The arrival of the first two EmbraerRJ-145s marks the beginning of the transition to an all-jet fleet for Swiss regional Crossair.
Delivery took place against the background of a new corporate image and the presentation of the annual results for 1999. In what turned out to be a tough year, chief executive Moritz Suter says the airline fought strongly to still produce "an impressive result".
Revenues were up by close to 15% at SFr1.163 billion ($785 million), after another year of strong growth, which saw passenger numbers come close to the 6 million mark.
However, net profit fell for the first time in years, slipping 20% to SFr51 million. Suter points to a mix of factors, including the continued decline in yields, the strength of the US dollar and a fuel price that has doubled over the year. "A lot of airlines are in a difficult state. When British Airways makes losses you know that the problems are not home grown," says Suter.
The airline got off to a troubled start in 2000, with the airline suffering its first fatal crash in January. The pilots' staff association also decided to terminate the current collective working agreement and had pushed for foreign pilots to boycott the carrier. A third round of negotiations took place in mid-April.
But, says Suter, financial and operating performances in the first three months of 2000 are better than the same period last year. Measures to improve earnings by around SFr50 million include the postponement of new routes, modification of the existing network and better optimisation of the fleet.
Crossair has 85 Embraer regional jets on firm order, plus 115 options, which will replace all turboprops and BAE RJ85/100 and Boeing MD-80 jets by 2006. The firm orders comprise 25 50-seat ERJ-145s and 30 each of the 70-seat ERJ-170 and 108-seat ERJ-190 models. Suter adds that it is likely that six to eight aircraft at EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg will be of the smaller 35-seat ERJ-135 variant.
The aircraft acquistion, valued at $2.5 billion, will largely be financed from operating cashflow but with some $400 million from aircraft sales and leasing.
Source: Airline Business
