CAE received an order for two A320 and two 737NG Level D full-flight simulators valued at C$52 million ($44.2 million) from Flight Simulation Co. of the Netherlands. Delivery is scheduled for the second half of this year.
DaimlerChrysler will sell a 7.5% stake in Airbus parent EADS to a consortium that reportedly includes Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, KfW and Goldman Sachs. A company spokesperson told German media this week that an agreement had been reached and "final details" were being settled. DaimlerChrysler will hold a 15% stake in EADS after the sale, which is expected to net nearly $2 billion.
Iberia flew 4.28 billion RPKs in December, an 11.6% increase from the year-ago month. Capacity climbed 3.8% to 5.45 billion ASKs and load factor rose 5.5 points to a December record 78.5%. Air Canada and Air Canada Jazz flew a combined 3.9 billion RPMs in December, up 6.7% from the year-ago month. Capacity grew 4.5% to 4.98 billion ASMs, lifting load factor 1.6 points to 78.3%. Copa Airlines flew 398.5 million RPMs in December, up 30% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 24.1% to 502.1 million ASMs and load factor was ahead 3.6 points to 79.4%.
SR Technics opened a line maintenance station at Paris Orly with Air Caraibes as the first customer. SRT said "easyJet and further customers are expected to follow soon." The station will offer services for A320s, A330s, A340s, 737s and a variety of engines.
AirCell named Frances Phillips senior VP-airline solutions. She most recently was at Connexion by Boeing. US Airways promoted MD-Inflight Services Sherri Shamblin to VP-inflight services, succeeding the retired Ron Cole. SITA named Rob Watkins regional VP-sales and relationship management for Northern Europe.
Lufthansa flew 8.28 billion RPKs in December, a 7.4% rise from the year-ago month. Capacity climbed 5.3% to 11.4 billion ASKs and load factor rose 1.4 points to 72.6%.
The European Commission disseminated misleading and incorrect information on passenger rights on posters displayed at EU airports beginning in February 2005 as well as in leaflets, press releases and a video on the EC website, the European Ombudsman has concluded. The opinion follows separate complaints filed by the International Air Carrier Assn. and the European Regions Airline Assn. in April 2005. Those complaints concerned information distributed to passengers regarding compensation and assistance in the event of denied boarding, cancellation or long delays.
Bmi regional is taking delivery of a further four E-145s in the coming months, raising its fleet to 20 aircraft. The additional capacity will support three new routes: Edinburgh-Zurich, Aberdeen-Kristiansand and Leeds Bradford-Copenhagen. The bmi subsidiary also will increase frequencies on existing services for the summer schedule, including additional flights from EDI to MAN and LBA.
Airline Partners Australia's A$11.1 billion ($8.64 million) equity buyout of Qantas continued to face criticism yesterday as rebel Sen. Barnaby Joyce, a National Party of Australia member from Queensland, added his influential voice to the call for greater competition on the Australia-US route.
Brussels Airlines signed a letter of intent with AerCap to add a fourth A330-300 to its long-haul fleet. The aircraft belonged to Air Madrid, which suspended operations last month. Brussels' network "will not necessarily include new African destinations but possibly some destinations on the North American continent," VP-Communications Geert Sciot told ATWOnline. It is expected that the carrier will operate Brussels-Toronto flights, which it currently offers in codeshare with Etihad Airways.
Royal Jordanian said it finalized interline agreements with British Airways, American Airlines, Iberia, LAN and Finnair in preparation for joining oneworld.
Air China reportedly is planning to set up a Shanghai-based cargo joint venture with Cathay Pacific Airways. "We are now preparing for the joint venture program and hope to realize practical progress in the cargo business partnership with Cathay in the first half of 2007," VP Fan Cheng told China Daily. "How to significantly improve our cargo transport capabilities is an important task for Air China in 2007," he added. He said long-running attempts to reach a similar agreement with China Eastern Airlines had failed.
Japan Airlines is mulling a plan to lay off 3,000 employees, 6% of its workforce, over the next three years to help cut losses, according press reports. The cuts are due to be unveiled in JAL's mid-year business plan due out next month. It posted a loss of ¥47 billion ($394.8 million) for the fiscal year to March 2006 as fuel prices hit the bottom line and ANA grabbed market share. According to Mainichi Daily, JAL also is considering a restructuring of the group's related businesses with a possible of sale of some units.
Monarch Airlines promoted Tim Jeans to MD and a place on the company's board. Former easyJet Director-Business Development Liz Savage will succeed Jeans as MD of the scheduled service division as well as taking over as MD of flymonarch.com.
Air France KLM flew 16.12 billion RPKs in December, a 3.3% rise from the year-ago month. Capacity was up 3.8% to 20.29 billion ASKs, dropping load factor 0.4 point to 79.4%.
US Navy ship is expected to join the search today for the missing Adam Air 737-400 off the coast of Indonesia's Sulawesi Island, where the vessel will deploy high-tech equipment to help determine whether or not metal found on the ocean floor is from the 737's wreckage ( ATWOnline, Jan. 9). Flight 574 disappeared from radar during a heavy rainstorm on Jan. 1 and all 102 aboard are feared dead.
Alitalia is attracting the interest of Rothschild investment bank, which is forming a consortium of Italian and international investors to present a bid for the stake being sold by the Italian government, according to several press reports. The consortium will include privately held Italian carriers Air One and Meridiana and two US private-equity funds. Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo also is involved.
US passenger and cargo airlines should earn $4 billion this year excluding bankruptcy restructuring and reorganization gains, up from an estimated $2-$3 billion in net income in 2006, according to ATA's annual economic outlook released yesterday.
WestJet indefinitely postponed installation of the aiRES reservation system from Travelport that was supposed to replace its OpenSkies system this year and allow it to interline with other carriers ( ATW, November 2006). The LCC extended its support agreement with Navitaire for the OpenSkies system through the end of 2008, indicating that it could be 2009 before it converts to aiRES.
Caribbean Sun Airlines will shut down on Jan. 31, according to company officials, and close its operational hub at Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juan. Sister carrier Caribbean Star Airlines was granted permission by US FAA in October to expand service to US destinations. "When Caribbean Star was launched in 2000 it could not serve San Juan and other US destinations, which of course hindered growth," Star and Sun President and CEO Skip Barnette explained.
US Airways named Morgan Stanley as joint lead arranger, joining Citigroup, to underwrite the carrier's $7.2 billion in debt financing for its proposed merger with Delta Air Lines.
MAIR Holdings minority shareholder Riley Investment Management, which reportedly holds 5.2% of the Mesaba Airlines parent, said last weekend that Northwest Airlines' offer to acquire Mesaba ( ATWOnline, Jan. 8) is "grossly inadequate" and that it will attempt to block or change the deal. Riley said NWA deliberately "destroyed value for MAIR shareholders" and is now trying to buy the bankrupt regional below fair market value.
US FAA unveiled its long-awaited and controversial Extended Operations rule yesterday that brings two-, three- and four-engine aircraft under a common regulation for long-haul operations with limited diversion airports. According to the agency, the new rule is "intended to eliminate propulsion system reliability as a consideration from the maximum diversion time capability of the airplane. Only the most time limiting airplane system capability [fire suppression, oxygen, etc.] will determine the maximum diversion time capability for a two-engine airplane under the new requirements."
British Airways appeared to take an important step toward resolving its pension deficit ( ATWOnline, Nov. 20, 2006) last week after the British Airways Forum, which represents the airline's four unions, agreed to recommend BA's latest proposals to union members. "We have come a long way with our staff, trustees and trade unions on this issue," BA CEO Willie Walsh said. "We can now move forward on our plans for fleet renewal and replacement."
