Loss-making Maersk Air says that it has two years to turn its fortunes around or face closure, but is optimistic that its unique low-fare strategy and move to a single-type fleet will ensure it survives.
The Danish charter and scheduled airline, which is owned by Denmark's huge shipping group AP Moeller, has undergone major restructuring over the last two years to reduce costs and has just relaunched as a fully fledged low fare carrier with an Expanded expanded network.
The final key element of the re-organisation should begin this year when Maersk finalises a fleet re-organisation which will see it standardise on the Boeing 737-700. The airline, which aims to expand its fleet of eight 737-700s to enable its seven 737-500s and four Bombardier CRJ200s to be phased out, has launched a worldwide search for secondhand -700s and plans to retrieve aircraft it had leased out. Once the 737 plan is finalised, the CRJ200s will be sold.
A longer-term plan could see the airline strike a major re-equipment deal with Airbus or Boeing.
"After three years of losses, we've only got one bullet in our rifle, so we've got to hit the target," says Maersk's director of sales and marketing Anne Von Glasow.
Maersk Air has introduced a simplified fare structure with lower prices based around four cabin classes - small (72 seats at 29in/74cm pitch), medium (40 seats at 33in pitch), large (12 seats at 37in and extra large (two rows of four seats abreast at 37in).
The airline had a capital injection of DKr700 million ($110 million) last year and Von Glasow warns it has "two years to make money or we will be broken into pieces or sold off". She says the new strategy, launched in March, has seen ticket sales rise significantly. "For it to work, we need a load factor of 74%," she says.
The airline's restructuring has raised aircraft annual utilisation from 2,200h to 3,500h and new contracts have been agreed with flight and cabin crew.
MAX KINGSLEY-JONES / LONDON
Source: Flight International
