All Nippon Airways has contracted with Boeing Modification and Engineering Services in Wichita to convert a 747-200 into full freighter configuration. Each conversion, of which this is the fourth, takes about four months.
ICTS International, which provides aviation security services for major U.S. carriers serving European points, said yesterday it will spend up to $6.5 million to repurchase common shares on the open market at prices up to $10.
Continental asked DOT to "deny Delta's effort to pre-empt Continental's entry into the U.S.-South Africa marketplace as Air France's South Africa partner via Paris." Continental, which has "limited U.S.-Africa third-
Contract talks between Air Canada and the Air Canada Pilots Association broke down late Monday, and both sides asked government authorities monitoring the talks to file a report proposing that the parties be released from conciliation, a step that could lead to a strike. An Air Canada spokesman said, however, the company is "pretty confident there aren't any issues that are not resolvable.
Sabreliner Corp. said it has received FAA approval for a Sabre 2000 program that will reduce maintenance inspection intervals and aircraft downtime and provide a five-year warranty for structural corrosion. The guarantee against corrosion covers correction of the problem and associated costs, the company said.
Chromalloy Gas Turbine said yesterday that the federal district court in Wilmington, Del., has ordered United Technologies to "fulfill its obligations" under an agreement it made in 1985 to provide Chromalloy the data and parts required to develop and perform Pratt&Whitney-approved repairs on P&W engines. Martin Weinstein, chairman of Chromalloy, a unit of Sequa Corp., said the decision "ensures that the commercial airlines using Pratt&Whitney engines will have a powerful independent source for Pratt-approved and FAA-approved component repairs.
United and Delta rejected the on-again, off-again 4% fare increase over the weekend, this time killing the proposal for the near term.Although U.S. airlines have failed to secure an increase this year, industry observers expect the Northwest labor situation to force another fare-hike proposal to curb increasing demand.
Leadership at US Airways and District 141 of the International Association of Machinists reached tentative agreement yesterday on a contract for fleet service workers, the first contract since that group voted for IAM representation. The group includes baggage handlers and others working in the carrier's airport operations, who must vote to approve or reject the contract. The two sides met under the auspices of the National Mediation Board.
UPS said its revenues rose 4.5% to $6.11 billion for the quarter that ended June 30, and net income jumped 34.7% to $458 million. Chairman Jim Kelly called the results "very encouraging because the company is still recovering its domestic volume." International operations are "growing strongly, and our efforts to better control expenses are proving successful." International operations posted a pre-tax income of $41 million, nearly a four-fold increase over the same period last year. International revenues were up $53 million to $799 million.
Air Tahiti Nui, which announced plans to begin three-times-weekly Papeete, Tahiti-Los Angeles flights Nov. 20 (DAILY, Aug. 14), applied at DOT for a foreign air carrier permit and an exemption to operate the service.
A significant growth trend continued in July, according to Airlines Reporting Corporation, (ARC) when one of every four transactions recorded by accredited travel agents was an electronic ticket. E-tickets are issued through traditional organizations - airlines and travel agents, as opposed to new Internet systems - with the aim of reducing paperwork and increasing efficiency. A passenger with an e-ticket arrives at the airport with a confirmation number instead of ticket stock.
AMR Corp.'s Sabre computer reservations system company is pleased with a judge's ruling backing most of its positions in a suit brought against it by American Trans Air, a Sabre spokeswoman said last week, while an airline spokesman said it may appeal the decision. The Sabre representative said it was the second time in recent years that a court had upheld Sabre's definition of what constitutes a booking.
Hawaiian Airlines reported a 3.1% growth in July traffic, to 403 million revenue passenger miles, and a 4.2% increase in capacity, to 491.7 million available seat miles, pushing the load factor down 0.9 percentage points to 82%. The carrier flew 495.4 million passengers, up 5.5%. For the first seven months of 1998, Hawaiian's traffic and capacity were up 0.1% and 1.7%, respectively, and the load factor fell 1.3 points to 76.1%.
The Air Transport Users Council (AUC) in the U.K. voiced concerns about conditions proposed by European Union competition authorities for authorization of the proposed alliance between British Airways and American. The AUC agreed with the thrust of the EU proposals - that the alliance's share of the transatlantic market should be limited - but it questioned how many takeoff and landing slots at Heathrow and Gatwick airports should be transferred to transatlantic competitors.
DOT Inspector General's office said it launched an investigation that resulted in the conviction of Louise Lathrop, a former FAA accountant, for embezzlement. Lathrop was sentenced to two years in prison and three years' probation, was ordered to pay $600,000 in restitution, and has forefeited her retirement benefits and her home. Lathrop pleaded guilty this year in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo. She used FAA computer systems to issue U.S.
United will add code-share markets from Germany to Africa and the Middle East, starting Aug. 29. The Lufthansa-flown routes are from Frankfurt to Casablanca, Morocco; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Harare, Zimbabwe, and Amman, Jordan, and from Munich to Cairo, Egypt.
In what it termed preparations for expansion, Vanguard announced promotions in its maintenance and engineering department yesterday. Jim Miller, VP-maintenance since March, will become VP-engineering and quality assurance, and Al Gorthy, director of stations since March, will succeed Miller in the maintenance post. Miller, a 28-year TWA veteran, joined Vanguard in April 1996 as manager-maintenance programs and planning, and he became director-quality assurance in July 1997.
U.S. Major Carriers Traffic July, 7 Months 1998 (000) July July % 1998 1997 Change Alaska Revenue Passenger Miles 1,104,000 1,032,000 7.0 Available Seat Miles 1,590,000 1,449,000 9.7 Load Factor (%) 69.4 71.2
Tradewinds Airlines has taken delivery of a third Lockheed L-1011 leased from Interlease Aviation Group for use in charter programs. Tradewinds said its aircraft are "already under contract to many of the largest tour operators in the nation."
Banner Aerospace reported operating income of $1.76 million on net sales of $55 million for the June 30 quarter, compared with operating income of $2.6 million on net sales of $52 million during the same period last year. Banner attributed the reduction in operating income to investments at Solair Inc., related to a contract with Delta from which it anticipates incremental revenue later this year.
Delta launched a Labor Day domestic fare sale yesterday covering most of its destinations in the 48 contiguous states, offering roundtrips for as little as $90. With a three-day advance purchase, Delta offers outbound travel after noon on Saturday and all day Sunday, and return flights on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. Other restrictions apply. Sample fares are $90 roundtrip for Atlanta-New Orleans, $160 for Cincinnati-New York, $200 for Dallas/Fort Worth-Boston, $300 for Atlanta-Seattle.
Delta's board said yesterday it would not grant an Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) proposal to convert the existing non-voting ALPA seat on the board to full voting status. Delta met with ALPA leadership in June to discuss the proposal but decided that "an independent board best serves Delta and its constituents," the company said. "Board votes must be objective and represent the interest of the entire company, not those of any one person or organization." Delta urged ALPA to back the airline's proposed domestic alliance with United despite the decision.
Economic Strategy Institute, the Washington-based think tank that hosted an address this summer by European Competition Commissioner Karel Van Miert, told DOT yesterday the EC's proposals for the United-Lufthansa-SAS alliance are bad policy, violate bilateral agreements, threaten open skies and require a decisive response from DOT. Van Miert's competition directorate has proposed measures including frequency cutbacks and limitations on joint marketing for that alliance and the proposed American-British Airways union.
Air Canada and Air New Zealand asked DOT jointly to permit Air Canada to display ANZ's code on its flights between points in Canada and U.S. points served by ANZ, and to permit ANZ to display Air Canada's code on ANZ flights between the U.S. and New Zealand. The carriers plan to use the reciprocal code share initially to connect ANZ's Honolulu/Los Angeles-New Zealand service with Air Canada's Vancouver-Honolulu and Toronto-Los Angeles flights. Both carriers hold the necessary underlying authority.
