United Raises Expectations for Q2
United Airlines raised its fiscal expectations for the remainder of Q2, stating that it has seen an acceleration in ticketing yields for the quarter, close to reaching levels not seen since way back in ye-olde 2019. The airline disclosed the information in an 8-K filing with the SEC, adding that domestic leisure yields are now further ahead of where they were for the same period in 2019.
The airline expects revenue per available seat mile (RASM) to be down just 12% for the quarter, much better than its previous expectation of 20%. This comes with capacity being down 46% from Q2 2019, most of which can be attributed to international flying not having returned to pre-pandemic levels.
United believes its EBITDA will be positive in Q3 for the first time since the pandemic thanks to the bustling domestic market and the airline’s cost-saving program of having Basic Economy passengers clean aircraft between flights.
Hawai’i to Remove Testing Requirement for Vaccinated Travelers by July 4
The State of Hawai’i is expected to allow non-essential travel for vaccinated visitors without the need for pre-travel COVID testing to resume by July 4.
Hawai’i Governor David Ige said that with the country approaching 50% of people being fully vaccinated and CDC guidance that there is little risk of transmission amongst those that are vaccinated, his state is ready to open back up and get its residents in the tourism industry back to work. He admitted with a heavy heart, however, that he did thoroughly enjoy making things as difficult as possible for travelers over the last few months, and he will miss the tortured cries in long lines upon arrival.
The governor stated that his greatest concern right now is not being able to know who is vaccinated and who is not, which is why the state has not yet lifted its mask mandate. That… and where he can find the best poi on Oah’u.
The mandate for masks in the state will remain in place through the middle of June at least, and beyond that date at the state’s airports and on public transportation as long as a federal directive for mask-wearing on public transportation remains in effect.
Qantas Adds Seven New Routes – All to Real Places
Qantas Airways is adding seven new routes to support the rebounding domestic travel market in Australia while the airline also shifts more widebody aircraft to domestic operations.
The new routes include service from Townsville (TSV) to Adelaide, Melbourne, and Sydney. Adelaide will see new flights to Cairns and Hobart with Sydney adding one more to Ayers Rock (AYQ) and Perth getting a Gold Coast flight. Cranky Daily has confirmed these are all real places with real airports.
The new additions make 45 new routes for Qantas and its LCC subsidiary Jetstar since the onset of pandemic, each one flooding the market to the chagrin of Rex.
In addition to opening new routes, Qantas will operate its 236-seat Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft on nine weekly frequencies between Sydney and Perth. It will also put its A330-200 airplanes on more flights from Sydney and Brisbane to Darwin and Sydney as well as Melbourne to Perth.
ITA Launch Delayed Until September
ITA — the Italian startup airline that is literally Alitalia with a new name — will not begin operating this summer as it had previously planned. Luckily, the airline is already operating, the only difference is that it is still called Alitalia. The Italian government was hoping to begin its new venture by July 1 in order to claim some of the busy summer travel season, but it will miss the boat on the deadline, now aiming for September 1.
The transfer to Alitalia 150.0 has been burdened with repeated delays, which give it something in common with Alitalia’s normal operating procedures. Negotiations over financial aid reached an impasse with the Italian and EU governments unable to come to an agreement. The EU is demanding that the new airline have some semblance of being a new airline, including divesting itself of slots in Milan, while Italy insists that it is a new airline because it says it’s a new airline and it has a new name and everything.
The “new” airline is also negotiating with Lufthansa about joining Star Alliance at the same time it is in discussions with its current Skyteam partners Delta and Air France-KLM. Both groups are adamant that the new airline join the other alliance, going so far as to offer significant cash incentives to avoid having to partner with the money pit that is Alitalia ITA.
Airline That Doesn’t Fly Spins Off Subsidiary Airline That Also Doesn’t Fly
Global Crossing Airlines, a U.S. startup airline that doesn’t actually fly people anywhere as of now, announced it is spinning out the shares of its wholly-owned subsidiary Canada Jetlines Operations Ltd to its shareholders.
Under the agreement, each shareholder of GlobalX will receive one share of Jetlines for every two shares of GlobalX held. After the airline is finished distributing the shares, GlobalX will hold 25% of the new Canadian airline with the remaining three-quarters owned by its shareholders.
Once the transaction is formally completed, both airlines will be operated as separate companies with separate management teams and Boards of Directors. They will maintain separate fleets that do not exist or fly anywhere and will not intermix their cabin crew that also do not exist. Both airlines will, however, work to collaborate on strong mission statements and declarations on future plans.
- Belavia had its operating permit in the UK suspended by British Transport Secretary Grant Shapps. It’s not a great time to be a Belarussian airline.
- DHL has agreed to lease four additional 767-300 freighters from Air Transport Services Group.
- Emirates is rumored to be launching 4x-weekly service between Miami and Dubai on July 21.
- Porter Airlines is denying a report that it is making a switch from A220 aircraft to E190-E2, which makes sense because at this rate, the airline won’t be flying any airplanes again.
- Spirit cancelled its plan to relocate its operations center just outside of Nashville to Franklin, TN. The ops center was announced to be moving to Franklin last February, but it got a late start this morning with a mechanical issue and simply wasn’t able to make up the time during the day, forcing the cancellation.
- Sure56 Express of China has surely gone into administration.
- SWISS took delivery of its 30th and final – for now – A220.
- Virgin Atlantic is extending the validity of vouchers and elite members status for an additional three months.
- Viva expects to open as many as 15 new international routes in the next three years as soon as its network planning team can locate an atlas.
If 4 out of 5 people suffer from diarrhea… does that mean that one enjoys it?