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Monday, May 5, 2003

Briefs

  • British Airways' CitiExpress will eliminate 120 positions, or 20 percent of its staff, as a means of cutting costs by some GBP20 million ($31.8 million). The cuts will not include pilots, cabin crew or staff directly involved with flight operations, the airline said. CitiExpress is the new BA regional operation created in April of last year by the pooling of British Regional Airlines, Brymon Airways and Manx Airlines. CitiExpress announced at that time it would eliminate 500 positions over a two- year period.
  • Air France will re-introduce Gatwick-Bordeaux thrice daily service this month, competing directly against twice-daily service provided by British Airways. The French carrier will use Bombardier CRJ 200 regional jets, compared to the BA 737s. The French destination is popular with British travelers who own property in the Bergerac region some 80 miles east of Bordeaux.
  • Mesaba Airlines and Atlantic Coast Airlines (ACA) andhave announced plans to cut their work forces. Mesaba is cutting its managerial team by 10 percent, or 33 positions, as a result of a projected drop in traffic over the coming year. It will eliminate roughly 50 non-management positions through furloughs and voluntary retirements. It has previously stated that it is cutting capacity by 5 percent during the year. ACA will cut 330 employees, including 197 pilots, from its payroll as a cost cutting measure brought on by the bankruptcy of United Airlines. A major source of ACA's income is derived through flying as a United Express partner. The airline had stated that up to 87 employees would be furloughed in an effort to cut costs by 10 to 12 percent. Last week, ACA announced further cuts in personnel as well as a reduction of 5 to 10 percent in wage cuts. Bonuses have also been either reduced or eliminated. The airline is also in negotiations with Bombardier to defer delivery of about 42 CRJs that are currently scheduled for delivery through 2004.
  • Delta Connection carriers Chautauqua Airlines and Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA) have announced plans to launch new CRJ routes. Chautauqua will operate three daily Orlando-New Orleans non-stop flights beginning June 11, while ASA will add a daily service between Macon and Atlanta, Ga., June 1. ASA will launch additional flights between Dallas/Ft. Worth and Ft. Walton Beach and Lubbock, Texas, July 1 and Sept. 1 respectively using CRJs.
  • Ryanair has completed its acquisition of Buzz from KLM at a price of 20.1 million euros ($21.7 million), renegotiated from 23.9 million euros ($25.8 million) as a result of a number of issues which arose during the due diligence process. The regional will operate as Buzz Stansted, a subsidiary to Ryanair, based at London's Stansted Airport. It will initially operate 10 aircraft - four BAe 146s and six 737-300s - over a network of 12 routes. John Osborne will serve as CEO, replacing Floris Van Pallandt, who will return to KLM. Osborne had served as director of operations for Ryanair and was a former CEO for GB Airways and Virgin Express.
  • Gold Air of Sweden has ordered a third Saab 2000 from Saab Aircraft Leasing. The aircraft will be used for virtual startup airline Kullaflyg, which will connect business and leisure regions in southern Sweden with Stockholm Bromma. Saab has also announced that Chicago Express and AeroLitoral have completed installation of the Saab 340 Terrain Awareness and Warning System modification, developed in partnership with Honeywell. Mesaba Airlines, the newest customer, will begin TAWS installation in May. The fully integrated system uses existing electronic displays to provide terrain data.
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