All Ops & safety articles – Page 1375
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News
Ansett deals few changes
The shakeup of Australia's aviation sector following Air New Zealand's successful acquisition of Ansett is likely to have more of an impact outside the country than within. ANZ's swoop to appoint Cathay Pacific managing director Rod Eddington to head Ansett is a rare managerial coup in the region. Eddington will ...
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Even the good times aren't good
It may appear to be a vintage year but life for some airlines continues to be troubled. A casual reader of this issue of Airline Business could be forgiven for not realising that 1996 is a vintage year for the the airline industry. Just consider some of the stories: ...
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US is set to open up Asia
The US has floated a joint approach to open skies talks with the Asia-Pacific region for the first time. While cynics view the move as an attempt to kick-start stalled talks with Japan and deflect attention from the European focus of recent policy, some officials argue it is a genuine ...
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Asia's cargo crunch
Airlines bidding to capitalise on the projected rich pickings from the Asia-Pacific cargo boom are pouring capacity into the region. But nobody is benefiting as rates, yields and profits slump, says Tom Ballantyne. When United Airlines said earlier this year that it planned to enter the full-freighter air cargo market ...
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Back to your routes
How does an airline perform better than its rivals when all carriers do basically the same thing? The key to success - resource-based management - can be found at home base, argues Paul Couvret. Every airline strategist will say they have the answers to market success, but are they ...
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DOT bridges policy void
Pre-election sensitivities have frozen US aviation initiatives by legislators, leaving policy-making in the hands of Washington regulators. The reluctance of Congress to tackle tough issues is typified by its unwillingness to extend the recently reinstated airline ticket tax past its end-of-year expiry. Before adjourning for the ...
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High risk business
The risks associated with flying are obvious, but airline managers face hefty business risks, too. Colin Smith says risk management should be a board responsibility and asks whether airline directors can afford the risks they are running. Risk in the aviation industry is most commonly associated with threat to ...
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Ghana clears FAA hurdle
Ghana has joined South Africa as only the second sub-Saharan African country to secure category one status from the US Federal Aviation Administration. The rapid process of the country's application could help diffuse criticism over the FAA's tough safety oversight policy, particularly towards South America. The approval paved ...
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FedEx Fred is top dog
If there was any doubt that Fred Smith is the most important man in US aviation politics, events in early October dispelled them. It was then that the chairman of FedEx Corp decided to reassert his lobbying muscle. Smith regularly deploys his big guns. In large measure, for ...
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Eagle lands in MAS' lair
The Malaysian government has finally acceded to pressure to authorise a second international carrier but will initially protect flag carrier Malaysia Airlines from direct competition. The AirAsia consortium has battled for two years to secure a licence in the face of opposition from MAS and has finally secured ...
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Sunshine Express
Delta has finally launched its low-cost carrier. But has management learned from the mistakes made by other US majors in setting up such low-fare units? Jane Levere first looks at the arguments for and against the Florida-based Express operation and then turns to California to review the performance of Shuttle ...
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SAS Express is so simple
SAS has responded to the threat of competition on its profitable Nordic services by piloting a new simplified product, SAS Express. SAS Express is being used to brand 14 daily Stockholm-Oslo services for a three-month trial period from 22 October but could be extended throughout its Nordic and domestic network. ...
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Who's taking a liberty?
The lure of valuable slots at Paris/Orly has attracted four potential suitors for troubled Air Liberté after the carrier entered receivership on 26 September. AOM, Air France Europe, TAT and Virgin Express have all expressed interest and reopened the debate about the French government's competition policy. Saddled with ...
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US startups lose value
Two low-cost US airlines launched service within a week of each other in late September, including a reborn ValuJet. But the experience of long-ailing Kiwi, which filed for Chapter 11 in early October, seems the more likely barometer for this sector. Some three months after ValuJet was shut ...
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Ramping up the price
Europe's airlines are fighting to cut costs but the second Cranfield University study of user charges at the region's airports suggests carriers can expect little help from their infrastructure and ground handling providers. By Ian Stockman. Since the last assessment of aircraft turnround fees at European airports by Cranfield ...
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Slots wrong for regionals
Not surprisingly Europe's regional carriers are up in arms over the European Commission's revision of its slot regulation, which is likely to come down in favour of slot trading. And alternative proposals circulating in Germany have heightened the dismay. The board of airline representatives in Germany (Barig) appears ...
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Rocky road
Will Canadian Airlines International survive until the weight of its financial liabilities start to lift two years from now? David Knibb weighs up the Calgary-based carrier's chances. Canadian Airlines International is in a race against time. Two years from now its loan and lease obligations will ease, finally giving the ...
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SAA trips on triple threat
South African Airways is having a hard time of it. In mid-October, the carrier was embroiled in a bitter battle with its technical staff and faced a threat of court action from its pilots. Its domestic rivals are turning up the heat through alliances with British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. ...
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US NTSB hearing on ValuJet DC-9 crash
The 11 May crash of the ValuJet McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 into the Florida Everglades will be the subject of a US National Transportation Safety Board five-day public hearing, scheduled to begin on 18 November in Miami. The DC-9 was operating a flight from Miami to Atlanta, and crashed ...
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Northrop Grumman aids Russian ATC
Northrop Grumman has participated in a Russian air-traffic-control (ATC) demonstration in which remote radar data were digitised and transmitted via satellite to the Vladivostok area control-centre. The October feasibility demonstration was conducted by Primoraerocontrol, the ATC organisation for the Primorski Krai region, in conjunction with Japanese authorities and ...