A GLOBAL RECESSION, A NEW DISEASE THAT IS PANICKING travelers and governments alike, rising violence and unrest in the Middle East: This is the setting for the 48th International Paris Air Show-Le Bourget (June 15-21), which also celebrates the 100th anniversary of the first air exposition held in Paris in 1909 at the Grand Palais.
US airlines say they made exactly the right moves in the first half of last year to prepare for the global financial downturn--even though they had no idea it was coming. The industry scrambled to counter ballooning fuel costs amid predictions that per-barrel crude oil prices, already at $150, would hit $200 or
Vancouver International will open C$100 million ($91.9 million) worth of new C-Pier gates in July and a C$50 million apron and taxiway are being built for these gates, part of the airport's $1.4 billion, 10-year capital improvement plan that includes many projects designed to ease travel for the tens of thousands of visitors expected for the 2010 Winter Olympics.
By the middle of the week, however, the mood had lightened. The rain gave way to bright sunshine, Boeing and others expressed confidence that the economy had hit bottom with a recovery on the horizon and Airbus was on its way to announcing firm orders for 58 aircraft valued at nearly $6.4 billion and MOUs for an additional 69 planes worth $6.5 billion.
IATA has committed to achieving carbon neutral traffic growth by 2020, the organization announced at its 65th Annual General Meeting in Kuala Lumpur this week. "Two years ago we set a vision to achieve carbon-neutral growth on the way to a carbon-free future. Today we have taken a major step forward by committing to a global cap on our emissions in 2020," IATA DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said. After 2020, aviation will have to offset any carbon growth by purchasing credits or offsets under the plan.
Virgin Blue, the Australian low-cost carrier, will migrate to Navitaire's New Skies platform later this year. Virgin Blue has been using Navitaire's Open Skies system since its launch.
One of the least understood and most contentious issues surrounding aviation's impact on the environment has been the potential contribution of contrails to climate change. During the grounding of the US commercial airline fleet in the days following 9/11, scientists at the University of Wisconsin claimed that the absence of contrails was responsible for a 1.1 deg. C (2 deg. F) change in temperature over the US.
A ruling from the European Parliament that allows airlines to hang onto their unused airport slots could affect passenger service adversely with last-minute flight cancellations and may serve as an artificial barrier to market access for LCCs, warned Airports Council International Europe.
Although science is capable of solving the technical challenges of creating safe, sustainable, second-generation aviation biofuels, getting them into production in large quantities will take a major effort that may not be possible without government support, according to speakers at the recent Eco-Aviation conference in Washington sponsored by ATW and Leeham Co.
THE FIRST RECORDED INFLIGHT COLLISION INVOLVING A powered aircraft and a bird is believed to have occurred not too long after the first powered flight. In September 1905, Orville Wright was chasing a flock of birds when he struck one. He landed safely but the encounter was fatal for the bird. The incident, recounted in the Wright Brothers' diaries, began a dangerous relationship that continues to this day, having claimed many hundreds of human lives and countless thousands of birds.
Virgin Blue joins AGD The Virgin Blue Group of carriers is the first Australian operator to join the Aviation Global Deal Group. AGD is a coalition of airlines and BAA along with international nonprofit The Climate Group that was formed to work for inclusion of aviation in a "new global climate deal" scheduled to be discussed at December's UN climate summit in Copenhagen. In April, the AGD presented a draft policy framework for aviation emissions to UN climate change negotiators in Bonn.
Air New Zealand will cut capacity an additional 3% in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, and said it has "entered into discussions with unions on how to minimize any potential job losses. . .A review of crewing requirements to meet existing customer demand has identified a potential surplus of up to 40 cabin crew and pilots in regional airline and domestic jet operations."
WestJet intends to cut C$25 million ($22.3 million) from its cost base over the next six months, President and CEO Sean Durfy said Friday at the carrier's investor day, available via webcast. "We have to really look at the cost because, as I said, revenues are coming down and our cost structure is staying relatively flat, so we are getting a margin squeeze," he explained.
Lufthansa Cargo will begin transferring its Asian hub operation from Astana to Krasnoyarsk on June 1 with the first flight from Tokyo Narita to Frankfurt via Krasnoyark. From August, LHC will operate 22 weekly flights to and from Europe out of KJA. It said the new routing cuts flying time by an average of 12 min., saving up to 2,000 tons of fuel annually ( ATWOnline, March 24, 2008).
Atlantic Airways earned a pre-tax profit of DKK14 million ($2.6 million) in the first quarter, reversed from a DKK2.5 million loss in the year-ago period. The Faroese flag carrier reported a 9.8% year-over-year fall in revenue to DKK101 million but cut its costs by 11.8%. Scheduled passenger numbers have dropped 8% in the year's first four months, it said. Atlantic currently operates BAe 146s and plans to acquire A319s beginning in 2011.
China Eastern Airlines has partnered with the Yunnan provincial government to launch a joint venture based on CEA's Yunnan branch subsidiary that will endeavor to build Kunming into a regional hub, a source close to the matter told ATWOnline. CEA is expected to sell a stake in the branch company to the government, although it is widely speculated that the airline will remain the controlling shareholder.
Praful Patel was reappointed as India's Civil Aviation Minister last week and said that the reinstalled United Progressive Alliance government is "not averse to liberalization" of foreign investment in domestic airlines. Foreign companies currently are allowed to hold up to 49% in Indian carriers, but foreign airlines are forbidden from participating ( ATWOnline, Feb. 13).
Southwest Airlines raised certain baggage charges and will begin allowing pets onboard for a fee as it looks for new revenue streams. SWA said last week that it will raise existing charges for passengers checking a third or overweight bag (51-70 lb.) to $50 from $25 and will add a $25 fee each way for those traveling as unaccompanied minors.
IATA reported a 3.1% decline in international RPKs in April, an improvement from the 11.1% plunge in March but a trend that "should be viewed with caution" considering the shift in the Easter holiday to April and the fact that "traffic gains were at the expense of yields in most regions." It also warned that preliminary data suggest another double-digit decline this month in Europe and perhaps elsewhere. Capacity dropped 2.5% and load factor was 74.4%. "There is no improvement in revenues as yields continue to fall," DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said.
Rolls-Royce expressed confidence this week that the open rotor concept can be viable, asserting that it will "comfortably meet Stage 4 noise requirements."
Asserting that aviation is the "fastest-growing emissions source among modes of transportation," a European Commission official reiterated yesterday that all airlines that operate to the EU must submit plans for monitoring and reporting carbon dioxide emissions by Aug. 31 to relevant authorities in EU member states in advance of a 2010 "pre-compliance phase" for the Emissions Trading Scheme that includes aviation from 2012.
"Robust" growth in passenger numbers and ancillary revenue helped boost AirAsia to a MYR203.2 million ($58 million) first-quarter profit, up 26% from the MYR161.3 million reported in the year-ago period.
VLM Airlines will be rebranded as CityJet although it will continue to operate under its own operating certificate, the carriers announced. Both regionals are wholly owned subsidiaries of Air France KLM. Antwerp-based VLM is the largest operator at London City. It will adopt the group's Flying Blue loyalty program and abandon its own VLM Encore program in September ( ATWOnline, Dec. 12, 2008).
Airlines are not sitting idly waiting for major new ATM programs such as US FAA's NextGen and are investing in and employing new technology to reduce fuel burn and emissions, industry leaders Air New Zealand and Southwest Airlines said this week. ANZ GM-Operations and Chief Pilot David Morgan offered a report at the Eco-Aviation conference sponsored by ATW and Leeham Co.
