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MarkD 5th Jan 2006 17:51

British Airways
 
http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakin...65&n=194044236

(excerpt)
Dip in BA passenger numbers - but more in first class

British Airways revealed today that it carried 0.2% fewer passengers in December after demand for flights to the UK and Europe fell compared with a year ago.

The airline said a 3.1% dip in passengers travelling on routes to the UK and the continent offset growth elsewhere in the world, meaning it handled 2.728 million people in December.

But revenues per passenger kilometres flown were 4.7% higher as the number of people travelling in first and business class rose by 9.3%.

MarkD 5th Jan 2006 20:06

Re: British Airways
 
Not so X - I am a reasonably happy BA FFer.

In fact the rest of the numbers look not too bad - yield up and load factor up (later in article). Dip in nos. probably due to BACX cutbacks I guess since LH capacity is about the same as last year. However, Danny doesn't like full articles posted so best to click on the link for the full gen.

brakedwell 14th Feb 2006 16:05

BA offices raided by EC
 
Breaking BBC Business News.
Europe-USA cartel probe hits BA
British Airways has come under the microscope as part of a European and US anti-trust investigation.
The UK airline said on Tuesday that it had received requests for information from both the European Commission and the US Department of Justice.
The request concerns allegations of cartel activity involving a number of airlines and cargo operators including BA, the airline said.
BA said it would assist the EC and the DoJ in their investigation.
"British Airways' policy is to conduct its business in full compliance with all the applicable competition laws," it said in a statement.

JW411 14th Feb 2006 16:09

Just like it did when it put Fred Laker out of business and then tried to do the same with Richard Branson!

Golden Ticket 14th Feb 2006 16:14

JW411 dive in, it also involves other European airlines as well it's just that the media can spell BA.
http://www.rte.ie/business/2006/0214/ba.html

http://europa.eu.int/comm/competitio.../art81_en.html

JW411 14th Feb 2006 16:18

Well not really, for although BA were well ahead of the others when it came to playing dirty tricks, Swissair, SABENA, PanAm and many other members of the cartel were in there with their sabots.

Basil 14th Feb 2006 17:59

JW411,
Did Freddy really expect that airlines which had developed lucrative routes would stand by an let him cherry pick their business? That ain't how it works in the big world.
As you know very well Laker, by trying to play the FX market, were, in part, architects of their own downfall.
Laker and Virgin are both innovative and competitive companies which have their place in British aviation history but Virgin suceeded as much by debt control and financial structure as by willingness to sue and, in any case, had Laker survived there would probably have been no place for Virgin.

frostbite 14th Feb 2006 20:00

BA offices raided by EC
 
According to C4 Teletext (p.502), BA's offices have been raided by EC officials looking for evidence of price-fixing. Offices of Lufthansa, Air France & KLM have 'enjoyed' the same treatment.

fmgc 14th Feb 2006 20:16

BBC Story Here

speed5 14th Feb 2006 23:10

I work in Cargo so there is far more to this than the rags are reporting.

We all work to the same cargo tariff rule book.

The whole thing needs explaining properly, but that is above the media tossers in this country.

There`s the ground, then the service pipes, then below that the sewers, then below all of that the UK media

Dark Jedi 15th Feb 2006 07:49

CV aswell in multiple offices at a time this whole thing looks like someone on another continent wants to revive it's cargo industry to me

RevMan2 15th Feb 2006 08:06

Speed5
"We all work to the same cargo tariff rule book."

It's a commodity market, mate. If there IS a tariff rule book, no-one's used it since the early 70's (in the UK, at least).

What the major European carriers are probably doing (either independently or in cooperation) is defining a floor price - if the US belly mob and other intellectually-challenged carriers (AZ and their ilk) want to flog their limited capacity at below cost, then let them get on with it.
It's pretty much like comparing stuff that's fallen off a lorry with a RRP. What's the true market price? As long as the bloke in the pub car park has got stuff to sell, that's the market price. As soon as he's sold out, it's the cheapest regular retailer. Unless you place value on service, reliability and guarantee, of course, in which case you stay in the High St in the first place....

Price-dumping might be a more fruitful area of investigation for the EU and their US mates....

angels 15th Feb 2006 08:27

Can't say I'm au fait with what's going on here, but FYI the beancounters hit Asian offices during the European night. This was on Reuters about an hour ago.


Global air cargo probe widens to Asia
By Sachi Izumi
TOKYO, Feb 15 (Reuters) - A global probe into possible price-fixing in the air cargo industry widened to Asia on Wednesday as authorities searched for information at offices of Japanese, South Korean and Hong Kong airlines.
The investigation started on Tuesday when the European Union's executive arm and the U.S. Justice Department raided a number of air cargo carriers on both sides of the Atlantic, while other airlines were asked for information related to the probe.
The case could threaten to put a brake on recent growth in the global air cargo market, which U.S. aircraft maker Boeing Co. <BA.N> has estimated will expand at an average annual rate of 6.2 percent in the next two decades, exceeding the expected growth rates of passenger traffic and the world economy.
Scandinavian airline SAS <SAS.ST> said it had been raided and authorities were investigating whether airlines had illegally cooperated to limit competition in European and other routes.
The alleged activity, mainly involving various surcharges such as for fuel and for security measures imposed after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States using hijacked airliners, has supposedly been carried out since 2000, SAS said.
War-risk surcharges that were applied after the U.S-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 were also involved, it said.
The European Commission said in a statement, "The Commission has reason to believe that the companies concerned may have violated (a European Union) treaty, which prohibits practices such as price fixing." It declined to name the targets.
Asia's biggest airline, Japan Airlines Corp. <9205.T>, said European authorities had searched its Frankfurt offices, while two South Korean airlines, Korean Air Co. <003490.KS> and Asiana Airlines Inc. <020560.KQ>, said they were raided by the local antitrust watchdog.
Boeing said in September that brisk traffic in the Asian markets would lead the expansion of the global air cargo market, adding that the freighter fleet would nearly double over the next 20 years to 3,530 airplanes.

JAL RAIDED
A JAL spokesman declined to comment on alleged cartel activity but said, "We are fully cooperating with the probe."
The cargo business, supported by strong exports from Japanese companies, has been a bright and growing segment for struggling JAL, which expects a net loss this business year due to high fuel prices and a series of safety problems.
Korean Air spokesman Lee Hyoung-woo said South Korea's Fair Trade Commission officials interviewed the company's executives in charge of cargo businesses and removed documents. He added its offices in Europe and the United States were not raided.
Among airlines, Korean Air is the world's top cargo carrier, based on 2004 data, although it ranks behind specialist carrier FedEx Corp. <FDX.N> in total volume flown.
South Korea's FTC declined to comment, citing standard policy on investigations.
An Asiana official who declined to be named said cartel team officials from the FTC came to the airline's office and conducted an investigation, initiated by a request from abroad, in relation to fuel surcharges and price-fixing practices.
Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific Airways <0293.HK> said EC and U.S. Justice Department officials had visited the company's offices in Frankfurt, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The world's leading carriers also acknowledged they had been contacted by authorities.
British Airways Plc <BAY.L>, Air France KLM <AIRF.PA> and freight airline Cargolux [CLUX.UL] had said they were asked for information related to alleged cartel activity, and American Airlines <AMR.N> and United Airlines <UAUA.O> both said they had received inquiries as part of the probe.
All Nippon Airways Co. <9202.T>, Japan's No. 2 airline, said it outsources cargo operations in Frankfurt to unlisted Nippon Cargo Airlines Co., which said it had not been raided.
A spokeswoman said ANA's offices, including ones in Paris and London, had not been searched.
Although shares in JAL closed down 0.6 percent, other Asian airlines rose, including Cathay Pacific, Korean Air and Asiana, as oil prices slipped below $60 to their lowest level this year after heavy losses a day earlier as dealers anticipated a big jump in already healthy U.S. oil inventories.
(Additional reporting by Cheon Jong-woo in Seoul, Alison Leung and Donny Kwok in Hong Kong)

egld0624 15th Feb 2006 08:36

"Price-dumping might be a more fruitful area of investigation for the EU and their US mates...."

IMHO, the EU is certainly guilty of that outside its self-inflated trade bubble. The EU is going to be a very interesting place to watch just how permeable that bubble is when China really starts to bite. A lot of politicians & bureaucrats have their heads firmly in the ground. Good for them. :hmm:

EG:ok:

Ex Cargo Clown 15th Feb 2006 19:52


Originally Posted by speed5
I work in Cargo so there is far more to this than the rags are reporting.

We all work to the same cargo tariff rule book.

The whole thing needs explaining properly, but that is above the media tossers in this country.

There`s the ground, then the service pipes, then below that the sewers, then below all of that the UK media

I'm sorry mate, but no carrier in the world sticks to TACT rates.

RevMan2 16th Feb 2006 06:42

Appears that the investigation is focussing on fuel surcharges. LH Cargo won't have a problem - they've indexed their fuel surcharge to an average of 5 key spot markets, factor in some volatility damping and adjust the surcharge - either up or down - accordingly. Absolutely transparent.
If other carriers decide to tag along? Well, there's no law against applying Best Practice....

Edited to include hyperlink

Freehills 16th Feb 2006 07:44

My understanding is though that that isn't the LH fuel surcharge index, it is the IATA fuel surcharge index, agreed by airlines & forwarders together.

Yes, it is sensible, transparent & fair. Obviously the EU and US must get rid of it at once!

Sean Dell 16th Feb 2006 09:02

Can you imagine the UK/EU regulators raiding the offices of any of the Chapter 11 US ailing airlines and claiming that it was unfair that they were still in business and able to flood the market with cheap transatlantic seats ! There seems to be a rule for one and a different one for another. Just depends what side of the Atlantic you are on!

Level playing field - pull the other one!

Dark Jedi 22nd Feb 2006 06:53

indiction
 
CV now indicted in the US will post more as soon as i have details

MarkD 24th Feb 2006 14:39

BA to replace CFM56 320s?
 
the Jethros website reports some order conversions and add ons to replace the BCal 320s (5 -100, 5 -200) with 7x320, 3x321. A google search only turned up an airliners.net post.

Can anyone confirm this?

Globaliser 24th Feb 2006 17:53


Originally Posted by MarkD
Can anyone confirm this?

Not in any official or definitive sense, but I have seen this discussed elsewhere in an uncontroversial way. There are a few options from the big order that are being exercised to allow the B.Cal aircraft to retire gracefully.

MarkD 26th Feb 2006 04:45

globaliser

the orders yahoogroup mention a "UFO" order which fits the bill and is thought to be a Big order :D

thanks for the reply.

apaddyinuk 26th Feb 2006 08:45

Doh!!!! I guess this means BA will be converting more of the 777's into those awful 3class version!!!! :\

Dark Jedi 28th Feb 2006 08:24

head of Lufthansa Cargo (germany) sacked
 
believe it or not : for having deleted e-mails .

people in charge of the inquiries made very clear that every bit of info should be kept, stored, backed-up for their use
well here we go , but then again , IMHO if you left any traces of "illegal" activities , hmmmm you were to be caught someday

Re-Heat 28th Feb 2006 08:31

Very easy to believe in current business environment post-Enron and Andersen.

moo 10th Mar 2006 09:28

BA options to buy 20 x 777-300ER in 2008
 
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=4308

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/ar...078786,00.html

Re-Heat 10th Mar 2006 10:06

Cannot seem to post link - FT

BA unveils £450m cost-cutting plan
By Kevin Done in London
Published: March 9 2006 13:19 | Last updated: March 9 2006 13:19

British Airways is planning to cut costs by £450m during the next two years with hundreds of job cuts expected, as it rationalises operations at Heathrow airport, its global hub.

The cost reductions will support the drive to improve profitability, despite higher fuel prices. BA forecast that it would achieve a 10 per cent operating margin for the first time in its history in the year to March 2008 helped by rising revenues and further cost savings, provided there were no more external shocks such as further oil price increases or events such as terrorism or pandemic scares.

Willie Walsh, BA chief executive, also told a meeting of analysts and investors, that the airline was preparing for future capacity growth around the end of the decade and had secured with Boeing options on delivery slots for 10 777 long-haul aircraft in 2009 and 2010.

BA said that it expected its fuel costs to rise by £400m in the next financial year to the end of March 2007 to about £2bn, following an increase of £505m-£515m in the current year to March 2006 to £1.6bn.

The fuel bill, which now accounts for about 21 per cent of total costs will have more than doubled in three years.

It forecast that revenue would rise by 4-5 per cent in the next financial year supported by increased capacity and passenger loads following a rise of 8 per cent this year.

Given the smooth handover of power from Rod Eddington to Willie Walsh, a radical change in strategy at British Airways was hardly on the cards.

A large part of the planned cost savings is related to reducing employee costs, and includes some of the £300m already due to be eliminated over the three years to March 2007.

Key to the savings is a planned reform of the airline’s pension scheme, which has one of the biggest deficits among leading UK companies. Proposed changes in pension fund terms and conditions are due to be presented to staff at the end of the month.

BA is also planning to make significant savings from the transfer of the bulk of its operations at Heathrow to the new Terminal 5, the £4.2bn project under development by BAA, the airport operator.

Martin Broughton, BA chairman told a meeting of analysts and investors, that the airline had “a once-in-a-generation opportunity” to increase efficiency, transform conditions for passengers and reduce costs with the move to T5 at the end of March 2008.

Many of the job cuts are likely to come from ground services staff with changes in working practices and the introduction of new technology. BA said it expected that 80 per cent of passengers would be checking in online or at self-service kiosks by the opening of T5.

The airline said that it would transfer about 90 per cent of its Heathrow operations to Terminal 5, with the remainder moved to Terminal 3, where it would co-locate its Australian and Spanish routes beside its Oneworld alliance partners Qantas and Iberia.

The £450m cost savings will be spread equally across the next two financial years. Total costs, excluding fuel, are forecast to be flat in the year to March 2007 with increases offset by cost efficiencies.

BA is driving an increasing share of its bookings on to the internet with the share planned to rise from nearly a third this year to 50 per cent by March 2008.

The group said that its net debt would be below £2bn by the end of March, down from the crisis level of £6.6bn at the end of 2001 in the recession following the September 11 terrorist attacks in the US.

Shares in BA were up 2½ per cent at 324 ¾ p in early afternoon trade.

newscaster 17th Mar 2006 11:56

Why BA foreign franchise partners?
 
They had one in Kenya which went bust and then theres one in South Africa, both did and do regional as well as domestic services, I can understand UK airlines being appointed by BA to represent them elsewhere but why foreign carriers and that too doing domestic routes, do they plan ro set up more overseas ventures, can other airlines do this too, maybe Aer Lingus should look into this.

Globaliser 17th Mar 2006 18:20

It's to try and make the brand as ubiquitous as, say, Coca-Cola. They don't have problems selling Coca-Cola as such in South Africa or Kenya. But the nationality-based airline system, and the system of bilateral air services agreements, means that British Airways can't operate domestic routes within South Africa or regional routes from South Africa to nearby countries without using the medium of a South African (or other regional) company.

Franchising is really the only way of making sure that there is a "British Airways" branded flight between Joburg and, say, Durban. If they didn't franchise, then the passenger's "British Airways" experience would have to stop when they walk off the mainline aircraft in Joburg and walk on to some other carrier's aircraft. This way, they can continue to fly "British Airways", and get what they expect from that brand, all the way to Durban. (In fact, they usually get a bit more on that flight than they'd get from a comparable short-haul on BA mainline within Europe, but that's another issue altogether.)

5711N0205W 17th Mar 2006 21:12

Hmm Kulula.....

newscaster 18th Mar 2006 12:07

Sounds pretentious that people want to fly BA on a domestic route, Im sure people would also want to take Emirates from Addis Ababa to Debra Marcos in Ethiopia but EK are not franchising there are they.

EI-CFC 18th Mar 2006 15:54


Originally Posted by newscaster
maybe Aer Lingus should look into this.

Apart from the obvious "political" sensitivities that would be encountered, Aer Lingus new business model as a "low-fares" carrier seems to be working out for them now, and turning them a reasonable profit. I'm not sure they want to change tack quite so soon!



Originally Posted by newscaster
Sounds pretentious that people want to fly BA on a domestic route, Im sure people would also want to take Emirates from Addis Ababa to Debra Marcos in Ethiopia but EK are not franchising there are they.

It's not only about people wanting to fly BA on a domestic route having come off a BA flight, but the company enjoying the global brand recognition that BA brings with it, which attracts non-BA connecting passengers.

Globaliser 18th Mar 2006 17:28


Originally Posted by newscaster
Sounds pretentious that people want to fly BA on a domestic route

It's no more pretentious than people who have drunk Coca-Cola on the LHR-JNB flight also wanting to drink Coca-Cola on the JNB-DUR flight instead of a local brand that is unknown to them. You might criticise them for being unadventurous, but not pretentious; this is simply the way of the modern world.

PAXboy 18th Mar 2006 22:47

Probably the most important reasons for franchise partners - is to get the long haul traffic.

You live in Durban - on the coast 450 miles from Johannesburg - there are no direct flights to London. You can use one carrier to JNB and then collect your bags and recheck for the international sector. But South African Airways will offer you a through ticket. To complete like-for-like, BA need a partner.
Within South Africa PAX do not call it 'British Airways' they call it 'Comair'. That is the name of the company that has existed for many years and became a franchise partner. The planes have the BA logo in large letters but they are almost universally known as Comair because that is the actual name of the ZA registered company.

In America, they do not allow franchise, so airlines build up partnerships and codeshares. They do whatever it takes to secure the long haul seat. "You want to go to Europe? Why not use BA as your single carrier? From your local/regional field to London and then onward to wherever you want to go. Blah Blah."

RevMan2 10th Apr 2006 18:33

Now it gets interesting...

Major shake-up at LH Cargo - CEO resigns for "reasons of health", Senior VPs for Sales and Handling disappear from the organisational chart, ex- CEO and current LH Group HR Executive Board member moves back to take over the shop, CEO of LH CityLine (ex-MD of German Cargo moves back at Board level...

The word's out that the CEO was the sacrificial lamb in a deal with the US Justice Dept and LH cooperates fully in a plea bargain

redout 18th Apr 2006 16:50

BA increase fuel surcharge for sixth time
 
Taken from BBC

BA raises fuel surcharge further

British Airways says fuel costs remain "a real burden"
British Airways has announced a further round of increases in fuel surcharges for its long-haul flights.
From 21 April, customers buying tickets in the UK will pay a £35 ($62) charge for a one-way ticket, and £70 for a return trip.

BA last raised its fuel surcharge for long-haul flights to £30 for a one-way trip in September last year.

The airline said the increase was "regrettable" but necessary because of the high price of oil.

BA's announcement came as US light crude reached a fresh record of $70.88 a barrel, hit by growing fears over Iran's nuclear standoff with the international community.

"Our fuel costs remain a real burden," said BA's commercial director Martin George.

"The price of oil has risen above $70 a barrel and experts anticipate it staying at these levels for some time."

BA said the fuel surcharge for its short-haul flights would remain at £8 for a one-way ticket, and £16 for a return trip.

MarkD 18th Apr 2006 17:47

I still don't get how BA can get away with calling it a surcharge. Not including it in the fare price misleads the public IMHO.

notdavegorman 18th Apr 2006 18:56

MarkD, I agree, however one must also make that argument for all other fees, 'taxes' and wheel chair levies that charged on top of airline fares.

Golden Ticket 18th Apr 2006 19:06

Not a lot of comments in the last 3 weeks when Virgin put their fuel surcharge up. Which occured on the 22nd March with effect from 24th March. BA has just brought their surcharge up to the same level.

MarkD 19th Apr 2006 17:34

GT - this is not BA bashing, BA is my preferred LH airline given the options from where I am. VS, QF whoever - it's not "fair" fare practice.

notdavegorman - the difference is that fuel is usually in the fare to being with. It can't be verified directly if it's a surcharge or a revenue item. Air Passenger Levies on the other hand are published information and are independent of individual carriers. My point is this: if you book two tickets on the same route on different carriers *the same taxes and charges should apply*. If not, trading standards should get physical. If carriers insist on offering fares ex tax/charge then comparison between them should be valid.


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