Continental Micronesia is asking DOT to amend its existing authority to add the Philippines to its current service between Guam and Saipan, on the one hand, and points in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and India, on the other (Segment 12 of Route 171). The carrier said the expanded rights would give it flexibility to combine Philippines flights with other service on the route, including all-cargo operations serving Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur via Manila.
Mesa Air Group and Bombardier this week announced signing a definitive agreement for 25 Dash 8-200 aircraft plus 25 options. The airline had announced its selection of the newest version of the de-Havilland-built aircraft in late February (DAILY, Feb. 24). Deliveries on the C$317 million order are to begin next February at the rate of two a month.
The Association of Flight Attendants lost an election to represent flight attendants at Delta Connection carrier Comair yesterday. The National Mediation Board said of the 324 eligible voters, the AFA received only 116 votes. Comair's flight attendants are not currently represented by a union.
Saab Aircraft of America Thursday announced a major realignment of top management in what could be likened to a "youth movement." Henrik Schruder, 39, the son of retired Saab Aircraft Division General Manager and Saab-Scania Executive VP Harald Schruder, was named president and chief executive. He retains his position as president of the Saab Aircraft customer finance companies in the U.S. President Jack Faherty, 63, becomes a senior VP when the appointments become effective Monday.
DOT has tentatively renewed the authority of Exec Express II to provide subsidized essential air service at Enid and Ponca City, Okla., and Brownwood, Texas, for a two-year period from March 1, 1995, through Feb. 28, 1997. For an annual subsidy of more than $1.3 million, Lone Star will operate three roundtrips each weekday and weekend between Enid and Ponca City and Dallas/Fort Worth and two roundtrips each week-day and weekend between Brownwood and DFW. The carrier will perform service using a Fairchild Metro III or Metro 23. (Dockets 42130&43922)
A U.K. court has settled the Dirty Tricks case Virgin Atlantic brought against British Airways, resulting in a substantial net payment to BA, BA said. As of December, Virgin claimed damages from the Dirty Tricks campaign were 29 million, and last month it suggested a settlement payment of 750,000. BA rejected the offer. Virgin came back with a settlement of 265,000 and the suggestion that each side pay its own legal fees, which BA also rejected.
America West's tour package division is offering vacation specials to Mazatlan and Los Cabos, Mexico. Prices for two-night packages range from $339 from Phoenix to $499 from Minneapolis and Milwaukee to Los Cabos, and from $319 from Phoenix to $479 from Milwaukee and Chicago to Mazatlan. Packages include roundtrip airfare, a choice of hotel accommodations, 500 bonus FlightFund miles and ground transfers.
Sen. Wendell Ford (D-Ky.) introduced this week the Clinton administration's proposed legislation (S.682) to allow FAA to expand Part 139 airport certification requirements to airports served only by small commuter aircraft. FAA's current authority to issue airport certificates is limited to airports serving air carrier aircraft with more than 30 passenger seats.
Cincinnati- and Orlando-based Comair will expand service throughout Florida this spring, including the launch May 1 of Canadair Regional Jet service between Fort Lauderdale and Orlando as well as direct service to New Orleans from Fort Lauderdale via Orlando. The regional also will add two roundtrip flights between Fort Lauderdale and Tampa with 30-passenger Embraer Brasilia aircraft and upgrade an early roundtrip flight to Orlando from a 19-passenger Metro to the 30-passenger Brasilia.
Eastwind Airlines is seeking a three-month extension of its exemption to start up operations. The exemption had a revocation-for-dormancy date of March 31, and the carrier said it was "making significant progress toward commencing operations and believes it can make its certificate effective within 90 days." Eastwind said it was "actively engaged" in obtaining operating authority from FAA and negotiating aircraft leases. It also is "coordinating with and has support of the State of New Jersey Department of Commerce and Economic Development.
An Airbus Industrie A340 conducted automatic landings in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou recently, demonstrating differential Global Positioning System capability to pilots and staff of several major Chinese carriers. Sextant Avionique supplied the ground station and aircraft receiver.
A senior executive of India's state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) has revealed the rampant use of counterfeit aircraft spares by the country's civil aviation industry. Titled "High Treason With Bogus Spares," the report, by HAL Deputy General Manager A.E. Patrawalla, says the dubious spares can be hazardous in terms of safety because they are often manufactured with cheap materials not appropriate for an aircraft, and they are dimensionally defective, improperly heat-treated and inadequately corrosion-proofed.
Short Brothers has awarded AEL Industries of Lansdale, Pa., a contract for its East Alton, Ill., Aero Division to design modifications and convert three Shorts 360 aircraft from passenger to cargo configuration. One already is completed and certificated by FAA. A similar modification is expected for a fourth aircraft. The first conversion was completed after work was begun at the Aero Division's St. Louis center in December, and has culminated in a Supplemental Type Certification from FAA's Great Lakes Region, AEL said.
A senior Boeing official said yesterday there does not appear to be enough demand to support the near-term launch of a very large commercial transport (VLCT) aircraft program. Larry Clarkson, senior VP-planning and international development for Boeing Co., said in Seattle he doubts that such a project will be started during the next two years, considering the amount of money and time a developer would have to invest.
LanChile is seeking authority to operate cargo service to the U.S. under lease for Mas de Carga. Under the arrangement, LanChile would lease aircraft to Mas de Carga to operate up to four weekly flights between Mexico City/Toluca, Cancun and Miami, and up to two weekly flights between Mexico City/Toluca and Los Angeles. (Docket 50259)
Alaska Air Group affiliate Horizon Air flew 68 million revenue passenger miles in March, a 27% increase from the 54 million flown in March 1994. Capacity rose 33% to 115 million available seat miles from 86 million a year ago, pushing load factor down 3.1 percentage points to 59.6% from 62.7%. The Seattle-based regional carried 315,100 passengers, up 20% from the 262,000 boardings of March 1994. March 95 March 94 3 Months 95 3 Months 94 RPMs 68,000,000 54,000,000 186,000,000 143,000,000
Regional Airline Association, responding this week to an FAA request for comments on National Transportation Safety Board recommendations that flight data recorders be upgraded, complained that it had been impossible to develop the required cost information in the two weeks allotted (DAILY, April 5).
The Clinton administration transmitted to Congress yesterday legislation proposing the DOT reorganization it announced in December and unveiled in February. The proposal would reduce the department from the current 10 operating agencies to three - the Federal Aviation Administration, the U.S. Coast Guard and a new Intermodal Transportation Administration (DAILY, Feb. 3). The new FAA would be smaller, with air traffic control functions shifted to a government corporation under separate legislation.
TWA offered a one-day fare sale, available yesterday only, in 64 U.S. cities for domestic summer travel. The one-way fares, based on a roundtrip purchase, were $99, $129 and $149, and $274 to Hawaii, for travel April 24 through Sept. 14. TWA joined other airlines earlier this week in a summer fare sale, and yesterday's one-day sale cut the summer-sale prices - for example, by $20 in the Boston-Miami market and $45 for Pittsburgh-Los Angeles.
An FAA official yesterday denied industry speculation that the agency granted the $500 million Wide Area Augmentation System contract to a Wilcox-led team under conditions designed to draw a protest and delay the program while the agency works out WAAS problems with the Defense Department (DAILY, April 6).
USAir pilots have reached an agreement in principle with management that would stiffen provisions in the union-contract scope clause. In what the ALPA unit called "significant improvements to our scope protection," the agreement would restrict the flying of all jets in the USAir livery to pilots on the USAir seniority list, regardless of aircraft size. The clause also establishes "new limits" on the company's ability to enter into new code-sharing agreements and requires that pilot jobs will follow "transferred assets in case of a "substantial sale..."
DOT has selected Ellis Air Taxi to provide essential air service at Gulkana, May Creek and McCarthy, Alaska. The carrier will operate the service over a Gulkana-McCarthy-May Creek-Gulkana-Anchorage-Gukana routing with a change of gauge in Gulkana. It will provide two roundtrips a week between Gulkana and Anchorage using Cessna 310 aircraft for an annual subsidy of $77,469 and two roundtrips a week from Gulkana to May Creek and McCarthy with either Cessna 185 or 206 aircraft for annual subsidy of $35,456. (Dockets 43447&48316)
Units of Fokker that perform maintenance activities have received the Maintenance Organization Approval for compliance with JAR [Joint Airworthiness Requirement]-145, Fokker said. JAR-145, issued by the European Joint Aviation Authorities, requires that all aircraft registered in Europe or with Europe as their main area of operation and used for commercial purposes, are maintained by an approved maintenance shop.
House yesterday passed the conference report accompanying the defense supplemental appropriations bill (H.R.889). The conference report includes a $35 million reduction in funding for the Advanced Automation System. The Senate late yesterday was considering a supplemental appropriations/rescissions bill (H.R.1158) (DAILY, April 4).
KLM's systemwide traffic - passenger, freight and mail - rose 11% in the fiscal year that ended March 31 to 7.37 billion revenue ton kilometers on 8% more capacity, boosting the overall load factor 1.8 percentage points to 74.5%. KLM said the load factor was highest on Asia/Pacific routes at 82.1%. The airline's transatlantic load factor was 77.6%, an increase of 5.3 points from the previous year.
