Delta and Iberia upgraded their respective connectivity levels in the Infini computer reservations system yesterday. Delta upgraded to Direct Sell using EDIFACT, while Iberia upgraded to Direct Sell. Infini's EDI Direct Sell product adheres to the UN/ECE and IATA-approved standards, according to Japan-based Infini Travel Information Inc. During the booking process at the Direct Sell level, the Infini system interfaces with the participating carrier's system on a real-time basis and results in the immediate decrement of the carrier's seat inventory.
The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) says the Justice Department is conducting a "careful review" of airlines' caps on travel agent commissions to determine whether the airlines are guilty of price fixing or collusion, which was requested by ASTA earlier this month.
British Airways and other airlines hosted in BA's Speedwing reservations system, including British Midland and Air Jamaica, have converted to Galileo's GlobalFares system from SITA's Fareshare. Another five airlines - Swissair, Austrian, Qantas, Air New Zealand and South African Airways - are in the development phase of linking to GlobalFares.
...Eagle pilots complain that local-level managers are perfectly capable, but are not allowed to manage. All decisions, they say, are made in Fort Worth, including crew and route scheduling. Management does not want pilots in management positions, they say, and "managers keep their doors closed and are not line-qualified." A top-level and highly confidential AMR investigation of the Eagle system, following last year's two fatal accidents, apparently echoed those sentiments, particularly faulting local-level pilot and maintenance management.
Privatization of formerly state-owned Brazilian manufacturer Embraer is being questioned in some financial circles. Of 13 board members, only four are considered to be without government connections - two each for Brazilian bank Banco Bozano and New York investment bank Wasserstein Perella, which together control 23% of the company. Fifty-nine percent is owned by government-related parties - two board members each for the pension funds of state-owned Telebras, Banco do Brasil and the Air Ministry and one each for the state bank, employees and union members.
Air Methods Corp. has sold a new Bell 412 helicopter equipped with a medical interior to an unnamed Middle East customer. The aircraft had been on lease to another customer in the region, and the lease and sale brought in $5 million, enabling the company to retire $3.8 million in debt. George Belsey, chairman and chief executive of Air Methods, said the sale is significant because it is the first in a Middle East market, which has "significant future potential.
DOT Secretary Federico Pena this week inaugurated DOT's new central docket management facility. Docket information will be consolidated in the office from the department's nine docket facilities into a single office located in Room PL401 at DOT headquarters in Washington. DOT also is converting from a paper-based system to an electronic "imaging" system in several phases. The first phase will cover filings from the Office of the Secretary, to be followed eventually by dockets from all modal administrations.
Operators of aircraft with 10 to 19 passenger seats will bear more than 75% of the 10-year, $275 million cost of complying with FAA's proposed rule widening the applicability of Part 121 safety standards, according to figures provided by the agency this week. FAA is proposing to extend Part 121 standards to those companies now operating scheduled service with aircraft having 10 to 30 seats under the less-stringent Part 135 (DAILY, March 27 and 28). Part 121 currently applies to companies using aircraft with more than 30 seats.
Now almost a month overdue, the release date of DOT's Air Travel Consumer Report remains uncertain. The report has become politically controversial, with a number of carriers and political officials pushing DOT to reverse its decision to include mechanical delays in its on-time data. DOT Secretary Federico Pena has agreed to consider the change, leaving the agency in a quandary as to whether to produce January's report with the delay data. Political pressures are likely to force a return to the former style.
American is offering Dallas/Fort Worth-Sao Paulo, Brazil, introductory fares that are 33% less than the regular ticket for travel April 2 through June 15. American begins the new service Sunday, continuing the flight to Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte. Fares are $999 roundtrip, must be purchased seven days in advance and require a minimum stay of seven days and a maximum stay of 21 days. The fares also are available for travel connecting through DFW from San Antonio, Austin and Houston Intercontinental.
Qantas and Brierley Investments Ltd., which together own 61.9% of Air New Zealand, have terminated an agreement under which Qantas guaranteed the level of dividends Brierley received on a large portion of its Air New Zealand holding. The dividend agreement, which was kept secret for a time after Qantas and Brierley invested in Air New Zealand in 1988, was scheduled to expire within the next few months. Brierley owns 42.5% of Air New Zealand and Qantas 19.4%. Details of the termination accord were not revealed.
America West plans to begin testing ticketless travel during the second quarter.The airline believes electronic ticketing will reduce its distribution costs.
Unisys and Decision Focus Inc. (DFI) have formed an alliance to offer revenue management solutions for the air freight industry, the companies said this week. The new solutions will employ forecasting and optimization routines to promote better pricing, sales, product mix and space control decisions, thus lowering costs, increasing revenue and improving overall profits, Unisys said.
United and Royal Brunei Airlines have completed a marketing pact to be launched later this year that also establishes a framework for possible code sharing between the U.S. and Brunei. The various marketing initiatives include improved scheduling, coordination, joint fares and cooperative promotional and advertised activities. United said the partnership should better facilitate travel from and within Southeast Asia.
Harmony among the American Eagle pilot groups is strained. Pilots tell The DAILY of the mixing and matching of Flagship and Simmons crews and of ATR crews based at New York Kennedy showing up in Miami and outbidding Miami-based ATR pilots. Those dealt undesirable schedules are calling in sick. "One guy called in sick six times and only missed one trip," said a pilot. Example of such a trip: depart on Miami-Nassau-Miami segment at 3 p.m., wait 1.5 hours and fly Miami-Marathon. Arrive Marathon at 8 p.m. and cool your heels in a hotel until 5:30 p.m. the next day...
Airline fares fell 5.4% in February, compared with the same month in 1994, which helped keep the increase in the total cost of travel lower than all other consumer goods, the Travel Industry Association of America said. Travel prices rose 1.4% for the month, with lodging increasing the most, nearly 5%.
Southwest, facing tougher competition in California, has opened its first pilot base in the state and is transferring 300 pilots to the Oakland Airport facility. Chairman Herb Kelleher said, "Our customers in Oakland have clearly established that airport as the low-fare alternative in the Bay Area. We intend to maintain that momentum by continuing to offer the extraordinary service, low fares and high frequency Oakland has come to expect from their airline." Southwest operates 104 daily flights from Oakland in an increasingly competitive California corridor.
Eva Airways wants to buy a controlling interest in Taiwanese domestic carrier Makung Airlines, according to reports from Taipei. Taiwan's Central News Agency recently reported that Eva has offered to pay US$15.4 million to US$19.2 million for 50% of Makung's outstanding stock. Officials at both carriers declined comment. Makung operates seven domestic routes and has been losing money since it was founded seven years ago.
Atlantic Coast Airlines has selected MacVicar Design and Communications, Arlington, Va., as its new advertising and graphic design firm. The United Express carrier maintains a hub at Washington Dulles.
First of five Do 328s to be ordered by Indian regional carrier VIF Airways was handed over this week and began its ferry flight to India from Germany. VIF Airways is slated to be the first operator in Asia to put the Do-328 into service.
Swissair Group said yesterday it will purchase 12 RJ100s from Avro International Aerospace for use by subsidiary Crossair and dispose of 10 Fokker 100s (DAILY, March 3 and 7). The board said the move will permit all operations involving aircraft up to 100 seats to be transferred to Crossair, Swissair's regional subsidiary, which "offers a lower cost structure in this field." Deliveries of the new aircraft run from September until next summer. Options were taken on another 12, making the order worth up to $600 million.
After making significant breakthroughs in Canada and Europe, the U.S. is being forced increasingly to focus on its more difficult relations with Japan and the U.K. Some observers believe Japanese moves to constrain service by U.S. carriers will obligate the U.S. to schedule talks with that country (DAILY, March 30). Meanwhile, U.S. officials will reconvene talks with the U.K. April 10 in Washington after failing to attain broader concessions from Great Britain than the so-called "mini-deal" last week in London. The U.S.
AlliedSignal Aerospace was awarded $175 million in contracts from Southwest to supply a "package of cockpit avionics, including the world's first forward-looking windshear detection system, and to provide maintenance for wheels and brakes." Southwest chose all avionics products that AlliedSignal offered for the new 737-700, including RDR-4B forward-looking windshear radar systems, traffic alert and collision avoidance systems, the Quantum Line communication and navigation system, flight data acquisition and management system and solid state flight data and cockpit voi
Swissair Group's 1994 net and operating profits fell sharply from 1993's levels largely because of the negative impact of currency exchange rate fluctuations, the airline company said yesterday. The Swissair Group, which includes Swissair, Crossair, Balair/CTA and Swissair Associated Cos. (SAC), posted a 1994 net profit of 23 million Swiss francs (US$20.2 million), less than half of 1993's earnings of 59 million francs, and an operating profit of 131 million francs (US$115 million), down from 216 million francs in 1993.
