He started his journalism career in 1992 as a freelance writer for Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany’s largest daily national newspaper and soon specialised in air transport. Jens joined Aviation Week and Aviation Daily in 2000 as one of the European correspondents. Later his role was expanded to cover international air transport. In 2013 he was named Managing Editor Commercial.
Jens frequently appears on radio and TV to comment on industry matters. In 2003, he received the Hugo Junkers Award of the German aviation press for his coverage of Fairchild Dornier’s bankruptcy. He was named the country’s top travel and air transport writer by the Travel Industry Club three times. Jens graduated from the Munich School of Journalism.
Third-quarter profits at the SAS Group sank 90%, as the airline faced increased low-fare competition and overcapacity in its important Scandinavian home market. The airline's sales grew from SEK14.92 billion to SEK15.43 billion (US$2.2 billion), and it squeezed out a SEK57 million (US$8 million) profit for the period. Yields declined by 7%. Unlike some of its peers, SAS cannot offset weaker revenues in the European markets with the more stable long-haul market, as its exposure to transatlantic and Asian routes is very limited.
After more than 18 months of negotiations, Swiss and a consortium of banks agreed on a CHF325 million-credit facility (US $270 million), which will make the airline's short-term survival more likely.
Spanish airline Iberia significantly improved profits in the first nine months of 2004, while its competitor TAP Air Portugal suffered a setback with a short decrease in profitability. Iberia's positive results were the product of sharp cost control as the airline's unit costs dropped 5.2%. The Spanish carrier posted a EUR166 million (US$212 million) net profit, up 52% from last year. Sales were up 4.4% to EUR3.59 billion (US$4.5 billion). Capacity rose 9.2%, outpaced by a 10% traffic gain. Average yield fell 4.4%.
