Alaska Airline’s First Flight Using Biofuel to Boeing 737 and Bombardier Q400

Alaska Airlines will operate 75 scheduled domestic flights partially powered by biofuel derived from used cooking oil. The first of the these flights, to be operated with Boeing 737s and Bombardier Q400s, will occur Wednesday when two aircraft fly from Seattle-Tacoma to Portland, Ore., and Washington National, respectively.

The fuel, a blend comprising 20% biofuel, is being supplied by broker SkyNRG and made by Dynamic Fuels, which is a joint venture between Tyson Foods Inc. and Syntroleum Corp. AS emphasized the fuel “meets aviation and military safety, sustainability and performance standards.”

The carrier said that it and regional affiliate Horizon Air “will continue to operate select flights between Seattle and the two cities over the next few weeks.” AS and Horizon parent Alaska Air Group chairman and CEO Bill Ayer said, “Commercial airplanes are equipped and ready for biofuels. They will enable us to fly cleaner, foster job growth in a new industry, and can insulate airlines from the volatile price swings of conventional fuel to help make air travel more economical. What we need is an adequate, affordable and sustainable supply. To the biofuels industry, we say: If you build it, we will buy it.”

AAG said it estimated that the 75 flights would emit 10% fewer carbon dioxide emissions compared to its traditionally powered flights. AAG and Boeing were among the group that last year formed Sustainable Aviation Fuels Northwest.

U.S. Airlines Increase Airfare as Lower Federal Taxes on Airline Tickets

The most U.S. airlines had raised fares to reap the benefit of lower federal taxes on airline tickets. A few airlines that were passing the savings on to consumers changed their minds.

Several federal taxes on airline tickets expired over the weekend after Congress failed to pass legislation to keep the Federal Aviation Administration running at full speed.

Raising the fares allows the airlines to charge the consumer the same amount as before, while pocketing money previously collected for the government.

It could turn into a windfall for airlines if the stalemate in Congress drags on. The government estimates that the expiring taxes total $200 million a week. And with jet fuel prices much higher than last year, airlines can use the cash.

As of midday Monday, nearly all large U.S. airlines had raised prices, but fare watchers said Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and Spirit Airlines had not. The CEO of Spirit, a small, low-fare outfit that accounts for less than 1 percent of the market, said the industry looked bad.

“The taxes that Spirit and all the other airlines collect don’t belong to us,” Ben Baldanza said. “It’s the taxpayers’ money. It was never Spirit’s money. It would be a grab to take that money.”

Some travel experts called the fare increases a public-relations mistake.

“One of the major airlines could have said, ‘Hey, at least for a week we’re going to give this money back to the consumers,’” said Rick Seaney, who tracks prices as CEO of FareCompare.com. “I’m surprised no one made promotional hay over this.”

Airlines collect various federal fees, including a 7.5 percent tax on all tickets that expired at midnight Friday night. Once the taxes expired, airlines began raising fares by an equal amount. On some tickets, the expired taxes can top 10 percent of the price.

A spokeswoman for the Air Transport Association, a trade group for major U.S. airlines, said consumers will benefit if the tax savings increase airline profits.

“This short-term additional revenue for airlines, which does not mean a fare increase for consumers, benefits all stakeholders — customers, employees and investors — by temporarily improving tiny industry margins to better cover costs and enable airlines to invest in their product and service,” the spokeswoman, Jean Medina, said in an email.

US Airways and American Airlines were the first to raise fares. They were joined quickly by United, Continental, Delta, Southwest, AirTran, JetBlue and Frontier.

Virgin America, which at first bragged about passing the savings on to consumers, changed its mind by Monday. Spokeswoman Abby Lunardini said it was due to “the dynamic nature of fares,” and said lower prices remained on some flights.

Airlines often adjust fares to match competitors, even down to specific routes. For example, Virgin kept lower fares in Seattle, where it competes with Alaska Airlines, which had not raised fares.

George Hobica, founder of travel website airfarewatchdog.com, said stores don’t raise prices during sales-tax holidays, and neither should airlines.

“It seems predatory,” he said. “I realize the airlines have to make money, but this is kind of a cheap shot. It’s tone-deaf.”

Southwest Airlines Orders 20 Planes Boeing 737-800s Prepare Reach Fly to Hawaii

Southwest Airlines has contracted for 20 jets that will be equipped to fly to Hawaii, though the first delivery is more than a year away.

The Dallas-based discount carrier, placing a firm order for 20 Boeing 737-800s, has specified it wants the jets equipped for long flights over water, a move that industry watchers see as a sign Southwest is at last ready to fly to the islands.

“We are looking to the future,” CEO Gary Kelly said this week in a speech to the Wings Club in New York. “The 800 sets the stage to bring more destinations into the realm of possibilities.”

The move is a new direction for an airline that currently has neither the equipment nor the authority to fly to Hawaii. The first of the jets is scheduled to be delivered in March 2012.

“The current plan is to deliver these 20, 737-800 aircraft in full Extended-range Twin-engine Operational Performance Standards configuration,” Southwest said in a news release.

ETOPS authority is the Federal Aviation Administration’s special rules and special certification for long flights over water with twin-engine jets, requiring more stringent schedules for inspection, more frequent changeout of aircraft parts, and extra training for pilots. Qualifying requires, among other things, extensive flying of a jet over open ocean with one of the engines turned off.

“All signs point to Southwest using the 800 to fly to Hawaii,” said Carl Unger of SmarterTravel.com.

The Dallas News reported Thursday that Southwest had posted a job for an ETOPS program manager. “You can’t fly to Hawaii if you don’t have ETOPS certification, and you can’t have ETOPS certification without the right people,” said reporter Terry Maxon.

Kelly, in his New York speech, mentioned several other possible destinations, but none other than Hawaii that justified the costly ETOPS certification.

Southwest, while smaller than the big three airlines in revenue passenger miles, actually carries more individual passengers than any other U.S. carrier. Its discount pricing model has been based in large measure on low training and maintenance costs by flying only one kind of aircraft.

Without its own service to Hawaii, Southwest sold code share tickets on ATA Airlines until ATA’s demise in 2008, three days after the shutdown of Aloha Airlines.

Southwest could provide stiff competition to Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines, and aviation Web boards this week were rife with speculation that Alaska might make an offer for Hawaiian, but neither airline confirmed even that discussions were held, and both have successfully grown organically in the past year, that is, by adding service rather than through mergers and acquisitions.

Alaska Airlines orders two Boeing Next-Generation 737-800s

Alaska Airlines on Thursday announced it will buy two additional Boeing Next-Generation 737-800s in a deal valued at approximately 3 million.

The order by Alaska Airlines was made in June but was not announced until Thursday. Previously, Boeing attributed the sale of two Next-Generation 737-800s to an unidentified customer.

“Alaska Airlines continues to execute a successful and strategic vision based on its expansive fleet of efficient and reliable Next-Generation 737s,” said Marlin Dailey, vice president of Sales for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “Alaska celebrated its transition to a single fleet in 2008 and with these additional orders, is truly reaping the benefits represented by its slogan, ‘Proudly all-Boeing.’ Read more

Alaska Airlines Tests Flight Landing at Seatle-Tacoma International Airport

Alaska Airlines says it’s flown another test flight of landing procedures at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport that can save fuel, reduce noise and cut emissions by a third.

The procedures, already used in Alaska and at several Lower 48 airports, use satellite technology to guide a plane to a landing. That permits the aircraft to fly a shorter, more direct and slower approach.

Alaska Airlines is working with the Port of Seattle, Boeing and other airlines to get Federal Aviation Administration approval to use the techniques at Sea-Tac. If so, Alaska Airlines estimates that more than 2 million gallons of fuel could be saved each year. The project began last summer, and this week’s test involved a 737 jetliner making eight approaches to the airport.

Airline Quality Rating, Airline Performance Year 2009 Reached Highest Score

The annual report assessing the performance of the airlines put some of the airlines at the best rating. But the overall performance of both airlines rose by achieving the highest score in the year 2009.

Performance evaluation factors airlines, among others: timely arrival time, service boarding, mishandled baggage and customer complaints.

Fourteen airlines improved their on-time arrival performance in 2009, the report said, though only six airlines had an on-time percentage greater than 80 percent.

Customer complaints fell industrywide to 0.97 per 100,000 passengers, from 1.15 per 100,000 passengers.

The Airline Quality Rating report is a joint research project by Purdue and Wichita State universities. The study is based on figures compiled by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
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Airlines Stocks Fell As Oil Prices Hit 18-Month High

Airline stocks fell Monday as oil prices hit an 18-month high, raising fears about higher prices for jet fuel just as the carriers try to return to profitability.

The Amex airlines index fell 1.3 percent, with 10 of its 13 component stocks lower in midday trading.

Airline stocks suffered despite upbeat reports on March traffic from two smaller carriers, AirTran and Allegiant, and a rally in the broader stock market. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 50 points by midday.
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Virgin America Adds Flights Services to Orlando, Florida and Toronto

Virgin America, the low-cost U.S. carrier that is partly controlled by British entrepreneur Richard Branson, said on Thursday that it plans to start flights to Orlando, Florida, and Toronto later this year.

The San Francisco-based airline said it will add daily nonstop flights to Orlando from Los Angeles International (LAX) and San Francisco International (SFO) airports beginning Aug. 19.

Daily service to Toronto’s Pearson International Airport from LAX and SFO could start as early as June, should the U.S. Department of Transportation approve its application, Virgin America said in a statement.

Virgin America, whose main rivals include Alaska Airlines and other low-cost carriers, said it plans to announce at least three more new destinations this year.
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Alaska Airlines Reposition Online Marketing and Sales

Alaska Airlines today announced a realignment of its marketing, sales and online commerce groups.

Joe Sprague, a 10-year veteran at Alaska Airlines, has been named vice president of marketing. Sprague will be responsible for the carrier’s overall marketing strategy as he oversees marketing communications, sales, reservations, food and beverage, customer care, the Mileage Plan frequent flier program and Board Rooms. Sprague will also retain responsibility for Alaska Air Cargo, a division he has led for the past two years.

Steve Jarvis, formerly Alaska’s vice president of marketing, sales and customer experience, will assume the new role of vice president of customer innovation and alaskaair.com. Read more

US Transportation Announce Airlines Companies On-Time Performance for January

Here are U.S. carriers, listed in order of their on-time arrival rating for January. The figures are from the U.S. Transportation Department.

1. Hawaiian Airlines, 86.7 percent
2. Alaska Airlines, 85.8
3. United Airlines, 83.7
4. Frontier Airlines, 83.2
5. Continental Airlines, 82.3
6. Delta Air Lines, 81.4
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