All news – Page 6408
-
News
Stormy weather
Carole Shifrin WASHINGTON DC Air traffic delays are not unique to Europe. The USA is also being forced to look hard at upgrading services After some fierce attacks by several top airline officials on the Federal Aviation Administration's running of the US air traffic control system, airline and FAA ...
-
News
Controlling the future
Peter Bennett VIENNA Commercialisation, privatisation and the empowerment of Eurocontrol are possible solutions to Europe's growing delays. The solution for Europe's air traffic delays is simple. First, look at the causes - a fragmented air system controlled by a patchwork of control centres that leads to the inefficient management ...
-
News
Raising the internet stakes
Dennis Blank ORLANDO The explosion of online travel booking in the USA - stimulated by offerings of bargain basement ticket fares - is attracting the wrath of travel agents. But US major carriers cannot ignore this rapidly growing marketplace. This year, the customary late summer round of airfare bargains across ...
-
News
TAP Air Portugal signs deal with pilots' union
Barry Cross LONDON Following two and a half years of labour unrest, TAP Air Portugal has signed an agreement with pilots' union (SPAC). As part of the new deal, all employees will now receive previously agreed increases of 3% for both 1998 and 1999. The pilots' working week will ...
-
News
Negotiating change at ALPA
Karen Walker WASHINGTON DC ALPA's new president, Duane Woerth, says he is not afraid of change. But the US pilots he represents are beating the same drum: they expect to see their airlines' profitability reflected in new contract negotiations. If Duane Woerth is looking for a fight, he does a ...
-
News
Union blues
Jane Levere NEW YORK For all the talk of change in the airline industry, contentious pilot-management relations seem to many to be set in stone. Industry observers believe two imminent contract negotiations - at Delta and United - will set the benchmarks for labour relations generally. When the ...
-
News
BA reins in again
Lois Jones LONDON British Airways may have stayed profitable through the last recession but it is now fighting to stay out of the red For over a decade British Airways has been the shining example of how a profitable airline should look. But it could be about to fall from ...
-
News
CAL goes on spending spree
Nicholas Ionides ATI SINGAPORE Taiwan's China Airlines (CAL) has finalised a long-awaited fleet renewal plan with $5.6 billion worth of orders for up to 36 aircraft from Airbus Industrie and Boeing. The split order, the largest in the history of Taiwanese civil aviation, covers firm orders for 13 Boeing ...
-
News
Air India on the offensive
Ravi Prasad NEW DELHI India's state-owned carriers, Air India and Indian Airlines, are clashing over the right to fly routes from the subcontinent to the Persian Gulf. Loss-making Air India is lobbying the civil aviation ministry to wrest these lucrative routes from its domestic rival, which is fighting back ...
-
News
Philippines toughs out 'protectionist' attack
Nicholas Ionides ATI SINGAPORE The Philippine Government has come under attack for growing protectionism in its air services policy, but mounting criticism appears only to have toughened its stance. Accusations of protectionism were lodged by Taiwan in July when its national carrier, China Airlines (CAL), was hit with a 30-day ...
-
News
Better times beckon in the South Pacific
David Knibb SEATTLE Airlines of the South Pacific islands have had one of their best years ever, led by Fiji's Air Pacific. Two of the region's chronic losers are showing profits, but the scene at Air Niugini stays turbulent. Fijian flag carrier Air Pacific had a record year, posting ...
-
News
Sun Air to close?
A row has erupted over plans by South African Airways (SAA) to close down Sun Air, shortly after having agreed to acquire a controlling 75% stake in its domestic competitor. At the end of August, SAA apparently gained control of Sun Air and promptly announced plans to wind it ...
-
News
A crowded market
Lois Jones BEIJING & SHANGHAI Still shuddering from Asia's economic crisis, China's aviation industry is restructuring with domestic tie-ups and the home market high on the agenda. The Hainan Airlines aircraft took off and spread its wings over the sprawling mass of Guangzhou, south China - one of the most ...
-
News
Ottawa ponders Canadian Airlines rescue options
Canada's federal government has been forced to intervene to avert a looming crisis at Canadian Airlines. Ottawa stepped in because of a growing threat that Canadian might not survive this coming winter. The beleaguered carrier has reported an annual profit in only one of the past 10 years, ...
-
News
American opens door for Latin alliance
David Knibb SEATTLE A common alliance with a US partner has spawned a ground-breaking venture between two Latin American airlines. LanChile and Aerolineas Argentina have launched an air cargo joint venture, citing their common connections with American Airlines as a catalyst for the deal. "The relationship with American Airlines ...
-
News
United offers more business legroom
Jane Levere NEW YORK Battling, like every other carrier, for the higher-yield market, United Airlines is installing improved seating at the back of the cabin in its domestic fleet in order to reward its most frequent or full-fare economy passengers. The carrier is reconfiguring the first six to 11 rows ...
-
News
Venezuela retaliates against US "safety" freeze
David Knibb SEATTLE Caracas is sitting on applications from American Airlines' subsidiaries to operate into Venezuela because of Washington's Category 2 freeze on Venezuelan airline flights to the USA. The government of Hugo Chavez is showing its nationalistic face by refusing to grant extra-bilateral US rights while Washington continues ...
-
News
Brazilians refute merger speculation
Brian Homewood RIO DE JANEIRO Brazil's four major airlines have described reports that they are considering merging into two as "mere speculation". But the Brazilian airline industry remains awash with rumours that Varig, Vasp, Transbrasil and Tam could join forces. Varig says that company president Fernando Pinto, who went on ...
-
News
AA/BA antitrust crumbles
Karen walker WASHINGTON DC If American Airlines and British Airways gambled that their application for an antitrust immunised alliance would not be refused in the wake of other high-profile immunities, then it has proved a bad bet. Two-and-a-half years later, those alliance hopes have been dashed by the US ...
-
News
US carriers sign DoD MoU
The US Department of Defense (DoD) has moved to ensure that foreign airlines that codeshare with US carriers have equal standards of safety. Six major US carriers signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the DoD on 6 August agreeing that their codeshare partners will undergo an initial safety ...