Air China plans to launch a new Beijing-based business jet company in conjunction with the Beijing municipal government to compete with Hainan Airlines’ subsidiary Capital Airlines, according to an industry insider.
Keilir Aviation Academy, in cooperation with the Icelandic Ministry of Transport, the Civil Aviation Administration and a number of other aviation and meteorological organizations will host a Conference on Eyjafjallajokull and Aviationat Keflavik Airport, Iceland, on Sept. 15-16.
US Air Transport Assn. said yesterday that that US airlines' passenger revenue rose 20% in July compared to the same month in 2009, the 7th consecutive month of revenue growth. It noted the pace of improvement slowed from June's 25% year-over-year gain. US airlines carried about 1% fewer passengers in July compared to the year-ago month but the average price to fly 1 mi. lifted 17%, ATA said.
The US National Transportation Safety Board issued a report stating the Southwest Airlines 737-300 that developed a hole in its fuselage in July 2009 while flying from Nashville to Baltimore suffered from "fatigue cracking of the fuselage skin near the leading edge of the vertical stabilizer."
Ethiopian Airlines and the US Export-Import Bank signed an agreement worth over $1.6 billion to support the financing of five 777-200LRs, 10 787-8s and GE spare engines. Jazz Air Income Fund said that its August cash distribution of C$0.05 per unit covering the period from Aug. 1-Aug. 31 will be paid on September 15 to unit holders of record at the close of business on Aug. 31.
Mexicana Airlines and its pilots have reached agreement on a concessionary labor contract as part of an effort to save the struggling company, Reuters reported, citing media reports in Mexico. The carrier is operating under creditor protection in both Mexico and the US, and CEO Manuel Borja said last week that it is "looking for" a capital injection of "between $100 million and $150 million" ( ATW Daily News, Aug. 12).
Evergreen International Airlines, the Oregon-based 747 freighter operator, faces a challenge on the labor front following its pilots' rejection of a tentative collective bargaining agreement. The Air Line Pilots Assn., which represents EIA's 217 flight crew, said in a statement that 92% of cockpit crew voted against accepting the agreement. "The crewmembers could not get past the fact that they are working under 1999 wages and work rules and would have continued to do so for another two years under the rejected tentative agreement," the union said.
Authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of Monday morning’s crash of an Aires 737-700 as it landed in a storm at San Andres Island, killing one passenger who reportedly died of a heart attack ( ATW Daily News, Aug. 17).
BAA and the Unite union representing the UK airport operator's ground staff reached an agreement that both sides said will avert strikes that had threatened to heavily disrupt or even close six major airports this weekend including London Heathrow, London Stansted, Southampton, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
News from Travel Technology Update: Sabre Travel Network plans to work with Cisco to develop a telepresence distribution and reservations platform, enabling agencies and corporations to book services from any telepresence provider and any point of sale. Telepresence goes beyond teleconferencing by using high-definition video and audio to create the illusion that meeting participants are sitting in the same room, even though they may be thousands of miles away in separate "telepresence suites."
With Delta Air Lines leading the way with a $467 million second quarter profit, the nine largest US passenger airlines posted cumulative net income of $1.45 billion for the three months ended June 30, turned around from a net loss of $556 million in the year-ago period, ATW calculated.
UBM Aviation acquires The Route Development Group STA Travel buys Bridge the World brand Travelport’s second-quarter shows corporate rebound, Asia growth Tripbase seeks to provide inspiration in the stars LOT to launch Lufthansa Systems’ Web Kiosk In Focus: The search for intelligent data in the corporate travel universe World news briefing
Sabre Travel Network plans to work with Cisco to develop a telepresence distribution and reservations platform, enabling agencies and corporations to book services from any telepresence provider and any point of sale. Telepresence goes beyond teleconferencing by using high-definition video and audio to create the illusion that meeting participants are sitting in the same room, even though they may be thousands of miles away in separate "telepresence suites."
Air Berlin transported 3.7 million passengers in July, up 6.4% from the year-ago month. Load factor fell 2.1 points to 81.2%. Air France KLM flew 19.7 billion RPKs in July, up 1.2% from the year-ago month. Capacity stayed flat at 22.86 billion ASKs while load factor climbed 1.1 points to 86.2%.
The Vereinigung Cockpit union announced Monday that 99% of Air Berlin pilots voted to strike during the high-traffic holiday month of August if the airline does not meet their demands in an ongoing dispute over wages and benefits. Pilot complaints include daily changes to schedules and failing to provide a third pilot on long-haul flights, a standard practice for other airlines, according to Cockpit.Further negotiations between the two parties are planned for Tuesday and Wednesday this week and in the second week of September.
Boeing Training & Flight Services said it was granted provisional approval by US FAA for its 787 pilot training courses. It added that the courses will enable pilots to "transition to the new airplane in five to 20 days, depending on pilot experience." 777 pilots can qualify to fly the 787 "in as little as five days, given the high level of commonality between the two airplane types," the Boeing training unit stated.
IATA reported that international passenger traffic continued in its recovery in June with premium seats up 16.6% and economy travel up 9.5% compared to June 2009, but cautioned that the post-recession rebound in travel may be slowing.
Sabre Holdings announced it has acquired Fayetteville, Ga.-based Flightline Data Services, a provider of crew scheduling management solutions. Flightline's products and services, including real-time trip trading, mobile applications, preferential bidding, vacation bidding, system and training bidding capabilities. will be integrated into Sabre's solutions.
Kenya Airways leased a 737-300 from KLM for two months. It will initially be used to boost services on the airline's Nairobi-Mombasa route. Jetscape leased one E-175LR to Royal Jordanian for an eight-year term beginning in October.
Delta Air Lines last week launched the industry's first Facebook-integrated "Ticket Window" to allow bookings directly from its Facebook page. DL has over 35,000 followers on its company Facebook page. "Our customers are spending more time online and are looking for new ways to connect with us," said VP-eCommerce Bob Kupbens. "We're now delivering technology where our customers are—from our own website to our Facebook page to Internet news sites and beyond. We already know Facebook is the most used website by inflight WiFi users on more than 2,000 Delta flights every day."
