Rising fuel costs, storms expected to hit airline earnings Wall Street expects quarterly losses for airlines to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars due to severe winter storms that caused flight cancellations, as well as an increase in the price of jet fuel. "We expect management teams to discuss concern over fuel prices while citing the ability to reduce capacity further if conditions warrant," wrote Hunter Keay, an analyst at Wolfe Trahan. "We believe no network airlines are currently passing through higher fuel costs." Link
Boeing works with Fujitsu on airplane fitness-to-fly tool Boeing and Fujitsu are developing a tool that allows airline ground crews to quickly check an airplane, with a launch customer expected to be announced this week. Phil Coop, program manager at Boeing, said the Component Management Optimization will include an emergency equipment management tool as well as other products. Link
Low-cost carrier penetration about 20% in the U.S. A global low-cost carrier survey of 36 airlines showed a 19% increase in total revenue last year. In the U.S. market, there is 20% saturation by low-cost carriers. "When your market is saturated, where do you go? You find more segments [of the market] or you fly further," said Oliver Wyman partner Blair Pomeroy. Link
Boeing to launch flight training campuses for Dreamliner Regulators have given Boeing the green light to start operating flight training campuses for its new 787 Dreamliner. Boeing has training courses in Asia, Europe and the U.S. and expects to deliver the first Dreamliner to All Nippon Airways later this year. Link
Airlines start to offer first-class seats on regional jets US Airways is following the lead of some other major airlines by improving the inside of their regional jets. Traditionally, the regional jets have not had any first-class seating, but that's changing as airlines use the planes to serve longer, more important routes. For the airlines, the ability to upgrade passengers to first-class seats helps them build loyalty. Link
Some EU states refuse to lift ban on liquid Several EU states are refusing to comply with an April 29 deadline for lifting a ban on liquids on commercial jetliners. The U.K. said it would not lift the ban until October, attributing the decision to a "continuing high threat" to its airports. Meanwhile, some airlines said inconsistency across Europe could frustrate travelers. Link
U.S. and Saudi Arabia sign an open-skies deal The government announced that it reached an open-skies agreement with Saudi Arabia. "This agreement strengthens and expands our already strong trade and tourism links with Saudi Arabia, and will benefit American and Saudi Arabian businesses and travelers," according to the U.S. State Department. Link
South Florida's airport restaurants strive to stand out Celebrity chef Lorena Garcia has created a special menu featuring Latin American- and Caribbean-inspired cuisine for the Bacardi Mojito Bar in Miami International Airport's North Terminal. The restaurant is an example of the lengths many airport eateries are going to in an effort to lure weary travelers. Link
Pilots at Hawaiian Airlines raise money for Japan Pilots at Hawaiian Airlines have raised $14,500 for victims of the earthquake and tsunamis in Japan. According to the Air Line Pilots Association, the pilots donated $9,500 and the union donated $5,000. The pilots gave the funds to the Hawaii chapter of the Red Cross. Link
Qantas CEO Joyce says unions' demands will 'kill jobs' Qantas CEO Alan Joyce slammed the unions representing the airline's engineers, pilots and baggage handlers, saying that they are conducting a "kamikaze" industrial campaign that will "kill jobs." Link
EC bans Mozambique airlines from European airspace The EU is banning all air carriers certified in Mozambique, including LAM Mozambique Airlines, from operating to its airports—as well as two Air Madagascar Boeing 767s—owing to “significant safety deficiencies,” the European Commission announced Tuesday in an update of its blacklist. Link
Bernstein: Le Bourget to center on A320neo, potential 737NG replacement The June 20-26 Paris Air Show will likely turn into an "Airbus festival," Bernstein Research predicted. But the New York-based firm warned that while the European manufacturer will rack up aircraft orders, it may not get the price premium it wants. Link
Sabre says AA 'threatens' agents with new fee Sabre Travel Network sent an email letter to subscribers warning that American Airlines had "threatened" some travel agents with a new fee of $5.50 per segment booked through a GDS. Link
EADS: Boeing’s “dumbed-down” KC-767 increases KC-Y prospects EADS North America's top executive says recent disclosures by Boeing show the KC-767 was "dumbed-down" to win the US Air Force KC-X contract, potentially opening the door for KC-45 sales in the future. Link
Boeing introduces “simEFB” for 737, 777 FTDs Boeing expects its "simulated Electronic Flight Bag" (simEFB) hardware, introduced at this week's World Aviation Training Conference and Tradeshow, to enhance B737 NextGen and 777 flight training. Link
iPad, the Game Changer The iPad is expected to speed implementation of electronic flight bag (EFB) technology across aviation markets, Boeing subsidiary Jeppesen predicted in an interview prior to the World Aviation Training Conference and Tradeshow in Orlando. Link
Other News
Armavia took delivery Tuesday of the first production Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SN95007), at Zvartnots International in Yerevan, nearly three years after the jet’s maiden flight. The aircraft was christened “Yuri Gagarin” in memory of the first cosmonaut. The Armenian carrier holds two firm orders plus two options.
Low Fare Carriers: If current trends hold up, low fare airlines will carry the majority of intra-Europe air travelers by 2020, predicts a new report from York Aviation. According to the report, which was commissioned by European Low Fares Airline Assn., low fare airlines had a 38% share of all scheduled intra-Europe passengers and a 43% share of scheduled point-to-point traffic in 2010 based on OAG data. York calculated that under a conservative "base growth" scenario, the low fare sector would have 50% share of point-to-point traffic by 2020, while under a high growth scenario it would reach 60%. The total passenger share for budget airlines will be 45% in 2020 under a base growth scenario and 53% under a high growth scenario.
JP Morgan has called on US legacy carriers to develop a new pricing model better able to cope with the roller coaster fluctuations in the price of oil. In a brief investment report on Tuesday, he wrote, "We can think of few consumer products that can be purchased up to 330 days prior to consumption, where the manufacturer or service provider has virtually no knowledge or control over their largest input cost [fuel]."
Ryanair will trial reserved seating on two routes from Dublin to Malaga and London Gatwick from May 16 in yet another move to generate more ancillary revenue. The pre-booked service costs €10 ($14.32) each way and includes priority boarding and the reservation of a seat in the front two rows or in over-wing emergency exit rows, which have more leg room.
Lufthansa Cargo Chairman and CEO Karl Ulrich Garnadt said the Austrian Lufthansa Cargo joint venture launched last year, through which LH and subsidiary Austrian Airlines jointly market and manage the two carriers' cargo capacity, has been successful. The airlines integrated handling and distribution in Austria while freight activities in all other countries fall under LHC management.
AFI KLM E&M was selected by Alitalia for GE90 maintenance and support. The contract includes support services with access to the spare engines pool and engine shop visits on a time and material basis. Separately, the company announced that Sunwing Airlines renewed its Boeing 737-800 component support contract for a further six years. In addition to full component repair and overhaul, it will provide access to the spares pool and deployment of a main base kit of spare parts in Toronto.
Lufthansa Technik reached a 10-year Total Component Support agreement with Sky Regional Airlines, covering its fleet of five Bombardier Q400s. It is LT's first Q400 customer in North America.
Boeing signed an agreement with Ethiopian Airlines to allow the carrier to participate in the 777 Component Services Program. ET is the 13th airline in the 777 CSP, which is offered jointly by Boeing and AFI KLM E&M. The agreement covers three 777-200LRs plus two additional deliveries, which are scheduled for April and July of this year.
Pratt & Whitney launched PureSolution services, a flexible maintenance plan designed for its PurePower engine family. PureSolution services will be delivered by P&W's service network and by new network partners, and will offer "a wide range of comprehensive and fully customizable MRO services," it said.
AVIATION QUOTE
You've got to expect things are going to go wrong. And we always need to prepare ourselves for handling the unexpected.
— Neil Armstrong, 2005 movie Magnificent Desolation: Walking On The Moon.
ON THIS DATE
April 20th
• In 1861... Thaddeus S.C. Lowe, American inventor and balloonist, makes a balloon trip from Cincinnati, Ohio to the South Carolina coast in 9 hours.
• In 1935... The first passengers leave for Australia on a new Imperial Airways/QANTAS service; the first Australian departures were made from Brisbane on April 17.
• In 1959... Aeroflot puts the 84 to 110-seater Ilyushin IL-18, its first turboprop, into service from Moscow to Alma Ata, Kazakhstan, and Adler, now Sochi, on the Black Sea.
DAILY VIDEO
EDITOR’S CHOICE
HUMOR
The Small White Dot
A kindergarten class had a homework assignment to find out something exciting and relate it to the class the next day.
When the time came to present what they'd found, the first little boy the teacher called on walked up to the front of the class, and with a piece of chalk, made a small white dot on the blackboard and sat back down.
Puzzled, the teacher asked him what it was. 'It's a period,' he replied. 'I can see that,' said the teacher, 'but what is so exciting about a period?
'Darned if I know,' he said, 'but this morning my sister was missing one, my mom fainted, my dad had a heart attack, and the boy next door joined the Navy.'
A. Viktor Belenko B. Lyle Shelton C. Adolf Galand D. Paul Tibbets E. Bob Hoover F. James Doolittle G. Curtis Pitts H. Alexander Zuyev I. Gabriel Gabreski J. Eric Hartmann
And let's get one thing straight. There's a big difference between a pilot and an aviator. One is a technician; the other is an artist in love with flight. — E. B. Jeppesen
1. B-29 - D. Paul Tibbets 2. B-25 - F. James Doolittle 3. P-47 - I. Gabriel Gabreski 4. Mig-25 - H. Alexander Zuyev 5. Mig-29 - A. Viktor Belenko 6. Bf-109 - J. Eric Hartmann 7. Fw-190 - C. Adolf Galand 8. S-2A - E. Bob Hoover 9. Shrike - B. Lyle Shelton 10. F-8F- G. Curtis Pitts
1. (D) Col Paul Tibbets dropped the first atomic bomb in combat from a B-29. 2. (F) Col Jimmy Doolitle led the retailiatory strike on the Japanese mainland from the USS Hornet flying B-25s. 3. (I) Col Gabby Gabreski was both a WW2 and Korean war ace. 4. (A) Viktor Belenko defected to Japan flying a MiG-25. 5. (H) Alexander Zuyen defected with a MiG-29. 6. (J) Eric Hartmann has the most aerial victories, 352. 7. (C) Adolf Galand was called the “Fighter Pilot General.” 8. (G) Curtis Pitts designed the Pitts Special. 9. (E) Bob Hoover demonstrated his energy management in a Rockwell Shrike. 10. (B) Lyle Shelton holds the absolute speed record in a piston engined airplane, “Rare Bear,” a Reno racer.
And let's get one thing straight. There's a big difference between a pilot and an aviator. One is a technician; the other is an artist in love with flight. — E. B. Jeppesen
