Alitalia, on the verge of collapse, continued to operate flights yesterday as Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi intervened in an attempt to revive negotiations between potential investors and the airline's unions over a rescue plan that would require significant concessions by workers ( ATWOnline, Sept. 15).
United Airlines doubled its fee to check a second bag on North American flights to $50, blaming the increase on "volatile" fuel prices. The new charge applies to customers who purchase tickets beginning today for travel from Nov. 10. It does not apply to passengers who fly first or business class or to "premier status" frequent-flier members. Active duty military personnel traveling on orders also are exempt. UA charges a $15 fee for the first checked bag. It said the new fee schedule will generate an estimated $700 million in revenue in 2009.
Midwest Airlines, which announced in July that it would cut 1,200 jobs, is laying off an additional 186 employees, according to Milwaukee's Capital Times. The cuts, to take effect Nov. 7, include 72 pilots, 82 flight attendants and 31 nonunion employees who work at the carrier's Milwaukee Mitchell hub.
Aeroflot cut ties to Aeroflot Nord yesterday following Sunday's fatal crash of a 737-500 operated by the regional affiliate, saying that Nord no longer will operate flights under its code nor be allowed to use its name.
News from Travel Technology Update: Frustrated by its inability to process travel agency sales through IATA's billing and settlement plans, V Australia launched its own travel agent payment and settlement system. IATA barred the carrier from using the BSPs until it acquires its own operating certificate. V Australia had sought to gain access to the system under parent carrier Virgin Blue's certificate. V Australia is slated to launch Sydney-Los Angeles service on Dec. 15. It has been selling tickets via direct channels since March.
In July, Menzies Aviation signed agreements with Air France, Virgin America and six Star Alliance member carriers. MA won a four-year extension on its contract with Air France to provide ramp handling and cabin grooming services at George Bush Intercontinental. AF operates two flights daily between Paris and Houston using 777s and A330s. MA also provides passenger services and aircraft maintenance support to AF at IAH.
STS Holdings recently acquired the assets and business of Tradewinds Aircraft Services, a component supply and OEM distributor based in Pompano Beach, Fla. STS Holdings, based in Jensen Beach, Fla., owns various aviation companies and over the last decade has expanded its offerings to include engineering services and staffing, line maintenance services and, as a result of this acquisition, inventory management and component services.
Virgin Atlantic Airways Chairman Richard Branson said Friday that he will fight the American Airlines/British Airways/Iberia transatlantic antitrust immunity application ( ATWOnline, Sept. 1) "tooth and nail," adding, "it's a bit like allowing Coke and Pepsi to merge." AA fired back, accusing Virgin of resorting "to baseless arguments and hypocritical scare tactics," adding, "Virgin is intentionally trying to mislead regulators and the general public."
Alenia Aeronautica last week inaugurated a new Ground Test Centre in Turin-Caselle dedicated to testing and qualification of commercial and military aircraft.
TIMCO Aerosystems, an aircraft interior provider based in Greensboro, said it will offer its FeatherWeight Galley Refresh System for 767s. Designed to reduce weight and optimize available space, the system features customized lighting and composite countertops.
Alaska Airlines said its winter schedule starting Nov. 9 will see an 8% year-over-year capacity cut, leading to a 9%-10%, or 1,000-employee, workforce reduction. It will cancel low-demand flights on Saturdays and holidays, reduce frequencies in some markets and shift some flying from its 737s to regional subsidiary Horizon Air's Q400s or CRJ700s. Chairman and CEO Bill Ayer explained that the cuts are driven by "the one-two punch of record oil prices and a softening economy on top of increased competition."
Qantas engineers at the airline's Tamworth heavy maintenance facility are threatening strike action this week, Fairfax Digital reported. The engineers reportedly are in dispute with the airline over a failure to renegotiate a workplace agreement dating back to 2005. The Tamworth engineers, responsible for QF's fleet of 11 717s, operate under a different labor agreement than other QF engineers.
Ryanair said that owing to delayed deliveries caused by the Boeing machinists' strike, it will defer the opening of its Reus base by five weeks to Nov. 5 and postpone the basing of its seventh aircraft at Bergamo by four weeks to Oct. 29. The LCC already had confirmed it was postponing the opening of its Edinburgh base by six weeks to Nov. 5 owing to the strike. Ryanair was scheduled to base two new 737-800s at EDI and two at REU, but these aircraft "are now indefinitely delayed due to a strike by Boeing employees," Deputy CEO Michael Cawley said.
XL Airways UK grounded all flights Friday after its parent company, XL Leisure Group, the UK's third-largest tour operator, was put into administration, leaving an estimated 85,000 passengers stranded abroad. The shutdown was caused by "volatile fuel prices, the economic downturn and [an inability] to obtain further funding," a statement of the joint administrators said on the xl.com website. The administrators added they were not able "to continue trading the business and therefore all flights. . . have been immediately cancelled and the aircraft grounded."
Panasonic Avionics reached agreement with Air France to provide its eX2 IFE 10 777-300ERs, the first of which is slated to enter service in March 2010.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, campaigning ahead of Oct. 14 national elections, said he would favor raising the limit for foreign investment in Canadian airlines to 49% from 25%.
Emirates, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and Panasonic Avionics Corp. said they have introduced DVD-quality MPEG-4 digital audio and video media on the Panasonic eX2 IFE system. Panasonic said past IFE systems have used either the higher-compression, lower-quality MPEG-1 or the low-compression, DVD-quality MPEG-2 standards, forcing airlines to choose between larger libraries of lower-quality media or smaller libraries with higher quality.
TAM signed a contract with OnAir, a joint venture between Airbus and SITA, that will enable its passengers to use cell phones or other mobile devices in flight on its A320s for voice, SMS messaging or e-mail on South American routes. The service is expected to begin in the second half of 2009 but is dependent upon approval from Brazil's National Agency of Civil Aviation and National Agency of Telecommunications. Also required is a legislative adjustment because current Brazilian law only authorizes cell phone use when aircraft are on the ground and doors are open.
European Court of Justice dismissed a claim for damages against the European Commission for the EC's decision to prohibit the proposed acquisition of First Choice by Airtours/MyTravel Group in 1999. "The fact that the Court annulled the decision of the Commission prohibiting the acquisition of First Choice by MyTravel does not make the Community liable in damages, since [it] did not manifestly and gravely infringe Community law," the ECJ ruled yesterday. Airtours tried to acquire UK tour operator First Choice in 1999, but the EC blocked the merger on competition grounds.
Venezuela National Civil Aviation Institute President Jose Martinez told American Airlines, Continental Airlines and Delta Air Lines that they be will have to reduce flights to Caracas by the end of this month as a dispute between the US and Venezuela over airport security intensified.
GuestLogix yesterday reached agreement with US Airways to provide its Mobile Virtual Store solution comprising handheld devices and integrated software services. Solution is expected to streamline cash, credit and debit card sales from the inflight a la carte food and beverage menu. The carrier aims to deploy the technology across its mainline fleet by the first quarter of next year.
Austrian Airlines Group's deadline for potential bidders ends today, and CEO Alfred Oetsch told ATWOnline that at "the latest by the end of October we will know who will be our partner for the future." AAG's majority shareholder, state holding company OIAG, is offering its 43% stake in Austrian but may sell a smaller share because the deal is tied to the condition that Austrian shareholders retain 25% of the carrier.
Sabre Holdings acquired Flight Explorer, which it called "the leading provider of Commercial Aircraft Situation Display solutions providing real-time tracking, reporting and display of en route aircraft." Price and terms were not disclosed. Flight Explorer products will be integrated fully with Dispatch Manager, part of Sabre Airline Solutions' Flight Planning suite.
Emirates said yesterday that its new service from Dubai to Los Angeles and San Francisco, scheduled to start Oct. 26 and Dec. 15 respectively, will operate initially on a thrice-weekly basis rather than daily as planned owing to delayed delivery of a 777-200LR caused by the Boeing machinists' strike. EK already has pushed back upgrading its Dubai-JFK A380 service from thrice-weekly to daily on Oct. 1 because of an unexpected delay in receiving its second A380.
Thomas Cook Group, TUI Travel and Lufthansa talks regarding a merger of their German carriers Condor, TUIfly and Germanwings are still ongoing and a decision could come soon, according to Thomas Cook Chief Executive Manny Fontenla-Novoa. "Pretty soon we will have to give the Condor staff some certainty," he told Reuters. He said he expects that antitrust authorities will approve the merger, which would create a carrier with 142 aircraft carrying 30 million passengers annually. "The advice that we are getting from lawyers involved is that we will probably get approval," he said.
