The British Regional Airlines Group said this week that it will seek a listing on the London Stock Exchange in early summer. The group comprises two airlines - Manx Airlines and British Regional Airlines. Both are managed on an integrated basis from the Isle of Man, located in the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and northern England. It is the largest regional carrier in the U.K. and one of the largest in Europe. Profit before taxes for the year ended Dec.
Code-Sharing Regional Carrier Schedules Announced Or Implemented February - March 1998 Domestic City-Pairs Carriers Added Dropped New Shared Alaska Airlines Horizon Air Seattle-Kelowna, - - B.C. America West Airlines Mesa Airlines - - - Continental Airlines
Fairchild Aerospace has named Joe Vreeman senior VP-customer support, responsible for the company's entire customer support organization worldwide. Vreeman most recently served as VP-engineering and fleet reliability for Northwest following a stint as the carrier's VP- engineering, inspection and quality assurance. Before that he logged 20 years of engineering experience at Douglas Aircraft, where he was chief design engineer for the DC-9/MD80 family of aircraft.
American Eagle carriers and the Transport Workers Union have reached a tentative agreement on new single contracts for four employee groups, following the lead of pilots and flight attendants. TWU represents the mechanics, ramp service employees, and flight dispatchers at Simmons, Wings West, Flagship and Executive.
Canada 3000 has taken delivery of the first Airbus A330-200, becoming the first operator of the new type. A second is to be delivered this month. Both come from International Lease Finance Corp., launch customer for the aircraft, which is the smallest of the A330/A340 family and has a range of 6,400 nautical miles. Canada 3000 aircraft will seat 340 passengers in single-class layout. They are powered by General Electric engines.
United and Delta yesterday confirmed earlier speculation and agreed to the world's largest airline alliance - a code sharing and frequent flyer deal the carriers say could increase revenue $600 million, divided about equally, once its full potential is realized. The alliance "represents the competitive wave of the future in aviation," said United Chairman Gerald Greenwald. The carriers stressed that they will not work together on flight schedules, pricing, cargo and other areas, and no merger is planned.
United Express Atlantic Coast led eight regional-airline stocks on a 7.7% rally during April with the average price per share up $1.87 to $26.21. ACA stock was up 17.8%, or $8.56, to $56.56 per share after hitting a 52-week high of $62.50 on the 20th. The stock will undergo a two-for-one split this month. SkyWest's stock climbed $4 per share, or 10.9%, to $40.50 on the strength of its expanded West Coast operations on behalf of United and at the expense of Mesa Air Group, which saw its stock off 12.9%, or $1.19, to $8 per share.
The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service has issued regulations establishing voluntary procedures for carriers to follow in screening passengers in order to qualify for a possible reduction, refund or waiver of a fine imposed for carrying aliens improperly. The rule takes effect June 1, but a provision for carriers to submit evidence to obtain an automatic fine reduction of 25% will await Office of Management and Budget approval under a Paperwork Reductions Act review.
Charles Hunnicutt, DOT assistant secretary for aviation and international affairs, David Plavin, president of Airports Council International, North America, and economist George James will speak at the Regional Airline Association annual convention in Minneapolis May 18-20, RAA announced.
Approval by pilots of the alliance between United and Delta could take months to obtain, pilots at the two carriers said yesterday. While United and Delta announced their tentative global agreement, their pilots unions were continuing talks with management and setting up meetings to ask union members whether they support the alliance.
Guilford Transportation Industries, operator of the largest regional rail system in New England, proposed yesterday to buy Pan Am for $23.5 million. Under the agreement, Guilford would acquire Pan Am's two 727-200s, one 737- 200, spare parts, ground transportation, all route authorities, Pan Am's logo and trademark and its 30% interest in the Pan Am Air Bridge, which operates from Miami to nearby islands. Part of the $23.5 million - the amount is being negotiated - would be paid to Pan Am's largest secured creditor, NationsBank.
Comair Holdings sued Embraer, claiming the manufacturer was negligent in the design of the EMB-120 that crashed near Detroit on Jan. 1, 1997, killing 29 passengers and crew. The case, filed in U.S. District Court in Covington, Ky., listed seven cases of problems with the aircraft experienced by other airlines and that Embraer "had a duty" to warn Comair and other owners of the problems. Icing is thought to be the cause of the accident.
FAA Administrator Jane Garvey will discuss Airport Improvement Program funding and legislation to place air traffic control responsibilities in a performance-based organization on this week's Aviation News Today, to be broadcast Sunday on Washington's NewsChannel 8 at 12:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
AirTran Holdings posted a first quarter net loss of $7.9 million, about half the $18.5 million loss a year ago. Operating revenues increased to $94.5 million from $36.9 million a year earlier. AirTran recorded an operating loss of $2.9 million and ended the quarter with $73 million in cash. The airline made progress in its goal to lower unit costs - cost per available seat mile fell to 7.9 cents from 10.2 cents in the first quarter of 1997.
Research into the physics of ice formation shows that getting it off wings may be as simple as passing a small electric voltage through the ice - a fact that could lead to dramatically more simple and lightweight in- flight de-icing equipment, affiliate Aero Safety&Maintenance reported.
Canadian Airlines has signed a letter of intent to transfer the business of subsidiary Canadian North to NorTerra, a company owned by two Arctic Inuit groups. Canadian Airlines spokeswoman France Poulin said the carriers expect to complete negotiations by the end of May in which NorTerra will acquire Canadian North as part of a strategic alliance and serve Northwest Canada. NorTerra/Canadian North would use Canadian Airlines' booking and reservation systems and passengers would receive Canadian frequent flyer points.
FAA Administrator Jane Garvey promoted the administration's FAA reauthorization proposal and other initiatives before the Senate Commerce aviation subcommittee yesterday, but subcommittee chairman Slade Gorton (R- Wash.) questioned progress on Year 2000 computer date logic compliance and committee chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) chastised Garvey for leaving Congress out of the loop on a number of issues.
DOT's initial review of startup carrier Legend Airlines "revealed a number of areas where additional and/or clarifying information is needed," the department's Air Carrier Fitness Division told Legend President and Chief Executive T. Allan McArtor.
Great Lakes Aviation d/b/a United Express was selected by DOT to provide Essential Air Service for two years at Alamosa, Colo., and Laramie, Riverton/Lander, Rock Springs and Worland, Wyo.. The carrier will receive subsidy at an annual compensation rate of $950,262 for Alamosa, $363,993 for Rock Springs, and $989,234 for Laramie and Worland combined. DOT will rely on Great Lakes' subsidy-free plan to serve Riverton/Lander.
Atlantic Coast Airlines today will begin Canadair Regional Jet Service between Washington Dulles and Portland, Maine (four daily flights), and Charleston, S.C. (two daily flights).
Delta Connection affiliate Comair Holdings posted a net profit of $28.2 million, or 42 cents per share, for its fourth fiscal quarter ended March 31, compared with $19.4 million, or 29 cents per share, in the same quarter a year earlier. The carrier was helped by airline operating expenses that increased barely 1% to $121.7 milion from $120.3 million one year before. 4th Qtr Ended Fiscal Year Ended March 31 March 31
The TACA/TAM/LanChile joint purchase of $4 billion worth of Airbus aircraft was transacted "without a single piece of paper exchanged at any point" among the three carriers, said TACA Chief Executive Federico Bloch. "We knew if we gave it to the lawyers, it would have been killed," he said. The CEOs took the joint approach after talking only 10 minutes, and the purchasers now are accepting bids for common interiors and other equipment.
