Cathay Pacific and Dragonair flew 6.65 billion RPKs in February, a 4.9% drop from the year-ago month. Capacity was down 3.7% to 8.68 billion ASKs and load factor fell 1 point to 76.6%. GM-Revenue Management Tom Owen said premium cabin demand is "persistently weak" and that yields are under "tremendous pressure." TAM flew 1.84 billion domestic RPKs in February, down 1.9% year-over-year. Capacity climbed 13.6% to 3.02 billion ASKs, dropping load factor 9.6 points to 60.9%. International RPKs rose 12.6% to 1.37 billion against a 16.9% lift in capacity to 1.92 billion ASKs.
Air India said it plans to maintain its policy of introducing 2-3 new aircraft to its fleet per month during the fiscal year beginning April 1, claiming that the global slump in demand "will be short-lived" and that traffic to and from India will rise "considering [the] improved business environment and the enormous potential" of India as a tourist destination. AI added 45 aircraft in the past 18 months and now operates more than 150. Thirty are scheduled to arrive during the upcoming fiscal year, including three 777-200LRs during the June-August period.
Austrian LCC Niki posted a profit of €7.1 million ($9.6 million) in 2008, up 103% on the prior year, President Niki Lauda told ATWOnline last week, on a 25% year-over-year increases in revenue to €229 million and passenger numbers to 2.1 million. "All in all, 2008 was a record year for us. And I also expect a good 2009," he said, adding that the airline will benefit from Austrian Airlines' struggles ( ATWOnline, Feb. 24).
Malaysia Airlines Engineering & Maintenance said it is targeting a 15% year-over-year increase in 2009 revenue to MYR520 million ($142.4 million). Senior GM Mohd Roslan Ismail said third-party revenue has doubled in the past two years to MYR438 million in 2008 and that "there continues to be a high demand for our services." The company also said its MRO joint venture with GMR Hyderabad International is scheduled to be operational by the third quarter of 2010 ( ATWOnline, Aug. 22, 2008).
Air France will introduce a new premium economy cabin called Premium Voyageur that will be phased in gradually on all long-haul flights operated by 777s, A340s and A330s. First routes to offer the new configuration will be Paris Charles de Gaulle to New York JFK, Tokyo Narita and Osaka Kansai. Premium Voyageur will feature a new seat especially designed for AF and equipped with a fixed shell. Seats will be 48 cm. wide, have 97-cm. pitch and offer 123-deg. back recline.
Austrian Airlines flew 1.06 billion RPKs in February, down 17.8% year-over-year. Capacity dropped 14.2% to 1.53 billion ASKs and load factor fell 3 points to 69.1%. Pinnacle Airlines flew 326.5 million RPMs in February, down 3.6% year-over-year. Capacity rose 5.1% to 490.5 million ASMs and load factor was down 6 points to 66.6%. Germanwings transported 432,072 passengers in February, down 10.4% year-over-year. Load factor fell 3.8 points to 74.7%.
Malev Hungarian Airlines said parent company AirBridge has committed to a HUF3 billion ($13.1 million) capital injection. The airline also said that the ownership structure of AirBridge has changed in order to maintain majority Hungarian control.
Air New Zealand asked the High Court to forbid the New Zealand Commerce Commission from withholding evidence in litigation concerning air cargo price-fixing. ANZ has protested its innocence and last year claimed NZCC was "grandstanding to justify its existence" after announcing plans to bring charges against it and 12 other carriers ( ATWOnline, Dec. 16, 2008).
US Dept. of Transportation said 2.3% of scheduled domestic flights were canceled in January, an improvement from 2.9% in the year-ago month. Comair canceled 6.2% of its flights, the highest rate, followed by American Eagle at 4.1% and American Airlines at 3.5%. Hawaiian Airlines and Frontier Airlines canceled just 0.5%. The industry's ontime arrival rate was 77%, up from 72.4% in January 2008. HA led at 90.8%, followed by Southwest Airlines at 83.3% and ExpressJet Airlines at 79.8%. Comair was worst at 56.7%, followed by Atlantic Southeast Airlines at 68.3%.
The massive downturn in global airfreight is hitting home at Lufthansa Cargo despite a 20.9% increase in year-over-year operating profit to €164 million ($214.5 million) in 2008, with cargo carriage falling 25% in January and February with similar figures expected this month, according to Chairman and CEO Carsten Spohr.
FedEx reported net income of $97 million for its fiscal third quarter ended Feb. 28, down 75% from a $393 million profit in the year-ago period, blaming "the continued deterioration in global economic conditions."
Superjet International, which provides marketing and support for Sukhoi's Superjet 100, signed an agreement with Lufthansa Technik Logistik to provide global logistics services for the new regional aircraft. Sukhoi will have access to Logistik's Frankfurt facility, which provides parts and customer support.
Austrian Airlines Group executive board members Peter Malanik and Andreas Bierwirth confirmed to ATWOnline Thursday that the company does in fact possess sufficient liquidity to safeguard operations until its merger with Lufthansa is approved and completed. However, AAG does not possess the stability to survive long-term on its own, they said. AAG and LH officials hope that the tie-up will be finalized before summer ( ATWOnline, March 16).
American Airlines parent AMR Corp. said first-quarter consolidated unit revenue should fall 10.2%-11.2% year-over-year and mainline unit revenue is expected to decline 9.6%-10.6%. Consolidated CASM is expected to be 12.51 cents for the quarter and 12.34 cents for the full year.
Embraer said the Regional Labor Court in Campinas "ruled in favor of maintaining the layoffs" conducted in February, when it cut some 20% of its workforce ( ATWOnline, Feb. 20), and determined compensation payments. Embraer said it would "determine its position" following the rule's formal publication. Separately, the manufacturer yesterday launched its Lifetime Program that will provide support services for customers of pre-owned commercial aircraft.
Air Cargo Management Group released its latest 20-year freighter forecast yesterday, projecting 2028 fleet sizes for both an "optimistic" scenario in which air cargo traffic averages 6% annual growth and, taking into account the weak global economic situation, a "low growth" scenario in which traffic rises just 3%-4% per year ( ATWOnline, March 4). "The baseline assumption used by ACMG is that the current downturn will prove to be a short-lived event in the context of a 20-year forecast," MD Robert Dahl said.
El Al announced the appointment of Amikan Cohen as chairman. He most recently was president of telecommunications firm Partner Communications. He replaces interim Chairman Amnon Lipkin-Shachak.
Continental Airlines said the percentage of available seats sold across its consolidated domestic network is 4-5 points higher over the next six weeks than in the year-ago period but that the fall in yield and RASM since Jan. 1 has "accelerated sequentially" and "has become significant."
The UK House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee asked the government to "urgently seek reform of the Chicago Convention so as to allow governments to impose a tax on international aviation fuel," arguing that declining oil prices make such a policy "especially timely and desirable."
Turkish Airlines flew 4.8 billion RPKs in January and February, up 8% over the year-ago period, against an 11.6% increase in capacity to 7.2 billion ASKs. Load factor fell 1.7 points to 66.2%.
Ryanair and the European Commission are trying to mend their fractured relationship and said they have agreed to a series of discussions on "air traffic in Europe, the development of the aviation sector in the internal market and the role of regional airports." Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary and EC VP-Transport Antonio Tajani met recently in Brussels and agreed to conduct more detailed meetings starting next month ( ATWOnline, Feb.
Chengdu-based United Eagle Airlines, a privately held carrier, agreed to merge with Sichuan Airlines through the sale of a 56% stake for CNY200 million ($29.2 million).
Republic Airways Holdings said in a US Securities and Exchange Commission filing this week that Hawaii's Mokulele Airlines "is currently in default of its loan and codeshare agreement" and revealed that it is "contemplating" taking a 50% stake in the struggling airline.
Southwest Airlines said yesterday that it recently operated a 737 demonstration roundtrip between Dallas Love Field and Houston Hobby using Required Navigation Performance procedures, yielding 904 lb. of carbon dioxide savings, part of its $175 million program to implement RNP fleetwide that was announced last June at the Eco-Aviation conference presented by ATW and Leeham Co. ( ATWOnline, June 20, 2008).
Ryanair pilots voted "overwhelmingly" to accept a 12-month pay freeze and productivity increases in lieu of the 10% pay cut originally sought by the airline. "We are still lowering air fares, which means we will suffer losses in both our third and fourth quarters of the current year," Director-Flight Operations and Ground Operations David O'Brien said ( ATWOnline, Feb. 3). "Our pilots have recognized the difficulties we face and are making their contribution."
