Finland's civil aviation authority is having trouble with the European Commission, which demanded recently that it harmonize landing charges for domestic and international flights. Charges for domestic services currently are lower, and the commission sees this as an indirect subsidy of Finnair, which operates almost all of them.
National Business Aviation Association named Jeffrey Gilley NBAA manager-airports/ground infrastructure, succeeding Elmer Haupt, who will retire March 31.
American's pilot sickout cost parent AMR Corp. four times the price of the Reno Air acquisition as of Friday, according to Merrill Lynch. In addition, the loss of investor confidence in AMR resulted in a combined loss of $2.5 billion in market capitalization last week. Like several Wall Street firms, Merrill Lynch lowered its first quarter and 1999 earnings forecast for the company.
American's Cargo Division set a tonnage record during a 777 test flight from Dallas/Fort Worth to London, loading 93,130 pounds of freight. The airline carried perishables, computer parts and oil-drilling equipment, and it squeezed 8,668 pounds into the aft bulk area.
Midwest Express pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, asked the National Mediation Board to mediate "stalled" negotiations on an initial contract, begun last August. Midwest Express spokeswoman Lisa Bailey said the company was surprised and disappointed that the union sought mediation so soon.
FAA ordered repetitive inspections and eventual replacement of the aft strut insulation blankets on next-generation 737s with improved blankets. The agency said the order is intended to prevent damage to the blankets "which could result in exposure of the lower surface of the strut to extreme high temperatures, consequent creation of a source of fuel ignition, and increased risk of a fuel tank explosion and fire."
Philippine Airlines last week received approval from the Filipino Securities and Exchange Commission to sell P442 million (US$11.5 million) worth of assets to pay off certain debts. The money is needed to pay foreign and domestic creditors, including Chase Manhattan Asia, Guy Saget, Bontable Agencies, Enceltrade, AMI and Fine Organics Corp. Three-quarters of the airline's $2.2 billion debt is to foreign firms. Two major creditors, Export-Import Bank of the U.S.
EFTC Services promoted Andy Hatch to VP-operations for the entire Services group, Mike Thorn to site operations director and Joe Quinn to site operations director-Louisville; Eddie Grimes will remain site operations manager in Tampa.
TWA Chief Executive Gerald Gitner all but ensured the airline's stand-alone status across the Atlantic by lambasting current transatlantic alliances and open-skies agreements in a speech last week to London's U.K. Aviation Club. European and U.S. airlines are "recreating what can only be called monopolies, and this with the aid and encouragement of the very governments, including the U.S., whose stated policies are to encourage competition," he said. Gitner called the U.S.
It is not all clear sailing for Galileo, the satellite navigation system seen by the European Commission as an alternative to the U.S. Global Positioning System. The French are pushing for one of Europe's biggest objections to GPS - a military interface.
Singapore Airlines placed firm orders for five A340-500s plus five options, confirming a previously announced commitment for the 8,600-nautical-mile-range aircraft that will enable the airline to develop the first nonstop transpacific operations linking Singapore directly with points such as Los Angeles and San Francisco. Deliveries are to begin in late 2002 and run through mid-2003.
Continental on Friday distributed profit-sharing checks amounting to 6.7% of annual wages to 43,000 employees. The payout is the fourth consecutive instance of annual profit sharing, which has totaled more than $270 million to date.
American's dispute with its pilots has cost flight attendants thousands of hours of paid flight time, but the Association of Professional Flight Attendants is determined not to let it interfere with its contract talks with the company or plans for merging American and Reno flight attendant seniority lists. According to APFA President Denise Hedges, the company says it will accept the union's recommendation on Reno. She said APFA and American have reached tentative agreements in several contract areas by using interest-based bargaining.
American told FAA it supports the agency's proposed rule to convert from international to domestic status high-density slots held by U.S. and Canadian carriers for U.S.-Canada service at New York LaGuardia and Chicago O'Hare airports, in compliance with the U.S.-Canada bilateral. The Air Carrier Association of America told FAA the rule would "strike yet another blow against the future of airline competition" unless the agency also provides for additional new entry at the high-density airports.
A federal appeals court upheld rulings that prevent Los Angeles Airport from charging airlines higher rates based on fair-market values. David Berg, assistant general counsel at Air Transport Association, said he hoped the ruling means airlines and the airport can move on to "bigger, better issues." Los Angeles World Airports said it will review the court's decision. "We are disappointed because it separates the airport from any other provider of services where current market conditions determine prices," LAWA said.
Iberia took its first major step toward privatization and release from state-run Spanish holding SEPI Friday with the sale to British Airways and American of 10% of its shares. The purchase is valued at 58 billion pesetas (US$308.5 million). BA bought 9% and American 1%, and both have pledged to hold their shares for at least three years, according to Iberia. At the same time, the leading Spanish airline said it will accept an invitation to join the global oneworld alliance, becoming the seventh international member.
American, which like United has applied for all 67 available additional summer-season Chicago-London roundtrip frequencies, countered United's statement that DOT should award United all the frequencies in order to achieve "competitive parity" with American. American argued that United "has consistently resisted" such parity at Chicago O'Hare Airport, where "United and its affiliates enjoy a substantial lead." United's bid for Chicago-London parity (DAILY, Feb.
Approved a two-year initial exemption for American to provide scheduled foreign combination service between points in the U.S., via points in Fiji and New Zealand, and Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Cairns and Perth, Australia, and beyond to Adelaide and points in New Zealand, and to integrate the authority, which American plans to operate under code share with Qantas, with its existing U.S.-Australia/New Zealand/Fiji certificates and exemptions...
Boeing 767 Systemwide Aircraft Utilization Per Day Third Quarter 1998 B767-200 American Delta TWA Number of Aircraft Operated 30 15 12 Total Fleet Operations Departures 53 55 24 Block Hours 350 140 163
