Airline Finance News - Europe.AER LINGUS Aer Lingus's long-awaited privatization privatization: see nationalization. privatization Transfer of government services or assets to the private sector. State-owned assets may be sold to private owners, or statutory restrictions on competition between privately and publicly owned once again is a hot and much-disputed topic in Ireland as the government is expected to announce this month the details and timing of the transition. Management prefers an IPO (Initial Public Offering) The first time a company offers shares of stock to the public. While not a computer term per se, many founders, employees and insiders of computer companies have found this acronym more exciting than any tech term they ever heard. over a trade sell-off to realize its strategic plan and fund its ambitious fleet expansion. In December, AIB/UBS recommended to the government that the airline be privatized through a flotation rather than a private placement. Workers, however, oppose a sell-off and have threatened to strike. Mar 15, 2006 AIR FRANCE Air France signed a 2006-07 wage agreement with ground staff and cabin crews represented by six unions, comprising the majority of its staff. Several unions did not sign the deal and are calling for a work stoppage on March 24. Employees will receive a [euro]500 bonus next month and an average overall pay increase of 3.3% over two years. Mar 17, 2006 Air France unveiled its new [euro]120 million ($143.7 million), 33,310-sq.-m. Flight Crew Center at Paris Charles de Gaulle yesterday. Approximately 18,000 members of AF's flightdeck and cabin crew will be based at the facility. Construction began in December 2003. Mar 16, 2006 BRITISH AIRWAYS British Airways to cut 400 direct sales jobs. British Airways announced the proposed closure of its Travel Shops business and its Belfast call center, moves that would shave approximately 400 jobs from the cost-cutting carrier's payroll. Mar 16, 2006 Finnair Finnair CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. counting on maintenance savings, Asian operations Following a fourth quarter in which it lost [euro]2.9 million ($3.5 million) owing to surging costs, Finnair's new president and CEO, Jukka Hienonen, told this website in Helsinki that the carrier will keep working toward securing a cost base that will ensure profitability even as it continues to demonstrate operational improvements. Mar 14, 2006 Lufthansa Lufthansa CFO See Chief Financial Officer. Karl-Ludwig Kley is leaving the company for a position at Merck, the German pharmaceutical giant. He informed Supervisory Board Supervisory board The board of directors that represents stakeholders in the governance of the corporation. Chairman Juergen Weber by telephone on Sunday, Lufthansa said. The board will discuss Kley's successor at its March 22 meeting. Mar 14, 2006 SAS Group SAS Group said it completed the sale of 67% of SAS (1) (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, www.sas.com) A software company that specializes in data warehousing and decision support software based on the SAS System. Founded in 1976, SAS is one of the world's largest privately held software companies. See SAS System. Component to Singapore Technologies Engineering Singapore Technologies Engineering is a global defence and engineering group of over 100 subsidiaries in 29 cities in 17 countries. Its customer base covers over 60 countries. Overview Its United States headquarters is a subsidiary Vision Technologies Systems Inc. , parent of ST Aerospace. The transaction will "release capital from its component inventories," so SAS put the total value at SEK SEK In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the Swedish Krona. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. 2.5 billion ($311 million) including the purchase price of SEK760 million, "while the positive effect on cash and net debt is SEK2 billion." As part of the agreement, SAS signed a multiyear material supply deal with SAS Component to provide material support, component repair and overhaul and logistics support of the SAS fleet. Mar 16, 2006 Swiss International, Swiss European Air Lines Swiss European Air Lines is a subsidiary of Swiss International Air Lines, operating as the latter on some of its short haul routes. Swiss International Air Lines, also known as SWISS, is the successor of Swissair, following that company's grounding in 2001. Swiss International Air Lines Swiss International Air Lines (short: Swiss) is the principal airline of Switzerland operating scheduled services in Europe and to North America, South America, Africa and Asia. Its main hub is Zurich Kloten Airport (ZRH). announced that its new Swiss European Air Lines unit and the Swiss Pilots Assn. tentatively agreed on a three-year collective bargaining agreement The contractual agreement between an employer and a Labor Union that governs wages, hours, and working conditions for employees and which can be enforced against both the employer and the union for failure to comply with its terms. . According to an airline statement, "the new accord pays due and full regard to the ongoing restructuring concept and to the intensified competitive environment, and assures employees of a continuation of socially acceptable working terms and conditions." Provided it is approved by union members, the agreement will enter into effect on April 1. Mar 17, 2006 Thomas Cook Airlines Thomas Cook Airlines of Belgium reported a pre-tax profit of [euro]3.2 million ($3.8 million) on revenues of [euro]132.36 million in the financial year ended Oct. 31, 2005. The carrier will add a sixth A320 in the coming months to accommodate its forecast growth. Launched in 2002, it transported 997,100 passengers aboard 3,339 flights to 45 leisure destinations during the fiscal year. "In four years' time, we managed to become a financially healthy carrier owing to the professionalism of our team and the lessons learned from the many bankruptcies in the Belgian airline sector," GM Ulf Weber noted. Mar 15, 2006 |
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