Airlines & Lessors

Los Angeles-based commercial aircraft lessor Air Lease Corp. (ALC) posted a 2016 net profit of $374.9 million, up 48% from $253.4 million net income in 2015.

Mexican low-cost carrier (LCC) Grupo Viva Aerobus posted a 2016 net profit of MXP765.8 million ($37 million), a 69.2% increase over the company’s MXP452.7 million 2015 net income.

Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings earned a 2016 net profit of $41.5 million, a nearly six-times increase over net income of $7.3 million in 2015, though the 2015 results are skewed by one-time charges related to settling class-action litigation.

Qantas reported a consolidated net profit of A$515 million ($372.1 million) for the first half of its FY2017 (July-December 2016), down 25.1% from A$688 million in the first half of FY2016.

The AirAsia X (AAX) Group reported a significant decline in fourth-quarter profits, although this was not enough to prevent an impressive turnaround in its full-year 2016 results.

FedEx Express, the airline arm of Memphis-based FedEx Corp., and the United States Postal Service (USPS) have extended a contract by four years under which FedEx provides express air transport services for USPS.

Air Astana president & CEO Peter Foster has detailed network plans for the year, saying the carrier will focus on operating as a “low-cost, full-service airline.”

For commercial airlines and airline groups worldwide, 2016 passenger traffic, RPKs, load factors, and FTKs, as of Feb. 22, 2017.

Grupo Aeromexico reported a 2016 net profit of MXP1.1 billion ($53.8 million), down 3.9% from MXP1.2 billion net income in 2015.

As oneworld turns 18, it continues to innovate and adapt to market changes while remaining focused on two things: value and simplicity for customers.

Russian manufacturer Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co. (SCAC) appointed Vladislav Masalov as president on Feb. 22.

Air France pilots have approved in principle the carrier’s plan to create a low-cost, long-haul airline, Boost, to drive growth.

Ireland-based lessor AerCap turned in a net profit of $1.04 billion on a reported basis for the year ended Dec. 31, 2016, compared to $1.17 billion for the preceding year.

More competition for lucrative transatlantic first-class passengers is imminent with the appearance of a new operator—New York-based Bliss Jet—selling individual seats on high-end business jets.

The Kaliningrad region of Russia wants to establish a regional airline.

SunExpress, a joint venture of Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, plans to increase capacity throughout its network, despite a difficult operating environment.

Chinese carriers transported 488 million passengers in 2016, up 12% from 432.4 million in 2015, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

Europe’s regional airlines face a narrow—and shrinking—window of opportunity in which to make a profit, an industry consultant said in London Feb. 20.

Samara’s Kurumoch International Airport in the Russian Volga region reported handling 28,000 international passengers in January, up 70% year-over-year (YOY).

São Paulo-based low-cost carrier GOL reported a full-year 2016 net profit of BRL1.1 billion ($338.5 million), reversing the airline’s BRL4.3 billion net loss in 2015.

Low-cost carrier (LCC) Norwegian is planning to open up transatlantic services from several mid-sized US cities that do not have European flights, the airline’s CEO said Feb.20.

Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris posted a 2016 net profit of MXN3.5 billion ($170 million), up 42.8% over net income of MXN2.46 billion in 2015, on a 29.3% year-over-year rise in revenue to MXN20.8 billion.

Air Canada reported C$876 million ($650.3 million) net profit for 2016, nearly tripling the airline’s C$308 million net profit in 2015.

Alitalia says it finally expects to have agreed a new business plan by the end of February.

UK low-cost carrier (LCC) easyJet expects to finalize plans for a European air operator’s certificate (AOC) over the coming weeks and could place a new AOC in either Portugal or Austria.