Airline News Archives

“They shrank 15 percent, and we gained market share”

Southwest Airlines Co. chief executive Gary Kelly is talking more about the possibility of acquiring another airline. via The Dallas Morning News

AirTran Airways will begin offering non-stop service from Milwaukee to five West Coast and East Coast destinations, with today's announcement coming one week after AirTran announced new service to New York. via Airport Business

“We identify the right candidates for us early on, interact with that person periodically throughout their academic and training career, and when they come to us for a final interview, they're a known quantity”

JetBlue Airways Corp. on Wednesday announced the launch of a pilot mentoring program that will work with aviation schools to recruit potential pilots during their sophomore and junior years of college. via Crain's New York Business

With that outburst, House Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar on Tuesday bluntly reiterated his opposition to any attempt by Delta Air Lines Inc. via TwinCities

"This loss is even more unbearable when it follows one of the best quarters in our history," said Frontier Airlines CEO Sean Menke. via TheAirlineHub

China Eastern Airlines, China's third-largest carrier, said Wednesday it has agreed to buy 30 single-aisle 737s from Boeing Co. via Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Antitrust regulators have approved the sale of Midwest Air Group Inc. to private equity firm TPG Capital. via SanLuisObispo.com

Sign up to receive our free Travel e-newsletter and get the best travel news, deals & features in your inbox. via USA Today

“We finished the year with very strong revenue performance reflecting the high quality of our service and diversified network, which was especially important given the challenging operating environment and record high fuel costs in 2007”

AirTran Airways posted a $2.2 million loss for the final three months of 2007, as a 35 percent jump in fuel costs overwhelmed increased revenues from rising traffic and fares. via Atlanta Journal-Constitution

- Incoming Bombardier (TSX:BBD.B) CEO Pierre Beaudoin says he believes a merger between Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines could be good for his company's CSeries aircraft.

Beaudoin said after a speech to the Montreal Board of Trade on Tuesday that Northwest is the only airline so far to declare interest in purchasing the CSeries and that a merger might increase any future order.

But Beaudoin also acknowledged that a marriage of the two U.S. airlines could just as easily slow down any decision to proceed with a purchase. Read more

“We're providing most of the capital and we're retaining most of the revenue”

Continental Airlines it will offer a live television and email service on domestic US flights, starting in 2009. via The New Zealand Herald

LiveTV strikes deal with major airline FLORIDA TODAY Melbourne-based LiveTV this morning announced that it has entered into a long-term agreement with Continental Airlines to install and service its in-flight ... via Floridatoday.com

JetBlue Airways Corp. reported a narrower than expected loss in the fourth quarter and its first full-year profit in three years as an increase in traffic helped the discount airline compensate for skyrocketing fuel costs.

JetBlue, based in Forest Hills, N.Y., said Tuesday it lost $4 million, or 2 cents a share, in the three months ended Dec. 31 in contrast to a profit of $17 million, or 10 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter.

Revenue rose 16.6 percent to $739 million from $633 million. Read more

Northwest Airlines Corp. posted a narrower fourth-quarter loss Tuesday, beating Wall Street's forecasts despite higher fuel costs. via WOOD-TV Grand Rapids

Customers checking their bags curbside for flights on Delta Air Lines could soon be charged $2 per bag as part of an effort to cut costs. via First Coast News

“I love it. I read an awful lot of responses we're getting”

It may be a little late to the game, but business travel is now the subject of a variety of blogs. via CNET News.com

“Not quite as grand as McNamara but the same level of service.”

Almost six years after the McNamara Terminal opened to rave reviews, Detroit Metropolitan Airport is hoping for another round of kudos for its North Terminal. via Toledo Blade

Air France-KLM is to invest almost US$3 billion a year until 2020 to modernize its Air France fleet with the aim of cutting pollution, the group's chairman said Monday. via Slam Sports

“All the big sticks in the industry”

US Airways CEO Doug Parker, whose bold bid last year to take over Delta Air Lines was rebuffed, says the diminished value of Atlanta-based Delta makes its merger with another carrier likely. via USA Today

JetBlue Airways Corporation announced today that it will webcast a presentation given by JetBlue's CEO, Dave Barger, at the Raymond James Growth Airline Conference on January 31, 2008. via PrimeNewswire

“Our bookings look good. As we look out to the first quarter, we don't see evidence”

By TERRY MAXON / The Dallas Morning News tmaxon@dallasnews.com Executives at the major airlines are looking high and low for signs of a recession. via WFAA-TV Dallas

Authorities believe a teen accused of plotting to hijack a plane was suicidal, and a judge was scheduled to decide Friday whether to keep him in custody. via KRISTV.COM Corpus Christi

The Associated Press SPOKANE, Wash. -- A Southwest Airlines plane with 118 passengers on board skidded off a snow-covered taxiway Sunday afternoon after safely landing at Spokane International Airport, the ... via Valley Morning Star

“The Southwest boarding process is horrible. I will NEVER fly Southwest again.”

Southwest Airlines hit a patch of customer turbulence in November when it suddenly changed its cattle-car boarding process, allowing fliers to pay for priority boarding and doing away with a policy that let ... via The Tennessean

“We want people to choose McAllen over another airport because it brings money to us”

McAllen is closing in on Harlingen for the title of the Rio Grande Valley's air transportation hub. via Themonitor.com

Time: 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time Web Address: http://www.southwest.com Contact: Investor Relations 792-4415 To access the Investor Relations homepage, click on "About Southwest" and select Investor Relations from ... via The South Mississippi Sun Herald

A service between General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee and New York LaGuardia Airport is to be launched by AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of AirTran Holdings Inc , effective 6 May 2008. via M2.com

A 16-year-old teenager from Novato, California is accused of plotting to hijack a Southwest Airlines flight, and crash it into a Hannah Montana concert Tuesday night. via CBS 2

“Putting an airline together is not like snap, crackle, pop.”

That's the headline from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution , which writes "US Airways' rags-to-riches-to-ragged saga offers a cautionary tale for Delta Air Lines, expected soon to complete its courtship of ... via USA Today

September 2008. The 3,000-foot-long terminal is being built on the site of the demolished Davey terminal and the existing Smith and Berry terminals, which will be torn down. via Detroit Free Press

“I think airlines only beat out cable TV operators in customer satisfaction surveys so I'm certainly not going to defend the airline industry's record on customer service”

Red Hat's new CEO plans to keep the company focused on its core Linux OS and middleware business while also improving the service it offers to customers, he said Thursday. via ComputerWorld

“While we expect Frontier to succeed in sale/leaseback transactions, the market may look poorly upon such survival tactics.”

Frontier CEO: We have enough cash By David Milstead , Rocky Mountain News Originally published 02:40 p.m., January 25, 2008 Updated 02:40 p.m., January 25, 2008 Frontier Airlines was forced to defend its cash ... via Denver Rocky Mountain News

“There's nothing colourful about tearing elephants away from their families and habitats and forcing them to perform for tourists under the threat of beatings”

An animal rights organisation criticised Singapore Airlines on Thursday for an advertisement using an elephant to sell flights. via The Age

“If oil prices stay where they are, we project our fuel expenses will be about $800 million higher than they were in 2007.”

US Airways Group Inc. said Thursday it swung to a fourth-quarter loss as it faced significantly higher fuel costs, and lower revenue and traffic. via Money

Both engines of the British Airways jet that crash-landed at Heathrow were still running when it came down. via Channel 4

“We will not stand idly by and allow a change in the airline landscape without taking steps to protect the interests of our pilots”

The pilots of Continental Airlines Inc are preparing for a potential merger and plan to have a say in any deal. via Earth Times

“If you look at it from the 30,000-foot view, one would think we just knocked the cover off the ball”

Frontier Airlines Holdings Inc. said late Thursday its fiscal third-quarter loss more than doubled after fuel costs rose a punishing 16.3 percent and federal certification was delayed for its turboprop ... via International Business Times

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A teenage passenger was detained after a Southwest Airlines flight from Los Angeles landed in Nashville, an airline spokeswoman said Thursday. via WHEC-TV Rochester

The Bush administration paid a $5 million reward to a former Minnesota flight instructor who provided authorities with information that led to the arrest and conviction of 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui. via Guardian Unlimited

Fitch Ratings on Thursday cut its ratings on Southwest Airlines Co. debt, citing the carrier's plan to buy back more shares and weak conditions in the airline industry. via Houston Chronicle

“It's frustrating to report a fourth-quarter adjusted loss in what has been a solid year relative to other carriers”

Alaska Air Group Inc. said Thursday it swung to a fourth-quarter profit due to special gains, though adjusted results reflected a loss as fares did not keep pace with higher fuel costs. via Daily News

“The FAA may be able to compel the airline to continue providing service”

What a difference a day makes. After Greg Stephens, president of Air Midwest, said Monday that his company had not set a date to stop its service in Columbia, yesterday the company announced it has filed a ... via Columbia Daily Tribune

Federal aviation officials are conducting a fresh review of a close call between a Las Vegas-bound Southwest Airlines plane and a corporate jet at the San Diego's Lindbergh Field. via KFMB-am

“The message is clear - once you do that (drug smuggling) and you are caught the law will deal with you.”

A court in Ghana has sentenced two teenage British girls found guilty in November of cocaine smuggling to one year in prison, a spokesman for the British High Commission said. via Sunday Times

US Airways says it will soon offer six daily flights between it's hub in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport in Mississippi. via WNCT-TV Greenville

Mesa Air Group intends to drop air service to El Dorado, Harrison, Hot Springs and Jonesboro in Arkansas. via KDBC

China Eastern Airlines Corp. has signed an agreement to cooperate with rival carrier China Southern Airlines Co. via International Business Times

“We are very pleased to become an investor in JetBlue”

JetBlue Airways and Deutsche Lufthansa AG recently completed their previously-announced stock purchase agreement transaction -- giving the German airline a 19-percent stake in the US low-cost carrier. via Aero-News Network

Boston-based investment fund PAR Capital Management has taken a 5.1 percent passive stake in AirTran Holdings Inc., the parent company of AirTran Airways, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission ... via Canadian Business Magazine

“If (Chief Executive Doug Steenland) is replaced in the event of a merger, he would walk away with millions of dollars in benefits and compensation”

Airline stocks fell Tuesday, broadly tracking the U.S. equities market sell-off as investors worried that credit market woes are expanding overseas and won't settle anytime soon. via MarketWatch

“With fuel at $100 a barrel and you're still backing off, that tells me that they're now seeing the resistance of the consumer”

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major U.S. airlines on Tuesday rolled back a fuel surcharge increase aimed at offsetting soaring oil prices as consumers balk at higher ticket prices and worries over the health of the economy grow.

AMR Corp's American Airlines, Delta Air Lines Inc and US Airways Group Inc all rolled back the increase on Tuesday, following Northwest Airlines Corp, which withdrew the increase on Monday, according to fare tracker FareCompare.com.

American Airlines had initiated the increase last week, doubling its domestic fuel surcharge to $40 per round-trip fare, except in markets where it faces low-fare competition. Read more

The head of Midwest Airlines says the company had to cut about 380 jobs from its subsidiary to save costs. via WBAY

Chinese stocks plunged Tuesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index falling 7.2 percent to its lowest close since early August amid the second straight day of global declines. via PR-inside.com

Duluth International Airport handled more passengers in 2007 than any other year, officials said.

The number of passengers traveling through Duluth last year -- 349,447 -- was up almost 21 percent from the previous year and surpassed the old all-time record of 316,912 passengers set in 2004.

One factor that increased numbers was Midwest Airlines' addition of daily service between Duluth and Milwaukee. But that service started in December and was discontinued by the end of November, carrying 23,884 passengers in all. Read more

“Although no decision has been made, it would be a natural evolution of events for ACE to consider maximizing shareholder value by concluding its affairs some time toward the middle of this year”

ACE Aviation Holdings Inc. is getting interest from potential buyers for its remaining stakes in Air Canada and other assets, giving ACE directors more choices to unwind the holding company by this summer, ... via Globeinvestor.com

A particularly thorny issue for Delta Air Lines Inc. in its talks with United Airlines and Northwest Airlines about a combination with one of the carriers is where the merged company would be based and what it ... via PR-inside.com

British Airways pilots are to be balloted on strike action in a row over the airline's plans to launch a subsidiary business. via Falkirk Herald

“When this person finally left, I asked one of his former employees why she thought everybody disliked her former boss so much. She summed it up: 'Because he was the kind of person who kissed up and spit down.' ”

By TERRY MAXON / The Dallas Morning News tmaxon@dallasnews.com For many years, companies have flocked to Southwest Airlines Co. via Quick

Hong Kong's benchmark index dropped Monday morning, taking its cue from Wall Street where the U.S. government's economic stimulus package did not improve sentiment. via PR-inside.com

There have been no delays of flights at Nashville International Airport this morning as a result of bad weather. via The Tennessean

“But I suspect that as we go forward, things will change”

Continental CEO Larry Kellner says his airline won't hesitate to jump into the industry consolidation fray if necessary, but has no immediate plans to do so. via USA Today

“UK team reports no local cooperation”

Islamabad, Jan 20 : The members of the Scotland Yard team, which was in Pakistan to investigate assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto, have finally left for Britain after completion of the probe. via Karachi News.Net

“All passengers can resume normal procedures for checking in.”

The British press meanwhile toasted BA co-pilot John Coward, who was at the controls on Thursday when the engines failed, and landed the Boeing 777 just inside Heathrow's perimeter fence. via The Peninsula

“I don't think Singapore Airlines can work out a counter-bid in such short time, given the approval procedures from shareholders and Chinese industry regulators.”

AIR China's parent company has bid for a stake in rival China Eastern Airlines after Singapore Airlines HK$3.80 a share offer was rejected. via Shanghai Daily

“It is my hope this decision will result in a domino effect among other airlines so that all visitors to the area know where they are when they land”

Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport by any other name doesn't smell as sweet to 3rd District Rep. via The Morning News

The future of the Memphis airport hub is hanging on whether Northwest Airlines is acquired by another carrier like Delta Air Lines. via WAAY-TV Huntsville

“We're really stressing people should, especially in the north metro area, stay off roads as much as possible”

Snow, rain and sleet spread across parts of the South on Saturday, dusting lawns and shrubs with flakes and leading one airline to cancel flights.

Enough snow fell in Montgomery, Ala., for children to make snowballs to toss in front of the state Capitol, although the snow melted on contact with road pavement.

Snow also fell as far south as southwestern Mississippi, with totals of as much as 3 inches, although the ground was too warm to allow it to accumulate. It was that area's first snowfall since 2001, the National Weather Service said. Read more

"A Symbol of Freedom" - the slogan of one of the largest companies in USA, Southwest Airlines, - bears the name with pride and approves the state of things. via Pravda

Operations at Heathrow Airport are returning to normal after the dramatic crash-landing of flight BA038, the British Airports Authority said. via IcNorthWales

“There is still some headroom for additional price increases in 2008, especially if a legacy airline merger occurs.”

Continental Airlines today increased fares by as much as $20 round-trip on some routes, effectively doubling an increase from several weeks ago. via Houston Chronicle

“If it is not going to be fuel prices or the mounting pressures on economic growth, then we expect that it will ultimately have to be capacity growth.”

Canada's airline industry looks set to finally join the downturn in the United States, an analyst said on Friday as he cut his outlook on the country's major carriers, Air Canada and WestJet Airlines Ltd. via Canada.com

Senator Amy Klobuchar wants hearings on how travelers would be affected by airline mergers now in discussion. via WDIO

Pilots at Northwest Airlines say they might support a merger, as long as they get a raise and other conditions are met.

Northwest pilot union leaders who met last night unanimously passed a resolution that says "a merger may be in the best interests of the Northwest pilots" depending on who the other airline is and what labor terms are reached.

Delta Air Lines is looking at potential combinations with Northwest and United.

Northwest pilots say they could support a combination if it brings "substantial improvements" in their union contract. Pilots at all three carriers took big pay cuts in bankruptcy. Northwest pilots also said they want a share in the equity of the combined airline. Read more

“It's certainly something I've never done before, so if you want to join me for a free ride to the GRAMMY Awards, enter the contest. Let's get lifted!”

Five-time GRAMMY winner John Legend will perform an acoustic in-flight concert onboard Delta Air Lines' new GRAMMY-branded aircraft for lucky music fans flying from New York to Los Angeles for the 50th Annual ... via PrimeNewswire

Northwest Airlines has announced it will begin daily nonstop service from Detroit to Monterrey, Mexico, on May 2. The new Detroit-Monterrey route is subject to government approval. via Detroit Free Press

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating why two planes ended up flying too close together as they approached Newark International Airport in New Jersey Wednesday afternoon. via KIFI Idaho Falls