Tag Archives: Embraer 170

JAL to add 15 Embraer E170s and E190s for J-Air

Embraer S.A. has signed a firm order with JAL-Japan Airlines (Tokyo) for a total of 15 E-Jets comprising the E170 and the E190 jets models, as well as for an additional twelve E-Jets family options.

All aircraft will be operated by Japan Airlines’ wholly owned subsidiary, J-Air (Osaka-Itami Airport). This order is added to the existing 15 Embraer E170s that the airline currently flies. New deliveries of E-Jets are scheduled from 2015.

J-Air currently operates 176 daily flights across its network of 21 cities that include Osaka-Itami, Sapporo, Sendai, Kagoshima, Miyazaki, and Fukuoka.

Copyright Photo: Akira Uekawa/AirlinersGallery.com. Embraer ERJ 170-100ST JA218J (msn 17000314) completes its final approach at Tokyo (Haneda) in the old 2002 livery.

JAL-Japan Airlines:

J-Air:

Estonian Air narrows its first half loss to $6.6 million

Estonian Air (Tallinn) reported a first half net loss of €5 million ($6.6 million), down from a net loss of €6.1 million ($8.0 million) in the same period a year ago.

The airline issued this full financial statement:

Despite tougher competition Estonian Air improved its half year net result by 18%. In the first half of 2014, Estonian Air’s revenue amounted to EUR 32.9 million, which is 8% less compared to the same period last year but net result of the company improved by 18%, which amounted to EUR 5.0 million loss.

During the first six months, Estonian Air carried 260 thousand passengers, of which 251 thousand on regular flights. This is 8% less than in the same period last year but less than the decrease in roundtrips (10%) in the same period 2013.

“The result of the second quarter is on the same level as in the same period last year, but nevertheless we expected to see more positive results,” said Jan Palmér, CEO of Estonian Air. “During the second quarter Estonian Air has continued to perform in line with the restructuring plan, but in addition we must now intensify measures in response to harsher market. Competition in Tallinn airport has become tougher as new carriers have entered the market and we have been influenced by continuing uncertain situation in Ukraine resulting in lower passenger volumes on Kiev route and lower transit passengers volumes flying from Europe to Russia,” continued Palmér.

The pressure on airlines’ yield has increased in the whole Europe, forcing airlines to adapt to the changing market conditions. “In the first half of the year, the total number of passengers fell slightly behind our forecast. This is mainly due to less number of operated flights compared to last year, which is due to demanding market situation. However, in June and July we have seen the passenger volumes coming back. Positively surprising high demand for our summer offers and two more summer destinations helped us to turn the number of passengers into growth again,” added Palmer.

In addition to direct flights, Estonian Air is providing more than 280 destinations around the world together with partner airlines with minimum connecting time. For instance, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Amsterdam airports act as important hubs for connecting flights around the whole world.

Estonian Air, Estonia’s national carrier, is the biggest operator at Tallinn Airport. The airline flies regular routes to Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Brussels, Oslo, Moscow, Munich, St Petersburg, Kiev, Vilnius, Trondheim and Bromma. In addition, from May to September, Estonian Air will fly to Nice and Split, from June to August to Paris and from June to 1st of November to Berlin. From December 2014 to March 2015, Estonian Air will add seasonal flights to Munich.

Copyright Photo: OSDU/AirlinersGallery.com. Embraer ERJ 170-100LR ES-AEA (msn 17000093) arrives in Moscow (Sheremetyevo).

Estonian Air:

Republic Airlines Embraer 170 veers off the runway into the grass at Kansas City while performing an engine run-up

Republic Airlines (2nd) (part of the Republic Airways Holdings group) (US Airways Express) (Indianapolis) Embraer 170 veered off of the runway at Kansas City International Airport this morning around 4:30 a.m. and ended up into the adjacent grass area while performing an overnight engine maintenance run-up. The nose wheel ended up being wedged into a gully that created a slow and difficult process to remove the aircraft. There were no injuries or apparent damage to the airliner.

Read the full report and video from KCTV Channel 5: CLICK HERE

LOT Polish Airlines fights back against low-cost rivals with new low fare groups

LOT Polish Airlines (Warsaw) is introducing new “Economy Plus” and “Economy Simple” fare groups to remain competitive against low-fare airlines. The airline just issued this statement:

In June LOT is introducing new Economy Plus class of service in short and medium haul aircraft and LOT Economy Simple tariffs providing discounts of up to 30 percent off normal economy fares.

Passengers traveling in LOT Economy Plus will enjoy a business product for an economy price. They will have a dedicated hotline number, check-in desk, priority baggage and boarding service as well as a dedicated bus when the aircraft cannot be accessed from a jet bridge at Warsaw airport. On board, these passengers will have a choice of meals, beverages and alcoholic drinks just as in business class. They will sit in the front of the aircraft and obtain more miles in the frequent flyer program than before. Premium Economy passengers traveling on long-haul flights will connect to flights in Europe in LOT’s Economy Plus Class.

LOT has also prepared a special, simple and low-cost tariff called LOT Economy Simple created for the short-haul passengers who want to decide for themselves what services to use and when the fare price is the lowest. Ticket prices are 30 percent lower than in standard economy class. With a LOT Economy Simple ticket, a passenger has the option for online or airport check-in and while on board, served a drink and a sweet snack plus score frequent-flyer miles.This tariff is mainly for leisure travellers traveling only with their cabin luggage.To check luggage, there will be charged PLN 60 ($20) extra.In normal economy class, checked luggage is still free.

A ticket in LOT Economy Simple starts at PLN 199 ($65).For example, flights to Brussels are 30 percent off PLN 439 ($144) in Economy Simple vs. PLN 638 ($210) in Economy; to London 29 percent off PLN 499 ($164) in Economy Simple vs. PLN 705 ($232) in Economy and to Paris 24 percent off PLN 449 ($148) in Economy Simple vs. PLN 458 ($151) in Economy.

These new developments are another step in implementing the Restructuring Plan.In the past year, the airline focused primarily on cutting costs, looking for savings and beginning to improve the quality of the product and service standards.

“We significantly improved our results in the past year, but cutting costs alone is not enough,” said Sebastian Mikosz, CEO LOT Polish Airlines. “To achieve sustainable profitability, LOT has to grow and take better care of its passengers, by expanding the portfolio, offering better comfort and a broader range of optional services.”

Copyright Photo: Rolf Wallner/AirlinersGallery.com. Embraer ERJ 170-200LR (ERJ 175) SP-LIE (msn 17000153) in the 1945 retrojet scheme taxies at Zurich.

LOT Polish Airlines:

Estonian Air reduces its loss by 83% in 2013 to $11 million

Estonian Air (Tallinn) is in the process of turning around its financial future through a restructuring plan. The company reported its net loss was reduced by 83 percent to $11 million for 2013.

The company issued this financial statement:

The results are in line with restructuring plan which is reflected by the positive operating result of 7.4 million euros. Estonian Air’s core business turned profitable in the second and third quarter, and in 2013 the airline managed to post its first positive monthly result in over three years. For the full year, the airline’s operating loss amounted to 4.2 million euros.

In 2013, the sales revenue of Estonian Air was 72.3 million euros. The company’s gross profit was 7.4 million euros and net loss 8.1 million euros ($11 million).

Compared to 2012, the sales revenue was 21% less. The gross profit increased by 147% and net loss was reduced by 83%. The loss of the airline in 2012 was 49.2 million euros.

“Estonian Air is in a much better position today than it was on November 1, 2012, when I took over as Chairman of the Management Board and CEO of Estonian Air. My mandate was to restructure the airline to sustainable operations. The airline has taken all the planned steps to reach that goal,” said Jan Palmér, the CEO of Estonian Air.

“The European Commission’s investigations into prior instances of state aid as well as the airline’s Restructuring Plan are ongoing. Together with our shareholder representatives, we are working to ensure that the decision expected in the near-term future will be positive,“ added Palmér.

According to Mr. Palmér, Estonian Air has downsized its operations to develop the airline into an efficient regional player focused on the Nordic and emerging nearest neighboring markets. “We have reduced the network to ten core destinations which is served with five aircraft, and turned the service concept to a regional model during the restructuring process,“ explained Palmér.

The total number of Estonian Air’s passengers in 2013 was 551 169, which is 37.9% less than in 2012. With the excess aircraft the airline increased its number of charter flights almost five times from 44 to 209.

Copyright Photo: Stefan Sjogren/AirlinersGallery.com. Estonian Air downsized to a regional carrier as part of its restructuring plan. The fleet is now centered around three Bombardier CRJ900s and four Embraer 170s leased from Finnair. ERJ 170-100LR ES-AED (17000112) arrives in Stockholm (Arlanda).

Estonian Air:

Republic Airways Holdings reports first quarter net profit of $14 million

Republic Airways Holdings (Indianapolis) reported financial results for the first quarter of 2014. Key points include:

Republic’s pre-tax income from continuing operations was $22.8 million, or $0.42 per diluted share, an 18.1% increase over the March 2013 quarter. As of Dec. 31, 2013, Republic had a significant amount of federal net operating loss carry forwards and does not anticipate paying significant federal taxes for the next several years.

Republic’s net income for the March 2014 quarter was $14.0 million, or $0.26 per diluted share. This is a $13.7 million increase from the prior year. The March 2013 quarter was negatively impacted by $11.1 million of losses from discontinued operations at Frontier Airlines.

Republic canceled more than 12,400 flights during the first quarter of 2014, primarily because of severe weather in January and February of 2014. That was a 145% increase from the number of canceled flights compared to the first quarter of 2013. These cancellations negatively impacted the pre-tax financial results by about $7.0 million during the first quarter of 2014.

On February 11, 2014, Republic announced the early termination of its 44 to 50 seat fixed-fee agreements with United Airlines and American Airlines, which were scheduled to terminate in 2014. These agreements wind-down beginning in March 2014 through August 2014 and will result in the indefinite grounding of 27 small jet aircraft.

In the first quarter of 2014, Republic recorded an impairment of its owned Embraer ERJ 140 aircraft of $19.9 million and an $18.4 million gain on its Chautauqua restructuring asset. The Company also sold one Embraer ERJ 145 aircraft for a book gain of $1.8 million during the quarter. The net of these three items improved pre-tax earnings by $0.3 million.

On April 4, 2014, Republic announced that members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) Local 357 failed to ratify a proposed four-year pilot labor agreement. The agreement would have significantly improved pay and work rules for our pilots.

On April 7, 2014, Republic’s Board of Directors authorized management to utilize up to $75 million of unrestricted cash to buy back common shares and/or early retire convertible debt during the next 12 months. Under the $75 million authorization, Republic may repurchase up to $50 million of common shares and early retire up to $50 million of convertible notes, or any combination thereof.

On April 7, 2014, Republic redeemed a $22.3 million convertible note, leaving $52.7 million remaining on the share repurchase and convertible debt retirement authorization. This will reduce the Company’s dilutive share count by about 2.2 million shares going forward.

“I am pleased we were able to report improved first quarter financial results despite the most severe weather events in a single quarter I can recall in my 27 years of experience in the airline industry. Our results demonstrate the stability and strength within our core fixed-fee business,” said Republic Airways Holdings Chairman, President and CEO Bryan Bedford. “We are committed to our guiding principles and strengthening our brand reliability and product quality for our partners, shareholders and employees,” Bedford said.

Republic Airways Holdings, based in Indianapolis, Indiana, is an airline holding company that owns Chautauqua Airlines, Republic Airlines (2nd) and Shuttle America.

Copyright Photo: Bruce Drum/AirlinersGallery.com. Embraer ERJ 170-100SU N806MD (msn 170000019), as a spare aircraft, completes its Republic Airlines (2nd) flight into Charlotte.

Combined Route Map:

Republic Airways (Republic Airlines):

Air Lituanica to add seasonal service to Gothenburg and Malmo, Sweden

Air Lithuanica (Vilnius) will add seasonal twice-weekly flights to Gothenburg (Göteborg) starting on June 15. In addition, Malmö, the third largest city in Sweden, will be swerved twice-weekly from June 17.

The airline will also offer seasonal service to Billund, Denmark, three days a week, from June 16 through August 28.

Air Lithuanica:

Air Lituanica expands operations for the summer season

Air Lituanica (Vilnius) launched flights to Tallinn on March 12. The number of flights on the Prague route will be increased to 5 times a week, on business days. The flights to Munich will be increased to 4 flights per week; passengers will also have a chance to take a flight on Sundays. The number of flights to Berlin increases to 6 times per week; flights will be operated on a daily basis, excluding Saturdays.
On May 3 the carrier increased the number of flights to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris to 5 times a week.

Air Lituanica also flies to Brussels on a daily basis, excluding Saturdays.

Air Lituanica on March 5 added additional flights to Berlin (Tegel) and Prague on March 15.

Copyright Photo: Karl Cornil/AirlinersGallery.com. Operated by Estonian Air, Embraer ERJ 170-100LR ES-AEB (msn 17000106) has been replaced with an ERJ 175.

Air Lituanica:

Route Map:

Alitalia CEO: Etihad Airways will decide in 3-4 weeks whether to invest

Alitalia’s (2nd) (Rome) CEO Gabriele Del Torchio stated Etihad Airways (Abu Dhabi) is doing its due diligence (reviewing all of the data) which will take between three and fours week according to this report by Reuters. After its review, Etihad will then decide whether it will invest in the faltering flag carrier.

Alitalia is facing increased low-fare competition on its home turf and any rescue will face stiff opposition from other carriers and will need European Union approvals. Etihad, if it proceeds with an acquisition, is likely to ask for drastic cuts to personnel and costs (like Air France-KLM did).

Is there Alitalia 3 on the horizon?

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth/AirlinersGallery.com. Embraer ERJ 170-200LR (ERJ 175) EI-RDO (msn 17000348) approaches the runway at Zurich.

Alitalia (2nd):

Alitalia to finalize loans of $270 million with the banks in order to keep flying

Alitalia (2nd) (Rome) is about to finalize loans of around $270 million with banks that were pledged last year as part of a plan to keep the Italian flag carrier according to Reuters. However the carrier is coming under increasing pressure on its Italian turf from lost cost carriers (especially easyJet and Ryanair) now adding flights in Italy.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Rolf Wallner/AirlinersGallery.com. Embraer ERJ 170-200LR (ERJ 175) EI-RDF (msn 17000337) taxies at Zurich (ZRH).

Alitalia: