European Commission's closed-door hearing on competition issues raised by the American-British Airways alliance ended yesterday in Brussels. A source familiar with the proceeding said EC officials sharply questioned representatives of carriers, including the alliance partners, Continental, USAir, Delta, United, Virgin Atlantic, KLM, SAS and Lufthansa.
Air France is offering unions their first pay increases - about 3.5% in 1997 and 1998 overall - since wages were frozen four years ago. In the medium term, the French airline is aiming at an annual salary growth rate of 2.5%.
Munich's airport authority is selecting an architect to design a second terminal with capacity of 15 million passengers per year, to be operational by 2002-03. The current terminal, opened in 1992, already is approaching its capacity limit of 18 million passengers per year. Financing for the new terminal, estimated to cost 1.7 billion Deutschmarks, has not yet been arranged. In 1996, Munich Airport handled about 15.7 million passengers, 5.5% more than in 1995. It increased its turnover 10% to DM810 million and reduced its operating loss to DM30 million-DM35 million.
Communications Workers of America filed objections Monday at the National Mediation Board against USAir in hopes that NMB will allow another representation election for passenger service workers (DAILY, Feb. 4). CWA, which lost an election last week, claims USAir influenced workers improperly through employee roundtables. The union will continue organizing activities at the carrier if NMB does not grant another election, a spokeswoman said.
United's Air Line Pilots Association, in a letter to members this week, is detailing how the union will proceed in dealing with senior management and how it plans to enlist the support of other employee groups for its plan to change the "corporate culture" at United. ALPA, which recently rejected mid-term wage adjustment agreement, has embarked on a campaign to withdraw from certain company committees and has complained of serious pilot understaffing (DAILY, Jan. 29). The mid-term wage adjustment is in arbitration, and a decision is due by April 12.
The Senate Finance Committee plans today to approve legislation reinstating the aviation excise taxes through September and allowing for the transfer of some $1.2 billion in taxes collected by the airlines in 1996 but not remitted to the government until this year. At a Finance hearing yesterday, Chairman William Roth (R-Del.) said he hoped to move the bill to the Senate floor as quickly as possible and without amendment. Emergency markup is slated for 9:30 a.m. in Room 215, Dirksen Building. Since the U.S.
DOT Office of Aviation Enforcement rejected arguments by computer reservations system provider Sabre that it should be dismissed as a target of legal action against Preference MAAnager (DAILY, Jan. 23). The enforcement office charged that the add-on software, distributed by co- defendant American, violates anti-bias rules because it permits travel agents to give display priority to American and American Eagle flights. Sabre parent The Sabre Group Holdings Inc.
Prestige Airways, Manassas, Va., applied for an exemption to operate scheduled combination service between Miami and Cancun, using a 727-230. The carrier wants to begin flights March 30. (Docket OST-97-2104)
CFM International said 1996 was its most successful year, with orders for 1,280 CFM56 engines valued at $5.5 billion. The General Electric-Snecma partnership said the orders more than doubled the 1995 total and represented 61% of worldwide engine orders placed last year.
Continental and American are presenting arguments for why each would be the best code-share partner for Aerolineas Argentinas, though neither airline is saying publicly whether its intentions include an equity stake in the troubled South American carrier. Continental executives were in Buenos Aires yesterday, but it was unclear whether they had met with Aerolineas. But neither U.S. carrier - both of which have a penchant for code sharing without equity investments - may be willing to ante as much as Brazil's Viacao Aerea Sao Paulo (Vasp).
Bell and Boeing said they have opened the order book on the Bell Boeing 609 civil tiltrotor aircraft for deliveries starting in 2001. Since the project was launched last November, the Bell Boeing team has frozen aircraft configuration, begun manufacture of major tools, increased staffing and signed agreements with major component suppliers. Pratt&Whitney will provide PT-6 engines and Collins its Pro Line 21 avionics suite. Lear Astronics will supply a fly-by-wire flight control system and Dowty Aerospace the flight control actuators.
American said that any award of new Brazil combination rights that pre- empts its own bid for seven new weekly Manaus frequencies would merely duplicate existing U.S.-Brazil routes. Competitors said that awarding frequencies to American would merely guarantee its lock on the market, but the airline said it is the only one proposing U.S. flag service to the developing trade and tourism center in the Amazon.
Lufthansa Cityline is the first German carrier authorized to use a head-up guidance system it co-developed with American Flight Dynamics of the U.S. and Bombardier of Canada. Germany's federal aviation agency approved the system Monday for use at the airline's home base at Konrad Adenauer Airport, which serves Cologne and Bonn. The Lufthansa regional subsidiary has equipped its fleet of Canadair jets to carry out precision landings in Category 3 weather conditions.
American, which would likely welcome intervention by President Clinton to send its pilot dispute to arbitration - just as Clinton did with the flight attendants in 1993 - said yesterday a strike has foreign-relations implications. The carrier listed "Chilean salmon producers" and "waitresses in Jamaica" as potential strike victims.
American's pilots have drawn their line in the sand - they will strike Feb. 15 unless American agrees that only American pilots will fly regional jets, financial analysts said yesterday after the Allied Pilots Association showed them economic analyses portraying them as lowest-paid among the five largest U.S. airlines. Several analysts were left with the impression that the pilots are willing to accept stock options in lieu of retroactive pay, will wait until August to receive pay increases and could be flexible on other personal economic issues, but not on RJs.
Middle East Airlines of Beirut has taken delivery of the first of two A320s leased from International Lease Finance Corp. The second A320, plus two A321s also being leased from ILFC, are to be delivered in May. The A320s will replace MEA's 707 service in the Middle East and to Europe.
USAir will begin operating new daily, nonstop flights to Bermuda from New York LaGuardia April 6 and from Charlotte May 6, using 737s. USAir already serves Bermuda nonstop from Baltimore and Philadelphia.
Precision Standard said it is in discussions with the Denver Department of Aviation about establishing an aircraft modification facility at Denver Airport. The new operation initially would be dedicated to modifying aircraft to meet federal noise regulations, according to Greg Milzcik, group VP-manufacturing and overhaul. The initiative is based on a request for proposal last November by Denver Mayor Wellington Webb. The city has set up a $15 million funding level for the project.
Braathens has ordered six 737-700 aircraft valued at $255 million, with deliveries to begin in 1998 and continue through 2000. The carrier also placed options on 10 of the 134-passenger aircraft. Braathens currently operates a fleet of 737-400/500 aircraft.
Triumph Group, which repairs and overhauls aircraft components, reported that net sales for the third fiscal quarter, which ended Dec. 31 rose 39% to $64.7 million. Income increased 211% to $3.7 million.
Qatar Airways will introduce new aircraft into its fleet and new branding into its products as part of a restructuring plan intended to take it "forward into the next century." The carrier's new chief executive, Akbar Al Baker, has brought in a number of executives from outside the company, including Michael Hewitt, formerly with The Swire Group, who has held senior positions with Cathay Pacific, to be senior general manager, sales and airline services; Hugh Parry, a former director of Air Europe and co- founder of British Mediterranean Airways, to be general manager o
The Machinists union at TWA warned management yesterday that it will sue the board of directors if, as the union expects, TWA shrinks the airline to a single hub by closing New York Kennedy and Los Angeles operations and maintenance bases, laying off thousands of employees.
Citing increased trade between the U.S., Chile and Bolivia, LanChile applied for an exemption to add La Paz and Santa Cruz, Bolivia, as intermediate points in its scheduled all-cargo service between Santiago and co-terminal points Miami and New York. The carrier also wants blind-sector authority so it can commingle traffic among Santiago, La Paz and Santa Cruz with other traffic in its route system. (Docket OST-97-2103)
Antigua/Barbuda operator LIAT agreed to a civil penalty for conducting unauthorized flights. Its foreign air carrier permit expired in July 1996, and its application the following August to reinstate authority was granted. But July 25-31, LIAT conducted numerous scheduled and charter operations from Barbuda to San Juan and Miami, and operated long-term wet- leases for Aerolineas Dominicana to the U.S., DOT said. LIAT said the flights were "inadvertent." DOT assessed a $20,000 penalty, half of which is forgiven if no more violations occur.
