Andrew Doyle/PRAGUE
The Czech Government is considering floating a large minority stake in flag-carrier CSA Czech Airlines on a European stock exchange in the next two to three years. The airline, a SkyTeam alliance recruit, has meanwhile decided to acquire a fleet of 70-seat regional jets, and expects to select an aircraft type early next year.
CSA president Miroslav Kula says he would support a partial flotation, which would represent "the last step in the complete transformation" of the airline since the raising of the Iron Curtain a decade ago. Prague wants to go ahead with the sale, but a final decision is some way off, according to Kula. Should it proceed, the state is likely to retain just over 50% of the company. Part of the sale could involve shares going to a strategic partner and/or employees.
The government owns the majority of CSA indirectly, with the state property fund holding 56% and the KoB state bank 34%. Remaining shares are split between several Czech financial institutions. CSA made a CKr37 million ($930,000) profit in 1999 and predicts it will surpass the figure this year, with passenger traffic up 23% for the first eight months.
"My expectation is that this year will be historically the best year for CSA," says Kula, who predicts traffic growth for the full year at a "very nice"13-15%. The carrier has nevertheless only recently achieved "European average" aircraft load factors, he adds.
CSA will formally join the Air France/Delta-led SkyTeam alliance on 1 April next year, with its Prague hub key to the group's Central and Eastern European plans. Kula believes co-operation with Delta will bring "a lot of possibilities" in terms of code-sharing. CSA has a code-sharing deal with Continental, serving its Newark gateway from Prague with Airbus A310s. Additional services to New York JFK may be launched after CSA joins SkyTeam, to bolster links with Delta.
CSA also wants about five 70-seat regional jets to open new routes from Prague extending beyond the 90min flight time Kula considers acceptable for its ATR turboprop operations. It is holding discussions with Bombardier, Embraer, Fairchild and BAE Systems and aims to finalise an order early next year for delivery in 2003-04. "Regional jets are a trend which we cannot ignore," Kula says. "However, thanks to the location of Prague in the centre of Europe I think there is still an opportunity for turboprops."
Source: Flight International
