Aeroservice Aviation Center of Miami said Sim Industries sold it a 737-800 FAA and JAA Level D FFS. Slated for operation in the fourth quarter, the simulator will be the first from SI installed in the US.
Kunpeng Airlines last week signed an agreement with the Henan provincial government to transfer its operating base and headquarters to the capital of Zhengzhou from Xi'an in order to better capitalize on the central Chinese market. Kunpeng parent Shenzhen Airlines Chairman Li Kun explained at the signing ceremony that the move is "a strategic adjustment" that will allow it to grab more market share in a region whose growth appears to be accelerating.
ASIG renewed its contract with United Airlines to provide interior cabin grooming services at London Heathrow. ASIG serves about 70 aircraft per week for UA.
Embraer reported net income of $134.4 million for the second quarter, nearly double the $67.3 million earned in the year-ago period. Revenue rose 47.3% to $1.63 billion and the backlog hit a record $20.7 billion, including $6 billion for business aircraft. Strong sales of commercial and executive aircraft boosted the bottom line, the company said. It delivered 52 aircraft during the quarter, up 44.4% year-over-year.
US Airways began charging $2 for each can of soda or juice and $1 for a cup of coffee or tea last Friday ( ATWOnline, June 13). The Assn. of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents US cabin staff, issued a statement protesting the new policy, saying the "complaints our flight attendants will be assaulted with and have to try to soothe will make our jobs much harder." It also claimed passengers might risk dehydration.
Star Alliance carriers serving Incheon have completed their collocation to the western part of the main terminal. Airlines involved are Asiana Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, ANA, Lufthansa, Shanghai Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways, United Airlines and Turkish Airlines. They combine to operate 1,500 weekly flights from the airport. ICN is the third Asian hub, after Beijing and Shanghai, at which Star has implemented its Move Under One Roof strategy this year.
Emirates President Tim Clark is leaving the door open for the 747-8I, which he termed an "excellent aircraft." Commenting in the context of EK's weight reduction program on the A380 designed to give it more range for US West Coast operations (see story above), Clark said Boeing is working on some innovations for the -8I to meet the Emirates performance requirements. "We are still looking at the 747-8I," he confirmed. "A lot depends on our expansion plans relating to the completion of Al-Maktoum International Airport at Jebel Ali in Dubai."
British Airways reported net profit of £27 million ($53.5 million) in the fiscal first quarter ended June 30, down 90.1% from the £274 million earned in the year-ago quarter, with the drop largely due to a 49.3% year-on-year rise in fuel costs to £706 million after hedging. Revenue grew 2.8% to £2.26 billion and total operating costs rose 15.2% to £2.22 billion. Operating profit fell 86.8% to £35 million from £263 million a year ago. Operating margin for the quarter was a meager 1.5%.
Frontier Airlines last week amended its standby policy and now will assign passengers changing flights on the same day a specific seat if available and charge a fee equal to the difference between the original fare and the then-current price of the new flight. Customers changing reservations in advance of the travel date will be charged a $150 fee in addition to the difference in fare. Regulations take effect Aug. 15.
American Airlines and the Assn. of Professional Flight Attendants said a sufficient number of cabin staff have opted to retire or take leave to equal the 900 positions AA planned to eliminate in line with its capacity cuts, negating the need for furloughs ( ATWOnline, July 4).
Continental Airlines said both mainline and consolidated unit revenue in July climbed 4.5%-5.5% year-over-year. It flew 9.2 billion consolidated RPMs, up 1.6%, against a 4.3% rise in ASMs to 10.93 billion. Load factor fell 2.2 points to 84.2%.
Komy reached deals with Turkish Airlines and V Australia to provide its Magic Mirror in overhead bins to facilitate inspection and help passengers locate belongings.
Unite, which represents approximately 25,000 workers at British Airways and Iberia combined, said it has scheduled an "urgent" meeting with Spanish counterpart CC.OO. in order "to ensure workers' interests are protected as these companies inevitably seek greater efficiencies and cost savings, as well as the opening up of markets in the wake a successful merger." BA and IB announced their entrance into merger negotiations last week ( ATWOnline, July 30). Overall, Unite said it was "cautious" about the potential combination.
Airbus announced the sale of its Laupheim plant to Diehl and Thales effective Oct. 1. The manufacturer had selected the partnership as its preferred bidder two months ago ( ATWOnline, June 3). Financial terms of the sale were not disclosed. The Laupheim facility employs 1,100 and produces cabin linings, crew compartments and air ducts for the A320 family, A330/A340 family and the A380. It generates €240 million ($374.4 million) in annual revenue.
B/E Aerospace's acquisition of Honeywell Aerospace's Consumable Solutions unit is intended to expand B/E's most profitable business dramatically and help the firm's continuing revenue growth while allowing Honeywell to concentrate on advanced aircraft technologies.
Aer Lingus welcomed Sean Coyle as CFO. Aerospace Industries Assn. tapped Dan Elwell as VP-civil aviation. Airbus appointed Mario Heinen executive VP & head-Centre of Excellence Fuselage & Cabin, Alain Flourens head-A380 program and Daniel Baubil executive VP & head-A320 family program. Alaska Airlines elected Jay Schaefer VP-finance & treasurer and Ben Minicucci VP-Seattle operations and named Lane Kemper MD-customer service-call centers.
SOME CALL IT "MERCHANDISING," others "retailing." Still others call it "unbundling" or "attribute selling" or "a la carte pricing" or "product differentiation." The unimpressed call it "having to pay for things that used to be included in the price of an airline ticket."
IN SEPTEMBER, KUEHNE+NAGEL, A MAJOR LOGISTICS COMPANY BASED IN Switzerland, will descend upon Airbus's warehouses in France, Germany, the UK and Spain and shake things up a bit. Stock and equipment will be removed, people will be told to leave, doors will be bolted shut for what could be a long time.
FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS, HEICO Corp. has been recognized in Forbes as one of the 200 best small companies. It also was named among the magazine's 200 "hotshot stocks." It has two main divisions: HEICO Aerospace Holdings (aka Flight Support) and Electronics Technologies. Beneath HEICO Aerospace are three smaller divisions: HEICO Parts Group, HEICO Component Repair and HEICO Distribution.
AIR TAHITI DESCRIBES ITSELF AS "AN ENGINE FOR THE economic and social development" of Tahiti and her islands, and indeed it is. It is the closest thing to a local bus service that can be achieved to serve the 4,000 sq. km. of land made up of 118 far-flung islands and atolls that speckle the 4 million sq. km. of ocean that constitute French Polynesia, as Tahiti officially is known. Covering virtually the same area as Europe, French Polynesia boasts a population of slightly less than 300,000.
Kayak.com stopped displaying American Airlines' fares in search results after the two companies clashed over how Kayak and its subsidiary, SideStep.com, refer consumers to sites for booking American flights. American wanted Kayak to direct consumers only to its own site for booking its flights. Kayak, however, shows results from Priceline, Expedia, Travelocity and other third-party sites, and it refused to suppress those options for American flights.
TO KEEP PLANES ALOFT in a challenging market, some carriers have eliminated flights, reduced staff or tacked new fees onto customers' tickets. Now several are looking at their vendor contracts too. Creatively designed, or thoughtfully restructured, these supplier agreements have become effective sources of additional liquidity, yielding quick cash or debt relief. Often, they can sustain financial benefits over time.
On July 24, 1988, a 747 carrying 260 passengers and 15 crewmembers was speeding toward takeoff at Indira Gandhi International when a signal light warned of an engine fire. The crew decided to abort the takeoff and the aircraft overran the runway and plowed through 1,000 yards of mud before it could stop. Fortunately, everyone onboard survived, but the impact caused the main gear to collapse and tore up the underbelly. Nearly 70% of the aircraft required repair or replacement.
MWW Group Executive VP and Global Corporate Communications Practice Head Matthew Rose recently spoke with Airline Procurement about MWW's deal with JetBlue Airways to provide contingency planning and training services, incident response support and issues management counsel. (Edited for clarity and length.) AP: Can you please describe MWW's background and expertise, particularly as it relates to the aviation industry?
WHILE FEW FORESAW THE LATEST economic shock to shake commercial aviation "sustained per-barrel crude oil prices well over $130" one of the consequences of the "fuel crisis" has been all too predictable: US airlines, particularly the big legacy carriers, are taking the hardest hit. The largest and most profitable airlines in Europe, Asia and other parts of the world generally navigate through crises with their bottom lines and service levels intact even if earnings become temporarily modest, but US carriers drop to the depths of economic despair during periods of turmoil.
