El Al agreed to plead guilty to colluding on cargo shipping charges and will pay a $15.7 million criminal fine, the US Dept. of Justice announced. The Israeli carrier joined LAN Cargo and subsidiary ABSA Cargo Airline, which also pleaded guilty last week and will pay a combined fine of $109 million ( ATWOnline, Jan. 23).
Lufthansa cancelled 46 domestic and European flights out of its Frankfurt hub owing to a 3-hr. warning strike staged by flight attendants Friday morning. The UFO trade union had issued a warning of industrial action following a breakdown in negotiations over a wage increase ( ATWOnline, Dec. 18, 2008).
Iberia and its pilots represented by SEPLA reached a tentative labor agreement retroactive to 2005 and continuing through this year. IB said the deal ended a "10-year-long period of contention" and now must be approved by union membership. It calls for a one-year, 2.3% pay increase retroactive to 2007, a 2008 raise equivalent to the annual inflation rate and a 2.7% bump this year. Contract also covers productivity and job security issues and includes a 50% reduction in hours when pilots reach age 60.
Continental Airlines said December consolidated RASM rose 3.5%-4.5% year-over-year. Traffic fell 6.7% to 7.11 billion RPMs against a 8.1% decline in capacity to 8.9 billion ASMs. Load factor rose 1.2 points to 79.9%. Frontier Airlines said December yield rose 1.7% year-over-year to 11.75 cents and unit revenue climbed 11.3% to 9.34 cents. RPMs fell 9.7% to 721.2 million while capacity dropped 17.5% to 907.2 million. Load factor was up 6.9 points to 79.5%.
Airbus issued a Safety Bulletin to A320 operators relating to the importance of protecting all aerodynamic data sensors during painting and maintenance and performing low-speed tests at safe altitude. The warnings came as French investigators closed in on the cause of the crash of an Air New Zealand A320 being flown by an XL Airways crew on a test flight off the French coast in November ( ATWOnline, Jan. 12). All seven occupants died when the aircraft plunged into the Mediterranean Sea near Perpignan.
Cebu Pacific Air transported 6.7 million passengers in 2008, up 23% from the prior year, and expects 9.3 million in 2009 as it adds three A320s and three ATR 72-500s to its fleet. It now flies to 15 international and 27 domestic destinations, with five new domestic airports to be added in the coming months. President and CEO Lance Gokongwei said Cebu was "able to successfully convince more Filipinos to travel by air despite economic uncertainties" by offering all-inclusive fares and discounts for passengers declining to check luggage.
The US government took another small step toward a revamp of the nation's air transport infrastructure last week as a proponent was confirmed as the new transportation secretary and the Government Accountability Office officially commended FAA for its progress.
Nav Canada introduced ADS-B coverage over the Hudson Bay, eliminating "an 850,000-sq.-km. gap in Canada's radar coverage," the air navigation services provider said. The first use of ADS-B involved an Air New Zealand Jan. 15 flight from London Heathrow to Los Angeles. Sensis Corp. is supplying Nav Canada with ground equipment consisting of an antenna, a receiver and a target processor installed at stations along the Hudson shoreline.
Ray LaHood, President Barack Obama's choice for Secretary of Transportation, told the US Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee during his confirmation hearing Wednesday that he is committed to upgrading to the NextGen air traffic management system and is against the recently suspended slot auctions at New York area airports ( ATWOnline, Dec. 23, 2008). "I know this NextGen stuff is expensive, but we have to do it," LaHood was quoted as saying.
Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. signed a contract with Taiwan-based Aerospace Industrial Development Corp. to design and manufacture slats, flaps, belly fairings, rudders and elevators for the new MRJ family of 70/90-seat jets ( ATWOnline, Sept. 5, 2008). First flight of the MRJ90 is scheduled for 2011 with certification and first delivery expected by 2013. The smaller MRJ70 will follow a year later.
United Airlines will conduct a small test of RFID bag tags at Chicago O'Hare next month, according to an employee communication. "We're looking to validate whether this technology will speed up the baggage check process," Initiative Leader Gary Dulaney said. More than 1,000 high-mileage travelers will participate in the six-week trial, which is being conducted "in close partnership with the Star Alliance Technical Advisory Committee," he said. Customers will receive RFID bag tags at their homes and will check in online before arriving at ORD.
Chinese government cut the domestic fuel price by an additional 5.7% to CNY5,440 per ton, a move that will help airlines save about CNY4 billion this year, according to Haitong Securities Aviation Analyst Ma Ying. Fuel currently accounts for more than 40% of Chinese carriers' operating costs ( ATWOnline, Dec. 22, 2008).
The Irish government yesterday rejected Ryanair's €1.40 ($1.81)-per-share offer for its 25% stake in Aer Lingus, killing off the LCCs bid, which required 90% acceptance. Ryanair said it "will respect and abide by" the decision but continued to claim that its offer, which valued EI at €748 million, "greatly exceeds the intrinsic value" of its smaller rival. Yesterday, EI announced a new transatlantic joint venture with United Airlines scheduled to launch in March 2010 (see story below).
Lufthansa Technik won a seven-year Total Material Operations contract with Sama covering six 737-300s. Contract takes effect in March and covers pooling, MRO and supply of materials.
Air Canada, Jazz Air, WestJet and Air Transat announced formation of the National Airlines Council of Canada, a new trade association "focused on promoting public policy and legislation favorable to the global success of the Canadian commercial airline industry." WestJet President and CEO Sean Durfy will be the NACC board's first chair. The airlines left the Air Transport Assn. of Canada last year.
Thales will supply Air France with a 777-300ER FFS under a deal announced this week. Technology includes Thales' eM2K motion system featuring hydraulic mass compensation and transmission. US FAA Level D certification is expected.
Finnair flew 1.92 billion RPKs in December, up 7.8% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 4.5% to 2.47 billion ASKs, lifting load factor 2.4 points to 77.6%. Spanair flew 441 million RPKs in December, down 25% year-over-year, against a 28.2% fall in ASKs to 704 million. Load factor rose 2.7 points to 62.6%. Allegiant Air flew 342.6 million RPMs in December, up 9.6% year-over-year. Capacity fell 2.6% to 386.1 million ASMs and load factor rose 9.8 points to 88.7%.
Kuwaiti startup Wataniya Airways took delivery of the first of seven leased A320s. Aircraft will seat 122 passengers. Wataniya plans to fly next month.
Agreement of Facilitation of Aerial Transport in Central America was adopted by the governments of Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua and "will facilitate the transport of people between the participating countries because it reduces procedures and optimizes travel time," ALTA Executive Director Alex de Gunten said. The organization said the so-called CA-4 creates a "unified regulatory body and domestic Central American market."
Singapore Airlines yesterday took delivery of the first of six A330-300s on lease from AWAS. Aircraft is powered by Trent 700s, will seat 285 passengers in two classes and will be used initially on flights to Australia and Japan. Remaining aircraft will be delivered this year.
Baboo reported an 87% year-over-year increase in 2008 revenue to CHF56 million ($49.1 million) on a 75% rise in passenger numbers to 295,000. The Geneva-based carrier took delivery of three E-190s this year, increasing its fleet from two (Q400s) to five aircraft, and added seven destinations to bring its scheduled network to 18.
ILFC announced the following lease agreements: One used 737-800 to Vision Airlines for five years, delivery in March; three used A319-100s to WindJet (two for six years each delivered in December, one for 6.5 years with delivery this month); one used 767-306ER to Flyglobespan for five years, delivery in February; two used A330-200s to Atlasjet for five years each, delivery in April; two used A320-200s to Ural Airlines for six years each, delivery in May; two used 737-300s to Belavia for five years each, delivery in May and June; one used 737-300 to Boliviana for five years, delivered in
Turkish Technic reached an MRO agreement with Istanbul-based Onur Air to provide C checks on A300-600s. Work is slated for completion early next month.
Ukraine International Airlines said it "exceeded its projected targets" in 2008 and will report a full-year profit for the eighth consecutive year when it releases audited financial figures in April. It said passenger numbers rose 16.5% year-over-year to 1.7 million on an 18.5% lift in RPKs to 3.2 billion. Load factor climbed 3 points to 74.8%. It operates 17 737s.
