Company Watch - United Airlines.

For more company news, data and analysis, please go to: http://www.airguideonline.com/professional.htm Aug 7, 2006

United Airlines parent UAL Corp. posted $119 million in net income for the period ended June 30, its first full quarter since emerging from bankruptcy and a vast improvement over the $1.4 billion it lost in the year-ago quarter. The results, marking the company's first profitable quarter since 2000, reaffirmed an earnings preview it released last week. Second-quarter revenues were $5.1 billion, up 15% from $4.4 billion generated by a restructuring UAL in the year-ago quarter. Chairman, President and CEO Glenn Tilton called the results "a solid first step" and said the carrier will continue to look for areas where it can improve cost efficiencies. Aug 1, 2006

United Airlines parent UAL's operating expenses rose 10.9% to $4.85 billion including a 30.9% jump in fuel costs to $1.25 billion. Operating profit was $260 million, widened from an operating profit of $48 million in the year-ago quarter. Mainline yield rose 10% to 12.34 cents on a 4.9% increase in mainline RPMs. With mainline capacity up 3%, load factor improved 1.5 points to 84.9%, pushing mainline RASM ahead 11.5% to 12.03 cents. CASM excluding fuel grew 1.6% to 7.70 cents. Aug 1, 2006

United Airlines said its cost streamlining is not finished and reiterated plans to shift its focus towards higher revenue-generating transpacific services by lowering its transatlantic presence and adding 40 flights per week to Asia over the next nine months. "We are implementing a wide range of initiatives that we believe will deliver industry-leading revenue performance," Executive VP and Chief Revenue Officer John Tague said. "We are optimizing our network to increase profitability." Aug 1, 2006

United Airlines will end its service between New York JFK and Tokyo Narita and instead will launch 777 service from Washington Dulles to Tokyo beginning Oct. 28 as it pulls down its international presence at JFK in favor of codeshares with Star Alliance partners. In tandem with the move, it will add 40 weekly transpacific flights during the next nine months, both "solidif[ying] United's position as the world's largest transpacific passenger carrier" and "plac[ing] assets where they will provide the greatest benefits to United and its customers." It will reinstate daily San Francisco-Taipei nonstop service on April 1 aboard a 747, increase SFO-Seoul Incheon flights to year round from October and add three weekly flights from SFO to Hong Kong on April 1, bringing weekly services to 10. Jul 31, 2006

United announced a series of route additions and adjustments aimed at building its Asia network, including the transfer of its JFK-Tokyo Narita service to its Washington Dulles hub United said it will cease operating its daily JFK-Heathrow flight in October. It continues to serve LHR from Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington. Delta said it will commence daily flights to Gatwick "later this year" aboard a 214-seat 767-300ER. A second daily flight will launch in spring 2007. Jul 31, 2006