Qantas could face another major challenge to its dominance on Australia-US routes with Emirates emerging as a third potential contender for the lucrative transpacific corridor. Emirates Chairman Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum and President Tim Clark plan to hold discussions with the Australian government this month on prospects for the UAE airline to increase capacity between Dubai and Australia and in the longer term extend services to the US West Coast.
Alaska Airlines pilots took a 26% pay cut and will contribute more to their health care under a new contract crafted by an arbitrator that went into effect over the weekend, the airline said. The contract also includes "various" work rule changes designed to boost productivity, but no changes were made to the pilots' pension or profit-sharing plans. The Air Line Pilots Assn. and the airline have been negotiating a new contract since October 2003 and an arbitrator was called in to help when the parties were unable to reach agreement by the Dec. 15, 2004, deadline.
Lufthansa is in no hurry to replace its fleet of 60 737-300s/-500s even though the aircraft have an average age of 14 years, Senior VP-Corporate Fleet Nico Buchholz told ATWOnline.
In its most aggressive customer satisfaction move to date, Travelocity unveiled a customer bill of rights and backed it with a series of specific guarantees. Notable on the bill of rights is Travelocitys statement that if something goes wrong on a trip, it will work with the appropriate supplier to correct the problem immediately. It also provided telephone numbers that travelers can use at any time before, during or after a trip to get help from a live agent. Less urgent matters can be dealt with by e-mail, and Travelocity said it would respond within four hours.
CTT Systems signed a letter of intent with Air Mauritius to equip its fleet of A340-300s with the CTT Cair System. Installation is expected to begin in mid-2005 and continue through mid-2006.
Aviareps was appointed as the new general sales agent for SN Brussels Airlines in the Ukraine. In cooperation with Ukraine International Airways, SN Brussels provides four weekly codeshare flights between Brussels and Kiev.
Independence Air is likely to have only around $5 million in cash by year end, a level that is "inconsistent with continued operations," JP Morgan analyst Jamie Baker stated in a report released Friday. Furthermore, with "no identifiable assets to leverage," debtor-in-possession financing for Independence "appears elusive." The airline, which markets itself as FLYi, lost $192.2 million in 2004 and ended the year with $169.2 million in cash and short-term investments, according to Baker. He forecasts it will lose $183.2 million this year.
CSA Czech Airlines said it carried 964,000 passengers during the first quarter of 2005, up 17% over the same period in 2004. On UK-Prague routes there was an increase of 9%. CSA said it expects its net profit to rise to CZK521.5 million ($22.4 million) this year from CZK271 million in 2004, with passenger traffic growing to 5.4 million from 4.3 million.
AirTran Airways and its flight attendants, represented by the Assn. of Flight Attendants, reached a tentative agreement on a new 42-month contract after two-and-a-half years of negotiations. Terms of the deal were not released but AFA has endorsed the agreement and will send it to members for a ratification vote, which is expected to occur within 30 days. If ratified, the new contract will take effect June 1. AirTran also is negotiating with its pilots, who are represented by the National Pilots Assn.
US Airways Group's net loss in the first quarter widened to $191 million from $177 million in the year-ago period as its cost restructuring under Chapter 11 was offset by low-fare competition and high fuel prices. Results from the 2005 first quarter included a one-time net gain of $89 million primarily related to the curtailment of its defined benefit plans and other postretirement medical benefits. Excluding unusual items, net loss for the quarter was $280 million.
FAA lowered Ghana's safety rating from Category 1 to Category 2 after a reassessment of its civil aviation authority found that the country does not comply with international safety standards set by ICAO. According to FAA, a Category 2 rating means a country either lacks laws or regulations necessary to oversee air carriers in accordance with minimum international standards or that its civil aviation authority is deficient in one or more areas such as technical expertise, trained personnel, recordkeeping or inspection procedures.
AWAS delivered the first of three MD-80s to World Focus Airlines. The carrier will use the aircraft to support its network of domestic and international routes to holiday destinations in Turkey and other countries.
Hawaiian Airlines took a step closer to emerging from Chapter 11 after reaching a revised agreement with its pilots union last week on a new contract. The bankruptcy court had been preparing to rule on a request from the airline's management to impose a new contract on the work group. HAL said it will ask the court to defer a ruling until after the vote has been taken The carrier and negotiators for the Air Line Pilots Assn. reached a tentative agreement earlier this year but it was voted down by union membership ( ATWOnline, March 30).
Qatar Airways is offering premium passengers complimentary wireless Internet access at Doha International Airport in the first and business class lounges as well as in the Oryx lounge. The facility will be available to economy passengers using the Al Maha Meet and Assist service. Qatar's first and business class passengers arriving at London Heathrow and Gatwick from May will be able to use the arrivals lounges of United Airlines and Continental Airlines respectively.
Thomsonfly.com launched services from its base at the new Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield April 28. The LCC, which is part of Thomsonfly and formerly was called Britannia Airways, anticipates that it will book more than 350,000 customers through Robin Hood within the first 12 months of operations there. It will base three 737-300s there and will operate flights to 11 destinations--Palma, Pisa, Prague, Paris, Ibiza, Alicante, Malaga, Valencia, Dublin, Jersey and Faro--throughout the summer season.
Swiss International Air Lines may increase its fuel surcharge again to help cushion the impact of rising fuel prices, CEO Christoph Franz said during a media meeting in Zurich, Reuters reported. The carrier currently charges an extra CHF48 ($40) on long-haul services and CHF18 on European flights. Such surcharges only cover about a quarter of the additional costs, Franz added. Swiss previously said that it had hedged about 27% of its fuel needs for 2005 as of the end of 2004 after selling all of its 2004 hedges.
Alitalia intends to postpone its planned rights issue to September, which will be after the group approves its first-half results, Il Sole 24 Ore reported. The company also could reduce the amount of the capital increase to less than the planned €1.2 billion ($1.54 billion). The rights issue will dilute the stake of the Italian government to below 50% from the current 63%. Alitalia did not deny the report and no reason was given for delaying the rights issue. Separately, Alitalia cabin crews called a 4-hr. strike for May 18.
American Airlines, which lost $162 million in the first quarter ( ATWOnline, April 21), late Thursday announced that it filed to increase most domestic US and US-Canada fares by $5 one-way and $10 roundtrip effective immediately in order to help offset rising fuel prices.
Cathay Pacific Airways has commenced work on the passenger-to-freighter conversion of a 747-400 to create the 747-400 Special Freighter. The project was launched last week during a ceremony at the Taikoo Aircraft Engineering Co. Ltd. engineering works in Xiamen, China, when a huge hole was cut in the aircraft's side to provide for the rear cargo door. TAECO will conduct the prototype's conversion work under Boeing's supervision. The project is part of a major expansion plan to boost Cathay Pacific's fleet to 104 aircraft in two years.
When members of the Regional Airline Assn. get together in Cincinnati this month for their annual meeting, they will discuss many of the same issues facing their Major airline partners. But they will do so from a decidedly different perspective, because unlike the US network carriers that have lost more than $27 billion since the end of 2000, the Regional segment is firmly in the black. According to FAA data, that part of the industry enjoyed an aggregate operating profit of $1 billion and net earnings of $432.8 million in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2004.
Chris Browne, the fashionable MD of Manchester-based First Choice Airways Ltd., does not mince words. The last three years have been "really, really" hard work, she says. "We suffered like everybody and had to downsize, reduce costs." But, she adds, "It forced us to refocus. We took a very long hard look at what we were doing with the business." Browne, who began her aviation career with Iberia and rose to the position of GM-UK and Ireland, was named to her current position in April 2002, three years after she joined First Choice Holidays.
China's airline industry is an improbable blend of state control and regulation, traditional culture, modern market reality and a zeal for profit, yet it works. Twenty-five years ago there were just 180 air routes in the country, 18 of them international, and only 3.43 million passengers took to the vacant skies annually. Today China has overtaken Japan as the largest air travel market in Asia and is second only to the US in terms of total scheduled departing seats, according to the ITTC consultancy division of Airclaims, which is headed by former IATA Chief Economist Peter Morris.
AirLiance Materials promoted Roscoe Musselwhite to COO. ASIG appointed Michael J. Snyder senior VP-operations-North America. Big Sky Transportation tapped Fred L. deLeeuw as its new president. Charles River Associates welcomed Robert Gallamore and Michael Gorman as senior consultants to the transportation practice. FedEx Corp. chose Christine Richards to succeed Kenneth Masterson, who is retiring, as general counsel. Inflight Logistics announced the addition of Julie Redmond to its team of consultants.
In the future, some observers believe, commercial airlines will continue to offer long-haul services, but some of their passengers will connect with a new generation of microjets operated by private charter companies to complete short-haul legs of their trips. George Khairallah, president of New York-based BusinessJet Class, is prepared for that day. His company has launched a GDS for private aircraft charters.
