Vancouver Airport Authority yesterday said it entered into a "partnership" with Citi Infrastructure Investors, a unit of Citigroup, "to jointly pursue the sourcing, funding and maximization of potential airport opportunities through YVR Airport Services." Under the terms of the agreement, CII will acquire 50% of YVRAS, which "will become CII's exclusive platform for investing in airport assets."
Ahead of second-stage EU-US open skies negotiations, which will begin with a round in Ljubljana Thursday and Friday, US State Dept. Deputy Asst. Secretary-Transportation Affairs John Byerly said the US is seeking to broaden the scope of talks to achieve an "ancillary multilateral agreement" to replace the current bilateral structure that governs international air transport.
Sukhoi Superjet 100 moved closer to its first flight, scheduled for later this month, with the successful completion of the first taxi and run tests of the new regional aircraft, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co. announced yesterday. The run tests featured a gradual speed increase up to 162 kph, which is close the actual speed required for takeoff.
US air travelers should expect another "challenging summer," Air Transport Assn. President and CEO James May said yesterday in Washington, while adding that "it is our expectation that delays will improve over last summer."
Airbus yesterday announced the fourth delay to the A380 program, saying that transitioning from "low rate. . .Wave 1" production to "the full serial design and manufacturing process called Wave 2" will take longer than anticipated.
London Heathrow MD Mark Bullock will leave BAA, the airport operator said, noting that he had "chosen to leave." He will be replaced by Mike Brown, currently COO of the London Underground train system, in September. It is unclear if Bullock will remain on the job through the summer or if an interim MD will hold the post until Brown arrives. Last month, British Airways announced the departure of Operations Director Gareth Kirkwood and Customer Services Director David Noyes following the troubled opening of LHR's Terminal 5.
Northwest Airlines announced that Executive VP-Strategy, International and CEO-Regional Airlines Neal Cohen will leave the company effective June 16. Cohen spent nine years with Northwest from 1991 to 2000 in a number of senior positions including senior VP and treasurer. He was executive VP of finance and CFO for US Airways from April 2002 to April 2004, a period that overlapped that carrier's first bankruptcy reorganization. He returned to NWA in May 2005 as executive VP and CFO, positions he held during the company's Chapter 11 reorganization.
Flybaboo, which recently took delivery of three E-190s, announced that it will change its name to Baboo, a move that coincides with a new red and white logo designed to position the brand and increase visibility, company officials said. The Geneva-based airline began flying in 2003.
Hit hard by surging oil prices and competition from the Taiwan High Speed Rail on domestic city-pairs, local carriers expect to reap benefits from the first commercial flights across the Taiwan Strait, which are scheduled to be permitted starting July 4.
Menzies Aviation said it signed a contract with Orient Thai Airlines to provide ramp handling services for 747Fs at Hong Kong International. OX operates five freighter flights per week to HKG. Menzies also provides ramp handling services to OX's passenger aircraft at HKG.
China moved one step closer to achieving its "dream" of manufacturing "jumbo aircraft" by establishing Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China in Shanghai yesterday. The company is charged with building civil aircraft, with a particular focus on large commercial jets, likely in the 150-seat size category. Beijing has said it could compete with some Boeing and Airbus models by 2020 ( ATWOnline, April 10, 2007).
Royal Jordanian said it selected CHAMP Cargosystems' Cargospot to replace its in-house cargo system. IT investment is part of a larger initiative to upgrade sales, reservations, pricing, management information and cargo handling. RJ, which serves more than two dozen clients at Queen Alia International's cargo terminal, will implement the system in October.
Lufthansa Cargo, AiRUnion and Krasnoyarsk's Yemelyanova Airport signed an MOU establishing a strategic cooperation that will result in LHC's shift from Astana, where it currently stops on flights to/from Asia ( ATWOnline, March 24). The airport and service companies operating at Yemelyanova promised to make necessary investments, including an upgrade of the CAT II instrument landing system scheduled be completed and certified by year end.
News from Travel Technology Update: An investigation by the European Union found that buying airline tickets online is still fraught with risk, and a third of consumers are "ripped off or misled and confused." It warned that if the offending airlines and other ticket sellers don't improve their sales and marketing practices by May 1, 2009, the European Commission "will have no choice but to intervene."
El Al placed an order valued at $850 million for four 777-200ERs plus two options. Boeing noted that the airline has the right to convert the -200ERs to -300ERs. The Israeli carrier's fleet already includes six 777s.
Virgin America said yesterday that it will seek government approval to serve Chicago O'Hare and hopes to launch flights to ORD from San Francisco and Los Angeles later this year. Chicago would be the eighth city in its network. "With legacy airlines representing 99% of the domestic departures at O'Hare and low-cost airlines only representing 1%, Virgin America intends to add some healthy competition to the market," the carrier said. "We want to be part of O'Hare's future."
FedEx lowered its earnings forecast for its fiscal fourth quarter ending May 31, projecting a per-share profit of $1.45-$1.50, down from $1.60-$1.80 it projected in March. Earnings of $1.50 per share would mark a more than 23% decrease from $1.96 in the year-ago quarter. The delivery giant said that the revised forecast "assumes no additional increases to the current fuel price environment."
GE Aviation expects to deliver nearly 500 CF34s in 2008 based on current order books for regional aircraft, GM-CF34 Program Chuck Nugent said, adding that 700 deliveries in 2010 are possible. Engines from the CF34 family are used to power regional aircraft in the 50/120-seat category. Nugent said at the Regional Airline Assn. meeting in Indianapolis last week that GE has invested $2 billion in developing the CF34 series and expects to spend more than $1 billion this year for new technology that will enhance fuel consumption and lower maintenance costs.
Aviapartner Handling reached agreement with Air One to provide ramp handling and passenger services at Milan Malpensa. Contract covers some 7,000 flights per year.
US FAA is investigating why a fuselage panel fell off an American Airlines 767 following takeoff from Dallas-Fort Worth last month en route to Paris Charles de Gaulle, the Associated Press reported. The agency also is examining why the aircraft carried on to CDG rather than returning to DFW. An internal AA memo obtained by AP stated that while pictures of the fuselage with a missing panel "are very dramatic," the flight did not pose a safety risk.
Former Qantas VP Freight-Americas Bruce McCaffrey agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges in the US related to fixing air cargo shipment rates and will serve eight months in jail, the US Dept. of Justice announced last week. DOJ and antitrust authorities throughout the world have been conducting a wide-ranging probe into air cargo price fixing since February 2006 ( ATWOnline, Jan. 22), but McCaffrey becomes the first individual to face actual jail time as a result.
Qantas is holding fast in an upcoming pay dispute with engineers who are threatening a series of work actions beginning this week. CEO Geoff Dixon said the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Assn. advised the carrier that overtime bans would commence May 15, with 4-hr. "stop work meetings" scheduled for May 16 and 23.
Etihad Airways will lease two new A320-200s from CIT Aerospace, the lessor announced. Aircraft are powered by IAE V2527-A5s and will be delivered by year end.
