Delta Air Lines said it expects to record a one-time noncash operating expense of approximately $950 million in the current quarter, which it said is "primarily associated with the issuance of equity awards to substantially all nonmanagement employees of Delta and [Northwest Airlines] in connection with the merger." DL also entered into an agreement with Citigroup Global Markets to sell up to 18.2 million shares of common stock at $0.0001 per share. It said proceeds will be used for "general corporate purposes," including the replacement of funds used to pay merger-related taxes.
SAS Group's restructuring took a significant step forward yesterday with announcement of the sale of its airBaltic stake and a new majority investor in Spanair. AirBaltic, in which SAS holds 47.2%, will be sold to the airline's management for LAT14 million ($27.5 million) in cash by Jan. 31, SAS announced, resulting in a SEK175 million ($22.5 million) capital gain for the Scandinavian company.
Swiss International Air Lines plans to add San Francisco, Abu Dhabi and Beijing to its network as soon as the industry downturn concludes, Director-External Relations & Alliances Ignazio Strano told ATWOnline at last week's Star Alliance board meeting in Chicago. Swiss also is evaluating closer cooperation with fellow Star member Austrian Airlines Group, which will be acquired by Swiss parent Lufthansa.
United Airlines said its fourth-quarter PRASM is expected to rise 3%-4% while CASM excluding fuel will rise 1%-1.5%. CFO Kathryn Mikells told employees in a conference call that "lower fuel prices are clearly good news. . .At United, every dollar per barrel that fuel declines gives us about $60 million in fuel savings per year excluding hedging impacts." UA previously said it expects to record $232 million in cash fuel hedging losses and $138 million in noncash mark-to-market hedging losses in the fourth quarter.
Turkish Airlines confirmed the addition of five widebodies in the coming months to support the growth of its long-haul operations. Additions comprise three 777-300ERs on wet lease from Jet Airways and two A330-200s that are part of an order placed in 2004. THY currently operates nine A340-500s and five A330-200s. The first two 777-300ERs are scheduled to join the fleet on Dec. 24 and 25 while the A330s are scheduled for February and April delivery. With the addition of the 777s, THY also will start offering first class.
European Court of First Instance annulled the European Commission's ruling in the longstanding Ryanair/Charleroi state-aid case because it is "vitiated by an error in law," thus opening the door for other secondary airports to offer incentives to prospective airline tenants.
Uzbekistan Airways ordered four more A320s, bringing its total commitment to 10. It signed up for six last summer ( ATWOnline, June 29, 2007). Its Airbus fleet currently comprises three A310s.
Lufthansa Chairman and CEO Wolfgang Mayrhuber told ATWOnline recently that acquisition of Austrian Airlines and Brussels Airlines is a "logical step" toward creating a pan-European network. Speaking at Star Alliance's annual board meeting in Chicago, Mayrhuber said LH is targeting further consolidation. "From the LH management perspective, we can do more," he told this website. "What we have already done is no surprise."
KLM finally will become the sole owner of Martinair after the European Commission approved the Dutch flag carrier's proposal to acquire the 50% stake owned by A.P. Moller-Maersk Group.
Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority named Cathay Pacific Airways Senior Training Capt. John McCormick as director-aviation safety and CEO effective March 1. He formerly was with Qantas and the Royal Australian Air Force.
Qantas took delivery of its second A380 Monday in Toulouse. The aircraft is scheduled to arrive in Sydney today and will enter service on flights to Los Angeles from Melbourne and Sydney on Dec. 22. "This second aircraft will allow us to increase frequency to Los Angeles to as many as six return services each week," QF Executive GM John Borghetti said, adding that the first A380 ( ATWOnline, Sept.
British Airways CEO Willie Walsh told reporters yesterday that his airline remains interested in Alitalia and that "What we are offering, under current conditions, is a credible collaboration that will leave the Italian company the possibility of deciding its own future in a flexible manner," according to Reuters. However, the offer "isn't complementary to others taking stakes," he said, according to Il Sole 24 Ore. The Compagnia Aerea Italia investor group took control of AZ on Dec. 12 ( ATWOnline, Dec.
Vietnamese LCC Jetstar Pacific parent State Capital Investment Corp., which holds 75.8%, was granted permission by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung to raise money by issuing additional shares to existing holders and to reduce its holding to 51% by selling its right to buy additional shares to other domestic stakeholders, the state Vietnam News Agency reported. Qantas holds 18% of the carrier and is allowed to take up to 30% ( ATWOnline, May 26).
Airbus has no plans to provide loans to customers, contrary to published reports, a spokesperson told Dow Jones. "Backstop financing is standard industry practice and is agreed at the time of contract. This happens years in advance of aircraft deliveries and is not the same thing as providing customers with billions in loans, which Airbus does not go into," the spokesperson said.
Six major US network carriers (American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Northwest Airlines, United Airlines and US Airways) reported an aggregate third-quarter operating margin of -5.8%, the fourth consecutive quarterly loss and a reversal from the 8.8% achieved in the year-ago period, the US Dept. of Transportation said. Delta reported a positive operating margin of 2.2% while the rest were in the red.
Southwest Airlines yesterday added a link to WestJet's booking portal to southwest.com, which SWA called "an important first step forward in the relationship" between the LCCs that will include the announcement of codeshare flight schedules by late next year ( ATWOnline, July 9).
Malaysia Airlines is in talks with Qantas regarding some kind of partnership and intends to "pursue strategic partnerships to create additional value," CEO Idris Jala confirmed in a statement cited by widespread press reports. "We are in talks with a number of airlines, including Qantas. This ranges from joint ventures and codeshares to interlining partnerships. More details will be announced as and when we have finalized the terms of any of these partnerships," Jala said.
US Air Transport Assn. said American carriers will transport 9% fewer passengers during the Dec. 18-Jan. 7 holiday period than in the prior year, although a 9% year-over-year decline in seats will mean "full or near-full flights throughout the holiday." ATA is forecasting some 2 million passengers per day during the period and 90% loads on the busiest days (Dec. 19 and Dec. 27).
Aer Arann said that up to 30 positions, "primarily" flight and cabin crew, that were scheduled to be cut now will be retained with the creation of an Isle of Man base. RE will launch a twice-weekly London City-IOM service on Jan. 19. The carrier still plans to eliminate 70 jobs ( ATWOnline, Oct. 21). The IOM base, which will include one ATR 72-500, will focus on RE's contract lease business. It also announced the Jan.
Japan Airlines said yesterday that it will operate a 747-300 test flight from Tokyo Haneda on Jan. 30 in conjunction with Boeing, Pratt & Whitney and Honeywell. It will use biofuel primarily derived from camelina plants. A blend of 50% biofuel and 50% traditional jet fuel will be tested in one of the aircraft's four JT9D engines. The biofuel will be a mixture of three second-generation feedstocks: Camelina (84%), jatropha (under 16%) and algae (under 1%). The flight will be the first using fuel derived from camelina and the first to use a combination of three feedstocks.
Delta Air Lines said it will offer in January a voluntary severance program in line with its recent decision to cut capacity 6%-8% next year ( ATWOnline, Dec. 3) "These capacity reductions will reduce the number of people needed to operate the airline," CEO Richard Anderson and President Ed Bastian told employees in a memo.
AeroTech Services said Brussels Airlines purchased its US FAA-verified modification aimed at reducing fuel costs and greenhouse gas emissions on 737s. Technology increases an aircraft's lift-to-drag ratio by expanding the wing area and camber and lengthening the chord.
CSA Czech Airlines said it has realized nearly CZK400 million ($20.5 million) in savings this year owing to nearly 700 new contracts with suppliers "primarily" related to navigation fees, aircraft handling and IT. It is seeking an additional CZK100 million in savings in 2009 related to MRO and has opened negotiations on new contracts with repair and maintenance parts and components suppliers.
