UPS's proposed weekend passenger charter operation has generated so much interest from tour operators, the carrier is seeking an expansion of its waiver from DOT to allow it to market them to companies not specifically tied to the cruise industry. UPS's current waiver allows it to begin marketing to companies in the air/cruise package business.
Fledgling Belgian carrier City Bird has plans to serve the U.S. and beyond to the Dominican Republic and Mexico. The carrier, formed in August, said in an application to DOT it intends to operate one MD-11 aircraft from Brussels to Orlando, Miami, San Francisco and Los Angeles, beginning March 28, with expansion planned in summer 1997 to Newark when the carrier obtains a second MD-11. City Bird was founded by the individuals that started EuroBelgian Airlines, which was sold in May to the Virgin Atlantic Group.
United Parcel Service and Nippon Cargo Airlines have signed an interline agreement UPS termed "the first in the world between two major all-cargo carriers," effective Wednesday. The two carriers also plan to establish code-share service next summer, when UPS expects to introduce 747-200 freighters to serve the Los Angeles market nonstop.
A backlog of certification projects is building up at FAA, to industry's frustration, as FAA concentrates its dwindling budget and personnel on safety issues, agency officials said yesterday.
Golden West Airlines has been found fit by DOT to provide scheduled service as a commuter carrier. It plans to operate one roundtrip each weekday between French Valley, Calif., and Ontario, Calif., using one five-seat Cessna C-201L aircraft. Golden West President Norman McInnis has been an executive at Royale Airlines, Precision Airlines, Britt Airways and L'Express (DAILY, Oct. 11).
McDonnell Douglas dropped plans Friday to build the MD-XX successor to the MD-11 trijet and will stick with existing, smaller commercial aircraft. "We studied it very carefully and management made a decision, and the board agreed, not to go forward," spokesman Frederick Hill said yesterday. "There was not a good business case to invest the capital needed to build it."
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association's Project Pilot program, intended to assist students in flight training and encourage them to continue, has attracted more than 78,000 participants and more than l6,000 flight instructors are enrolled, AOPA reported. A follow-on program seeks to help flight instructors motivate and retain new students in the face of a 50% dropout rate.
Western Pacific Airlines will launch its Ski Colorado for Less program on Dec. 4, offering service from 23 cities to six Colorado ski destinations. Fares start at $119 one way. Passengers flying to Colorado Springs can transfer to Telluride, Purgatory Resort, Crested Butte, Steamboat, Vail and Aspen Snowmass. The ski program is promoted under a three-year contract with Warren Miller Entertainment. Westpac sponsors the company's new ski film, Snowriders, and is featured in the advertising program for it.
Airborne Express yesterday reported third quarter net income of $4.6 million on revenues of $612 million, compared with net earnings of $7.6 million and revenues of $560.6 million during the same quarter last year. Roy Liljebeck, chief financial officer, said a slowdown in domestic business growth, "which began late in this year's second quarter, had a negative impact on third quarter 1996." The growth rate slumped from 16.5% in the first half to 11% in the third quarter.
Atlas Air said yesterday its net income for the September quarter increased to $8.2 million from $5.6 million during the same period last year. Revenues rose to $79.7 million from $47.8 million. Through the first nine months, net income was $24.4 million versus $9.5 million while revenues increased to $210.9 million from $115.1 million. Richard Shuyler, chief financial officer, said that since the first quarter, Atlas has taken delivery of four freighters from Federal Express and the first of six aircraft it is acquiring from Thai Airways.
Japan's Ministry of Transport has increased the airline pilot retirement age from 60 to 63, ending a four-year demonstration period in which pilots aged 61 to 63 were permitted to operate ferry, training and test flights but were kept out of the cockpit on passenger flights. Based on this experience, the ministry decided that the capability and health of older pilots warrants the change. Japanese carriers face a pilot shortage beginning in the late 1990s.
A compromise linking the European Union's Schengen agreement on border controls with a similar program in the Nordic nations will enable Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway and Iceland to become Schengen countries. The Schengen agreement eliminates passport controls at borders between signatories, but participation by the Scandinavian countries faced problems at first.
The U.K. government has held up a handful of Emery Worldwide flights because of the bilateral impasse between the U.S. and U.K., the carrier told DOT. In return, Emery asked DOT to deny Caledonian Airways' request to operate 22 London-Tampa subservice flights for British Airways. Emery said that the U.K. denied it the right two weeks ago to operate a single Stansted-Toronto charter carrying horses for The Breeders Cup, and that three weeks ago it denied its request to carry U.S.-Germany through traffic on military charter flights via the U.K.
Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association President Phil Boyer was presented the 1996 Alpha Eta Rho International Fraternity Award by the University Aviation Association.
After spending money for a variety of air traffic control systems and radars that do not work together, China has decided to develop a more coordinated approach. Chen Xuhua, director general of the Civil Aviation Administration of China's Air Traffic Management Bureau, told The DAILY affiliate ATC Market Report that "we must be careful to purchase open systems." Considering needs in the eastern part of China, Chen said the bureau is interested in radars like the new Digital Airport Surveillance Radars FAA has contracted to buy from Raytheon.
Judge Miriam Cedarbaum of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York took under advisement Friday the motions of British Airways and American to dismiss USAir's suit against them on charges of breach of contract and antitrust violations resulting from their proposal to form an alliance. Cedarbaum dismissed USAir's claims of tortious interference against American.
Boeing 727 And 737 Systemwide Aircraft Utilization Per Day Second Quarter 1996 B727-200 American Continental Delta Number of Aircraft Operated 81 33 129 Total Fleet Operations Departures 256 109 648 Block Hours 611 274 1,132
The U.S. and Brazil reached a new aviation agreement that takes another step in expanding service opportunities and leaves the door open for future progress on U.S. goals of third-country code sharing, more cargo carrier designations and doing-business issues. The two countries have been slowly opening up opportunities in recent years, and negotiators meeting last week in Rio de Janeiro agreed to designate a fourth U.S. carrier in addition to United, American and Tower Air.
In spite of air transport liberalization since 1993, full-fare prices have increased in the European Union and are at "excessive" levels on some routes, the European Commission said last week in a report by Transport Commissioner Neil Kinnock. The commission said an in-depth inquiry appears to be necessary to find and deal with the excessive tariffs. In a 23-page assessment of liberalization, the commission found an "impressive" number of promotional fares has developed, so that 70.9% of passengers paid reduced prices in 1995 compared with 60.5% 10 years earlier.
IATA's decision to allow cross-border ticketing in the 17 countries of the European Economic Area will prompt travel management firms to form centralized reservations offices, Air Travel Card says. Based on discussions with European travel management experts, the company predicts that full European aviation liberalization next spring will result in European airline consolidation and price volatility that will underscore the need for centralized purchasing.
Air Cargo Equipment Corp. has introduced composite LDS cargo containers with panels and structural members made from its proprietary thermoplastic composite, Cargolite. Cargolite weighs one-half as much as aluminum in the same thickness, is translucent and is more resistant than aluminum to punctures, the company said. "When a puncture does occur, there are no sharp projections to cut bags or personnel. Repairs can be made without tools, since a patch of the material can be permanently bonded in place in minutes."
Eaton board of directors elected Robert Parmenter VP and treasurer. Litton promoted Oliver Stine to director-flight operations. Mercury Air Group named John Condie controller. Precision Standard named Jack Levandowski regional sales manager for Central and South America, John Driver VP-engineering and Paul Millender director-engineering, all for Pemco World Air Services.
Jonathan Ornstein, the former Continental Express president and current chief executive of Brussels-based Virgin Express, has hired a third top executive away from his former employer. Michael Lotz, 36, Continental Express' VP-airport services and facilities, has joined the low-cost European carrier as director-ground operations. Earlier, he was Continental's senior director-contract sales and service. Lotz joins Jim Swigart, former Continental Express VP and chief financial officer, and Geoff Moss, former Continental Express VP-marketing.
Air France wants to form an alliance with an Asian airline now that it has reached agreements in principle to collaborate with Continental and Delta. "Our next aim is to conclude an Asian partnership," said Chairman Christian Blanc. "I expect we will have such a deal in 1997." Blanc said the "airline company of the future is a network of seven, eight, maybe 10 hubs."
