All 150 passengers and five crew evacuated successfully from a US Airways A320 that executed an emergency water landing in the Hudson River on the west side of Manhattan following an apparent bird strike yesterday afternoon in what appears to be the first controlled ditching of a US commercial aircraft in more than 50 years.
ST Aerospace subsidiary STA Engines will provide GE Aviation with on-wing support for GEnx-1Bs and -2Bs under a 20-year deal announced yesterday. STA will employ GE material and repair processes from its facilities in Singapore and the US, and GE will offer technical support including training manuals and equipment.
Air Canada announced a tentative three-year labor deal covering approximately 5,000 customer service and sales employees represented by the Canadian Auto Workers. AC President and CEO Montie Brewer said that all of AC's labor agreements are up for renewal this year.
Indian government appears to be softening its stance on foreign direct investment in the country's airlines as they contend with large losses and overcapacity. Civil Aviation Minister Prafel Patel told reporters this week that "there is a more reasonable case now than there was 3-4 years ago" to allow foreign carriers to acquire up to 25% of an Indian carrier. Kingfisher Airlines has been a strong proponent of investment liberalization ( ATWOnline, Nov. 18, 2008). "There is no clarity on the issue.
Spairliners, the Air France and Lufthansa Technik A380 component joint venture, won a 10-year deal with Qantas to provide component support on QF's A380s, its first with a third party. Contract calls for the repair and replacement of some 750 components stocked in Spairliners' Hamburg depot and covers all 20 A380s ordered by QF. Spairliners is expected to provide component support for a total of 47 A380s.
UK CAA yesterday reiterated its "strong support" for the Competition Commission's provisional decision requiring airports operator BAA to sell off London Gatwick and Stansted and either Edinburgh or Glasgow International ( ATWOnline, Dec. 18, 2008).
Lufthansa Group flew 11.27 billion RPKs in December, down 0.1% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 1.3% to 14.86 billion ASKs, lowering load factor 1.1 points to 75.8%. SAS Group airlines flew 2.22 billion RPKs in December, down 12.5% year-over-year. Capacity fell 10.2% to 3.42 billion ASKs and load factor dropped 1.7 points to 64.8%. SAS Scandinavian Airlines flew 1.64 billion RPKs, down 9.4%, against a 5% fall in ASKs to 2.48 billion. Load factor declined 3.2 points to 66.1%.
United Airlines yesterday said it will offer Aircell's Gogo inflight Internet service onboard premium service transcontinental flights between New York JFK and California in the second half of this year. Technology will be available for a flat fee of $12.95 on 13 757s flying between JFK and Los Angeles and San Francisco.
SAS Group took a major step toward achieving its goal of SEK4 billion in cost reductions following the finalization of labor agreements with its trade unions that it said will save SEK1.5 billion ($182.4 million).
Southwest Airlines announced the closure of the second tranche of a transaction with an unidentified lessor involving the sale and leaseback of 10 737-700s ( ATWOnline, Dec. 24, 2008), under which it sold the remaining five for approximately $175 million and immediately leased them back for 16 years each.
Domestic airfares in Australia have plummeted 30% in a year to the lowest point in 17 years, according to data released by the government's Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics. While the lowest fares fell dramatically, domestic business class fares eased just 1% but are expected to decline more significantly in the coming months as the economy continues to slow and business confidence sinks to its lowest level since surveys were launched in 1998.
New Alitalia faced problems common for its predecessor on its first day of operations yesterday as workers staged protests at Rome Fiumicino, Milan Malpensa and Linate, causing some flight cancellations and delays. "I don't have any illusions," Alitalia CEO Rocco Sabelli told La Stampa, noting that the carrier had drawn up an emergency plan for the protests. "There are problems to be resolved, and there will be plenty more to resolve."
Lufthansa said it does not expect to complete original plans to increase its shareholding in bmi to 80% this month, Dow Jones reported. LH has not officially submitted a request to the EU for antitrust approval. It currently holds 30%-minus-one-share in bmi but plans to purchase an additional 50%-plus-one-share stake from bmi founder and Chairman Michael Bishop following the latter's decision last fall to exercise his sell option ( ATWOnline, Oct. 30).
SITA signed a five-year, $76 million contract with Saudi Arabian Airlines to implement and maintain global communications and desktop infrastructure. The hybrid network solution is expected to reduce communications-related costs, increase flexibility and advance a range of applications including a new Passenger Management System.
Airbus parent EADS CEO Louis Gallois told reporters in France that the manufacturer may need to slow production rates in 2009 owing to airlines' inability to take planned deliveries because of the weak economic environment. "I could not give a figure of a percentage of the 2009 delivery backlog that might be at risk," he said.
Air Mauritius said it suffered falling revenue and an "unprecedented deterioration of its financial performance" largely attributed to losses related to fuel hedges in its third fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31, leading to a nine-month loss of approximately €18 million compared to an €11.6 million profit in the year-ago period. The company realized a nine-month net loss of €20.5 million on its fuel hedging contracts and mark-to-market losses through the nine-month period totaled €129.5 million.
AerCap Holdings said it signed new lease agreements for 14 aircraft during the fourth quarter of 2008. It also delivered 12 aircraft and nine engines under lease agreements, purchased 11 aircraft and six engines, sold three aircraft and five engines and disassembled two aircraft and seven engines. New lease agreements were with Air China (three new A330s), Sichuan Airlines (three new A330s), Air One (three new A320s), Indonesia's Batavia Air (three 737-400s), North American Airlines (one 767-300) and AeroMexico (one 767-300). As of Dec.
Jat Airways transported 1.4 million passengers in 2008, up 4% from 2007, while cargo fell 13% to 2,829 tonnes. Passenger load factor rose 2 points to 64%.
American Eagle and the Transport Workers Union agreed to seek US federal mediation if the two sides cannot reach a labor agreement by Jan. 17. Key issues in the negotiations include compensation, benefits and contract duration. TWU represents 3,550 grounds workers at the regional carrier.
Zambian Airways suspended operations over the weekend, citing an inability to handle rising costs. The carrier also reportedly owed National Airports Corp., which controls the nation's airports, more than $2 million. Government officials indicated they would meet with the airline's executives to discuss a potential state-assisted reorganization.
AirTran Airways plans to recall 60 furloughed pilots and hire additional flight attendants, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. AirTran cut 180 pilots and 300 flight attendants in September ( ATWOnline, July 8, 2008). The 60 recalled pilots, which are in addition to 35 recalled last month, are anticipated to be needed for increased summer flying.
