US Airways : US : AWE

Liquidity

As of June 30, 2011, the Company had approximately $2.6 billion in total cash and investments, of which $388 million was restricted.

During the second quarter, the Company completed an offering of 2011-1

Class A, B and C enhanced equipment trust certificates (EETCs) in the aggregate face amount of approximately $471 million.

The net proceeds from the offering were used to refinance five owned Airbus aircraft, to finance four Airbus aircraft scheduled to be delivered in September 2011 and October 2011, and for general corporate purposes.


In addition, on June 30, the Company announced an additional offering of EETCs in the aggregate face amount of approximately $53 million.

This offering was an issuance of Class C certificates under the Company's Series 2010-1 series of EETCs issued in December 2010.

The net proceeds from the offering will be used for general corporate purposes and will be reflected in the Company's third quarter cash and investments balance.

As a result of the above mentioned EETC transactions and other recently completed aircraft financings, the Company has secured market based financing commitments for all of its aircraft deliveries through June 2012.

US Airways' Chief Financial Officer, Derek Kerr stated, "We are very pleased with the results of our recent EETC financings. These transactions allowed us to efficiently finance our remaining 2011 aircraft deliveries and increase liquidity by approximately $137 million through the two separate issuances of Class C certificates.

The completion of these transactions, which have not been available to any airline since 2007, indicates an improving capital markets environment for our Company and the industry."


Special Items

The Company recognized approximately $14 million of net special items in the second quarter.

These special items include $6 million of operating charges primarily related to legal costs incurred in connection with our
Delta slot transaction.

In addition, included within nonoperating expense was $8 million primarily related to refinancings completed in the second quarter, which includes debt prepayment penalties and non-cash write-offs of certain debt issuance costs.

Notable Accomplishments

• Achieved a number one ranking in the annual Airline Quality Rating (AQR) report, which is an industry benchmark that measures airline reliability and service.

For the fifth consecutive year, US Airways improved its standing in the AQR and earned its first number one ranking among the 'Big Five' hub-and-spoke network carriers for its 2010 performance.


• Announced the Company's flight dispatchers, represented by the Transport Workers Union (TWU), voted to ratify a four-year collective bargaining agreement, which represents the second contract for the airline's 164 dispatchers since the US Airways-America West Airlines merger in 2005.


• Announced the addition of First Class service to 110 US Airways Express regional jets, encompassing Embraer 170 and 175 and Canadair Regional Jet 700 and 900 aircraft.

The initial introduction of the First Class product for the Embraer E175 fleet will begin in October 2011 with the three remaining RJ fleets to be completed by January 2012.


• Announced a new agreement with Delta Air Lines to transfer takeoff and landing rights at New York's LaGuardia and Washington D.C.'s Reagan National airports, subject to receipt of regulatory and other approvals.

The agreement revises a 2009 transaction agreed between Delta and US Airways, which was approved by the Department of Transportation but under terms not acceptable to the carriers.

The new agreement enables Delta and US Airways to expand their services and increase competition.

• Launched new daily, seasonal summer service between Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Madrid, Spain and Dublin, Ireland, and new daily year-round service from Philadelphia International Airport to Quebec City, Canada.

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] is poised to defect to the larger [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], becoming the latest in a series of customers to shift away from the shrunk -800 variant.

• TAP a besoin de PUC 'à date' ;
  
• le fait de repousser plus loin l'EIS des A350-XWB-800 l'incommode ;
  
• aussi, il est un fait que TAP Portugal déclare ouvertement sa perception que la reprise du transport aérien, et de son trafic, dera plus forte que prévue, et que cela ne présente aucun risque significatif de 'faire voler trop des sièges vides' en optant pour la variante plus grande, ... soit l'A350-XWB-900;
  
• enfin, dans son contrat de commande, TAP avait prévu, d'un commun accord avec Airbus, la possibilité / l'option de convertir, sans frais, vers une variante autre que celle initialement commandée !
  

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] parent [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] insists it remains committed to the -800, and is not reviewing the business case, but is discussing options with customers interested in taking the larger -900 following postponement of the -800's development.

TAP had been one of the early signatories for the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], signing up for 10 of the original [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] in 2005 when the type was effectively conceived as a re-engined [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].

The Portuguese flag-carrier subsequently firmed options on another two -800s before Airbus overhauled the A350 design and relaunched it as a new aircraft family, the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], in late 2006. Although intended to be an optimised aircraft in its own right, the new version of the A350-800 was revised last year as a smaller version of the -900.

Airbus chose this strategy to increase the -800's range but the airframer also acknowledged that it would raise the type's fuel burn.

While the manufacturer had secured orders for 182 A350-800s in mid-2008 the backlog started sliding away last year as customers began switching to the larger -900. Brazil's TAM and Kuwait's ALAFCO converted 24 -800s to -900s in 2010 and Asiana, Synergy Aerospace and International Lease Finance have all switched either partially or fully to the -900.

Airbus has since pushed back development of the -800 by about two years, postponing entry into service to mid-2016. TAP said its initial deal with Airbus enables it to convert to other variants. "Considering actual and forecasted traffic trends, the A350-900 will better match with TAP's future capacity needs," the airline told Flightglobal.

It has not indicated how many -800s might be switched. Airbus's latest order data also shows lessor CIT - another customer for the original A350 - cancelled its outstanding -800s after converting most of its order for five to the -900 in June. TAP has 12 A350-800s on order and a move to the -900 could potentially bring the -800 backlog down from 135 to 123 aircraft, just two-thirds of the peak total.

EADS chief Louis Gallois, during the company's first-half presentation, said the company was "not questioning the viability" of any of the A350 variants, including the -800.

Amending the development schedule for the -800 would enable EADS to concentrate on the two larger family members, EADS said. Gallois added that the response from airlines has convinced the company to "maintain the three versions", but admitted: "We are in discussions with airlines on the -800 because some of them could be interested in having the -900 before."

Key customers for the -800 include [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], US Airways, Hawaiian Airlines and Aeroflot, holding 62 orders between them. Irish lessor Aircraft Purchase Fleet, which took over Italian carrier [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]'s order for 12 -800s said it still intends to take the twinjets. Uncertainty surrounds other -800 orders - notably for 10 from two Libyan carriers.

Et l'A350-XWB-800 va être un concurrent direct efficace du B787-9 !

US Airways and Airbus in Early Talks on Replacement for 757


US Airways Group Inc., the smallest of the major U.S. full-fare carriers, is in early talks with Airbus SAS about whether the A321neo jet could be a replacement for the airline's aging Boeing Co. 757s.

"While we can confirm we are talking to Airbus, our talks are in a very informal stage as we gather more information from them on the potential capabilities of the A321neo," Todd Lehmacher, a US Airways spokesman, said today in an e-mail.

Though the Tempe, Arizona-based airline currently has no plans to order additional narrow-body aircraft, it eventually will have to decide on a 757 replacement, he said. US Airways' 24 757s have an average age of about 18 years. Boeing built the last 757 in 2004.

US Airways uses the single-aisle 757s on some international routes from its U.S. East Coast hubs, including Charlotte, North Carolina, to Dublin. There are 89 Boeing aircraft in US Airways' 339-plane fleet, or about 26 percent of the total.

"We talk to aircraft manufacturers all the time," Lehmacher said, without saying specifically whether US Airways was looking at a 757 replacement from Boeing.

Clay McConnell, a U.S. spokesman for Toulouse, France-based Airbus, declined to comment on talks with US Airways.

"US Airways is a great customer," he said. "We have a longstanding relationship with them. We talk with airlines that are our customers and aren't our customers all the time."

Marc Birtel, a spokesman for Chicago-based Boeing, wasn't immediately able to comment. The company's 737-900 is closest in range and size to the 757.

Neo Versions

The neo has become Airbus's fastest-selling aircraft since the planemaker announced in December that it would offer a version of its narrow-body planes with new, more fuel-efficient engines. Airbus is offering neo versions of its A320, the larger A321 and the smaller A319.

The A321 had a shorter range than the 757 until Airbus decided to offer it with so-called sharklets, a type of upturned wingtip that adds 100 nautical miles (185 kilometers) to its reach or increases the payload by 1,100 pounds (500 kilograms). The sharklets will be available starting next year.

The talks between US Airways and Airbus were reported earlier today by TheStreet.com.

• Airbus, Boeing, US Airways, l'A-NEO-321, le B757, divers B737, et l'A350-XWB-800..... et seront postés en conséquence.
  

Significant [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] customer US Airways is taking a preliminary look at the Airbus A321neo, but is not convinced the aircraft is suitable for long-haul [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] replacement.

"We are in preliminary talks with Airbus about what the aircraft can and cannot do," US Airways chief executive Doug Parker told Flight International at the Boyd Group's International Aviation Forecast Summit in Albuquerque.

The problem, said Parker, is that US Airways is not certain the A321neo can fulfil the Phoenix-Hawaii missions currently operated by thIls ne sont pas e carrier with its 757s.

US Airways previously said it had told Airbus of the necessity for the A321neo to achieve similar long-haul mission capabilities to the 757 that it operates to Hawaii and Europe.

Airbus data indicates (Sevrien : "data indicate", ... sans "s"! ) that the A321neo, with 188 seats, will be capable of a range of 3,720nm (6,890km). The airframer has specifically aimed the A321neo at the replacement market for the 757-200, more than 900 of which were delivered.

American Airlines, which operates some of its 123 757s on transatlantic flights, has ordered 130 A321neos.

Parker appears unconcerned about Airbus's revised development schedule for the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]. The Phoenix-based carrier has 18 firm orders for the -800 and four for the -900 variant. Airbus plans to push back service entry for the -800 from 2014 to 2016.

But Parker said he was "not worried" about the -800 service entry delay because the carrier's deliveries are planned after the revised delivery date.

US Airways has carried out its own revisions to [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] delivery times since placing an initial order in 2005.

Originally, the aircraft had a 2014 delivery, which was pushed to 2015 and later deferred to 2017.

US Airways' efforts to improve service pay off



For years, [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] found itself ranked in or near last place when it came to the services that matter most to passengers. But times have changed.

In July, US Airways had a lower rate of mishandled bags than any of its traditional, big-network peers, according to the latest report from the Transportation Department's Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

It was the sixth month this year that the airline came out on top when compared with Delta, United, Continental and American.

And in 2010, US Airways was ranked No. 1 among the so-called legacy carriers — and sixth out of the 16 largest airlines overall — in the Airline Quality Rating Report compiled by professors at Wichita State and Purdue universities. It was near the bottom of the overall list just four years ago.

The airline's steady rise is the result of a concentrated effort to improve its service and image at a time when the airline industry is fighting for every passenger. And though US Airways still often ranks below such low-cost carriers as JetBlue, AirTran and Southwest, some industry observers say its progress is notable.

"If you look at how far they've come in three years, it is fairly impressive," says Jami Counter, senior director of TripAdvisor Flights. "The question is, 'Can they keep this up and provide a very well-run operational airline?'"

Leading a turnaround

US Airways realized it needed to dramatically boost performance in 2007, two years after it merged with America West. Since then, incentives that have put hundreds of extra dollars in employees' pockets, as well as new technology and enhanced customer service, have led to a turnaround. In 2010, the airline was No. 1 in baggage handling and No. 2 in getting to its destinations on time compared with other big-network airlines.

"In 2007 we were at the bottom of the list — and when I say bottom, I mean at the bottom by quite a ways," says Robert Isom, US Airways executive vice president and COO.

The airline, he says, decided to launch a "multipronged effort" that put particular emphasis on baggage handling, arriving on time and reducing customer complaints.

"If we could move the needle in those areas, we felt it was the best way to run an airline," he says.

A key incentive has been the company's Triple Play Bucks program, which pays each employee $50 every time the airline comes out No. 1 over its big-network competitors in any of the three categories. Top billing for baggage handling, on-time arrivals and the lowest rate of complaints in one month — a triple play — means an extra $150 for an employee. And the company acheived that particular milestone in May 2010, Isom says.

In the last four years, the program has begun to yield payoffs. Employees have received $13.1 million, or $350 each, through July of this year. In 2010, the payout amounted to $24 million. Other employee incentives include profit-sharing and a program called "above and beyond" that gives $10,000 awards to employees.

Tech upgrades

The airline also has invested millions of dollars in technology. Customers can get updated itineraries on their mobile devices as soon as their flight lands, for instance.

Enhanced baggage scanning enables airline staff to "know where every bag is every step of the way," cutting down on the number of misplaced bags, says John Romantic, US Airways managing director of service recovery.

Despite gains, US Airways finds it can take awhile for old images to fade.

The airline continues to lag in customer satisfaction. And the most recent traveler ratings on TripAdvisor found the airline was recommended by only 61% of travelers compared with 83% for Continental and 66% for United, Counter says.

"Turning the perception of an airline around is a lot of work," Counter says. "And US Airways has suffered for a number of years as being viewed as not at the top of the heap. You really have to be patient to see the results pay off."

Pleasing passengers

Industry analysts say the airline's focus reflects an understanding that to boost profits, you must please passengers. "I think they realized that … to do well in the long term they really have to cater more to the business traveler, and the business traveler needs reliability and is less willing to put up with some of the aspects of a poorly run airline," Counter says.

He says other new amenities, such as the addition of first-class cabins on regional planes, should appeal to business travelers.

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], co-author of the Airline Quality Rating Report, says there's still room for US Airways to improve.

Isom says US Airways compares itself with other large network carriers because their operations are most similar.

But Headley says it also must pay attention to low-cost carriers such as Southwest, which compete on many of the same routes and usually score higher in passenger satisfaction.

"You could say they were the best of the middle of the pack," Headley says of US Airways' 2010 ranking. "It seems kind of crazy to me to have an airline say, 'We're just going to count the big ones.'"

ManG a écrit:US Airways réceptionne un A 321 neuf supplémentaire

CN 4893, modèle A 321-231, moteurs IAE V 2533 A-5

Bon vol !

I happened to be looking for something else when I stumbled on this photo of a US Airways
Airbus A330 on Flightglobal AirSpace. Not wishing to play it down, but it's not the most spectacular shot.
That said I still love the composition.

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]

US Airways calculates a five-year campaign to reform and improve maintenance practices since hitting a low point in 2007 has resulted in around $200 million in savings, a top executive says today.

The Star Alliance carrier acknowledges that fleet reliability and service levels bottomed out in 2007 as management struggled to merge America West and US Airways into a single operation, Robert Isom, executive vice president and chief operating officer, told the MRO Americas conference on 5 April.

"There were integration issues that really still needed to be resolved," says Isom, who joined the airline in 2007.

As a result, US Airways lagged behind its peers in several important maintenance and reliability categories, including departure delays, lost baggage and deferred maintenance, he says.

In the last five years, US Airways has reformed its practices, and now leads its peers inseveral key categories, Isom says.

The sweeping changes have helped restore the airline's profitability, which amounted to $111 million in 2011.

"You're talking about a couple hundred million dollars in terms of overall improvement," Isom says. "Running a reliable airline saves you money. It does help the bottom line."

US Airways Pushes For Merger With American

US Airways Group, Inc. (LCC), which is trying to merge with AMR Corp.'s American Airlines, has told some of the creditors of the airline that a combination of the two carriers could translate to over $1.5 billion in revenue and cost savings, the Wall Street Journal reported, quoting people familiar with the matter.

AMR Corp. and some of its subsidiaries, including American Airlines and American Eagle, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2011. The carrier had cited its cost disadvantage compared to larger competitors and said that the bankruptcy filing was to achieve a cost and debt structure that is industry competitive.

It was reported earlier that US Airways was in talks with some creditors and advisers of bankrupt American Airlines regarding a takeover of the carrier. Some members of the unsecured creditors committee were said to have given a positive response to US Airways' plan for the combined airline. The objective was to complete the combination before AMR exits Chapter 11 protection.

The WSJ report added that the efforts of US Airways to arrive at a deal could prolong the bankruptcy proceedings for American as regulators may require to conduct an antitrust review as well. This could in turn hurt creditors' recoveries if the value of the carrier was hit further by its longer stay in the bankruptcy court.

Three main unions of American are part of the creditors' committee.US Airways is said to have told creditors that a combination could generate $1 billion in additional revenue and $500 million in non-labor cost savings.

After the 9/11 attacks and subsequent downturn, AMR was one of the few airlines that averted bankruptcy. However, the company reported losses in the following years even as peers resolved cost issues and returned to profit.

While labor unions had made concessions to AMR in 2003, they were now seeking improved pay scales. The carrier is now trying to rework contracts with them.

US Airways could project the increased revenues from the combination in its talks with unions that include pilots, flight attendants, mechanics and airport ground workers.