Delta's June domestic passenger traffic fell 0.6% from the same month a year ago on 1.7% more capacity (DAILY, July 10). Its international traffic fell 3.2% on 5.1% less capacity. Systemwide results: June 95 June 94 6 Mths 95 6 Mths 94 RPMs 7,678,316,000 7,779,573,000 41,588,847,000 41,530,695,000 ASMs 11,002,292,000 11,011,381,000 64,513,163,000 64,183,900,000 LoadFtr% 69.8 70.7 64.5 64.7
Air Transport Association President Carol Hallett will be the guest speaker at the International Aviation Club's monthly luncheon July 18. Lunch begins at 12:30 p.m. at the International Club, 1800 K St. N.W., Washington.
Southwest's June passenger traffic rose 11.3% from the same month a year ago, but its capacity increased 14.4%, resulting in a load factor decline of two percentage points. The number of passengers carried was up 7.1%, and the average length of haul rose 3.9% to 531 miles. June 95 June 94 6 Mths 95 6 Mths 94 RPMs 2,116,829,265 1,931,916,520 11,198,328,766 10,496,350,695 ASMs 2,992,195,624 2,614,548,191 17,447,196,592 15,334,297,242
Summary of U.S. Major Carriers Domestic Traffic October 1994 Revenue Average Revenue Passengers Length of Passenger Enplaned % Travel Miles Carriers (000) Change (Miles) (000) America West 1,226 (2.13) 783 959,563 American 5,949 (0.60) 1,033 6,143,972
DOT Secretary Federico Pena is scheduled to testify today at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on airline global access issues (DAILY, July 10). Also slated to testify are Frederick Smith, Federal Express president and CEO, Gerald Greenwald, United chairman and CEO, and Jeffrey Erickson, TWA president and CEO. The hearing is taking place as the U.S. resumes talks in Berlin aimed at gaining open skies with Germany and prepares to continue negotiations with Japan in Tokyo.
KLM's systemwide traffic, including passenger, cargo and mail, increased 9% last month over June a year ago, to 651.1 million revenue ton kilometers, on 9% more capacity. The airline's overall load factor inched up 0.4 percentage points to 74.4%. Passenger traffic increased in June to 3.71 billion revenue passenger kilometers on 1% more capacity, pushing the load factor up to 76.4% from 72.5% in June a year ago.
Midway Airlines will begin nonstop service between Jacksonville and Raleigh/Durham July 31, and between Jacksonville and Orlando, using F100s. The carrier will increase flights to both cities this fall.
World Airways is applying for authority to operate scheduled combination service between New York and Accra, Ghana, and beyond to other points in Africa. If approved, the carrier plans to launch twice-weekly service on the route Aug. 9, using DC-10-30 aircraft. It said it may eventually introduce MD-11 service in the market. World also is requesting the right to operate service beyond Accra to other African destinations, including Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Johannesburg, South Africa.
DOT has granted a request from Fine Airlines to defer action until Aug. 8 on its complaint against the government of Ecuador and Aeroservicios Ecuatorianos (AECA). Fine filed the complaint in January saying that Ecuador would not permit it to institute charter services authorized under the U.S.-Ecuador Air Transport Services Agreement. AECA asked DOT immediately to dismiss with prejudice a pending complaint against it brought by U.S. cargo carrier Fine Airlines.
- H.R.1777 - introduced June 7 by Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.) - to amend Title 5, U.S. Code, to provide that service performed by air traffic second-level supervisors and managers be made creditable for retirement purposes. Government Reform and Oversight. - S.905 - introduced June 9 by Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii) - to provide for the management of the airplane over units of the National Park System, and for other purposes. Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Japan Airlines Cargo and American Airlines Cargo have signed an agreement to act as each other's general sales agent. JAL, which described the deal as "the industry's first significant air cargo alliance," will be general sales agent for AA Cargo in Japan, Thailand and some other Southeast Asian countries. AA Cargo will be GSA for JAL in 14 states in the U.S. and 26 countries in the Caribbean and Latin America. The agreement takes effect Sept. 1.
American's systemwide passenger traffic rose 6.5% last month from June a year ago on 2.8% more capacity, boosting its systemwide load factor 2.4 percentage points to 69.4%. June was American's 12th straight month of year-over-year traffic growth, and the 18th consecutive month in which the load factor rose year-over-year. "Strong domestic demand, coupled with the continued growth of our international operations, made June a good start to what we hope will be a strong summer," said Michael Gunn, senior VP-marketing.
Front Page Tours of Minneapolis, a charter company specializing in sports team contracts, has purchased a majority interest in Grand Holdings from Conrad Kalitta, president of the Kalitta Companies. The tour company will rename the operation Champion Air, which will remain in Los Angeles and retain many of Grand Holdings' employees. Kalitta, who purchased Grand Holdings from MGM Grand Air in December, will retain a 20% stake. Kalitta sold MGM's three DC-8s and three 727s acquired separately from MGM Grand to one of his four companies, American International Airways.
Air France will receive 4 billion Belgian francs, the amount it invested originally, by the end of the month as payment for its stake in Sabena, a Belgian government official confirmed. The news came from a Belgian fruit and vegetable wholesale dealer, who accidentally received a confidential fax intended for Air France and passed it on to a Flemish daily newspaper. Air France and four Belgian partners own 37.5% of Belgium's flag carrier through a holding company, Finacta.
The Airbus A330 powered by Pratt&Whitney's PW4168 engine has received approval from Europe's Joint Airworthiness Authorities for 180-minute extended-range twin-engine operations (ETOPS) following the successful completion of more than 20,000 hours of revenue service, the engine company said yesterday. The propulsion system completed what Pratt called a "rigorous 2,000 cycles of accelerated endurance testing." The engine, which was granted 90-minute ETOPS approval last Nov. 10, entered service seven months ago with Thai International and currently powers 16 A330s.
Northwest's systemwide passenger traffic rose 9.7% last month from June a year ago on 2.9% more capacity, boosting the load factor 4.7 points to 77%. The number of passengers boarded increased 11%. Domestic traffic was up 10.8% on 2.5% more capacity, and international traffic rose 8.2% on 3.7% more capacity. The international load factor hit 83.1% for the month. June 95 June 94 6 Mths 95 6 Mths 94 RPMs 5,748,026,000 5,239,568,000 29,669,213,000 28,073,866,000
Virgin Atlantic Airways and British Midland have begun code sharing between regional U.K. airports and New York Kennedy, Newark, San Francisco and Los Angeles via London Heathrow. Code sharing to Tokyo will begin Aug. 1, and Hong Kong connections and a wide choice of U.K. domestic destinations are expected to be available later this year. Code-sharing service to New York, Newark and San Francisco are offered from Belfast, Edinburgh and Glasgow, while Los Angeles is available from Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Boosted by surprisingly robust revenues, the U.S. airline industry soon will report hundreds of millions of dollars in second quarter earnings - good news for the carriers, their employees and investors, but not necessarily for lobbyists at the Air Transport Association (ATA). U.S. airlines have lost a combined $13 billion during the 1990s, but Wall Street expects the industry to post a profit of about $700 million for the June quarter and most observers expect strong earnings in the third quarter as well.
International express service is emerging as a major factor in cargo traffic, mirroring its success in the U.S. market, according to Boeing cargo marketing executive James Edgar. In 1994, international express traffic was up 25% over 1993, and future growth is projected at 18% a year, producing a 31% share of the cargo market by the year 2014.
British Airways and Aeromexico have entered into an Executive Club service partnership that BA said will open up hundreds of new routes on which members of its Executive Club can earn and redeem mileage awards. BA said passengers connecting between the two airlines in Miami will enjoy enhanced services at the new Miami Flight Connection Center, which enables passengers to make international connections without passing through U.S. Customs and Immigration.
FAA yesterday rated the Philippine government's oversight of international safety standards as "conditional" and that of Haiti as "unacceptable." FAA rates as "acceptable" the ability of El Salvador and Fiji to conduct aviation safety oversight.
Four Airbus Industrie partners and Boeing have suspended for six months their joint feasibility study on a 600- to 800-seat Very Large Commercial Transport (VLCT) aircraft.
Air L.A. has purchased Texas regional carrier Conquest Airlines for $6 million in Air L.A. preferred stock and notes. Air L.A. has terminated unprofitable routes in California, focusing on St. Paul and Chicago Midway. It will fold Conquest's Texas markets into its service. Conquest operates six Fairchild Metro IIIs to Tyler, Beaumont/Port Arthur, Corpus Christi, McAllen, San Antonio, Abilene and Austin. Air L.A. President William Hirsch said the acquisition "is an important cornerstone in the strategic realignment of Air L.A.
American Airlines' Cargo named Peter Hansen regional sales manager- cargo sales for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, and Gordon Johnston regional manager-cargo sales, Canada.
Midway Airlines, pleased with the success of its move last March to Raleigh/Durham, may launch an initial public stock offering in September. The carrier also is looking to add aircraft by yearend. Midway currently operates 13 A320s and eight Fokker 100s.
