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Aviation History
1998
1998 - 2704.PDF
AIR TRANSPORT JAL plans cost cuts in bid to curb losses JAPAN AIRLINES (JAL) is to I step up cost cutting efforts in a bid to improve a financial perfor mance which saw group losses reach ¥94.2 billion ($710 million) in the year to the end of March. The group is adding further measures to reduce costs by 10% - a ¥100 billion reduction - by April 2 001, as part of a restructuring pro gramme announced in March. Two areas are being targeted for cost cutting, says JAL. "There will be a further reduction in ground- crew levels, on top of the 1,200 already announced. Although the exact numbers have yet to be decid ed, there could be between a fur ther 300 and 500 lay-offs. In addition, we will postpone the pur chase of three widebodied aircraft in fiscal year 2000, saving an esti mated ¥60 billion," die airline says. JAL has been hit by sluggish pas senger demand and losses from its hotel and resort businesses. "Com panies have been inclined to limit business trips, and ticket prices continue to decline amid sluggish economic conditions," says the air line. Despite the problems, die group is forecasting a return to profitability this year. • NEWS IN BRIEF • LOW-COST MAINTENANCE FLS Aerospace has secured its second big low-cost airline maintenance contract this year with a deal to support UK carrier easyjet. In April the London Stansted-based maintenance company won a similar contract with British Airways low-cost carrier Go covering total support, from line maintenance through to heavy maintenance checks. Monarch Aircraft Engineer ing, which like easyjet is based at Luton, previously performed the work. Fast expanding easyjet has 12 new build 737-300s on order to add to its existing Boeing fleet and is launching a Swiss- based low-cost operation in April. See European Main tenance Directory, P32. Branson seeks US rule changes VIRGIN ATLANTIC chair man Richard Branson has launched a crusade to remove restrictions on foreign ownership of US airlines, so that he can start up a US domestic carrier. Branson visited Washington DC on 24 September to begin lob bying Congress to amend the "antiquated and outmoded" regu lations prohibiting foreign owner ship of a US airline. He believes some lawmakers already support lifting the restrictions. US Department of Transpor tation assistant secretary for avia tion and international affairs Charles Hunnicutt, meanwhile, says the agency is questioning cur rent restrictions on foreign airlines operating in the USA and on for eign ownership of US airlines. The proposed Virgin America would be modelled on Brussels- based low fare carrier Virgin Express, which is part owned by Branson, but operated indepen dently of London-based Virgin Atlantic Airways. Details are scant, but Virgin America would use US pilots and ground staff and "more than likely" aircraft built in the USA, Branson says. Virgin says that it would look at starting operations in markets lacking competition, at "fortress hubs" and in regions with high fares. "It would be a sizeable oper ation," the company says. Branson reveals that he was approached earlier this year by a venture capital firm which wanted to start a Virgin-branded airline in the USA. "We came very close to going ahead," he says, "but I had to turn the idea down because of the rules on foreign ownership." The proposal would have involved Virgin takingthe full 25% ownership stake allowed by US legislation, and would have re quired a $250 million investment by the UK firm, Branson says. • Virgin Express has confirmed its plans to launch an Irish operation based in Shannon, which will see some aircraft transferred to an Irish air operator's certificate. The move will effectively estab lish an Irish subsidiary, which it hopes will enable it to make sub stantial savings by reducing the high costs incurred by being based in Brussels. The airline's first route from Shannon will be to London Stansted Airport. • Honeywell remains optimistic on satellite system HONEYWELL BELIEVES that a failure to approve the global positioning system (GPS) for sole means use because of con cerns over jamming will not harm the long-term market prospects for its satellite landing system (SLS). The company says improved versions of the SLS, now under development, will overcome prob lems with signal interference and will be capable of improving the accuracy and availability of GPS over a wider area, possibly allowing its approval for sole-means use. The company achieved a mile stone in the protracted develop ment of its SLS on 21 September, when Continental Airlines com pleted the first commercial flights to use a certificated differential GPS (DGPS) landing system. Continental flight 9980, using a BoeingMD-83, performed DGPS precision approaches at New York Newark and Minneapolis St Paul airports, which are equipped with Honeywell/Pelorus SLS-2000 ground stations. Both units are so-called "private- use" Special Category I systems approved for Continental only. The MD-83 is the airline's sole DGPS-approved aircraft, and will be used for in-service evaluation. Honeywell is developing an improved "public-use" Category I SLS, or local area augmentation system (LAAS), scheduled to be certificated in 1999. This will be followed by a next-generation Cat I LAAS with improved accuracy, which will form the basis of a Cat 3 all-weather DGPS landing system. Company officials believe it will be "seven to 10 years" before the SLS/LAAS is ready to replace the instrument landing system (ILS). GPS has come under fire because of the ease with which the low- power satellite signals can be jammed, but the officials argue that ILS signals can be easily "spoofed" - which is potentially more danger ous, they say - and that has not pre vented the system becoming the international standard. • Condor's first 757-300 rolls out in Seattle BOEING HAS rolled out the sec ond 757-300, painted in the colours of launch customer Con dor Flugdienst, at Boeing Field in Seattle. The 757 is one of three -300s to be involved in the five- month test programme, which be gan in August. The German charter airline will receive its first Rolls-Royce RB211 -powered 757-300 in early 1999. FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 30 September - 6 October 1998
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