American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) and the Coalition for Travel Industry Parity (CTIP) want lawmakers to introduce a new version of the Consumer Access to Travel Information Act, one with more teeth. ASTA and CTIP are launching an aggressive legislative campaign aiming to create a national commission, independent of DOT, to investigate certain alleged airline anti-competitive practices. Last year's act contained a directive to the DOT secretary to investigate certain airline practices that ASTA and CTIP labeled anti-consumer and anti-competitive.
Southwest thinks it will not suffer from American's acquisition of Reno and may benefit from it, according to Chief Financial Officer Gary Kelly. Predicting a "neutral at worst" effect, Kelly said American likely will reduce service at some points as it realigns hubs, opening up opportunities for Southwest.
Reorganization of the Clacton Sector, which provides London area air traffic control services for flights to and from central and northern Europe, has eliminated outbound delays and reduced inbound delays more than 20%, according to U.K. National Air Traffic Services. The sector is one of Europe's busiest and has been swamped by rapid growth of low-cost airlines operating at Stansted, Luton and London City airports, NATS said. It became the country's worst air traffic bottleneck last summer - 10% of flights in U.K.
Status is quo on Love Field at DOT, deputy assistant secretary Pat Murphy told the American Bar Association Friday. "We continue to work with the applicants, we continue to work with FAA, and we continue to get sued."
Some transatlantic alliances "appear more and more like cartels, as a market-control mechanism," European Union Transport Commissioner Karel Van Miert told the American Bar Association Air&Space Forum Friday, and the view that alliances are a "panacea...amuses" him. The transatlantic market is "still far from a liberalized market," he said, and instead of the promised "fierce competition," he sees carriers being forced out of markets by code-sharing partners.
United Shuttle plans to introduce two-end deplaning in several of its western markets. In tests conducted in Los Angeles and San Francisco this month, the operation succeeded in getting passengers off the airplane faster and more conveniently and improved on-time performance. Two-end deplaning enables passengers seated in the front of the aircraft to exit as usual, while those in the rear leave by the back door, go down a flight of stairs into a Commute-a-Walk, a covered portable walkway that extends to the rear of the aircraft, and enter the terminal.
Flight attendants at United are considering filing a grievance because the carrier is installing a rest facility on its new 777s for pilots but not for flight attendants. Management recently asked United Association of Flight Attendants President Kevin Lum to help with an in-house article on cultural changes at United since employee ownership. Lum saw no change for cabin crew - "Whether it's water, crew meals or crew rest, flight attendants continue to be second class and second rate."
America West pilots want to be part of any merger talks with United, Delta, Continental or any other airline that comes courting. America West's Air Line Pilots Association unit said Friday it wants management "to make them participants in the process." Darcy Pierce, vice chairman of the America West ALPA Master Executive Council, said the union has formed a merger committee and has been developing its own sources of expertise on the merger aspects of airline economics.
Frontier has prepaid in full the balance of a senior secured note with Wexford Management LLC, an investment firm. Wexford loaned Frontier $5 million in December 1997, with no obligation to pay until 2001. The remaining balance paid was $943,135. At the same time as the prepayment, the airline announced the resignation of Arthur Amron, who represented Wexford on the board. The company does not intend to replace him, leaving the board with six members.
Utah-based SkyWest placed a firm order Friday with Bombardier Aerospace for 25 Canadair Regional Jets, Series 200 LR. SkyWest, which operates as a Delta Connection in Salt Lake City and as United Express in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, and Seattle, also has taken options on 25 more airplanes. The value of the firm order is about $560 million. Deliveries are expected to begin in mid-2000 and continue until December 2002.
Fuel Cost and Consumption U.S. Majors, Nationals and Large Regionals November 1997 - October 1998 Total Total Cost Cents Per Gallons (Dollars) Gallon 1997 November Domestic 1,106,321,778 692,536,476 62.598 International 410,341,421 280,394,193 68.332
Cathay Pacific is taking a new approach to promoting its hub - offering a $25 room at leading Hong Kong hotels for the first night's stay. The offer extends through 1999 and includes roundtrip airport transfers, which could cost more than $25.
Japan Airlines, facing increased domestic, regional and transpacific competition, is altering its route structure to reflect the changes and its new alliances with American, British Airways and Cathay Pacific. JAL will stop code shares with Varig and Air France on several long-haul routes.
Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller last week told the National Research Council's committee on airline competition that high air tariffs can harm a city's economic growth. Miller, speaking at a two-day forum in Washington, D.C., said the multi-state Airline Working Group, of which he is a member, strongly supports DOT's competition guidelines. "DOT guidelines are the best known remedy to the situation" of predatory behavior, Miller said. He said that in 1996 Vanguard established Des Moines-Chicago service at $100 roundtrip.
United Airlines Cargo on Feb. 1 will introduce "TD.Guaranteed," which will guarantee shippers access to space and on-time delivery or their money back. The service initially will be available on all direct flights between Chicago and London, Paris, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Tokyo, Osaka, Hong Kong, Taipei, Manila and Sao Paulo. United VP-Cargo Jim Hartigan said the service will expand to all United U.S. gateway cities and international points, replacing the carrier's Small Package International and WWX services.
Southwest's net income increased 24.6% year-over-year to $100.4 million in the fourth quarter of 1998 and 36.4% to $433.4 million for the year on considerably lower percentage increases in revenue, the company reported yesterday. Decreases in unit cost - 1.9% for the quarter and 1.1% for the year - accounted for the performance. Lower fuel prices offset increases in other cost categories, and Herb Kelleher, chairman, president and chief executive, said the carrier has hedged on most of its early-1999 fuel requirements.
