Proposition RJ Coalition, issuing a study last week about the potential of regional jets, hopes to move the issue of unencumbered RJ deployment "from the back burner to front and center dialogue" throughout the industry. Daytona Beach Airport became the 15th paid member last week. "There's nothing secretive here," a coalition spokesman said. "This is just an issue more and more people care about."
National Aeronautic Association selected Athley Gamber to receive the Katharine Wright Award. National Association of State Aviation Officials elected John Eagerton, Alabama Department of Aeronautics, secretary. National Business Aviation Association awarded Kyle Tomesh, Monica Babcock, Billy Ireland, Joshua Berry and Edgar Grigalis aviation-related scholarships.
Stanford Telecommunications was awarded a five-year contract valued at $100 million to provide engineering support to the FAA's telecommunications integrated product team. The team is responsible for providing the communications infrastructure for the agency.
Aviation Week&Space Technology's May 31 issue names six companies as the best-managed of the global aerospace industry for 1999. The winning companies are: Delta Air Lines, best-managed major airline; Ryanair Holdings plc, best-managed national airline; Comair Holdings Inc., best-managed regional airline; British Aerospace plc, best-managed large aerospace company; Smiths Industries plc, best-managed medium-sized aerospace company, and UMECO plc, best-managed small aerospace company.
Hyannis, Mass.-based Cape Air, which will celebrate its tenth anniversary in October, continues to grow within its niche after posting seven consecutive years of profitability. With little debt, the airline has annual revenue of $30 million, said founder and President Dan Wolf. He started the company with two Cessna 402s serving the Provincetown-Boston route abandoned by Provincetown-Boston Airlines. Today, Cape Air and Nantucket Airlines fly 16 routes, most of them connecting Cape Cod to other Massachusetts communities.
Coast Guard last week achieved full operational capability of the Maritime Differential Global Positioning System. "The network now meets the high standards for accuracy, integrity, reliability, availability and coverage required for harbor entrance and approach phases of maritime navigation," it said. The Coast Guard now is beginning to expand DGPS into the continental U.S. as the Nationwide DGPS. It said the full NDGPS should be installed by Dec. 31, 2002, and will provide single navigational coverage for the continental U.S. and portions of Alaska.
Senate Commerce aviation subcommittee Chairman Slade Gorton (R-Wash.) told a Senate transportation appropriations subcommittee hearing that his group is working on a voluntary approach with the airlines on passenger rights. Ranking aviation subcommittee Democrat Jay Rockefeller (W.Va.) is involved as well. "I am dubious that formal legislation will do anything but make the situation worse," Gorton said.
-- Approved, subject to FAA-approved routings, a Far East Maritime Agency charter using an Aeroflot Il-62 for one roundtrip carrying 162 passengers (Pacific fishing crews) and general cargo on a Vladivostok-Anchorage-
DOT made good on its threat to terminate the authority of foreign carriers that have not filed family support plans with DOT and NTSB, required under the Foreign Air Carrier Family Support Act. The department terminated foreign air carrier permits and exemptions held by 33 carriers based in North and South America and Europe, stating that it "had received information from the carriers' representatives or their homeland governments that the majority of them were no longer in business."
Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), chairman of the Senate Appropriations transportation subcommittee, who Thursday dropped passenger rights provisions in the fiscal 2000 transportation legislation, said he had so many airline representatives visit him, his office "felt like it was a chalet at the Paris Air Show."
Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) last week introduced the Safe and Friendly Skies Act of 1999, which would increase the civil penalty for unruly passengers from $1,100 to $25,000. Reid cited a sharp increase in unruly behavior by airline passengers despite increased instances of civil penalties imposed by the FAA.
In a newly released list of Taiwan's largest 500 corporations in terms of revenues generated in 1998, China Airlines ranks number five in the service sector and number 11 overall with total revenues of NT$51.9 billion (US$1.56 billion) while EVA Airways ranks number six in the service sector with total revenues of NT$42.9 billion (US$1.29 billion). CAL fell by one position in the ranking from fourth place a year earlier while EVA rose by one position from number seven. The ranking was compiled by China Credit Information Services Ltd.
U.K. regional carrier Brymon Airways will acquire its first jets following an order last week for up to 21 aircraft. The airline has a firm order for seven 50-seat Embraer ERJ-145 regional jets, with options on 14 more. The airline may upgrade to the planned 70-seat jet. The list price for the orders and options on 21 aircraft plus spares is $420 million. Delivery of the seven jets will begin in early 2000 and all aircraft will be acquired on operating leases. They will be powered by Rolls-Royce Allison engines.
Japan Airlines completed fiscal 1998 with a net profit of 26.3 billion yen (US$219 million), even though business travel was down throughout the year. Rival All Nippon Airways, with a more concentrated domestic route network, posted a loss last year (DAILY, May 28). JAL said overall international demand was flat year over year and systemwide cargo traffic declined. Revenue fell 5.1% to 1.16 trillion yen ($9.6 billion) for the year ended March 31. Yields dropped, JAL said, due to increased competition and "generally lower demand."
After five months as acting president, Sandy Liu has been officially installed as president of China Airlines (CAL). Liu's leadership was evident when he successfully negotiated the sale of CAL's two Boeing 747SPs and six Airbus A300B4s recently. Liu, however, would not reveal who the buyers were or how much the planes sold for, but he indicated that little was expected from the transactions. Liu was prepared to write off the eight aircraft as scrap metal if CAL had failed to sell them in June.
Positive initial comments following recent U.S.-U.K. bilateral talks may be just a stage in negotiations."I would caution against excessive enthusiasm about the prospects of a U.K. deal," David Marchick, deputy undersecretary of state for transportation affairs, told The DAILY. "Both governments are committed, but the price will be high in terms of access to Heathrow." More talks are expected this month.
United Chief Executive Gerald Greenwald, commenting on US Airways Chairman Stephen Wolf's complaints about United's rapid buildup at Dulles: "US Airways views the Washington metro area as its area. We have never shared that view."
In a bid to keep itself afloat, Air Niugini (ANG), has embarked on a cost- cutting exercise, including job reductions. The national carrier of Papua New Guinea has offered early retirement to about 110 long serving workers and plans to lay off another 20% of the remaining 2,000 employees. According to ANG Managing Director Andrew Ogil the airline also is evaluating a plan to outsource non-core activities. "This will allow the carrier to focus strictly on its airline activities and also reduce overheads," Ogil said.
Transavia Airlines ordered four Boeing 737-800s with options for 12 more. Two are to be delivered in 2000 and two in 2002, joining eight previously ordered 737-800s and replacing the oldest 737-300s in the carrier's fleet.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.), who makes it a practice every year to go after money not approved by the House or Senate but added in conference, this year showed he plays no favorites. On his list is Commerce aviation subcommittee language added in conference that makes available $2.3 million for costs associated with facilities rental in Calverton, N.Y., for assembling TWA 800 wreckage.
Some 1,800 commercial airline and military mechanics are being asked to retake certification tests following conviction last week of two Orlando here who helped applicants cheat on FAA licensing tests during the past four years. Fifteen mechanics already have surrendered their credentials after prosecutors won guilty verdicts on 17 fraud and conspiracy counts from a jury in U.S. District Court against the owner of a Sanford, Fla.-based testing center and an examiner who worked for him.
Sunworld applied for an exemption to operate scheduled combination service between Newark and the coterminal points St. Lucia and Antigua. The carrier has an exemption to operate such service between Cincinnati and St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, and St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles, and operates weekly scheduled Cincinnati-Grand Cayman service. It operates public charters in the Caribbean. Sunworld said there is an "immediate public demand" for its proposed weekly flights on the route, and it plans to use 170-seat Boeing 727-200s. (Docket OST-99-5731)
People Airways, aiming to revive commercial service at Concord, Calif., is seeking investors via its peopleairways.com web site. For a $5,000 minimum, owners get one preferred share for each dollar invested and unlimited 75%-off standby travel on the future airline. The carrier plans to "only target markets that we can dominate" and to "show outrageous acts of kindness and consideration to our customers."
