Military and general aviation representatives expressed reservations yesterday about some aspects of free-flight route flexibility, on which a white paper has been presented to FAA Administrator David Hinson by an industry task force. Participating in an Air Traffic Control Association symposium in Arlington, Va., military and general aviation officials endorsed free flight in principle but questioned cost and access. Airline representatives support quick implementation of the concept, but pilots, controllers and others want a slower approach.
First operational use of direct pilot-to-controller data link communications will be introduced June 22 in the Pacific region, according to the Inmarsat publication Aeronautical Satellite News. The transition from HF voice to satellite data link communication between controllers and pilots is a first step toward the Future Air Navigation System (FANS) for communications, navigation, surveillance and air traffic management.
SRS Steigenberger Reservation Service has become the first international hotel consortium to provide its travel agency customers with direct access to its Trust II reservations system using an Inside Availability connection to Galileo's RoomMaster hotel reservations system. The connection enables Galileo and Apollo users to view all SRS hotel properties' rates and information directly from the consortia's SRS Trust II system. The Inside Availability connection also returns an instant booking confirmation number at the time the room is requested.
Air South has begun a search for a new chief executive in a management shakeup in which the current CEO, Patrick O'Shea, is becoming vice chairman. It hopes to pick the executive by May 1 and will name an interim chief financial officer with an "extensive airline background" soon. Howard Putnam, former chief executive at Southwest, will be a special consultant to the chairman during the transition and the lead consultant in the CEO search.
The Inmarsat Council has provisionally allocated Inmarsat-3 satellite navigation transponders to DBP Telecom of Germany, France Telecom, Comsat of the U.S. and Canada's Teleglobe, bringing a civil global navigation satellite system a step closer. Inmarsat-3 satellites, which will be launched beginning late this year, will support the start of a system based on the U.S. military Global Positioning System and Russia's Global Navigation Satellite System.
NASA's Ames Research Center is offering as much as $14 million in grants for concept and technology studies to support the creation of a national Advanced Air Transportation Technologies (AATT) research program. Grant winners from industry and academia will help develop an AATT research plan and present it to a high-level steering committee and non-advocate review in June 1996, Ames said in Commerce Business Daily. If the program proceeds, winners also will support tradeoff studies and evaluations.
Air South began service this week linking Atlanta and Myrtle Beach, S.C., with a stop in Columbia, S.C., using 122-passenger 737s. The daily flights also provide through-plane service from Myrtle Beach to Tallahassee and Tampa/St. Petersburg. Fares between Atlanta and Myrtle Beach are $39 one way with a 14-day advance purchase, or $69 on all other flights. Myrtle Beach is the eighth city on the startup carrier's network.
Airborne Express has introduced service to American Samoa, offering transit time of one to four days, depending on the pickup date. Airborne said that it is the only carrier to deliver express document shipments the same day they arrive on the islands and that, with prior arrangement, it will deliver on Saturday.
France's move to suspend privatization of state-controlled companies pending the May presidential election will not affect Air France.The flag carrier is on the privatization list, but it is far from ready to go to market.
Air Canada yesterday posted 1994 net earnings of C$129 million (US$92.1 million) - the airline's first net profit after four years of losses totaling C$1.07 billion - and Chairman Hollis Harris all but promised more of the same for 1995. Air Canada also reported a 1994 operating profit of C$244 million (US$174.3 million), the largest in company history. In 1993, Air Canada had an operating profit of C$1 million and a net loss of C$246 million.
Aviation Distributors and Manufacturers Association said its 1995 membership directory is available for $100. ADMA's address is 1900 Arch Street, Philadelphia, Pa., 19103. ADMA also said it has launched a program to inform 6,000 high school students this year of career options in the aviation industry.
Passenger traffic on Orient Airlines Association member carriers increased 11% in 1994 on nearly 9.2% more capacity, boosting the average passenger load factor one percentage point to 69.4%. OAA passenger capacity growth spiked upward in November and December, causing a decline in load factors. Richard Stirland, OAA director general, attributed the late-year increase to airlines adding capacity in anticipation of 1995 traffic levels.
A judgment was entered against Marvin Lashinsky and Georgetown Associates in a civil proceeding after U.S. District Judge William Rea found that Lashinksy had violated the Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations Act. The DAILY reported Feb. 15 that Lashinsky was convicted in the case.
National Transportation Safety Board is expected to call today for a major upgrade in flight recorders. The board will consider an urgent staff recommendation to the FAA to require operators to equip 737s and other aircraft with better recorders for documenting flight data in case of accidents.
FAA Administrator David Hinson will visit a Washington, D.C., high school this week as part of a program to promote careers in aviation. He will sign an agreement between the FAA and Cardozo High School to develop a formal aviation curriculum, including student visits to FAA facilities and mentoring programs.
A number of senior-level management changes are said to be imminent at Air Canada. VP Sandy Morrison left the carrier recently to rejoin a trade association representing Canada's breweries.
Gellman Research Associates (GRA) is defending its DOT-commissioned study on international code sharing in the face of airline criticism that not enough data were available, especially ticketing data from foreign carriers, to validate the findings. GRA said that although more data would have strengthened the study, the theoretical and computational compromises it contains are common in this type of analysis.
Northwest will offer mileage bonuses to WorldPerks members for each time they connect through one of its three main hubs - Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul and Memphis. The ConnectFirst program also will offer a first class upgrade to business passengers traveling on full-coach fares. If first class is unavailable, the passenger will receive double miles, as well as the connection bonus. Members will earn 1,000 miles on roundtrip connections, and 500 miles on one-way tickets. A full-fare coach ticket is not necessary to receive the connection bonus.
Air Canada's domestic and international capacities were up sharply in January, but traffic growth did not keep pace (DAILY, Feb. 21). The airline's domestic capacity rose 13.7%, but traffic grew 6.8%, and international capacity increased 13.8%, while traffic rose 5%. Systemwide results: January 1995 January 1994 Revenue Passenger Miles 1,142,000,000 1,081,000,000 Available Seat Miles 2,043,000,000 1,796,000,000 Load Factor (%) 55.9 60.2
USAir has cut fares in the Pittsburgh-Philadelphia and Philadelphia-Boston markets to $53 one way, and reduced fares to $89 between Pittsburgh and Boston in anticipation of new competition. Its fares are for travel from March 6 until April 20. March 6 is the day Nations Air inaugurates Boston- Philadelphia-Pittsburgh service, with Boston-Philadelphia and Philadelphia- Pittsburgh one-way tickets costing $59, and Boston-Pittsburgh $89.
Continental is cutting more than 200 management-level positions, including 30 at the senior executive and VP level, and 90 clerical workers as part of an earlier-announced initiative to reduce its work force by 4,000. The cuts are aimed at reducing non-value-added parts of the company, said Gordon Bethune, chief executive.
DOT plans to announce route awards for new Canada service next week, just days after President Clinton and Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien sign the new bilateral agreement Feb. 24.
Lufthansa's executive board decided yesterday to place firm orders for 20 Airbus Industrie A319s. The decision is subject to approval by the carrier's supervisory board. The aircraft, seating 126 passengers in the Lufthansa configuration, will be delivered between 1996 and 1998 as replacements for 20 737-200s, which are to be sold. Earlier, Lufthansa sold 10 other 737-200s to Indonesia.
The Executive Committee of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO, passed a series of resolutions and agreed on legislative priorities last week, including international aviation policy issues it expects to arise this year in Congress because of the DOT initiative to negotiate open skies pacts with nine European nations. The committee, composed of the leaders of 30 unions that represent all transportation industries, voted to guard against airlines pursuing their goals in the global marketplace "on the backs of U.S.
World Airways' January block hours flown increased 46.6% from a year ago to 2,427 from 1,656, and its average aircraft utilization increased 50.8% to 9.8 hours per day from 6.5 hours. Revenues per block hour flown fell 31.2%, however, to $5,850 from $8,506. World pointed out that revenues per block hour are not necessarily directly related to profitability. Coleman Andrews, chief executive of World Airways parent WorldCorp, said the results "are on track with the achievement of profitable results for World Airways in 1995."
