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Aviation History
1962
1962 - 0083.PDF
IGHT International, 18 January 1962 83 Friendship Flights" between Lisbon and Rio de Janeiro via llha , Sal and Recife. These flights, operated by Panair DC-7Cs, are mited to Brazilian and Portuguese nationals and fares are well .low 1ATA rates. In an air transport world obsessed by unecon- nic nationalism, TAP's alliances with other airlines set a note- orthy example. KS CARRIES ON 3KS Air Transport, which last month placed itself in the hands (i two joint receivers and managers (Flight, December 14, 1961), as had its licences for seven inclusive tour services to Mediterranean resorts renewed for the coming summer by the Air Transport ;icensing Board This is obviously a valuable step for BKS in the process of finding its financial feet again and gaining the confidence of travel agents, for the Board would not be likely, following the experiences of last summer, to grant IT licences to an operator whose sudden demise would leave passengers stranded. Mr C. J. Stevens, managing director of BKS, says: "We are continuing business as before, although 1 cannot deny there is a good deal of streamlining going on within the company at the moment. Although we have had a tough time just recently, we have every hope that we can pull through. In this respect we are grateful to the Board for granting the licences in spite of the difficulties that have arisen." Mr Stevens also says that BKS expect to make a profit in the next 12 months. It seems possible that the airline will, after all. be able to introduce its Avro 748s on April 15 this year, the date BKS is said to have been planning on. The airline's summer time table is essentially similar to last year's except that the London - Biarritz, Leeds - Rotterdam - Dusseldorf and Newcastle - Stav- anger - Bergen routes will not be operated. The Competitive Climate IF the climate of airline competition in other countries is any guide, the outlook for Britain's independents is unpromising, to say the least. The new legislation which, nearly two years ago now, encouraged their ambitions to be international carriers on a par with BOAC and BEA, is now seen to run counter to the trend in almost every other country. Even in America, the citadel of airline competition, mergers are the order of the day—United-Capital, National-Continental, Riddle-ASA, TWA-Northeast (if Mr Howard Hughes gets his way), and possibly even Eastern-American if current rumours have any foundation. In the US international field the principle of multiple designation has been the subject of deep heartsearching, as was manifest in last year's United Research report for the President, and also in the CAB's apparent disenchantment with foreign interpretation of the Bermuda principles. There is a real prospect of US restrictions on foreign carriers' fifth freedom traffic. From Canada, too, come reports that the two main carriers, TCA and CPAL, are being encouraged by the Government to work more closely together. There have even been rumours of a merger. There has been disillusion with the outcome of the transcontinental domestic competition introduced by CPAL against the national carrier, TCA, in May 1959. While this has undoubtedly improved service to the public, it has probably contributed to the heavy deficits suffered by both carriers. Internationally, the Canadian policy seems to be in rather a muddle. Last October Mr Leon Balcer, the Minister of Transport, designated CPAL for its long- sought Vancouver - London route, which would bring it into com petition with TCA. But before the year was out Mr Balcer was saying that he did not think that the two Canadian airlines should parallel each other internationally. Meanwhile, Mr Grant McConachie of CPAL, as recorded last week, says in the same breath that CPAL ought to be allowed to operate its Vancouver- London route, but that TCA and CPAL should not parallel one another. Mr McConachie dismisses as "superficial nonsense" suggestions that competition cannot be afforded because the air lines are said to be "losing money and will lose more" and that competition "can only mean losses and thus a burden to the taxpayer." This may be superficial nonsense, but it is just these very heavy losses which, because they are causing governments to be more and more protective towards their chosen instruments, may well thwart the ambitions of independents like Mr McConachie. The combined effect of the jet transition, over-capacity and the recession in traffic growth has resulted in heavy losses last year for many airlines—KLM (£8m), SAS (more than £6m), Lufthansa (£3m). Nearest home, of course, is BOAC's loss of more than £10m. It was largely this which caused the British Government to reverse, at the expense of Cunard Eagle, the trend towards more compe tition which the Government had itself sponsored ony two years before. France's two leading independents, both backed by shipping interests, recently announced plans to merge and consolidate the African and Far East/Pacific operations linking with services of the State airline, Air France. A surprising sequel to the UAT-TAI merger, if present unconfirmed reports are correct, is that the new French independent has taken a 40 per cent interest in the Portuguese airline TAP (see previous page). In Latin America not only are the Brazilians regrouping and consolidating their international air transport effort, as outlined on page 71 last week; in Mexico the Government is said to be Seen passing through Prestwick recently on delivery to the USA was "Ville de Lille," the eleventh of United Air Lines' fleet of 20 Caravelle 6s
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