Tag Archives: McDonnell Douglas DC983

DAE to increase service to Miami and new service to Orlando

DAE-Dutch Antilles Express (Curacao) is expanding with new service to the United States. The airline starting on April 15 will add three new routes per Airline Route. This includesย Aruba โ€“ Miami,ย Curacao โ€“ Orlandoย andย Port-au-Prince โ€“ Miami.

Update: The airline suspended operations on August 24, 2013 and declared bankruptcy.

Copyright Photo: Tony Storck.ย Falcon Air Express operates this McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) N120MN (msn 53120) for DAE in its colors. N120MN completes its final approach into Miami International Airport.

DAE logo-1

DAE:ย AG Slide Show

Allegiant celebrates it 40th consecutive profitable quarter

Allegiant Travel Company (Allegiant Air) (Las Vegas) is celebrating its 40th consecutive profitable quarter. The company produced a net profit of $14.8 million in the fourth quarter (up from a net profit of $10.8 million in the same quarter a year ago) and a net profit of $78.6 million for 2012 (up from a net profit of $49.4 million in 2011). The travel company specializes in serving small markets with limited service to popular vacation destinations. The company issued the following financial results and details for the fourth quarter 2012 and full year results for 2012:

Allegiant Travel Company reported the following financial results for both the fourth quarter and full year 2012, as well as comparisons to prior year equivalents:

Unaudited 4Q12 4Q11 Change 2012 2011 Change
Total operating revenue (millions) $222.8 $193.9 14.9% $908.7 $779.1 16.6%
Operating income (millions) $25.4 $20.2 25.8% $132.3 $85.4 54.8%
Operating margin 11.4% 10.4% 1.0pp 14.6% 11.0% 3.6pp
EBITDA (millions) $42.2 $31.3 34.7% $190.1 $127.4 49.2%
EBITDA margin 18.9% 16.2% 2.7pp 20.9% 16.4% 4.5pp
Net income (millions) $14.8 $10.8 36.6% $78.6 $49.4 59.1%
Diluted earnings per share $0.76 $0.56 35.7% $4.06 $2.57 58.0%

“We are very proud to report our 40thย consecutive profitable quarter,” statedย Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr., Chairman and CEO ofย Allegiant Travel Company. ย “40 consecutive profitable quarters is an outstanding achievement in this industry and we could not do it without the great efforts and contributions of our Team Members. ย In 2012, we recorded the highest system fuel cost per gallon we have ever paid for a full year. ย In spite of that, we were able to grow full year earnings per share over 58 percent to the highest ever.”

Notable company quarterly highlights

  • Signed purchase agreements to acquire nine Airbus A320 aircraft previously operated by Iberia
  • Successfully converted 100 percent of our customer web traffic to our new booking engine in November
  • Returned overย $38 millionย to shareholders through a special dividend ofย $2ย per share in December
  • Repurchased approximately 55,000 shares forย $4 millionย during the fourth quarter
  • As ofย January 30, 2013, we have converted 47 of an expected 51 MD-80s to 166 seat aircraft
  • Began operating 21 new routes during the quarter
  • Announced eight new routes starting in the first quarter
  • Ranked 14thย on the Forbes’ 100 Best Small Companies. ย We have been listed four years in a row

Revenue performance

  • Fourth quarter 2012 total average fare was up 4.4 percent versus 2011 and was the highest in the company’s history
  • 12thย consecutive quarter of year over year increases in total average fare
  • Ancillary air-related revenue per passenger has grown sequentially every month since April 2012
4Q12 4Q11 Change 2012 2011 Change
Scheduled Service:
Average fare – scheduled service $88.59 $91.66 (3.3)% $88.90 $89.15 (0.3)%
Average fare – ancillary air-related charges $39.89 $31.51 26.6% $35.72 $31.17 14.6%
Average fare – ancillary third party products $5.19 $4.88 6.4% $5.48 $5.18 5.8%
Average fare – total $133.67 $128.05 4.4% $130.10 $125.51 3.7%
Scheduled service passenger revenue per ASM (PRASM) (cents) 7.99 8.91 (10.3)% 8.43 8.88 (5.1)%
Total scheduled service revenue* per ASM (TRASM) (cents) 12.06 12.45 (3.1)% 12.33 12.50 (1.4)%
Load factor 86.5% 89.6% (3.1)pp 89.4% 91.7% (2.3)pp
Passengers (millions) 1.6 1.4 13.3% 6.6 5.8 14.1%
Average passengers per departure 141 134 5.2% 140 136 2.9%
Average scheduled service stage length (miles) 930 904 2.9% 918 901 1.9%

* Total scheduled service revenue includes scheduled service, ancillary air-related, and ancillary third party revenue.

Cost performance

  • Full year 2012 cost per ASM excluding fuel decreased 6.7 percent toย 5.3 centsย in spite of a five percent decrease in aircraft utilization for the same time period
  • Full year 2012 ASMs per gallon increased 6.6 percent to 63.0 versus last year, and improved sequentially 3.6 percent in the fourth quarter 2012 versus the third quarter 2012
  • Full year 2012 salaries and benefits expense per passenger decreased 1.7 percent despite a 14.2 percent increase in full time equivalent employees
  • Full year 2012 maintenance and repairs expense per passenger decreased 19.6 percent due primarily to a 60 percent decline in engine overhaul expenses. ย Maintenance expense per aircraft per month wasย $102,277ย in 2012 versusย $129,558ย in 2011
  • Full year 2012 sales and marketing expense per passenger decreased 14.6 percent versus last year, primarily due to the implementation of a discount for customers paying with less expensive forms of payment beginning in the third quarter 2012
4Q12 4Q11 Change 2012 2011 Change
Total System*:
Operating expense per passenger $118.49 $116.08 2.1% $111.12 $112.32 (1.1)%
Operating expense per passenger, excluding fuel $63.50 $62.04 2.4% $56.99 $58.78 (3.0)%
Operating expense per ASM (CASM) (cents) 10.50 11.03 (4.8)% 10.37 10.90 (4.9)%
Operating expense, excluding fuel per ASM (CASM ex fuel) (cents) 5.63 5.89 (4.4)% 5.32 5.70 (6.7)%
Average block hours per aircraft per day 5.3 5.6 (5.4)% 5.7 6.0 (5.0)%

* Total system includes scheduled service, fixed-fee contract and non-revenue flying.

Third party products performance

  • For the fourth quarter 2012, ancillary revenue – third party products per passenger increased 6.4 percent versus last year. ย This has been our eleventh consecutive quarter of year over year increases.
  • For the full year 2012, net revenue from hotels increased about five percent while net revenue from rental cars increased about 33 percent versus 2011
Supplemental Ancillary Revenue Informationย 

Unaudited (millions)

4Q12 4Q11 Change 2012 2011 Change
Gross ancillary revenue – third party products $24.9 $23.0 8.6% $119.0 $106.4 11.9%
Cost of goods sold ($16.2) ($15.2) 6.1% ($79.0) ($72.0) 9.7%
Transaction costs* ($.6) ($.9) (35.9)% ($3.9) ($4.5) (12.1)%
Ancillary revenue – third party products $8.2 $6.8 20.5% $36.1 $29.9 20.8%
As percent of gross 32.8% 29.6% 3.2pp 30.3% 28.1% 2.2pp
ย  ย  As percent of income before taxes 34.9% 36.9% (2.0)pp 29.0% 37.6% (8.6)pp
Ancillary revenue – third party products/scheduled passenger $5.19 $4.88 6.4% $5.48 $5.18 5.8%
Hotel room nights (thousands) 137.5 142.6 (3.5)% 690.1 647.7 6.5%
Rental car days (thousands) 169.1 113.8 48.6% 763.4 577.7 32.1%

* Includes payment expenses and travel agency commissions.

Balance sheet highlights

  • We currently haveย $41 millionย in share repurchase authority
Unaudited (millions) 12/31/12 12/31/11 Change
Unrestricted cash* $352.7 $319.5 10.4%
Total debt $150.9 $146.1 3.3%
Totalย Allegiant Travel Companyย stockholders’ equity $400.5 $351.5 14.0%
Year endedย December 31,
Unaudited (millions) 2012 2011 Change
Capital expenditures $105.1 $86.6 21.4%

* Unrestricted cash includes investments in marketable securities.

At this time,ย Allegiant Travel Companyย provides the following guidance to investors, subject to revision.

Guidance, subject to revision
Revenue guidance January 2013 1Q13
Estimated PRASM year-over-year change (13) to (11)% (8) to (6)%
Fixed fee and other revenue guidance 1Q13
Fixed fee and other revenue (millions) $4 to $6
ย 
Capacity guidance
System 1Q13 2Q13
ย  ย Departure year-over-year growth (8) to (4)% (7) to (3)%
ย  ย ASM year-over-year growth +12 to 16% +14 to 18%
Scheduled
ย  ย Departure year-over-year growth (2) to 2% 0 to 4%
ย  ย ASM year-over-year growth +15 to 19% +19 to 23%
Cost guidance 1Q13
CASM ex fuel – year-over-year change +1 to 3%
CAPEX guidance FY13
Capital expenditures (millions) $150 to $160
ย 

ย 

CASM ex fuel – cost per available seat mile excluding fuel expense

* Number of aircraft expected to be completed by end of the quarter

ย 

2013 aircraft fleet plan by end of quarter

Aircraft 1Q13 2Q13 3Q13 4Q13
MD-80 (166*) 51 51 51 51
MD-80 (non 166*) 6 5 1 1
757 6 6 6 6
A319 0 2 2 2
A320 0 0 2 7
Total 63 64 62 67

* 166 refers to MD-80s that are expected to be converted to 166 seat aircraft, non 166 refers to those aircraft that will not be converted

Aircraft listed in table above are considered in service aircraft

Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) N416NV (msn 49555) is pictured arriving at the Las Vegas main hub.

Allegiant Air:ย AG Slide Show

Will 1time be revived by FastJet?

FastJet (FastJet.com) (Dar es Salaam) is reportedly in talks with the interim liquidator about purchasing the assets of grounded 1time Aero (1time.co.za) (Johannesburg). If the talks are successful by the new operator, 1time would be restarted and rebrand as FastJet (South Africa). Eventually the aging 1time McDonnell Douglas fleet would be replaced with Airbus A319s if a deal can be concluded.

Read the full report from AllAfrica: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Michael Stappen. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) ZS-OPX (msn 53012) in the “More Nice. Less Price” scheme arrives at the Johannesburg base where the fleet is currently grounded.

1time:ย AG Slide Show

Allegiant Air adds new service from Punta Gorda, Las Vegas and Mesa

Allegiant Air (Las Vegas) is adding new routesย from Punta Gorda, Florida with initial twice-weekly service to Plattsburgh, NY (February 23), Rockford, IL (February 14) and Toledo, OH (February 16) per Airline Route.

The company is also launching twice-weekly service from Las Vegas to Reno on February 1 followed by Mesa (near Phoenix) to Provo, UT on February 15 also per Airline Route.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) N892GA (msn 49826) climbs away from the runway at Los Angeles International Airport.

Route Map:

Allegiant 12:2012 Route Map

Allegiant Air:ย AG Slide Show

1time Aero goes into liquidation

1time Aero (Johannesburg) ceased all operations and filed for liquidation onย Novemberย 2,ย 2012. The low-fare airline cancelled all flights and stranded passengers. The company was unable to secure additional investors and capital.

Using the South African slang word of “1time”, meaning “for real”, 1time Aero (1time.co.za) launched its low-fare operations on February 25, 2004.

The airline issued the following statement:

1time Airline has applied for business liquidation (November 2, 2012) and that all of its operations have been grounded with immediate effect.

The business rescue practitioner has advised that there are no reasonable prospects of survival as a potential financier notified us this afternoon that they are no longer able to invest in our airline. It is therefore with the utmost regret, disappointment and heartfelt disbelief that we have to file for liquidation, which means the end of a dream and an era for all of us.

“I sincerely thank our employees who worked so hard over the years to drive 1time.s business, the travel trade who have been steadfast in their support, and our passengers who carried and maintained 1time during our most difficult and trying financial times, your loyalty is appreciated.

Although 1time ceases to exist, the airline that we’ve built up through blood, sweat, tears and undeniable passion, will live on in the hearts of our passengers and also our competitors, who know that they have lost a formidable and world-class player in the low cost market.”

Blacky Komani (1time Group CEO)

1time’s Business Rescue practitioners will be in contact with creditors and future passengers to finalise all outstanding matters.

Copyright Photo: Rainer Bexten. 1time had some very unique color schemes.ย In July 2010 1time Aero (1time.co.za) introduced this special “zebra” logojet to celebrate the launching of the new route to Livingston. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) ZS-SKB (msn 49966) approaches the Johannesburg hub for landing.

1time:ย 

Frameable Color Prints and Posters:ย 

Allegiant Air to start Las Vegas-Plattsburgh flights on December 19

Allegiant Air (Las Vegas) will launch twice-weekly service between the Las Vegas hub and Plattsburgh, New York starting on December 19 per Airline Route.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) N405NV (msn 49623) decorated in the Blue Man Group climbs away from the runway at Los Angeles International Airport.

Allegiant Air:ย 

Allegiant’s pilots pick the Teamsters to represent them

Allegiant Air‘s (Las Vegas) pilots have selected the Teamsters to represent them. The company issued the following statement:

Allegiantย has received notification from the National Mediation Board (NMB) that employees voting in the pilot election have chosen to be represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT).

“Allegiant respects the right of the pilot group to elect third-party representation, and we will work with the IBT to the best interests of both our employees and the Company,” Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr., Allegiant CEO and Chairman, said. “Contract negotiations can be a lengthy process and we do not anticipate any disruptions to our business or operations.”

Copyright Photo: Stephen Tornblom. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) N868GA (msn 49554) prepares to taxi from the gate at Long Beach.

Allegiant:ย 

Allegiant to start Harrisburg-Sanford flights on October 31

Allegiant Air (Las Vegas) has announced new twice-weekly service between Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and Sanford, Florida (near Orlando) starting on October 31.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) N420NV (msn 49424) completes its final approach at Los Angeles.

Allegiant:ย 

Allegiant to start Sanford-Lansing service on November 1

Allegiant Air (Las vegas) will open up the Sanford (near Orlando)-Lansing, Michigan route on November 1 per Airline Route. The new route will be operated two days a week.

Additionally the carrier will start twice-weekly Sanford-Columbus, Ohio (Rickenbacker) service on October 25.

The fast-growing company will also add a new route linking Mesa (near Phoenix) and Rochester, MN on November 1. As is their business plan, the route will initially be operated two days a week.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing. McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) N866GA (msn 49910) is pictured in action at Long beach.

Allegiant:ย 

Allegiant to drop three routes from Los Angeles due to a lack of gates

Allegiant Air (Las Vegas) is trimming three routes from Los Angeles International Airport due to a shortage of gates. The carrier will drop all service from LAX to Billings (September 1), Pasco (September 1) and Sioux Falls (August 13).

Read the full story from the ArgusLeader.com: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: McDonnell Douglas DC-9-83 (MD-83) N405NV in the Blue Man Group promotional livery taxies from the gate to the runway at LAX.

Allegiant:ย 

Route Map: