Royal Jordanian carried 295,000 passengers in August, up 16% on the year-ago period. Load factor gained 1 point to 82%. It said fuel expense more than doubled to JOD33.5 million ($47 million), or 49% of total costs. Separately, RJ signed a parts pool program service contract extension with Embraer to include two E-175s. Five E-195s already were covered.
News from Travel Technology Update: Getting people to put "awesome" and "airline" into the same sentence these days is no easy feat. But JetBlue Airways managed it with its recent auction of flights and vacation packages on eBay. The idea came about when the carrier was thinking of ways to stimulate travel during the fall lull. "We were looking for something unique to get people thinking about travel," Don Uselmann, manager of business development, said. "We wanted a 'water cooler' story, something that people would talk about."
SAS Group airlines flew 3.66 billion RPKs in August, down 0.7% year-over-year. Capacity rose 2.2% to 4.91 billion ASKs and load factor dropped 2.1 points to 74.4%. SAS Scandinavian Airlines flew 2.51 billion RPKs, down 0.4%, against a 4.6% rise in ASKs to 3.41 billion. Load factor fell 3.7 points to 73.5%. Aer Lingus flew 1.68 billion RPKs in August, up 8.8% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 10.3% to 2.08 billion ASKs and load factor was down 1.2 points to 80.5%.
SmartLynx is the new name of LatCharter Airlines, which announced the change last week in conjunction with its 15th anniversary. President and CEO Gardar Forberg said the Riga-based carrier's "business has changed direction over the past couple of years and it was important that we developed a new branding that better identified with our business model and company spirit." The name, accompanied by a new orange and black logo, reflects that of another Icelandair Group subsidiary, Prague's Smart Wings.
Six Hong Kong carriers, including Cathay Pacific Airways and Dragonair, will cut fuel surcharges on international and domestic routes by 10% and 15% respectively through October and November. Surcharges will be HK$832 ($106.97) on long-haul flights and HK$196 on short-haul. The decision, as well as cuts implemented by some foreign carriers, have put pressure on airlines from the Chinese mainland.
Gulf Air yesterday signed a deal with Bahrain Real Estate Investment to build a maintenance hangar at Bahrain International. Slated for completion in 2011, the facility will accommodate three widebodies.
Boeing announced successful completion of the "high blow" high-pressure test on the 787 static test airframe at its Everett factory Sunday. It is one of three static tests that must be cleared prior to first flight. During the high blow test, air pressure in the airframe increased to an internal pressure of 150% of the maximum level expected in service--14.9 lb. per sq. in. (1.05 kg. per cm.) gauge (psig).
Aeroflot posted a RUB2.25 billion ($90.1 million) first-half profit, its board of directors announced. The result represents a 29.7% drop from earnings of RUB3.2 billion in the year-ago semester. Revenue in the six months ended June 30 rose 39.4% to RUB42.98 billion while expenses were RUB41.11 billion. SU said fuel costs were 21.3% over budget.
Assn. of Asia Pacific Airlines members flew 52.4 billion RPKs in August, down 1.2% from the year-ago period, as traffic in the region continued to soften. Passenger boardings declined 3.7% to 12.3 million. Capacity continued to rise, however, with ASKs up 2.4% to 68.3 billion. As a result, load factor fell 2.8 points to 76.7%. AAPA international air cargo traffic was down 6% to 4.4 billion FTKs. For the first eight months of 2008, traffic rose 2.5% to 408.6 billion RPKs against a 3.6% climb in ASKs to 534.5 billion. Load factor dipped 0.9 points to 77.3%.
Boeing said last week that AeroLogic selected its Maintenance Performance Toolbox and Airplane Health Management Web solution for its 777 freighter maintenance documentation platform. Technology is expected to streamline management of technical publications, training and customization of online maintenance manuals.
Delta Air Lines will offer a first class on its MD-88 shuttle service beginning Dec. 1. Each aircraft will feature 14 first class seats and 128 in economy and the shuttle will continue to feature open seating. DL said first class customers will "enjoy an expanded selection of snack options, a more expansive offering of complimentary cocktails and wider, more comfortable seats." By next spring the shuttle fleet will be equipped with Aircell's Gogo inflight broadband service. Delta Shuttle operates 30-times-daily from New York LaGuardia to Washington National and Boston.
SITA said Boryspil International selected its AirportConnect solution to support its goal of processing 18 million passengers by 2020. Solution enables faster check-in and easier adoption of self-service technology. The airport anticipates 20% growth this year to some 6.7 million passengers. Deal also includes SITA AirportHub, a shared wide area network offering high-resiliency and cost-effective in-airport connectivity.
Qantas Group named Jetstar Airways GM Bruce Buchanan to take over the CEO role on Oct. 1, replacing Alan Joyce, who will take over the reins at Qantas Group in November ( ATWOnline, July 29).
Assn. of Flight Attendants-CWA said that 1,550 United Airlines flight attendants accepted voluntary furloughs in increments of six, nine, 12, 18 and 21 months beginning Oct. 31, eliminating the need for involuntary furloughs ( ATWOnline, Aug. 29).
US FAA yesterday announced that Croatia has been designated Category 2 and "does not comply with international safety standards" set by ICAO. FAA assessed Croatia's civil aviation authority in January. It said the Croatian government is "working diligently to correct all areas of concern," without elaborating.
Gol and VRG parent Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes said yesterday that Brazil's National Civil Aviation Agency has approved its request to integrate Gol and VRG into a single airline company ( ATWOnline, Aug. 1). "The reorganization aims at improving operational structure," Gol said.
Boeing and Honeywell subsidiary UOP have brought together a group of airlines and environmental organizations that will work to accelerate the development and commercialization of new sustainable aviation fuels.
Hainan Airlines Chairman Zhu Yimin was promoted to VP of parent HNA Group and will be succeeded by HNA Hotel Co. executive Li Xiaoming, who also will be chairman of Grand China Air, an insider told ATWOnline yesterday. HNA Group Chairman Chen Feng relinquished the Grand China role but will remain head of the parent company.
American Airlines flew 12.16 system RPMs in August, down 2.9% from the year-ago month. Capacity slipped 1.1% to 14.57 billion ASMs and load factor fell 1.5 points to 83.5%. American Eagle flew 704.2 million RPMs, down 13.6%, against a 4.5% fall in capacity to 1.01 billion ASMs. Load factor dropped 7.3 points to 69.7%. Northwest Airlines flew 7.27 billion consolidated RPMs in August, up 1.9% from the year-ago month. Capacity climbed 3.1% to 8.4 billion ASMs and load factor dropped 1 point to 86.6%.
Air New Zealand Chairman John Palmer warned shareholders at this week's annual general meeting that more network restructuring may be required as market volatility can change "on a dime." To deal with that environment, ANZ now reviews its route structure every two weeks rather than the customary six months.
US House of Representatives Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee approved language that would withhold funding for the Dept. of Homeland Security's US-Visit Exit program, which would employ a system using airline-collected biometrics to determine when foreigners leave US airports, the Air Transport Assn. said. The measure still must be approved by the Senate. ATA has argued that DHS rather than airlines should collect the data.
