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Aviation History
1973
1973 - 0012.PDF
FLIGHT International, 4 January 1973 JO AIR TRANSPORT uncertainties about the regulatory framework were among factors which made it hard to say when the airline industry would achieve the improved financial results needed for satisfactory development. "Apart from common objectives and marketing strategies, more rigorous cost control and flexible pricing policies, the airline industry must have better industry management information as well as research to assist early decision making and policy development. "Furthermore, special attention must be given to the serious problem of excess capacity, and here both govern ments and airlines have a part to play. I believe the time has now come when co-ordinated and realistic industry capacity thinking is essential in the interests of the public and the airlines as well as the general economies of all nations. Attention to the cargo and postal side of the industry is essential and lata has several research projects and planning endeavours under way." Increasing use of quieter aircraft types was noted by Mr Hammarskjold; in connection with environmental matters he said he believed the public was beginning to understand the importance of civil aviation to national and international economies. The introduction of curfews at airports, on the other hand, was "a matter of major concern." On crime and security Mr Hammarskjold pointed out that for five years lata had been insisting on collective action by governments, but that the need for such action should not obscure the fact that individual governments and authorities should do what was needed. "I hope that determined and realistic action where it counts will achieve a substantial, if not total, elimination of acts of armed aggression in the year ahead." JAPAN PLANS TOURIST ROUTES THE Japanese Transport Ministry is studying the develop ment of an airline network spanning the Pacific basin, strikingly similar to that maintained by the Dai Nippon (Greater Japan) Air Lines of pre-war days. Japan would be linked with Australia and New Zealand via Southeast Asia, while islands such as Tahiti, Fiji and Hawaii would be included. The terminal point for the service would be Tokyo. The ministry thinks that half of the 1971 total of 990,000 Japanese travellers going abroad flew to such spots as Hong Kong, Hawaii and Guam. To take advantage of the new affluence and penchant for J»IR TRANSPORT is switching from its original role of M\ providing communications to that of offering pre- * m dominantly leisure services. Incoming tourists are economically important to many countries, including Britain, but it appears that nowadays private money is available to finance the air services required. With so many calls on State funds in cases where private money is not forthcoming, it may be that governments see the remarkable economic performance of the modern aircraft as a welcome chance to abate at least one of the demands for public capital. If this is a further, non-Edwardian, reason for the British Government's "second force" policy, an important conclusion from a study of British Caledonian's first annual accounts is that it has to make more profits to attract private money for expansion and re-equipment. This perhaps sheds a new light on the controversial transfer of profitable routes from BOAC, and of the Paris routes from BEA; though such action was recommended, in general terms, by the Edwards committee. travel by the Japanese, the ministry wants to establish a Pacific tourism loop route by the latter half of the decade, providing Japanese with year-round swimming and skiing. At present, Japan Air Lines flies Tokyo-Sydney services via Manila and offers flights to Hong Kong, Guam and Hawaii. It also has rights for Nandi, the Fiji islands, and Tahiti under Japanese-French bilaterals. STAFF CHANGES AT JAL FOLLOWING an investigation by the Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau, Japan Air Lines has moved four senior executives and disciplined three captains and a first officer. The airline suffered accidents at Bombay on September 24, Moscow on November 29 (fatal), Tokyo on May 15 and Seoul on September 7. The Bombay accident involved a landing at the wrong airfield, and in the last two the aircraft over-ran the runway. The CAB investigation into JAL's activities was to determine whether safety programmes had been allowed to lag behind the very rapid growth which the airline has experienced. The outcome and recommendations are expected to be known this month. An earlier CAB investigation took place last September and involved flight checks by government pilots and the scrutiny of aircrew examination results. Following the latest investigation, executive vice-president Yasumoto Takagi has been made responsible for flight operations, flight scheduling, engineering and maintenance, in place of Sasumo Saito, who retains his post as senior vice-president. The airline was unable to confirm whether this and other board changes were connected directly with the CAB inquiry. The captains involved in three of the above accidents (the fourth, at Moscow, is still under investigation) have been suspended for varying periods. Flying experience needed to qualify as a senior captain with the airline has been raised from 3,000hr to 4,800hr. All Nippon Airways has renewed its lease of five 727-200s from Pacific Southwest Airlines. Oriental Pearl Airways of Hong Kong is reported to have begun charter operations in December with two DC-6s. The proposed formation of the airline was reported by Flight in 1971. CSA is to buy additional Tu-134s, Tu-154s and Il-62s, plus some Yak-40s for internal services. Investment over five years (including 1972) will total £125 million. The heavy losses suffered by Minster Assets, through British Midland, plus gloomy reports about financial setbacks among tour operators, and the worries expressed by the lata airlines over the impact of ABC charters, must make the search for funds a difficult task in any event. Apart from the publicly available accounts, Flight has obtained detailed figures for the two individual operating subsidiaries of British Caledonian (formerly BUA and Caledonian) from the CAB in Washington, where full disclosure was an essential prelude to obtaining the Foreign Air Carrier permit needed for the planned Atlantic services. The latest financial statistics for 1970-71, published in the Department of Trade Business Monitor, show that for the seven private companies listed, including BUA and Caledonian, £1 of capital employed produced on average £1-25 in turnover. In 1971, BCAL achieved a figure of £1-80. Most of the capital employed by the seven was in the form of loans, so that each £1 of shareholders' funds produced about £3 • 50 of turnover, in the case of the seven, British Caledonian reports From Washington comes this detailed financial information on Britain's leading independent airline. Although for 1971, these are the latest figures available—such data being unavailable from the British Civil Aviation Authority. "Flight" financial specialists here analyse the accounts. We invited the airline to amplify, and comments by Mr M. A. Guinane, BCAL managing director, follow
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