France's competition watchdog, the Conseil de la Concurrence, fined Air France and airport manager Aeroports de Paris 10 million French francs (US$1.7 million) for anticompetitive traffic distribution. The decision, to be published soon, went unnoticed when it was issued June 2 because Air France was facing a pilots strike. The case pertains to the reorganization of traffic between Paris Orly's South and West terminals between 1994 and 1996. Several smaller French airlines, including Air Liberte and AOM, lodged complaints against their relocation.
America West's September traffic increased 12% on 2.7% more capacity, which boosted the load factor 5.5 percentage points to 66.6%. The airline carried 1.41 million passengers last month, versus 1.34 million in the year-earlier period. During the first nine months of 1998, America West's traffic was flat on 2.6% more capacity, which forced load factor down 1.8 percentage points to 68.2%. The airline has carried 13.96 million passengers so far this year, half a million fewer tha in the first nine months of 1997.
Kiwi International will begin daily flights between Newark and Flint, Mich., Oct. 26. The carrier is offering introductory fares, starting at $59 one way, and a free flight next spring to any of its Florida cities for passengers who fly three Newark-Flint roundtrips.
LOT Polish Airlines is offering domestic and international tickets for sale via its Internet site, www.lot.com. The airline has updated its site in other ways, including the ability to book hotels and car rentals.
The newly appointed president of Garuda, Robby Djohan, has targeted the airline to turn around next year and show a profit in 2000. The process will involve weeding out corruption and mismanagement, and reviewing the airline's domestic and international routes. Promising to get Garuda back where it belongs with focus on quality, Djohan said once the route structure is made final there will be no changes in schedule. Unprofitable routes will be dropped. Djohan began the restructuring exercise by returning six new MD-11s to the manufacturer.
TWA reported its best September load factor since 1979 on the strength of domestic traffic gains. Overall, traffic fell 5% on 9.9% less capacity, which boosted the load factor 3.5 percentage points to 68.3%. The airline continued to show traffic and capacity declines due to the replacement of 747s and L-1011s with 767s and 757s. Domestic traffic rose 4.5% on 3.5% less capacity, resulting in a 66.6% load factor, up 5.1 points. International traffic fell 32.2% on 32.5% less capacity, raising the load factor 0.3 points to 76.6%.
Communaute Urbaine de Lyon, the regional authority of Lyon, France, last week voted to give a 25 million French franc (US$4.25 million) subsidy to Delta. The funds would support the operation of one daily flight between Lyon and New York, which the U.S. carrier is considering operating jointly with Air France. The subsidy, which would cover a period of three years, would be allocated only if the flight's load factor is 70% or less and if no competitor wishes to operate the route.
Second-tier airline, Bangkok Airways will increase its registered capital from US$10.5 million to $26.3 million to finance the purchase of six jet aircraft. According to Chief Executive Prasert Prassartthong-Osoth, the first aircraft will be delivered at the end of 1999 and the rest will follow on a staggered basis through early 2001. Prasert declined to describe the aircraft type the carrier will order, saying only that it will be a 100-seat Boeing or Airbus aircraft, to be ordered next month.
Italy has filed a court appeal against the European Commission's rejection of its plan to redistribute traffic within Milan's airport system, the Italian Ministry of Transport said yesterday in Rome. The government took the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union on Saturday, the ministry said, and Transport Minister Claudio Burlando is drafting new rules for publication in a few days.
U.S. Major Carriers Financial Results Second Quarter 1998 Second Quarter 1998 Operating Operating Revenues Expenses (000) (000) Alaska 405,212 347,339 America West 522,950 449,158 American 4,192,815 3,646,914 Continental 1,875,586 1,621,369
US Airways posted a 6% increase in September traffic on 0.6% less capacity, pushing the load factor up 4.4 percentage points to a record for the month, 71.5%. Domestic traffic grew 5.5% on 1.4% less capacity, while international traffic rose 9.7% on 6.7% more capacity. So far this year, US Airways has experienced a 1.7% decline in traffic on 4.5% less capacity, and the load factor has improved 2.1 points to 74%. Sept 98 Sept 97 9 Mths 98 9 Mths 97
Alaska Airlines posted a 13.9% traffic gain in September on 15% more capacity, which forced the load factor down 0.6 percentage points to 63.2%. Traffic for the first nine months of 1998 increased 8.1%, while capacity grew 8.8%. The load factor through September was 67.7%, down from 68.1%. Sept 98 Sept 97 9 Mths 98 9 Mths 97 RPMs 917,000,000 805,000,000 8,535,000,000 7,896,000,000 ASMs 1,451,000,000 1,262,000,000 12,604,000,000 11,589,000,000
DOT extended for a second time the period for taking action on United's complaint against the European Commission for conditions the EC wants to impose on the carrier's alliance with Lufthansa and SAS (DAILY, July 9). In an order providing for the prior 30-day extension, DOT cited an upcoming meeting with the EC. DOT noted in the new order, extending the period through Nov.
British Airways posted a 15.8% increase in scheduled traffic last month on 12.4% more capacity, which raised the load factor 2.3 percentage points to 77.5%. The gain was the largest since March 1996 and the load factor the highest since July 1997. Intercontinental traffic grew 17.1%, outpacing the 10.5% gain on U.K./Europe routes.
AirTran Holdings Inc. reported a 27.8% jump in traffic on 8.9% more capacity in September, which pushed the load factor up 8 percentage points to 53.7%. AirTran flew 221.7 million revenue passenger miles on 413.1 million available seat miles, and passenger enplanements grew 47.5% to 409,126. Year-to-date RPMs rose 36.7% and ASMs 31.6%, boosting the load factor 2.3 points. Enplanements increased 29.6%.
Standard&Poor's assigned credit ratings to $190.5 million worth of pass-through certificates for America West. The certificates are secured by equipment notes issued in connection with leverage leases on six Airbus A319s and two A320s scheduled for delivery through May 1999.
The Asia/Pacific region's financial crisis continues to deplete the coffers of airlines with declining passenger loads. Varig will stop all scheduled services to Bangkok, Phuket and Hong Kong Oct. 15. It also closed its Phuket and Bangkok stations. All Brazilian staff will be recalled and spares shipped back to Rio de Janerio, laying off 25 people. Malaysia Airlines will cease operations to Ujung Pandang, Indonesia, and close the station.
Delta on Oct. 15 will be the first airline to report its third quarter financial results, breaking a long string in which American led off."Nobody wants to be first, since anyone who goes first is saddled with the Wall Street reaction," said Credit Suisse First Boston analyst Tom Schreier. After the second quarter, negative perceptions of the airline outlook caused most airline stocks to plummet even though many carriers had record profits in the quarter. More records are expected this time.
Kansas City-based Vanguard Airlines reported a 47% increase in traffic on a 2% decline in capacity for September, which boosted the load factor 23 percentage points to 69.7%, the highest for the month in the carrier's history. Vanguard flew 60.5 million revenue passenger miles on 86.9 million available seat miles as passenger enplanements jumped 79% to 134,097. Year-to-date RPMs fell 13% on 24% less capacity. Passenger volume rose 11%.
Northwest lost three million passengers during its September strike and its airplanes were only half full when the carrier resumed operation, according to traffic data issued yesterday. The airline carried 1.4 million passengers last month, compared with 4.4 million in September 1997. Traffic for the month was 67.6% lower than in September 1997 on 56.9% less capacity. The load factor, 75.1% last September, plunged to 56.5% for the post-strike flights. Cargo volume fell 58.8%. Northwest's Air Line Pilots Association unit went out on strike Aug. 29.
Physical inventories at 93% of FAA's field units resulted in a "net increase of 35,000 parts valued at $120 million being added to accountable records," according to the DOT Office of Inspector General. The "monumental task" involved about 1,000 FAA and contractor employees, the OIG said, and verified the existence of $334 million in spare parts. This means that FAA had not accounted for more than one-third the value of its inventory of spare parts.
DOT opposes slot-rule changes that could return lost slots to United at Chicago O'Hare Airport and new Aviation Trust Fund reporting requirements, and it supports restoration of whistleblower protection to key aviation employees, the department told House Transportation Committee Chairman Bud Shuster (R-Pa.). DOT thinks a provision in both bills will divert federal funds needlessly to smaller, Level 1 contract towers, but the department still supports the contract tower program, Deputy Secretary Mort Downey told Shuster in an Oct.
U.S. and British negotiators at the U.S.-U.K. bilateral talks in London made "some progress on coming to resolution" in the areas of dispute resolution, pricing and fair competition during the second day of talks, according to a government official. The U.S. delegation, headed by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State David Marchick and DOT Director-Office of International Aviation Paul Gretch, also discussed routes and the Fly America policy with its British counterparts.
Dispatchers at Southwest ratified a 12-year contract by a vote of more than 78%. The contract, retroactive to Dec. 1, 1997, and effective through Nov. 30, 2009, provides for issuance of options for as many as 1.05 million shares of stock during the term of the agreement. Southwest currently has 85 dispatchers, and each will receive stock option grants ranging from 6,749 to 9,465 shares, with an exercise price tied to the market value of Southwest stock Sept. 10. The current employees will be able to exercise options through Dec. 1, 2006.
