Air Dolomiti will test a new business model and begin feeding Lufthansa's Munich hub with daily morning flights from 16 Italian destinations. According to Financial Times Deutschland, the Verona-based LH subsidiary must change its operations completely in order to fly from each destination in the morning. CEO Michael Kraus said the new model will raise operational costs 10%-15% but LH will benefit from more Italian business travelers. Kraus also said it could be possible to change Air Dolomiti's fleet to 100-seat jets.
Malaysia Airlines reported a second-quarter net loss of MYR177.1 million ($48.2 million), narrowed from a net loss of MYR277.5 million in the year-ago quarter, on a 6% rise in revenues to MYR609.6 million, according to press reports. MD and CEO Idris Jala said the company's cost-cutting program is "showing positive results," evidenced by an 18% improvement in passenger yield and a 10.5% gain in cargo yield, according to Malaysian national news agency Bernama. Jala added that MAS is "on track" to achieve profitability in 2008 but projected a full-year 2006 loss of MYR620 million.
Ryanair concluded a deal with OnAir to outfit its fleet of more than 200 737s with OnAir's onboard mobile communications solution. Subject to regulatory approval, Ryanair passengers will be able to call and send and receive text and e-mail messages using their mobile phones and PDAs. The carrier will receive a commission from OnAir on revenues generated by passengers.
Air China's first-half profit fell 22.5% to CNY458 million ($57.4 million) from the CNY591 million earned in the first six months of 2005, according to press reports. Revenues climbed 17.7% to CNY19.93 billion. CA's offering on the Shanghai Stock Exchange earlier this month ( ATWOnline, Aug. 2) met with an unenthusiastic response, according to Reuters, forcing the carrier to repurchase 123 million A shares.
Thomas Cook Airlines (UK) gained CAA approval to become the country's first carrier to use GPS-based RNAV technology on approaches. Two Thomas Cook A330s are fitted with RNAV hardware and software and 12 training captains have been involved in simulator training. The carrier is working in close conjunction with CAA to pilot the system, largely on its Canadian and Caribbean flights. Thomas Cook plans to have all 70 of its A330 pilots trained to use the system by year end. It is working on introducing RNAV on its 19 757s and eventually on its A320s.
Hong Kong Express Airways said it received approval to fly to Chengdu, Nanning, Wuhan, Jinan and Yantai, bringing to 11 the number of cities it will serve on the Chinese mainland. CEO Andrew Tse said the new destinations are part of an expansion strategy that will see it gain access to "top tier cities such as Beijing and Shanghai in the not-too-distant future." HKE flew 13,899 passengers in July aboard 377 flights.
AD Aerospace was contracted by British Airways to provide video security systems protecting baggage from theft and tampering during loading and unloading. The systems monitor the baggage hold.
AirTran Airways announced the cancellation of 31 flights yesterday and today into and out of Miami, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Fort Myers as the area braces for Tropical Storm Ernesto. Other carriers announced revisions to rebooking and cancellation policies, and Delta Air Lines said it "proactively cancelled some flights." Separately, AirTran and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced the ratification of a five-year labor agreement covering approximately 40 ground support equipment mechanics and related employees in Atlanta, Baltimore and Orlando.
AirAsia reported net income of MYR126.9 million ($34.3 million) for its fiscal year ended June 30, an increase of 14% over net income of MYR111.6 million last year, on a 28% jump in revenues to MYR856 million. "The revenue growth was driven by a 30% growth in passengers carried, a 4% decline in average fares and a higher contribution mix from ancillary income," the carrier said in statement. "The lower fares enticed strong traffic growth and improved load factors."
EADS neither confirmed nor denied reports that Vneshtorgbank, a state-owned Russian bank, has acquired a 4.5%-5% stake in Airbus's parent company. Russian newspaper Vedomosti reported yesterday that Vneshtorgbank purchased $1 billion worth of EADS shares.
TAP Portugal posted a €51 million ($65.2 million) loss in the first six months of 2006, a €3 million improvement compared to a €54 million loss in the year-ago period, and the carrier said its board of directors still hopes to end 2006 "with positive financial results." All other indicators of the company's activity "showed a positive trend," TAP reported, highlighted by a 17% increase in operating revenue to €710 million from the €606 million generated in the first six months of 2005.
MAXjet Airways will launch twice-weekly Las Vegas-London Stansted service Nov. 2. The all-business-class carrier currently operates scheduled services out of New York JFK and Washington Dulles. Earlier this month, MAXjet said it had reached "an agreement in principle" to add its fourth and fifth 767s early next year. It will introduce its third aircraft next month and said it is considering expanding into Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Embraer announced the closure of a $500 million syndicated standby facility with BNP Paribas, which the manufacturer said will reduce its debt costs. The facility comprises a $250 million trade finance credit facility and a $250 million revolver credit facility.
SkyEurope Holding AG announced an agreement with York Global Finance II for injection of €38.8 million ($49.6 million) of fresh capital into the airline as part of a €56.3 million financing package that also will include a €17.5 million public rights offering.
JetBlue Airways named System Chief Pilot Scott Green, an A320 captain, VP-flight operations effective Oct. 1. Germanwings named Thomas Winkelmann MD effective Sept 1. He formerly was VP-the Americas for Lufthansa. AerCap Group named GECAS CFO Keith Helming as its new CFO. Helming succeeds Heinrich Loechteken, who will assume the new position of chief investment officer.
Aer Lingus and the Irish government yesterday formally announced details of their plan to float more than 50% of the government's shares in the airline on the Dublin and London stock exchanges in late September. Net proceeds of the IPO will be used primarily to finance expansion of the carrier's short-haul and long-haul fleets in addition to a one-off pension contribution. The sale is expected to raise €400-€500 million ($509.9-$637.4 million) in fresh equity.
CAAC announced it will double fuel surcharges on domestic flights under 800 km. to CNY60 ($7.50) per passenger and raise surcharges on flights of more than 800 km. to CNY100 from CNY60. The changes are effective Sept. 1, according to press reports
Biman Bangladesh Airlines removed five of its 13 aircraft from service because it cannot afford maintenance and is cutting international flights as a result, Deputy GM Khan Mosharraf Hossain was quoted as saying by Reuters. The aircraft--two DC-10s, one A310 and two F28s--were sent abroad for service. Biman will cut frequencies on routes to Europe and Asia. It ended its New York JFK service last month. It is projecting a BDT6.91 billion ($96.3 million) loss for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2007. It owes BDT12 billion to Bangladesh Petroleum Corp., Reuters reported.
Midwest Air Group flew a consolidated 388.6 million RPMs in July, an 18.5% increase over the year-ago month. Capacity climbed 14.4% to 463.3 million ASMs and load factor rose 2.9 points to 83.9%. Yield grew an estimated 8.6% to 14.1 cents and passenger RASM was up an estimated 12.5% to 11.9 cents.
FedEx Express and pilots represented by the Air Line Pilots Assn. announced a tentative four-year labor agreement reached with the help of the National Mediation Board, which intervened in October 2005. The parties have been negotiating since 2004 and said the deal "is subject to review and finalization of contract language." Details of the agreement were not released.
Air Canada named Senior Director Daniel Shurz VP-network planning. He succeeds Benjamin Smith, new president and CEO of Air Canada Vacations. Also, Senior Director-Strategic Marketing Charlie McKee was named VP-marketing.
Qantas announced yesterday that it will partner with Telstra, Panasonic Avionics Corp. and AeroMobile to develop technology enabling passengers to use their cellphones or PDAs in flight. AeroMobile is a joint venture between ARINC and Telenor. New systems will be tested over three months on a 767 operating domestic routes. "This evaluation is the first step toward building a product which will support our customers' business and communication needs into the future," Qantas Group GM-Customer Product and Services Lesley Grant said. "The service will be simple to use.
Boeing confirmed yesterday that Air Sahara is a previously unidentified customer for 10 737-800s. The order, worth more than $700 million at list prices, was placed in the first quarter of this year. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in mid-2009. "This order reflects our confidence both in the growth of India's aviation market and Air Sahara's modernization and expansion plans," President Alok Sharma said.
