Mahalo Air has been ordered into Chapter 7 liquidation after failing to find an investor (DAILY, Dec. 2, 1997). Liquidation Trustee Paul Sakuda said some investors have expressed interest in buying the carrier's operating license.
Baltic International USA's AIRO Catering Services unit has opened an inflight catering kitchen at Tallinn Airport in Estonia. It is the only international-standard kitchen on the field. AIRO will open a catering kitchen in Kiev, Ukraine, this year.
Delta Chief Executive Leo Mullin last week derided Continental's description of merger talks, saying he was "upset at the misrepresentations that were made." He told an American Bar Association conference in Washington that Continental blamed Delta management for the unsuccessful negotiations, even though Continental pursued Delta, controlled the pace and changed the terms during three weeks of talks. After Northwest pilots delayed action on an alliance in December, Continental again pursued Delta.
Major international airlines that operate in India ended their fare war last week, promising to discontinue the discounts after first extending their availability. What one unhappy travel agent termed a "mad fare disease" (DAILY, Jan. 27) will end Feb. 15 instead of Jan. 31, and the last day of outbound travel will be April 5 instead of March 31.
Airport funding and FAA cost validation are key items on the Air Transport Association's agenda in 1998, ATA President Carol Hallett said Friday in a meeting with Aviation Week newsletter and magazine editors. Hallett also suggested that a lack of awareness of the costs of running airlines makes it easier for public figures to criticize air fares as too high, even though an ATA study found that over the past 15 years fares have risen only 1% while the consumer price index increased 66%.
US Airways has named Bruce Ashby senior VP-planning, effective Feb. 1. Ashby replaces industry veteran Bob Fornaro, who airline Chairman and Chief Executive Stephen Wolf praised as having made an important contribution during his six years with the company.
Sabena and AOM of France are developing a partnership to offer code-share service between Brussels and the southern French cities of Toulon, Nice and Marseille, starting in March. Sabena currently offers four daily flights from Brussels to Nice and Paris and three to Marseille, while AOM flies 12 times daily between Paris and the two southern points. The partners also plan to collaborate on service to French territories in the Caribbean and Pacific regions. They also will set up a joint study group on further cooperation.
DOT granted a Northwest-KLM request to extend the deadline for them to respond to American's petition for a proceeding on renewing the alliance's antitrust immunity. The new deadline is Feb. 10. (Docket OST-96-1089)
Passengers denied boarding are entitled to increased compensation from airlines, the European Commission said in a draft regulation tabled Friday in Brussels. The legislation applies to "any flight departing from an EU [European Union] airport, irrespective of where the carrier is registered," an EC spokeswoman said. Updating a 1991 regulation, the commission proposed compensation of 185 European currency units for being bumped from flights of less than 3,500 kilometers, up from Ecu 150, and Ecu 370 for flights longer than 3,500 km, up from Ecu 300.
Carriers may be forced to join American and Delta, which are equipping aircraft voluntarily with defibrillators, under the Airline Medical Emergency Act introduced last week by Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.). The House bill was introduced by aviation subcommittee Chairman John Duncan (R- Tenn.), who held hearings last May on medical training and emergency medical equipment.
The Netherlands will have to build a second national airport to relieve growing pressure on Amsterdam Schiphol, a government-appointed committee of aviation experts concluded. The committee, chartered by the Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, said the most suitable locations for the airport would be the Second Maasvlakte coastal plain west of Rotterdam or an artificial island off the West Coast, both under study for a year by the transport ministry.
Tower Air told DOT it has faced "unforeseen obstacles" in Ukraine against starting up its nonstop New York-Kiev service. The carrier said aircraft already in its fleet can be made available for Kiev service, and it intends to describe the status of its ground-handling and marketing arrangements in Ukraine when it reports to DOT this month. DOT told Tower to report monthly when the department approved postponement of the service launch until April 15. DOT granted Tower three weekly frequencies under an initial one-year exemption Aug.
A Colorado bankruptcy judge Friday told the creditors committee for Western Pacific that it could seek disclosure from Westpac and financier Smith Management but not from Frontier and its financial backer, Wexford Management. The panel had filed for disclosure of documents from Frontier, Wexford, Seabury Group LCC, and Sunchase Investments, charging they were involved in merger negotiations with Westpac (DAILY, Jan. 30). Wexford has denied the charge.
Northrop Grumman appointed John Breitfeller VP-business management for the Electronics and Systems Integration Division and John Thompson VP- business management for the Electronic Systems unit.
United is offering employees $250 for referring flight attendant candidates who are proficient in English and a second language. The airline plans to hire 2,400 flight attendants this year, 1,000 of them bilingual. United requires trainees to be at least 19 years old and have at least a high school degree.
The National Civil Aviation Review Commission report, sent to DOT in December, will not gather dust like those of previous commissions because, unlike the others, there were no dissents and NCARC members were not "spoon fed" by the staff, Chairman Norman Mineta told the Aero Club of Washington last week. The commission has been disbanded, but members want to "stay together to see this report through," Mineta said.
Southwest's $99 coast-to-coast sale, following months of high yields and relatively few discounts, has raised eyebrows among competing carriers. The largest carriers expect a limited effect, however. Southwest's transcontinental fares from Baltimore and Providence to California should depress fares in some lucrative transcontinental markets, but few others will experience massive fare changes.
Northwest asked DOT to renew its exemption to provide scheduled combination service between Detroit and Paris, nonstop and via Frankfurt as an intermediate or beyond point without local traffic rights. The carrier operates daily DC-10-40 Detroit-Paris nonstops but currently does not serve Frankfurt as part of its Detroit-Paris service.
Airport and Airway Trust Fund - Income Statement October 1, 1997 - November 30, 1997 November 1997 RECEIPTS (Revenues) Revenues: Excise Taxes (Transferred from General Fund): Liquid Fuel other than Gas $ 14,818,000.00 Transportation by Air, Seats, Berths, etc. 491,630,000.00 Use of International Travel Facilities 66,812,000.00
TAP Air Portugal and Austrian Airlines will code share between Portugal and Austria beginning this summer, according to a memorandum of understanding signed by the companies in Vienna. The carriers intend to harmonize their schedules, including those of Lauda Air, the Austrian partner of AUA. They said they foresee "several" code-share agreements for routes beyond Vienna and Lisbon. TAP will join "Qualiflyer," the frequent flyer program of Delta partners AUA, Swissair and Sabena.
