Airline Finance News - Europe.Mar 5, 2007 EU, US Agree Tentative 'Open Skies' Deal. The European Union European Union (EU), name given since the ratification (Nov., 1993) of the Treaty of European Union, or Maastricht Treaty, to the European Community and United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. agreed on Friday to the outlines of a new pact to open transatlantic aviation markets, smoothing over a rift on airline ownership in the hope of boosting traffic and creating jobs. The executive European Commission European Commission, branch of the governing body of the European Union (EU) invested with executive and some legislative powers. Located in Brussels, Belgium, it was founded in 1967 when the three treaty organizations comprising what was then the European Community said the provisional "open skies  This article is written like a personal reflection or and may require .Please [ improve this article] by rewriting this article in an . " deal covered ownership and control rights over US airlines by EU investors and would allow the EU to restrict US investment in EU airlines. Mar 1, 2007 Experts pushing US to make concessions to save open skies. Open skies talks between the US and EU are set to resume today in Brussels with experts warning that the lack of an accord--or at least an initial agreement--could postpone a potential transatlantic air pact indefinitely and create increased tension for US-EU flight operations. "The US cannot surrender its role of leadership in the international aviation community," attorney Allan Mendelsohn, former assistant secretary for transportation affairs at the US State Dept STATE DEPT Department of State ., said last week. He suggested that the US should ease its foreign ownership restrictions, a move that would increase the likelihood of reaching a deal with the EU. He emphasized, however, that such rule changes should come through legislation rather than the withdrawn, "ill-conceived" Notice of Proposed Rulemaking A notice of proposed rulemaking or NPRM is issued by law when a regulatory agency of the United States Federal Government wishes to add, remove, or change a rule (or regulation) as part of the rulemaking process. Outside the USA. the US Dept. of Transportation attempted to push through last year. "Amend [the law] so that foreign investors except for [foreign] governments could own US carriers subject to all applicable US laws," he said. Mendelsohn advocated seeking a multilateral open skies pact with nations around the globe rather than merely an EU-US pact. "A much better way of amending all these [bilateral] agreements [the US has with various nations, including EU member states] is to do it multilaterally. . .It's long past due that we look at multilateral solutions rather than the bilaterals that have governed aviation." Feb 26, 2007 Aeroflot Aeroflot reports earnings rise but feels limited by Russian e-ticket regulations. Aeroflot said it expects to report a 2006 net profit of RUB6.98 billion ($267.1 million), which would represent a 15.6% improvement over the RUB6.03 billion earned the year before when it suffered a slight drop in net earnings. Mar 1, 2007 Aeroflot Aeroflot revenues grew 13.5% to RUB71.32 billion. The airline carried 7.3 million passengers last year, up 8.9%. Load factor rose 1 point to 70.1%. In conjunction with the announcement, the Aeroflot board issued a plea to the Russian government to expedite the implementation of e-ticketing. "The current regulatory framework of the Russian Federation Russian Federation: see Russia. does not allow Aeroflot to realize its potential in full for full value introduction of technology of e-ticketing similar to existent international practice. This deprives domestic customers of many conveniences," the carrier said in a statement. The board said it instructed SU management and executives to make "suggestions on improving the legal framework of the Russian Federation." Mar 1, 2007 Aeroflot Aeroflot said it sold more than 40,000 tickets on its website last year and attracted 200,000 "prospective customers" to its site each month. It added functionality in six European and three Asian languages and said it hopes to sell more than 1 million tickets through the Internet by 2009 and 25%-30% of all tickets through the Web by the following year. Mar 1, 2007 Airbus Airbus EADS EADS European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company N.V. EADS Expeditionary Air Defense System (USMC) EADS Extended Air Defense Systems EADS Environmental Assessment Data System EADS Echelons Above Division Study board unanimously approved Airbus's Power8 restructuring plan, details of which will begin to be revealed to employees Wednesday. The board said in a statement that it "fully supports" the cost-cutting program, adding: "Power8 shall enable Airbus to better face the challenge of the US dollar weakness, the financial burden related to the A380 delays as well as its future investment needs." The approval followed last week's Franco-German summit that brokered compromises on job cuts and facility closures aimed at easing German opposition to the restructuring plan. Company officials now will have to convey the plan's merits to labor groups that have threatened work disruptions. Feb 27, 2007 AiRUnion AiRUnion has big plans, AiRUnion President Alexsandr Abramovich is expecting approval soon from the Russian government to complete the merger of the alliance's five constituent airlines. "We are in the final phase. The application is at the table of the president of Russia The President of Russia (Russian: Президент России, Prezident Rossii) is the Head of State and highest office within the Government of Russia. ," Abramovich told last week in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk. The tie-up would be the largest of its kind in Russia. Currently, AiRUnion is a combined marketing platform comprising KrasAir, Domodedovo Airlines JSC "Domodedovo Airlines" (Russian: ОАО «Авиакомпания «Домодедовские , Sibaviatrans, Samara Airlines Samara Airlines is an airline based in Samara, Russia. It operates scheduled and charter flights from Samara to destinations in Russia and other countries (mainly within the CIS) and charter flights to Austria, Turkey, Cyprus, Israel, Spain and United Arab Emirates. and Omskavia. Feb 26, 2007 AiRUnion AiRUnion reported 2006 turnover of $1.15 billion, up 36% on 2005, and posted an 11% rise in passenger numbers to 3.7 million. It serves 67 destinations and claims a 12% market share, equal to that of S7 Airlines and 12 points behind Aeroflot. Regarding AiRUnion[sup.1]s plans to acquire Malev Hungarian Airlines, Abramovich said it is a "good project that will not affect our newly established cooperation with Austrian Airlines Austrian Airlines AG is the flag carrier airline of Austria, headquartered in Vienna. It operates scheduled sevices to over 130 destinations. Its main base is Vienna International Airport, with a hub at Innsbruck Airport.[1] In 2006 Austrian had 10 million passengers. ". Malev is scheduled to join oneworld in the spring while OS is a member of Star Alliance. Nevertheless, AiRUnion's strategic plan includes joining either Star or oneworld by 2015. Feb 26, 2007 AiRUnion AiRUnion[sup.1]s short-term plan includes merging the five carriers' product into one by the end of 2008, with fleet renewal scheduled to conclude in 2010. "We are absolutely not satisfied with our current fleet, which has an average age of around 15 years," he said. On the network front, AirUNion plans to hub at Moscow Domodedovo and Krasnoyarsk for European, Asian and polar North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. routes. Samara Samara, river, Russia Samara (səmä`rə), river, c.360 mi (580 km) long, rising in the foothills of the S Urals, European Russia. It flows generally northwest, and joins the Volga River at Samara. will function as a secondary hub. Feb 26, 2007 Austrian Airlines Austrian Airlines operates 566 weekly flights, including codeshare operations, to 45 Eastern and Central European destinations. The 2 million passengers it transports on those routes constitute a quarter of its business. Among Western European carriers it serves the second most destinations in Russia after Lufthansa's 10. Feb 27, 2007 Austrian Airlines Austrian Airlines takes more than 200,000 passengers to Russia each year and expects its alliance with AiRUnion to produce 100,000 additional passengers. Meanwhile, AiRUnion is preparing to offer flights to Vienna from Samara and Krasnoyarsk. Feb 27, 2007 British Airways British Airways in full British Airways PLC International passenger airline based in London. In 1936 British Airways Ltd. was founded through the merger of three smaller airlines. British Airways Keen To Join Consolidation. British Airways wants to take part in global consolidation but expects regulatory hurdles to hinder cross-border deals, Chief Executive Willie Walsh Willie Walsh (born in 1961) is an Irish airline executive. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer of British Airways and is a former Chief Executive of Aer Lingus Early life Walsh was born in Dublin, Ireland. He attended his local secondary school Ardscoil Rís. said on Thursday. BusinessWeek magazine reported last month that American Airlines American Airlines Major U.S. airline. American was created through a merger of several smaller U.S. airlines and incorporated in 1934. It continued to buy the routes of other airlines, becoming an international carrier in the 1970s; its routes include South America, the parent AMR (1) (Adaptive Multi-Rate) A variable rate speech codec selected by the 3GPP for the 3G evolution of the GSM cellphone system (WCDMA). Using the Algebraic CELP (ACELP) compression technology, AMR provides toll quality sound at transmission rates from 4.75 to 12. may be a buyout target by a group including British Airways and Goldman Sachs The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., or simply Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) is one of the world's largest global investment banks. Goldman Sachs was founded in 1869, and is headquartered in the Lower Manhattan area of New York City at 85 Broad Street. , although sources familiar with the matter said the two parties had no current plans to bid for the American Airlines parent. Mar 1, 2007 Hungarian Airlines, AirBridge Malev Hungarian Airlines sale to AirBridge, a consortium led by Russian carrier KrasAir, concluded Friday. The purchase price was a little more than $1 million, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. press reports. The consortium committed to capital investment of $66 million and the repayment of $68 million in debt by year end, according to UPI UPI abbr. United Press International , while the BBC BBC in full British Broadcasting Corp. Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927. reported that KrasAir 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. Boris Abramovich said Malev will return to profitability within two years. Feb 27, 2007 Iberia Iberia carried 27.8 million passengers in 2006. Traffic rose 7% to 52.49 billion RPKs on a 3.4% increase in capacity to 65.8 billion ASKs, improving load factor 2.7 points to 79.8%, a new record for the Spanish carrier. Yields gained 2.6% to [euro]0.076 and passenger unit revenues climbed 6.2% to [euro]0.06. Operating expense Operating Expense The essential things that a company must purchase in order to maintain business. Notes: For example, the payment of employees wages are an operating expense. Also known as OPEX. per ASK was ahead 5.8% to [euro]0.08, or 0.2% to [euro]0.062 excluding fuel. Feb 28, 2007 Iberia Iberia fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, net loss reached [euro]9.4 million, widened from a [euro]5.8 million deficit in the year-ago period. Revenues rose 7.8% to [euro]1.37 billion and expenses grew 4.4% to [euro]1.33 billion. EBIT EBIT See: Earnings Before Interest and Taxes EBIT See earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT). was [euro]48.6 million, which the company said represented a sixfold sixfold Adjective 1. having six times as many or as much 2. composed of six parts Adverb by six times as many or as much Adj. 1. increase over the 2005 quarter. Feb 28, 2007 Iberia Iberia in line with its 2006-08 strategic plan, IB began restructuring its short- and medium-haul networks while raising ASKs on long-haul operations by 8.6%. The number of long-haul passengers grew 10.3% to 3.9 million and load factor improved 2.5 points to 85.6%. Occupancy of its intercontinental Business Plus class also climbed 10 points year-on-year. Yesterday it announced the launch of a five-times-weekly Madrid-Washington Dulles service on June 2 aboard 260-seat A340s. Feb 28, 2007 Iberia Iberia still profitable but doesn't compare to banner 2005. Iberia Group yesterday reported a net profit for the 11th consecutive year, though earnings of [euro]57 million ($75 million) in 2006 fell a precipitous 85.6% from the [euro]396 million posted in 2005 when the company benefited from gains from the sale of Amadeus and Savia. Feb 28, 2007 Iberia Iberia[sup.1]s last year's operating revenues increased 10.5% to [euro]5.46 billion, with growth in all divisions. Expenses rose just 4.2% to [euro]5.33 billion, owing mainly to a 36% jump in fuel spend to [euro]1.18 billion. Fuel accounted for 22.4% of all operating expenses Operating expenses The amount paid for asset maintenance or the cost of doing business, excluding depreciation. Earnings are distributed after operating expenses are deducted. , up from 14.2% in 2004. Operating income Operating Income The profit realized from a business' own operations. Notes: This would not include income from things such as investments in other firms. Also referred to as operating profit or recurring profit. was [euro]122 million, up 4.7% from the [euro]116.6 million earned 2005. Excluding adjustments for new international accounting standards, 2006 EBIT surged 67.7% to [euro]150.4 million. Feb 28, 2007 Icelandair Icelandair, based on the full-year pro-forma report, the company posted an operating profit Operating profit (or loss) Revenue from a firm's regular activities less costs and expenses and before income deductions. operating profit See operating income. of ISK ISK In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the Iceland 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. 3.33 billion on revenues of ISK56.14 billion and costs of ISK50.09 billion. Separately, the airline announced contracts for a new Thales IFE Ife (ē`fā), city (1991 est. pop. 262,000), SW Nigeria. Located in a farm region, the city is an important center for marketing and shipping cacao. According to tradition, Ife is the oldest Yoruba town (founded c.1300). i4500 system and new seats from Aviointeriors worth a combined ISK1.8 billion. The deals are part of its effort to renew its 757 fleet and "a clear statement that Icelandair intends to offer full service on board," CEO Jon Karl Olafsson said. Mar 2, 2007 Icelandair Icelandair Group Icelandair Group is an Icelandic travel industry corporation, the owner of the airline Icelandair and numerous other travel industry companies. Icelandair Group was initially a subsidiary of Icelandic investment company FL GROUP, but in February 2006, FL GROUP announced reported a ISK550 million ($8.3 million) loss in the three months ended Dec. 31, its first quarter since splitting from investment company FL Group. The company was acquired by a consortium called Icelandair Group Holding, which then merged with Icelandair Group on Nov. 1. Full-year figures, which showed a ISK2.62 billion profit, were presented on a pro-forma basis "to provide information about how the Group's operations and cash flows might have been" if the sale occurred at the beginning of 2006. Year-ago comparisons were not provided. Principal investors in Icelandair Group are Langflug (32%), Naust (14.8%) and Fjarfestingafelagid Mattur (11.1%). Mar 2, 2007 Icelandair Icelandair reported three-month revenues of ISK12.59 billion, expenses were ISK12.25 billion and the operating result was a ISK394 million loss. The scheduled airline operation posted a ISK390 million net loss on revenues of ISK9.29 billion. Icelandair Group comprises 14 subsidiaries. Mar 2, 2007 KrasAir, AiRUnion The city of Krasnoyarsk is investing $550 million in the rebuilding of its airport, which it intends to transform into a transportation hub Transportation hub is a location where traffic is exchanged across several modes of transport. These modes may include any of railway, tramway, rapid transit, bus, automobile, truck, airplane, spacecraft, ship, ferry, pedestrian or any other kind of transportation. for central Russia. Private investors contributed 45% and the remainder is coming from the government. Construction will commence this year. The airport has a current capacity of 2 million annual passengers and eventually should handle up to 10 million. Aircraft movements should grow from 12 per hr. to 60. No schedule for completion of the work has been released. Yegorov expects 10% annual passenger growth through 2014 for AiRUnion alone. "We expect that 2.4 million of our 8 million passengers by 2015 will be transit passengers. We think this is a realistic timeframe," he said. . Feb 28, 2007 LTU LTU Luleå Tekniska Universitet (Luleå University of Technology; formerly Luleå Tekniska Högskola) LTU Lithuania LTU La Trobe University (Australia) LTU Lufttransport-Unternehmen GmbH German Airlines LTU German Airlinessaid talks are continuing with potential investors in the airline. LTU last month revealed it was in talks with several parties interested in taking a stake in the airline, including Condor's majority owner Thomas Cook For the company, see Thomas Cook AG. Thomas Cook (22 November 1808 – 18 July 1892) of Melbourne, Derbyshire, founded the travel agency that is now Thomas Cook AG. He was brought up as a strict Baptist and joined his local Temperance Society. - which is being acquired by retailer KarstadtQuelle. LTU is 55% owned by investment group Intro and 45% by Meerbusch-based Marbach Beteiligung und Consulting (MIC), the investment organisation linked with LTU chief Jurgen Marbach Mar 2, 2007 LTU German Airlines, Airbus LTU German Airlines unveils new livery, investor talks continue. German leisure carrier LTU has unveiled a new livery to coincide with delivery of its latest Airbus A330-200 and signifying its development beyond pure charter operations. LTU's latest A330-200, which will take its long-haul fleet up to a dozen, enters service in May and will debut LTU's new livery. While retaining red and white as its principle colours, the new design scaps the current red colouring across the upper fuselage. The tail remains red and this slopes to and runs along the underside of the fuselage. A silver strip will separate the red and white portions of the fuselage. Mar 2, 2007 LTU German Airlines, Condor LTU German Airlines and Condor confirmed they are discussing a possible tie-up six months after LTU MD Juergen Marbach said the two might forge a partnership in the wake of Air Berlin's acquisition of dba. "We are in concrete talks. Currently we are discussing what cost savings could be achieved," LTU majority owner Hans Rudolf Woehrl told the dpa news service. He said he believes a merger could achieve [euro]70 million ($92.5 million) in savings but that progress would be slow, in large part because Condor is involved in other partnerships and is majority owned by KarstadtQuelle. Lufthansa holds 25% of Condor. Mar 2, 2007 LTU German Airlines, Condor LTU German Airlines is working to reposition itself through an extension of its long-haul network and an effort to attract more business travelers. It will add an A330-200 this month and by the next winter schedule will launch 14-times-weekly flights to Bangkok, thrice-weekly service to Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. and twice-weekly flights to Las Vegas from either Munich or Dusseldorf. It is expecting positive results in 2007 after more than a decade in the red. Marbach said he is anticipating a 5% increase in revenue this year. LTU flew 5.75 million passengers last year with an 82.1% load factor. Mar 2, 2007 Lufthansa Lufthansa Offers To Collect Climate Friendly Fees. Lufthansa said it was studying plans for the collection of a voluntary climate protection fee from passengers in a bid to fight global warming. He said plans for the scheme were still sketchy but could be turned into action later this year. They entailed the collection of voluntary supplements which would be handed over directly to climate protection projects in developing and emerging countries, but those still needed to be identified. Feb 26, 2007 Lufthansa Lufthansa said the size of the climate protection fee supplement was not yet clear, the spokesman said, describing the 68 euros for a Frankfurt-New York-Frankfurt trip, which the Spiegel report mentioned, as only a sample calculation by the magazine. Germany's aviation industry has only recently warmed to the idea of possibly joining carbon dioxide carbon dioxide, chemical compound, CO2, a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is about one and one-half times as dense as air under ordinary conditions of temperature and pressure. emissions trading schemes which so far focus on energy producers, aligning itself with demands from Brussels and Germany's transport ministry. Lufthansa still remains doubtful and says a worldwide solution for the industry is necessary. Emissions trading sets commercial incentives on carbon avoidance, which would be in contrast to emissions taxation models. Feb 26, 2007 Royal Jordanian Jordanian government plans to retain a 26% stake in Royal Jordanian when it proceeds with the carrier's 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 later this year but may eventually sell, RJ President and CEO Samer Majali said. "I'm not sure that the Jordanian government intends to remain a shareholder over the long term," he said last week. In order to maintain traffic rights, the airline must be at least 51% owned by Jordanians, but there is no requirement that the government control a portion of that holding. RJ will become a member of oneworld on April 1. Feb 27, 2007 03/05/2007 Z Editor: Aram Gesar, eMail: edit@AirGuideOnline.com For Air Transport & Travel Business Experts contact eMail: bizintel@AirGuideOnline.com For more global news, reviews, features and analysis, please subscribe to our Newsletters: http://www.airguideonline.com/order_formsubs.htm#news To Advertise: advert@AirGuideOnline.com Copyright [c] 2007 Air Travel Media / Pyramid Media Group. All rights reserved. Feb 26, 2007 |
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