Airline Business articles from November 2005

Airline Business archives from November 2005

...as Delta's knife cuts less deeply.(Delta Air Lines Inc.)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Where Northwest Airlines flexed raw muscle with its feeders, Delta Air Lines has exercised a less robust approach. It has told Skywest Airlines that it will honour its contract with the Utah-based regional, the owner of its Atlantic Southeast...

Regionals bruised by Northwest...(Northwest Airlines Corp.)
November 1, 2005... Northwest moved to create its own internal operating unit to fly larger regional jets with lower-paid Northwest pilots, using the prospect of increased flying to pressure its unions into further concessions. At the same time, it exercised its...

Foreign ties make Argentinians cry.(Aerolineas Argentinas S.A.)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Cross-border equity ties carry their own risks. Aerolineas Argentinas and LAN Argentina are learning this as they face public opposition to their foreign links. Relations between Aerolineas and Buenos Aires have never been smooth, but they...

Fast-pass programme runs into government buffer.
November 1, 2005... An ambitious passenger-screening programme to speed frequent flyers through airport security checkpoints has lost government support. Although private entrepreneurs vow to advance the "fast-lanes" for known travellers, the concept of selecting...

Jazz sell-off hits flat note.(Jazz Air)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... ACE had prepared to offer the stake via an income trust, the same investment vehicle it used for its successful sale in June of a minority stake in AeroPlan, Air Canada's loyalty plan. Income trusts have become popular with Canadian companies...

JetBlue steps up attack with first 190s.(JetBlue Airways )
November 1, 2005... Carole Shifrin Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil US majors will soon come under pressure from JetBlue Airways on some of their thinner routes, as the carrier introduces its upscale, low-fare service on its new Embraer 190s. During November JetBlue...

Is it a two-way street?(airlines)
November 1, 2005... Last month this magazine reviewed the background to and prospects for transatlantic Open Skies as a curtain raiser to the next round of meetings. Although nothing in life is certain, and even progress towards an agreement may be a significant...

Malaysia hikes pay for pilots.(Malaysia Airline System Bhd. signs memorandum of understanding with MAS Pilots' Association)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Malaysia Airlines (MAS) has given its pilots sizeable pay rises to stop them from joining better-paying airlines. The state-owned carrier has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the MAS Pilots' Association (MAPA) "for revised terms...

OzJet races into Australian market.
November 1, 2005... The Melbourne-based start-up plans to launch flights in the busy Sydney-Melbourne corridor during November. Its starting date has slid some, but Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority says OzJet is now "on track" to receive its operator's...

Air Sahara seeks cash influx.
November 1, 2005... India's Air Sahara is seeking to raise cash to help expand its fledgling international operation and boost domestic services. The country's second-largest privately owned airline after Jet Airways says it has hired Ernst & Young to help it in...

Tasman rivals talk codeshares again.(Air New Zealand Ltd., Qantas Airways Ltd.)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Facing losses on trans-Tasman routes between Australia and New Zealand, Qantas and Air New Zealand (ANZ) have revived talks about a codeshare. The carriers have sought ways to co-operate ever since antitrust authorities rejected their proposed...

Bangkok talks up new hub.(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Thailand has launched a public relations campaign to talk up its new Bangkok airport, as questions remain over when exactly the hub facility will open. The new airport had its first ceremonial test flights at the end of September on the day it...

State pushes privatisation.(Airports Authority of India)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... More than a year ago the government said 10 consortia had submitted expressions of interest in taking long-term leases on Delhi and Mumbai airports, which are badly in need of upgrades. Of these, eight were approved to go through to the next...

Indian carriers lament ending of tax break.
November 1, 2005... India's airlines may be forced to rework business plans after the government withdrew a long-standing tax exemption on aircraft lease payments, which threatens to dramatically increase their operating costs. The new tax regime took effect from...

Pacific Blue's island hopes.(Virgin Blue Airlines Proprietary Ltd. adding two more islands nations to its network)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... The offshore arm of Australia's Virgin Blue is adding two more islands nations to its growing South Pacific network. Pacific Blue expected in October to add flights to Samoa and Tonga from both Australia and New Zealand. It will operate to...

Singaporean low-cost partners cement ties.(JetStar Asia, Valuair)
November 1, 2005... The two airlines were launched last year as separate low-cost carriers and merged recently under a common holding company, which has Australia's Qantas as its biggest single shareholder. Separate operations are being retained for now, but the...

Fyfe gets the nod at ANZ.(Air New Zealand appoints Rob Fyfe)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... After a global search, Air New Zealand (ANZ) has picked an insider to succeed Ralph Norris as chief executive. Rob Fyfe, who was already part of ANZ's senior management, became chief executive immediately upon his appointment in mid-October. He...

Spirit woos more US Airways managers.(Spirit Airlines )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Spirit Airlines is adding more US Airways executives to its management team with the appointment of John Prestifilippo as senior vice-president of technical operations and Tony Lefebvre as senior vice-president of customer service. The low-cost...

Walsh rings in the changes at British Airways.(Willie Walsh appointed)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... The arrival of Willie Walsh as chief executive of British Airways has seen some significant boardroom changes, including a new chief financial officer, Keith Williams. Williams moves over from his position as group treasurer and head of...

UK liberalises regional fifth freedoms.
November 1, 2005... Requests for fifth freedom rights, which enable an airline to carry passengers and cargo between airports in two other countries on a flight that originated in the home country, have usually been turned down by the UK. However, a study by the...

BA drives more sales via the web.(British Airways )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Making the most of the undoubted opportunity of extracting greater sales from the airline's website is a top priority for new British Airways chief executive Willie Walsh. He plans significant investment in the airline's website with the...

Lufthansa sells Loyalty Partner.(Deutsche Lufthansa AG)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2005... Andrea Crisp London Lufthansa has made book profits of [euro]100 million ($120 million) from the sale of its customer rewards company Loyalty Partner as it continues its strategy of focusing on its core business. Lufthansa subsidiary Lufthansa...

Seat-only plan for Condor.(charter carriers)(Thomas Cook Airlines)
November 1, 2005... Thomas Cook board member Ralf Teckentrup, who has been in charge of the group's airlines since 2004, says that the over-reliance on seasonality means that charter carriers will have to change their strategy and attract a higher proportion of...

Europe backs emissions trading.(European Union. European Commission)
November 1, 2005... The European Commission (EC) says the impact on ticket prices of an emissions trading scheme would be "modest", ranging from zero to [euro]9 ($11) per return flight. "With an increase of this level, aviation demand would simply grow at a...

Events diary.
November 1, 2005... NOVEMBER 1-3 IATA Cost Management Strategies Toronto, Canada Contact Wayne Chaif Tel +1 514 390 6711 website www.iata.org 1-3 IATA e-freight Conference Geneva, Switzerland Contact Philippe Guertin Tel +1 514 874 0202 x3495 website www.iata.org...

Timepiece.(airline services )(aircraft industry)
November 1, 2005... History, even contemporary history, is founded on two principles that have alas become commonplace truisms: its lessons are ignored at our mortal peril and its lessons repeat themselves. These truths apply even to a relatively narrow wedge of...

Headcoach.
November 1, 2005... Taking its lead from the tactics of the best of US and European carriers, GOL has risen to become the second-largest domestic carrier in Brazil, capturing more than a quarter of the market in less than five years. The low-fare, low-cost airline...

Harshrealities.(airline traffic)
November 1, 2005... The traditional airline network model appears to be in tatters. Two of the world's largest network carriers, Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines, filed for bankruptcy in September. Most network carriers have made substantial losses within...

Joiningthe dots.(airports and airlines)
November 1, 2005... The rise and rise of the low-cost sector and the emergence of new long-haul markets were once again the hot topics at this year's Routes, held in Copenhagen in late September. Today, extending the route map increasingly puts the spotlight on...

Routes briefs.
November 1, 2005... Low-cost cargo plan The New Airline Hall at Routes included what is claimed to be the first low-cost cargo carrier, named Freshline. The carrier is planning to fly perishable goods from Africa and the Middle East into Frankfurt Hahn. Freshline,...

Roller-coaster ride.
November 1, 2005... Over the past three decades I have seen the airline industry go on a wild roller- coaster ride. Battered by forces and events, in part outside the airlines' control, but also in part self-inflicted, the industry collectively and cumulatively...

Wake-upcall.(TAM Group)
November 1, 2005... As difficult as it may be to start a new airline, legacy carriers around the world are finding that adapting to the new competitive realities is not easy either. That has been the challenge for chief executive Marco Antonio Bologna at TAM, a...

Alitalia puts its case.(Alitalia Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. )
November 1, 2005... Alitalia would like to clarify statements made in a recent edition of Airline Business (Alitalia thrown a lifeline, September 2005 page 24). Having faced a critical economic and financial situation in 2004, Alitalia launched an ambitious...

Network 2006.
November 1, 2005... 5-7 March 2006 San Antonio, Texas Next year's Network gathering of airline route planners and airport marketing specialists is moving from its familiar Florida home to the equally sunny and welcoming city of San Antonio in Texas. It will...

In next month's issue of Airline Business.
November 1, 2005... Cover interview [degrees] Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal sees revenues tripling within five years as the carrier expands its domestic network and fills out its fledgling international operation. AITAL report [degrees] Our report from...

2nd FFP Conference.
November 1, 2005... 21-22 February 2006 Bangkok, Thailand The second FFP Conference, jointly organised by Airline Information and Global Flight Management in partnership with this magazine, will be modelled on the successful formula of the first conference...

Under wraps.
November 1, 2005... After its fourth big airline bankruptcy, following over $34 billion in legacy losses since 2001, the USA may have accepted that its airline industry is sick. But behind this diagnosis of the obvious, Wall Street, Congress and the flying public...

Cargo.
November 1, 2005... Time to remove all paper documents?Page 48 Facing up to the integrator-forwardersPage 52 How to tackle China's cargo imbalancePage 57 The annual airline and airport rankingsPage 59

Unequal struggle.(air cargo traffic)
November 1, 2005... Last year was a good one for cargo growth, the best since the late 1990s, with IATA recording a 13.4% rise in traffic for the year. Even more cheerfully, capacity growth for once did not exceed traffic growth, staying at 12.1% for the year. In...

Paperfarewell.(air cargo industry overview)
November 1, 2005... Once again the air cargo industry is the subject of a bold initiative to haul it into the 21st century. One of the five planks of IATA's Simplifying the Business initiative, the project that has been dubbed "e-freight", aims to remove all paper...

Dominantforce.
November 1, 2005... "Won't customers always prefer to use more than one supplier to spread the risk?" Roland Bischoff senior vice-president global airfreight, Kuehne + Nagel It used to be fashionable for speeches at air cargo conferences in the late 1990s to...

Freighters in short supply.
November 1, 2005... Planning to expand your long-haul freighter fleet? Not placed your aircraft order yet? Then you could be disappointed. A definite shortage of widebody freighters is emerging, which could last until the end of the decade. Just six months ago, it...