Although a number of U.S. carriers are lining up to operate scheduled combination service to South Africa, the same cannot be said for all-cargo operators. Federal Express, the only U.S. cargo carrier designated for the market, is working through an agent rather than operating flights into the country, said a FedEx spokeswoman. Demand is not great enough to justify regular widebody service, she said.
Senate Appropriations transportation subcommittee this week may propose some significant changes in the way FAA does business in order to save money in fiscal 1996 and future years. Moveover, the panel, which has almost $400 million less in outlays to allocate than its House counterpart, likely will push FAA to be more aggressive in recovering costs for services. Also expect to see more money for computer improvements at Chicago and four other en route centers.
DOT says it still expects a signature from Belgium, the only holdout among the nine European countries it targeted for open skies agreements, but the department declines to say when. More than a month has passed since the rapid-fire signings ended.
USAir has given up its attempts to negotiate concession agreements with labor, turning instead to conventional collective bargaining, because of impasses on key issues. "We still intend to achieve the labor cost savings we need, but it appears it will be by a more traditional route," Chairman Seth Schofield said Friday.
President Clinton yesterday signed into law the supplemental appropriations/rescissions bill (H.R.1944), instantly adding $2.1 billion to the aviation trust fund's uncommitted surplus. The 66% increase in the uncommitted balance, to about $5.3 billion, results from rescission of $2.1 billion in unused Airport Improvement Program contract authority, which accumulated due to the shortfall in AIP obligations compared to authorized levels.
Continental officials pleaded their case for Heathrow authority and against the pending aviation fuel tax in a meeting with DOT Secretary Federico Pena yesterday in Houston. "As one of the only U.S. carriers with no access to Heathrow, Continental is a logical candidate when new route opportunities are available between the U.S. and London," said Continental President Gordon Bethune, adding that "it is imperative that all carriers should have equal access to route authorities" granted by DOT.
British Airways has signed an agreement to participate in Worldspan Airline Source, the Atlanta-based computer reservations system's highest level of participation, Worldspan said yesterday. BA's transition, to be completed later this year, will provide subscribing travel agents with real-time, interactive connectivity with BA during bookings. Availability requests made by agents will be routed instantly to BA's database.
Taiwan's Ministry of Transportation and Communications has granted EVA Airways and TransAsia Airways authority to provide passenger service between Taiwan and Macau, according to Taipei's International Community Radio Taipei. Both carriers are expected to begin service on the route before the end of this year. Macau Airlines said it intends to inaugurate service on its Macau-Kaohsiung-Taipei route on Nov. 9, the day Macau's airport opens.
Lufthansa plans to launch twice-weekly service to Tirana, Albania, from Frankfurt on Sept. 4 using Boeing 737 aircraft configured for two classes. Tirana will be the airline's 23rd destination in Eastern Europe and the third new city, after Odessa and Baku, added to its route network this year. Lufthansa said Albania is enjoying an economic upswing and has attracted a record number of international travelers, including more than 10,000 Germans in 1994, since opening its markets to foreign companies and investment.
Colorado's Jefferson County (Jeffco) Airport has issued proposed minimum standards to be met by any carrier seeking to initiate scheduled air service at the point, located between Denver and Boulder. Included are the assumption of the cost for required fire/crash/rescue equipment as well as its staffing and maintenance. The carrier also would have to pay for paving a parking lot and a secured ramp area capable of parking at least two aircraft.
DOT sees the Air Transport Association's call for a short-term fix for en route center computers as a welcome recognition of the need to act on air traffic control reform. "These are exactly the types of problems that we have been talking about for two years," a DOT official said. "Hopefully, ATA will now decide to engage in the discussion and help find a solution."
The opening date for Macau's first airport will be Nov. 9, and an announcement is expected in the next few days. The timing is related partly to the staging of the Macau Grand Prix annual motor race later that month - some of the cars are expected to be air-freighted into the new airport. The official opening ceremony is planned Dec. 8.
GP Express, operating as Continental Connection, has served DOT with a 90-day notice of its intention to terminate its essential air service at seven Nebraska communities. In a letter to DOT, GP Express President Dick Fontaine said the decision was prompted by existing and expected increases in operating expenses linked to government regulations. The Nebraska communities affected by the GP Express decision are Kearney, Hastings, McCook, Alliance, Chadron, Scottsbluff and North Platte.
Last week's 48-hour strike by cabin staff cost Air France 80 million French francs in lost revenue and extra costs of charter aircraft. The French flag carrier, which called the action "absurd and suicidal," said the charters enabled it to operate 70% of its medium- and long-haul scheduled services. The action by Syndicat National du Personnel Navigant Commercial, the cabin staff union, prompted a debate in the French Parliament, where deputies called for legislation on strikes at public- sector service providers.
USAir Express affiliate CommutAir, Plattsburgh, N.Y., is the first customer for a regional airline revenue management service its developer calls ReArm (regional airline revenue maximizer). CommutAir will be the first regional airline to automate its revenue management on an out- sourcing basis, according to a statement from ReArm, a division of College Park, Md.-based BehavHeuristics, Inc.
The European Commission will not make a decision on the regional aircraft joint venture among Aerospatiale, Alenia and British Aerospace "before the month of October at the earliest," said a commission source. The European Union's competition watchdog decided on July 25 to consider the case in the light of Article 85 of the European Union Treaty - regarding the prohibition of abusive dominant position on the market - instead of the 1989 Merger Regulation. A practical consequence of this decision is to extend the investigation's timetable.
Evans&Sutherland Computer Ltd., the English subsidiary of Evans&Sutherland Computer Corp., has received a contract from Airbus Industrie for visual systems for A320 and A330/A340 flight simulators. The company said the contract is its first as an independent supplier to the civil aviation simulation system market rather than as a subcontractor.
Airlines that operate in the U.S. are well on their way to meeting FAA's turn-of-the-century deadline for phasing in Stage 3 aircraft, according to the director of the agency's office of environment and energy, James Erickson. FAA will report formally to Congress next month, Erickson said yesterday at the 25th annual meeting of the National Organization to Insure a Sound Controlled Environment. He said 27.3% of today's fleet meets only Stage 2 standards and 66.3% satisfies Stage 3, compared with fleet-mix requirements of 25% and 55%, respectively.
National Transportation Safety Board is studying the 17-parameter flight data recorder of a USAir 737-400 that rolled to the right while on autopilot during an approach Tuesday to Richmond. The flightcrew disconnected the autopilot at about 1,700 feet and landed normally, a USAir spokesman said yesterday.
The House Appropriations Committee has eliminated the Air Force's request for $38 million in advance procurement funding for the GPS Block IIF follow-on satellite program, the next generation of Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites. The committee approved a $19.7 million request for research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E). The committee said it is concerned about reports of technical problems in the development of 21 replacement GPS satellites being built by Lockheed Martin Astro Space.
New federal strategy on tourism, issued Wednesday by the Tourism Policy Council, is not likely to have any impact on airline operations except for facilitating Immigration and Naturalization Service processing of passengers (DAILY, July 27). As with most government policy initiatives, the report is long on broad goals and short on specifics. Among recommendations to promote tourism to the U.S.
Summary of U.S. Major Carriers Domestic Revenues and Expenses Fourth Quarter 1994 (In Dollars) Total Operating % Passenger Carrier Revenues Change Revenues America West 341,370,684 (1.89) 314,528,451 American 2,612,174,000 7.84 2,251,466,000 Continental 1,008,305,000 0.36 886,431,000
Airlines with employees represented by the Machinists union could be in for a big change in the collective bargaining arena following an announcement yesterday by the Machinists, United Auto Workers and United Steelworkers of America that they may join forces and create a single massive union. The unification would create the largest union in North America, with 2 million active and 1.4 million retired members, the unions said.
National Air Transportation Association is launching an information campaign to clarify what it calls "misconceptions" about Part 135 operations - and shield its members from a government proposal to bring many Part 135 operators under Part 121 standards.
USAir Express affiliate CCAIR posted an operating profit of $1.7 million and net earnings of $808,001, or 11 cents per share, for the fiscal year ended June 30. The airline's operating revenues declined 1.5%, but its operating expenses dropped 7.1%. In the year before, CCAIR had a net loss of $4.8 million and an operating loss of $3.9 million. For the June quarter, the final quarter of the carrier's fiscal year, CCAIR had net earnings of $734,161, or 10 cents per share, and an operating profit of $985,209.
