JetAmerica delays launch

It all started July 1 when the airline’s website went down and was not allowing anyone to book tickets. A few hours later, this came out

The airline released a press release that stated that it was “self-imposing a thirty one day delay of the launch of its first flights,” which are now scheduled for August 14. JetAmerica said that “unforseen complications with landing and take-off time slots at Newark Liberty International Airport” were to blame for the delay.

“In February 2009, the Federal Aviation Administration advised us, through an intermediatiary, that our operations at Newark could be accommodated,” said Brian Burling, JetAmerica’s VP of Operations, in a press release. “However, at about the same time JetAmerica started making national news with its $9 non-stop fares; when JetAmerica announced 60,000 website visitors and sales in excess of 20,000, the FAA re-clarified its policy, telling JetAmerica we would need to obtain slots.” He added, “The delay is not as unusal as it sounds… Historically, many of the world’s most successful airlines and charter services have had to delay their launches.”

“We feel terrible for the folks who booked with us for travel during the July 13 – August 13 timeframe, but the FAA’s change in the slot policy for indirect air carriers is beyond our control,” said CEO John Weikle. “We are working hard to obtain all the slots we need as soon as possible.”

According to the press release, the airline will also be e-mailing 6,486 passengers to alert them that their credit card accounts will be fully refunded, and that the refunds should appear “on e-statements within 7 to 14 days.” The airline will also offer those inconvenienced passengers “special incentives to rebook on future flights,” including waiving the $10 reservations ‘convenience fee’ and the seat assignment and first-checked piece of baggage fee. (Those who are affected can call 727-451-3970 for more information.)

Burling says that the airline has “no immediate plans to change our flight schedules,” saying that “initially, JetAmerica planned to fly 34 weekly flight segments starting on July 13, 2009. On August 14, 2009 the number of flights is still slated to expand to 40 per week.” And, as if to try to head off any ensuing negative press coverage, he said: “People should not be quick to jump to negative conclusions about JetAmerica. I am particularly referring to internet bloggers and naysayers who are predicting the worst.”

American latest to try 757s on international routes

American Airlines has become the latest U.S. airline to begin flying Boeing 757 jets on international routes. AA yesterday unveiled a reconfigured version of its 757 that it says it will deploy on certain trans-Atlantic and Latin American routes. AA says it is reconfiguring 18 of its 124 757s for international service. AA’s 757’s “revamped interiors — which include new seats and updated in-flight entertainment systems — are expected to be completed by the end of the year. The 757 Business Class cabin, with a 2-2 seating configuration, features 16 lie-flat seats with drop-down armrests. The coach cabin has 166 seats in a 3-3 configuration.”

The first flight on one of those 757s took place yesterday, flying between New York JFK and Brussels.  AA will also fly the 757s between Miami and Salvador, Brazil, with continuing service to Recife.

AA “also has revamped 47 Boeing 777 airplanes to improve passenger comfort on flights performing on U.S. routes to the United Kingdom, Japan, China, India and Latin America.”Continuing upgrades of AA’s 767-200s are expected to be finished by mid-year.

BA removes first class service on long haul flights

International jet-setters are likely to be distressed by the news that British Airways will be doing away with its first-class service, as the recession has taken a major bite out of demand for premium air travel. 

For decades, flying first class on BA, was the only way that many business moguls and glitterati would think of travelling. 

The carrier has already removed first class accommodation from long-haul aircraft, and is currently reviewing the seating configuration for new planes. 

In the post-millennium boom, well-to-do passengers spent lavishly for access to the airline’s designer cabins, Michelin-class dining, the world’s finest wines and free pyjamas and slippers. When the credit crunch hit last year, however, the demand among air travellers for in-flight opulence took a nosedive. 

Willie Walsh, the BA chief executive, confirmed that luxuries were being stripped. He said: “The long-haul aircraft that we take delivery of this year will not have any first class cabins in them,” adding: “Longer term we will review the configuration of all new aircraft.” 

British Airways needs to find ways to cut costs. Demand for both first and business class has fallen sharply, and it has just reported a 401 million pound ($638 million) loss even though it is still adding routes. British Airways also revealed that its new service from London Heathrow to Las Vegas, to be launched later this year, and which will cater to “high rollers”, will not offer a first-class cabin.

Existing flights will keep their first-class seating at the moment because company officials state that the cost of tearing out the section and replacing it with business class or coach seating would be too expensive. This could have a good effect on the more proletarian passengers–because with more empty seats in the posh section, there would be a greater chance of getting upgraded. The potential bonanza may not last long, however, because BA might follow the lead of other carriers like KLM and Delta and scrap first class on transatlantic routes altogether.

New low-cost airline JetAmerica targets smaller markets

A new low-cost airline will begin serving mid-sized U.S. cities that it thinks larger carriers have left behind.

Clearwater, Fla.-based JetAmerica said 34 nonstop passenger flights a week will start July 13 at Toledo, Ohio; South Bend, Ind.; Melbourne, Fla.; Newark, N.J.; Minneapolis and Lansing, Mich. Twenty-eight flights start or end at Newark Liberty International Airport. The carrier will add six more flights — from Toledo to Minneapolis — starting Aug. 14.

JetAmerica is targeting small and midsize cities like Lansing, which has seen the number of daily flights at its Capital Region International Airport fall from 35 to 12 the past five years. The decline is part of a national trend that has seen airfares increase at those airports as daily flights have decreased.

Robert Selig, head of the Capital Region Airport Authority, said JetAmerica will give Lansing business travelers direct access to New York City and carry leisure travelers to central Florida.

“We don’t have access to either one right now,” Selig said. “So, this is going to fill a major void in our schedule.”

Filling that void won’t be cheap.

The Lansing, South Bend, Melbourne and Toledo airports are subsidizing JetAmerica with $1.4 million in grants in its first year, along with about $867,000 in waived airport fees and $1.1 million in marketing and advertising assistance.

South Bend, Toledo and Melbourne received their grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Small Community Air Service Development Program, which has awarded $104 million to 223 recipients since 2002 in an effort to restore lost service and bring air fares down.

Newark and Minneapolis, each of which serve more than 20 million passengers a year, are not offering assistance to JetAmerica.

John Weikle, chief executive of JetAmerica, said the subsidies will help insulate the new carrier from spikes in jet fuel prices. Higher fuel prices have contributed to the failures of at least four major airlines since 9/11. Smaller carriers have also been hurt.

Surging fuel prices helped bankrupt ultra-discounter Skybus Inc. last year. Weikle founded that Columbus, Ohio-based airline known for its $10 fares. The bankruptcy cost 450 employees their jobs.

JetAmerica’s pricing scheme will share some Skybus characteristics.

Prices will start at $9 a seat and top out at $199. The $9 price will apply to the first nine to 19 seats on each plane. Passengers will pay $15 to check a bag. Food, drinks and in-flight TV will also come at a cost.

The carrier is starting out with one leased Boeing 737-800, expects to add a second in the first month, and have as many as four by July of next year. Weikle’s business plans calls for an additional 189-seat jet to be leased every four months.

Each Boeing 737-800 can fly to four cities a day, Weikle said.

Weikle estimated JetAmerica’s revenue at more than $50 million in the first year and about $150 million in the second. He compares his business model to that of Wal-Mart Inc., which started out by serving cities of less than 50,000 people because competitors were not interested in them.

JetAmerica plans to serve Melbourne, Fla., with at least six flights a week. Richard Ennis, executive director of Melbourne International Airport, said JetAmerica’s planes and nonstop routes persuaded him to support the carrier. Melbourne, a coastal community about 70 miles southeast of Orlando, recorded a 45 percent decline in passenger traffic at its airport from 2000 to 2008.

Ennis said carriers with larger jets like the Boeing 737-800 charge less per seat, which is an advantage enjoyed by Orlando International Airport and Orlando Sanford International Airport.

“It’s the only way I can beat them out,” Ennis said of the neighboring airports.

2 small planes collide over ocean off Southern California coast

Two small planes collided Monday off the coast of Southern California, and crews were searching the debris fields for survivors, Federal Aviation Administration officials said.

Coast Guard Lt. j.g. Stephanie Young said two debris fields — one with a plane’s nose wheel — were spotted five miles south of the Long Beach breakwater. FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said a pilot reported seeing the collision about 5:45 p.m and asked the Coast Guard to begin searching.

One of the planes was a Cessna 172 and departed from Long Beach, Gregor said. No information was available about the other one. It was not clear how many people were aboard either plane.

The Coast Guard dispatched a rescue boat, a patrol boat and an HH-65C Dolphin helicopter to the site.

Delta suspends Kuwait

Delta Airlines has suspended its Atlanta-Kuwait service effective June 30, 2009.It will code share with KLM via AMS on their own AMS-KWI flight from July 1. Currently, DL flies ATL-KWI nonstop using a B 777-200ER four times a week.

Southwest adds Minneapolis St.Paul to its growing network

Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP) became the airline’s 65th airport when it began serving Chicago Midway (MDW) with eight daily flights. With the high frequency Southwest will be offering one stop flights to over 40 of its network destinations through its Chicago Midway hub. Minneapolis/St. Paul is a Northwest/Delta hub (with an 80% share of scheduled seat capacity) and Northwest currently serves Midway with 66 weekly flights as well as Chicago O’Hare with 63 weekly flights.

All 155 survive as pilot ditches US Airways plane in Hudson

 

A cool-headed pilot maneuvered his crippled jetliner overNew York City and ditched it in the frigid Hudson River on Thursday, and all 155 on board were pulled to safety as the plane slowly sank. It was, the governor said, “a miracle on the Hudson.”

One victim suffered two broken legs, a paramedic said, but there were no other reports of serious injuries.

US Airways Flight 1549, an Airbus A320 bound for Charlotte, N.C., struck a flock of birds just after takeoff minutes earlier at LaGuardia Airport, apparently disabling the engines.

The pilot, identified as Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger III of Danville, Calif., “was phenomenal,” passenger Joe Hart said. “He landed it — I tell you what, the impact wasn’t a whole lot more than a rear-end (collision). It threw you into the seat ahead of you.

“Both engines cut out and he actually floated it into the river,” he said.

In a city still wounded from the aerial attack on the World Trade Center, authorities were quick to assure the public that terrorism wasn’t involved.

The plane was submerged up to its windows in the river by the time rescuers arrived, including Coast Guard vessels and commuter ferries that happened to be nearby. Some passengers waded in water up to their knees, standing on the wing of the plane and waiting for help.

Helen Rodriguez, a paramedic who was among the first to arrive at the scene, said she saw one woman with two broken legs. Fire officials said others were evaluated for hypothermia, bruises and other minor injuries. An infant was on board and appeared to be fine, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.

“We had a miracle on 34th Street. I believe now we have had a miracle on the Hudson,” Gov. David Patersonsaid.

The crash took place on a 20-degree day, one of the coldest of the season in New York. The Coast Guardsaid the water temperature was 36 degrees.

Dave Sanderson, who was flying home to Charlotte after a business trip, said the sound of an explosion was followed by passengers running up the aisle and people being shoved out of the way.

As the plane descended, passenger Vallie Collins tapped out a text message to her husband, Steve: “My plane is crashing.” He was desperately trying to figure out whether she had been on the downed plane when the message arrived.

Another passenger, Jeff Kolodjay, said people put their heads in their laps and prayed. He said the captain instructed them to “brace for impact because we’re going down.”

“It was intense. It was intense. You’ve got to give it to the pilot. He made a hell of a landing,” Kolodjay said.

Witnesses said the pilot appeared to guide the plane down. Barbara Sambriski, a researcher at The Associated Press, watched the water landing from the news organization’s high-rise office. “I just thought, ‘Why is it so low?’ And, splash, it hit the water,” she said.

As water slowly filled the cabin, Sanderson said he and another passenger helped people out onto the wing. One woman had a 3-year-old child, he said, and safely tossed the toddler onto a raft before climbing on herself.

One commuter ferry, the Thomas Jefferson of the company NY Waterway, arrived within minutes of the crash, and some of its own riders grabbed life vests and lines of rope and tossed them to plane passengers in the water.

“They were cheering when we pulled up,” ferry captain Vincent Lombardi. “We had to pull an elderly woman out of a raft in a sling. She was crying. … People were panicking. They said, ‘Hurry up, hurry up.’”

Paramedics treated at least 78 patients, fire officials said. Coast Guard boats rescued 35 people who were immersed in the frigid water and ferried them to shore. Some of the rescued were shivering and wrapped in white blankets, their feet and legs soaked.

Two police scuba divers said they pulled another woman from a lifeboat “frightened out of her mind” and lethargic from hypothermia. Another woman fell off a rescue raft, and the divers said they swam over and put her on a Coast Guard boat.

The plane took off at 3:26 p.m. for a flight that would last only five minutes. It was less than a minute after takeoff when the pilot reported a “double bird strike” and said he needed to return to LaGuardia, said Doug Church, a spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. He said the pilot apparently meant that birds had hit both of the plane’s jet engines.

The controller told the pilot to divert to an airport in nearby Teterboro, N.J., but it was not clear why the pilot did not land there.

Church said there was no mayday call from the plane’s transponder. The plane splashed into the water off roughly 48th Street in midtown Manhattan — one of the busiest and most closely watched stretches of the river.

US Airways CEO Doug Parker said 150 passengers, three flight attendants and two pilots were on board the jetliner.

An official speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation was still ongoing identified the pilot as Sullenberger. A woman answered and hung up when the AP asked to speak with Sullenberger’s family in Danville.

Sullenberger, 57, described himself in an online professional profile as a 29-year employee of US Airways. He started his own consulting business, Safety Reliability Methods Inc., two years ago.

Bank of America and Wells Fargo said they had employees on the plane. Charlotte is a major banking center.

Eric Doten, a Florida aviation safety consultant, said he could not recall another example of a modern jetliner water crash in which everyone survived. He said many things had to go right to avert catastrophe: The plane didn’t cartwheel when it hit, the fuselage remained intact, and the fuel did not ignite — in fact its buoyancy probably helped the plane stay afloat.

The plane sank slowly as it drifted downriver. Gradually, the fuselage went under until about half of the tail fin and rudder was above water. A Fire Department boat tugged the plane to the southern tip of Manhattan and docked it there.

The Federal Aviation Administration says there were about 65,000 bird strikes to civil aircraft in the United States from 1990 to 2005, or about one for every 10,000 flights.

“They literally just choke out the engine and it quits,” said Joe Mazzone, a retired Delta Air Lines pilot. He said air traffic control towers routinely alert pilots if there are birds in the area.

The Hudson crash took place almost exactly 27 years after an Air Florida plane bound for Tampa crashed into the Potomac River just after takeoff from Washington National Airport, killing 78 people. Five people on that flight survived.

On Dec. 20, a Continental Airlines plane veered off a runway and slid into a snowy field at the Denver airport, injuring 38 people. That was the first major crash of a commercial airliner in the United States since Aug. 27, 2006, when 49 people were killed after a Comair jetliner took off from a Lexington, Ky., runway that was too short.

Denver Airport delays

Denver airport is reporting delays of upto 1 hour on account of closure of 1 runway. This was caused by a Continental jet performing a rejected takeoff attempt on account of an engine fire. All passengers and crew escaped through the emergency slides but dozens are reported to be injured. 

More details awaited on the incident.

Continental Passenger jet goes off Denver runway; 38 hurt

 

A Continental Airlines jet taking off from Denver veered off the runway into a ravine and caught fire Saturday night, forcing passengers to evacuate on emergency slides and injuring nearly 40 people, officials said.

No deaths were reported, but 38 people were taken to hospitals, said Kim Day, Denver International Airport manager of aviation. No one was reported in critical condition.

The cause of the accident was not immediately known. The weather in Denver was cold but not snowy when Continental Flight 1404 took off from Denver International Airport for Houston around 6:20 p.m.

The plane veered off course about 2,000 feet from the end of the runway and did not appear to be airborne, Day said.

It was not known when the plane caught fire, but ground crews put out the flames quickly, said airport spokesman Jeff Green. The 112 people on board made it out on through slides on the Boeing 737.

The plane was carrying 107 passengers and five crew members, said Continental spokeswoman Mary Clark.

Denver Health spokeswoman Kalena Wilkinson said seven people were taken to her hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening. Seven people were at the University of Colorado hospital, but no one had life-threatening injuries, a spokeswoman said.

The accident closed the airport’s west airfield and caused delays of 40 minutes, Day said.

Delays build across the Northeast USA on account of snow storm

Delays are beginning to build across the Northeastern USA on account of the huge snow storm affecting the region. Region wide snow accumulations of upto a foot is possible at most places. Airports such as Philadelphia, Charlotte, Chicago, Detroit, New York are reporting delays of an average of 2 hours already. The delays are expected to get worse and eventutally lead to closure of many airports across the region later in the day

Stay tuned right here for more news.

Delays at Chicago, Dteroit and Charlotte die to inclement weather

• Due to WEATHER / SNOW-ICE, departure traffic destined to Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Detroit, MI (DTW) is currently experiencing delays averaging 51 minutes. 
• Due to WEATHER / SNOW-ICE, departure traffic destined to Chicago OHare International Airport, Chicago, IL (ORD) is currently experiencing delays averaging 2 hours and 46 minutes. 

Milwaukee Airport closed due to snow storm

Due to SNOW REMOVAL, the General Mitchell International Airport (MKE) was closed as of Dec 19 at 05:00 AM CST.  The date/time when the airport is expected to reopen is not known.

Stay tuned here for more information.

JetBlue adds Long Beach flight

JetBlue Airways on Wednesday said it’s expanding service from Portland International Airport with a new daily nonstop flight to Long Beach, Calif.

The first JetBlue flight from Long Beach Airport is scheduled to arrive at PDX on Thursday at 7:15 p.m., with the first southbound flight taking off at 7:15 a.m. Friday. Fares start at $99 each way.

New York-based JetBlue will add a second daily departure from PDX to Long Beach starting Nov. 2. Those flights will take off daily at 2:15 p.m.

JetBlue, which already offers non-stop service from PDX to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, will be using 100-seat Embraer 190 aircraft for the Long Beach flight. From Long Beach, the airline offers connections to Austin, Texas; Boston; Chicago (O’Hare); Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Las Vegas; New York (JFK); and Washington, D.C. (Dulles).

Jet Airways Suspends BOM-SFO from Jan13th

In light of very poor loads and high operational costs, Jet Airways has decided to suspend its Mumbai-Shanghai-SanFrancisco flights from 13th Jan 2009. No official word is out on the matter yet. Stay tuned for more updates

Delta, NWA shareholders to vote on merger

Delta and Northwest shareholders to vote on combination to create world’s biggest carrier with shareholder votes at both companies Thursday expected to overwhelmingly back the deal combining the two. Northwest Airlines Corp. shareholders were to vote on the stock-swap deal with Delta Air Lines Inc. at their annual meeting in New York, perhaps the last in the 82-year-old airline’s history before it is swallowed by its larger rival.

Delta shareholders were set to meet near Atlanta in the afternoon to vote on whether to issue stock to Northwest shareholders as part of the transaction.

Northwest shareholders will get 1.25 shares of Delta stock for each share they own if the combination is completed. That values Northwest at roughly $2.8 billion, based on Delta’s current stock price and the 277 million Northwest shares outstanding or still to be issued as part of its bankruptcy reorganization plan. That’s about $800 million less than the value when the deal was announced April 14.

The combined airline would be called Delta and keep its Atlanta headquarters and its chief executive, Richard Anderson. Northwest would become a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta during the integration process. Delta hopes to obtain a single Federal Aviation Administration operating certificate in 15 to 18 months.

The new airline would be the biggest in the world in terms of traffic and biggest in the U.S. in terms of annual revenue, which was a combined $31.7 billion at the end of last year.

United Airlines boosts 2nd-bag fee to $50

United Airlines has doubled its fee for a second checked bag to $50, citing volatile fuel prices.

United says the $50 one-way fee will apply for tickets bought beginning Tuesday for travel beginning November 10 within the U.S. or to or from Canada, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Travelers in first or business classes, “Premier” frequent fliers and active-duty military personnel traveling on orders will be exempt. United estimated the $50 fee would apply to about one out of every seven customers.

Fuel prices have declined in recent weeks as oil prices have fallen, from a high of $147 a barrel to below $96 a barrel on Monday. But United says fuel prices remain more than 50 percent higher than last year.

Air India to end LHR-JFK flights

Air India is to discontinue its daily service between London Heathrow and New York JFK from 10 September. The service is one of the longest continually operated transatlantic services between the two airports. The carrier has operated flights on the route since 14 May 1960, when it started a one-a-week flight from Bombay to New York via London, using a Boeing 707.

The airline had special dispensation to operate its so-called fifth freedom services, as were Kuwait Airways, El Al and IRan Air (the latter two no longer operate), under the Bermuda II aviation agreement between the UK and the US. The bilateral Bermuda II agreement was swept away by the Open Skies agreement earlier this year.

AA finalises new Boeing 737 deal

American Airlines (AA) has announced the completion of an additional order for 26 Boeing next-generation 737 aircraft.

This forms part of the 2009 to 2010 fleet renewal plans revealed by the operator earlier in the year and AA now has 36 737-800s on order with Boeing as well as fast tracking orders made in previous years.
The 737-800 is the most popular version in Boeing’s next-generation series of aircraft, largely due to its strong fuel efficiency, reliability and performances statistics

Delta to begin Mumbai-Atlanta from November 1

Delta Air Lines on Friday announced a new non-stop daily flight between Mumbai to Atlanta in the US from November 1. The new flight will replace Delta’s current non-stop flight from Mumbai to New York’s JFK. 

This flight will offer Mumbai’s community the benefit of connections across the US, the Caribbean and Latin America via Delta’s Atlanta hub, the release said. The Delta flight DL 185 will leave Mumbai at 1.05 am and reach Atlanta at 8.30 am while the flight DL 184 will depart Atlanta at 7.15 pm and arrive in Mumbai at 10.35 pm (next day), the release said. It would be a 17-hour, 55-minute non-stop west-bound flight.

I personally think that Delta is not able to sustain lodas on its BOM-JFK sector as there are 4 players in tis field and competition is cut throat. Yields on the BOM-NYC route will rise and will benefit Air India, Jet Airways and Continental.