ExpressJet Airlines parent ExpressJet Holdings reported a third-quarter loss of $9 million, reversed from net income of $4.4 million in the year-ago period, although it narrowed its operating loss considerably. Revenue dropped 31.7% to $179.2 million. The company attributed the fall to "softness in passenger demand," according to President and CEO Jim Ream. Expenses were down 35.7% to $187.3 million and operating loss narrowed to $8.1 million, a 71.9% improvement over the $29 million suffered last year.
AirBaltic will start charging a €5 ($7.36) fee per passenger for airport check-in on Nov. 16. Internet check-in will remain free of charge. The airport fee will not be levied against loyalty program members, passengers with reduced mobility, children younger than 12 and those departing from airports at which Web check-in is unavailable.
Bmibaby will reduce its 737 fleet by five aircraft to 12 next year as part of a restructuring plan "that will see it focus its activities and efforts on routes where there are clear indications and prospects for future growth and development."
Gol announced a management restructuring: CFO Leonardo Pereira now will be responsible for the technology, business development and strategic planning departments in addition to finance, controls and investor relations. The unnamed VP-market will head cargo, commercial, corporate communications, marketing, yield management and alliance departments, while new VP-Customers, Employees and Management Ricardo Khauaja will run the human resources and management, customer service, airport and commercial crew departments.
WestJet yesterday acknowledged that installation of the SabreSonic Customer Sales and Service reservation system last month has led to numerous complications, including a temporary website shutdown and ongoing difficulty in making changes to passengers' reservations, and asked customers for "patience" while it works out the kinks.
Continental Airlines said October consolidated unit revenue fell an estimated 14%-15% year-over-year, while mainline RASM was down 15%-16%. It flew 7.26 billion consolidated RPMs, up 1.7%, against a 2.6% cut in capacity to 8.8 billion ASMs. Load factor rose 3.5 points to 82.5%. United Airlines flew 9.68 billion consolidated RPMs in October, down 1.6% from the year-ago month. Capacity dropped 4.3% to 11.64 billion ASMs, lifting load factor 2.3 points to 83.1%.
KLM will conduct a biofuel test flight on Nov. 23 using a 747 with one engine powered by a 50/50 blend of camelina-based fuel and traditional kerosene. A "select group of passengers" will be onboard, which the carrier said is a world first.
Shanghai Airlines suffered a CNY42.7 million ($6.2 million) loss in the third quarter, narrowed 90.2% from a CNY437.5 million deficit in the year-ago period. Operating revenue jumped 14.9% to CNY3.62 billion while expenses rose 6% to CNY3.81 billion. SAL cited a decline in passenger boardings caused by the global financial crisis, stricter security measures taken prior to China's Oct. 1 national holiday and falling fares as the culprits.
Single European Sky prospects took another step forward last week following the signing of an eight-year, €50 million agreement by Eurocontrol and SITA to launch the Pan European Network Service, which will allow air navigation service providers from 38 countries to exchange operational data and voice communications across a common network for the first time.
Juneyao Airlines expects to report a net profit in excess of CNY70 million ($10.2 million) this year, a significant increase over the CNY50 million forecast in July ( ATWOnline, July 21), and now expects earnings greater than CNY100 million in 2010 owing to strong domestic demand and fleet expansion, according to Chairman Wang Junjin. It posted a CNY11.5 million surplus in 2008. The privately held Shanghai-based carrier operates 12 A320s and plans to introduce two more by year end.
Pinnacle Airlines and Colgan Air parent Pinnacle Airlines Corp. reported an $11.4 million profit in the third quarter, an 84% increase from the $6.2 million earned the same period a year ago. Revenue dipped 2% year-over-year to $217.2 million while expenses fell 4% to $193.4 million. Operating income was $23.8 million, up 19% from $20 million in the 2008 third quarter. During the quarter, Pinnacle saw a 5% drop in aircraft utilization, primarily owing to network changes that resulted in shorter flights. Colgan saw a 16% reduction in block hr. and a 15% decrease in departures.
Lufthansa subsidiary Swiss International Air Lines reported a €47 million ($69.4 million) third-quarter operating result, a 60.5% decrease from the €119 million earned in the year-ago period, and expects to post a full-year profit, while newly acquired neighbor Austrian Airlines faces deepening deficits and a cloudier future.
US House of Representatives ranking Republicans on committees with jurisdiction over labor and transportation pushed back against the National Mediation Board's proposal to change airline union-certification voting rules, saying the suggested rule alteration is "troubling" and shows "union favoritism." NMB has proposed revising its rules to allow an airline work group to unionize if a majority of those casting ballots in a union-certification vote approve, rather than a majority of the total work group ( ATWOnline, N
United Airlines parent UAL Corp. named VP-Corporate Real Estate Ajay Singh as VP-business management and information technology and appointed MD-Procurement Kate Gebo to succeed Singh. In addition, Praveen Sharma was named MD-Mileage Plus finance, strategy and information technology.
United Airlines will terminate the agreement under which Mesa Air Group operates 10 Dash 8s as United Express. Mesa said it plans to work with UA on an "orderly transition plan" that will result in the aircraft leaving UA service by April 30. Leases on four aircraft expire on that date. "We face a challenging period during the next few quarters and will strive to mitigate the impact of the termination of aircraft under our codeshare agreement with United Airlines," Mesa Chairman and CEO Jonathan Ornstein said.
Southwest Airlines pilots represented by the Southwest Airlines Pilots' Assn. ratified the five-year labor agreement reached in mid-September. The contract runs through Aug. 31, 2011, and was ratified by 87.5% of voting members. The union said more than 93% of the approximately 5,900 members participated. The vote concluded a process that began in September 2006.
Air India and Aerostar Asset Management of Sharjah announced the launch of an engine MRO partnership called The A Team, which will use AI's Mumbai facility and Aerostar's marketing connections in the Middle East to secure third-party work on CF6-50/80, PW4000, GE90 and CFM56-7 engines, as well as CFM56-5s in the "near future."
Ryanair yesterday threatened to cancel or defer aircraft orders from Boeing if it fails to secure a fleet-renewal agreement before year end as the LCC announced an adjusted net profit of €250.5 million ($368.5 million) in the fiscal second quarter ended Sept. 30, a 29.4% increase from the €193.6 million earned in the year-ago period.
Hainan Airlines posted a CNY175.5 million ($26.3 million) third-quarter profit, reversed from a CNY260.8 million deficit in the year-ago quarter, as operating revenue soared 34.2% to CNY4.57 billion. Like other Chinese airlines, it credited a recovery in the domestic market and favorable financial policies from Beijing for the improved performance. Its third-quarter expenses climbed 18.7% year-over-year to CNY3.65 billion. Nine-month profit of CNY350.5 million compared to a CNY50.2 million surplus in the year-ago period.
Turkish Airlines exercised options on three A330s for delivery in 2012 and said it has decided to purchase two A330-200Fs, while Air New Zealand yesterday said it will replace its 15 leased 737-300s with an order for 14 A320s plus 11 purchase rights.
TNT reported third-quarter net income of €97 million ($142.7 million), down 6.7% from €104 million in the year-ago-period, and noted that it has seen "some early signs" of an improving economy. Its air-intensive Express unit continued to struggle, posting a 36.4% drop in operating profit to €63 million on an 11.4% dip in revenue to €1.47 billion. But CEO Peter Bakker noted that "the rate of decline of Express volumes has modestly improved.
British Airways pleaded guilty in Canadian Federal Court to " fixing surcharges on the sale and supply of international air cargo exported on certain routes from Canada" in 2002-06 and agreed to pay a C$4.5 million ($4.1 million) fine, the country's Competition Bureau announced. Canada now has recovered more than C$14.6 million from BA, Air France, KLM, Martinair and Qantas, and its "investigation into the alleged conduct of other air cargo carriers continues," it said.
Amadeus and ICAO announced an agreement under which ICAO will supply Amadeus with data from its carbon emissions calculator, which Amadeus said, "will allow Amadeus's worldwide customer base to estimate the carbon footprint of air travel." Amadeus will integrate the data into its travel reservation platforms by mid-2010.
CIT Group, parent of operating lessor CIT Aerospace, filed for bankruptcy protection Sunday, proceeding with a so-called "prepackaged" financial restructuring approved by most of the company's debt holders. In a statement, CIT said that "none" of its operating subsidiaries were included in the filing. "As a result, all operating entities are expected to continue normal operations during the pendency of the cases." According to Ascend Online, CIT Aerospace is the industry's fifth-largest operating lessor with a fleet of 237 aircraft.
