China Southern Airlines flew 6.52 billion RPKs in December, a 21.8% increase over the year-ago month. Capacity rose 11.6% to 8.94 billion ASKs, driving up load factor 6.1 points to 72.9%. AirTran Airways flew 1.42 billion RPMs in December, up 16.6% over the year-ago month. Capacity climbed 13.1% to 1.96 billion ASMs and load factor rose 2.3 points to 72.7%. LAN Airlines flew 2.2 billion RPKs in December, up 13.8% from the year-ago month, against a 13.6% climb in capacity to 2.89 billion ASKs. Load factor rose 0.2 point to 76%.
American Airlines parent AMR Corp. reported full-year 2007 net income of $504 million, more than double the $231 million earned in the prior year, despite a fourth-quarter net loss of $69 million that it attributed largely to "record fuel prices."
ACE Aviation Holdings yesterday said it will sell 13 million units of its Jazz Air Income Fund to West Face Capital and Sunrise Partners Ltd. Partnership for approximately $96.9 million, Reuters reported. ACE's stake in the regional will drop to 9.5% from 20.1%.
Alenia Aeronautica and Sukhoi Civil Aircraft announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed off on the Italian firm's acquisition of a 25%-plus-one-share stake in the Russian OEM ( ATWOnline, Sept. 12, 2007), which is designing and producing the Superjet 100 ( ATWOnline, Sept. 12, 2007).
Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines have launched formal merger negotiations, US Rep. and House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman James Oberstar (D.-Minn.) told the Star Tribune. "Northwest sees a benefit to them of a merger with Delta," Oberstar said, adding that NWA executives said "there is little route overlap and not a significant effect on competition, which I disagree with." The Congressman confirmed DL is looking at United as well ( ATWOnline, Jan.
Philippine Airlines said it will continue to operate flights to the US despite FAA's downgrading of the country to a Category 2 safety rating. PAL said it will be restricted by FAA to the 33 weekly flights it currently operates to the US and will not be able to change aircraft types used on the routes, meaning that six 777-300ERs scheduled to begin delivering next year will not be able to be deployed as planned unless FAA upgrades the country's status.
China Eastern Airlines has begun to soften its stance on a possible investment by Air China and now says it plans to take seriously a cooperation with CA if Singapore Airlines, whose bid for a stake was rejected by minority shareholders last week, remains involved.
SunExpress, the JV between Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, will open a third base in Turkey at Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen. It will base two aircraft there starting with the new summer schedule, operating flights to Eastern Anatolia and Western European destinations. It currently operates from Antalya and Izmir. It carried 3 million passengers last year, up 27.3% from 2006, as revenue rose 23.6% to €300 million ($445.4 million). Come summer the carrier will operate 14 737-800s and three 757-200s.
Airberlin said Saudi Arabian investor Kamal Abdullah purchased 3.1% of the carrier through Moab Investments. Vatas is AB's largest shareholder at close to 18.6%.
ANA Aviation will provide cargo management services to Tui Travel, formed recently from the integration of Thomsonfly and First Choice Airways. Fleet totals 82 aircraft comprising 737s, 757s, 767s, A320s and A321s. Viking Freight, First Choice Airways' in-house cargo team, will transfer to ANA when services under the new provider begin Feb. 4.
Vietnam Airlines, which is state-owned, plans to launch an IPO for about 20% of the carrier ( ATWOnline, Jan. 3, 2007). Shares will be offered first to employees and Vietnamese investors, according to numerous media reports, with international investors to be offered remaining shares. The Vietnamese government made it clear that it will maintain about an 80% holding in the airline. The IPO may not occur for some time.
Jazeera Airways began trading on the Kuwait Stock Exchange Monday ( ATWOnline, April 17, 2007). The Kuwaiti LCC is the third Arab carrier to list shares on a regional stock exchange. Air Arabia staged an IPO in March and is listed on the Dubai Financial Market and Royal Jordanian launched an IPO in December and is listed on the Amman Stock Exchange.
Fiji's Air Pacific converted three 787-9 options into firm orders for delivery in 2016 and 2017. The new aircraft add to the five 787-9s the airline ordered in 2006 that are scheduled to arrive in 2011-12 ( ATWOnline, April 27, 2006). Air Pacific also added three purchase rights to its commitment, Chairman Nalin Patel said in a statement. Those aircraft will be available after 2019. The GEnx-powered 787-9s will replace the airline's two 747-400s and one 767-300ER.
Etihad Airways carried 4.6 million passengers in 2007, a 67% increase from the previous year, as it added 13 new aircraft to its fleet, launched service to nine destinations and increased frequencies on a number of key routes. Load factor averaged 69%. Networkwide it achieved loads of 71% in economy and 61% in business. It did not provide details on its first class load factor other than it rose by 75 points compared to 2006. "Our intense activity in 2007 resulted in another year of significant expansion.
CAE said Kuala Lumpur will be the location of its new training center, which will be developed in partnership with AirAsia. In November, CAE signed a contract to manage AirAsia's TRTO at the AirAsia Academy and provide pilot training services. The center also will train technicians and cabin crew across Southeast Asia. Kuala Lumpur will serve as CAE's regional hub for MPL and Airbus OEM training.
Delta Air Lines continued to decline to comment on reports that its board is considering authorizing merger negotiations with Northwest Airlines and/or United Airlines, but NWA President and CEO Doug Steenland said his carrier is giving the issue "serious attention."
BOC Aviation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of China, announced 10-year lease agreements for five 737NGs with India's Jet Airways. Aircraft will be delivered to Jet by Boeing between March 2010 and November 2011. BOC currently owns 76 aircraft flying with 29 airlines worldwide and has 40 more 737NGs on firm order, 37 of which already have been leased. Last month BOC announced deals to lease four 737-800s to Hainan Airlines, two -800s to Shandong Airlines and one -800 to Skymark Airlines.
Flybe announced a franchise agreement with Scotland's Loganair that will take effect when the latter's run as a British Airways franchisee ends on Oct. 25. Flybe said the deal, which it claimed is the "first of its kind ever for a low-cost carrier," will see Loganair operating in Flybe livery from Oct. 26. Loganair is based at Glasgow International and operates 13 Saab 340s, two Twin Otters and five BN Islanders. Separately, Flybe will launch thrice-daily London Gatwick-Aberdeen service on March 30.
Kingfisher Airlines Chairman and CEO Vijay Mallya told Mint business daily that the airline, likely through its acquisition of Air Deccan, has "secured all necessary clearances for flying overseas" and that as a result it will convert its five A380 options to firm orders. Kingfisher already has five A380s on order. "We will be operating all nonstop flights to international destinations," Mallya told the paper. Indo Asian News Service quoted him as saying that the first long-haul flight will operate Aug.
Two months after declaring at the Dubai Air Show that "shrinking the airline was the wrong way to go" and that Gulf Air would embark on a major fleet renewal, the carrier this weekend announced its plan to order up to 24 787s and revealed that it is negotiating with Airbus for eight A320s.
Aegean Airlines reported an 18% increase in passengers last year to 5.2 million from 4.4 million in 2006. Domestic passengers climbed 10% to 3.4 million and international passengers rose 35% to 1.9 million. Aegean said it "aims at accelerating its re-fleeting process and at further expanding its network" in 2008. Iberia flew 4.25 billion RPKs in December, down 0.6% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 1.4% to 5.52 billion ASKs, dropping load factor 1.5 points to 77%.
Air Arabia announced that it will establish a new hub in Katmandu from where it will operate a low-cost subsidiary in partnership with Nepalese carrier Yeti Airlines. It said the new carrier "will provide affordable and convenient service to a broad range of international destinations" throughout Asia. Flights to Sharjah will start before the end of the month, with service to Doha, Kuala Lumpur and India to follow shortly.
Mesa Air Group, which operates as a regional partner for Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and US Airways as well as fielding its independent Mesa Airlines and go! operations, suffered an $81.6 million loss in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2007, as legal wrangling in Hawaii and losses at its Air Midwest subsidiary took a heavy toll on a company that posted a $34 million profit the previous year.
