APG Global Associates said five more airlines joined its interline e-ticketing program--Air China, China Eastern Airlines, Ghana International Airlines, Phoebus Apollo Aviation and Zambezi Airlines. Joining APG IET permits airlines to use the Heli Air Monaco (YO/747) e-ticket as a neutral ticketing platform.
Alaska Airlines said more than 96% of the more than 2,100 passengers who tried inflight Internet during a trial launched Feb. 26 said they would use it again ( ATWOnline, Feb. 27), with more than 78% either "extremely" or "very" likely to recommend it. The service was provided by Row 44 on one 737-700. AS said it will begin evaluating pricing models this week and intends to make a decision before year end.
Following its announcement that it plans to sell 10 aircraft and defer delivery of at least 16 more (including four A380s), Qantas yesterday would not be drawn into commenting on the fate of its first 15 787s as speculation mounted that they also may be deferred.
Southwest Airlines will launch its Boston service on Aug. 16 with five-times-daily flights to Chicago Midway and five-times-daily service to Baltimore. It will operate from two gates at BOS and have approximately 40 fulltime employees at the airport.
US President Barack Obama's order this week loosening restrictions on travel to Cuba could open opportunities for scheduled commercial flights between the US and the island nation and "in all likelihood" will lead to an expansion of US-Cuba charter flights, White House officials said.
United Airlines reintroduced onboard Economy Plus Upsell following the launch of its new handheld credit card scanners, according to a communication from the Assn. of Flight Attendants-CWA to its members. Up to three "upsells" enticing economy passengers to pay extra to sit in the roomier economy plus section are permitted on narrowbody aircraft and up to 10 on widebodies. AFA told members that upselling should occur only after takeoff.
Indonesia's Ministry of Transportation said all airlines based in the country will be required to operate at least 10 aircraft by 2012, at least five of which must be owned. "If not, they will have to shut down or merge with other airlines to meet the quota," a ministry spokesperson told reporters. The rule change (currently Indonesian carriers only have to own two aircraft) is driven by safety concerns. "We want airlines to be financially sound and committed to giving the best in terms of service and safety," the spokesperson said, according to Agence France Presse.
Southern Air, a Connecticut-based cargo carrier operating 17 747-200 freighters and specializing in long-haul heavy lift services, was ordered by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration to withdraw a lawsuit it filed against nine former employees and pay them more than $7.9 million in wages, damages and legal fees. OSHA concluded that a defamation suit filed by Southern against the former flight crew members, whom the agency said "raised air carrier safety concerns" with the airline, OSHA and FAA, violated whistleblower protections in US law governing FAA and airlines.
KD avia is set to receive a RUB4 billion ($119 million) capital injection from the Russian government, Kaliningrad Region Governor Georgy Boos told Prime-Tass. Kaliningrad holds 9.5% of the carrier. The amount matches that which KD Director-Business Development Mikhail Baskov revealed to ATWOnline four months ago ( ATWOnline, Dec. 15, 2008). KD is more than RUB10 billion in debt, according to the news agency.
Alitalia launched daily flights from Milan Linate to Paris Orly, Bucharest and Warsaw and thrice-weekly Milan Malpensa-St. Petersburg service as it opened its summer schedule. AZ will serve 25 domestic and 49 international destinations with 2,549 weekly flights this summer. Iberia launched daily Madrid-Sofia service. Bulgaria Air is codesharing. Air Astana launched twice-weekly Almaty-Baku flights aboard an A320. LAN Peru will launch twice-weekly Lima-Cartagena service on April 29 aboard an A319.
Australian Transport Safety Bureau has classified the Emirates A340-500 tail strike incident at Melbourne on March 20 as "significant" and an "accident," while other sources cited pilot error in the incident. The aircraft was on its way to Dubai with 225 passengers. While neither ATSB nor Emirates commented further, sources at MEL told ATWOnline that it appeared there was an input error to either the Less Paper Cockpit computer, which calculates takeoff speed, or the flight management computer, which calculates thrust settings. The EK crew used Runway 16, which is 3,657 m.
United Airlines' 16,000 flight attendants represented by the Assn. of Flight Attendants-CWA will seek "to substantially increase our pay" during negotiations launched last week on a new contract, according to the union, while UA management will seek to eliminate "uncompetitive" restrictions on scheduling and cooperation with other airlines that it claims exist in the current contract amenable Jan. 7, 2010.
American Airlines yesterday took delivery of two 160-seat 737-800s, its first new -800s since December 2001 and the first of 76 that are scheduled to arrive through the first quarter of 2011.
JetBlue Airways named United Airlines MD-Revenue Management Operations Dennis Corrigan VP-revenue management. He succeeds Richard Zeni, who now is JetBlue's VP-change management-passenger service system.
AerCap Holdings said it purchased eight new A320s, two used 767s, three CFM-56 engines and one PW4060 during the quarter and delivered 13 planes and eight engines under lease agreements. CEO Klaus Heinemann said that despite "one of the worst economic environments for the aviation industry, most airlines have shown a remarkable resilience to these conditions." Eight of nine aircraft repossessed last year are now with new operators. "Towards the end of the first quarter, we noticed a significant renewal of airline interest in contracting new capacity for 2010 and beyond.
TIMCO Aviation Services announced a deal to provide daily operational coverage and overnight line maintenance for United Airlines in San Jose, Calif. In addition, its Aerosystems division was chosen by LAN Airlines to replace the lavatories on its 767s.
The relationship between Qantas and Malaysia Airlines appears to have fizzled following the expiration of a December 2007 MOU designed to establish the framework for a joint maintenance organization in Kuala Lumpur.
Turkish Airlines plans to increase its share capital to TRY875 million ($557 million) from TRY175 million, according to a filing with the Istanbul Stock Exchange cited by Reuters. It also will pay its first dividend (TRY99 million) since its 1990 IPO. THY reported an $874 million profit in 2008, up nearly fourfold from the prior year ( ATWOnline, April 9).
Qantas yesterday announced its intention to ground and sell 10 aircraft, eliminate 1,750 more jobs (including 500 management positions) and defer at least 16 orders as it battles the economic downturn, which it warned will result in a pre-tax profit for the fiscal year ending June 30 of A$100-A$200 million ($72.5-$144.9 million) rather than the A$500 million forecast in November.
El Al is negotiating with the Montenegrin government for the purchase of 30% of Montenegro Airlines, which operates one E-195 and five F100s and needs cash for fleet renewal. El Al President Haim Romano told reporters in Podgorica that talks will continue, while YM Chairman Zoran Djurisic said discussions also were taking place with Adria Airways and that the sale is expected to be finalized before year end, Reuters reported.
Jat Airways and MAT Macedonian Airlines signed a cooperation agreement last week designed to "find the best possible business solution" for the two carriers, including technical and commercial cooperation and potential "changes in the ownership structure" of MAT. No further details were provided, although several press reports indicated that Jat has been discussing acquisition of a stake in MAT since March and Jat Acting DG Sasa Vlaisavljevic told Serbian media last week that the carrier hopes to turn €10 million ($13.2 million) in debt owed by MAT into shares in the company.
Lufthansa Group airlines flew 11.75 billion RPKs in March, down 5% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 0.6% to 15.65 billion ASKs, lowering load factor 4.4 points to 75%. Aer Lingus flew 1.23 billion RPKs in March, down 13.1% year-over-year, against a 13.5% fall in capacity to 1.63 billion ASKs. Load factor rose 0.3 point to 75.6%. Finnair said its first-quarter unit revenue fell more than 13% year-over-year. In March it flew 1.85 billion RPKs, down 8%, against a 3.7% fall in capacity to 2.54 billion ASKs. Load factor dropped 3.4 points to 72.9%.
Vitaly Savelyev took over as Aeroflot DG and CEO Friday, succeeding Valery Okulov ( ATWOnline, April 6). The airline said Savelyev and management will be working on a five-year business plan designed "to ensure Aeroflot's continuous competitiveness and growth," including unidentified cost-efficiency programs. SU recently said it was targeting $161 million in cost savings this year and more than $400 million by the end of 2010.
