State of negotiations between USAir and its pilots over wage and work rule concessions has led the pilots negotiating committee to meet this week, as an extension of special meetings conducted last week, to discuss strategies and contingency plans. The pilots-flight attendants-dispatchers-mechanics labor coalition that met for a status briefing Jan. 10 plans to meet again Jan. 19. The pilots say they are "maintaining contact" with this week with mediator Gerald Baliles.
Atlantic Coast Airlines, a United Express carrier, has ordered 20 Jetstream 41 aircraft valued at $140 million. The carrier, the North American launch customer, now operates 15 of the aircraft. Delivery is to begin this month and be completed in mid-1997. The carrier also announced that it had signed definitive documentation and closed on the funding of a previously announced $20 million recapitalization transaction with British Aerospace affiliate JSX Capital Corporation. The transaction is subject to regulatory review.
Northwest and Japan Air System, Japan's third-largest carrier, are in negotiations that could lead to operational and marketing cooperation. Northwest confirmed yesterday that discussions are under way, but it declined to elaborate and said no agreement has been reached. News reports from Japan quoted a JAS spokesman as saying an agreement may link JAS' domestic operations with Northwest's international flights at the new Kansai Airport near Osaka.
Airline Industry Stock Trends, By Month The Year 1994 Closed Closed Exchange 1/31/94 2/28/94 Majors American NYSE $ 71.750 $ 63.250 America West (Class B)* NYSE 1.594 2.375 Continental (Class B) NYSE 24.875 22.375 Delta NYSE 55.875 49.625
FAA's proposal for "direct final rulemaking" on non-controversial, consensual rules may "violate federal law requiring public notice and opportunity to comment," according to John Yodice, general counsel of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. The proposed procedures "may well contravene the intent, if not the letter, of the Administrative Procedures Act," Yodice said. The law established minimum procedural requirements to balance the broad administrative powers of federal agencies, he said.
Air Transport Association said John Meenan, elected recently to the newly established position of VP-administration, will oversee security, passenger and cargo facilitation issues and environmental affairs for the association. He will coordinate those issues with airports, continue to handle special projects for the ATA president, and remain general counsel for the Air Travel Card. Meenan has been with ATA since 1985, serving as assistant general counsel before his recent promotion.
Delta and United have applied for new Canadian routes opened up by the U.S- Canada framework accord signed late last year. Delta wants authority to operate two daily roundtrips between Atlanta and Toronto, using 757s. It also seeks twice-daily roundtrip service between Salt Lake City and Vancouver, and between Atlanta and Montreal, using 727s. United has applied for twice-daily flights between San Francisco and Vancouver. Signed by both countries Dec. 22, the framework agreement permits the U.S.
Cincinnati- and Orlando-based Comair flew 79.6 million revenue passenger miles last month, a 32.7% increase from December 1993. Capacity grew 26.2% to 173.3 million available seat miles, allowing the load factor to rise 2.2 percentage points to 45.9%. Passenger enplanements increased 14.5% to 262,641 from 229,374.
Eastern Trustee Martin Shugrue, who ran the airline in its final months and oversaw its liquidation, is seeking compensation of $4.5 million for his tenure with the carrier and its estate, according to an application for compensation filed at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. A hearing on the proposal is scheduled Jan. 25. Shugrue, who was named trustee in April 1990 while the airline was still flying, has received $2.295 million in interim compensation that would be credited against whatever final amount is allowed.
Safety summit conducted this week by Transportation Secretary Federico Pena did not produce any safety issues that had to be addressed with a sense of urgency. Nothing really new came out of the six workshop discussions. Rather, participants say there was a considerable reinforcement of issues on which the airlines want FAA to move faster, such as GPS, Part 142 training rules and weather information acquisition and dissemination. Some 150 regional airline representatives participated and found that, once past the fluff, "it was a rewarding experience."
British Aerospace unit JSX Capital Corporation placed a total of 78 regional aircraft in 1994, the company reported. JSX VP-Sales and Marketing Stephen O'Sullivan said, "1994 was a very successful year for JSX in terms of building a strong retail market and spreading our client base in all parts of the world." The 1994 placements comprise 49 Jetstream 31s and Super 31s; seven Advanced Turboprops; eight HS 748s, and 14 Metro IIs and IIIs.
Delta has received $138.7 million from the Pan Am Corporation, representing Delta's $115 million debtor-in-possession loan to Pan Am, plus interest. Pan Am was required to pay the loan following a court ruling in December. Under the settlement, Pan Am and its creditors committees will not appeal the ruling, Delta said.
Three of four Delta Connection carriers increased their 1994 traffic by 37.9% over the previous year. Atlantic Southeast, Comair and SkyWest posted combined 2.2 billion revenue passenger miles during the year versus 1.6 billion in 1993. Much of the growth can be attributed to the 50- passenger Canadair Regional Jets placed in service during the year by Comair and SkyWest, which are operating over much longer segments. Comair RPMs were up 49.2% versus 45.5% for SkyWest and 22.7% for ASA.
St. George, Utah-based Delta Connection SkyWest flew 38.4 million revenue passenger miles last month, a 36.7% increase from the 28.1 million operated in December 1993. Capacity rose 29.4% to 79.4 million available seat miles from 61.4 million, as the load factor rose 2.6 percentage points to 48.4%. Passenger boardings rose 17.2% to 163,891. Dec. 94 Dec. 93 12 Mths 94 12 Mths 93 RPMs 38,438,531 28,119,111 471,435,668 323,882,383
FAA said yesterday it is investigating a near midair collision Jan. 10 between an Allegheny Commuter de Havilland Dash 8 and a Cessna 172 one mile northwest of Baltimore Washington Airport. The near collision occurred at an altitude of 800 feet as a result of an operational error, the agency said. It said the two aircraft came within 50 feet vertically and zero miles horizontally, according to preliminary information. The USAir Express carrier, flying IFR, avoided the collision with the IFR Cessna, the agency said.
FAA plans to publish its proposed "single-level-of-safety" rules in March, and two troubling issues for regional airlines are the requirements for dispatch and Part 139 certification of airports served by 10- to 30- passenger airplanes. RAA President Walt Coleman believes that both must be examined in light of what the agency is trying to achieve. Taken to extremes, the latter could spell an end of scheduled air service to some small communities by requiring on-site airport crash-fire-rescue facilities, forcing travelers to the more dangerous highways.
British Airways yesterday gave its advertising agency, Saatchi&Saatchi, four months notice that it will terminate its contract because of uncertainties arising from recent departures of key personnel from the agency. Its chief executives in the U.S. and the U.K. and the chairman of its holding company resigned Monday, and four other senior executives are rumored to be preparing to leave, according to The Wall Street Journal. The accounts of BA and other companies in the group will be reviewed.
Senate turned down 54-45 this week a proposal to extend to the legislative branch requirements for use of frequent flyer miles that were adopted for the executive branch in last year's Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act. Sen. John Glenn (D-Ohio) sponsored the amendment to legislation (S.2) applying to Congress laws that cover other entities. The amendment would have required that use of frequent traveler programs in official travel be encouraged, and that frequent flyer awards be used only for official travel.
Senate Appropriations and Commerce committees held organization meetings for the 104th Congress this week, adopting rules and, in the case of Appropriations, subcommittee membership. In an organizational meeting yesterday, the Commerce Committee approved a committee structure and chairmen of major subcommittees but deferred naming members. As expected, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) was named chairman of the aviation subcommittee.
After a week's delay, the Acker Group and the government of Trinidad& Tobago have signed an investment agreement, under which government-owned BWIA International Airways will be privatized at the end of this month (DAILY, Jan. 9). The Acker Group will take about 26% of the airline included in the Acker-led investor group's 51% total share. The government will retain about 34% and employees will get 10%.
The commuter airline industry backs safety recommendations issued at the Aviation Safety Conference, including general support for the effort to bring Part 135 under Part 121 regulations, Regional Airline Association executives said. RAA President Walt Coleman admitted that he would like to find a way to mitigate the extra cost but added that he did not think many of the new regulations would be too expensive. New training requirements, for example, "can be adopted without extraordinary cost," he said.
Anchorage-based MarkAir is designing an employee stock ownership plan it says will protect 2,200 jobs and keep the airline in Alaska. Along with the ESOP, it plans a recapitalization package to be guaranteed in part by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority. Its 1,300 non- union employees accepted 10% salary cuts last month, and it will seek similar concessions from its 500 unionized workers.
American has applied to DOT and the U.K. Department of Transport to provide daily 767-200 nonstop service between Chicago and Birmingham, England, beginning May 25. Approval would make American the first U.S. carrier to offer transatlantic service to Birmingham. Last October, in an effort to jump-start bilateral aviation negotiations with the U.S., the U.K. offered to open up routes between the U.S. and its regional centers, such as Birmingham. The U.S. rejected the offer. (Docket 50003)
Willis Player, a retired senior VP of Pan Am and a widely respected leader in airline public relations, died recently. He was 79. During his career, he advised both Juan Trippe, founder of Pan Am, and American's C.R. Smith.
