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Aviation History
1960
1960 - 0421.PDF
FLIGHT, 25 March 1960 421 I as: Monday the fifth production Vanguard broke off for a week from rov"-proving flights with BE A (it is seen here on one of these over Ma'ind) for a visit to Trinidad, where it will be demonstrated to BWIA. Voi-sus US airlines were to have had a chance to see it when it called at New York on the way AIR COMMERCE IATA SORTS IT OUT KEYNOTE of the eleventh-hour IATA traffic conference inParis (February 24-March 16) is said by IATA to be thedecision "to introduce lower fares in the low-fare class of service in many parts of the world." With the one possible exception ofthe Europe - Caribbean route, however, the fare reductions are not substantial all-the-year-round cuts. There are no materialreductions in the basic North Atlantic fares, and cuts in basic tourist fares to the Far East and Africa are at the most 10 per cent—which is some way off the minimum 15 per cent generally assumed in any definition of economy class. But substantial cuts are to be introduced in the form of pro-motional fares, i.e., those that are limited in validity or as to season (or both). Promotionals are perhaps the most important things tohave emerged from the recent IATA fares battles: the keynote of Honolulu (at which, it will be recalled, only limited agreementwas reached last October) was likewise the introduction of sub- stantial cuts in Europe in the form of promotional fares. (Thesewere analysed in the context of BEA in Flight for October 23.) The other important principle to emerge from the Paris meetingwas a quality differential between jets and propellers. On the North Atlantic the year-old fare differential remains; but on otherroutes concessions are made to propeller aircraft to enable them to offer more leg-room and so on, in order that they can remainin business in competition with the jets. These principles having been established, it is appropriate toexamine the agreements in more detail, and to consider their implications for BOAC. North Atlantic. The new fare structure, valid from July 1, maybe compared with the existing structure in the following table: — £185 £164 £119£97 £178 £157 £114£91 London • Today 14s 6s 13s 3s 11s 3s 6s 16s ($520)(9460) ($335)($272) ($500) ($440) ($320)($257) New York One-way Fares DL F T E DL F T E Jets £178 -£96 £62 Propellers £178 £157 £89 £57 From 11s 9s 10s 11s 3s 6s 3s July 1 ($500) ($270) ($175) ($500) ($440) ($250) ($160) F E SP* DL F Et SP* DL=de luxe (abolished); F=first-class; T = tourisi class (abolished); E=economy; SP=special promotional. * Theoretical one-way fare only: double this to get new 17-day winter-only excursion, t £85 14s ($240) in winter. The most important decision here is the abolition of tourist class,a major concession by BOAC. Though the term de luxe (i.e., first class with a sleeper seat) is abolished, there still remains a three-tier fare structure—four-tier if the spectacular new 17-day excur- sion is included. The table shows that it will now cost the passenger £14 5 s($40) more to fly first-class by jet to New York. However, it will cost no more than it does now to fly first-class in a propelleraircraft. The airlines agreed not to offer sleeper seats on jets; those passengers who want to fly the Atlantic fully reclined with theirfeet up can now do so in a propeller aircraft for the same fare as the briefer "upright" ride by jet. Berths are abolished completelyfrom all types of aircraft. Economy-class jet fares remain the same, near enough; propellereconomy-class fares are slightly reduced in the summer and knocked down a bit more in the winter. The year-old jet surcharge (five per cent approx.) has beenbuilt into the new jet fares. Thus the jet v. propeller differential remains: whether it can in all conscience be termed "a propellerdiscount" is arguable. But the retention of the differential (which, measured as a discount, is 12 per cent first-class and 7i-l 1 per cent^nomy-class) is a triumph for reason and commonsense. Most important is a very-low-fare winter excursion which willbe available from October 1 until March 31. Valid for 17 days, it will cost $350 (jet) and $320 (propeller)—a differential of about2 ^T cent. This is a major reduction, bringing the air fare lower ™an the lowest sea fare for the first time ever, though only inwnrer. It is equivalent to a passenger-mile rate of about fourpence, ompared with about sixpence for economy-class. Europe - Caribbean. The same son of first-class jet/propeller pattern is to be applied, but from October 1 rather than July 1.Also to be introduced from October 1 is the one genuine all-the- year-round new economy fare to emerge from the Paris meeting :tourist class will, as on the North Atlantic, be abolished and replaced by economy-class fares of "up to 16 per cent" less.Whether "up to 16 per cent" is comparable with the "10-20 per cent" reductions which the Minister has approved BOAC tointroduce on cabotage routes to the British West Indies remains uncertain. The corporation could not say at Flight's press timewhat the new economy fares to the Caribbean will actually be. Europe - Far East. Those who expected fare cuts of 10-20 percent to Hong Kong and Singapore, as approved by the Minister for BOAC, will be disappointed to see that the Europe - Far Eastreductions agreed in IATA are only 6-10 per cent below tourist from October 1. Though this hardly produces a genuine economyfare, the tourist service will be renamed accordingly. There is to be a new inclusive-tour fare to the Indian sub-continent (availablefor package-tour parties of six or more tourists at 22 per cent below today's lowest fare). But the basic-fare reductions are onlyhalf those implied in BOAC's cabotage threat, and the devaluation of the word economy is to be regretted. There will be no jet v. propeller fare differential on this FarEast route, but propeller aircraft will be allowed to offer an inch or two more leg-room. First-class fares go up a "small" amount.It is evident that the 6-10 per cent reductions do not apply to the Europe - Australia fare, but only to that portion of it as far asthe Far East. BOAC declined to give more information on this point at our press time, and they were unable to offer examples ofthe 6-10 per cent fare cuts to points in the Far East. It seems that the new "Tigeroo" pool partnership of BOAC, Qantas and AirIndia, though the trio spoke at the meeting with a united voice, did not achieve the fare cuts that had been expected. Europe - Africa. First-class fares go up; and tourist fares comedown "in general by up to 10 per cent." However, the main achievement by BOAC and their SAA partners are 90-day excur-sion fares, 16 per cent below tourist fares between Europe and the Union of South Africa. No mention is made of any such cuts,promotional or otherwise, on the British cabotage routes terminat- ing in Nairobi and Salisbury. No jet v. turboprop fare differential is applicable, but a qualitydifferential in favour of the propeller is permitted. * * * Now that IATA have at last reached agreement on the 1960-61fare structure, and avoided the dreaded open rate war by a narrower margin than ever before (it was narrow enough in Parisin February last year), the following three vexed questions call for a quick answer: — (1) Will the Minister, having approved BOAC's proposal tointroduce economy fares 10-20 per cent below normal fares on British cabotage routes, now approve the new low fares agreed byIATA on the relevant routes—namely, those to Africa, the Far East and the Caribbean? (2) Is it still Government policy that "moves on the cabotagefront cannot be ruled out if we fail to get material reductions through IATA"? Does the Minister consider that the reductionsnow recommended by IATA are "material"? If so, does he now "rule out moves on the cabotage front" which he has aporoved?(3) It is being said that the indeoendents' VLF applications (from Eagle and Airwork/Hunting Clan) have been "bought off"by offers from the Minister to these companies, and also to Skyways, of a share in the two corporations' low-fare markets. Isthis correct? As Flieht went to press these questions could not be answeredby the Ministry. BOAC said that the IATA agreement "now makes it possible to process the cabotage fares." Whether theword "process" is intended to mean "implement" or "withdraw" is anyone's guess. J. M. R.
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