DOT traffic data by market suggest that it will be increasingly difficult for ValuJet to grow in new markets as fast as it has in the past.The airline's load factor in December for flights out of Atlanta was 63%, compared with 53% from Washington Dulles and only 22% from Boston, where it has acknowledged problems.
Japan Air Lines (JAL) will start selling ticketless travel and take reservations over the Internet this summer. The carrier will begin offering ticketless travel within Japan on June 20 and Internet bookings on July 1. Internet booking will be available 24 hours a day for all JAL service and flights of a subsidiary, Japan Transocean Airways of Okinawa, in which JAL holds a 51% stake. The new service enables Internet users to check seat availability on flights and pull down departure and arrival information.
Cathay Pacific Airways and the Hong Kong Airport Authority signed an agreement this week for the airline to build a HK$3.5 billion - US$448 million - headquarters complex at Chek Lap Kok Airport. The complex, including a 10-level office facility, will cover 90,000 square meters.
British Airways Chairman Colin Marshall received the James Smithson Bicentennial Medal this week for leadership in science and world conservation. Smithson was the first benefactor of the Smithsonian museums. Past medal winners include Lyndon Johnson and Helen Hays.
Tower Air flew 4,382 block hours last month, a 6.8% decrease from April 1995 levels. Capacity increased 3.5% to 322 million available seat miles, while traffic grew 0.9% to 236 million revenue passenger miles. The increase in ASMs and RPMs came from more traffic in the San Juan, Los Angeles and Oakland markets, while the fall in block hours was attributable to the fact that the Hadj occurred in April last year, instead of May, Tower said. For the first four months of the year, block hours increased 3.1% to 13,398.
Sluggish growth last year at Paris airports is attributable directly to "the lack of an aviation agreement with the U.S.," Pat Murphy, DOT deputy assistant secretary for aviation and international affairs, said yesterday at the International Air Cargo Conference in Toledo, Ohio. The French said it was due to "several domestic factors."
American Society of Travel Agents praised United for extending the 24-hour ticketing rule to 72 hours in two test markets - Phoenix and Las Vegas - and urged the carrier to go systemwide with the practice.
Mercury Air Group said net income declined to $877,000 in the quarter ended March 31, the third of its fiscal year, from $1 million during the same quarter last year. Revenue increased 15%, from $50 million to a record $57.3 million. For the first nine months of its fiscal year, Mercury's net income increased 9% to $3.5 million and revenue rose 22% to $164.5 million, both records.
British Airways is offering savings of as much as 56% for spring travel from seven U.S. cities to more than 40 destinations throughout the world. The offer requires a 21-day purchase, tickets must be purchased by May 21, and travel must be completed by June 30.
Administration efforts to stress intermodal transportation and liberalize international aviation are boosting cargo operations, DOT Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and International Affairs Patrick Murphy said yesterday. "Beyond the administration having a strong interest in promoting this vital aerospace/airline industry, there are three policies at work in the department" affecting the cargo carriers, Murphy told attendees at the Fifth Annual International Air Cargo Conference in Toledo, Ohio.
General Electric and Pratt&Whitney agreed to form a 50-50 joint venture to work exclusively on an all-new engine at thrust ratings between 72,000 and 84,000 lbst., aimed at Boeing's hoped-for growth models of the 747, the engine companies said yesterday. In a joint statement, the rivals confirmed plans to structure the project like CFM International, GE's 50-50 venture with French enginemaker Snecma, whose CFM56 turbofan is among the most successful commercial jet engines ever built.
Japan Airlines will launch three-times-a-week flights between Japan and Kona, Hawaii, on June 2. JAL filed the plan May 8 with the Japanese Ministry of Transport. With the new flights the carrier will serve two destinations on the "Big Island" - the carrier also flies between Tokyo Narita Airport and Keahole Airport, a second airport on Kona. The new flights will operate nonstop from Tokyo to Kona using a 404-seat 747-300, with a stop in Honolulu on return flights. The U.S. and Japan concluded an agreement recently that allows the service to begin.
Hyatt Hotels Corp. has revamped its Cuisine Naturelle menu to help travelers maintain a healthy diet and boost energy while on the road. Meals feature low-fat, low-cholesterol foods and high-protein meals. The menu, first developed in 1992, represents 30% of Hyatt's total food sales. The latest version contains eight new entrees and is available in all 103 Hyatt hotels in North America.
Fuel Cost and Consumption U.S. Major, Nationals and Large Regionals April 1995 - March 1996 Total Total Cost Gallons (Dollars) 1995 April Domestic 1,023,098,895 537,964,806 International 353,736,924 210,795,692 System Total 1,376,835,819 748,760,498 May
Air Canada, Air Alliance and Air Nova have put in place electronic ticketing to 23 more destinations in Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Currently, Air Canada and regional partners AirBC, Air Ontario, Air Alliance and Air Nova offer ticketless travel to more than 60 destinations in Canada and several major cities in the U.S., including Seattle, Boston and New York.
Anne-Marie Idrac, France's transport secretary, and Daniel Goldin, NASA administrator, are the featured speakers at the American Bar Association Forum on Air&Space Law, scheduled June 5-6 at the Sheraton Washington Hotel in Washington.
Cost of travel continues to increase faster than other goods and services. In March, travel prices were up 1.3% versus 0.5% for the consumer price index, according to the Travel Industry Association's Travel Price Index. The cost of lodging was up 3% in March from February and 5.5% from March 1995. Air fares fell 0.3% from the previous month and from March 1995.
World Airways flew 4,292 block hours in April, a 0.9% increase from April 1995 levels. Average daily utilization fell to 9.6 block hours from 12.8 in April 1995. Average fleet size was 14.9 aircraft units, compared with 11.1 a year ago. For the first four months, block hours increased 34% to 14,926, and utilization fell to 9.9 block hours per day from 10.3. Average aircraft units numbered 12.4, compared with nine in the same 1995 period.
Southwest has launched "Go West" discounts on fares from San Antonio, Austin and Houston to Nashville and destinations in the West. One-way fares range from $49 to $99. They require a seven-day advance purchase.
Strong international business helped generate another healthy month of traffic growth for Northwest in April. International traffic jumped 18.1% last month, compared with April 1995 levels, pushing systemwide traffic up 11.2%. Capacity for the month increased 7%, while the load factor increased 2.7 percentage points to 70.9%. The number of passengers carried rose 8.9%. For the first four months, traffic was up 11.9%, compared with the same 1995 period, on 8.1% more capacity. The load factor was up 2.4 points to 70.4%.
Reno Air, emulating Southwest, has started offering "Take A Friend" fares. The discounts enable a full-fare passenger to take up to three companion passengers on the trip for $50 roundtrip each between either Fairbanks or Anchorage and Seattle and Portland.
