IATA reported that world scheduled airline passenger traffic (RPKs) rose 11.9% in June compared to the same month last year, while cargo traffic (FTKs) showed a 26.5% improvement year over year. “The industry continues to recover faster than expected, but with sharp regional differences. Europe is recovering at half the speed of Asia,” said DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani. Global passenger capacity (ASKs) rose 5.9% compared to June 2009, and passenger load factor was 79.5%.
Following Air Berlin’s disclosure Monday that it intends to join oneworld, CEO Joachim Hunold said yesterday the move is "the next logical step" for the carrier.
TRAXwas selected by Vietnamese startup Air Mekong to implement its maintenance and engineering software solution. Air Mekong plans to launch operations this year with a CRJ900.
American Airlines yesterday released its own free travel app for the iPhone to provide customers with mobile access to day-of-travel information. Once logged in, passengers can check which gate they will be departing from, where they will sit and their position on the standby list. They will also be able to set parking reminders, view terminal maps, access mobile boarding passes, book and check-in for flights, and use GPS to locate the nearest airport served by AA.
The US National Transportation Safety Board continues to investigate a July 21 incident in which a United Airlines 777-200 encountered severe turbulence. According to NTSB, UA Flight 967 was en route from Washington Dulles to Los Angeles when it encountered severe turbulence about 60 mi. southeast of Kansas City at approximately 34,000 ft. The aircraft diverted and landed safely at Denver. The aircraft had 255 passengers and 10 crew members onboard.
The US Office of Special Council , an independent investigative and prosecutorial agency that is designed to operate as "a secure channel for disclosures of whistleblower complaints," said Friday that it has received a report from US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood that substantiates allegations of FAA inspectors failing "to provide effective oversight of [Northwest Airlines’ Airworthiness Directive] process, resulting in the carrier's continued systemic AD non-compliance."
Spirit Airlines pilots ratified a new five-year labor contract with 74% voting in favor in balloting that occurred this month, the Air Line Pilots Assn. representing the LCC's 420 flight deck crew announced Friday.
Alaska Airlines said Friday it flew a 737-700 on a test flight last week over Puget Sound using RNP guidance and demonstrated eight continuous descent approaches into Seattle-Tacoma, reducing carbon dioxide emissions "by 35% compared to a conventional landing."
OnAir announced that Emirates selected its Mobile OnAir and Internet OnAir inflight connectivity service for its A380 fleet of 90 aircraft. Installation will start at the beginning of 2011; the first OnAir-equipped Emirates A380 is slated to begin service in June 2012. Aviation Technical Services will install Lumexis Corp.'s Fiber-to-the-Screen IFEsystem onboard 44 "new post-delivery modification" flydubai 737-800s. Installation will commence in October.
Porter Airlines confirmed that CEO Robert Deluce personally filed a lawsuit against Air Canada for breach of contract. He is seeking up to $5 million in damages. The dispute traces back to 1986 when the Deluce family sold Air Ontario and Austin Airways to AC. Under terms of the sale, AC agreed to provide Deluce and his spouse with a free travel pass for life. It honored the contract for 23 years, but Deluce claims that in the fall of 2009 AC “unilaterally, and without warning, stopped honoring the arrangements.”
IATA's quarterly survey of airline CFOs and cargo heads released yesterday reveals a turnaround in the industry's confidence level, which took a beating during the extended recession. The organization said airlines worldwide are growing increasingly confident about both the current operating environment and prospects for the next 12 months, with more than 70% of respondents to its latest "Business Confidence Index" survey reporting "improved profitability during the [second] quarter and a similar proportion expect further improvement over the year ahead."
