DOT granted Polar's request for a seventh extension, until May 5, of the deadline to commence scheduled U.S.-Philippines all-cargo service (DAILY, Feb. 24). While DOT's order states that "Polar believes that grant of the necessary [Philippine] approvals...should be secured by May 5," the carrier told DOT in its application that despite "repeated informal assurances" from Philippine officials that its application was "complete, non- controversial, and that Polar Air could anticipate routine approval," the U.S.
Mesa Air Group, given notice earlier by United terminating their long- standing agreement in Denver, is officially out of the running for future Denver operations, according to a Mesa 10-Q statement to the Securities and Exchange Commission. All proposals Mesa made to United in a Feb.
Sen. Slade Gorton (R-Wash.), chairman of the Senate Commerce aviation subcommittee, said his hearing tomorrow on air traffic control upgrades will focus on the Year 2000 computer date logic problem. Among witnesses will be FAA Administrator Jane Garvey, Room 253, Russell, 2 p.m.
Delta has been selected as the official sponsor of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, the airline's third largest hub. Delta on Monday transferred the Olympic flag to Salt Lake City from the 1998 Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan. The Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the games was on hand to receive the flag with an official welcoming ceremony. Delta broadcast highlights of the ceremony on its web site, www.delta-air.com.
Vanguard Airlines applied for slot exemptions at New York Kennedy so it can expand service from its Kansas City hub and Pittsburgh. The carrier, which wants to operate an extra daily roundtrip to both points during peak times, said it has been unable to acquire slots through lease or purchase, most recently at a Jan. 27 industry meeting. Even if slots were available, the cost would be prohibitive for a low-cost niche carrier, Vanguard said.
The Sabre Group, ZD Comdex&Forums and Travelocity have partnered to offer online travel services for business professionals participating in events produced by ZD Comdex&Forums, beginning with its April conference in Chicago.
Northwest is offering discounted air and hotel packages to Japan, starting at $879 per person for three nights' hotel accommodation in Tokyo and travel from Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle, in March. Five-night, inclusive packages covering stays in Tokyo and Kyoto, plus transportation on the bullet train start at $1,279 per person. Three-night packages are available from $899, or $1,299 for five nights, for March travel from Atlanta, Detroit, Miami, Memphis, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and 164 other U.S. cities.
British Midland, in a radical departure from its short-haul, regional service pattern, is looking to return to long-haul operations. After a 15- year hiatus, the airline has asked the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority for rights to serve as many as 10 U.S. points in anticipation of a new U.S.- U.K. air agreement. British Midland, which operates European and U.K. domestic services, wants to serve Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Miami, Los Angeles, New York, Seattle and Washington from London Heathrow.
Association of Travel Agents (ASTA) and the Coalition for Travel Industry Parity (CTIP) are joining forces to support legislation that would curb alleged anti-competitive practices by the airline industry against travel agents. ASTA and CTIP are drafting the Consumer Access to Travel Information Act of 1998, which would direct the DOT secretary to investigate quickly actions by the airline industry that ASTA contends hamper consumer access to travel information provided by travel agencies.
DOT issued an order establishing a new docket to consolidate the applications of Atlas Air, Fine Air and Polar Air for U.S.-Colombia all- cargo service. It stated its decision to replace Millon Air as one of the six U.S. carriers authorized to provide such service and tentatively selected Atlas Air to provide cargo service between Miami and Barranquilla, Bogota and Cali.
International Lease Finance Corp. reported pre-tax profits of $526.2 million in 1997, up 33.3%. Revenues jumped 19.9% to $1.96 billion from $1.63 billion in 1996. Aircraft rental income rose 20% to $1.73 billion from $1.44 billion, and shareholders' equity grew 145% to $2.5 billion. ILFC's portfolio grew to 370 aircraft worth approximately $18 billion. In addition, the leasing giant sold $1.72 billion worth of used aircraft last year.
Passengers on Alaska, American, Canadian, Northwest and Southwest can receive calls from the ground to their seats free of charge on AT&T inflight phones under a special promotion through June 30. Each call is limited to five minutes, and billing starts on the sixth minute.
DOT allocated seven weekly Peru frequencies to Delta and granted the carrier an initial exemption to provide scheduled foreign combination service between Atlanta and Lima. The department made the approval effective for one year or until final action on Delta's application for Atlanta-Peru certificate authority. DOT dismissed Delta's request for authority to operate beyond Lima, which is restricted under the U.S.-Peru aviation agreement.
Delta, slated to receive new-generation Boeing 737s beginning in September, is negotiating with a leasing firm for additional lift. The airline wants to lease nine 737-300s from a third party and place them in service in May.
New Aircraft Orders and Options October, 1997 Last 12 Months Firm Orders Options Orders Options Carrier # Type # Type Engines Del Dates # Type # Type Air France* 1 A321-200 - CFM56-5B3 Feb98 1 A319 - Air France* - - - - 3 A320-200 -
Senate Judiciary Committee member Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) wrote to DOT Secretary Rodney Slater last week asking him to take more action on predatory activities and suggesting DOT ignores Justice Department analysis. Grassley said he has asked Justice to examine potential predatory actions in Des Moines and other Iowa communities.
Turkish Airlines is expanding its relationship with Austrian Airlines (AUA) and Sabena via new cooperation accords to cover code-share flights and other marketing arrangements. Sabena and AUA cooperate closely via their partnership with Swissair, which has equity stakes in both carriers. Sabena and Turkish Airlines are considering a code share for flights between Brussels and Istanbul and points beyond their respective hubs. The two airlines currently offer two daily flights between the cities.
Japan Airlines will offer service to Tianjin, China, from Osaka and Nagoya, beginning April 20, pending government approval. The Osaka service will operate three times a week and Nagoya flights twice a week. Both will use 767-300s configured for 30 seats in business class and 209 in economy. JAL serves Beijing and Shanghai, and added Dalian last November.
FAA proposed fining Skis Dynastar Inc., Colchester, Vt., $350,000 for transporting hazardous materials in checked baggage. A Skis Dynastar employee traveling on behalf of his employer from Oslo to Denver between March 2-3, 1997, flew on Swissair from Oslo to Zurich, where he boarded a United flight to Washington Dulles, and from there boarded a United flight to Denver. A metal container that was checked as baggage by the employee exploded while being loaded onto a conveyor belt by a United agent, injuring the agent and causing the Denver-bound flight to be evacuated.
Emery Worldwide has added an e-mail shipment tracking system, so customers can track their shipments from personal e-mail accounts. The company's customs brokerage unit introduced an electronic customs clearance technology for international cargo that reduces clearance times by about six hours, Emery said.
Pratt&Whitney believes major increases in engineering efficiency will enable it to develop four engines for less than $1 billion, and General Electric Aircraft Engines thinks its GE90 writedown last year will clear the way for a profitable, 30-year engine program, the U.S. engine giants' top executives told Aviation Week's Asian Aerospace '98 Show News. "I can now do four engine programs for the price of two only five years ago due to modeling and computer capability, as half my engineering budget is hardware," said P&W President Karl Krapek.
United will launch a daily nonstop Washington Dulles-San Salvador, El Salvador, flight, beginning July 15. The route is the fourth nonstop service United added recently to Latin America. The evening Dulles departure will operate with a Boeing 757, and return service will connect with flights to Europe. Washington has the second largest Salvadoran community in the U.S. after Los Angeles, and more than 40,000 passengers traveled between the cities last year, United said. A study by Aviation Management Services showed that traffic from the U.S.
General Accounting Office, in a follow-up to a DOT Inspector General report issued March 27, 1997, told Congress it has been advised by FAA that the agency has taken, or plans to take, corrective actions regarding accountability over physical assets. "The lack of accountability is of particular concern in situations such as FAA's where billions of dollars of assets are being acquired in connection with the Air Traffic Control modernization program," GAO said. "We have not assessed the current status or sufficiency of these actions.
