Aeroflot this year will become the first Russian carrier to offer inflight Internet and mobile phone services, both of which it said will be available on four aircraft by year end. "Mobile telephony onboard an aircraft is a breakthrough for Russian aviation," CEO Vitaly Savelyev said. JSC MegaFon, a Russian mobile services operator, will install mobile communication "base stations" onboard four aircraft in 2010, with the first to be deployed on an A320 this summer followed by an A330 serving transcontinental flights and two additional A320s.
Alaska Air Group, parent of Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, reported its third first-quarter profit in 11 years and its best since 1999, earning $5.3 million during its "seasonally. . .weakest quarter of the year." The positive result, reversed from a $19.2 million loss in the year-ago quarter, was helped by $23 million in baggage fees and the company said it is aiming to streamline that ancillary revenue source going forward.
Norwegian Air Shuttle reported a NOK199.1 million ($33.7 million) first-quarter net loss, sharply higher than the NOK109.6 million deficit it posted in the year-ago quarter. Revenue rose 15% to NOK1.59 billion but operating expenses climbed 20.6%, including a 40% jump in fuel costs. Operating loss deepened to NOK238.5 million from NOK134.1 million in the year-earlier period. But CEO Bjorn Kjos said he was "satisfied with the result," particularly "in light of the strong passenger and production growth."
Southwest Airlines reported first-quarter net income of $11 million, reversed from a $91 million loss in the year-ago period, and reiterated that it will stick to its no-growth strategy for the foreseeable future.
Continental Airlines reported a first-quarter net loss of $146 million, slightly widened from a $136 million deficit in the year-ago quarter, and cautioned that the economic recovery is still in its "early stages."
DeTect said it was awarded a contract to supply a Merlin Aircraft Birdstrike Avoidance Radar system to Riga International. The company said RIX will become the second commercial airport in the world to deploy the bird radar technology in the air traffic control tower, the first being the new King Shaka International near Durban, South Africa, that installed a Merlin system in 2009.
Quintiq was awarded a 9.5-year ATC employee scheduling contract from FAA worth up to $17.6 million to provide its workforce planning solution. The employee scheduling software features "advanced optimization engines" and "what-if" capabilities. The solution will manage annual leave planning, create shift plans, allocate shifts to individual employees and support short-term absenteeism management, Quintiq said.
US Air Transport Assn. said March passenger revenue rose 15.4% compared to March 2009 based on data provided by a sample of its member carriers, marking the third consecutive month of year-over-year improvement. Passenger numbers were up 1.4% in the month, while average yield grew 11.7%. Domestic yield climbed 12.5% to 15 cents, Atlantic yield rose 17.4% to 12.37 cents and Latin yield lifted 4.9% to 13.36 cents, marking the first positive yield growth since January 2009 for that region. Pacific yield gained 7.4% to 12.25 cents.
After leading US majors with a $134.7 million 2009 profit, AirTran Airways slipped to a $12 million net loss in the first quarter owing to higher fuel costs and severe winter weather that disrupted operations during the period. The deficit was a reversal from a $28.7 million profit in the year-ago quarter. "This winter proved to be one of historic inclement weather for much of the East Coast and particularly for some of our busiest operations like Baltimore/Washington and Atlanta," Chairman, President and CEO Bob Fornaro said.
American Airlines parent AMR Corp. reported what executives called a "disappointing" first-quarter net loss of $505 million, sharply higher than a loss of $375 million in the year-ago quarter. Results for the quarter included the impact of a $53 million special charge related to devaluation of the Venezuelan currency in January, while 2009 first-quarter results were net of a $13 million charge related to A300 retirements. Excluding both items, the 2010 loss widened to $452 million from $362 million last year.
Continental Airlines said that its 111 dispatchers represented by the Transport Workers Union ratified a new four-year collective bargaining agreement.
Allegiant Travel Co., parent of Allegiant Air, reported $22.6 million in net income for the first quarter, a 19.8% decrease from its year-ago profit of $28.2 million. Operating revenue was up 19.4% to $169.6 million but expenses jumped 36.6% to $133.4 million on a 71.8% hike in aircraft fuel costs to $57.4 million. This caused operating income to fall 18.5% to $36.2 million. "We are pleased to announce our 29th consecutive profitable quarter with the results of the first quarter of 2010," CEO and Chairman Maurice Gallagher said.
Cebu Pacific Air ordered seven more A320s, bringing its outstanding orders for the type to 22, which will be delivered beginning in October and continue through late 2014. "This will enable us to have the largest fleet of Airbus A320 family aircraft in the Philippines and the second-largest in Southeast Asia, allowing us to offer our trademark low fares to even more Filipinos," President and CEO Lance Gokongwei said. The additional aircraft will bring the carrier's A320 fleet to 43 by 2014.
Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines yesterday reported a 2009 net profit of CNY539.7 million ($79.2 million), a big turnaround from a net loss of CNY13.93 billion in 2008, on a 4.8% decrease in operating revenue to CNY39.83 billion.
Delta Air Lines yesterday said it had cancelled around 400 flights and lost an estimated $20 million through April 19, or around $5 million per day, owing to the closure of European airspace. The figure seems to be in line with estimates by J.P. Morgan that aggregate losses for US airlines will be "kept to within $100 million" based on a seven-day disruption. In a report released Monday, the investment firm noted that "transatlantic operations account for no more than 8% of operations for US legacy carriers" and "are among the most costly for US airlines."
Delta Air Lines reported a first-quarter net loss of $256 million, narrowed from a $794 million deficit in the year-ago period, and CEO Richard Anderson said continuing evidence of "the right trends in the revenue environment" have the company "optimistic about the rest of the year" and anticipating a "solidly profitable" second quarter.
JetBlue Airways received its IOSA registration and is now a member of IATA. The airline said joining the IOSA registry will "expand JetBlue's partnership opportunities" and demonstrates its "rigorous [safety] guidelines."
ExpressJet Holdings board of directors named Thomas Hanley president and CEO effective immediately. Hanley, who has extensive regional airline experience, succeeds Patrick Kelly, who held the positions on an interim basis following the departure of Jim Ream in December to become senior VP-maintenance and engineering at American Airlines
Cathay Pacific Airways and Dragonair flew 8.08 billion RPKS in March, a 6.6% rise year-over-year. Capacity was cut 1.6% to 9.43 billion ASKs, lifting load factor 6.6 points to 85.7%. Germanwings transported 532,169 passengers in March, up 5.1% year-over-year. Load factor fell 3.1 points to 73.8%. Great Lakes Aviation operated 11.18 million RPMs in March, up 6.6% year-over year against a 3.6% cut in capacity to 32.16 million ASMs. Load factor rose 3.3 points to 34.8%.
IATA reported that the number of premium passengers traveling in first and business class seats on international flights grew 5.9% in February compared to the same month in 2009, marking the third consecutive month of year-over-year increases
Turkish Airlines, which has been touting its fast pace of expansion as contrasting to the lack of capacity increases by many airlines around the world, posted impressive growth numbers again in March. It transported 6.16 million passengers for the month, up 25.5% from the year-ago month. RPKs climbed 35% to 10.17 million against a 26.9% lift in capacity to 14.46 million ASKs. Load factor lifted 4.2 points to 70.3%. The carrier reported a $369.5 million profit in 2009 ( ATWOnline, April 7).
China Eastern Airlines signed a letter of intent Friday in Shanghai to join SkyTeam, a move industry analysts said would allow it to establish a closer relationship with China Southern Airlines and better position it to compete against Air China. CEA is expected to sign a formal alliance agreement with SkyTeam in June setting its official entry into the airline grouping for mid-2011. Its decision to join SkyTeam is a disappointment to Star Alliance and oneworld, both of which had been wooing CEA, seen as a valuable partner owing to its 50% market share at its Shanghai base.
Fewer than two years after Southwest Airlines called WestJet "the perfect fit" for a codeshare partnership that promised to expand its reach outside the US, the Dallas-based LCC said Friday it will "terminate" the relationship with its Canadian counterpart before the agreement ever gets implemented.
