ExelTech Aerospace of Montreal will perform airframe and avionics modifications and structural upgrades on 44 Atlantic Southeast Airlines CRJ200s over the next 14 months.
UK CAA announced the launch of CAA International, an independent consultancy subsidiary that will "enable the CAA's knowledge and expertise in aviation training and commercial activities to be used outside the UK." CAAI will take over the role of the body's International Services Dept.
Transaero plans to sell a 10%-17% stake in an IPO next year, Russia's AK&M reported. The company reported turnover of RUB13.63 billion in 2006, up 37.8% from the prior year.
Fraport announced an investment of "approximately" €50 million ($66.9 million) to take a 24.5% share of Xi'an Airport. The transaction is scheduled to be completed in the third quarter and marks the first investment by a foreign airport operator in an unlisted Chinese airport, Fraport said. It will take charge of Xi'an's "operational optimization and commercial development."
Airbus said US Airways has joined America West Airlines in using the Airman real-time maintenance tool to monitor its fleet of Airbus aircraft. US becomes the largest Airman user.
Airline consolidation in the US began last week on a smaller scale than the failed mega-merger between US Airways and Delta Air Lines and AirTran Airways' contentious pursuit of Midwest Air Group as ATA Airlines parent ATA Holdings bought out World Air Holdings, parent of World Airways and North American Airlines, for $315 million in cash or $12.50 per share.
Air France KLM flew 17.13 billion RPKs in March, up 7.5% on the year-ago month. Capacity rose 3.8% to 20.83 billion ASKs, lifting load factor 2.8 points to 82.3%. Northwest Airlines flew 7.02 billion consolidated RPMs in March, a 1.3% rise from the year-ago month, as domestic traffic climbed 3.1% and international rose 1.4%. Regional traffic declined 12.9%. Capacity was up 1.8% to 8.19 billion ASMs on a 2.6% domestic increase and a 3.7% rise in international ASMs. Load factor fell 0.4 point to 85.7%.
Garuda Indonesia 737-400 that crashed last month, killing 21 people ( ATWOnline, March 12), was traveling at 410 kph when it hit the runway at Yogyakarta Airport, nearly twice normal speed, according to a report by Indonesia's Transport Committee obtained by Australian media.
Mesa Air Group named Freedom Airlines President and Senior VP-West Coast Operations Mike Ferverda as COO of its JV with Shenzhen Airlines, Bombardier Flexjet VP-Marketing Tom Bacon as VP-planning, VP-East Coast Operations Jorn Bates as Freedom COO, Director-MRO Services Gary Appling as VP-technical services and purchasing, Director-Corporate Development Jeff Bethune as VP-financial planning and analysis and Adam Wilensky as director-planning.
FedEx Express, the delivery giant's airline unit, signed an agreement Friday to acquire its Hungarian service provider, Flying-Cargo Hungary, a move that fits with its strategy to expand in Eastern Europe and gain greater control of service providers in emerging markets. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. F-C has been aligned with FedEx in Hungary since 2003, helping to move and deliver international express shipments.
BAE Systems Regional Aircraft selected Romania's Aerostar as the prime contractor for the relaunched BAe 146QT freighter conversion program. Aerostar will be responsible for maintenance, large freight door assembly and E-Class cargo interior kit manufacture and installation and will subcontract the manufacture of the large upward-opening freight door and delivery to Avione Craiova. The first conversion is scheduled to be available early to mid-2008. It will be available in Series 200 and Series 300 types and will have a maximum bulk payload of 11,670 kg. for the 200 or 13,265 kg.
US Bureau of Transportation Statistics said the 20 reporting US carriers posted and ontime arrival rate of 75.4% in 2006, down from 77.4% in 2005. Reports of mishandled baggage per 1,000 passengers rose to 6.73 from 6.64 while complaints about service fell 4.8%.
UTair Airlines' 2006 profit more than doubled to RUB263.9 million ($10.2 million) from RUB128 million in 2005, Russia's AK&M reported. The company anticipates a RUB645 million profit in 2007.
IATA DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said the US and Europe have "lost the vision" that made them the world's top air transport markets and it is now "Asia's turn" to lead the industry. Speaking this week to the Asia Pacific Aviation Media Assn. in Singapore, he noted that intra-Asia traffic will be "the largest market in the world, accounting for one-third of the world's traffic" by 2010 and pushed Asian nations to meet international safety standards and liberalize traffic rights. "Not all governments in Asia are at the same level in safety oversight," he said.
Delta Air Lines flew 10.42 billion system RPMs in March, a 3.5% increase from the year-ago month, as domestic traffic fell 3.2% and international RPMs climbed 23.1%. Capacity rose 0.4% to 12.55 billion ASMs on a 6% domestic decline and an 18.7% international increase. Load factor improved 2.5 points to 83%. Domestic load factor was up 2.5 points to 83.6% and international load factor rose 2.9 points to 81.6%. Southwest Airlines flew 6.08 billion RPMs in March, up 4.3% from the year-ago month.
Qantas won a A$900 million ($732.1 million), five-year contract from the Australian Dept. of Defense that has caused some controversy because there was no competitive tender for the deal, according to widespread press reports from Australia. The government reportedly blocked potential competitors because Qantas was seen as the only company capable of handling the department's needs.
Northwest Airlines' new regional subsidiary, Compass Airlines, yesterday announced the receipt of US FAA certification to launch CRJ200 operations. It expects to start flying next month between Minneapolis-St. Paul and Washington Dulles. It will be based in nearby Chantilly, Va., and will operate out of NWA's hubs at MSP, Detroit and Memphis as Northwest Airlink. During the third quarter, it expects to put the first of 36 76-seat, two-class E-175s into service ( ATWOnline, Oct. 6, 2006).
The transition to a satellite-based NextGen ATC system in the US will hinge on politics and financing rather than technological issues, according to industry players. "Technology, in my view, is not the restraint," Lockheed Martin VP-Transportation System Solutions Monte Belger, who formerly served as US FAA's acting deputy administrator, said at this week's US Chamber of Commerce Aviation 2007 conference, available via webcast. "But there are enormous public policy decisions to be made. The industry costs to equip [aircraft] with ADS-B are huge."
US National Transportation Safety Board released documents in which Comair conceded that the pilots of the CRJ200 that crashed last August after attempting to take off from the wrong runway at Lexington Blue Grass Airport ( ATWOnline, Oct. 16, 2006) violated sterile cockpit guidelines. The airline added that "it would be simple but inaccurate to conclude that the only cause of this tragic accident was a mistake by Comair's well-trained and experienced flight crew," the Associated Press reported.
Ural Airlines reported 2006 net income of RUB27.1 million ($1 million), up from a RUB4.5 million profit in 2005, Russia's AK&M reported. Passenger traffic rose 11% to 1 million. The company flies mainly Russian-built aircraft but leased its first A320s last year.
Swissport International said Air New Zealand has reversed course and opted not to outsource ground handling in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch to a Swissport-Transfield Services New Zealand joint venture. The proposed contract, reached last October, was for 10 years.
Gulf Air CEO Andre Dose, who took charge this week ( ATWOnline, April 4), announced a reduction of his senior staff in order to "drive the necessary efficiencies and to allow our management to focus on our customers." VP-Finance Ahmed Al Hammadi, VP-Services Tariq Sultan and VP-Business Units Ali Murtada will be leaving the airline.
