Passenger response to In-Flight Phone Corp.'s (IFPC) interactive survey function on telephones installed in Continental and America West aircraft is averaging 3,000 a day. IFPC, which is collecting the data in conjunction with CIC Research, says the response, estimated to be 13% of each aircraft surveyed, surpassed its expectations. So far, the survey contains only general questions, about travel preferences and Internet use.
Although McDonnell Douglas and Boeing executives deny that the $13.3 billion stock swap between the two aerospace giants spells the doom of Douglas Aircraft Co. as an independent producer, some industry analysts disagree. Analysts generally approve of the merger, announced Sunday in Washington by Boeing President Phil Condit and McDonnell Douglas President Harry Stonecipher.
Bilateral talks between the U.S. and France, the first formal discussions since France renounced the bilateral in 1993, made little progress yesterday. DOT and State Department negotiators were present, as well as industry observers. At least in the official sessions, according to sources close to the talks, French negotiators did not seem prepared to give much ground over liberalizing the relationship.
TWA has named three board members to interim executive positions while it continues to search for a successor to Jeffrey Erickson as president and chief executive. Effective immediately, Gerald Gitner has become vice chairman and acting chief executive. He is chairman of New York investment firm Avalon Group, a former Pan Am vice chairman and former chief executive of Pan American World Services. David Kennedy has been named acting executive VP and chief operating officer responsible for long-term marketing, planning and operation of the airline.
Standard&Poor's yesterday placed its rating of McDonnell Douglas and Boeing on CreditWatch with "positive implications," S&P said. If the transaction is completed, S&P said McDonnell Douglas's ratings will be raised to the level of Boeing's credit quality.
Daimler-Benz Aerospace (DASA) Chairman Manfred Bischoff, speaking on German television yesterday, called for more state aid to help Airbus Industrie compete with Boeing-McDonnell Douglas. Gunter Rexrodt, the German minister of the economy, pressed for the European consortium to change rapidly into a more efficient corporate structure, in a statement issued yesterday in Bonn. Two days before the U.S.
The Delta Express experiment already is proving Delta can operate a low- cost airline-within-an-airline profitably, and keep the two operations separate in customers' minds, said Express VP W.E. "Skip" Barnett. Since Nov. 1, Express has been surveying passengers. "We asked, 'were we managing their expectations for a different type of service,' and we found the responses saying we were," he said.
Moody's Investor Service yesterday placed the debt ratings of Boeing and McDonnell Douglas under review for possible upgrade following the two companies' proposed $13.3 billion stock-swap merger. Approximately $4.8 billion of debt is affected. Placing debt ratings under review also will include Rockwell International, which Boeing also intends to acquire. The ratings agency plans to assess Boeing's "greater exposure to the cyclicality of the commercial aircraft industry" despite today's healthy backlogs.
The Dallas City Council has approved an expansion of Southwest's Dallas headquarters that will cost the carrier $30 million and give it the opportunity to keep its headquarters in Dallas for another 50 years. The 300,000-square-foot, five-story addition will open in November and be adjacent to the existing headquarters building. The city will not provide financing, but under the deal Southwest will purchase the adjacent land owned by Interstate Brands Corp. and give it back to the city.
FAA yesterday issued a notice of investigation into the transfer in September of $31.1 million from the Los Angeles Department of Airports to the city's general account and gave the city until Jan. 15 to respond or "to make good faith efforts to resolve this matter informally." FAA is using new Part 16 procedures for airport proceedings that took effect just yesterday (DAILY, Oct. 11). If the issues are not resolved by Jan.
As the rest of Europe toils to position itself for aviation deregulation in April, Virgin Atlantic's Richard Branson is about to float around the world for 18 days in a balloon at 30,000 feet. One industry observer noted that the adventure will be "a nice vacation" for American and British Airways.
The Court of Justice of the European Union upheld last week the 1994 billion French franc aid package granted by French state-controlled financial institution Caisse des Depots et Consignations (CDC). Air France claimed the operation - the subscription by CDC in 1993 of FF750 million in convertible bonds and an equal amount of subordinated notes - was not a state aid and could have been undertaken by a private investor. The European Commission and the Court of Justice rejected the airline's point of view, given its poor financial situation at the time.
Bernard Ziegler, the last of the pioneers involved in establishing Airbus Industrie, retired after 26 years with the consortium. He was senior VP- engineering. Ziegler is credited with developing use of fly-by-wire controls and side-stick on commercial aircraft.
The government of Korea is examining "all forms of wet-lease and block- space agreements" and their relation to air services provided through Korea, according to an attorney representing World Airways. The carrier still is awaiting resolution of its dispute with Korea, which has not permitted World to operate new flights beyond Seoul despite World's and DOT's understanding that they are permitted by the bilateral pact, one of the more open ones in the region.
Last week's five-hour shutdown of Madrid Barajas Airport cost Iberia more than 65 million pesetas, as the Spanish flag carrier had to cancel 109 flights, diverted 11 and delayed 55. For all airlines, the closure led to the cancellation of 300 flights. The shutdown was caused by a fire in an underground gallery, which led to an electrical failure affecting runway lights. Spanish airport authority Administracion Espanola de Navegacion Aerea (AENA) said the accident was the first of its kind in Barajas' history and all safety procedures would be reviewed.
Raymond Vecci, executive VP and chief operating officer at Tower Air for four months, has left the airline to become president and chief operating officer of Carnival Air Lines. He will take over the day-to-day operations of the carrier in January.
KLM said yesterday it would pay 46.821 Dutch guilders per share for the 17.29 million shares it is purchasing from the Dutch government. The 800.2 million guilders (US$456 million) KLM would pay the government would be in addition to the 176.25 million guilders (US$100 million) the airline will pay for 11.75 million preference "A" shares. The move will cut the government's share to 25% from 38%. The airline said the move is subject to approval by KLM shareholders, but it was pleased with the pricing.
Air transport liberalization moved forward last week in Italy as startup airline Azzurra Air launched operations to Germany, the U.K., and France, in addition to domestic services. The airline started twice-daily flights from Bergamo to Rome, Munich, London City Airport and Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport with two new 100-seat Avro RJ85s, the first aircraft of this type delivered in Italy. The airline, in which Air Malta holds a 49% stake, will take delivery of a third Avro jet in April 1997.
Chicago Aviation Commissioner Mary Rose Loney told The DAILY that closing Meigs Field "has not and will not have any deleterious effect on new commercial air service at Midway" after Burlington, Iowa-based Remmers Aviation President Ron Remmers earlier this month alleged that closing Meigs has "effectively destroyed the possibility of any new airline service from Midway" (DAILY, Dec. 9).
Sen. Slade Gorton (R-Wash.) is considered likely to succeed Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) as chairman of the Commerce aviation subcommittee in the next Congress.McCain is replacing defeated Sen. Larry Pressler (R-S.D.) as chairman of the Commerce Committee.
An investigation by DOT's Office of Inspector General found no clear pattern of FAA discrimination against white males in its promotions to GS- 15 positions, as had been alleged. Examining other allegations as well, the IG did find an imbalance in the agency's selection of women and minorities as nominees for the DOT Fellows Program.
The DOT Office of Inspector General said it substantiated two allegations and partially substantiated a third regarding "waste and mismanagement" at two Air Route Traffic Control Centers' Critical and Essential Systems Project installation sites in Seattle and Southern California. "We found that FAA's review of technical specifications failed to identify both a power system wiring deficiency and a floor density problem, resulting in schedule delays and extra costs," the IG reported.
Louis and Madrid TWA told DOT it plans to operate daily nonstop 767 service between St. Louis and Madrid, starting June 15. The carrier said it already has authority to fly the route. Delta has been denied permission by Spain to fly its own U.S.-Madrid route, and the U.S. responded by granting only a temporary exemption to Air Espana for Spain-U.S. service.
Airlines are increasingly skeptical about such FAA-endorsed information- sharing programs as Flight Operations Quality Assurance and the Global Aviation Information Network. The industry wants to gain experience first with its own program, the Aviation Safety Exchange Support System (ASESS), says Al Prest, VP-operations for the Air Transport Association. ASESS will use generic information rather than FOQA-type data. "We need to learn how to share among ourselves non-FOQA information," Prest says.
