January 21 Airline News

C

chipmunn

Guest
[FONT face=Times New Roman size=3][STRONG]Airline industry expects bumpy ride to recovery [/STRONG][/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]WASHINGTON (USA Today) - After two years of record losses for U.S. airlines, even optimists' forecasts sound gloomy. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Some industry analysts say the nation's biggest carriers might lose only $3.5 billion this year - following $16 billion in losses in 2001 and 2002 - if they're lucky. Other major airlines might get through 2003 without following United and US Airways into bankruptcy reorganization - if they're lucky. The industry could break even next year - maybe. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://www.usatoday.com/money/biztravel/2003-01-20-airlines-cover_x.htm][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://www.usatoday.com/money/biztravel/2003-01-20-airlines-cover_x.htm[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]American, Continental, and America West hire bankruptcy attorneys [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]CHICAGO (Reuters) - More major U.S. airlines, including the world's largest, American Airlines, have hired bankruptcy lawyers in the face of an unprecedented downturn as war with Iraq looms, sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.[/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/030121/airlines_2.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/030121/airlines_2.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3][STRONG]Stronger US airline revenue not likely to persist [/STRONG][/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]CHICAGO, Jan 21 (Reuters) - U.S. airline revenue picked up in December, new data shows, but analysts do not expect a strengthening trend in coming months as the industry battles weak demand and braces for a potential war with Iraq. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_revenues_1.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_revenues_1.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3][STRONG]AMR CEO: Airline borrowing money to make payroll [/STRONG][/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]DALLAS (AP) - American Airlines Inc., which is borrowing money to make payroll, needs to cut additional costs and is turning to labor unions, the carrier's chief executive says. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/4995757.htm][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/business/4995757.htm[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Unions call on AMR to end labor-law lobbying [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]FORT WORTH (Reuters) - Unions representing 75,000 employees at American Airlines parent company AMR Corp. on Tuesday called on AMR to stop lobbying Washington on labor laws, saying the campaign is hampering cooperative efforts to keep the struggling airline in business. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_american_unions_1.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_american_unions_1.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Continental, Delta and Northwest Will Implement Alliance Agreement [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]WASHINGTON (PRNewswire-FirstCall) - Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines today issued the following response to the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) notice last Friday proposing to impose certain conditions on the implementation of the carriers' marketing agreement: [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030121/datu031_1.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030121/datu031_1.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Three U.S. airlines object to codeshare conditions [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Continental, Delta and Northwest airlines on Tuesday said they planned to move ahead with their recently approved marketing deal but said they would not agree to some of the conditions set forth by the government. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_codeshare_1.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_codeshare_1.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Chip comments:[/FONT][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] This is the second time the U.S. government has brought up a legal proceeding against NW and CO. In my opinion, the objective of the three airlines is to settle with the government to obtain further DOT relief. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]U.S. Seeks to Halt Delta, Northwest, Continental Pact [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]WASHINGTON (Bloomberg) - The U.S. will try to block a planned alliance of Delta Air Lines Inc., Northwest Airlines Corp. and Continental Airlines Inc. after the carriers rejected some government conditions aimed at promoting competition. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?T=marketsquote99_relnews.ht&s=APi3S6BVoVS5TLiBT][FONT face=Times New Roman color=#0000ff size=3]http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?T=marketsquote99_relnews.ht&s=APi3S6BVoVS5TLiBT[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Three Airlines Say They'll Go Ahead With Alliance, Ignore Government Conditions [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]WASHINGTON (AP) - Delta, Northwest and Continental airlines said Tuesday they will go ahead with a marketing alliance and ignore government restrictions aimed at preventing them from dominating air travel in certain markets. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22044-2003Jan21.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22044-2003Jan21.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]US airlines on collision course with regulators, DOT expected to institute a formal enforcement proceeding [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]WASHINGTON (FT.com) - Three of the top five US carriers Delta Air Lines, Northwest Airlines and Continental Airlines are to press ahead with their ambitious ten-year marketing alliance in defiance of the US aviation industry's main competition regulator. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/ft/030121/1042490975746_1.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/ft/030121/1042490975746_1.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]U.S. to fight 3 airlines on joint marketing pact [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Transportation said on Tuesday it would take action against three airlines which have said they will defy some of the conditions set by the government for their joint marketing agreement. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_codeshare_enforce_1.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_codeshare_enforce_1.html[/FONT][/A][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]CO, DL, & NW Respond [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]ARLINGTON (theHub.com) - Continental, Delta and Northwest today issued a response to the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) notice last Friday proposing to impose certain conditions on the implementation of the carriers' marketing agreement. The carriers said in a statement: We have decided to move forward with implementation of our marketing agreement at the earliest possible date. As planned, the three airlines will soon offer reciprocal frequent flyer and airport lounge benefits to consumers, and will begin code sharing as[BR]soon as practicable. [BR][BR]The statement also said that the three airlines were prepared to accept most of the additional conditions that DOT sought to impose, but called others unacceptable, and said they will not agree to them. The statement also noted that the US Airways/United marketing arrangement was approved without DOT restrictions, and called the two agreements virtually identical.[BR][BR]Among the DOT requirements the airlines are rejecting on the grounds that they would undermine the value of the agreement:[BR][/FONT][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3][BR]Surrendering gates at hub airports that do not satisfy a 'utilization' test created by DOT.[/FONT] [BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3][BR]Some codeshare scope limitations and joint contract limitations with corporate customers.[/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]US Airways’ response is that the tri-alliance is much more complex than the US Airways/United alliance, and raises significant anti-competitive concerns. The DOT conditions are appropriate.[/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]All Firm Delta Orders for 2003-4 are RJ’s [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]WASHINGTON (Aviation Daily) - All 54 2003 aircraft orders at Delta are for regional jets, according to thecompany’s latest financials. Delta has firm orders for 31 Canadair RJ 100/200s and 20 CRJ 700s. All 23 confirmed 2004 orders are also for RJs. Delta has deferred orders on all mainline aircraft for this year and next, a company spokesman said. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Bloomberg’s Merek interviews Delta CEO Leo Mullin on alliance [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]ATLANTA (Bloomberg) - Leo Mullin, chief executive officer of Delta Air Lines Inc., talks with Bloomberg's Lynne Marek via telephone about regulatory hurdles to the company's plan to form an alliance with Northwest Airlines Corp. and Continental Airlines Inc. The carriers plan to sell tickets on one another's flights and jointly market themselves to travel agents. [/FONT][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3](This is not a legal transcript. Bloomberg LP cannot guarantee its accuracy.) [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?T=marketsquote99_relnews.ht&s=APi260BFARGVsdGEg&ao=19142233][FONT face=Times New Roman color=#0000ff size=3]http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?T=marketsquote99_relnews.ht&s=APi260BFARGVsdGEg&ao=19142233[/FONT][/A][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Northwest Airlines reports $488 mln 4th-qrtr loss [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]MINNEAPOLIS (Reuters) - Northwest Airlines Corp. on Tuesday reported a $488 million quarterly net loss, mainly because of special charges for early retirement of planes, as weak air fares continued to pressure results. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_northwest_earns_1.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030121/airlines_northwest_earns_1.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Northwest Reports Loss, Sees More Cuts, takes pension charge against equity, seeks pension waiver [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]CHICAGO (Reuters) - Northwest Airlines Corp. on Tuesday reported a quarterly net loss that more than doubled from a year earlier and said additional belt tightening that could include jobs would have to occur. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/030121/airlines_northwest_earns_2.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/030121/airlines_northwest_earns_2.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]S&P cuts Northwest Airlines' NWA Trust ratings, airline to seek labor concessions [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]NEW YORK (S&P) - Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today that it lowered its ratings on Northwest Airlines Corp.'s NWA Trust No. 1, Class A, to 'BB' from 'BBB-' and on the Class B to 'B+' from 'BB'. The BB-/Negative/-- corporate credit ratings of Northwest Airlines Corp. and its Northwest Airlines Inc. subsidiary are affirmed. The rating actions reflected substantial deterioration in collateral coverage for NWA Trust No. 1, the first enhanced equipment trust certificate, which is secured by six B747-200 and four B757-200 aircraft. Northwest Airlines Corp.'s $488 million fourth quarter 2002 net loss, reported today, included $366 million of pretax charges to write down B747-200 and DC10-30 aircraft whose retirement is being accelerated. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/030121/airlines_northwest_s_p_1.html][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/030121/airlines_northwest_s_p_1.html[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Northwest Airlines pilot arrested at LaGuardia, alleged to have loaded gun in carry-on luggage [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]NEW YORK (AP) - A Northwest Airlines pilot scheduled to work a Detroit-bound flight was arrested Tuesday morning at LaGuardia Airport after a loaded handgun was found in his carry-on luggage, authorities said. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Robert Donaldson, 43, was charged with three state counts of criminal possession of a weapon, and could face up to 15 years in prison, said the office of Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Complete Story: [/FONT][A target=_blank href=http://www.nj.com/newsflash/national/index.ssf?/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?a0626_BC_PilotArrested&&news&newsflash-national][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]http://www.nj.com/newsflash/national/index.ssf?/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?a0626_BC_PilotArrested&&news&newsflash-national[/FONT][/A][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3] [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]US Airways ALPA MEC CODE-A-PHONE UPDATE - January 21, 2003 [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]This is Roy Freundlich with a US Airways MEC update for Tuesday, January 21, with two new items: [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Item 1. On Thursday, January 23, the Retirement and Insurance Committee, Negotiating Committee, MEC officers and Communications Committee will be conducting an internal meeting with ALPA and MEC professional and legal advisors at the ALPA offices in Herndon. MEC Chairman Bill Pollock has scheduled the meeting to coordinate pension plan issues and MEC contingency strategies. The MEC is anticipating a special meeting on pension issues in early February. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Item 2. Some pilots have reported difficulty connecting to some senators’ fax numbers over the holiday weekend as part of the pension legislative grassroots effort that was introduced on Friday. Most of the fax lines are now open, although it may take several attempts before you complete a connection. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]If you haven’t yet participated, you can go to the pilots only website under urgent information and click on the link to the Legislative Affairs Committee home page. The information includes a prepared form letter and the names and fax numbers of the Senate Finance Committee members. Also, please note that the fax number for Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona has been updated. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Thank you in advance for your participation in this very important effort. [/FONT][BR][BR][FONT face=Times New Roman size=3]Please remember we have 1,748 pilots on furlough, with 79 pilot furloughs scheduled for February 4.[/FONT]