American Airlines (Dallas/Fort Worth) will end American Eagle Bombardier CRJ200 service between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara on April 1 according to Airline Route.
Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. How much longer will AA contract for the small 50-seat CRJ200s on feeder routes? Operated by SkyWest Airlines on contract, CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) N864AS (msn 7502) prepares to land at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
American Eagle-SkyWest:ย 
US Airways (American Airlines) (Phoenix) will resume passenger service to Watertown, New York on May 8. US Airways Express service was last operated in April 2007 from and to Pittsburgh. This time, US Airways Express (soon American Eagle) 50-seat CRJ200s will be operated to and from the Philadelphia hub with two flights a day.
Read the full report from 7 News in Watertown: CLICK HERE
Copyright Photo: Bruce Drum/AirlinersGallery.com. Bombardier CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) N241PS (msn 7909) of PSA Airlines (2nd) taxies at the Charlotte hub.
US Airways Express-PSA Airlines:ย
Delta Air Lines (Atlanta) on June 5 will add two new routes to Cleveland on June 5 partially filling the void left by departing United Airlines. Indianapolis and Raleigh/Durham will received nonstop Delta Connection service to CLE per Airline Route.
Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Former Comair Bombardier (Canadair) CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) N455CA (msn 7592) now being operated by SkyWest Airlines arrives in Los Angeles.
Delta Air Lines (current):ย
Delta Connection-SkyWest:ย
SkyWest, Inc. (SkyWest Airlines and ExpressJet Airlines) (St. George, Utah) reported net income ofย $8.6 million, orย $0.17ย per diluted share, for the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, compared to net income ofย ย $13.9 million, orย $0.27ย per diluted share, for the same period last year.
SkyWest also reported net income ofย $59.0 million, orย $1.12ย per diluted share, for the twelve months endedย December 31, 2013, compared toย $51.2 million, orย $0.99ย per diluted share, for the same period last year.
Quarter Summary
For each of the quarters ended March, June and September of 2013, SkyWest reported improved financial results, on a year-over-year basis, in achieving increases in its fully-diluted earnings per share.ย However, SkyWest experienced a decline in its financial results for the quarter endedย December 31, 2013ย compared to its financial results for the quarter endedย December 31, 2012. During the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, compared to the quarter endedย December 31, 2012, SkyWest experienced increased crew training costs as a result of new regulations regarding pilots (FAR 117) that became effectiveย January 4, 2014ย of approximatelyย $3.0 millionย pretax. SkyWest also experienced increased maintenance costs of approximatelyย $5.0 million, pretax, due primarily to performing additional C-checks related to used aircraft that were added to SkyWest’s fleet during 2013.ย Additionally during the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, SkyWest incurred approximatelyย $3.0 million, pretax, of costs associated with advanced pilot training and efforts to become certified to operate the new Embraer 175 regional jets scheduled for deliveries beginning in March 2014.
For the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, SkyWest generated increased operating revenues (net of fuel, certain engine overhaul, landing fee and station pass-through revenues under SkyWest’s contracts with its major partners), of approximatelyย $23.0 million, or 3.7%, compared to the quarter endedย December 31, 2012, ย primarily due to additional block hour production of 2.8% ย and scheduled rate escalations. The increased operating revenues were offset by increased costs in several areas that resulted in a reduced amount of operating and pre-tax income for the quarter endedย December 31, 2013ย compared to the quarter endedย December 31, 2012.
Following are selected statistics and information from the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, compared to the quarter endedย December 31, 2012:
Commenting on the results,ย Jerry C. Atkin, SkyWest’s Chairman and CEO, said, “The decrease in our earnings in the fourth quarter is primarily due to advance preparations for the implementation of FAR 117, the new flight and duty time regulations, and aging maintenance costs on the 50-seat aircraft. We also invested in our future by beginning certification work on the Embraer 175 aircraft that are scheduled for delivery beginning in the first quarter of 2014.”
Financial and Operating Results
Operating revenues totaledย $804.4 millionย for the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, compared toย $810.7 millionย for the same period last year or a decrease ofย $6.3 million.ย The decrease was due primarily to the reduction of approximatelyย $29.2 millionย in fuel expenses, certain engine overhaul amounts, landing fees and station costs which were directly reimbursed by SkyWest’s major partners and recorded as operating revenues.ย However, this reduction was mostly offset by recordingย $23.0 millionย in additional operating revenues, primarily resulting from rate escalations under SkyWest’s agreements with its major partners and a 2.8% increase in total block hours for the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, compared to the quarter endedย December 31, 2012.
Total airline expenses (consisting of total operating and interest expenses) increasedย $4.0 million, or 0.5%, during the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, compared to the same period in 2012.ย However, after deducting pass-through costs for fuel, certain engine overhaul expenses landing fees and station costs from total operating cost and interest expenses, the remaining total airline expenses increasedย $33.4 million.ย Management estimates that approximatelyย $16.9 millionย of the increase was due primarily to the 2.8% increase in block hour production and approximatelyย $16.4 millionย was primarily due to additional maintenance costs, cost increases resulting from new pilot regulations (FAR 117) and costs incurred from certifying a new E175 aircraft type.
Under certain of its agreements with its major partners, SkyWest recognizes revenue at fixed hourly rates for mature engine maintenance on regional jet engines and recognizes engine maintenance expense on its CRJ200 regional jet engines on an as-incurred basis as maintenance expense.ย During the quarter endedย December 31, 2013, CRJ200 engine expense under these agreements decreasedย $1.0 millionย to$9.6 million, compared toย $10.6 millionย for the quarter endedย December 31, 2012, primarily as a result of decreased engine overhaul expense due to the timing of scheduled engine maintenance events.ย SkyWest was reimbursed approximatelyย $12.7 millionย andย $10.3 millionย for engine overhaul expense, under its agreements with its major partners, during the quarters endedย December 31, 2013ย and 2012, respectively.
Liquidity
Atย December 31, 2013, SkyWest hadย $670.1 millionย in cash and marketable securities, compared to$709.4 millionย as ofย December 31, 2012.ย Cash and marketable securities decreasedย $39.3 millionย during the quarter endedย December 31, 2013ย compared to the balance as ofย December 31, 2012, due primarily to SkyWest’s payment ofย $40.0 millionย (total amount required under agreement) related to deposits on its new order for E175 regional jet aircraft.ย SkyWest’s long-term debt wasย $1.29 billionย as ofย December 31, 2013, compared toย $1.47 billionย as ofย December 31, 2012.ย The decrease in long-term debt for the twelve-months endedย December 31, 2013ย was due primarily to SkyWest’s payment of normal recurring debt obligations.ย SkyWest has significant long-term lease obligations that are recorded as operating leases and are not reflected as liabilities on SkyWest’s consolidated balance sheets.ย At a 5.8% discount rate, the present value of these lease obligations was approximatelyย $1.5 billionย as ofย December 31, 2013.
Business Developments
Onย May 21, 2013, SkyWest announced it had entered into a Capacity Purchase Agreement (CPA) with United Airlines, Inc. to operate 40 new Embraer 175 dual-class regional jet aircraft. The CPA is for 12 years and the new aircraft will be operated by SkyWest’s wholly-owned subsidiary, SkyWest Airlines, Inc. (St. George). Deliveries for these aircraft are scheduled to begin inย March 2014ย and continue through July 2015.
Additionally, onย May 21, 2013ย SkyWest announced it reached an agreement with Embraer S.A. for the purchase of 100 new E175 dual-class regional jet aircraft, 40 of which are considered firm orders and the remaining 60 aircraft remain conditional upon SkyWest entering into capacity purchase agreements with other major airlines. SkyWest intends to place the 40 new E175 aircraft into service under the terms of the United CPA discussed above.
Onย June 17, 2013, SkyWest and Embraer jointly announced an aircraft purchase agreement covering 100 E175-E2 dual-class regional jet aircraft and an option to purchase an additional 100 of the same aircraft.ย Deliveries for these E2 aircraft are tentatively planned to start in 2020.
During 2012, SkyWest announced the award of 34 additional dual-class aircraft and the removal of 66 CRJ200 aircraft under its Delta Connection Agreements with Delta Airlines, Inc. (Atlanta).ย As ofย May 2013, all 34 of these additional dual-class aircraft had been delivered. As ofย December 31, 2013ย SkyWest had removed 33 (22 placed in contract with another major partner and 11 removed from SkyWest’s fleet) of the 66 CRJ200 aircraft from service and currently anticipates removing another 29 CRJ200 aircraft during 2014.ย SkyWest believes the remaining four CRJ200 aircraft will be removed from its fleet in early 2015.ย Additionally, 41 of the 66 CRJ200 aircraft have been financed by Delta and will be returned to Delta with no further obligation by SkyWest.
Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Even though SkyWest is shrinking its Bombardier CRJ200 fleet, it was fortunate to place some of the grounded CRJ200s with American Airlines as an American Eagle carrier. SkyWest’sย Bombardier CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) N864AS (msn 7502) departs the runway at Los Angeles International Airport.
American Eagle-SkyWest:ย
Endeavor Air (formerly Pinnacle Airlines) (Minneapolis) Bombardier CRJ200 ย (CL-600-2B19) N8758D (msn 7758) operating Delta Connection flight 9E/DL 4100 from Toronto (Pearson) to New York (JFK) was involved in an incident. The aircraft landed at New York (JFK) and slid off an icy taxiway into a snowbank yesterday morning (January 5). As a result the airport was closed for about two hours due to icy conditions until the surfaces could be cleaned. This led to a series of diverted flights. There were no injuries.
Read the full account (with photo) from Reuters: CLICK HERE
Endeavor Air operates 181 regional jets on 1,000 daily flights to more than 100 cities in the United States and Canada.
Delta Connection-Pinnacle:ย
SkyWest Airlines, a subsidiary of SkyWest Inc. (St. George, Utah), has announced it will open a maintenance facility at South Bend Airport (SBN). The facility will begin operations in the coming months in an existing hangar at SBN.
Of the 40 positions created by the facility, 16 of these are expected to be local hires. Positions include parts supply control,
custodial and a facility maintenance manager. The additional positions will be FAA Airframe and Powerplant Mechanics
(A&P Mechanics).
South Bend will become the ninth maintenance base for the airline, in addition to facilities in Chicago (O’Hare), Colorado Springs, Fresno, Milwaukee, Nashville, Palm Springs, Salt Lake City and Tucson. SkyWest will perform routine maintenance and repairs, primarily on the Bombardier-manufactured CRJ200 aircraft, each night at the 46,000-square-foot SBN facility.
Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. SkyWest Airlines’ Bombardier CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) N927SW (msn 7693), operated for United Airlines as an United Express carrier, approaches the runway at Los Angeles International Airport.
SkyWest-United Express:ย 
Combined Route Map:
Air Canada (Montreal) today announced that in response to growing customer demand it will launch daily, year-round service between Sydney, Nova Scotia and Toronto (Pearson) beginning on December 18, 2013 .
Air Canada and TCA has been serving Sydney and Cape Breton for 71 years.
Air Canada’s year-round, daily service between Sydney and Toronto will be operated by Jazz Aviation (Halifax) under the Air Canada Express brand using 50-seat CRJ200 regional jets. It will be the only year-round, nonstop flights operated between Sydney, Nova Scotia and Toronto .
Sydney-Toronto year-round service:
| Flight | Depart | Arrival |
| AC 8795 | Sydney at 05:55 | Toronto at 07:33 |
| AC 8794 | Toronto at 20:50 | Sydney at 00:10 |
Copyright Photo: TMK Photography/AirlinersGallery.com.ย Jazz Aviation’s Bombardier CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) C-FZJA (msn 7988) rests between assignments at the Toronto (Pearson) hub.
Air Canada:ย 
Air Canada Regional-Jazz:ย
SkyWest, Inc. (SkyWest Airlines and Atlantic Southeast Airlines) (St. George) today reported net income of $20.7 million, or $0.39 per diluted share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2013, compared to net income of $17.0 million, or $0.33 per diluted share, for the same period last year.
SkyWest also reported net income of $24.0 million, or $0.46 per diluted share, for the six months ended June 30, 2013, compared to $16.3 million, or $0.32 per diluted share, for the same period last year.
Quarter Highlights
SkyWest experienced improved financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 compared to its financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2012.ย SkyWest generated additional block hour production and corresponding operating revenues (after giving effect to reduced fuel and certain engine overhaul pass through revenues) as a result of increased utilization and increasing the size of its aircraft fleet between June 30, 2013 and June 30, 2012.ย Following are selected highlights from SkyWest’s quarter ended June 30, 2013, compared to the quarter ended June 30, 2012:
Commenting on the results, Jerry C. Atkin, SkyWest’s Chairman and CEO, said “We are pleased with the progress we continue to make in producing improved operational and financial performance as compared to the same period last year.”ย He continued, “We will remain focused on our profit improvement objectives while continuing to deal with the ever-present challenges in the airline industry.”
Financial and Operating Results
Operating revenues totaled $839.1 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2013, compared to $937.2 million for the same period last year or a decrease of $98.1 million.ย The decrease was due primarily to the reduction of $117.9 million of fuel and certain engine overhaul amounts which were directly reimbursed by SkyWest’s major partners and recorded as operating revenues.ย However, this reduction was partially offset by recording approximately $28.2 million in additional operating revenues primarily resulting from a 6.1% increase total block hours for the quarter ended June 30, 2013, compared to the quarter ended June 30, 2012.
Total airline expenses (consisting of total operating and interest expenses) decreased $103.7 million, or 11.4%, during the quarter ended June 30, 2013, compared to the same period in 2012.ย However, after excluding pass-through costs for fuel and certain engine overhaul expenses, total airline expenses increased $14.2 million or only 1.9% which was less than the 6.1% increase in block hours produced.
Under certain of its agreements with its major partners, SkyWest recognizes revenue at fixed hourly rates for mature engine maintenance on regional jet engines and SkyWest recognizes engine maintenance expense on its CRJ200 regional jet engines on an as-incurred basis as maintenance expense.ย During the quarter ended June 30, 2013, CRJ200 engine expense under these agreements decreased $3.2 million to $10.6 million compared to $13.8 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2012, as a result of decreased engine overhaul expense due to the timing of scheduled engine maintenance events.ย SkyWest was reimbursed approximately $12.8 million and $10.2 million for engine overhaul expense, under its agreements, in each of the periods ended June 30, 2013 and 2012, respectively.
Liquidity
At June 30, 2013, SkyWest had $665.6 million in cash and marketable securities, compared to $709.4 million as of December 31, 2012.ย The decrease in cash and marketable securities of $43.8 million was primarily the result of the payment of scheduled semi-annual lease and debt payments as well as making deposits on recent aircraft orders.ย Cash and marketable securities increased $34.1 million during the quarter ended June 30, 2013 compared to the balance of $631.5 as of the quarter ended March 31, 2013.ย SkyWest’s long-term debt was $1.38 billion as of June 30, 2013, compared to $1.47 billion as of December 31, 2012.ย The decrease in long-term debt for the six-months ended June 30, 2013 was due primarily to SkyWest’s payment of normal recurring debt obligations.ย SkyWest has significant long-term lease obligations that are recorded as operating leases and are not reflected as liabilities on SkyWest’s consolidated balance sheets.ย At a 4.7% discount rate, the present value of these lease obligations was approximately $1.5 billion as of June 30, 2013.
Recent Business Developments
On May 21, 2013, SkyWest announced it had entered into a Capacity Purchase Agreement (“CPA”) with United Airlines, Inc. (Chicago) to operate 40 new Embraer ERJ 175 dual-class regional jet aircraft. The CPA is for 12 years and the aircraft will be operated by SkyWest’s wholly-owned subsidiary, SkyWest Airlines, Inc. (St. George). Deliveries for these aircraft are scheduled to begin in April 2014 and continue through August 2015.
Additionally, on May 21, 2013 SkyWest announced it reached an agreement with Embraer S.A. for the purchase of 100 new ERJ 175 dual-class regional jet aircraft, 40 of which are considered firm and 60 aircraft remain conditional upon SkyWest entering into capacity purchase agreements with other major airlines. SkyWest intends to place the 40 new aircraft into service under the terms of the United CPA discussed above.
On June 17, 2013, SkyWest and Embraer jointly announced an aircraft purchase agreement covering 100 E175-E2 dual-class regional jet aircraft and an option to purchase an additional 100 of the same aircraft.ย Deliveries for these E2 aircraft are tentatively planned for 2020.
On August 2, 2012, SkyWest announced the award of 34 additional dual-class aircraft and the removal of 66 CRJ200 aircraft under its Delta Connection Agreements with Delta Airlines, Inc. (Atlanta) and by end of May 2013, all 34 of these dual-class aircraft had been delivered. As of June 30, 2013 SkyWest had removed 24 (22 placed in contract with another partner; other 2 removed from fleet) of the 66 CRJ200 aircraft and currently anticipates removing another 24 CRJ200 aircraft during the months of September 2013 through December 2013.ย These 24 aircraft have been financed by Delta and will be returned to Delta with no further obligation by SkyWest.ย SkyWest believes the remaining 18 aircraft will be removed at various times through 2014 and early 2015.
Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. The CRJ200s will be totally removed from the Delta Connection contract by early 2015.ย SkyWest Airlines Bombardier CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) N423SW (msn 7456) approaches Los Angeles International Airport.
Delta Connection-SkyWest Airlines:ย
Aeromar (Transportes Aeromar S.A.) (Mexico City) is coming to Austin, Texas. The Mexican carrier will commence nonstop Mexico City-Austin nonstop flights on October 21 per the Austin Business Journal. The new route will be operated five days a week with Bombardier CRJ200 regional jets.
Copyright Photo: Juan Carlos Guerra/Airlinersgallery.com.ย Bombardier CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) XA-UPA (msn 7545) arrives at the Mexico City hub.
Aeromar (Mexico):ย
SkyWest, Inc. (SkyWest Airlines) ย (St. George) today reported net income of $3.2 million, or $0.06 per diluted share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2013, compared to a net loss of ย $(0.7) million, or $(0.01) per diluted share, for the same period last year.
Quarter Highlights
SkyWest’s financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 were slightly improved compared to the financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2012.ย SkyWest generated a 2.8 percent increase in block hours which resulted in additional revenues of approximately $10.5 million; however, overall revenues decreased by a total of $117.7 million as a result of lower reimbursement payments of $99.7 million for fuel and $19.7 million for engine overhaul expenses, under its contracts with SkyWest’s major partners. The majority of fuel is now purchased directly by SkyWest’s major partners and as a result, SkyWest reports lower operating revenues and expenses.ย SkyWest’s financial results were also negatively impacted during the quarter ended March 31, 2013 by severe weather which resulted in approximately 1,900 cancelled flights and 4,500 fewer block hours at an estimated impact of $4.5 million (pretax).
Following are some selected highlights for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 compared to the same period last year:
| ย (Unaudited)
Dollars in thousands, except per share amounts |
Three Months Ended
March 31, |
||
| 2013 | 2012 | ย % Change | |
| Total operating revenue | $ ย ย ย 803.5 | $ ย ย ย 921.2 | (12.8)% |
| Total operating margin | 1.9% | 2.2% | ย ย ย ย (0.3)pts |
| Pretax income (loss) | $ ย ย ย ย ย 5.4 | $ ย ย ย ย (1.2) | NM |
| Net income (loss) | $ ย ย ย ย ย 3.2 | $ ย ย ย ย (0.7) | NM |
| Fully diluted earningsย per share | $ ย ย ย ย 0.06 | $ ย ย ย (0.01) | NM |
| Block hours | 571,991 | 556,421 | 2.8% |
Commenting on the results, Jerry C. Atkin, SkyWest’s Chairman and CEO, said “We had planned to achieve improved financial results for the quarter just ended over the same period last year, however our results were negatively impacted primarily by weather and other operational challenges,”ย ย He continued, “In spite of the challenges experienced during the quarter, we remain optimistic on our profit improvement objectives as well as improved operating results.”
Financial and Operating Results
Operating revenues totaled $803.5 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2013, compared to $921.2 million for the same period last year or a decrease of $117.7 million, or 12.8%. The decrease was due primarily to the reduction of $128.2 million of fuel and certain engine overhaul amounts which are directly reimbursed by major partners and recorded as operating revenues. ย Total block hours for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 were 571,991, or an increase of 2.8 percent, compared to 556,421 for the same period last year, which generated approximately $10.5 million in additional revenues.
Total airline expenses (consisting of total operating and interest expenses) decreased $114.6 million, or 12.5%, during the quarter ended March 31, 2013, compared to the same period in 2012.ย However, after excluding pass-through costs for fuel and certain engine overhaul expenses, total airline expenses increased $4.8 million or less than 1%.
Under United Express agreements for SkyWest Airlines, Inc. (“SkyWest Airlines”) and ExpressJet Airlines, Inc. (“ExpressJet Airlines”), SkyWest recognizes revenue at fixed hourly rates for mature engine maintenance on regional jet engines and SkyWest recognizes engine maintenance expense on its CRJ200 regional jet engines on an as-incurred basis as maintenance expense.ย During the quarter ended March 31, 2013, CRJ200 engine expense under these agreements decreased $7.6 million to $10.0 million compared to $17.6 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2012, as a result of decreased engine overhaul expense due to the timing of scheduled engine maintenance events.ย SkyWest was reimbursed approximately $11.4 million and $9.4 million for engine overhaul expense, under its United Express agreements, in each of the periods ended March 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively.
Liquidity
At March 31, 2013, SkyWest had $631.5 million in cash and marketable securities, compared to $709.4 million as of December 31, 2012.ย The decrease in cash and marketable securities of $77.9 million was primarily the result of the payment of scheduled semi-annual lease and debt payments.ย SkyWest’s long-term debt was $1.44 billion as of March 31, 2012, compared to $1.47 billion as of December 31, 2012.ย The decrease in long-term debt was due primarily to SkyWest’s payment of normal recurring debt obligations.ย SkyWest has significant long-term lease obligations that are recorded as operating leases and are not reflected as liabilities on SkyWest’s consolidated balance sheets.ย At a 4.7% discount rate, the present value of these lease obligations was approximately $1.7 billion as of March 31, 2013.
Recent Business Developments
On August 2, 2012, SkyWest announced the award of 34 additional dual-class aircraft and the removal of 66 CRJ200 aircraft with Delta Airlines, Inc. (“Delta”) and has taken delivery of 33 of these dual-class aircraft. SkyWest anticipates removal of the 66 CRJ200 aircraft starting in October of 2013.
On September 11, 2012, SkyWest announced the signing of an agreement with American Airlines, Inc. (“American Airlines”) to operate 23 CRJ200 regional jet aircraft as American Eagle and had integrated 12 of these aircraft into operations by December 31, 2012. The remaining 11 aircraft were introduced into service February 14, 2013.
On July 11, 2012, SkyWest announced the execution of an Aircraft Purchase Agreement with Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation covering the purchase of 100 Mitsubishi regional jet aircraft. Deliveries are currently expected to begin in 2016.
SkyWest has increased its total fleet to 752 aircraft as of March 31, 2012, compared to 727 aircraft as of March 31, 2012.
Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing. SkyWest will start the removal ofย 66 Bombardier CRJ200 aircraft from the Delta Connection contract starting in October 2013.ย Bombardier CRJ200 (CL-600-2B19) N408SW (msn 7055) completes its final approach into Los Angeles International Airport.
Delta Connection-SkyWest:ย 
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