Finnair is "heading in the right direction," according to CEO Jukka Hienonen, as the carrier yesterday reported a second-quarter profit of €25.8 million ($35.5 million) that compares to €0.4 million in earnings during the year-ago period. It continues to expect a full-year operating result (EBIT excluding capital gains and changes in the fair value of derivatives) of more than €70 million. It reported an €11.2 million profit on a similar basis last year. "Unit costs have clearly decreased due to efficiency measures. .
Connecticut-based SkyWorks Capital has teamed with Cathay Pacific Airways parent Swire Pacific and Air China to create SkyWorks Capital Asia Ltd. The new Hong-Kong based joint venture, ownership of which is evenly divided between SkyWorks, Swire and Air China Development Corp. (Hong Kong), will give the aerospace and aviation advisory firm a presence in the booming Asia/Pacific market to complement its major role in the US, SkyWorks MD and COO Steven Gaal told ATWOnline.
Pinnacle Airlines board authorized a share repurchase program worth up to $30 million in outstanding common stock, two-third of which is contingent upon the "completion of certain financings," the company said. It reacquired more than 1.6 million shares in a similar $30 million repurchase last month.
Qantas announced the Leigh Clifford, the recently retired CEO of UK and Australia-based mining company Rio Tinto, will replace Margaret Jackson as chairman when she retires in November ( ATWOnline, May 22). "I am personally delighted to be passing the mantle of Qantas chairman to someone of Leigh's caliber and look forward to working closely with Leigh to ensure a smooth transition on my retirement," Jackson said. Clifford was at RT for 37 years and became CEO in 2000.
SkyWest Airlines and Atlantic Southeast Airlines parent SkyWest Inc. reported second quarter net income of $40.6 million, a modest 3.4% increase over earnings of $39.3 million in the year-ago period. Operating revenue climbed 8.2% to $855 million while operating expenses were up 9.3% to $766.2 million, dropping operating income 0.9% to $88.9 million. Key factors in the result were a 14.5% year-over-year increase in capacity to 5.8 billion ASMs offset by a 5.7% decline in yield to 18.2 cents, plus increased fuel cost reimbursements from major partners, the company said.
Aer Lingus's decision to open a base in Belfast and transfer its Shannon-London Heathrow service to Northern Ireland met with predictable opposition in the western part of the Republic as well as from Ryanair, which holds 25% of the flag carrier and has appealed to Prime Minister Bertie Ahern to maintain the status quo.
Lufthansa Systems will help Air Dolomiti implement e-ticketing. In a first phase, the Italian carrier will incorporate interline agreements with LH and Austrian Airlines.
The addition of Dragonair accounts into Cathay Pacific's books, along with higher yields and robust demand, helped the Hong Kong-based airline group lift its profit attributed to shareholders for the six months ended June 30 by 54.7% to HK$2.58 billion ($329.57 million) from HK$1.67 billion in the year-ago semester.
After keeping a decidedly low profile during Virgin America's contentious US Dept. of Transportation certification process, Virgin Group Chairman Richard Branson was front-and-center yesterday for the carrier's launch, calling the US airline industry "abysmal" and promising better service aboard the startup's A319s/A320s than passengers can get on competing domestic flights.
Lufthansa will use the introduction of the A380, which is scheduled to join the fleet in time for the summer 2009 schedule, as an opportunity to launch an all-new first class product across its long-haul fleet.
Barco, in cooperation with NCS Communications Engineering, Singapore, received operational acceptance by the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore for the arrival management system at Changi. According to Barco, the AMS features "automatic en-route holding advice generation in order to avoid congestion in the approach area. This unique feature, which has never been put into operation before, lowers the operating costs of the airlines by enabling economically optimal high-level holding instead of low-altitude delay absorption methods."
Kale Consultants acquired privately held Zero Octa. According to Kale, UK-based ZO is the world's largest provider of airline revenue assurance, protection and audit services. "The addition of Zero Octa will advance Kale's vision to be the leader in the revenue management space," Kale MD and CEO Vipul Jain said.
ExpressJet Holdings posted a second-quarter loss of $26.4 million, reversing a $23.3 million profit during the same period a year ago, while revenue fell 5.8% to $395.2 million as the company launched its branded flying operation. The new entity, which launched on April 2, contributed $28.2 million in revenue. It operates 42 dedicated aircraft to 24 cities in the Western, Central and Southeastern US. By quarter's end it had flown 200.3 million RPMs with a 39.3% load factor.
SunExpress, a joint venture between Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines that operates bases in Antalya and Izmir, reported a 36% year-over-year increase in passengers to 1.3 million in the first half of 2007. It expects to surpass the 3 million mark this year (compared to 2.3 million in 2006). It operates a fleet of 14 737-800s and 757-200s. JetBlue Airways flew 2.5 billion RPMs in July, up 13.4% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 9.5% to 2.87 billion ASMs, lifting load factor 3 points to 86.9%.
Air Berlin, Germany's second-biggest carrier, said that the German Federal Cartel Office approved its acquisition of LTU "without any restrictions." AB reached a deal in March to buy LTU for €140 million and assume €200 million of the company's debt ( ATWOnline, March 28). AB CEO Joachim Hunold said it was "regrettable that this process took so long" and that "synergies could not be exploited during this year as planned.
Mesaba Airlines, a wholly owned subsidiary of Northwest Airlines, will build an $11.8 million maintenance facility at Des Moines International Airport. The complex will handle scheduled MRO for the carrier's CRJ200s/900s and is expected to be completed by the 2008 third quarter. The site was chosen because of its proximity to Mesaba hubs in Memphis and Minneapolis/St. Paul.
ALMA de Mexico signed an order for two CRJ900 NextGens, Bombardier said. The aircraft are worth $74.4 million at list prices. Delivery date was not announced. ALMA operates 15 CRJ200s to 25 domestic destinations.
Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, parent of Atlas Air and Polar Air Cargo, posted second-quarter net income of $43.2 million, more than four times the $10.7 million profit earned in the year-ago quarter. It credited a 16% fleet reduction and "active asset management" for the improvement and pointed to a $27.7 million lowering in income tax expense owing to a tax benefit related to DHL's purchase of a 49% equity interest and 25% voting stake in Polar ( ATWOnline, Oct.
US Federal Labor Relations Authority dismissed the National Air Traffic Controllers Assn.'s charges of unfair labor practices related to FAA's implementation of a new contract last year. The agency imposed the contract after negotiations failed to produce an agreement, leading the union to claim it was unlawful and to file complaints with FLRA. "This decision validates our new contract, which is saving taxpayers $1.9 billion over five years and providing the resources we need to invest in 21st-century air traffic systems," Administrator Marion Blakey said.
US Dept. of Transportation said that the 20 reporting US carriers posted a combined June ontime arrival rate of 68.1%, down from the year-ago month's 72.8%. Cancellations climbed to 2.7% of scheduled flights from 1.7%. Hawaiian Airlines and Aloha Airlines predictably were the most punctual, with SkyWest Airlines coming in third at 77.9%. Atlantic Southeast Airlines' 56% was the worst among the 20, followed by American Airlines' 57.9%. Mesa Airlines' 6.4% cancellation rate was the worst, with Hawaiian (0.2%) and Frontier Airlines and Southwest Airlines (0.4%) the best.
Cathay Pacific Airways exercised options on five GE90-115B-powered 777-300ERs, increasing its commitment to the model to 23 aircraft. The conversion is part of CX's December 2005 order for 16 (with 12 directly purchased from Boeing and four leased from ILFC) plus 20 options. Last year it exercised rights for two more aircraft ( ATWOnline, June 2, 2006). Its first -300ER will be delivered next month and it will have five by year end. They will be introduced on the Hong Kong-New York JFK route from Nov.
Air Berlin announced the conclusion of its first labor agreements with pilots and cabin staff. The deals, covering members of both the Vereinigung Cockpit and ver.di unions, are effective from Aug. 1 and were agreed to "on the basis of the present actual working conditions at Air Berlin," the airline said. The agreement covering compensation runs until Dec. 31, 2008, with the accord on work rules expiring one year later.
Allegiant Travel Co., parent of Allegiant Air, reported second-quarter net income of $10 million, more than double the $4.7 million earned in the same period a year earlier. Revenue was up 49.1% to $88.9 million while expenses increased 36.5% to $74.8 million. Operating income soared to $14.2 million from $4.9 million.
Air Astana, Kazakhstan's flag airline, carried 970,000 passengers in the first half of 2007, up 42% over the year-ago semester. It expects to carry more than 2 million passengers for the full year. First-half capacity increased 44% to 3.1 billion ASKs as the fleet grew to 18 aircraft with the delivery of two 767-300ERs, two A320s and two A321s. The carrier said its fleet will number 34 by 2014. Air France KLM flew 19.75 billion RPKs in July, up 6.8% from the year-ago month. Capacity increased 5.6% to 22.92 billion ASKs and load factor was ahead 1 point to 86.2%.
Astar Air Cargo reached agreement to purchase two DC-8-73 freighters in its current fleet that it had been leasing from Bank of America. The aircraft are dedicated to Astar's DHL operation.
