tanks around the airport and removed by trucks for safe disposal or recycling, he said.
