Qantas introduces Q Streaming IFE system

JAL selects DTI Solutions for eManga Reader design

Cebu Pacific announces long-haul service from Q3 2013

Cebu Pacific Air is to launch long-haul flights in the third quarter of 2013 using up to eight leased Airbus A330-300s to reach markets beyond the range of its Airbus A320 fleet.

“The A330-300 will give us the lowest cost per seat, allowing us to drive long-haul fares 35% lower than those currently offered by other airlines, and as much as 80% lower when Cebu Pacific offers promo fares. This aircraft type is very well suited to the kind of network we want to build and the routes we want to launch,” explained Lance Gokongwei, the airline’s president and CEO. When the aircraft are introduced, they will operate under the current AOC of Cebu Pacific.

“We are exploring serving cities where large Filipino communities reside – Europe, Middle East, Oceania and the USA. Data indicates that more than half of Filipinos deployed in these regions take multiple stops and connecting flights because no home carrier can fly them there non-stop,” added Gokongwei.

Gokongwei cited Saudi Arabia as an example, where only 165,000 passengers flew direct non-stop flights from Manila, according to Civil Aeronautics Board 2010 data, compared with 293,000 Filipinos deployed to Saudi Arabia in the same year. This means that nearly half of Filipinos who flew to Saudi Arabia in 2010 had to take multiple flights to get to their destination. With Cebu Pacific’s long-haul operations, the carrier is aiming to provide more affordable, direct flight options to Filipinos overseas, a population estimated to be 11 million worldwide.

The airline’s fleet currently comprises 10 Airbus A319s, 19 A320s and eight ATR 72-500s. Between 2012 and 2021, Cebu Pacific will take delivery of 23 more A320s and 30 Airbus A321neos.

SkyWork adopts Mercator’s Avantik booking system

SkyWork Airlines has introduced the Avantik booking system, developed by Emirates subsidiary software company Mercator, which allows SkyWork flights to be booked on the major computer reservations systems, Galileo and Amadeus.

The airline says Avantik was selected because it is “specifically designed for lower cost, hybrid and regional carriers”. Avantik is fully IATA e-ticketing compliant and designed to manage a wide range of airline passenger services. These include inventory management, multi-channel reservations, yield and revenue management, departure control, weight and balance, electronic ticketing, revenue accounting, codesharing, interlining, crew management, flight control and real-time reporting to monitor business operations.

In addition, passengers can now select up to four different classes of booking, offering enhanced flexibility to meet their individual travel needs. The new booking options are offered on a range of tariffs. The carrier plans to expand the booking system to include additional features and benefits for passengers.
 

Cimber Sterling signs with Travelport to help agents book pre-paid baggage

Travelport and Cimber Sterling have jointly announced the launch of a new service that will enable Travelport-connected travel agents to book pre-paid bags on Cimber Sterling flights.

The airline operates more than 1,000 flights a week and carries 2.5 million passengers a year to domestic and European destinations. Carsten Jensen, director, business systems & industry relations, Cimber Sterling, commented, “Providing our travel agency customers with the ability to book our full offering is a key aim for Cimber Sterling. We are delighted with Travelport’s ability to work with us to deliver a service that fits our needs perfectly and enables our customers to book this extra service.”

“Travelport is committed to working with airlines and travel agents to provide access to various ancillary services and we are delighted to have launched this innovative tool for Cimber Sterling,” remarked Mathias Andersson, country manager Travelport Nordics. “We support the ATPCO ancillary services standards, but can also offer API-based models to address airline’s individual requirements”.
 

AirAsia X doubles KL–Tokyo frequency

From 23 March, AirAsia X is to increase its frequency between Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo (Haneda), Japan from its current three flights a week to six flights weekly, then from 22 June the frequency will become daily.

The increase in frequency is part of the airline’s realignment plan which focusses on increasing services to its core markets in Australasia, China, Taiwan, Japan, and Korea.

To-date, AirAsia X has flown more than 100,000 passengers to Tokyo (Haneda) with an average passenger load factor of  75%. The airline incurred a drop in passenger traffic from March to June 2011 due to the Tohoku tragedy. However, the demand for the route has rebounded back to normal with healthy two-way traffic consistently above 80%.

Ryanair announces Q3 profit of €15m

Ryanair has announced a Q3 profit of €15 million compared with a loss of €10m in the same quarter of its previous financial year.

Revenues in Q3 increased by 13% to €844 million as traffic fell 2% and average fares rose by 17%. Unit costs rose 11% due to a 7% increase in sector lengths and an 18% increase in fuel costs. Excluding fuel, the sector length adjusted unit costs declined by 1%.

“We are pleased to report a Q3 profit of €15m which is ahead of expectations due to benign weather conditions in December (compared to widespread snow closures and deicing in December 2010) and a better yield performance as we grounded 80 aircraft and cut traffic by 2%,” declared Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary. “The 17% rise in average fares – which includes our optional baggage fees – is due to reduced seat capacity, longer sectors, and higher competitor fares/fuel surcharges. Ancillary revenues grew 6% to €177 million and rose by 8% on a per passenger basis. We extended our successful reserved seat service to all routes from 10 January 2012.

“Our new routes and bases have performed well this winter,” O’Leary continued. “We open 5 new bases in Baden Baden, Billund, Palma de Mallorca, Paphos and Wroclaw in March and April 2012. We expect to launch at least one more base for summer 2012.

“Unit costs rose 11% mainly due to an 18% increase in fuel costs, but excluding fuel, sector length adjusted unit costs fell by 1%, as we aggressively controlled costs despite a 2% basic pay increase, higher Eurocontrol fees, and substantially higher Dublin Airport charges. In FY13 we are 90% hedged for H1 at $990 per tonne (approximately $99 a barrel), and 70% hedged for H2 at approximately $100 a barrel. We expect to hedge the balance of our H2 2013 needs over the coming months. However, at these prices our fuel bill for FY13 will rise by around €350 million which poses a significant cost challenge for next year. 

“Our Q3 net profit was slightly ahead of guidance. Should these positive Q3 trends continue into Q4, we now expect our full year profit will exceed previous guidance (of €440m) and rise to €480m,” O’Leary confirmed.
 

Air Asia Group load factor up to 80% in 2011

The AirAsia Group has announced its operational statistics for the full 2011 calendar year including a 2 percentage point rise in load factor to take the annual average to 80%.

Revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs) totalled 35.091 billion, compared with 29.613 billion in 2010, an 18.5% increase. Available seat kilometres (ASKs), however, were increased by just 13.5% to 43.940 billion from 2010’s figure of 38.704 billion. Hence the 2 pp rise in load factor.

The number of earned seats flown (seats sold to passengers including no-shows), as opposed to the number of people carried rose by 16.3% to 29,859,949 in 2011 from 25,680,609 in 2010.
 

Row 44 to stream live NFL programmes in-flight

Inmarsat announces ACARS Ground Gateway development

Pegasus heads to Almaty

Pegasus Airlines has launched service from Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen Airport to Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city, with flights operating outbound on Mondays and Thursdays.

Departure from Istanbul will be at 19:30, with the return flights on Tuesdays and Fridays taking off from Almaty at 05:50. All times are local.

Kazakhstan's old capital, Almaty is also a renowned ski destination giving those looking for a new and alternative skiing destination another venue sereved by Pegasus.

Porter ups Toronto–New York service to 13 a day

Porter Airlines has announced the enhancement of its New York service with two additional daily flights and a more convenient schedule, taking the number of daily roundtrips between Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport to as many as 13 flights.

"Demand for our Toronto–New York route continues to increase and we are responding with additional flights," declared Robert Deluce, president and CEO of Porter Airlines. "Porter offers the only service between downtown Toronto and New York, which is one of the reasons we've become a top choice for business and leisure travellers between the two markets."

The first new flight starts on 26 March, with a second flight beginning on 16 April, plus additional weekend options as of 25 March.
 

Panasonic extends Ku-band network with Yamal 201 satellite

Siegel takes Frontier CEO role

Republic Airways Holdings has named David Siegel as CEO, president, and interim chief operating officer of its wholly owned subsidiary, Frontier Airlines.

Siegel, whose appointment, according to Republic, is another step towards making Frontier Airlines an independent business, brings a wealth of relevant CEO experience to Frontier. he previously served as CEO of XOJET, gategroup, US Airways and Avis Budget, in addition to other key leadership roles in the airline industry. Siegel served as lead independent director on the Republic Airways (RAH) Board of Directors and will give up that role, but will remain on the board in this new position.

“Dave is an incredible talent with the skills to lead Frontier during its separation process from Republic and continue its transformation into a profitable ultra-low-cost-carrier,” explained Bryan Bedford, chairman, president and CEO of Republic Airways Holdings. “We believe that Dave’s combination of travel industry and restructuring experience makes him uniquely well suited for the task at hand. Placing Frontier in Dave’s capable care affords me the opportunity to fully focus my time and energy on the regional airline segment of our business.”

Republic also announced the addition of new senior officers for Frontier’s finance and commercial team, among other changes in the executive leadership team.

Robert Ashcroft has joined Frontier as senior vice-president, finance. Ashcroft will work closely with Siegel and Bedford in the project of moving Frontier towards independence, as well as defining opportunities to ensure profitable growth. Ashcroft  was most recently at Allegiant Travel Company overseeing network and capacity planning, scheduling, pricing and investor relations.

Daniel Shurz has been promoted to the role of senior vice-president, commercial for Frontier and will have responsibility for all commercial activities, including network planning, pricing and revenue management, marketing, product and brand definition.

Greg Aretakis is assuming an expanded role as vice-president of network and revenue management, adding responsibility for scheduling and planning, sales and distribution to his current portfolio. He was previously Frontier’s VP revenue production.

Finally, Dan Krause has been promoted to vice-president of marketing and customer experience for Frontier. Dan has been with Frontier since 2004 and most recently served as senior director, commercial strategy and customer experience.
 

Norwegian to use Amadeus Altéa IT suite

Amadeus and Norwegian Air Shuttle (Norwegian) have announced an agreement for the airline to migrate to Amadeus’s Altéa suite of solutions to gain benefits in ticketing, codeshare and interline functionality.

Adoption of Altéa will support Norwegian’s IT modernisation programme, and equip the airline with the tools and flexibility to respond more effectively to customers’ changing needs and improve operational efficiency, also preparing the carrier for long-haul operations.

Hans-Petter Aanby, chief IT officer, Norwegian, commented, “Our move to Amadeus’s Altéa CMS will support our medium- and long-term business objectives to shift into long-haul operations. It’s fundamental that our day-to-day operations are underpinned by modern IT processes that offer the flexibility to adjust our commercial strategy whilst servicing customers according to their value.”