Farewell “Continental” Call Sign

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Today, November 30th, Continental Airlines and United Airlines will merge into a single operating certificate (SOC) issued by the FAA. Though much of the new, combined airline is a rebranded CO—even the new operating certificate is essentially CO’s legacy certificate—the “Continental” name and call sign (along with United’s certificate) will cease to exist, at 6:00am Central (1200Z) today.

However, if you’re on a CO flight and in the air at 6:00am CST, your flight will maintain a CO call sign and flight number until you arrive. The aircraft will then leave on its next flight with a UA call sign. Thus, from an ATC perspective, all Continental and United flights are hereafter “United” flights. However, on the customer side, such as websites and reservations, the two names will remain until the first quarter of 2012.

Though the airline survives, though not in official name, we at AirlineCity will miss you anyway. Farewell, great airline.

Singapore A380 at Hong Kong

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The A380 is a giant bird indeed. Here, shot from the tarmac at Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) is a Singapore Airlines A380. Singapore Airlines, the flag carrier of Singapore, was the first airline to fly the A380, currently the largest commercial passenger aircraft in operation today.

AirlineCity.com

Singapore Airlines A380 as seen from the tarmac at Hong Kong International Airport

 

American Airlines Resumes Mainline Service to Cleveland

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American Airlines is returning its mainline service to Cleveland, after leaving over five years ago in September 2004. Effective April 5, 2011, AA is replacing its four daily American Eagle flights (three CRJ and one ERJ) between Dallas (DFW) and Cleveland Hopkins (CLE) with three daily MD80 flights. The timetable is as follows:

Eastbound
AA 586 DFW 0730-1055 CLE S80 Daily
AA 872 DFW 1445-1705 CLE S80 Daily
AA 1556 DFW 2005-2330 CLE S80 Daily

Westbound
AA 1567 CLE 0700-0850 DFW S80 Daily
AA 665 CLE 1145-1340 DFW S80 Daily
AA 853 CLE 1815-2000 DFW S80 Daily

In addition to greater comfort, there will be a significant increase in capacity. AA’s CRJ’s have around 63 seats each and their ERJ’s have 37-44 seats, while their MD80s are configured with 136-140 seats. Thus, the equipment swap and schedule represent a 75%-80% increase in the number of seats per direction.

The equipment upgauge on DFW-CLE comes after other AA capacity increases in CLE. AA recently resumed its non-stop MIA-CLE service this month with two daily ER4 flights, and also added two more frequencies from Chicago O’Hare (ORD), to six daily departures.

As the Continental-United merger has many watching the airline with regard to whether or not it will keep its Cleveland hub, American is strategically building its presence there so in the event that the new United dehubs the city, it can move swiftly to capture market share with additional service.

CLE Tower at Sunrise airlinecity.com

The sun rises on the city of Cleveland, here at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, the city’s main commercial airport, in late October 2010. With new, major projects underway in the city, traffic at the airport is expected to increase substantially in the coming years.

Despite years of economic decline, the city maintained strong O&D numbers and maintains higher than average yields compared to other major US markets. But more importantly, as airlines look for future growth, the city has reached an economic turning point and is on the edge of major growth. On November 18th, closing documents were signed in the city to bring a new $465M Medical Mart and reconstructed convention center to the city. The Medical Mart will serve as a permanent showroom of medical equipment and technology, whose operator, MMPI Inc. of Chicago, promises to host as many as 50 trade shows per year. Between trade shows, the permanent showrooms will still bring traffic and visitors to the displays. As the medical capital of the United States and one of the leading centers in the world, Cleveland was a logical location to construct the Medical Mart, and the recent closing comes after five years of planning and negotiation.

The Medical Mart and reconstructed convention center are scheduled to open in 2013 in Downtown Cleveland. But that’s not all. A new $600 million casino on the banks of the Cuyahoga River and a new $275 million office-and-hotel project in the city’s “Flats” district will also open in 2013. These projects are in addition to several billion dollars of projects at the Cleveland Clinic and in University Circle, the city’s medical, education, and cultural heart. With this, domestic and international traffic to Cleveland will continue to grow, including additional higher-yield fares.

Part of the logic of mergers is to gain operating efficiencies. For airlines, this often means closing hubs or eliminating duplicative functions and personnel. However, once the global recession lifts and the fruits of the billions of dollars of new developments in Cleveland materialize, traffic will be booming at CLE. This may be four to five years away, but to close their hub in the next five years would be a short-sighted and poorly conceived move by Continental-United. We can be sure that all the other carriers that currently serve and could potentially serve CLE are watching carefully–like AA is–ready to swoop in to grab routes should CO/UA dismantle their hub.

Latin America’s New Giant: Which Alliance?

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On Friday, Brazil’s largest airline TAM and neighboring rival, LAN, announced that they would merge their corporate entities in a KLM/Air France-type model. Each airline will maintain its existing brand, but its management and ownership will be one organization. This would create a South American giant, with LATAM Airlines being the name of the new entity.

Some stats of the combined airline:

Revenue 2009: USD 8.49 billion (USD 3.6 billion from LAN and 4.89 billion from TAM)
Pax per year: 45 million/year
Staff: 44,000 (17,700 from LAN and 26,300 from TAM)
Fleet: 241 aircraft (98 from LAN and 143 from TAM) plus outstanding orders of 110 by LAN and 90 by TAM
Destinations served: 115
Countries served: 23

Of course, profitability of the new airline is a goal here and, in general, any merger that eliminates competition is bad for the flying public. Will we witness a rigorous model of anti-trust regulations on international routes, as you would see in the US or in the EU? Probably not…

Which of the three major alliances LATAM will join remains a major outstanding question. TAM and LAN are in separate alliances, Star Alliance and One World, respectively. And unless it is already decided, I’m sure all three alliances (the third being SkyTeam,) are trying to woo the new carrier.

If they remain in separate alliances, would they enjoy the benefits of being in both alliances, as any flight on LAN could also be a flight on TAM? Or would other alliance members disallow this advantage? More than likely, LATAM will have to choose one alliance and to date, no mention of alliances was made by either carrier, which may suggest they’re at the dance waiting for the best offer to come their way. If it has any significance, TAM only recently joined Star and signed code-share agreements with other Star members, and must have done this while simultaneously working on the deal with LAN.

For TAM/LAN’s biggest cities in the US-JFK, MIA-OneWorld, via American Airlines, provides the greatest connectivity at these airports and AA carries more passengers to Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Santiago, Guayaquil, and Quito than any other US carrier. As well, Iberia is a member of OneWorld for connections throughout Europe. However, the seamlessness of OneWorld may be too much, as TAM/LAN and AA/Iberia are major competitors on one hand, and on the other, the dominance of one alliance on US-South America and Europe-South America may block it from ever obtaining regulatory approval.

If one alliance is to be selected, our money is on Star Alliance.

 

A Visit to Quy Nhon, Vietnam

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Qui Nhon Beach

Used by the US as a port during the Vietnam War, Quy Nhon (also spelled Qui Nhon) was a sleepy town then and remains so today. There isn’t much to the city, but the people are friendly and, unlike folks in some places, they want you to take their picture.

I had stayed at the Seagull Hotel-a very nice place and well-priced at around USD 35. Clean room, complete with a new TV and a balcony. But I waited over 50 minutes for my dinner in the restaurant, watching people who arrived after me begin their meals. I eventually walked out and head to the other high-rise hotel (there are only two) on this strip of the beach, and had some tasty grilled squid that arrived (relatively) promptly.

If you’re looking for a beach in Vietnam, skip Quy Nhon and head down to Nha Trang, about a four-hour drive to the south, and closer to Saigon. There, you’ll find nicer and more numerous hotels and a greater offering of food and drink. But expect to pay a little more, if not double, to stay in Nha Trang at a comparable hotel.

However, if you’re looking for a beach city that is off the beaten path, is generally inexpensive, and has A320 service, then Quy Nhon may be worth checking out. Vietnam Airlines operates daily A320 service between Quy Nhon (UIH) and Saigon (SGN), supplemented by ATR’s three times per week, and five A320 flights weekly to Hanoi (Tuesdays and Saturdays excepted). All Quy Nhon flights are out of Phu Cat airport, built by the USAF during the war, which is a painful 40 km (and $15 outside of the city) given the relative size of the city. Previous called Phu Cat Air Base, it was home to the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing, 12th Tactical Fighter Wing, and the 6259th Air Base Squadron, all part of the 7th Air Force, and is now used by both the Vietnamese Air Force and the national airline, Vietnam Airlines.

Qui Nhon Airlinecity.com

Walking around, you’re certain to be offered drinks in this friendly town.

Qui Nhon, Vietnam Beach Airlinecity.com

Late evening on the beach.

US Plane at Hanoi Airport

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 A US flag on a plane at Hanoi (HAN) is not a common sight, yet that’s exactly what I saw on the top of a tail earlier today.  Getting closer revealed this plane, below. Turns out Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in town, meeting today with local officials.

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December Year-over-Year Passenger Numbers up in Cleveland

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December was the first month in 2009, and the first time since August 2008, where passenger numbers at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE) exceeded passenger levels of the same month from the preceding year, another sign that the recession is easing as the Cleveland and national economies are recovering. The data include both domestic and international passengers. The increase was small— 0.05% —but it was positive, and the latest data point in a generally steady increase from a low of -20% in May 2009 (year over year). This is significant as Cleveland, a strong manufacturing center, was hit hard by the recession. However, its increasingly diversified economy has helped the city’s recovery. Cargo volumes, which first turned positive in September, was up 12.2% year over year in December.

In New York City, for November (the latest data available), there were 103,579 more revenue passengers (both domestic and international) in November 2009 than in November 2008—an increase of 1.3%—indicating improvements there as well. (Numbers were up for EWR and LGA, but down for JFK). NYC’s 2009 numbers also exceeded those of 2008 in September by 1.5%, though were down in October by 0.2%.  NYC’s relative low point in 2009 was in March, where passenger levels were down 13% from March 2008, with the best faring airport that month being JFK at -10.2%.

In Los Angeles, the numbers are even stronger. LAX hit positive year-over-year numbers in September at 1.0% and remained in positive territory through October (at 1.7%) and November (the latest available data) at 3.4%.

Detroit, on the other hand, continues to suffer, with passenger numbers down 8.6% in October year over year (latest available data).

On the national level, looking at October 2009 data (the latest available) for revenue passenger miles for US carriers on domestic and international routes, the general curve is improving with one month, September, where 2009 levels exceeded those of 2008. September was up by 0.4%, a marked improvement from -10% in January, -13% in February, and -11% in March.

Thus, on the barometer of air travel as a specific economic indicator, the economy is indeed improving, as the numbers here show.




On Location in: Nha Trang, Vietnam

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During the Vietnam War, Nha Trang, located near Saigon and on a natural beautiful beach was a popular spot for Americans on R&R.  Today, Nha Trang remains a popular beach getaway from all corners of Vietnam. A 6km beach runs right through the center of the city, lined with nice hotels, restaurants, and shops.

Getting there: The airport serving Nha Trang is the airfield at Cam Ranh Bay, a major American port and airfield built during the Vietnam War. Cam Ranh Bay is approximately 35km south of Nha Trang. The airport in the city of Nha Trang  was closed to the public around 2004 and is now a military-only airport.

The Nha Trang Cam Ranh Airport has a new, clean terminal with six gates. One can get from the airport to the city by a bus to the city center or by a flat-rate taxi directly to a hotel in the city center. The taxi is 260,000 Vietnamese Dong, about USD14.

Nha Trang Airport

Here is the Business Class lounge in the Departure Area of NHA. A table of snacks is laid out in this room, just to the left of where this shot was taken:

Business Class Lounge at Nha Trang Airport NHA

Once out of the airport and into the city, you can kick back on the beach and grab lunch or a beer (or dinner and a cocktail) at the Sailing Club (below), located on beachside of Tran Phu Street. They have an extensive menu, good drinks and you can chill there for as long as you like. A few steps down is the Louisane Brewhouse, which brews their own beer (and hence the name) which are pretty tasty. I tried two of them, but the two I wanted most–a red lager and a brew with ginger in it–were not offered that night).

Nha Trang Beach

And to relax further, there is plenty of beach:

Nha Trang Beach

And when you get tired of the beach, you can hit some sites in the city. Here is the centuries-old temple, Po Nagar:

Nha Trang Po Nagar Temple

From Nha Trang, you can take one of numerous boat trips to go scuba diving or to visit some of the islands off of the coast.  Here is the Tri Nguyen Aquarium, on Mieu Island, just off of the coast of Nha Trang. An all-day boat trip from 8am to 3pm will hit a few islands and set you back around US$6 or $7.

Tri Nguyen Aquarium