Delta and United, turned aside in attempts to code share to Russia with their European partners, told DOT it should defer the Aeroflot-Continental code-share application until the U.S. and Russia resolve bilateral issues. The applicants' expectation that these issues would be settled "has not been realized," United said. No progress was made during talks in Moscow Nov. 12-14 (DAILY, Nov. 17), and Russia has not allowed U.S.
Cathay Pacific Airways will start its second Hong Kong-Los Angeles flight March 31, using a 747-400 configured for 18 first-class, 56 business and 313 economy passengers. Cathay's current daily service operates at night. The new service will be a daytime flight, leaving Hong Kong at 3 p.m. and arriving in Los Angeles at 1:10 p.m. the same day. Cathay will operate three weekly flights until July, when frequency will rise to five. In September, the frequency will become daily.
U.S. and Romanian negotiators meet tomorrow and Wednesday in Bucharest to discuss open skies. Dates remain uncertain for bilateral talks with Italy, France and Russia, but negotiations with Japan still are scheduled Dec. 15- 17.
Orally approved a one-year exemption renewal for Nippon Cargo Airlines to operate foreign cargo service between points in Japan and co-terminal points Anchorage, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and New York...Approved a Vacationtravel International charter using a Lineas Aereas Allegro MD-83, 727 or DC-9 for three passenger roundtrips on a Dallas/Fort Worth-Mazatlan-Dallas/Fort Worth routing March 8-22, 1998...Approved an Express Service, Shipping&Brokerage Worldwide, charter using a Volga-Dnepr Airlines Il-76 for a one-way flight carrying 13,000 kilograms of
A U.S. District Court dismissed allegations by a group of employees from the defunct Pan American World Airways who tried to remove Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. as trustee of the company's underfunded pension plans. The court left open the question of timeliness of benefits notification PBGC gave former Pan Am employees. When Pan Am shut down in 1991, PBGC took responsibility for three pension plans that were underfunded by $1 billion. It pays $100 million annually to 14,000 retirees.
TWA is resuming service to Puerto Vallarta, increasing flights to Palm Springs, and offering sale fares to both points and Cancun for travel between Dec. 18 and Feb. 12. The carrier also will resume seasonal service to Steamboat Springs and Ixtapa/Zihuatenejo. Most enhancements take effect Dec. 28. TWA also is offering a frequent flyer bonus program for travel to Europe. Frequent flyers receive 40,000 bonus miles for premium-class roundtrips and 20,000 miles one-way through Feb. 28.
Turner Broadcasting System promoted Deborah Cooper, VP and general manager of CNN Airport Network, to senior VP of Turner Private Networks Inc. and Barbara Dean, Airport Network director-operations, to VP-network technology and operations for TPNI. Jack Womack, executive VP-CNN Headline News, will assume the additional responsibility of overseeing Airport Network editorial content.
FAA is wrongly using airworthiness directives to address pilot preparedness for icing conditions, according to the National Air Transportation Association. The agency has issued a series of airworthiness directives on operation of turboprop aircraft in icing conditions. NATA says ADs are meant to apply to the aircraft and its systems when an unsafe condition exists, and NATA says "we strongly oppose" use of ADs to "accomplish what is a pilot qualification issue."
Federal Express pilots are considering for ratification a letter of agreement that will give Railway Labor Act protection to 52 FedEx pilots stationed at Subic Bay in the Philippines. The agreement would allow FedEx to station the pilots administratively in Memphis, placing them on U.S. soil and thus under RLA protection. Ratification is expected Dec. 22.
Frontier Airlines filed a series of recommendations with DOT on controlling computer reservations system abuses, citing a history of "monopoly" control by United of the Denver market. Frontier compared United to telecommunications giant AT&T before an antitrust decision broke up the company and regulatory authorities forced it to permit competitors equal access to its network. "Just as AT&T was the largest telephone company in the world, United is the largest airline in the world," Frontier said.
Alliance partners Northwest and KLM will begin joint daily nonstop service between Philadelphia and Amsterdam on May 1, invading a gateway that US Airways recently built up. The roundtrip service, to be operated with Northwest's DC-10s, will be the 14th joint service from the U.S. to Amsterdam. The new flight will connect with KLM's Amsterdam service to more than 70 destinations in Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa. In the first six months of 1997, Northwest had a 3.8% market share in Philadelphia, versus US Airways' 61.3%.
Consumer activist groups across Europe will rally next week to demonstrate for pricing of air travel that reflects concerns for the environment. Demonstrations organized by Friends of the Earth groups in 16 countries will take place Dec. 5-6 as part of a broader campaign - "The Right Price for Air Travel" - to have environmental costs factored into air fares or carrier operating costs. A small number of airports in Europe are moving in the direction of accounting for their sector's environmental impact. Zurich Airport became the world's first airport Sept.
Korea's recent financial crisis, like others in Asia, will hit local aviation firms hardest, according to Standard&Poor credit analyst Phil Baggaley. Although Korean Airlines and Asiana could be affected, Northwest, deriving 25% of its passenger revenue from the Pacific, is at greater risk from the region's imbalance.
Korean Airlines President Y.H. Cho said some Asia/Pacific airports are close to capacity and soon may not be able to handle peak demand periods. "By the end of 1997, half of the Asia-Pacific airports will approach passenger and cargo capacity," he said, addressing the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Vancouver. "To accommodate this increasing air traffic, we need to enhance baselines such as air traffic control," he said. "But to efficiently control aviation and airspace, we must mount a regional effort, rather than country-by-country."
Having agreed in April to consult with airlines over changes to the noise limits at London airports, the U.K. Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions this week proposed the same limitations IATA challenged in the first place. According to a consultation paper published by the department, the reductions of 3 decibels (dBA) in the daytime and 2 dBA at night to 94 dBA and 87 dBA, respectively, would apply to all departing aircraft except the Concorde at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted.
English Worldwide Aviation, a freight operator, has come forward with $150,000 to save Hawaiian low-fare inter-island carrier Mahalo Air from bankruptcy. A bankruptcy court has granted Mahalo's regulatory council a reprieve to consider whether it wants to sell the carrier's operating certificate to EWA for that amount, said Mahalo Air attorney Jerrold Guben. The court has rescheduled the Mahalo hearing for Dec. 1.
Munich Airport, acting on concerns for the environment and fuel economy, will set up a pilot project on its premises next year to produce hydrogen for buses and other vehicles used at the airport. Collaborating with a consortium of 13 companies, Flughafen Munchen GmbH (FMG) will build an electrolytic "fuel farm" to supply hydrogen-powered autos and buses. The project aims initially to put into circulation a hydrogen vehicle for VIP passengers and up to three hydrogen-powered apron buses for regular passenger transport.
FAA commissioned the "world's first" precision runway monitor (PRM) production system at Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport, AlliedSignal Electronic&Avionics said yesterday. Jack Ryan, VP-air traffic management at the Air Transport Association, said the system will "help air traffic controllers and airlines increase airport traffic capacity and enhance safety, especially during inclement weather." The PRM also will reduce delays and minimize fuel consumption, he said.
Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.), ranking member of the House Transportation committee and former aviation subcommittee chairman, wrote DOT Secretary Rodney Slater in support of American Eagle/Simmons Airlines' bid for slot exemptions at Chicago O'Hare (See related story, Page 352 of the hardcopy of this issue). Simmons applied for 60 slots for three daily roundtrips to each of 10 smaller communities, including Duluth, Minn.
Top 20 Carriers Operating Nonstop Between the U.S. and Asia Year Ending March 31, 1997 Total Total Aircraft Rank Market Passengers Movements 1 Northwest 4,245,500 16,592 2 Japan Airlines 4,080,741 16,064 3 United 3,663,647 12,744 4 Continental Micronesia 1,788,542 12,127
