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Business Class Travel » Business Class Travel News Business Class Travel NewsWednesday, August 5, 2009Airline Executives have reported that the airline business has hit the lowest during May and has stayed the lowest. Continental Airlines have reported that the airlines have lost around $213 million in the quarter ending June 30.The airlines executive have conveyed that the airlines business hit bottom in May and has remained the same since then.The Continental Airlines Inc. president and chief operating officer Jeff Smisek reported that it is unsure when a recovery would happen .He said that though unit revenues have become stable,it is unpredictable for how long the business will remain in this stagnant state.The rate of business growth also cannot be predicted. Added to this, he stated that the success is associated with the return s obtained in business travel,which has not shows any signs of improvement till now. Southwest Airlines Co.chairman and chief executive Gary Kelly reported that the major issue is with business travel airlines.there is every possiblility that the business travel will not pick up in the near future.Business travel was unable to pick up in the years 1991 or 2001,but now the recession seems to be hit in a much harder way. Scott Kirby,US Airways president stated that with some subjective evidence that there are some improvements taking place in the airline.He also mentioned that the state of the business was not as bad as it used to be.To confirm this ,he said that, the revenue of US Airways dropped from 30 to 35 percent in the year 2009 for May. But in June and July the drop in percent was just 28 and 22 respectively. Besides, unit revenues were seem to improve in business markets such as US Airways Shuttle. Scores of analysts assumed that the quick drop in crude oil and jet fuel prices in the 2nd half of 2008 would fetch big profits for carriers in 2009, especially with the reduction in airline capacity.But the economic crisis last fall and the ongoing recession have injured travel demand far more than industry experts anticipated.The only carriers among the cluster to display net profits exclusive of special charges and one-time charges are low-cost carriers, chiefly those paying attention on leisure traffic: AirTran Holdings Inc, Southwest, JetBlue Airways Corp., and Alaska Air Group Inc. Labels: business travel airline, Continental Airlines, Southwest Airlines, US Airways Saturday, May 23, 2009US Airways (NYSE:LCC) customers today have a new United Kingdom option with nonstop service to Birmingham from the airline's international gateway at Philadelphia International Airport. Birmingham is the first of three new US Airways offerings in 2009, preceding Oslo, Norway and Tel Aviv service to begin later this summer. Senior Vice President, East Coast, International and Cargo Operations Suzanne Boda said, "We're thrilled to expand our presence in the United Kingdom with new Birmingham flying. Our customers will have spectacular trans-Atlantic access via our international gateway at Philadelphia from London's Heathrow and Gatwick Airports, Manchester and Glasgow, in addition to Birmingham. We appreciate the support and hard work of Birmingham officials as well as the continued partnership of the Philadelphia Division of Aviation." This seasonal route is operated with Boeing 757 ETOPS aircraft configured with 12 seats in Envoy, US Airways' trans-Atlantic business class and 164 seats in the main cabin. US Airways was America's number one on-time airline in 2008 among the "Big Six" hub-and-spoke airlines according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) monthly Air Travel Consumer Report. US Airways, along with US Airways Shuttle and US Airways Express, operates more than 3,100 flights per day and serves more than 200 communities in the U.S., Canada, Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America. The airline employs more than 33,000 aviation professionals worldwide and is a member of the Star Alliance network, which offers our customers more than 16,500 daily flights to 912 destinations in 159 countries worldwide. And for the eleventh consecutive year, the airline received a Diamond Award for maintenance training excellence from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for its Charlotte, North Carolina hub line maintenance facility. (airtransportnews.com) Labels: US Airways |


