Austrian Airlines introduced a long-haul passenger amenity initiative called the Feel Good Program that will feature a "specially designed water bottle" filled with Voslauer spring water, glassware from Riedel and turndown service for business class passengers.
Satyam Computer Services and Infospectrum agreed to collaborate in integrating clients' resource planning networks with other maintenance technologies and flight operations systems. Satyam will provide implementation and support capabilities, configuration and installation expertise, technical training, integration services, and remote SaaS model hosting. Infospectrum will offer its infoTRAK suite of enterprise and supply chain software products to support MRO activities, engineering and lifecycle management.
Iberia announced a labor agreement with 16,500 ground staff represented by the CC.OO. and UGT unions that will run through 2008. Deal includes a 3.5% wage increase and "new productivity and flexibility measures to streamline administration in all company areas."
Air Canada announced an agreement in principle with Continental Airlines as part of the latter's pending transition to Star Alliance ( ATWOnline, July 24). Accord includes a proposed codesharing deal, reciprocal loyalty program and lounge access and other terms.
A missing oxygen cylinder from the rear of the forward cargo compartment has emerged as the prime focus for investigators of a decompression incident involving a Qantas 747-400 (VH-OJK) operating as QF30 from Hong Kong to Melbourne with 365 passengers and crew Friday.
British Airways announced the completion of its £54 million ($107.5 million) purchase of French all-business-class carrier L'Avion Friday. The airline will be integrated into BA's OpenSkies startup by early next year. The combined carrier will operate up to three daily flights between Paris Orly and New York JFK/Newark aboard 757s.
Lufthansa ground and cabin staff represented by ver.di voted to go on indefinite strike from 11 p.m. local time Sunday evening. "Our members are ready for a strike in all areas of the company. From Monday we will be taking industrial action," union chief Erhard Ott said on German television. The strike will affect operations such as maintenance and catering initially and will not start simultaneously throughout Germany, instead affecting airports in stages.
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said Friday that the capital required to fund Alitalia's relaunch has been secured, although he did not disclose the origin of the money. "For now, we have two things--the necessary capital and the slogan 'I love Italy. I fly Alitalia," he told reporters following a cabinet meeting.
Air New Zealand CEO Rob Fyfe told Radio New Zealand listeners last week that further cost-cutting and capacity reductions are on the agenda as the carrier faces fuel costs that doubled to approximately NZ$2 billion in its fiscal year ended June 30. "We'll be doing everything we can to mitigate the deterioration of financial performance on our business,'' Fyfe said, adding, "There are routes where we may look at reducing capacity if we can't cover our costs.
Hawaiian Airlines flew 653.4 million RPMs in June, down 3.7% year-over-year, against a 2.8% lift in capacity to 801.5 million ASMs. Load factor fell 5.5 points to 81.5%. Mesa Air Group airlines flew 526.2 million RPMs in June, down 15.3% from the year-ago month. Capacity fell 12.7% to 669.3 million ASMs and load factor dropped 2.4 points to 78.6%.
Delta TechOps clinched a seven-year deal with Alaska Airlines to provide MRO on CFM56-7s powering 737-700s and -900s. Contract is worth more than $200 million and is expected to draw on Delta's partnership with Chromalloy for engine solutions, quality assurance and economics.
Mexican government suspended Aerocalifornia and ExpressJet for failure to pay outstanding fees, according to a Communications and Transport Ministry statement cited by Dow Jones. Aerocalifornia owes MXP259.6 million ($25.8 million) in fees dating back to 2005 and ExpressJet, which flies in Mexico as Continental Express and Delta Connection, owes MXP44.6 million.
Eighth edition of the European Commission's blacklist of banned airlines does not include Iran's Mahan Airlines, thanks to "significant efforts and progress accomplished by this carrier which were verified during an on-site inspection," but continues to include Indonesian airlines, including Garuda Indonesia.
US House of Representatives this week unanimously passed aviation safety legislation that aims to create more distinct separation between FAA regulators and airlines in response to an alleged "cozy" relationship between FAA inspectors and Southwest Airlines ( ATWOnline, July e).
Air Berlin will lease out 50 of its 1,436 pilots to other airlines in order to save around €4 million ($6.3 million) in salary. AB is grounding 14 narrowbody aircraft by Nov 1 ( ATWOnline, June 24).
Lufthansa Systems reached a five-year agreement with Aeroflot Nord to provide its ProfitLine/Yield Rembrandt revenue management solution featuring data intelligence, demand forecasting and advanced reporting capabilities.
Lufthansa may have to deal with additional strikes from next week forward. The ver.di union yesterday said it expected a "high response" from members voting to authorize additional strike action and that it is preparing for more. Voting was scheduled to conclude last night.
Amadeus won a 10-year deal with Royal Air Maroc for distribution services in its home market. Agreement takes effect Jan. 1, 2009, and brings the number of contracts Amadeus has signed with Arab Air Carriers Org. members to 13.
Malev Hungarian Airlines will cancel its loss-making long-haul service from Budapest to New York JFK and Toronto this fall and withdraw two 767s from its fleet. Last flight to YYZ departs Sept. 21 and the final JFK service will be Oct. 25, ending the carrier's North American presence. "The major hike in expenditure makes it completely unviable for an airline the size of Malev to operate long-haul services economically," it said, adding that it intends to focus its resources on its European network, especially Eastern Europe, and strengthening its regional market share.
Lufthansa yesterday continued to suffer the effects of the 36-hr. strike launched Tuesday by pilots at regional subsidiaries CityLine and Eurowings ( ATWOnline, July 23). "We do not know the amount of damages we will suffer from the pilot walkout. It is not easy for us to even offer details of how many flights we had to cancel during the last 36 hours," an LH spokesperson told ATWOnline. The number will be somewhere between 900 and 1,000. The Vereinigung Cockpit union called the strike that was scheduled to last until 11 p.m.
WestJet now is allowing passengers to select their seats prior to 24 hr. before departure for a C$10 ($9.96) fee. Reserving an emergency exit row seat costs $15. Selecting a seat within 24 hr. of takeoff or at the airport will remain free. Separately, it will launch seasonal twice-weekly Regina-Las Vegas starting Sept. 8.
Garuda Indonesia pilot Marwoto Komar, who captained the 737 that crashed at Yogyakarta in March 2007, will go on trial beginning today, Deputy Attorney General-General Crimes Abdul Hakim Ritonga told reporters, according to Reuters. Komar was arrested on manslaughter charges in February ( ATWOnline, Feb. 6). Ritonga said that "both aviation and criminal codes can be used" at the trial, at which Komar will be charged with "negligence." Twenty-one people died in the crash.
SunExpress, the joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, said first-half turnover rose 31.3% year-over-year to €161.6 million ($256.8 million). Passenger numbers climbed 35% to 1.8 million and load factor was up 2.9 points to 75%. MD Paul Schwaiger said demand is very strong and that the carrier has had to lease an additional 737-800, resulting in a fleet of 18 -800s and 757-200s.
