The Crew Report Blog

2009-12-20T13:07:00.002-07:00

Denver, St. Louis, Nashville, Seattle and Baltimore/Washington are the big winners in Southwest Airlines' new plans to add more flights to its summer schedule next year.
By Roger Yu, USA TODAY

Denver, St. Louis, Nashville, Seattle and Baltimore/Washington are the big winners in Southwest Airlines' new plans to add more flights to its summer schedule next year.

The discount carrier says it's adding 65 round-trip flights and eliminating 24 — a net gain of 41 — for its schedule from May 9 through Aug. 13. Many additions are going to markets where it has been beefing up operations recently.

At Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall, where Southwest is the largest carrier, the number of daily flights will increase by 10, bringing its total daily departures to 181. Its new 2010 destinations from Baltimore include Los Angeles, Seattle-Tacoma and Panama City, Fla.'s, new airport, which will open in the spring.

Southwest will add nine more at Nashville, including new service to St. Louis, Seattle, Oakland and Panama City.

At Denver, Southwest has added nine more daily flights to its May schedule, including new Saturday-only non-stop service to New York LaGuardia. It has plans to add 15 more in August but won't release details until early next year.

St. Louis will get 10 added daily departures and eight new non-stop markets, including service to Los Angeles, San Diego, New Orleans, Nashville and Raleigh/Durham, N.C.
Seattle will get eight more flights.

Seattle's Sound Transit finished a 1.7-mile extension on Saturday of its light-rail line to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, allowing people to ride public transportation to the airport from various parts of the metropolitan area.

Seattle opened the Central Link line in July, which connected travelers from downtown Seattle to Tukwila, a suburb near the airport. The airport had been using free shuttle service from the Tukwila station to Sea-Tac until now.

The newly opened SeaTac/Airport Station is located outside a parking garage.

Several airports are offering free gift-wrapping service this week, as travelers are advised to leave gifts unwrapped before checking them or taking them through security checkpoints to avoid secondary screening.

Volunteers at Phoenix Sky Harbor will offer gift wrapping past security Monday through Thursday. The Container Store and Southwest Airlines (LUV) are teaming for free wrapping service at the following airports on Monday: Dallas Love Field (Gate 5); Phoenix (D Gates); Denver (Gate C41); St. Louis (Gates 14 and 16) and Baltimore/Washington (Gates B1, B2 and B3).

U.S. Airways (LCC) launched daily, non-stop service last week to Honolulu and Rio de Janeiro from Charlotte, its largest hub.

The carrier also began four-times-weekly non-stop service to Montego Bay, Jamaica, from its home airport, Phoenix, last week.

JetBlue (JBLU) is adding its fourth destination in the Dominican Republic. Its new service to Punta Cana, a popular beach resort area in the easternmost part of the island nation, is scheduled to begin at New York JFK on May 6 and Boston Logan two days later.

A year after suspending its Boston-San Jose route because of high fuel costs, JetBlue said last week it will resume daily, non-stop flights between the two technology-centric cities on May 13.

AirTran (AAI) will resume scheduled service between Gulfport/Biloxi, Miss., and its hub in Atlanta on Jan. 8, replacing its current charter service between the two cities.

2009-12-16T20:08:00.002-07:00

American Verses Delta Plus Japan Airlines

American Airlines (AMR) and Delta Airlines (DAL) are not waging war over Asia’s Japan Airlines to strengthen foreign relations, but to pad their own bottom lines. In the latest move, American said Wednesday it could again up the ante for JAL from its current bid of $1.1 billion.

The US airline, along with the OneWorld alliance, a contingent of 11 airlines, and the private equity firm TPG have tried to make the case that its proposal would be the best solution to JAL’s problems: Namely, $15 billion of debt, huge operating costs, tight competition, and its likely fourth annual loss.

"Conceivably there could be a bigger investment made by the Oneworld/TPG/American group depending on the circumstances that have to be worked out with the government and with JAL," said American Airlines Chief Executive Gerard Arpey in press conference Wednesday in Tokyo after a meeting with Japan’s Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

American stipulates that its proposition would be the most worthwhile for JAL because it already has a partnership in place under the OneWorld alliance --of which they're both members -- and that JAL would gain another $100 million in revenues annually from the alliance on top of the $500 million it already garners from the pairing.

“American Airlines has a strong interest in seeing JAL succeed because JAL's success ultimately means success for American Airlines,” said Arpey. “In short, our interests are aligned.” Yet, American faces a tough argument from Delta Air Lines and its SkyTeam partners, an alliance of 12 carriers, which countered with a $1 billion offer for JAL in November.

Delta argues that its Asian presence (it gained a hub outside Tokyo through the Northwest merger) would help it more easily integrate with JAL. American contends this alliance would impede competition in the country, giving only two alliances access to the region. “Our direct investment offer is worth more than twice to JAL as any other proposal.

The difference is even greater when you consider the commercial implications of JAL exiting a superior global alliance with the strongest U.S. network for a less desirable global alliance and US network,” added Aprey at the press conference in Tokyo. “We estimate this would cost JAL hundreds of millions of dollars per year.” Yet, it isn’t just what American has to offer JAL, but what the Japanese airline can do for the legacy carrier. A recent “Open Skies” agreement between the US and Japan opened up the sky competition (previous arrangements favored certain carriers over others).

This would make an alliance between Delta and JAL immune to antitrust regulations. It also paves the way for American to enter the market. All of the US carriers, legacy and discount alike, have been hit hard by fuel expenses, a slowdown in travel, and technological failings. The best way for each of these airlines to regain footing is to find ways of expanding their international dealings, which can garner premium prices for longer flights. Japan is one of the most attractive and untapped areas of the world for the aviation sector.

All of the legacy carriers would benefit from JAL’s expansive domestic network. It offers the US airlines a built-in infrastructure, as well as a locally well-known brand name to attach themselves to -- accounting for the high value that each of the carriers is willing to bid. “AMR has the most to lose and Delta the most to gain if JAL defects from OneWorld to SkyTeam,” said JPMorgan analyst Jamie Baker in a recent note.

2009-12-14T19:24:00.000-07:00

Legacy carriers say they see premium-travel growth ahead
The high-paying business traveler is returning, but in smaller numbers
Dec. 9, 2009, 3:40 p.m. EST
By Christopher Hinton, MarketWatch

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Legacy carrier executives from Delta to US Airways said Wednesday they are seeing early signs that premium-paying business travelers are returning to the skies, but cautioned growth would be slow.

The airline executives had gathered in New York for an analyst conference to highlight trends in their business following a horrific two years of surging jet fuel prices and a sharp economic contraction that sent demand plunging.

"This environment hasn't been like anything we've seen before," said US Airways President Scott Kirby. "All of us have been scared, frankly."

But things are starting to turn around and are expected to get better next year with positive industry unit-revenue growth, albeit due to a nearly catastrophic 2009.

"We speak of bouncing back, but only because 2009 was so bad that just an anemic move will be significant," Kirby said.

Slammed the hardest was high-yielding premium travel, specifically business travel, as corporations tightened spending in the uncertain economy. Leisure travel remains fairly steady, though carriers had to rollback ticket prices to keep demand going.

Following significant declines in business revenue late last year and for the first part of this year, US Airways saw its first month of growth in November -- up 5% from a year ago, Kirby said.
"This is very indicative of demand recovery," he said.

That observation was echoed among other legacy executives, the heads of the last five old school network carriers that also manage a significantly large number of corporate accounts.

It's also evident among investors, who have bid up the airline sector benchmark to near two-year highs. Since the end of October, the NYSE Arca Airline Index has jumped about 30%.

For Delta Air Lines corporate ticket volumes plunged 35% over April and May this year, with corresponding revenue down about 50%, according to the Atlanta carrier's chief financial officer, Hank Halter.

Corporate revenue represents about 20% of Delta's overall passenger revenue.

Since then, the erosion in volume sales have been decelerating, and crossed into ticket growth in mid-November, though business revenue was still down some 10% from a year ago.

"But that said, you can see a steady progression," Halter said. "It's certainly not a hockey stick, but it certainly is improving and that steady pace continues."

Delta expects to see a return to passenger revenue growth within the first half of 2010, Halter added.

Carriers more sensitive to corporate travel felt the change earlier than other. Over at United parent UAL Corp. corporate and premium travel began returning as early as May.

"Our networks are more closely aligned with corporate and premium traffic than most of our peers," according to Chief Financial Officer Kathryn Mikells. "Domestically, we have fewer seats to fun destinations like Florida and more deployed in places like...New York to L.A., as an example."

Since May, UAL saw steady improvement in both corporate revenues and premium cabin bookings," Mikells said.

"While the numbers clearly are still not where we would desire them to be, it is a very encouraging trend line," she said.

American Airlines parent AMR Corp. said its advance bookings for February are flat versus a year ago with international demand offsetting a decline in domestic sales.

"I think we are seeing improvement in both leisure and premium traffic at this point," said Beverly Goulet, AMR's treasurer.

Christopher Hinton is a reporter for MarketWatch based in New York.

2009-12-14T09:55:00.000-07:00

Boeing 787 First Test Flying Next Week
Friday, December 11, 2009, 10:48am CST
Wichita Business Journal - by Daniel McCoy

The Boeing Co. announced Thursday that its long-delayed 787 Dreamliner would make its first flight next week.

The first flight could happen as early as Tuesday, depending on weather conditions, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

Wichita-based Spirit AeroSystems Inc. makes the forward fuselage section and engine pylons for the Dreamliner.

The 787, Boeing’s next-generation commercial airplane, has been delayed more than two years. The most recent delay was in June following the discovery of a design problem where the wing meets the fuselage during testing.

Even following a successful first flight, the plane will continue to undergo testing for up to as much as a year. The company still expects deliveries to begin in the fourth quarter of 2010.
On Tuesday, Boeing received an order for 25 Dreamliners from United Airlines, which also ordered 25 Airbus A350s.

2009-12-14T08:51:00.000-07:00

British Airways cabin crews vote to strike

1 hr 17 mins ago
LONDON – British Airways cabin crews will strike over the busy Christmas period, throwing the plans of thousands of holiday makers into uncertainty.

The Unite union said Monday crew members plan to walk off the job on Dec. 22 and strike for 12 days.

The union says 92.5 percent of the workers who voted were in favor of the action.

BA staff members are unhappy about layoffs and changes in work practices that they argue have been illegally imposed by the airline.

BA has announced sweeping changes as part of its bid to cut costs after suffering big losses amid lower demand for travel during the global recession. It says plans to axe thousands of jobs, freeze pay for current staff and offer lower wages for new employees are necessary for its survival.

A-380 Two Years Into Service: A Report

2009-12-10T09:02:00.010-07:00

A-380 Two Years Into Service: A Report

When the Airbus A380 entered service with Singapore Airlines in October 2007, it ushered in a new era for the world's airlines of the ultra-large airliner.For Airbus it was crucial that when the revolutionary aircraft made the headlines during its debut - as it inevitably would - it was not for the wrong reasons. After the programme suffered lengthy production delays that resulted in the assembly process having to be reinvented, there were sceptics waiting to see if the double-decker would fall on its face when it began earning money.

Two years on since that debut, the 20 A380s in service with three airlines - SIA, Emirates and Qantas - have accumulated 75,000h, operated 8,000 flights and carried at least 2.5 million passengers. Air France joins the throng this month. Flight International has spoken to all three early operators and the consensus is that the aircraft has delivered on its promise of heralding a revolution in passenger enjoyment and operating cost performance, but suffers niggling problems that have taken the shine off an otherwise outstanding entry into service.

"Despite a teeth-pulling two years through all the delays etc, this aeroplane is a peach," says Emirates Airline president Tim Clark. "Once you've flown on it you will not want to go [any other way] if you have a choice - which will make them feel very ill in Seattle."

HIGH LOAD FACTORS
All the operators echo Clark's view that the A380 has proved massively popular with passengers, evidenced by the fact that their fleets consistently fly at high load factors. But Clark points out that the downside of this is that "lose one, and you're in trouble".The operators put the A380's passenger appeal down to a combination of the quiet and spacious cabins, high standard of in-flight entertainment and the giant's comfortable ride. "She goes through turbulence like a huge Queen Mary 2 on the North Atlantic in January," says Clark.

While Emirates was not the first to receive the aircraft, it is the biggest customer, with an order for 58 Engine Alliance GP7200-powered aircraft. It received its first 489-seater in July 2008 - a date that like fellow customers was subject to a series of reschedulings that pushed back its first delivery by more than two years from the original plan agreed at the time of the order.

The carrier now has five A380s in service and 10 more (with capacity increased to 517 seats through the deletion of the maindeck crew rest compartment) are due to be delivered by the summer of next year. "After that we have dates that remain fluid," says Clark.

SIA IN THE VANGUARD
Nine months before the first Emirates delivery, it was SIA that led the way as launch operator, taking its first of 19 Rolls-Royce Trent 900-powered A380s on 15 October 2007 and putting the 471-seater into service 10 days later between Singapore and Sydney.

The airline had been due to receive its first A380 in the second quarter of 2006, but a six-month delay in certification was compounded by production woes that pushed first delivery back a further 10 months. This was largely due to the now infamous rewiring problems as Airbus struggled to get its head around the complexity of the cabin customisation process amid digital mock-up discrepancies.

"The first three months went almost flawlessly. We were breaking new ground everywhere. It was something everyone in SIA felt so proud of," says the airline's senior vice-president flight operations Capt Gerard Yeap.

Qantas took its first Trent 900-powered A380 in September 2008 and operates five aircraft in a 450-seat configuration. The airline's group executive operations Lyell Strambi describes its A380 experience as having been "exceptional, from both operational and customer perspectives. Expectations have been more than met."SIA flew a single-aircraft fleet on a daily rotation between Singapore and Sydney until January 2008, when its second A380 arrived.

That first airframe (MSN003) had a remarkable first two months without suffering a single technical delay or cancellation, says SIA senior vice-president engineering Mervyn Sirisena.

He concedes that the 10 months between certification and first deliveries gave all stakeholders breathing space to get on top of all the major issues. "When the aircraft was delayed we took the opportunity to work with Airbus and the OEMs to see what we could fix before service entry.

What we couldn't fix we made sure we understood and were prepared for," Sirisena says.He gives as an example the cartridges that deploy the slide rafts, which initially had to be replaced after only 70 flights until a redesign extended this interval substantially. With the A380 operating an intense daily rotation from the get-go, Sirisena says that the airline's marketing took a sympathetic view to scheduling. "They made a bit of a sacrifice by choosing a sub-optimal widow for the return leg from Sydney to give us enough time when the aircraft arrived in Singapore to fix defects and prep it for the next service.

"The aircraft would arrive at around 14:00 and was ready for the next service at 20:00. Every day we had a cut off at 18:00 when we had to declare service availability or not."None of the operators have any issues with Airbus's support for the new aircraft. Clark - who is a particularly hands-on airline boss from a technical operations perspective, says Airbus has "an army of people in Dubai, supporting us" and that he speaks "directly" to Airbus boss Tom Enders about issues.

Sirisena points out that with the A380 being a "showcase, there has always been a very strong support presence from Airbus, although it has been scaled back from the 'meet-and-greet' level when it first went into service".John Vincent, who was Qantas's acting executive manager engineering at the time of the interview, concurs on the airframer's contribution. "Airbus has provided, and continues to provide, a high level of support at all destination ports across our A380 network. Airbus specialists are on hand for all arrivals and departures and there is a substantial presence in Sydney, where the maintenance operation is based," he says.

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
"In conjunction with the various modification packages, Airbus and its suppliers continue to provide additional spare parts to facilitate parts update and upgrade. Technical data assistance has been of a high standard."Vincent gives as an example the help Airbus provided to Qantas with the commissioning of the electronic log book. "A specialist was located in Sydney for several months that had access to the design and support functions in Toulouse," he says.

Technical Issues
As the A380 in-service fleet has expanded, problems have come to light. To address known problems, as well as the in-service issues, the fleets are undergoing major modification programmes at timed intervals.

The first notable issue that SIA faced occurred around three months in, just after the second aircraft arrived, when a fault surfaced with the alternate brake system in Sydney. However, Sirisena says that "compared with the early days of the A340-300 or 777, the problems have not been that significant".Clark says that the Emirates fleet is undergoing "a big mod programme that requires removing an aircraft from service". This should be completed on the five delivered aircraft by February.

New aircraft it is due to receive will have the latest modification standard, he adds. Upgrades address issues with software, fuel line pressure sensors and body gear steering, among other things.

SIA now has 10 A380s - more than the number of passenger Boeing 747-400s it has in operation. Its A380 fleet's average daily utilisation is about 14h, while technical dispatch reliability (TDR) is "hovering around 97-98%", says Sirisena. While that number is "not too meaningful" due to the relatively small fleet size, he adds that it is "still very commendable" and is higher than the 747-400 was at the same stage of its development, although Sirisena points out that modern aircraft have a much-increased level of diagnostics available.

The industry's typical technical dispatch reliability benchmark is above 98.5%, and Clark says that while Airbus is guaranteeing 98.5% "we're not there yet. We're at 97%, sometimes 96%."The major problem being experienced is the plethora of system nuisance warnings, which are "driving down technical dispatch", he says.

"Airbus is very, very anxious to get the issues sorted out," Clark says.Emirates and SIA both perceive the A380's warning system as being too sensitive, resulting in misplaced fault messages about systems or equipment. "They didn't build enough tolerances into the software, they've made it overcomplex," says Clark. We have false alarms but we're not prepared to dispatch until they're sorted out."

Sirisena says: "What we are grappling with are algorithms for failure detection, which not only detects a failure but also acts upon it. Unfortunately this can lead to a perfectly healthy system being shut downor [a no-go fault warning] for a problem that was minor enough to have been deferred."Once we identify a problem and understand it, Airbus will quickly come up with a work-around. But it is not so straightforward to reprogram."

NUISANCE WARNINGS
Clark says that the problem with the nuisance warnings has been their diverse nature, but "the common thread" is the software. He says Airbus executive vice-president programmes Tom Williams and his team "have sat in my office many times and said they can't identify trends, which is the worst possible thing".

Clark blames the software's design. "There was a philosophy of utopia - I suspect that Airbus was blessed with some boffins who said 'we've got to make this absolutely perfect - no flexibility'. The slightest surge causes one [sensor] to trip and then six more as they're all linked," he says."The engineering support teams - both Airbus and Emirates - have had to catch up on this complexity curve of the software. So there is a learning game going on.

I've told Airbus it needs an audit of the software on this aeroplane, and I've asked them how they're going to address it."Airbus has undertaken to raise Emirates' TDR to the 98.5% target by 31 December, but Clark is sceptical this can be achieved. "They've got some work to do," he says.Qantas is less specific about the problems it has suffered, with Vincent saying that while the airline "did encounter some issues" it "worked closely with Airbus at the time and these were resolved quickly".

Issues included a fuel tank indication system problem that affected two aircraft and a nose wheel steering issue on one, he says.

Airbus's Williams says that this latter problem was caused by water ingress into the rotary transducer on the gear leg that identifies its position. "The water was freezing on long flights, which was causing the sensor to give inaccurate positioning. There's been a design change and in the meantime an inspection procedure has been implemented."

DISPATCH RELIABILITY
Strambi says that the Qantas A380 fleet's dispatch reliability has been "good". A small number of technical issues had an impact on operations for a short period, but generally "we have been happy with the aircraft's reliability, considering this is the first 12 months of operating a brand-new fleet type".Clark says that while the Emirates fleet has also suffered some "hugely frustrating" failures of components, most are easily dealt with. However, one "pain" has been the repeated failure of the main gear steering system, which can force the aircraft to return to the stand as the steering is a minimum equipment list (MEL) item.

The trailing axle of the two six-wheel centre bogies is articulated to avoid tyre scrub on the inside wheels, and the wedge that must lock the steering in place for take-off has proved problematic, says Williams. "If the wedge doesn't position correctly then the crew gets a warning that requires a return to the gate. The wedge can be locked in place manually to allow the aircraft to be despatched, but this still results in a delay."

Sirisena explains that the problem has occurred due to "wear and tear issues that surfaced after flight-test" and that Airbus devised an interim "work-around" - to taxi straight for 50m (165ft) before making a turn.

Williams says that the problem has now been fully addressed in two ways. "The wedge sensor was too sensitive so that has been redesigned, and a greasing procedure was worked out which actually did more [to fix the problem] than the sensor. We now think that this problem is behind us," he adds.Another gear-related problem blighted SIA - and resulted in an in-flight turnback - which was caused by the system for the undercarriage doors, which incorrectly detected them as being open."There have been rigging issues on gear-doors and sensors and we've improved the procedures on the production line to make sure we've got the tolerances set up properly," says Williams.

HAPPIER TALE
A happier tale is the A380's performance, which has bettered expectations. "Meeting the performance guarantees doesn't come into it, she's ahead of her nominals," says Clark."The faster the A380 flies the less fuel it burns. Long-range cruise is Mach 0.85, if you fly at Mach 0.83 the fuel burn increases."Qantas's Strambi concurs: "The A380 has met or exceeded all the original performance, noise and fuel burn guarantees made by Airbus at the time the aircraft purchase decision was made."Clark says that because of the "favourable mach bias, there's quite a marked increase in terms in fuel reduction as you increase the cruise speed to Mach 0.85".

Emirates' GP7200s have also behaved well during their first year in service, showing what Clark believes is an unprecedented "zero degradation" in performance. The airline has had two precautionary in-flight shutdowns, but neither was caused by the machinery, says Clark. "They were indication issues."

With two airlines operating a fleet of 14 Trent 900-powered A380s, the R-R fleet has accumulated significantly higher utilisation than the GP7200 to date - more than 225,000h against 81,400h.

Sirisena says that SIA's Trent 900s have suffered "some teething issues" and the fleet has undergone "a lot of engine changes to address early signs of potential problems.

Rather than let the problem develop, Airbus and R-R have taken preventative action."
SIA has suffered three in-flight shutdowns, one of which was caused by fuel starvation and one by a quality/installation problem that caused an oil line to crack. The third incident, which occurred in September, was a precautionary shutdown after the crew received a warning and is still under investigation.

SIA Trent 900s have undergone a series of upgrades with changes including solenoid valves, electronic controls, bleed valves, fuel meeting valve units and wiring connectors, while high-pressure nozzle guide vanes have been replaced to address premature burning, says Sirisena. The latter issue resulted in the A380's first airworthiness directive.

MAINTENANCE INSPECTION
Meanwhile, SIA's oldest A380 (MSN003/9V-SKA) underwent the first C check maintenance inspection in September, having accumulated more than 8,000h and 1,000 cycles. The inspection, which has a two-year interval, was undertaken at the airline's Changi base with a "small army of Airbus people in attendance - about 100 folks", says Williams."We did some deeper inspections than we'd normally do in a C check and discovered some small things for us to follow up, but there were no major issues," he adds.

The aircraft was brought up to the latest modification standard in parallel with the inspection. As part of the inspection, Sirisena says that the airframe was giving "a health check, we were looking to see if there was the potential for rubbing" that may not have been identified during ground- and flight-testing.

"When you fly with a full passenger load there are different vibratory stresses than during flight-testing. Once an aircraft is in the air things flex, twist and turn, alignments are different and there are vibrations, stresses."

VIBRATIONS
This phenomenon has already seen some "transitory vibrations" identified in the plumbing for the A380's 345bar (5,000lb/in2) hydraulic system, Sirisena says. "We've seen some strange movement in the plumbing."However, Williams says that Airbus "has not seen vibration as being an issue that has come up".

Pilot's perspective
SIA's flight operations chief Capt Yeap says that SIA operates its A380s with ratio of around 10 to 11 flightcrews per aircraft. He says that pilots have "transitioned easily" to the aircraft's size as many were already familiar with 747-400. Transition time is about three months, the same for other types in the fleet, he adds."Crews are very happy after their first circuit. The A380 is a well-designed aeroplane, the flight-control laws are very advanced and it is responsive for its size and accurate to fly," Yeap says.

On the ground, the A380 manoeuvres like the 747 - "a gentle oversteer", he says. "The major difference is the inertia. The steering is fly-by-wire, so it is not an instinctive input like normal direct controls and takes a little bit of getting used to."Normal procedure is to use the taxi camera, "but with experience, any competent crew will be able to taxi without it", adds Yeap.The A380 has impressive performance once off the ground - "we can achieve optimum climbs with no problem" and it also slows down well, he adds.

SIA generally cruises its A380s at M0.83-0.85, and the approach speed - for a landing weight close to the 397t maximum take-off of a 747-400 - is an impressively slow 130-135kt (240-250km/h).The three A380 operators deploy their fleet across the globe serving destinations in North America, Australasia, the Pacific Rim and Asia. All three fly between London and Sydney - with Qantas shadowing SIA's routing via Singapore, while Emirates flies through its Dubai hub.

All the airports that the type serves have been well prepared for the aircraft. "With air bridges to main and upper deck passenger enplaning and deplaning is poetry in motion," says Clark. Turnaround times range from 90-110min, depending on route and operator. For example, Emirates does 90min turns at London Heathrow between the inbound EK001 and outbound EK002, says Clark. And replenishing main and upper deck galleys using standard and special scissor-lift trucks has not been problematic. "We've never had to use the cart lifts," he adds.
Looking forward

Clark says that as its A380 fleet grows next year, new destinations for the type are likely to include Paris and Seoul and he wants to return to New York - where it inaugurated its A380 operations in 2008 - by June. Tokyo Narita is also a potential future destination.While there are planned dates for new A380 routes, Clark concedes that these are contingent on Airbus meeting the delivery schedule. "We still have some niggling delays from Toulouse - they're still not stable on the production side."

He meets Airbus chief executive Tom Enders and programmes boss Tom Williams regularly to discuss the delivery schedule, but remains concerned about Airbus's ability to maintain the delivery stream to incumbent customers as "heads of version" come through for new operators such as Air France and Lufthansa.

The Emirates A380s are notable for the fact that they are equipped with a pair of in-flight showers for first-class passengers, which have proved very popular, says Clark, although he concedes he "got the maths wrong" on the amount of water to uplift.

"We put 2.5t in the aircraft, but we're only using 60% - even with every first-class passenger taking a shower - so we've reduced the potable water we carry," Clark adds.Because of weight growth during development, initial production A380s are around 5-6t behind the target manufacturer's weight empty (MWE) says Clark.

On top of this, the rewiring required for early production aircraft added another 400kg (880lb) to the weight, he claims. However, Airbus is incorporating weight savings into later-build A380s to bring weight back in line with guarantees and Clark expects the gains will ultimately create an aircraft that can serve certain US West Coast destinations direct from Dubai.

WEIGHT REDUCTIONS
He forecasts that A380s being delivered by 2012 will have MWEs "a minimum of 2t lighter" than today's aircraft, which, combined with reductions in the weight of the airline's operator items (a new generation of lighter seats, for example) means "you've got an aircraft that can fly 15h 45min and can do the West Coast".

He is "optimistic" that this will bring San Francisco into range, but concedes the A380 will always be challenged to get as far as Los Angeles. "She was never designed for that mission," he says.The A380's nominal maximum take-off weight is 560t, with an option of 569t (and further growth available from 2012).

Clark says that Emirates flies its A380s at between 510t and 540t, as it does not need the full weight and takes the benefit of lower landing fees.Clark sums up the A380's appeal in raw statistics. "We're busting the seams on the aircraft. We're consistently getting 90-100% load factors - its popularity hasn't dissipated in a year. And if Dubai International airport grows to where we want it, we'll ultimately have more than 58 in our fleet."

Manufacturer's view
Airbus acknowledges that it has "still got work to do" to get the A380's reliability to match the level of the passenger appeal it has delivered during its first two years in service."Keeping in mind the level of technology that we've brought to the aircraft, it's been encouraging to see the level of performance that we've got - but we can do better," says Airbus executive vice-president programmes, Tom Williams. "We've still got some work to do."When the A380 entered service two years ago with Singapore Airlines, Airbus laid on an extremely intense network of "enhanced support", positioning additional engineers, mechanics and personnel from Toulouse into Singapore and the first outstation, Sydney.

A similar amount of assistance has been provided for Emirates and Qantas, and those support levels remain "heavy", says Williams. "As each airline takes more aircraft they open up new routes, so we're having to extend support. Although this was always envisaged, we're certainly providing a heavier level of support than we originally planned."

Williams concedes that Airbus was "disappointed" and surprised about problems that began to crop up after a strong first few months of operation, given the preparations it had made. "We used the extended time between certification and delivery to do a lot of extra flying work on maturity. But we still encountered things when we went into service that hadn't shown up before."Why? Because there are a different set of pressures during testing to what an airline experiences.

The operators have put it into a very intense operation - straight on to premium routes with very fast turnarounds."Williams adds that the exceptionally good first few months with SIA's initial aircraft - where there were no technical delays or cancellations - may have mislead the airframer, as problems then begun to occur as the fleet and network expanded.

To begin addressing the much-criticised nuisance fault warnings that Emirates in particular fingers as the culprit behind the ongoing disappointing technical despatch reliability, a new software upload has been implemented."We've just issued a new 'batch 2' software which we think will cut out about 40% of the nuisance messages as it is often information that the pilot can't really do much with," says Williams.

He says that Airbuses have a reputation with flightcrews for being too "talkative" and this has been compounded by the newness of the A380. "With a new aircraft all the default rules are probably much more stringent as people are learning how to use the aeroplane."The crews have a feeling that the aircraft is talking to them too much - telling them things that are interesting but not really essential - and the pilot's default will be 'let's not go'."SIA's senior vice-president flight operations Capt Gerard Yeap highlights the potential pitfalls of aircraft systems providing too much data: "We have to be careful we don't have information overload - that we don't fall into the trap of wanting to know so much you end up not knowing anything".

Williams says another issue that has led to unnecessary delays or cancellations is the fact that as the A380 is a new type, the minimum equipment list was initially written in "a very strict way because you're gaining experience of the aeroplane. So from the customers' point of view he may see something flagged as a no-go item on an A380 that wouldn't have been on an A330."Faults flagged on the aircraft's post flight report (PFR) are investigated by the troubleshooting manual (TSM), which can be a lengthy process if there are, say, six potential root causes to be checked, says Williams. "

The airlines have asked for a bit more prioritisation of the TSM, as statistically there are some problems that are the more likely ones which should be eliminated first. But this requires experience of the aircraft and is something that over time you build up a better understanding of."

Williams shares Emirates Airline president Tim Clark's doubts about any early success in the fleet reaching the 98.5% TDR target. "I think we're closing on it pretty fast, but not by the end of this year. I'd be confident we'd be there by the middle of next year. We've still got a bit of work to do."The spurious error-message woes have been further heightened by issues with sensors in certain parts of the aircraft, such as the nose-gear and body-gear steering systems, and fuel quantity management system.

These were due to either over-sensitivity, water contamination that confused the logic, or a combination of the two, and have been addressed by design changes to the sensors.Williams says the reliability improvement drive is being aided by "a combination of pro-active and reactive design work going on from engineering point of view. We're taking the operator experience we've had now and looking at things again with design engineers so that we can have a more robust design."Pressure is also being applied to certain suppliers to up their performance: "We've got guarantees with all our suppliers on MTBR [mean time between unplanned replacement] and there are a few who are still not quite there yet".

Airbus is rolling out additional innovations on the A380 in the coming months, including the electronic logbook (a function of the on-board information system) and brake to vacate (BTV) autobraking functions. "The E-logbook is part of Airbus's evolution to a more paperless cockpit. We have one operator trialling it and the rest will have it on a test basis by the end of the year," says Williams.BTV, which enables the pilot to designate the runway exit point and allow the autobrake to modulate the retardation, is being debuted by the latest A380 customer, Air France.

Engine makers' views
As lead engine supplier on the A380, Rolls-Royce's 70,000lb thrust (312kN) Trent 900 powered the aircraft on its maiden sortie on 27 April 2005 and the bulk of the test fleet during the flight trials and certification programme. The Trent has been selected for nine of the 16 customers so far and is used by two of the three airlines operating the type - Singapore Airlines and Qantas - which account for 14 of the 20 aircraft delivered.R-R's rival on the A380 - General Electric and Pratt & Whitney's Engine Alliance joint venture - could be described as a "one-trick pony" because the double-decker is the only application for its single product, the 70,000lb-thrust GP7200.

The US company has just six customers (including Air Austral's two-aircraft commitment), but has been selected to power more A380s than R-R in unit terms (94 firm/two commitments versus 90 firm) and has laid claim to the biggest prize on the programme so far - Emirates with its 58 aircraft on order.

Richard Keen, who is R-R's head of marketing for Airbus programmes, says that although "a lot of useful lessons were learnt" from the extensive flight-test programme during which the Trent-powered A380 test fleet accumulated 22,000 flying hours, "you will always see new issues once the aircraft goes into service".Launch operator SIA has made precautionary Trent 900 engine changes that Keen attributes to the careful approach the airline took to the A380's introduction.

"SIA wanted to do everything to protect its operation in an absolute way, which we fully supported.

If it saw anything that might be a future operational risk, it took a precautionary approach that necessitated an extra engine change or two."Trent 900 marketing manager Elise Hresko says that the precautionary engine changes were generally in response to post-flight advisory messages on the maintenance report. "They were genuine alerts - rather than nuisance warnings - but the engine was still within limits," she says.

"At the beginning of the operation, the limits had been drawn in a very conservative manner to help us understand the engine's behaviour."Keen says that all the "teething problems" suffered by SIA have been "closed out or contained" under R-R's "project zero" programme, which "is a zero-tolerance approach to operational disruption".

He adds that the Trent 900 operated for seven months at 100% reliability and the "disruption index" now stands at 99.8%, which is line with a mature Trent product.R-R has identified that the first two of SIA's three in-flight shutdowns were "non-basic", says Keen, which means the engine's basic design was not at fault and nothing has had to be changed. "We're waiting to see what caused the third shutdown as the engine is undergoing strip-down and inspection."Engine Alliance says the five GP7200-powered A380s flying with Emirates have a 99.9% "departure reliability rate", have suffered no engine-related in-flight shutdowns or aborted take-offs and have an unscheduled engine removal rate (per 1,0000 engine flying hours) of 0.051 (all figures are 12-month rolling averages to October 2009).

Emirates has been delighted with the GP7200 so far
Emirates president Tim Clark says the engines powering his A380s have performed well and had no major issues.Engine Alliance president Jim Moravecek says that the GP7200's fuel burn came in 0.9% ahead of Airbus's specification, which gives it a 1% advantage over its rival.R-R's Keen disputes this claim, but the engine maker is working on a two-pronged development programme for the A380's Trent, the first of which, the 900EP, has been launched and is available from 2012.

This upgrade, which is not retrofittable, involves the incorporation of elliptical blades and vanes to the high-pressure and intermediate pressure compressors, and will deliver a 1% improvement in fuel burn. Further improvements, borrowing technology from the Trent 1000 and XWB, are in the pipeline, Keen adds.

2009-11-29T12:55:00.003-07:00

Delta shows its love for NYC

‘We want to be the No. 1 carrier in New York.’Its dual-hub strategy for JFK, LaGuardia consumes resources.

By Kelly Yamanouchi
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sunday, November 29, 2009

In Atlanta, Delta Air Lines has grown comfortable in its decades-long marriage with the city. But in New York, Delta has become a perennial suitor, passionately trying to win over travelers from rivals like American, Continental and US Airways.

“Delta calls New York home,” reads one of the Atlanta-based airline’s latest New York advertisements. “We’re more than NY’s most global airline; we’re New Yorkers.”

This year, Delta has taken some of its biggest steps yet in New York —- including spending almost 90 percent of its advertising and media buying budget on the area, according to Gail Grimmett, Delta’s senior vice president-New York.

It has also announced an elaborate plan to establish what it calls a domestic hub at LaGuardia Airport while keeping its international hub at John F. Kennedy International Airport, where it has international flights to everywhere from Kiev to Kingston.

To build the LaGuardia operation, Delta struck a deal to trade some of its gates at Washington’s Reagan National Airport for some of US Airways’ gates at LaGuardia. That would enable Delta to double its number of nonstop destinations from LaGuardia, now at 32.

Delta’s merger with Northwest Airlines also significantly boosted its LaGuardia presence —- pushing it past American as the No. 1 carrier based on the combined passenger traffic for Delta and Northwest in the 12 months through September. Using those numbers, Delta now has a nearly 28 percent market share vs. 22 percent for American and about 19 percent for US Airways.

Delta also plans to spend $40 million on renovations at LaGuardia.

“If you’re going to be a world-class airline, as Delta wants to be, you have to have a big presence there. It’s just too big to ignore,” said airline consultant Darryl Jenkins. “For years that was a part of their network that was seriously lacking.”

Not for lack of trying. Delta’s efforts to build street cred in New York date to the 1991 acquisition of Pan Am’s European routes out of Kennedy and its East Coast Shuttle operation at LaGuardia. At the time, it had to battle a lingering perception that it was still a Sun Belt airline as it sought to establish itself as the premier carrier in the nation’s biggest city and financial capital.

That perception may be long gone, but gaining market share remains a tough challenge in a highly fragmented travel market.

One of Delta’s recent tactics is investing in more sports sponsorships in New York —- signing on as the official airline of both the Mets and the Yankees as well as Madison Square Garden, particularly in a high-end club area that will be part of a major renovation of the arena. All this, as Delta has relinquished its sponsorship of the Atlanta Falcons.

“We’re sponsoring all of the iconic things of New York,” said Grimmett, who moved to New York from Atlanta. She added, “I have never seen such fierce baseball fans.”

Robert Mann, an airline consultant who lives in Port Washington, N.Y., said such sponsorships come with a lot of media exposure.

“Any time you’re looking at a Rangers or an Islanders game on television, you’re seeing the Delta logo,” he said. And sports sponsorships may also come with access to games and suites. “You can entertain clients, SkyMiles customers, corporate accounts —- there are a lot of opportunities that are valuable and useful,” he said.

On Thursday, Delta was the official airline at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, with a float themed “Winter Wonderland in Central Park.”

The sponsorships and advertising were needed, Grimmett said, “to catch up with everything else” the company has done there with new routes and upgraded aircraft interiors.
“We want to be the No. 1 carrier in New York,” Grimmett said. “Nobody owns the market.”

Mann said the marketing emphasis will also help Delta make the most of the Northwest merger.
“They’ve really taken on a higher profile here,” Mann said.

Still, comments from New York fliers reflect the challenge.

“I fly out of airports all over the New York area. I usually fly either Continental or American,” said Christy Desantis, who lives in Fairfield, Conn., and travels about once a month for her job in marketing. “I haven’t noticed a whole lot of [Delta’s] advertising.”

Shevonne Hernandez, who lives in Manhattan, said she has noticed Delta’s advertising, particularly at Madison Square Garden when she went to a couple of pre-season Knicks games. But she said that was offset by a bad experience with a Delta flight.

“I’ve noticed there’s a little more advertising” by Delta, said Michael Rudez, of Astoria N.Y. But Rudez said he’s long been a US Airways flier and doesn’t really consider other airlines.

Business travelers —- and contracts with their employers that make Delta the carrier of choice —- are the most important target for Delta in New York.

“Think of New York City and how big it is, and how much business goes on there —- how many people are flying to New York and how many people are flying from New York to other parts of the world,” Jenkins said. The city has “some of the wealthiest and longest-distance traveling fliers of anywhere in the world,” with some of the highest fares in the world in business class on international flights.

“So there’s a lot of revenue at stake. It’s a place that you want to build up,” Jenkins said. “You have so many large corporations’ headquarters there, and to get those large corporate contracts, you have to have a large presence in New York. It’s not about getting one or two travelers. It’s about getting all of the travelers from a large corporation. It’s a very big deal for them.”

But it’s not an easy city to grow in. Many more domestic fliers are starting or finishing flights there than connecting, which prevents any single airline from building the kind of hub operation that would dominate among local travelers. Mann said Delta’s LaGuardia operation will be closer to a “focus city” —- where an airline offers some connections but mostly serves travelers coming or going from that city —- than to a traditional connecting hub.

And at traditional hubs like Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, airlines can feed their international flights with passengers from any domestic flight. Delta’s international flights from New York operate at Kennedy, and connecting to LaGuardia is not easy.

But Delta is plowing ahead.

Delta’s 2009 strategy, summarized in a document called the “Flight Plan,” highlights only one city: New York. The goal: “Position Delta as the leading airline brand in New York City, complete our New York City strategy and reach a JFK facility solution.”

The company is still working on those issues, particularly the badly needed upgraded of the terminal at JFK. (ed. note...Delta's JFK terminal is the old Pan Am World Port, an outdated maze of confusing gates)

“We’re the largest carrier in JFK, unfortunately with a terminal that’s not very desirable,” Grimmett said. “We’re working with the Port Authority. I think we’ve got a good plan. They recognize the sense of urgency.”

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey wants to increase usage of gates and is concerned about planning for the possibility that the terminal may return to their custody someday, according to Grimmett. Another festering issue is delays in the New York airspace due to the heavy flight traffic in the area and the Federal Aviation Administration’s outdated air traffic control infrastructure.

“We have to plan accordingly,” Grimmett said. But, “shrinking your way to congestion is not the right way for anybody.”

Delta in New York

Delta says it is New York City’s largest carrier, with more routes from New York’s LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy International Airport combined than any other airline. But Continental, with plentiful international flights from its massive Newark hub, will remain the largest carrier in the New York area based on capacity measured in available seat miles.

Delta’s peak daily flights from:

JFK 158

LaGuardia 143

Newark Liberty International Airport 32

Delta’s international destinations from New York City airports:

Canada 2

Europe/Middle East 21

Latin America/ Caribbean 14

Africa 3

Asia 1

2009-11-20T07:49:00.002-07:00

Wanna glass of vino on an airline? Here's the skinny:
What wine, champagne and port airlines offer

What wine, champagne and port are on airlines' wine lists for October through December.

AirTran
•Coach, Domestic & International Flights 2008 Coastal Ridge Chardonnay; 2007 Coastal Ridge Merlot; 2008 Casa Mayor Chardonnay; 2008 Casa Mayor Merlot.
•Premium Class, Domestic & International Flights 2008 Coastal Ridge Chardonnay; 2007 Coastal Ridge Merlot; 2008 Casa Mayor Chardonnay; 2008 Casa Mayor Merlot.

Alaska
•Coach, Domestic & International Flights Stone Cellars Chardonnay; Stone Cellars Cabernet; Sutter Home Chardonnay; Sutter Home Merlot.

•Premium Class, Domestic & International Flights 2007 Apex Chardonnay; 2007 Apex II Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Washington Hills Chardonnay; 2007 Washington Hills Merlot; 2007 Washington Hills Syrah Summit Reserve; 2007 Waterbrook Chardonnay; 2005 Pavin & Riley Cabernet Sauvignon; 2006 Bridgman Chardonnay.

Allegiant
•Coach, Domestic Flights 2007 Sutter Home Cabernet; 2007 Sutter Home Chardonnay; 2007 Sutter Home White Zinfandel.

American
•Coach, Domestic Flights Domaine Laurier Brut; 2007 Hayes Ranch Sauvignon Blanc; Tamas Estates Pinot Grigio; 2005 Bernal Estates Syrah; 2006 La Palma Cabernet Sauvignon; 2008 La Maridelle Merlot; 2007 Sutter Home Merlot; 2007 Sutter Home Chardonnay; Pacific Vista Pinot Grigio.

•Premium Class, Domestic Flights Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Carneros Brut; Domaine Ste. Michelle Washington Brut; 2007 Buena Vista Carneros Chardonnay; 2007 Kiwi Cuvée Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 OneHope Zinfandel; 2007 OneHope Chardonnay; 2007 OneHope Sauvignon Blanc; 2003 Foris Merlot; 2008 Warburn Estate Gossips Chardonnay; 2004 Murphy-Goode Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon; 2006 Buena Vista Carneros Pinot Noir;

2008 Cachuma California Shiraz; 2007 Lot 205 Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Lot 205 Zinfandel; 2004 Waca Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon; Scudo di Corte Prosecco I.G.T.; 2007 Montevina Chardonnay; 2008 Principato Pinot Grigio; 2008 Woodhaven Chardonnay; 2008 Pasqua Pinot Grigio; 2007 Gerard Bertrand Aigle Noir Pinot Noir;

2007 Helena Ranch Merlot; 2008 Arniston Bay Cabernet Merlot; 2006 Taja Monastrell; 2007 Stone Barn Merlot; 2006 Glass Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon; 2009 De Gras Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 Canyon Oaks Chardonnay; 2008 Canyon Road Chardonnay; 2007 Elsa Bianchi Torrontes; 2006 Mount Linden Chardonnay; Graham's Six Grapes Port.

•Coach, International Flights Bouvet Brut; 2008 Redwood Creek Cabernet Sauvignon; 2005 Château La Marzenac Bordeaux; 2005 Hayes Ranch Syrah; 2007 Sol Casal Tempranillo; 2007 Domaine de Pellehaut Blanc, Gascogne; 2008 Château de Nivelle Bordeaux Blanc; 2007 Frederic Roger Vins Chardonnay.

•Premium Class, International Flights Champagne G.H. Martel & Co. Brut Prestige; Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Brut; Champagne Pommery Brut; 2007 Landmark Overlook Chardonnay; 2006 Wegeler Bernkasteler Doctor Riesling Spätlese; 2003 Val di Suga Brunello di Montalcino; 2006 Joseph Drouhin Rully; 2008 Falanghina Feudi di San Gregorio; 2003 Domaine Duclaux Châteauneuf-du-Pape; 2005 Château Batailley (Pauillac); 2006 Altos Las Hormigas Malbec; 2006 Andeluna "Winemakers' Selection" Cabernet Sauvignon;

2008 Aresti Estate Collection Carmenere; 2008 Aresti Estate Collection Chardonnay; 2003 Arrowood Cabernet Sauvignon; 2003 Arrowood Merlot; 2007 Castle Rock Central Coast Pinot Noir; 2003 Château Belgrave, Haut-Médoc, Bordeaux; 2006 Château Du Seuil Graves Blanc; 2006 Château Grand Destieu St. Emilion Grand Cru; 2003 Château Ste. Michelle Indian Wells Merlot; 2006 Château Teyssier St. Emilion Grand Cru; 2004 Château Villa Bel Air; 2006 Cloudline Oregon Pinot Noir;

2005 The Colonial Estate Explorateur Old Vine Shiraz, Barossa; 2007 Conde de Valdemar Blanco Fermentado Barrica; 2004 Cyan Prestigio; 2002 Domaine Vincent Sauvestre Chablis Premier Cru Beauroy; 2005 Domaine Vincent Sauvestre Pommard Clos de la Platiere; 2007 Fabre Montmayou Malbec Reserve; 2007 Fontanafredda Briccotondo Barbera; 2002 Freemark Abbey Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Groom Adelaide Hills Sauvignon Blanc; Heidsieck-Monopole Brut Champagne; 2006 Inniskillin Oak Aged Vidal Icewine; 2006 Kaiken Malbec; 2006 Riff Pinot Grigio; 2007 Montes Classic Series Chardonnay;

Nicolas Feuillatte Brut Reserve Particuliere; 2007 One World Pinotage; 2006 Pascal Bouchard Chablis Vieilles Vignes Grande Reserve du Domaine; 2006 Pascal Jolivet Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc; 2006 Rusca Gavi di Gavi DOCG; 2005 Santa Rita Medalla Real Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Scarbolo Chardonnay, Fruili; 2008 Seven Sisters "Vivian" Sauvignon Blanc; 2005 Steel Creek Pinot Noir; 2008 Tabali Reserva Especial Chardonnay; 2006 Val Do Sosego Albarino, Rias Baixas; 2006 Warburn Premium Reserve Pinot Grigio;

2004 Wattle Creek Alexander Valley Shiraz; 2006 Wegeler Estate Riesling; 2007 Willm Pinot Blanc Reserve; 2007 Willm Riesling Reserve; 1999 Graham's Malvedos Vintage Port; Graham's 20 Years Old Tawny Port; Emilio Lustau Amontillado La Plaza Viejo Sherry.

Continental
•Coach, Domestic Flights 2006 Uma Chardonnay; St. Germain Blanc; St. Germain Rouge; 2008 Redtree Chardonnay; 2007 Nostalgia Merlot.

•Premium Class, Domestic Flights Charles de Fere Jean-Louis; Heidsieck Monopole Blue Top; J.P. Chenet Brut; 2007 Randall Moore Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Telteca Tacones Chardonnay; 2007 McManis Merlot; 2007 McManis Cabernet Sauvignon.

•Coach, International Flights 2006 Uma Chardonnay; 2005 Louis Montellier Chardonnay; St. Germain Blanc; St. Germain Rouge; 2008 Redtree Chardonnay; 2007 Nostalgia Merlot.
•Premium Class, International Flights Charles de Fere Jean Louis; Heidsieck Monopole Blue Top; J.P. Chenet Brut; 2007 A to Z Chardonnay; 2005 Laetitia Pinot Blanc; 2007 St. Supery Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 Domaine Laroche Chablis; 2005 Château Toumillon; 2007 Bouchard Pere et Fils St. Veran; 2007 Schloss Reinhartshausen Fountain Blue Riesling; 2006 Schloss Reinhartshausen Fountain Blue Riesling; 2007 Barberani Vallesanta; 2005 Moletto Pinot Grigio; Dow's Fine White Port; 2002 Quinta do Noval LBV Port;

2007 Cline Cellars Ancient Vines Zinfandel; 2005 Rodney Strong Pinot Noir; 2006 RockBare Shiraz; 2006 Domaine de Beaurenard Rasteau Côtes du Rhône Village; 2007 Ogier Vacqueyras; 2004 Château Loudenne (Medoc); 2005 Château Bois Chantant St. Emilion Bordeaux; 2006 Château Lagrange Lussac; 2005 Château d'Argadens (Bordeaux Supérieur); 2005 Straccali Chianti; 2006 Dom Martinho; 2003 Ferreira Grand Red Douro; 2004 Telteca Anta Malbec; 2003 Miguel Torres Sangre de Toro.

Delta/Northwest
•Coach, Domestic Flights Gato Cabernet; Gato Chardonnay.
•Premium Class, Domestic Flights 2006 Wente Southern Hills Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Callaway Cellar Selection Chardonnay.

•Coach, International Flights Bandit Chardonnay; Bandit Merlot; La Champagne Chardonnay; La Champagne Merlot; Prospect Hill Chardonnay; Prospect Hill Shiraz.

•Premium Class, International Flights 2007 Santa Ana Reserve Torrontes; 2006 Anne Boecklin Pinot Blanc Reserve; 2006 Sebastiani Chardonnay; 2006 Occhio a Vento Vermentino; 2007 Brampton Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 Hermanos Lurton Rueda; 2005 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Domaine de la Griveliere Côtes du Rhône; 2005 Wente Southern Hills Cabernet; 2005 Belguardo Serrata Maremma; 2005 Gloria Ferrer Carneros Merlot; 2006 Mark West Pinot Noir; Scharffenberger Brut; 2003 Graham's Late Bottled Vintage Port; Jurancon Prestige.

Frontier
•Coach, Domestic Flights Kenwood Cuvée Brut; Woodbridge Merlot; Woodbridge Chardonnay; Hayes Ranch Chardonnay; Hayes Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon.
•Coach, International Flights Kenwood Cuvée Brut; Woodbridge Merlot; Woodbridge Chardonnay; Hayes Ranch Chardonnay; Hayes Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon.

Hawaiian
•Coach, Domestic Flights 2007 Tamas Cabernet Sauvignon; 2008 Tamas Chardonnay; Korbel Brut.
•Premium Class, Domestic Flights 2007 McManis Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Bogle Chardonnay; Cristalino Brut.
•Coach, International Flights 2007 McManis Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Bogle Chardonnay.
•Premium Class, International Flights 2007 McManis Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Bonny Doon Vin Gris de Cigare; 2008 A to Z Wineworks Pinot Gris; Cristalino Brut.

Horizon
•Coach, Domestic & International Flights 2007 Washington Hills Chardonnay; 2007 Washington Hills Merlot; 2008 Randall Harris Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 Randall Harris Merlot; 2006 Apex Chardonnay; 2006 Apex Cabernet.

JetBlue
•Coach, Domestic Flights 2007 Hope Estate Verdelho; 2007 Hope Estate Shiraz.
•Coach, International Flights 2007 Hope Estate Verdelho; 2007 Hope Estate Shiraz.
Midwest
•Coach, Domestic Flights Kenwood Cuvée Brut; Hayes Ranch Chardonnay; Hayes Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon.

Southwest
•Coach, Domestic Flights 2007 Coastal Ridge Merlot; 2007 Coastal Ridge Chardonnay.
Spirit
•Coach, Domestic Flights 2008 Sutter Home Cabernet; 2007 Sutter Home Cabernet; 2008 Sutter Home Chardonnay; 2007 Sutter Home Chardonnay.
•Coach, International Flights 2008 Sutter Home Cabernet; 2007 Sutter Home Cabernet; 2008 Sutter Home Chardonnay; 2007 Sutter Home Chardonnay.

United
•Coach, Domestic Flights 2007 Redwood Creek Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Redwood Creek Chardonnay.
•Premium Class, Domestic Flights 2008 Bushman's Gully Shiraz; 2007 Canyon Road Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Canyon Road Chardonnay; 2008 De Bortoli Selection Shiraz; 2008 Trapiche Merlot; 2005 Montevina Zinfandel; 2006 Stone Barn Chardonnay; 2008 Two Oceans Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 Yali Chardonnay.
•Coach, International Flights 2007 Redwood Creek Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Redwood Creek Chardonnay.

•Premium Class, International Flights 1998 Heidsieck Monopole Cuvée Diamant; 2003 Louis Roederer Brut; 2002 Nicolas Feuillatte Brut; 2002 Pannier Brut; 2000 Philipponnat Brut; Iron Horse Brut; Mumm Napa Brut; 2007 Andean Malbec Reserve; 2005 Benziger Merlot; 2005 Oberon Cabernet Sauvignon; 2005 Rodney Strong Symmetry Meritage; 2006 Alexander Valley Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon; 2005 Artesa Meritage;

2006 Wakefield Shiraz; 2006 Bouchard Beaune Avaux; 2005 Bouchard Pommard; 2005 Capcanes Vall del Calas Merlot-Tempranillo; 2006 Champy Pinot Noir; 2006 Château Cantemerle, Haut-Médoc; 2008 Groom Sauvignon Blanc; 2006 Laetitia Chardonnay; 2007 Mount Nelson Sauvignon Blanc; 2005 Robert Mondavi Chardonnay; 2006 Sonoma Cutrer Chardonnay; 2007 Te Hira Sauvignon Blanc; 2006 Bouchard Les Clous (Chardonnay); 2006 La Chablisienne La Singuliere (Chardonnay); 2007 Laboure-Roi Les Chevaliers (Chardonnay); 2007 Saget Domaine de la Perriere Sancerre;

2007 Selbach-Oster Riesling Kabinett; Etoile Brut; Gloria Ferrer Brut; 2007 Firestone Vineyard Select Chardonnay; 2007 Geyser Peak Sauvignon Blanc; 2006 Hayman & Hill Reserve Chardonnay; 2008 iSong Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 Lockwood Chardonnay; 2006 Simi Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Stormhoek Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Trapiche Oak Cask Chardonnay; 2007 Andean Malbec; 2005 Firestone Vineyard Select Merlot; 2005 Jindalee Circle Cabernet Sauvignon; 2005 L de Lyeth Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Lucas & Lewellen Queen of Hearts Pinot Noir; 2007 Masterpeace Shiraz; 2007 Solterra Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Trapiche Oak Cask Cabernet Sauvignon; 2003 Graham's Late Bottle Vintage Port.

USAIRWAYS
•Coach, Domestic Flights Turning Leaf Merlot; 2005 Beringer Stone Cellars Cabernet; 2006 Beringer Stone Cellars Chardonnay.
•Premium Class, Domestic Flights 2007 Cypress Vineyards Chardonnay; 2007 Montevina Chardonnay; 2007 Cachuma Cabernet; 2006 Cachuma Cabernet.
•Coach, International Flights Turning Leaf Merlot, 2005 Beringer Stone Cellars Cabernet; 2006 Beringer Stone Cellars Chardonnay.
•Premium Class, International Flights 2007 Callaway Cabernet Sauvignon; 2006 Matchbook Tempranillo; Wente Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Callia Alta Chardonnay Torrontes; Quinta do Noval Port; Charles de Fere Blanc de Blancs; Pol Clement Brut; Scharffenberger Brut.

Virgin America
•Coach, Domestic Flights 2006 Wente Chardonnay; 2005 Wente Chardonnay; 2006 Wente Cabernet Sauvignon.
•Premium Class, Domestic Flights 2006 St. Francis Sonoma County Chardonnay; 2004 St. Francis Sonoma County Syrah; 2007 Mirassou Pinot Noir; 2007 Mirassou Sauvignon Blanc; 2006 Château Julien Barrel-Aged Merlot; 2007 Château Julien Barrel-Fermented Chardonnay.
Foreign airlines' flights to/from the USA

Air France
•Coach Chanoine Brut Grande Réserve; Wente Chardonnay; 2008 La Vieille Ferme (Perrin & Fils), Côtes du Lubéron, Côtes du Ventoux.
•Premium Class 2003 Louis Roederer Brut Millésimé; Lanson Black Label Brut; 2003 Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh "Vendémiaire" Alain Brumont; 2006 M. Chapoutier, Condrieu Invitare; 2005 Antonin Rodet Mercurey 1er Cru en Sazenay; 2004 Saint-Emilion Château Canon; 2006 Champs Royaux Reliquat, Chablis, William Fèvre; 2005 Champs Royaux Reliquat, Chablis, William Fèvre; 2004 Château Cantemerle, Haut-Médoc; 2003 Château Cantemerle, Haut-Médoc; 2006 d'Antoine Ogier Crozes Hermitage "Les Allégories."

Air New Zealand
•Coach Montana Lindauer Brut; 2006 Kim Crawford Unoaked Chardonnay; 2006 Spinyback Chardonnay; 2007 Five Flax Chardonnay; 2008 Lake Chalice Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Sugar Loaf wines; 2008 Devil's Staircase Pinot Noir; Carrick Unravelled Pinot Noir; 2008 Russian Jack Pinot Noir; 2007 Villa Maria Private Bin Merlot; 2007 Southbank Estate Syrah; 2007 Mission Estate Merlot; 2008 Waimea Estate Spinyback Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Bensen Block Sauvignon Blanc.

•Premium Class 2007 Sileni Syrah, Cellar Selection; 2007 Saint Clair Pioneer Block 17 Bay Block Merlot; 2007 Villa Maria Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon, Cellar Selection; 2007 Ata Rangi Celebre; 2007 Forrest Pinot Noir; 2007 Mondillo Pinot Noir; 2007 Saint Clair Pinot Noir, Pioneer Block 14 Doctor's Creek; 2007 Montana Pinot Noir, Gabriel's Gully; 2007 Villa Maria Pinot Noir, Cellar Selection; 2008 Montana Sauvignon Blanc, Festival Block; 2008 Kahurangi Estate Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Wither Hills Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 Coopers Creek Chardonnay, Swamp Reserve;

2007 Wither Hills Chardonnay; 2007 Alpha Domus Chardonnay, Barrique Fermented; 2007 Lawson's Dry Hills Chardonnay; 2008 Hunter's Gewurztraminer; 2007 Morton Estate Musetta Rose, White Label; 2008 West Brook Riesling; 2008 Wither Hills Pinot Gris; 2008 The Edge Viognier, Escarpment Vineyards; 2008 Forrest Noble Riesling; 2007 Konrad Sigrun Noble Two; 2007 Rose Tree Cottage Noble Riesling.

All Nippon
•Coach Chambler Vin Mousseux Brut; 2008 Gaston Cabernet Sauvignon; Vin de Pays d'Oc; 2008 La Baume Chardonnay.

•Premium Class 2006 Château Labouré Roi, Meursault 1er Cru Bouches Chères; 2007 Schug Chardonnay; 2007 Wegeler Riesling Spätlese, Wehlener Sonnenuhr; 2005 Château Bergat; 2004 Domaine des Perdrix, Nuits Saint Georges, 1er Cru, Aux Perdrix; 2005 Franciscan Oakville Estates Cabernet Sauvignon; 2006 Nagano Merlot; 2007 Château Julien Barrel Fermented Chardonnay; 2008 Babich Sauvignon Blanc; 2006 Lockwood Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon; 2007 Domaine Ninot Erell Mercurey.

British Airways
•Coach Kupferberg Gold; 2004 Prieur des Jacobins; Redwood Creek Cabernet Sauvignon; Redtree Chardonnay; 2008 Château Belair.

•Premium Class Heidsieck Monopole Blue Top; Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve; Ayala Brut Majeur; 2000 Bollinger Grande Annee; 2007 Terra do Gargalo Monterrei; 2006 Marmesa Vineyards Chardonnay; 2007 Château De Rully, Rully; 2009 Alexanderfontein Sauvignon Blanc; 2006 Montes Alpha Syrah; 2005 Château Bournac; 2007 La Haute Marone; Gigondas; 2006 Los Osos Merlot; 2006 Valdivieso Cabernet Franc; 2006 Brocard Chablis Grand Cru Valmur; 2007 Terrassen Grüner Veltliner, Kamptal; 2007 Hahn Pinot Gris; 2007 Artesa Chardonnay; 2002 Château Batailley (Pauillac); 2001 Château Cantemerle, Haut-Médoc; 2004 Grand Tinel, Châteauneuf-du-Pape; 2006 Closerie de Vaudieu, Châteauneuf-du-Pape; 2006 Château Ste. Michelle Merlot, Indian Wells; 1998 Château Coutet, Barsac; 1992 Warre's Colheita Port.

Cathay Pacific
•Coach 2007 Domaine La Combe; VDP de L'Herault Merlot; 2008 Madison Ridge Chardonnay; 2007 Cantine Due Palme Canonico IGT Negroamaro, Salento.

•Premium Class Champagne Amour de Deutz 99; Champagne Deutz Brut Classic; Champagne Krug; 2006 Mormoreto (Frescobaldi); 2006 Felipe Rutini Malbec Reserve; 2001 Château Lynch-Bages; 2005 Bouchard Pere & Fils Meursault, Les Clous; 2005 Henri de Villamont Meursault; 2004 Cuvaison Estate Chardonnay; 2006 Wente Riva Ranch Reserve Chardonnay; 2005 Nipozzano (Frescobaldi) Riserva; 2005 Geyser Peak Cabernet Sauvignon; 2006 Vieux Château Landon, Haut-Médoc; 2005 Vieux Château Landon, Haut-Médoc; 2008 Beringer Stone Cellars Chardonnay; 2008 P. Ferraud & Fils Vire Clesse; 2007 Delphine de Margon Chardonnay.
EL AL
•Coach 2007 Binyamina Merlot
•Premium Class Brut Private Collection; 2006 Golan Basalt Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve; 2005 Golan Basalt Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve; 2008 Chardonnay Recanati; 2007 Chardonnay Recanati; 2007 Adamah Basalt Cabernet Sauvignon; 2006 Adamah Basalt Cabernet Sauvignon; 2005 Yarden Merlot; 2004 Yarden Merlot; 2007 Dalton Safsufa Cabernet Sauvignon; 2008 Tishbi Estate Sauvignon Blanc; 2007 Tishbi Estate Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 C Blanc du Castel Chardonnay; 2007 C Blanc du Castel Chardonnay; 2006 Dalton White Safsufa; 2007 Yarden HeightsWine; 2006 Yarden HeightsWine.

Finnair
•Coach Bernard Massard Brut, Cuvée l'Ecusson; 2008 Tandarra Shiraz, Cuvée Prestige; 2008 Tandarra Chardonnay, Cuvée Prestige.
•Premium Class 2003 Joseph Perrier Brut, Cuvée Royale; 2003 Château Coufran, Cru Bourgeois Superieur; 2004 Pezzo Morgana, Salice Salentino; 2007 Regnard Chardonnay; 2007 Clos Henri Fusional; 2007 Opitz One; 1995 Niepoort Port.

Iberia
•Coach 2008 Canforrales (red); 2008 Faustino VII (white)
•Premium Class Castillo Perelada, Brut Reserva; 2006 Inspiración Valdemar, Rioja; 2008 Martín Códax, Rías Baixas; 2008 Fontana Fontal, La Mancha; 2005 Marqués de Riscal Reserva, Rioja; 2005 Marco Real Crianza, Colección Privada; 2006 Condado de Haza Crianza, Ribera del Duero; 2008 Mara Martín Godello, Monterrei; 2008 Naia Verdejo, Rueda; 2005 Valtravieso Crianza, Ribera del Duero; 2006 Hécula Monastrell, Yecla; Tres Leones (Moscatel de Alejandría) Sweet, Málaga.

Japan
•Coach Piper-Heidsieck Brut; Japan Airlines Bergerac; Japan Airlines Fleur de Tarn.
•Premium Class 1997 Champagne Salon; 1996 Henriot Brut Millesime; 2000 Perrier-Jouét Brut, Cuvée Belle Epoque; Piper-Heidsieck Brut; 2007 Remoissenet Puligny Montrachet, 1er Cru, Les Garennes; 2007 Nicolas Potel Volnay, 1er Cru; 2006 Clos Du Bois Chardonnay; 2007 Duerkheimer Hochmess Riesling Spätlese Trocken; 2007 Grace Taru Koshu; 2006 Chateau Calon Segur (Saint-Estephe); 2004 Silkwood Syrah; 2003 Haras de Pirque "Albis" (Cabernet Sauvignon); 2005 Abbaye des Fontenay Macon Villages, Les Truites; 2007 Robert Pepi Sauvignon Blanc; 2005 Miguel Torres Nerola; 2006 Morro Bay Cabernet Sauvignon; 2004 Domaine Louis Max Mercurey, Vigne du Domaine; 2004 Château de By (Medoc).

KLM
•Coach 2008 Terra Andina Cabernet; 2008 Terra Andina Merlot; 2008 Terra Andina Chardonnay; 2008 Terra Andina Sauvignon Blanc.
•Premium Class Billecart-Salmon; 2006 Château Carignan; 2009 The Ned Sauvignon Blanc; 2005 Tempus Two; 2008 Cono Sur Chardonnay Reserve; 2009 Kleine Schorre; 2006 Pinehurst Pinotage; 2009 Boschendal Sauvignon Blanc; 2003 Taylor's LBV Port; Croft Pink Port.

Luftansa
•Coach 2007 Fairseat Cellars Shiraz; 2007 De Gras Cabernet Sauvignon; 2009 Moselland Riesling Nahe; 2008 Allendorf Festival Riesling.

•Premium Class D de Devaux Brut; Jacquart Brut Mosaique; 2004 Domini Veneti Amarone della Valpolicella Classico; 2008 Meersburger Jungfernstieg; 2006 Rutherford Ranch Chardonnay; 2007 Iphofer Kronsberg Silvaner; 2005 Veenwouden Merlot, Paarl; 2002 Château Belgrave; 2006 Château de la Peyrade Muscat de Frontignan, France; 2005 Artesa Carneros Chardonnay; 2007 Schloss Johannisberg Riesling Trocken; 2008 Sonnenwind Riesling Spätlese Trocken; 2008 Red Diamond Chardonnay;

2005 Château Barreyres, Cru Bourgeois, Bordeaux, Haut-Médoc; 2006 Quinta do Gradil (Dry); 2005 Kanonkop Pinotage, Stellenbosch; 2008 Semper Vivum Riesling Spätlese Trocken; 2007 Francis Coppola Director's Cut Chardonnay; 2009 Leyda Vineyard Limited Selection Sauvignon Blanc; 2005 Quinta das Tecedeiras Douro Reserva; 2002 Château Belgrave Cru Classe; 2005 Tokaija Edes Late Harvest, Oremus, Ungarn.

Open Skies (British Airways)
•Premium Class Lanson Brut Black Label; Laurent Perrier Brut LP; 2004 Château L'Argilus du Roi (Saint-Estephe); 2007 Francois Lurton Malbec, Tierra de Luna, Alta Coleccion; 2005 Château Seguin, Pessac Leognan; 2007 Joseph Mellot Sancerre; 2007 Château Corton André Bourgogne Chardonnay; 2005 Château Le Bonnat Graves.

Quantas
•Coach Jacob's Creek Brut Cuvée; 2009 Oakridge Over the Shoulder Chardonnay; 2008 MadFish Premium White; 2009 Primo Estate La Biondina Colombard-Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 St Hallett Poacher's Blend Semillon Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Wirra Wirra Scrubby Rise Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Viognier; 2008 St Hallett Gamekeepers Reserve Shiraz Grenache; 2008 Fox Creek Red Baron Shiraz; 2007 Barwang Cafe Series Cabernet Merlot; 2008 Brokenwood Cricket Pitch Cabernet Merlot Shiraz; 2008 Ferngrove Merlot; 2008 O'Leary Walker Adelaide Hills Chardonnay.

•Premium Class 1999 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne; Charles Heidsieck Brut; 2004 Penfolds Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon; 2009 Shaw and Smith Sauvignon Blanc; 2008 Shaw and Smith Sauvignon Blanc; 2004 De Bortoli Noble One Botrytis Semillon; 2008 Grosset Polish Hill Riesling; 2005 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay; 2003 Brokenwood ILR Reserve Semillon; 2007 Paringa Estate Pinot Noir;

2005 Clonakilla Shiraz Viognier; 2006 Frogmore Creek Pinot Noir; 2007 Howard Park Sauvignon Blanc; 2004 Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz; 2004 Jacob's Creek St Hugo Cabernet Sauvignon; 2005 Stonier Reserve Chardonnay; 2008 Rochford Pinot Gris; 2007 Coriole Vineyards Shiraz; 2007 Yalumba Eden Valley Chardonnay; 2006 Yalumba Barossa (Tempranillo-Grenache-Viognier); 2005 Barossa Peter Lehmann Eden Valley Riesling; 2005 St Hallett Shiraz, Barossa, Blackwell.

Singapore
•Coach 2007 Paul Mas Cabernet de Cabernet; 2007 Paul Mas Chardonnay 2007; 2007 Mosel Riesling.
•Premium Class 2000 Dom Pérignon champagne; Krug Grand Cuvée; Charles Heidsieck; 2007 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc; Clos du Bois Calcaire; 2001 Château Poyferre Bordeaux; 2006 Château Patache D'Aux; 2005 Dry Creek Cabernet Sauvignon; 2006 Rive Barbera D'Asti; Dow's 20-Year-Old Port; 2003 Graham's Port; 2006 Geyser Peak Chardonnay; 2006 Villa Franz Hattenheimer Riesling.

Virgin Atlantic
•Coach 2008 Marques de Caza Airen; 2008 Marques de Caza Tempranillo.
•Premium Class Champagne Pannier; Berrys' Extra Dry; Blanquette de Limoux; 2008 Doria Sauvignon Blanc VdP; 2008 Inspired Semillon/Chardonnay; 2008 Monte da Casta Ribatejo; 2007 Cocoa Hill Red; 2006 Le Petit Chapoton; 2004 Gran Marqués Reserva, Terra Alta; 2008 Marques de Caza Airen; 2008 Marques de Caza Tempranillo; 2008 Tres Olmos Verdejo; 2009 Du Toitskloof Chenin Blanc; 2009 Don Victor Chardonnay Reserva; 2007 Mountain View Merlot; 2008 Camparrón Selección, Toro; 2008 Michel Lynch Bordeaux.

West Jet
•Coach 2007 Lindemans Bin 40 Merlot; 2007 Lindemans Bin 65 Chardonnay.
Note: Airlines may use "economy" or another word for coach class. Premium class represents business and/or first class.

2009-11-11T16:24:00.018-07:00

Union Members Seek Federal Probe

Exclusive To the Crew Report Blog

The Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), which represents flight attendants from American Airlines (AMR) convened last week to remove the voting rights of its laid off workers. The Constitutional referendum, if approved, would require those on furlough to begin paying union dues or risk having their voting rights extinguished.

The move comes during the union's heated negotiations with American Airlines amid fears its laid off workers would vote against a tentative agreement in retaliation for having their seniority stripped from them. The laid off workers are comprised entirely of former Trans World Airlines (TWA) flight attendants who lost their seniority and placed on the bottom of the seniority list by the union, APFA, in 2001, after American acquired TWA.

Robert Applegate, a former contract negotiator for the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) and past Business Agent for the International Association of Machinists (IAM) who is currently furloughed from the airline, blasted the union's actions.

"It has taken decades to cultivate union democracy in this country and only one rogue union to set it back light years. APFA has now embraced retaliation, in exchange, for monetary gain; a contract. APFA has taken (former TWA) seniority, jobs and now disguised as a dues assessment, the intent to take away the most valuable thing a man or woman can have: the right to vote." Applegate stated.

The former TWA flight attendants have asked the Department of Labor to investigate the matter and exercise the agency's authority to safeguard the workers against retaliation, improper discipline and dues assessment, a protection afforded by the Landrum-Griffin Act of 1959.

2009-11-11T08:11:00.000-07:00

Trouble Brews for Yank Pilots Across Pond
Ted Reed
11/12/09 - 08:53 AM EST

LONDON (TheStreet) -- U.S. pilots need to think twice about kicking back a few beers -- make that even one -- in jolly old England.

"Did you know that the aviation blood alcohol limits in Great Britain are one half of what the limits are in the US?" the U.S. Airline Pilots Association asked last month, in an email to its 5,200 members.

While the Federal Aviation Administration prohibits flying by a pilot whose blood alcohol concentration is at or above 0.04, the standard in Great Britain is roughly half that.
USAPA, which represents pilots at US Airways(LCC Quote), warned members to "use extreme caution" when overnighting in England, because the country has tougher aviation blood alcohol limits than the U.S. does.

A United(UAUA Quote) pilot learned about this difference first hand when he was arrested at London's Heathrow International Airport Monday after failing a breath test.

The pilot, Erwin Vermont Washington, 51, was arrested after a United employee reported him to the authorities, a spokeswoman for BAA Airports Ltd., Heathrow's operator, told The Associated Press. It was not immediately clear how much alcohol he had consumed.

Specifically, British law prohibits pilots from having more than 20 micrograms of alcohol for each 100 milliliters of blood in their system, or .02%. For an average-sized man, that is equivalent to about a half glass of beer.

A similar incident involving a pilot for American(AMR Quote) occurred in May. The pilot, Capt. Joseph Crites, 57, arrived for his flight aboard a Boeing 777 with alcohol on his breath as he was about to fly to Chicago. His blood-alcohol level was found to be twice the legal limit, and he was arrested.

In an October court hearing, the pilot said that he had had a few drinks with dinner the night before reporting for duty, according to The London Daily Mail. His lawyer told the court: "He did have some drinks, but the only thing he can suggest to explain this is that he had some unfamiliar beers, which were stronger than those he was used to." The pilot was fined and lost his job.

It was the American incident that prompted USAPA to warn its members about the law in Great Britain. USAPA's email also included these points: "British security screeners are not only trained but are required to report any suspicious behavior. You can be prosecuted for violating British law. Convictions can result in heavy fines and/or prison time. Failure to submit to a breathalyzer test will result in your immediate arrest. Think before you drink."

In the United case, passengers had boarded Chicago-bound United Flight 949, a Boeing 767 that was preparing for departure when the arrest was made.

"Safety is our highest priority and the pilot has been removed from service while we are cooperating with authorities and conducting a full investigation," the airline said in a statement. "United's alcohol policy is among the strictest in the industry and we have no tolerance for violation of this well-established policy."

A spokesman for the United chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association declined to comment.
Last month, two Northwest pilots, Capt. Timothy B. Cheney, 53, and First Officer Richard I. Cole, 54, overflew the Minneapolis airport in an Airbus A320. The National Transportation Safety Board said the two had lost track of time because they were using personal laptop reporters while discussing a new crew flight-scheduling system.

In that case, Lee Moak, chairman of the ALPA chapter at Delta(DAL Quote), went to bat for the pilots, defending their right to due process. Moak said the NTSB had committed a breach of trust by prematurely releasing self-disclosed information.

Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition, says the series of incidents involving pilots is not random. "We have begun a long slide in terms of professionalism in the industry," he said. "This industry and its workers have been pushed to the limits, and I think they are a little ragged at the edges.

"You have an industry of professional pilots whose pay had been cut, their work hours extended and their pensions slashed in many cases," he said. "They are demoralized. They tell their kids not to come into the profession."

Mitchell said he will propose a solution Thursday when he appears on a panel at a U.S. Transportation Department forum on the state of the industry. "We have to put together a coherent national air travel policy instead of the patchwork we have now, overseen by Congress, the FAA and others," he said. "If we had a national transportation policy, the red flags would come up before there are incidents.

-- Written by Ted Reed in Charlotte, N.C. .

2009-11-09T08:26:00.004-07:00

Furloughed ex-TWA flight attendants fight proposal to make them pay dues

by Terry Maxon Dallas Morning News

The Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents American Airlines employees, is proposing a constitutional amendment that has outraged its members who formerly worked for Trans World Airlines.

APFA board members this week approved an amendment that would assess dues on all members if they want to remain in good standing and have the right to vote. Furloughed members or members on leaves currently don't have to pay dues.

Roger Graham, a furloughed ex-TWA flight attendant who is helping lead the fight against the dues changes, called the proposal "in a word, despicable."

He said the amendment is aimed directly at the ex-TWA flight attendants, since all 1,200 flight attendants currently on furlough are ex-TWA employees. They joined American when the airline bought Trans World Airlines' assets and hired its people in April 2001.

"We're the only group that it's going to hurt because we're the only ones that are indeed furloughed," Graham said.

APFA president Laura Glading denied that the dues proposal targets anyone. The union just has a lot of members who aren't working or paying dues, around 2,400 as of Dec. 1, and the union needs the money.

"We have no intention of harming anyone," she said. "It's just a matter of running an efficient union. You don't have to pay dues when you're on leave or on furlough if you choose not to. But you cannot vote."

The Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents American Airlines employees, is proposing a constitutional amendment that has outraged its members who formerly worked for Trans World Airlines.

APFA board members this week approved an amendment that would assess dues on all members if they want to remain in good standing and have the right to vote. Furloughed members or members on leaves currently don't have to pay dues.

Roger Graham, a furloughed ex-TWA flight attendant who is helping lead the fight against the dues changes, called the proposal "in a word, despicable."

He said the amendment is aimed directly at the ex-TWA flight attendants, since all 1,200 flight attendants currently on furlough are ex-TWA employees. They joined American when the airline bought Trans World Airlines' assets and hired its people in April 2001.

"We're the only group that it's going to hurt because we're the only ones that are indeed furloughed," Graham said.

APFA president Laura Glading denied that the dues proposal targets anyone. The union just has a lot of members who aren't working or paying dues, around 2,400 as of Dec. 1, and the union needs the money.

"We have no intention of harming anyone," she said. "It's just a matter of running an efficient union. You don't have to pay dues when you're on leave or on furlough if you choose not to. But you cannot vote."

Here's where it gets complicated. There's a group called the Coalition for Union Principles, comprised of retired and furloughed TWA flight attendants, who have threatened to work American Airlines flights during any APFA work stoppage.

CUP is unhappy that the ex-TWA flight attendants all got lower seniority than all American Airlines flight attendants who had been hired prior to the TWA acquisition. You've got 40-year TWA flight attendants with less seniority than flight attendants hired by American in 2001.

Right now, about 1,200 flight attendants are furloughed, all ex-TWA. The rest of the approximately 4,000 ex-TWA attendants were furloughed years ago and have fallen off the recall list.

The 2003 APFA contract with American said that furloughed flight attendants would lose their right to recalled after they had been on furlough five years. A bunch fell off the recall list as a result.

Because of pressure from the ex-TWA flight attendants, the airline agreed several years ago to extend recall rights. But all employees who had already fallen off the recall list were gone forever.

The Coalition for Union Principles is continuing its fight to get APFA to change the way it merged the seniority lists of TWA and American flight attendants, the method that put all TWA members at the bottom.

Graham, who calls CUP "a rogue group of former TWA employees," said the coalition's actions have created a lot of animosity among APFA leaders, and the dues proposal is to keep the ex-TWA people from voting on any contract proposal.

The question of voting rights is important because the APFA is making a big push to get a tentative agreement by early 2010. Any deal would have to be approved by APFA members.

The NMB and American Airlines are very concerned that even if the union and airline reached agreement, "the TWA bloc vote would shoot it down," Graham said. "They [union leaders] intend to change the definition of union member in good standing to disguise the retaliation of a dues assessment which will be imposed to rid the TWA flight attendants of their voting rights."

Would the ex-TWA employees vote against a proposed contract?

"I can't guess or estimate," Graham said. "You know, it just depends on the contract all around. If there are things in there like an unlimited recall extension, things that would benefit everybody... But the union is determined to get a contract through and they're very concerned about the bloc vote."

Glading said the proposal is not a reaction to any group or threat to vote against a contract or work during a strike.

The union has set a goal to get a new contract with American sometime in January. If not, it wants the National Mediation Board to release the union from federal mediation and allow it to start job actions like strikes.

Glading said the dues proposal probably won't be voted on by members until December. If it is in effect by Jan 1, members can be delinquent 60 days before they'd lose their voting rights. The union would like to have a contract proposal out for a vote before that 60 days goes by. That means everybody would be able to vote on a proposed deal, whether they paid dues or not.
However, if the union does not wrap up a deal quickly, the people on leave or furlough would have to start dues if they want to retain their voting rights.

On Thursday, Graham asked the U.S. Department of Labor to investigate the APFA's actions, and he and associates are talking to lawmakers about getting involved.

"It has taken decades to cultivate union democracy in this country and only one rogue union to set it back light years," fellow furloughee Robert Applegate, a former contract negotiator for the Association of Flight Attendants and past business agent for the International Association of Machinists, said in a statement.

"They have now embraced upon corruption, in exchange, for monetary gain. They have taken their seniority, their jobs and now disguised as a dues assessment intend to take away the most valuable thing a man or woman can have - the right to vote," he said.

2009-11-01T14:25:00.004-07:00

Airlines: Some Costs They Can't - And Shouldn't
by: Robert Herbst October 31, 2009

Today, like most every day, just over 44,000 of the world's most experienced airline pilots employed by the 9 largest airlines in the United States will accept full responsibility for over 1.5 million lives sitting on the other side of their locked cockpit doors. Over the next 24 hours, these pilots will make over 13,500 take-offs literally around the world. Through every imaginable type of weather, they will be in command of over 36,000 hours of flight time. And, if today is like most days, you will never hear or read about even one of those flights.

There is a perception that salaries are an important key to discretionary cost-cutting by the airlines. Charts below attempt to put that information in perspective as regards pilots.
So what does it really take to be a commercial pilot?

First, similar to a doctor taking years to get qualified in the operating room, there are no 'entry level' pilot jobs at the major airlines. Before being hired by a major airline a commercial pilot will likely have a college degree and either been trained as a pilot in the military or have spent several years acquiring thousands of flight hours experience on smaller aircraft.

Fully depending on the airline’s growth, it could take as many as 20+ years to move from a co-pilot to captain.

Airline pilot wages, benefits and working schedules are based on company seniority. If a pilot leaves one airline he/she will start at the bottom of the next airline’s seniority list as a new hire.

Once hired by a major airline, regardless of prior experience, a pilot goes through several weeks of training and testing before being qualified on that airline’s specific aircraft operations. Every time he or she moves to a different type of aircraft or moves from co-pilot to captain he will again require more weeks of training and testing.

Pilots have to pass a medical check every six months with an annual EKG required as they get older. Due to very stringent medical requirements, approximately 15% of airline pilots are forced to retire before they reach their mandatory retirement age.

The FAA has strict limits on the maximum number of hours pilots are allowed to fly: The maximums are 1,000 in a year, 100 in a month and 30-32 in 7 days (international flight limits are slightly higher than domestic). In order to actually get an hour of flight time, depending on your seniority and the airline’s schedule, you can expect to be away from your base from two to four times actual flight hours. For the most part, a pilot only gets paid when the aircraft is moving. (Note: Pilots do not get premium pay for working holidays or weekends.)

What is a pilot worth?
Actually the important question should be: In the future, is the job going to be worth it for those individuals you want and expect to be responsible for so much?

Since 9/11 and the bankruptcy or reorganization of every legacy airline, pilot hourly pay rates have been reduced to what they were almost 20 years ago. In addition, work rule changes force pilots to work more and longer days than they ever have. Pilots from United (UAL), Delta (DAL), Northwest (now merged with Delta) and USAir (LCC) all lost significant amounts of their pensions as those airlines went through bankruptcy after 9/11.

Recognizing the above, how much of the average passenger airline ticket fare is now used to pay pilots to accept the responsibility they do? Not very much!

Since 9/11, United, Delta, Northwest and USAir filed bankruptcy. American (AMR) and Continental (CAL) reorganized outside of bankruptcy in 2003.

In the past seven years, while inflation increased by 20%, the average hourly cockpit wage cost for the average passenger fare dropped by 29%.

When comparing year 2008 with 2002, Southwest (LUV) and JetBlue (JBLU) were the only two airlines that had their passenger fare ratio of cockpit wage costs increase. (In 2002, both of these airlines had the lowest fare ratios in the industry.) In figure 3 you can see how the average cockpit wage cost ratio of the average passenger fare per hour of flight changed for each selected airline since year 2002.

As you can see, on average, the coffee you purchased in the terminal before your flight cost more than what both pilots will earn from your passenger fare for each hour of flight they accept responsibility for your safety.

Whether it is in the operating room or an airline cockpit, if you want the “best” individuals there, you will have to provide the incentives to get them first.

The bottom line questions are: In the future, who do you want replacing these aging and very experienced veteran pilots? Is it worth a few dollars more to attract the “right stuff” to be responsible for such an important job?

Data source: SEC filings and BTS reports
Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author and his family hold stock in AMR

2009-10-07T13:34:00.001-07:00

Delta Flying Into Union Storm
By Ted Reed 10/07/09 - 04:16 PM EDT
ATLANTA (TheStreet) -- Delta(DAL Quote) is flying into the toughest, most crucial labor battles it has ever faced.

In October 2008, Delta merged with heavily unionized Northwest, bringing thousands of union members into the tent. The following month, Democrat Barack Obama was elected president, enabling him to alter the composition of the National Mediation Board, which oversees airline industry labor issues. Obviously, both events involve potential drawbacks for Delta.

Over the past few decades, unions have repeatedly made runs at Delta, an outlier in one of the country's most unionized industries. As an example, Northwest was 96% unionized at the time of the merger. At Delta, only pilots and dispatchers, or 15% of workers, are unionized.

Now, two of the airline industry's biggest unions, which for the moment continue to represent thousands of Northwest workers, are organizing at Delta and gearing up for a series of elections. The stakes are extraordinarily high, because if the unions lose, they not only fail to gain new members but also lose members they already have.

"If Delta is the largest airline in the world, then we are going to be the largest union at the largest airline in the world," says Robert Roach, general vice president of the International Association of Machinists. "With the support we have both from current Northwest members and from Delta employees who have shown interest in organizing, we think we have a good chance of winning these elections."

Unlike the IAM, the Association of Flight Attendants has a benchmark by which to gauge its prospects. It staged a union election at Delta in May and won support from about 5,300 of the 13,400 eligible flight attendants. "As in every organizing campaign, we built support and structure," says Ed Gilmartin, AFA general counsel. Now the list of eligible voters has expanded by about 7,000 Northwest flight attendants. "We are very optimistic," Gilmartin said.
Shares of Delta closed Wednesday at $8.28, down 17 cents.

It would be unwise, however, to underestimate Delta, which has been successfully executing its various strategies since entering bankruptcy in 2005. Before its Chapter 11 filing, Delta seemed bent on squandering the world's biggest hub in Atlanta on connections to Florida and a mystifying effort to match fares with low-cost competitor AirTran(AAI Quote).

But a restructured Delta utilizes its hubs to connect passengers to premium global destinations.
Delta did not rest on its laurels, but rather pursued a merger with Northwest, operator of a Tokyo hub that filled the biggest gap in its network. It enlisted its powerful pilots union as its chief ally, not only gaining support from a key constituency but also avoiding the pilot infighting that soured the 2005 merger of US Airways(LCC Quote) and America West.

Now Delta is betting that it retains enough of a genteel yet aggressively antiunion Southern culture to continue to ward off the labor movement. It is confident enough that Mike Campbell, executive vice president for human resources, is complaining of delays in the union representation voting, in effect telling unions to bring it on.

Union elections following an airline merger require the National Mediation Board to first declare that the airline has achieved "single carrier" status. In the case of the pilots, a joint request from the airline and the pilots for a ruling came quickly, in November 2008. But the other work groups have been slower.

The AFA filed July 27, while the IAM filed on Aug. 13 for fleet service workers, but has not yet filed for reservations agents and airport agents. Meanwhile, last month the AFL-CIO's Transportation Trades Department wrote to the NMB, requesting a change in Railway Labor Act voting methodology, which requires that unions gain support from a majority of eligible voters, rather than a majority of actual voters, to win a union election.

It may be that consideration of the request is delaying action on the election filings, although it is impossible to know, given that the NMB has steadfastly declined to comment. Theoretically, the request could benefit from Obama's election, because Obama exercised his right to appoint a new Democratic member to the board, which historically has two members from the president's party and one from the opposition.

"There is no question that there is a delay going on," Campbell says. "The AFA filed for an election, admitted we are a single transportation system, and we agreed with them, and beyond that nothing has transpired before the agency." He said the delay restricts the ability of many flight attendants to benefit from their seniority in bidding for schedules they desire. Even if the NMB wants to change voting regulations, he says, the change "shouldn't apply to pending cases, filed under the current rules."

As for the IAM, Campbell says the union still has not filed for an election for airport and reservations agents, despite indicating in August that it was nearly ready to do so. Added Delta spokeswoman Gina Laughlin: "It doesn't make sense that the agents handling bags on the ramp are a single carrier but the agents putting the bags on the belt at the ticket counter are not." But Roach says that Delta has not reached single carrier status in regard to its agents because "a lot of computer systems are not merged."

Gilmartin says he doesn't believe the NMB is stalling. When Delta and the pilots filed on Nov. 4, he said, it took two months for approval, even though no disagreement was involved. Flight attendants filed 10 weeks ago. "By board standards, considering all of their workload, it's not long," he says. "But everybody has to wait their turn."

Written by Ted Reed in Charlotte,

2009-10-06T11:39:00.001-07:00

BA cuts 1,000 jobs, will shrink Heathrow crews
British Airways says it is shedding 1,000 jobs, will reduce size of cabin crews at Heathrow
By Raphael G. Satter, Associated Press Writer

On Tuesday October 6, 2009, 2:21 pm EDT

LONDON (AP) -- British Airways PLC is shedding 1,000 jobs, putting 3,000 more employees on part-time work and reducing the size of cabin crews at Heathrow in an effort to get the troubled airline's finances back in order, a spokesman said Tuesday.

BA spokesman Paul Marston said the company was in "a very serious financial position" and was working hard to turn itself around with an aggressive cost-reduction program. The job losses and part-time work, which he said were voluntary, would be the equivalent of cutting 1,700 positions.

Marston said BA, which expects to see a "significant loss" for the second year running, needed the cuts in order to secure its future in an airline market which is likely to remain grim for some time.

"We do not see any green shoots of recovery just right yet," he said.

Marston also announced a companywide freeze on basic pay and said cabin crews operating out of London's Heathrow Airport would be downsized -- so that the typical 747 jet flying from London's Heathrow Airport on a long-haul trip would take off carrying 14 members of crew instead of the usual complement of 15.

Marston said customers weren't likely to notice the difference. He added that changes would come into effect in the middle of November. He declined to say how much money BA hoped to save from cuts.

The job cuts and pay freeze have been discussed with staff for months, but negotiations with the unions have been deadlocked and BA said it needed to move now to ensure the company stayed alive.

"Without changes, we will lose more money with every month that passes," a company statement said. "It is essential we make ourselves more efficient if we are to ensure our long-term survival."

The airline added that it was "not altering anything that requires negotiation."

A call seeking comment from UNITE, Britain's biggest union, was not immediately returned.
The economic downturn has hit carriers like BA particularly hard as individual travelers and companies balk at paying for a seat in first or business class, particularly on short-haul flights. The airline posted a 94 million pound ($150 million) quarterly loss in July. Earlier that month, the airline announced plans to raise 600 million pounds to help it plug its deficits and convinced pilots at the airline to agree to a 2.6 percent pay cut.

U.S. airlines have also suffered amid the souring economy, higher fuel prices, and other issues.
Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc., the world's biggest airline operator, said in June that its staff levels would be down more than 8,000 jobs by the end of 2009 compared to spring 2008.

Associated Press Airlines Writer Harry R. Weber contributed to this report from Atlanta.

2009-10-05T20:03:00.002-07:00

Flight attendants often deal with passengers' medical needs
By Charisse Jones, USA TODAY

Roy Harris usually was able to fly straight home to Nashville.

But on a chilly day in late January, Harris, 57, found himself waiting for a connecting flight at Chicago's Midway Airport. He took off his coat. He reached for his BlackBerry.

The next thing Harris remembers, he was lying in a hospital, recovering from a massive heart attack. Sitting beside him was Rachael Jacobs, a flight attendant for Southwest (LUV), who, back at Midway, called for the defibrillator that ultimately saved Harris' life.

"I wake up and … the first person I see is this flight attendant," says Harris, a minister. "If it hadn't been for Rachael, I wouldn't be alive."

Though the public too often thinks their chief duties are to find pillows and ferry soft drinks, the primary duty of the nation's more than 90,000 flight attendants is to ensure the safety, health and well-being of passengers. With up to 2 million people on roughly 25,000 domestic flights daily, an attendant somewhere in the skies over the USA is dealing with an incident each day. Many can be matters of life and death. And their responses are often heroic.

"I would say we have medical events every day, pretty much around the clock," says Dr. Thomas Bettes, corporate medical director for American Airlines, who estimates that his airline deals with roughly 20 to 25 life-threatening incidents a year. Neither the Federal Aviation Administration nor the Association of Flight Attendants has statistics on the number of medical emergencies that take place in-flight. But the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Association estimates that more than 400 lives have been saved by automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, on U.S. carriers in the past decade.

The most extraordinary lifesaving events make headlines. In January, the nation heralded the heroism of the three US Airways flight attendants who led 150 passengers to safety after Captain Chesley Sullenberger landed Flight 1549 in the Hudson River.

Yet, more often than the public may know, attendants are called on to save a choking child, to resuscitate a passenger with a failing heart or to evacuate a plane forced to make an emergency landing. They can be called on before even getting on the plane to assist a passenger who falls ill in a lounge or near the gate.

Though their training programs may vary, all airlines must meet FAA guidelines that require flight attendants to be instructed in CPR and first aid.

Each year, they undergo retraining to demonstrate knowledge and skills in a range of tasks, from containing a fire in the cabin to getting passengers off a plane that has to land or "ditch" in water, says Corey Caldwell, spokeswoman for the Association of Flight Attendants.

And since the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, surveillance and self-defense have taken on greater emphasis, as flight attendants look out for passengers who may be a threat and identify those who can help in an emergency.

"The customer service angle is part of the job, but just a small part," Caldwell says. "When a flight attendant is actually called upon to serve the safety and security function that they have trained so long for, often it's in a heroic situation."

Quick action
The day started quietly at New York's JFK airport, Jodi Teitelman remembers. Teitelman, a flight attendant for American Airlines, was taking tickets from travelers boarding a Los Angeles-bound flight when a passenger suddenly rushed over and said a woman in the lounge had become ill.

Teitelman, 36, found Anna Tortorici, a grandmother, slumped over, unconscious. With the help of some passengers, Teitelman lay Tortorici on the floor, then ran onto the plane to retrieve the AED and emergency kit.

It was the first time Teitelman used the heart-jolting device on a passenger.

"It was … surreal," she says of that day in October 2006.

In April 2001, the FAA required U.S. airlines to equip all domestic and international flights with AEDs within three years. As with CPR, instruction on how to use the devices became mandatory for flight attendants and is reinforced regularly. American Airlines put the devices on board in 1997, the first U.S. carrier to do so. Since then, the device has monitored or been used on more than 1,900 people, and has saved 86 lives, according to Bettes.

Tortorici, now 78, is among them. She and her husband, Larry, were returning to their home in Woburn, Mass., from a 50th anniversary cruise in Hawaii. After going through customs at JFK, she briefly lost sight of her husband and became anxious.

She sat down, and, "I guess my heart stopped beating," she says.

Teitelman placed the defibrillator on Tortorici's chest. After a single jolt, Tortorici began to breathe on her own and thrash about. Paramedics soon arrived, taking her to the hospital. She later had a pacemaker and defibrillator placed in her chest.

"Of course, I'm grateful to her," Tortorici says.

In the early days of commercial aviation, the medical function of flight attendants was so front and center that they were required to be medical professionals.

"In the '40s and '50s, to get a job as a flight attendant, you had to be a registered nurse," Caldwell says. Passengers often got air sick in unpressurized cabins.

The stereotype of flight attendants as waitresses or waiters in the sky came later. In the 1960s, airlines began emphasizing their service function as a marketing tool, though they always focused first on safety. "The role has never changed," Caldwell says.

Robert Putman, 52, has been a flight attendant for roughly 20 years. In that time, he has dealt with passengers who've had medical situations ranging from anxiety attacks to strokes.
Most recently, in February, he performed CPR on a man who had stopped breathing on an American Airlines (AMR) flight from Tampa to Dallas/Fort Worth.

Putman says that he's well-versed in what a medical crisis requires, from alerting the pilot, to asking if there's a medical professional on board, to practicing the mantra "look, listen and feel" when evaluating a sick passenger.

"We're taught to do things," Putman says, "and rarely do we deviate."

Unscheduled landing
Occasionally, a medical emergency is serious enough that a flight has to be diverted to the closest airport.

That was the case in May for Virgin America Flight 67, on its way from Washington's Dulles airport to San Francisco.

A passenger felt sick, briefly passing out. Flight attendant Darryl Gregory, 45, alerted the plane's pilot and went on the intercom to ask if there was a medical professional on board. Meanwhile, another crewmember retrieved a container of oxygen.

Donald Olsen, the plane's captain, began communicating with MedLink, a service that allows the flight team to get guidance from physicians on the ground, and the airline's dispatch center.
"When you get on a plane, you don't know an hour into your flight someone is going to have a heart attack," says Olsen, 43. "That's when the teamwork comes into play, because there're so many things to do, so many questions to be answered."

A physician on board came forward. But two hours away from landing in San Francisco, the passenger had already used three bottles of oxygen. Following doctors' advice, Olsen decided to land in Denver.

Watching the crew handle a medical crisis can soothe the fears of other passengers.

Ravi Poorsina, 31, who was returning home to Walnut Creek, Calif., from a business meeting in Washington, D.C., says that she was initially worried the sick passenger could not get the help he needed in the air. But she soon learned he was well cared for.

"I guess it made me feel slightly more reassured," she said in an e-mail. "To know that the pilots and flight attendants are well trained and experienced is a good thing. You are not alone up there, and that becomes very clear in an emergency situation."

She also got a better grasp on the role flight attendants play. "It made me understand a little more the pressure they are under, and how tough it must be to keep a smile on your face."
In Denver, the sick passenger, whom the airline did not identify, was able to walk off the plane, Gregory says.

He admits such incidents are frightening for him as well as for the passengers. When he started out, "one of my biggest fears was … all the training I got, would it kick in when it's supposed to?" he says.

Each time, Gregory says, it has.

Sharing a moment
Rachael Jacobs did not think she had saved Roy Harris' life.

She knew she had tried. Jacobs was living in Chicago and waiting for a flight home to visit her family in Nashville in January.

Suddenly, someone said a man was sick. Jacobs found Harris foaming at the mouth, suffering an apparent seizure.

Not knowing if he was having a diabetic reaction or a problem with his heart, Jacobs yelled for oxygen, an emergency kit and an AED. A nurse and doctor who were in the area jolted Harris with the AED. Paramedics eventually arrived.

But Jacobs thought Harris would die. She grabbed a cab and followed him to the hospital.

'Miracle in Chicago'
"I knew he was somebody's somebody, and he didn't deserve to be by himself," she says. "And so I just got in that taxi and went." Jacobs stayed with Harris for eight hours. He eventually had quadruple-bypass surgery.

Since then, Harris has given speeches about what he calls "the miracle in Chicago." And Jacobs has become a close friend.

"I think you're forever connected by a life-saving event," Harris says. "She's a real hero."
In some ways, for Jacobs, it was all in a day's work. Still, "I didn't do this to be a good Southwest employee," she says. "My heart told me which way to go, and I just followed."

2009-09-20T09:19:00.003-07:00

5 Tips on How to Avoid Germs on Planes
How to Keep You and Your Family Healthy While Traveling
By LISA STARK and SHEILA EVANS
Sept. 17, 2009

A two-day meeting beginning today at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C., will examine how diseases spread on planes and in airports.

With the spread of the H1N1 virus, airlines have taken notice and stocked up on supplies such as gloves, masks and alcohol wipes and increased their cleanings. Although they are preparing themselves for a flu outbreak, airlines insist that it is still safe to fly.

"Going on a plane is no less safe than going to church, going to work, going to school," said AirTran spokesman Christopher White.

The airflow systems in planes are designed to help minimize the risk of the H1N1 flu spreading because the air flows across the rows of seats instead of front to back. It is continually exchanged with a combination of fresh air and recirculated air that usually passes through a series of filters.

"One of the most persistent myths is that everybody on the plane is breathing the same air and that germs just endlessly recirculate within the cabin. In fact, air on the airplane is probably cleaner than in most indoor spaces," said Katherine Andrus, assistant general counsel for the Air Transport Association.

Yet passengers are still confined to an enclosed space where contagious diseases could spread. James Bennett, a research engineer for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, completed a study of how contaminants move inside a plane.

"Contaminants, such as the small droplets emitted by a cough, do move to other areas of the cabin," Bennett said.

According to Bennett's research, within seconds of one person coughing the droplets have spread outward and nearby passengers get the biggest dose. After 15 minutes those particles could have traveled as far as 10 rows away.

Although exposure does not mean you will get sick, some passengers aren't taking any chances.
"I always have hand sanitizer with me and I always wipe that on me and on surfaces that [my son's] touching a lot," said Sarah Smith, who was travelling with her toddler.

5 Tips on How to Stay Healthy In the Air

Here are five tips from ABC News chief medical editor Dr. Tim Johnson on how to cut down on exposure and help keep you and your family healthy while traveling. If the person next to you is coughing or sneezing, ask to switch seats. It might not always be possible, but it's worth asking.

Bring along a face mask.
Bring alcohol-based hand sanitizer and anti-bacterial wipes.
"Constantly wash your hands," Johnson said, but not in the airplane's bathroom. "Those surfaces are typically going to be contaminated."
Bring your own pillow and blanket.
Drink bottled water. "Bring along water and hydrate yourself," Johnson said, because it will make you "less susceptible to viral infections in general." It's also helpful because airplane air is very dry and dehydrating.

"Mostly be alert to people who might be sick and really isolate yourself," Johnson said, "or insist they be isolated."

And if you're the one who is feeling under the weather, do your fellow travelers a favor and stay home.

2009-09-16T22:48:00.001-07:00

Bumped Passengers Learn a Cruel Flying Lesson
By SCOTT MCCARTNEY

Air travel has gotten a lot bumpier this year -- on the ground.

Passengers are getting bumped from flights at the highest rate in at least 14 years, even though the U.S. Department of Transportation last year doubled the penalties airlines have to pay passengers who have tickets but are denied seats. Among the reasons: Passengers are more reluctant to voluntarily give up seats when flights are oversold for fear of being stranded for a day or two. And some airlines have made their vouchers less generous to save money.

Bumping is still relatively rare, affecting fewer than two passengers out of every 10,000. But the rate at which passengers were bumped in the second quarter skyrocketed 40% compared with a year ago, and airlines say the higher rate will likely continue.

As carriers have slashed capacity, grounding airplanes and cutting flights from schedules, they have packed more people into their remaining flights -- sometimes too many people.

"It's pretty simple: It's just because planes are more full than last year," says Tom Trenga, vice president of revenue management at US Airways Group Inc., which had the highest bumping rate among major airlines, at 1.88 passengers per 10,000 in the second quarter.

This summer, the nine major airlines filled 85.5% of their seats, up from 84.1% last summer. The peak was July, with 86.7% of seats filled. This fall, airlines are aggressively cutting back capacity even further, worried that continued weak business travel could cripple them financially.

Is Bumping Passengers From Flights Right?

That means increased bumping will continue, Mr. Trenga says, until airlines see enough of a pickup in demand to begin bringing flights back into schedules, easing the logjam.
In the second quarter, the most recent reported by the DOT, 20,916 passengers, or 1.39 for every 10,000, were involuntarily denied boarding at major and regional airlines, up from 15,119, or 1.0 per 10,000, in the same period of 2008. (Ten times as many people gave up their seats voluntarily in return for airline vouchers toward future trips.)

If you do get bumped, you are entitled to cash compensation under the DOT's penalty rules, though the airline will likely offer you vouchers. You can insist that the airline pay you on the spot. Do it. Vouchers can have blackout dates, require you to purchase higher fares to use the voucher or even require you to cash in the voucher and buy a ticket in person at an airport rather than booking online.

Desperate for Revenue
Federal rules allow airlines to sell more tickets than there are seats on a plane because customers occasionally change flights or don't show up. Carriers have to balance the cost of compensating customers who get bumped with the cost of having an empty seat when a ticket could have been sold. With the economic downturn, airlines are desperate for any revenue and may be willing to take on more overbooking risk.

Several airlines say they have bumped more people from flights because they have had a harder time getting travelers to voluntarily give up seats. Because flights have been so full, a passenger who gives up a seat voluntarily in return for a voucher toward a future trip may have to wait a day or more to get a seat on another flight.

That means airlines end up refusing boarding to more ticketed passengers, Mr. Trenga says.
In addition, airlines often place heavy restrictions on vouchers. Sometimes vouchers worth $100 or $200 off a ticket can't be applied to the airline's cheapest fares, for example, or they have blackout dates or require customers to buy tickets in person at an airport instead of online.
Alaska Airlines, a unit of Alaska Air Group Inc., tried to cut the value of vouchers in December and saw the rate at which it bumped passengers soar 269% in the second quarter to 1.66 per 10,000, from 0.45 per 10,000 in the same period of 2008.

Before the change, Alaska and its Horizon Air regional-airline unit gave a free ticket to anyone voluntarily giving up a seat when a flight was oversold. But Alaska switched to a two-tier voucher system passengers got a $200 voucher to apply to a future ticket for giving up a seat on a shorter flight and a $400 voucher for a longer flight.

"The perception among those customers on shorter flights was that $200 wasn't enough to offer up their seats as a volunteer," a spokeswoman says. In June, Alaska upped the offer for volunteers on shorter flights to a $300 voucher, "and we've seen a steady decline in the number of involuntary denied boardings since," she says.

UAL Corp.'s United Airlines saw its bumped-passenger rate climb 73% this year to 1.71 passengers per 10,000, second only to US Airways. United says bumping increased because a greater number of leisure passengers have been filling planes than in the past as a result of the downturn in business travel. "They show up for their flight much more often than a business traveler typically does," a spokeswoman says. "As a result, we had fewer no-shows than what we typically see."

The DOT says it isn't concerned about the rise in bumping because the rates are still lower than historical highs. During the 1970s and 1980s, bumping rates were routinely four times as high as today's rate.

Penalties Doubled
Still, the agency doubled compensation penalties for denied boarding last year, the first change in 30 years.

Passengers who are involuntarily bumped will receive compensation equal to their one-way fare up to $400 if they are rescheduled to reach their destination within two hours of their original arrival time for domestic flights and four hours for international flights. The mandatory compensation, depending on ticket price, doubles to $800 if passengers reach their destination later than the two-or four-hour limits.

The best way to avoid getting bumped from a flight is to buy tickets only for flights on which you can reserve a seat and to print your boarding pass early to lay claim to that seat. Passengers should be especially vigilant with regional airlines, which generally have the highest bumping rates in the industry.

And if you're not in a hurry and want to game the system--as many passengers do--you should book flights with few open seats at peak travel hours and tell gate agents early that you are willing to give up your seat if volunteers are needed. For some passengers, vouchers can cut the cost of future trips dramatically. Just make sure you know what you are getting from the airline, what strings are attached, and when your next flight out will be.

Write to Scott McCartney at middleseat@wsj.com

2009-09-15T18:37:00.001-07:00

British Airways May Join JAL Pursuit
09/15/09 - 03:13 PM EDT

DALLAS (TheStreet) -- As a strongly motivated AMR(AMR Quote) battles to ensure its continued partnership with Japan Air Lines, other partners in the Oneworld alliance are also considering investment in JAL.

Both British Airways and the Australian carrier Qantas are potential investors, said a person who is familiar with the negotiations between AMR's American Airlines and JAL.

In particular, British Airways is "deeply preoccupied" that JAL could partner with the SkyTeam alliance, which includes its rival AirFrance as well as Delta(DAL Quote), the person said, noting, "All of the members of Oneworld, led by American, are profoundly interested in intensifying the relationship with JAL.

"American is extraordinarily motivated to maintain a successful partnership with JAL that is more than 10 years old, to keep them in Oneworld and to move forward with more intensive joint operations," the person said. "American will always make an offer superior to whatever Delta wants to do." A British Airways spokeswoman declined to comment and a Qantas spokesperson was not immediately available.

Financially troubled JAL is seeking to restructure and to raise funding from banks, investment funds and others including airlines. It wants about $300 million to $500 million from an airline partner or partners, as a share of the $2.7 billion it reportedly needs. The airline investment is viewed as an industry vote of confidence that would inspire other investors to participate.
JAL has the largest hub at Tokyo Narita, Asia's key airport because of its importance to Japan and its web of connections throughout the continent.

2009-09-04T11:06:00.001-07:00

FAA investigating American's MD-80 repairs

Federal regulators investigating American Airlines over repairs to MD-80 series jets
By David Koenig, AP Airlines Writer
On Friday September 4, 2009,

1:48 pm EDT DALLAS (AP) -- U.S. regulators are investigating American Airlines over structural repairs to its aging fleet of MD-80 series aircraft.

A Federal Aviation Administration official said Friday that the investigation centered on 16 planes.

The Wall Street Journal reported FAA officials suspect American rushed to retire one of the planes to keep it away from inspectors.

A spokesman for American denied the accusation and said mothballing the aircraft wouldn't let it escape FAA scrutiny.

"We retired the plane for economic reasons, tied to our decision several months ago to reduce capacity," spokesman Roger Frizzell told The Associated Press. "Any other assertion is incorrect and misleading."

FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford declined to say whether inspectors believed the airline had tried to hide the plane or whether they had examined it in the New Mexico desert, where it is now parked. He said inspectors examined "a number of planes."

Lunsford said the investigation centered on repairs to the rear bulkhead of the MD-80 series aircraft. As of May, American had 270 MD-80 series jets, or 44 percent of its fleet, according to the company's Web site.

Fort Worth-based American, a unit of AMR Corp., is slowly replacing the MD-80s with new, more fuel-efficient planes while it reduces capacity, or the number of flights, to deal with a decline in air travel.

Airplanes expand and contract as the cabin is pressurized for flight and then depressurized. That can lead to metal fatigue that requires close monitoring and sometimes repairs, especially around the rear bulkhead.

Improper rear bulkhead repairs were blamed for the 1985 crash of a Japan Airlines Boeing 747 that killed 520 people, still the worst single accident in aviation history.

The Journal reported that FAA inspectors believe at least 16 American jets may have flown for months or years with improper fasteners and poorly done repairs to structural cracks.

American spokesman Tim Wagner said the airline discovered the potentially improper fasteners used on the MD-80 bulkheads and told the FAA, identifying each aircraft with the questionable parts.

FAA investigations can lead to exoneration of the carrier or, as in recent cases involving American and Southwest Airlines Co., penalties that run into the millions of dollars.
Shares of American parent AMR Corp. rose 10 cents to $5.59 in afternoon trading Friday.

2009-09-01T22:54:00.002-07:00

American to cut 921 flight attendants' jobs, including 228 layoffs, others taking leave, (all furloughees are former TWA flight attendants, ed.)
By David Koenig, AP Airlines Writer
On Tuesday September 1, 2009, 6:13 pm EDT

DALLAS (AP) -- American Airlines is cutting 921 flight attendant jobs as it deals with an ongoing downturn in traffic and lower revenue.

The airline said Tuesday that the cuts will take effect Oct. 1 and reduce its flight-attendant ranks by about 6 percent.

American, the nation's second-largest airline, said 228 employees will be furloughed -- laid off but with rehiring rights -- and the company will put 244 more on leave for two months. Another 449 will take voluntary options such as leave.

Nearly half of the flight attendants to be furloughed are based at New York's LaGuardia Airport.
The airline said it planned to cut 1,200 flight attendant jobs but was able to reduce the number by adjusting staffing requirements for the winter.

The airline said in June that it would cut jobs as it reduced flights to meet lower travel demand.
American said Tuesday that of the 228 furloughs:

105 would be at LaGuardia

67 at Chicago's O'Hare Airport,

25 in Boston,

17 in St. Louis and

14 at Reagan National near Washington

The workers' union, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, said it had worked with the company to avoid even more layoffs by offering employees voluntary leave and the two-month forced absences.

"What was going to be 1,200 jobs lost has been limited to 228," said union President Laura Glading.

The 244 employees who will be placed on "involuntary overage leave" won't work in October and November, when air traffic is expected to be very weak. They will return to work in December, the union said.

While off the job for two months, those employees will have to pay for their own health insurance although they can get it at American's lower group rate, according to the airline.

Those on involuntary leave can apply for unemployment benefits without American contesting the claim, said American spokeswoman Missy Latham. The airline would contest a claim filed by someone who took voluntary leave, she said.

American has 14,936 active flight attendants, Latham said.

American's traffic plunged 10 percent in the first half of this year compared to the same period of 2008, as the recession grounded many travelers.

The airline's woes were compounded by a steep drop in high-paying business travelers. Second-quarter revenue at parent AMR Corp. tumbled 21 percent from a year ago.

Like other carriers, American has responded to declining traffic by cutting flights. American's capacity in the first six months of the year was nearly 8 percent lower than during the same time last year.

Airlines can cut capacity by operating fewer flights or using smaller aircraft that carry fewer passengers. With fewer flights, American doesn't need as many flight attendants, pilots and other workers.

Shares of Fort Worth-based AMR fell 23 cents, or 4.2 percent, to close at $5.23.

2009-08-27T11:33:00.000-07:00

FAA investigates Southwest Airlines' parts, repairs
10:59 PM CDT on Tuesday, August 25, 2009
By ERIC TORBENSON / The Dallas Morning News
etorbenson@dallasnews.com

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating Southwest Airlines Co.'s use of unauthorized parts and repairs on its older Boeing 737 planes just months after the carrier paid the agency $7.5 million to settle maintenance violations.

An FAA inspector working at a maintenance shop used by Dallas-based Southwest questioned whether some parts on Boeing 737-300 and 737-500 series planes were authorized for use.

The parts under examination divert hot engine exhaust away from the wings when the plane's flaps are extended.

As a result, Southwest grounded 46 aircraft Saturday, causing significant delays in its system and cut its on-time performance to less than two-thirds from its typical 90 percent.

FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford said that the agency was still in the process of understanding how the unauthorized parts got onto the aircraft and that it was too early to comment on any possible enforcement against Southwest.

Southwest said the issue was about whether a vendor correctly documented the repair and parts used on the planes. Southwest also said it wasn't about whether the parts themselves were authorized to be used on the aircraft, said spokeswoman Beth Harbin.

Southwest and Chicago-based Boeing Co. worked on a solution to address the problem with the FAA, but Southwest chose to temporarily ground the planes Saturday. The FAA allowed Southwest to fly the aircraft for 10 days until a permanent solution is reached.

"We are all working toward that resolution now, but there are no conclusions or mandates at this point," Harbin said Tuesday night.

The parts in question – hinge fittings located near the jet engines – aren't considered critical enough to jeopardize the immediate safety of the airplane. If they don't work properly, they can put too much pressure on the flaps – wing panels used to help control the plane.

What's unclear is whether a new investigation would violate the terms of the settlement reached with the FAA on March 2 that lowered a proposed fine of $10.2 million for the carrier's failure to do required inspections on some of its planes.

That settlement stated that Southwest needed to comply with a series of new procedures in its maintenance department, including adding more staff and improving its training manuals.

Southwest flew nearly 60,000 flights in 2006 and 2007 on aircraft that weren't checked for cracks, and the airline had a relationship with regulators that an FAA whistleblower called too cozy.

The resulting congressional hearings created considerable embarrassment for Southwest and for the FAA.

More recent problems have continued to raise questions about Southwest's maintenance practices.

An unexplained football-size tear in a Southwest jet bound for Baltimore July 13 forced the aircraft into an emergency landing, though no one was hurt.

The National Transportation Safety Board continues to investigate the cause of the rip in the top of the plane's fuselage.

Southwest, like many major airlines, pays other companies to do heavy maintenance on its fleet of 544 Boeing 737s.

Following the series of inspection issues at both Southwest and at Fort Worth-based American Airlines Inc., the FAA cracked down on enforcement and has been substantially more aggressive in enforcing airworthiness directives designed to keep the flying public safe.

2009-08-26T22:23:00.000-07:00

Surviving the dreaded tarmac delay

By HARRY R. WEBER, AP Airlines Writer Harry R. Weber, Ap Airlines Writer – Wed Aug 26, 2:06 pm ET

ATLANTA – You're tired, hungry, have a cranky baby on your lap and all you want to do is get off the plane, but you can't because it's been on the tarmac for hours waiting to take off.
While such delays are rare, they can be more common during the hot summer due to thunderstorms and, this year, because of fewer flights to get you to your destination if your flight is canceled.

A six-hour delay with 47 people aboard a small Continental Express plane at a Minnesota airport this month is the extreme. In June, the most recent month for which data is available, there were 278 tarmac delays of 3 hours or more. That was the most this year but still only .05 percent of the total number of scheduled flights that month.

Information is the best ammunition in such situations. Experts advise that passengers be prepared. Here are answers to some questions travelers may ask.

Q. Can't I just get off the plane?

A. No. The captain has ultimate control of the plane and generally will determine if and when to return to the gate and allow passengers to get off.
"It's not a democracy," says Robert Mann, an airline industry consultant in Port Washington, N.Y.

Passengers can request that the aircraft return to the gate, or if they have a cell phone they can call airline customer service or their carrier's frequent flier hotline and exert pressure that way. If you have a medical condition or are ill, notify the crew immediately. But taking matters into your own hands is ill-advised. An FAA spokeswoman says unruly passengers who make a run for the aircraft door could be arrested for interfering with the crew.

Q. Why would the airline choose to keep the passengers onboard rather than let them get off?

A. It takes a lot of time to get passengers off a plane and then back on again. If the weather clears up at the airport where you are heading, the crew may have a limited opportunity to take off. Tarmac delays often occur because of bad weather, congestion and air traffic control issues. Further delays could be caused by allowing passengers to get off, which also could mean passengers with connecting flights might miss those connections.

Airline operations also are a factor. Because of weak demand for air travel due to the ailing economy, airlines have taken large chunks of seats out of the air and are offering fewer flights and frequencies to some destinations.

"It may add to the reason there are the tarmac delays and not the cancellations," says Terry Trippler, an airline and travel expert based in Minneapolis. "The airlines realize that there aren't a lot of flights to get them onto alternate flights, and that's why they rather just wait and get them out."

Q. How long can the crew keep me on the plane before heading back to the gate?

A. There's no law or rule mandating that the crew allow you to get off after a certain period. Legislation introduced in the Senate in July would require planes delayed more than three hours to return to a gate. A rule proposed by the Department of Transportation would require airlines to have contingency plans for dealing with lengthy tarmac delays.

Some airlines have implemented customer commitments in recent years to try to appease passengers. JetBlue Airways vows to deplane passengers if an aircraft is delayed on the ground for five hours. That was instituted in 2007 after passengers on a JetBlue flight waited 11 hours on the tarmac at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Q. Will I get something to eat and drink while I wait?

A. Airlines generally only stock enough food and drinks for the length of the flight. Passengers on the Continental Express flight later complained about not being offered food and drink during their lengthy tarmac delay. Several airlines have procedures for dealing with onboard delays that include making sure the cabin temperature is appropriate and passengers have access to restrooms, and food and water.

After a recent AirTran Airways flight from Pittsburgh to Atlanta was diverted to Chattanooga, Tenn., flight attendants offered bottled water and pretzels to passengers during the 90-minute tarmac delay.

Delta Air Lines says on its Web site that in the event of onboard ground delays under certain circumstances, it promises to make timely announcements regarding the flight status, allow customers to use cell phones and laptop computers and provide snacks and beverages to customers when "reasonable and safe to do so." Experts advise that passengers should carry food and drink with them on flights in case of a delay while onboard.

"Instead of that extra pair of shoes in your carryon, you put an extra sandwich or an extra bottle of water," Trippler says.

Q. What can I do to pass the time during a tarmac delay?

A. On a long delay you might be hoping that you're not stuck next to someone who wants to share his life story. In that case on-flight TV or radio may be your salvation. What's more, it's always smart to carry something to read to get you through a delay no matter how long.
If you have a connecting flight that you might miss, use your cell phone to call airline customer service and rebook your next flight. The one thing experts agree on is that it is important to stay calm in those situations.

Q. What kind of compensation am I entitled to if I experience a tarmac delay?

A. Typically, circumstances beyond the control of an airline are not covered in terms of passengers being provided compensation, says aviation consultant Mark Kiefer of CRA International in Boston. However, airlines have discretion to help passengers out, and some even have policies for allowing for compensation when there are tarmac delays.

For instance, JetBlue customers who experience an onboard ground delay on arrival for two hours or more after scheduled arrival time are entitled to a voucher. The voucher is good for future travel on JetBlue in the amount paid by the customer for their roundtrip ticket.

Q. Where can I get more information about airline policies regarding tarmac delays?

A. Airline Web sites are a good place to start. Check the airline's contract of carriage, which outlines its responsibilities to customers and the action it will take in various situations.

2009-08-25T21:47:00.003-07:00

American Airlines retires Airbus A300 jets after 21 years
09:21 PM CDT on Tuesday, August 25, 2009
By TERRY MAXON tmaxon@dallasnews.com

American Airlines Inc. has flown its last flights with the Airbus A300, more than 21 years after it began flying the wide-body jet.

The last American flight flown by an Airbus landed shortly after midnight Monday at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, ending the airplane's history with the Fort Worth-based carrier.

American spokesman Tim Smith said a combination of factors led to the decision to take the Airbuses out of American's fleet.

"One, we are in the process of cutting capacity. Two, these airplanes are a likely candidate for retirement, in that they are older than most of the airplanes in our fleet," Smith said Tuesday.
In addition, the A300 requires different training and maintenance from the other airplanes in American's fleet, he said.

All told, "it's a good time to take them out of the fleet," Smith said.

American ordered an initial 25 Airbus A300s in March 1987, to be leased from Airbus, and accepted delivery in 1988 and 1989.

It later bought another 10 that were delivered between 1991 and 1993.

One of the leased airplanes crashed shortly after takeoff from Kennedy in November 2001, leaving American with 34 before it made the decision to ground the Airbus fleet.

American placed an order for 15 Boeing 767-300ERs at the same time it acquired the 25 Airbus jets, and Smith noted that the two aircraft types were very similar, with two engines, two aisles and international range.

Even though American had no Airbus airplanes before the order, "we were in a growth mode," Smith said. "We needed wide-body aircraft for a broad number of missions, and we could not get 767-300ERs as quickly as we liked. All that came together to have us look at the A300."

While the Boeing model for years was the heavy hitter for American's international routes, Smith said, the Airbus "was in one particular way a better aircraft than the Boeing 767-300ER, and that's in its cargo capability."

Its huge cargo hold, combined with a lot of seating, made the A300 the perfect airplane for American's growing Caribbean network. The airplane primarily flew out of Miami and New York Kennedy, plus American's hub in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

American officials announced in July 2008 that they would park the entire Airbus fleet by the end of 2009 as part of its plans to reduce capacity.

Eventually, American plans to replace the Airbus with the Boeing 787, a new aircraft that has faced substantial delays. American expects to take its first 787 in the second half of 2013. American's first A300 jets joined the fleet in the late 1980s. Their huge cargo holds and seating capacity made them perfect for the airline's growing Caribbean network.

2009-08-12T08:22:00.002-07:00

Delta plans domestic hub at LaGuardia
Wednesday, August 12, 2009, 9:31am EDT

Delta plans to start a domestic hub at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, thanks to an exchange of flying rights with US Airways.

Atlanta-based Delta (NYSE: DAL) reported a deal with US Airways (NYSE: LCC) to exchange certain flying rights and airport facilities at LaGuardia and Washington's Reagan National airports, allowing Delta to expand its New York customer service by creating a domestic hub at LaGuardia.

The agreement, which is subject to government approvals, calls for US Airways to transfer 125 operating slot pairs to Delta at LaGuardia and Delta to transfer 42 operating slot pairs to US Airways at Reagan National. The airlines also will swap gates at LaGuardia between the Marine Air Terminal and US Airways' Terminal C to consolidate all Delta operations -- including the Delta Shuttle -- into an expanded main terminal facility with 11 additional gates for Delta customers.

Delta plans a nearly $40 million construction project at LaGuardia to connect the current Delta and US Airways main terminals; rebrand US Airways' existing main terminal gates, ticket counters and lounges to Delta's standards; and create a new dedicated check-in area for Medallion, First Class, BusinessElite and Shuttle customers. The project will be completed in 2010.

Delta expects to more than double the number of nonstop destinations it serves from LaGuardia by adding or preserving service to more than 30 small- and medium-sized communities. Delta will add new flights to more than a dozen cities not currently served by US Airways. In every slot where US Airways operates small turboprops, Delta will operate larger jets. This will allow more than 2 million additional passengers to use LaGuardia each year without increasing the total number of takeoffs and landings.

"Increasing Delta's service in the world's most competitive and largest air service market is a key part of our long-term strategy,” said Delta CEO Richard Anderson, in a news release. “This transaction will provide substantial benefits to our customers, employees and shareholders in years to come."

2009-08-04T09:26:00.000-07:00

Which Airlines Will Survive?

Tom Van Riper, 08.04.09, 12:00 PM EDT

Another losing quarter, despite painful cutbacks. Consolidation may be the only solution. How many more seats can the airlines pull from the sky? Apparently not enough to turn the industry around for a sustained period.

The nine largest U.S. airlines--those accounting for about 88% of all domestic traffic--lost a collective $1.5 billion during the recently completed second quarter. This despite per-seat traffic numbers (known in the industry as load factor) flying close to an all-time high, according to Robert Herbst, an independent airline analyst who complies industry statistics on his Web site, airlinefinancials.com.

His prognosis for the third quarter: a 20% or so decline in revenue for most big carriers from the same quarter in 2008, as business and leisure travelers continue to cut back. He predicts the July load factors that airlines are set to announce this week will show that planes were close to 90% full.

"To see this kind of load factor and still lose money is very unusual compared to the industry's history," Herbst says.

The problem? Too many airlines. With the economy already taking a bite out of demand, cutting the supply of seats only goes so far when they're spread among nine major carriers, plus regional competition. The industry is essentially engaged in an ongoing fare war, a tough way to price seats high enough to cover costs.
An improving economy, inevitable at some point, figures to push oil prices as much as customer demand. Will carriers ever be able to set prices optimally?

"Not unless you have major restructuring, including consolidation," says Marick Masters, a business professor at Wayne State University who has long followed the industry. In other words, spreading out 88% of the domestic flying public among six airlines would work a lot better than spreading them among nine. Until then, "it's a dim future for as far as we can see in the future."

Herbst estimates that the majors will need to combine cost cuts and revenue increases by at least 15% in order to turn marginal profits while upgrading their aging fleets. The problem, as he sees it, is that most carriers have been through big restructurings either in or outside of bankruptcy, leaving little room for further cost cuts in an industry with a costly infrastructure that includes equipment, terminal rentals and expensive labor.

"Most carriers will cut capacity further, which will reduce some costs, but there are so many fixed costs to cover," he says. Meanwhile, price competition keeps the revenue side challenged.
Herbst does expect most major carriers, including Delta, JetBlue and Air Tran, to squeak out operating profits in 2009. But the razor thin margins offer little cushion against any one-time costs that might pop up.

The bulk of the operating losses figure to come from United, American and U.S. Airways ( LCC - news - people ), which he predicts finish 2009 a combined $1.7 billion in the red on an operating basis. AMR Corp. ( AMR - news - people ), American's parent, just privately placed $276 million in debt to finance equipment, on which it will pay 13% interest.

The biggest problems, though, are at U.S. Airways and United, both of which could easily land in bankruptcy in less than a year, both Herbst and Masters believe. Low market caps and a lack of unencumbered assets to borrow against makes raising cash a problem, Herbst notes.

"At least United has strength in its Asia-Pacific routes," he says. "U.S. Airways just has little to offer that you can't find elsewhere." Sounds like a reason to have at least one fewer airline.