DOT has instituted the 1996 U.S.-Japan All-Cargo Service Proceeding to select a new primary and backup carrier to provide scheduled all-cargo service in the U.S.-Japan market. Under the April 1996 memorandum of understanding between the two countries, the U.S. may designate an additional U.S. all-cargo carrier, which may operate as many as six weekly flights and serve any point in Japan except Tokyo (DAILY, March 28). The flights may operate beyond Japan to one point in another country, but the U.S.
The price of a good hotel room in Ho Chi Minh City has been on the decline for the past three years, falling as much as 50%. A four-star hotel now costs $100 to $120 on average for a night's stay.
Qantas applauds a decision by a federal court in Australia finding that frequent flyer benefits from business travel should not be taxed, the carrier said yesterday in a statement. In the ruling, made yesterday, the court found that travel benefits accrued by frequent flyer program members are not taxable as income according to ordinary concepts under the general income provisions of Australia's Tax Act.
China Eastern Airlines has taken delivery of the first of eight Airbus A340s, becoming the first carrier in the People's Republic of China to operate the jet, according to Airbus Industrie. China Eastern will begin using the jet in June for nonstop service between Shanghai and Los Angeles. The aircraft is configured for three classes of service with 289 seats. It is powered by CFM56-5C4 engines.
A Miami court has granted a request by the International Airlines Travel Agent Network for a preliminary injunction prohibiting Global Alliance of Travel Entrepreneurs (GATE) from issuing travel agent identification cards with the IATAN trademark. The injunction also freezes the assets of GATE, its officers and a co-owned travel agency, Island Travel. IATAN is seeking to collect damages equal to the profits the company earned by allegedly infringing on its trademark.
U.S. Major Carriers Latin Share of Service Fourth Quarter 1995 Total Revenue Departures America West 756 American 22,326 Continental 6,277 Delta 2,990 United 4,193 USAir 1,454 Total 37,996 Average Number of
America West launched daily Phoenix-Boston and Phoenix-Philadelphia nonstops yesterday, building on its three daily flights to Columbus and one to Las Vegas from each of the East Coast cities. The new service uses A320 aircraft configured for 12 passengers in first class and 138 in coach. On June 6, the carrier will launch daily service to San Antonio from Phoenix and Las Vegas and twice-daily service between Seattle and Anchorage.
India's national carrier, Air-India, and its domestic airline, Indian Airlines, will turn their engineering departments into two separate companies, airline officials said Tuesday. The airline managements have appointed consulting firm McKinsey and Co. to advise them on restructuring issues, such as the transfer of assets. The companies are reorganizing because the billions of rupees they have invested in engineering facilities have not yielded adequate returns because of inefficient operations and labor unrest.
Burlington Air Express has launched Zip 'n Ship, an Internet-based service that tells customers what levels of service are available to U.S. destinations. Users access the company's World Wide Web site at http ://www.baxworld.com and enter the zip code of the destination. Service levels available to the chosen zip code are shown.
The Allied Pilots Association at American warned yesterday of a possible pilot strike if contract negotiations, in their 100th week, do not make progress soon. The APA, in a statement issued yesterday at AMR Corp.'s annual meeting in Dallas, said the union does not want to see another disastrous strike at the airline. "But, if our current management continues to delay and fails to bargain fairly, we fear they will again stumble off this cliff.
Weber Aircraft said it will supply first-, business- and economy-class seats to Korean Airlines for its Boeing 777 aircraft. The company, which supplies business-class seats for the carrier's 747s, is scheduled to begin deliveries for the 777 in November.
Canadian Airlines International suffered a setback as one group of its Machinists voted down a concessionary contract proposal. The carrier said it will continue to press for concessions to cut its labor costs by 17.1%. A second, smaller group of Machinists accepted a 38-month concessionary agreement.
Frontier Airlines said yesterday it will redeem 2.67 million outstanding warrants, paying a redemption price of $0.05 per warrant to holders who do not exercise their warrants on or before June 28. Each warrant allows the holder to purchase a share of Frontier common stock for $5. Frontier President Sam Addoms said proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, mainly to lease additional jet aircraft for expansion. If all warrants were exercised, the redemption would generate $13.5 million for the carrier.
U.S. Major Carriers Atlantic Share of Service Fourth Quarter 1995 Total Revenue Departures American 5,981 Continental 1,264 Delta 7,305 Northwest 1,636 TWA 2,315 United 3,691 USAir 556 Total 22,748 Average Number of
Thomson Training&Simulation said that Southwest, the launch customer for Boeing's next-generation 737-700, has ordered a full-flight simulator for the aircraft. The simulator, certified to FAA Level C standards, and an order of 737-300 desktop trainers will be installed at Southwest's training center at Dallas Love Field by the end of 1997, when the carrier plans to put the aircraft in service. Southwest has 63 737-700s on order and holds options for 63 more.
India's privately owned domestic carrier Jet Airways has signed an agreement with Seattle-based Hanway Corp. for dry-leasing two Boeing 737- 400 aircraft, airline officials said Wednesday. The first is scheduled to arrive in India this month and the second in May. The two aircraft, which have undergone D checks in Malaysia, are powered with CFM-56 engines, officials said. Jet Airways operates eight aircraft - four 737-400s and four 737-300s, none more than four years old.
National Air Transportation Association is accusing the Clinton administration of harming the air tour business with its proposal to place strict limits on sightseeing tours, announced on Earth Day, which pleased environmentalists. Claiming the move is election year politics, NATA is threatening to fight back.
Failure to reauthorize the aviation excise taxes would prohibit funding for the Airport Improvement Program and essential air service during fiscal 1997 and could lead FAA to defer capital spending in the current fiscal year, the chairman of the House Appropriations transportation subcommittee said. In a May 14 letter to House colleagues, Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) said that "two serious aviation problems could occur" if the aviation trust fund taxes are not reinstated quickly.
Association of Flight Attendants asked DOT Secretary Federico Pena to endorse legislation to protect the jobs of aviation workers who report safety concerns to FAA. International President Patricia Friend said the absence of whistleblower protection "remains a critical missing link in today's aviation safety net." Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) introduced a bill (H.R.3187) in March to protect informants' jobs. The legislation also attempts to protect airlines from frivolous charges by imposing a fine if a complaint is found to be baseless.
Passenger traffic at 448 airports worldwide totaled 174.78 million during February, an increase of 11.5% from the February 1995 total, according to the Airport Council International in Geneva. Cargo traffic was up 6.9% to 3.61 million metric tons, and aircraft movements increased 4.5% to 3.58 million. "Although the leap year did cause some minor anomalies, the significant rise in passenger traffic could point to 1996 being a bumper year for the world's airlines and airports," said Maria Hinayon, ACI's manager of statistics and data processing.
St. Louis business leaders are supporting the X Prize Foundation - an organization seeking advancement of commercial space travel. They will announce details Saturday in St. Louis on an international competition. Those who will help launch the X Prize include Buzz Aldrin, Apollo 11 astronaut; Burt Rutan, Collier Award winner and creator of Voyager; Byron Lichtenberg, first non-astronaut to fly the Shuttle Columbia, and Peter Diamandis, X Prize Foundation chairman.
National Aircraft Resale Association said its members accounted for 18% of worldwide sales of used jet aircraft and 12% of the turnover in used turboprops during the first quarter of 1996. The members sold 56 of 317 jets and 38 of 319 turboprops, bringing in $136 million and $35 million, respectively.
Travel Industry Association (TIA) has determined that gamblers spend more on trips and stay longer than the average traveler. In 1994, Americans took 66 million person-trips that involved gambling, spending an average $652 on the entire trip, compared with $404 for non-gambling travelers. Gamblers averaged 4.1 nights away from home, while non-gambling travelers averaged 3.4. Twenty-six percent of gamblers flew to their destination, compared with 17% of non-gamblers. TIA's profile of gambling travelers is available for $100 to members and $150 to non-members.
Hawaiian Airlines and Mahalo Air have agreed on a marketing and services partnership that will include code sharing and airport services agreements. The carriers also are considering allowing passengers on the interisland commuter carrier to accrue miles in Hawaiian's frequent flyer program. Hawaiian will place its code on Mahalo's five daily Oahu-Molokai flights beginning July 1.
