Travel Industry Archive

It took awhile, but international demand has really started to fall off. Delta, an airline which raced to move as much of its fleet into international flying as it could, is now realizing that it has too much. It’s time to cut. Delta released a letter sent to its troops regarding the capacity cuts, which will begin in September after the summer season. Capacity will be removed from...

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In case you missed it, Lufthansa today confirmed its long-anticipated launch order for Bombardier’s CSeries jets, with a firm order for 30 of them. The deal was given a list price of US $1.53 billion, but it’s far more likely the actual price was right around $1 billion. The planes will be operated by Swiss Interanational Air Lines, a Lufthansa subsidiary. You may recall we were...

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Things are not looking good for Virgin America now that the airline’s two major US-based shareholders have apparently returned their stakes in the carrier to Virgin Group. If Virgin Group is still holding on to those stakes, then the carrier will be in violation of US-ownership requirements. If Virgin Group has found another US stakeholder to take over, then the feds will likely enter...

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Billionaire Steve Wynn and wife headed for divorce — Divorce papers for Wynn Resorts Ltd. chief executive Steve Wynn and his wife were filed March 5 and sealed by a judge in Nevada. It is unknown how the divorce could affect the company – Elaine Wynn is an active board member and both she and her husband each own about 24 million shares of the company. The casino operator...

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AirTran was a presentor at the recent Raymond James Institutional Investors Conference, and thanks to government rules, that presentation has been posted for all of us to review. AirTran gives a detailed overview of its network, and it’s amazing to see how far Atlanta has fallen in terms of importance to the airline over the last few years. Here’s the chart that caught my eye: ...

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Just a quick note to say that all the media hype about Delta possibly canceling its 787 order was wrong. Delta reaffirmed it today. Consider this yet another reminder that the media is not infallible. Fortunately, I ended up on the right side of this one by saying that this didn’t necessarily mean that the order was dead, but everyone makes mistakes. Of course, if something ends up...

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Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief Scott Carson doggedly insists his company won’t have to cut production this year. Boeing’s customers have financing lined up to pay for all new jet deliveries planned for this year and into 2010, Carson said Tuesday, speaking at an investor conference in New York. “We believe every one of the airplanes scheduled for delivery this year will be...

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Las Vegas Sands Co. chief executive Sheldon Adelson told reporters today that he’s at the helm of the company now that William Weidner, its former president, resigned under pressure. Weidner, who was with the company 13 years, said he resigned March 8, but Adelson and other board members reported they told Weidner they wanted his resignation on March 4, for a “potpourri of...

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Just yesterday, US Airways rolled out a single aircraft outfitted with a test in-seat video system from Lumexis (see my post on Cranky). I had the chance to visit with Lumexis at their Orange County headquarters last week, and here’s what I learned. Inflight entertainment (IFE) these days is dominated by two giants: Thales and Panasonic. These two companies outfit the vast majority of...

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As Brett Snyder noted recently, Allegiant Air is looking to expand, and according to local reports, one of the next routes it’s likely to add is service between Las Vegas and Everett, Wash., some 30 miles north of Seattle. Allegiant and Alaska Air Group subsidiary Horizon Air are working with Snohomish County officials to redevelop the existing terminal at Paine Field so it can house...

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