USAir apparently will not enter the regional-jet fray out of deference to its pilots, The DAILY is told. The carrier is preoccupied with mounting an assault on low-cost airlines like Delta Express and ValuJet that are invading its East Coast markets, and needs to win that battle with its pilots. Sources say the carrier will not use its independent Express carriers to provide even complementary service, much less operate regional jets. That philosophy could provide a spark for the high-speed turboprops - the 50-passenger Saab 2000 and 30-seat Dornier 328.
Western Pacific Airlines flew 85.7% more revenue passenger miles in September than in the same month last year, but capacity increased even more, 94.8%. RPMs totaled 117.9 million and available seat miles 224.6 million, and the load factor fell from 55.1% to 52.5%. Noting the faster growth of capacity, Tom DeNardin, VP-sales and marketing, said, "We judged our September performance to be consistent with last year's experience. We will be making some service adjustments to improve our performance in the fourth quarter."
Business Express's reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code appears likely to be settled by the end of the month. Sources close to the situation believe that USAir Express Commutair may end up with a large chunk of the assets, which includes 37 Saab 340s, but say that the question of BizEx's slots at New York LaGuardia and Kennedy and Washington National still needs to be ironed out. Several other carriers are vying for the slots and according to one source, "It is a matter of who comes up with the money first."
Vanguard will introduce Nov. 1 nonstop service from Minneapolis/St.Paul to Phoenix and its home base Kansas City. Introductory fares to Kansas City start at $39 one way and to Phoenix at $69. The fares are good from Nov. 1 until Dec. 18, with Nov. 22-Dec. 3 blacked out. Reservations must be made by Oct. 31.
Ansett Australia intends to become the first airline to offer electronic ticketing in Australia. Basing its plan on technology from United and Air Canada, Ansett expects first availability Jan. 1 to passengers who book directly with it.
Richard Branson, founder and chief executive of Virgin Atlantic, yesterday continued his war of words against the proposed alliance between British Airways and American, calling it a "fraud" and a "blatantly anti- competitive merger." With no official U.S. government forum to air comments related to the proposed alliance, chief executives like Branson and other top officials have taken to public forums to push viewpoints.
Delta's September traffic rose 10%, exclusively on the wings of its domestic expansion. Domestic revenue passenger miles were up 15.7%, while international RPMs fell 3.6%. Domestic available seat miles increased 7.3%, while international ASMs declined 6.5%. Delta Executive VP-Marketing Robert Coggin said the airline's unit costs will be slightly higher than expected, rising above 8.7 cents per ASM. He cited higher jet fuel prices, greater spending on technology development and other revenue-related expenses as reasons for the increase.
FAA denied Wilcox Electric's protest against its Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) contract award to Hughes Aircraft Co. yesterday, citing a special master's conclusion that the agency did not have to compete the award and that its market analysis was sufficient. Wilcox protested the contract May 28 after FAA canceled Wilcox's original contract to develop WAAS and retained Hughes, a Wilcox subcontractor, on a sole- source basis as the new prime.
Canadian Regional Airlines has begun three daily nonstop flights from Vancouver to Portland, Ore., using 37-passenger Dash 8 turboprops. Delta, Horizon Air and AirBC also serve the route.
Japan Air System will configure 777s it will receive shortly for three classes of service for the Japanese domestic market. Currently, JAS, the third-largest carrier in Japan, operates aircraft with a single class layout. JAS will receive the first of seven 777 late this year and will put it into service domestically in April. JAS has not determined how many seats will be in each class of service. All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines operate only two-class service on domestic routes they fly with 747s and 777s.
Emirates will launch service from Dubai to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Sanaa, Yemen, on Oct. 27 and 28, respectively. The carrier will operate three times weekly to Kuala Lumpur with A300-600Rs via Dhaka, Bangladesh, and twice weekly to Sanaa, also with Airbus aircraft. With the new service, Emirates will fly to 35 countries.
Worldspan's U.S.-based subscribers are being offered electronic ticketing on Northwest in its domestic markets and on flights to Canada, for travel after the end of this month. The initiative makes Worldspan the first computer reservations system to offer electronic ticketing outside the U.S. Northwest intends to expand electronic ticketing to other international routes next year. Ticketless travel also is available for all markets served by Northwest Airlink.
American is offering travel agents who book its Fly AAway Vacations on the Internet the same 1% bonus commission they earn when booking through a computer reservations system. As an introduction to booking on the Internet, the American vacation division and Turnaround Computing will give agencies $50 per traveled booking for an agent's first 10 bookings until Dec. 31. Turnaround Computing offers connections between agencies and the Internet via a special access system.
Las Vegas-based Eagle Canyon Airlines will begin two daily roundtrip flights to Cedar City, Utah, Dec. 12 as part of its expansion plans from Las Vegas. It currently flies only to the Grand Canyon and Laughlin, Nev., operating air tour service with 44-seat Fokker 27 jetprops. The scheduled service to Cedar City responds to requests from skiers for flights to nearby Brian Head Resort.
President Clinton yesterday signed into law the FAA reauthorization bill (H.R.3539), extending for two years funding authority for FAA capital programs and making statutory changes affecting airports, airlines and other industry segments. Two aspects of the bill - aviation security and assistance for families of air disaster victims - were the sole focus of a bill-signing ceremony yesterday.
Reno Air posted record traffic in September, when it flew 240.8 million revenue passenger miles, 34% more than in September 1995. Capacity rose 41%, resulting in a load factor decline of 3.1 percentage points to 60.9%. President Robert Reding said, "Our load factor for September was negatively impacted by a $25 fare sale, which we matched on a restricted basis, the reimposition of the ticket tax in late August, and our 41% expansion of seat capacity." Sept 1996 Sept 1995 9 Months 1996 9 Months 1995
Air New Zealand asked DOT to renew its authority to display the designator code of Polynesian Airlines on ANZ's scheduled services between Apia, Western Samoa, and Honolulu. The carrier has been operating weekly service between Auckland and Honolulu via Apia, but beginning Oct. 6, it will extend the service to Los Angeles using Boeing 767 aircraft. ANZ plans to continue to block seats for Polynesian and carry Polynesian's designator code between Apia and Honolulu.
Several speakers at an aviation safety seminar this week in Orlando opposed Congress's selection of the National Transportation Safety Board for the task of providing support to families whose loved ones are killed in air crashes. Lee Dickenson, a former board member, observed that the board was set up as a "watchdog to investigate" transportation accidents.
U.S. National Carriers Operating/Net Profit/Loss (6 Months 1996) Operating Net Profit/Loss Profit/Loss (000) (000) Six Months 1996 American Trans Air $ 1,074 $ (2,193) Carnival 2,438 1,229 Hawaiian 3,513 956 Kiwi n/a n/a
Pan Am will increase daily flights in the New York-Miami market from one to three Oct. 27, one month after the airline inaugurated service with A300s. It also flies in the New York-Los Angeles market. The carrier signed a five-year renewable lease last week for two more A300s, adding to its current three, and expects to expand service further in December. As a result, the carrier said it is looking for more pilots and flight attendants. President Martin Shugrue said, "We have been very encouraged by the public's response to our launch.
The European Commission has launched an investigation of the planned 3.135 trillion lire capital injection for national carrier Alitalia by Istituto di Ricostruzione Industriale, Italy's state-owned holding company. Announcing the injection in July, IRI said the plan reflects market- oriented principles of investment, but Brussels considers that it has all the characteristics of a subsidy. The EC said it is "not convinced" by arguments that IRI is acting as any private market investor would under the same circumstances.
House Ways and Means Chairman Rep. Bill Archer (R-Texas) is again urging the Internal Revenue Service to reverse moves that effectively eliminate easy deductibility of millions of dollars worth of aircraft engine overhauls, after IRS Chief Counsel Stuart Brown, in a reply to a September letter from Archer (DAILY, Oct. 7), contended the agency's stance applied only to an individual airline in a specific case. Along with 31 other lawmakers, Archer called on U.S.
South African charter service Allegis has chosen InterGame to provide interactive gaming programs on its 727-200 Advanced Executive jet. Allegis is spending about $22.3 million to customize the 60-seat jet. The luxury charter will offer four private compartments seating 16 people that can be converted to bedrooms, a cocktail lounge for 12 and first-class sleeper seats throughout the cabin. It will operate within South Africa and to major European points.
United and American filed objections to the application by Continental and Alitalia to expand their codes-share services. Seeking two-year renewal of their authority to perform Newark-Rome/Milan, Houston-Rome and other cooperative services, the carriers also requested permission for Continental to wet-lease as many as three aircraft to Alitalia to operate up to two daily Newark-Rome flights and one daily Newark-Milan flight (DAILY, Sept. 25). Under current authority, Continental is allowed to wet- lease one aircraft for one daily Newark-Rome flight.
Jet Airways, considered by aviation analysts to be the most successful among nearly a dozen private domestic carriers in India, is firming up plans to induct 10 new aircraft into its fleet. The carrier currently operates 11 leased Boeing aircraft, and last month it received government clearance to lease four more aircraft by the end of the year. The carrier's aircraft acquisition plan, budgeted at 16 billion rupees (about $450 million), envisions a choice among three mid-size passenger aircraft, the Boeing 737-400 and 737-800, and Airbus Industrie's A321.
