Turkish Airlines said it will lease two A340-300s from ILFC for six years each beginning in February and April. It currently operates seven of the type. Separately, THY is targeting a net profit margin of 10% for 2007 and 20% passenger growth in 2008, CEO Temel Kotil told Reuters. The carrier expects 24 million passengers this year. It plans to join Star Alliance in March.
Vietnam Airlines earned a pre-tax profit of VND370 billion ($22.8 million) in 2007, according to a company statement cited by press reports, a 6.4% improvement over the 2006 figure. Revenue climbed 15.5% to VND20.37 trillion as passenger numbers eclipsed 8 million and load factor rose 4.2 points year-over-year to 75.4%. International traffic comprised 40% of its operations. GD Pham Ngoc Minh told Agence France Presse that VN is targeting 14% revenue growth in 2008 and 9 million passengers.
EasyJet now is selling tickets on its website for 32 routes operated by GB Airways. The LCC's purchase of the London Gatwick-based carrier is expected to close this month ( ATWOnline, Oct. 26, 2007). GB will cease operating under the British Airways banner on March 29.
SkyEurope Airlines secured a €15 million ($22 million) loan from York Global Finance, the LCC's largest shareholder. It said it will use the funds "to continue with the execution of its turnaround plan without diluting shareholders' interests through the issuance of new capital." It lost €24.1 million in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30.
Yemenia Yemen Airways signed an agreement with Djibouti Airlines to help the African carrier renovate its eight aircraft and upgrade its operation, the Yemeni government news agency reported. Djibouti Airlines reportedly has secured financing from "a number of foreign investors" and would receive $12 million in a first phase.
The China Eastern Airlines/Singapore Airlines deal appears increasingly less likely to go through, with Air China stating yesterday that it is planning a counterbid while a change in CAAC leadership signaled that Beijing may be cooling to the stake sale. Li Jiaxiang, president of Air China parent China National Aviation Holding Co., was promoted to head China's aviation ministry on Dec. 28 and is known to be skeptical about foreign investment in Chinese airlines.
Monarch Airlines carried 3.7 million passengers on its scheduled services last year, a 15.8% increase over 2006. The launch of eight new routes contributed to the surge, the airline said, noting it will continue its eastern Mediterranean expansion and will launch a new Manchester-Murcia service next month.
Martinair's supervisory board elevated Diederik Pen to COO. Mesa Air Group named Freedom Airlines President Jorn Bates as COO-Mesa Airlines and Joe Serratelli, most recently VP-operations and productivity for Delta Air Lines subsidiary Song, as COO-Freedom Airlines. Mesa Airlines VP-Flight Operations Mickey Morman was promoted to VP-safety and regulatory compliance for MAG, Mesa Airlines VP-Safety and Regulatory Compliance Eric Gust was named to succeed Morman and Mesa Airlines Senior Director-Dispatch Zaka Khogyani was named the carrier''s director of operations.
Continental Airlines said mainline and consolidated unit revenue each climbed 5.5%-6.5% in December compared to the year-ago month. Consolidated traffic rose 1.9% to 7.62 billion RPMs against a 3% climb in ASMs to 9.69 billion. Load factor fell 0.8 point to 78.7%.
TAM signed a loan agreement with BNP Paribas to finance up to $117.1 million in pre-delivery payments on 30 Airbus aircraft scheduled to arrive through 2010. Separately, TAM launched daily Sao Paulo Guarulhos-Madrid service aboard an A330. The Spanish capital is its fifth European destination.
Assn. of European Airlines elected KLM President and CEO Peter Hartman as chairman for 2008. Hartman takes over from Iberia Chairman and CEO Fernando Conte.
Megadata Corp. said Newark Liberty selected its PASSUR Portal and inSight software technologies offering Web-based operational information and flight following capabilities.
Exclusive negotiations between Air France KLM and Alitalia on a possible merger were scheduled to start yesterday following the official approval of Italian Minister of Finance Tommaso Padoa-Schoppia last Friday, according to widespread press reports.
Wizz Air and GECAS announced a sale and leaseback transaction covering six A320s scheduled for delivery in 2009 and set to be leased for 11 years each. The companies have similar deals covering eight additional A320s to be delivered over the next two years. Separately, Wizz announced summer schedule enhancements including 15 new weekly flights from Budapest (with new service to Gothenburg, Oslo Torp and Treviso) and a fifth A320 based at Katowice that will contribute to an expanded program scheduled to include new flights to Varna.
Alitalia announced the sale of three of its 13 slot pairs at London Heathrow for €92 million ($134.2 million). It called the slots "nonstrategic" and said it will report a €54 million gain on its 2007 balance sheet and a €38 million gain in 2008.
ABX Air, the Wilmington, Ohio-based airline primarily focused on transporting DHL cargo around the US, said it completed the previously announced $332 million purchase of Cargo Holdings International, the Orlando-based outsourced air cargo services provider that counts global logistics firm BAX/Schenker as its main client ( ATWOnline, Nov. 5). ABX created a new holding company, ABX Holdings, of which ABX Air and CHI are now separate wholly owned subsidiaries.
Vinci, a French construction and services company, confirmed the purchase of a 3.3% stake in Aeroports de Paris. ADP initiated an IPO in June 2006 but the French state still holds 68.4%.
Fischer Advanced Composite Components announced delivery of the passenger cabin for the ARJ21. Components include ceiling and sidewall panels, hat racks, cockpit dividers and other equipment. Final assembly will take place in Shanghai later this year.
Air China parent China National Aviation Holding Co. said Monday that China Eastern Airlines needs to renew discussions with Singapore Airlines on the high-profile stake sale, arguing that the HK$3.80 price set for each of the additional shares tailored for SIA is inadequate.
Commport Aerospace Services Ltd. displayed its fuel administration software, realTimeFuel, at IATA's fuel forum in Istanbul. Compatible with most hardware and management systems, the technology offers hands-on, real-time access to the fueling operation, eliminating costs associated with printed tickets, fuel sheets and data handling in reconciliation systems.
ACTS Aero Technical Support & Services, formerly Air Canada Technical Services, signed long-term material and repair contracts from GE and CFM valued at an estimated $2.5 billion. "This is the biggest contract we've ever signed with a supplier," ACTS told Airline Procurement. "It goes beyond the typical customer and supplier relationship. It is an alliance."
The fares will increase by €15 for one-way flights and €30 for roundtrips. Lufthansa will continue to offer its pre-hike fares, which it has dubbed "Lufthansa Preferred Rates," after July 1 for direct sales through its Web site, call center, ticket counter and its dedicated travel agent Web site, lufthansa-agent.com. Travel agents can book Preferred Rates through a GDS if they agree to pay a fee of €4.90 plus VAT per coupon. Otherwise, they will have access only to the higher fares in the GDS.
China Airlines said in December that its board approved the signing of a letter of intent with Airbus to purchase 14 A350-900s plus six options valued at $4.2 billion if all options are exercised. The aircraft will be delivered from 2015 to 2020, replacing the carrier's A340-300 fleet and expanding its mid- and long-haul capacity. The A350-900s will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWBs. Rolls placed the value of the engine deal at $800 million if all options are exercised.
