All air transport news – Page 2435

  • News

    Aircraft news

    1997-01-01T11:49:00Z

     Boeing has signed a deal with American Airlines, granting the US manufacturer sole supplier status for jet aircraft until 2018. As part of the deal American has placed firm orders for 12 B777s, four B767-300ERs, 12 B757-200s, and 75 B737-600/700/800s. The US carrier has also taken so-called purchase rights on ...

  • News

    Appointments

    1997-01-01T11:48:00Z

    Philip Chen will succeed Simon Heale as deputy managing director at Cathay Pacific Airways from mid-March. Heale takes up the position of finance director at Swire Pacific. Stanley Hui will replace Chen as Dragonair's chief executive from 1 February 1997, while Hui's role as chief operating officer of Air Hong ...

  • News

    Stalemate in London talks

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    UK and US negotiators kept to uncontentious issues such as ground handling and customs procedures during the latest round of bilateral talks in London in December 1996. Any breakthrough seems unlikely before the UK Office of Fair Trading and US Department of Justice rule on the proposed British Airways-American Airlines ...

  • News

    Airbus steal

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Alenia is to join the four Airbus partners in the development of the AE100 with China and Singapore. In a blow to AI(R), the European partners decided to pursue the programme through Airbus, instead. The deal paves the way for Alenia to join the Airbus consortium after the latter's restructuring. ...

  • News

    Toughing out the boom

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    In 1997, can the major airlines improve on their performance in the boom year of 1996? Airline Business previews the main issues which will dominate airline executives' thinking in 1997. These are the good times, but life for the average airline manager does not appear to be getting any easier. ...

  • News

    Polls leave Thai with Bill

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    A change of government has rubbed salt into Thai Airways International's wounds. Lack of political clearance forced the carrier to postpone its US$4.7 billion fleet revamp and accept penalties of some $40 million. The latest setback for the mostly state-owned carrier comes on top of disastrous fourth quarter results which ...

  • News

    Boeing pulls off twin coup

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Boeing is turning up the heat on rival Airbus with two groundbreaking deals. The US manufacturer has signed American Airlines up to a 22-year exclusive pact and removed its only domestic rival by pulling in McDonnell Douglas to help in the design and development of future widebodies. Reaction ...

  • News

    Alitalia pays a small price

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Alitalia has been fined by the Italian antitrust authorities for bullying tactics against domestic competitors, and as it succeeds in removing one through a codeshare deal with startup Alpi Eagles, another potential threat appears in the form of Azzurra Air. The authorities found that Alitalia had 'impeded, blocked ...

  • News

    United allies down under

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    The fierce fight for market share on routes in and out of Australasia is set to hot up even further following Air New Zealand's alliance with United Airlines and a new capacity-boosting bilateral between Australia and the UK. The fledgling partnership of Air New Zealand and Australia's Ansett ...

  • News

    China puts on the squeeze

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    China is having mixed success in its aviation policy. Despite easing the moratorium on aircraft orders, Beijing is now having to curb international capacity growth for fear of Chinese carriers losing out to their foreign counterparts. But the authorities are having more success in their drive for domestic consolidation. ...

  • News

    Beijing spurs triple listing

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Three Chinese airlines are pressing ahead with plans for initial public offerings, but at presstime it was unclear whether they would beat the 1 January deadline. Missing that date would mean they would have to include another year's audited financial results in their share prospectuses. Following the Civil ...

  • News

    Wheeling out the service

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    For major airlines seeking high-margin travellers, customer service will be a key to profitability. Still, Philip Festa says pressures within the industry are threatening to squeeze carriers' service levels. Customer service is now the norm throughout almost all sectors of commerce: supermarkets, hotels, banks and fast food chains vie ...

  • News

    Airline news

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Austrian Airlines and Swissair have confirmed taking a 18.37 per cent stake in Ukraine International Airlines through a holding company in which Austrian Airlines holds 77.78 per cent and Swissair 22.22 per cent. KLMwill inaugurate twice weekly services to Abidjan and to Nagoya via Sapporo from April 1997 ...

  • News

    All aboard for the next recession

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    You've seen it all before. A recession coincides with the delivery of hundreds of new aircraft. Swamped with capacity, airlines seek to extract some revenue from their glossy new machines by placing too much capacity into the marketplace. Yields and load factors plummet, and the red ink flows. All future ...

  • News

    Financial results

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Operating income rose 9% to US$151.8m, spurred on by a 38% increase in transborder traffic. There was a $42.8m one-time gain in the 1995 period. Operating profit rose 30% to $214.7m despite lower yields and higher fuel costs. In the 1995 half Air France made $59.8m before severance ...

  • News

    End of Korea for Fokker

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Korea's Samsung may turn to purchasing the turboprop operations of one of the European manufacturers following the collapse of its plans to buy Fokker's remaining assets. Fokker's administrators ended discussions with Samsung on 28 November after Fokker suppliers declined to accept further orders because of the uncertainty surrounding ...

  • News

    Bespoke fortunes

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Effective, efficient hubs are vital to most US majors' profitability. But do they operate in everybody's best interests and is stronger regulation needed? Karen Walker reports. You either love hubs or hate them. A government department has accused the US majors of continuing to use their hubs to raise fares ...

  • News

    A measure of Irala's intent

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Iberia's new president has plenty of work to do if he is to fulfil his aim of privatising the carrier by 2000. Xabier de Irala talks to Mark Odell in the first major interview since his appointment. Xabier de Irala Estevez is a not only a newcomer to the airline ...

  • News

    JAL plans new carrier

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Japan Airlines (JAL) plans to establish a new low-cost subsidiary carrier in March, in the face of growing domestic competition. The new carrier hopes to cut air fares by up to 20% on trunk services to Sapporo and Fukuoka, by using foreign crews and flight attendants and scaling back in- ...

  • News

    Malaysia Airlines gears up for overhaul on 777 service-entry

    1997-01-01T00:00:00Z

    Malaysia Airlines (MAS) plans to begin implementing an overhaul of its operations, to coincide with the entry into service of the Boeing 777-200IGW this year. The sweeping changes will include a rationalisation of MAS aircraft and engine types, with the phasing out of some of its Boeing 747-400/300s, ...