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NEWSREAL
NEWSREAL Today's News June 17, 2010
United, Continental Testify on Merger Benefits Before House Subcommittees Glenn Tilton and Jeff Smisek testified Wednesday before two U.S. House subcommittees about the benefits of the merger for employees, customers, shareholders and the communities both United and Continental serve. Also testifying before the House Transportation and Infrastructure and Judiciary committees were representatives from labor unions and witnesses representing different points of view on anti-trust issues and industry competition. Glenn and Jeff both discussed the challenges the industry faces and its chronic inability to cover its costs. They explained that the merger is one step the two companies can take toward achieving sustained profitability. "We must create economic sustainability through the business cycle, and to that end our objective at United has been consistent -- to put our company on a path to sustained profitability," Glenn said. "Our proposed merger is a logical and essential step toward our objective of sustained profitability." Representatives from the IAM, AFA, and ALPA, the pilots' union for both airlines, testified. ALPA representatives said the merger represents an opportunity for both airlines. "United and Continental managements now stand at the threshold of what could be a great airline, one that sees sustainable profits and will also provide unmatched service to our customers," said Captain Wendy Morse, chairman of United's ALPA master executive council, in her written testimony to the committees. "The proposed merger between United and Continental represents not only an opportunity for both airlines, but a possible sea-change in the economic direction and customer satisfaction for the airline industry. How this merger is handled will determine whether it is change for the better." Rep. James Oberstar, chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, suggested the proposed merger would reduce competition, which he believes is counter to the intention of Congress in legislating for a deregulated market. Others on the committee spoke in favor of the merger and entered into the record hundreds of letters of support from the communities they represent. Rep. Frank LoBiondo, a New Jersey Republican, said the merger will strengthen both United and Continental and help reduce job losses. "Do we want to see our employees go by the wayside?" he asked. William Swelbar, research engineer for the MIT International Center for Air Transportation, testified that the proposed merger would enable United and Continental to better compete both domestically and globally. "The network carrier model of the 1980s and 1990s does not work in today's environment," Swelbar testified. "Consolidation is a logical step to position airlines in a highly fragmented domestic and global industry to better weather the financial challenges that have caused years of economic pain for many stakeholders and a rising tide of red ink." Both Glenn and Jeff will testify before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee today. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Boarding start times –proposed solutions are being piloted at San Francisco and focus on prioritizing gate tasks as well as establishing a feedback loop for flights that begin boarding late.
* Improving the handling of "hot bags," which are moved from plane to plane on the ramp, and "sorter bags," which originate at the station.
* The new standard work to optimize ramp service planeside staffing at O'Hare has shown good results and work is well under way to improve the planeside standard staffing at Denver, Washington Dulles and San Francisco.
* We are working across divisions with cleaning and catering partners to improve their contributions to our on-time departure rates. United Named "Best North American Airline" in Three Top Industry Awards in Asia We have recently received three top industry awards in the Asia-Pacific region for recognition of the outstanding services we provide to frequent travelers. * Travel Trade Gazette Asia (TTG Asia) voted us the "Best North American Airline" for the tenth time. * Business Traveller Asia-Pacific voted us the "Best North American Airline" for the ninth consecutive year. * Business Traveller China voted us the "Best American Airline Serving China" for the fifth consecutive year. The awards are three of the region's most prestigious accolades for top players in the travel industry. Every year, industry professionals and savvy travelers, in Asia and around the world, are surveyed on their opinions of airlines, hotels, destinations and travel industry services. "We are very grateful to our customers and industry peers for recognizing the effort we have put into satisfying their travel needs," says James Mueller, VP-Pacific. "Since the Asia-Pacific region has always been a key element of our global network, we are committed to hearing what our customers here have to say and giving them the products and services they desire. The rave reviews customers have given us on our new first and business class lie-flat seats are the latest example of our success in meeting their high expectations."
Key Account Manager Angeline Yong has been with United in Hong Kong for 22 years and shares in the excitement of the awards. "The Asia-Pacific region has always been a significant part of United's global success and I am tremendously proud to be part of a winning team all these years."
We are the first U.S. carrier to introduce all-new first class suites and a business class cabin with a 180-degree, fully flat bed and iPod connectivity. Currently, many of our international aircraft flying to and from Asia have already been configured with these new flat beds. In addition, we are one of the few U.S. carriers which offers three cabins of service on all of its international overseas flights, including economy class with Economy Plus® seating, which provides up to 5 inches of extra legroom.
Boeing 787 Dreamliner Scheduled for First Flight Today Last week we announced that we will purchase 25 Boeing 787s, in addition to 25 Airbus A350s.
The B787 Dreamliner is scheduled to make its historic first flight today. The test flight is scheduled for 10 a.m. Pacific time, weather permitting.
Boeing is offering a live webcast of the flight at www.newairplane.com. A link to the webcast also will be available through the Strengthening Our Flight banner ad on the SkyNet homepage. UAL Corporation's stock (NASDAQ: UAUA) closed Monday, December 14, 2009, at 11.52, up 0.53 (4.82 percent), on a volume of 18,092,024 shares. The UAUA stock ticker is available on the right side of SkyNet's homepage Today's News Oct 20, 2009 UAL Corp. Reports Third Quarter 2009 Results; Reported Operating Profit; Narrowed Loss and Enhanced Liquidity On Tuesday, we reported results for the third quarter ended, Sept. 30, 2009. We: * Reported a GAAP operating profit of 88 million dollars for the third quarter; after excluding special charges our operating profit was 123 million dollars. * Reported a net loss of 63 million dollars, or 43 cents per basic share, excluding noncash, net mark-to-market hedge gains and certain accounting charges, narrowing our net loss by 202 million dollars compared to the third quarter of 2008. We reported a GAAP net loss of 57 million dollars, or 39 cents per basic share. * Reported a year-over-year decline in consolidated passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM) of 14.7 percent, a 2.5-percentage- point improvement compared to the 17.2 percent decline experienced in this measure in the second quarter of 2009. * Delivered a third consecutive quarter of non-fuel unit cost reduction, with mainline unit cost per available seat mile (CASM) for the quarter down 1.6 percent year-over-year, excluding fuel and certain accounting charges, despite a reduction in mainline capacity of 8.2 percent year-over-year. Mainline CASM, including fuel and excluding non-cash, net mark-to-market fuel hedge gains and certain accounting charges, was down 20.3 percent year-over-year. GAAP mainline unit cost, including these items, was down 24.8 percent. * Closed the quarter with total cash of 2.8 billion dollars, unrestricted cash of more than 2.5 billion dollars, and restricted cash of 309 million dollars. * Completed financings totaling more than 1.5 billion dollars, including 270 million dollars in the third quarter and nearly 1.3 billion dollars early in the fourth quarter, raising roughly 1 billion dollars in new liquidity. Through these financings, we also reduced our debt and net capital lease obligations for 2010 by 215 million dollars and for 2011 by 100 million dollars. * As a part of the 1.3 billion dollars in early fourth quarter financings, we completed a 129 million dollar financing with SkyWest, one of our regional flying partners. The agreement includes a contract extension on 40 existing aircraft as well as commitments for a small number of additional aircraft. * Ranked No. 2 in on-time arrivals among the major network carriers year-to-date through September, trailing the leader by less than one half of one percentage point * Continued to improve the quality of our products and services, with customer satisfaction scores significantly improving across the board compared to last year. "Against a challenging environment, our people are delivering improvements across the business. With the work we have done and the strength of our network, we are poised to see better year-over-year unit revenue performance as economies begin to recover and business travel returns," said Glenn Tilton, UAL Corporation, chairman, president and CEO. "We are again demonstrating that we can improve customer satisfaction and on-time performance even while reducing our unit costs." Early in the fourth quarter, we raised an additional 1.3 billion dollars. This includes 345 million dollars from a convertible debt offering, 138 million dollars from the issuance of common equity, 129 million dollars from SkyWest Inc., and 659 million dollars from refinancing an enhanced equipment trust certificate (EETC) resulting in 90 million dollars of incremental liquidity between closing and repayment of the existing secured notes. In addition to generating incremental liquidity, the EETC refinancing also reduced our debt amortization for 2010 by 215 million dollars and for 2011 by 100 million dollars. During the third quarter, we generated 56 million dollars of positive operating cash flow and 4 million dollars of negative free cash flow, defined as operating cash flow less capital expenditures. We had scheduled debt and net capital lease payments of 264 million dollars during the third quarter and non-aircraft capital expenditures of 60 million dollars. "We have made significant progress relative to last year, reporting an operating profit of 123 million dollars excluding charges, and generating what we believe will be leading cost control among our peers, reducing our mainline unit costs even as we reduce capacity," said Kathryn Mikells, UAL Corporation' s chief financial officer. "We continue to take action to improve our liquidity, and after successfully executing nearly 1.5 billion dollars in transactions over the last four months, our unrestricted cash balance now stands at more than 3.1 billion dollars, with only 90 million dollars in debt payments remaining this year." Strong On-Time Performance and Customer Satisfaction Improvements Continue United ranked second among the five U.S. network carriers in year-to-date 2009 ontime arrival performance through September, falling just one half of one percentage point behind the No. 1 spot. For the third quarter of 2009, United ranked third in on-time arrival performance, trailing the industry leader by less than one percentage point.
We continue to improve our key customer satisfaction measures among our best customers, with a significant improvement for the fourth consecutive quarter. Improvements were achieved across the travel experience, including aircraft cleanliness, seat and entertainment product workability, and employee courtesy. 2009 Outlook We expect mainline CASM, excluding fuel, profit sharing and certain accounting charges, for the full year 2009 to be down 0.5 percent to flat year-over-year. Since our original guidance in January, we have reduced our projected full year mainline non-fuel costs by about 350 million dollars. We expect scheduled debt and capital lease payments of 215 million dollars and capital expenditures of approximately 70 million dollars for the fourth quarter of 2009. Complete details on United's outlook can be found in the Investor Update, available at united.com/ir.
Today's News Sept 28, 2009 Glenn Addresses American Bar Association's Forum on Air and Space Law Glenn Tilton was invited to speak Friday at the American Bar Association's Forum on Air and Space Law. He spoke principally in his role as chairman of the Air Transport Association, addressing a topic critical to United -- the airline industry's ongoing dilemma. While the industry provides absolutely essential service to the public, and we enable tremendous collateral wealth creation – the industry has been systemically incapable of sustainable profitability. And, we are constrained by regulation from taking the necessary actions that would strengthen our businesses and provide investment in product and services. Glenn posed the question to the audience of aviation lawyers: if the current regulatory environment is intended to "protect" the industry, what are we protecting the industry from? His speech was a call to action inviting U.S. aviation policymakers to make progress in globalizing the business environment in which we operate. The speech also centered on the importance of alliances and ATC modernization, and the steps that United and other airlines continue to take to align our businesses with market realities as they occur, including the current economic crisis. To read the full text of Glenn's speech, please visit SkyNet. United Cargo and HerbThyme Have Recipe for Success The arugula in the salad, chives on the baked potato or tarragon flavoring the fish you enjoy at an East Coast restaurant one evening may have been plucked fresh from the California soil that same morning. Gourmands demand the freshest herbs, and finer establishments far away from prime growing areas are able to offer same-day freshness, thanks to a partnership between United Cargo and HerbThyme, which has become by far our largest SPD (Small Package Delivery for Priority Shipments) customer. SPD is right for HerbThyme, because from their headquarters in Southern California, it's a short truck ride to Los Angeles International Airport, and from there our schedule makes it possible for them to meet commitments with grocers, restaurants and wholesalers in all major U.S. markets. Most mornings, the cargo warehouse at LAX is buzzing in the pre-dawn hours to prepare shipments on the morning bank of flights to other hubs and to stations such as Baltimore, Boston, Kansas City, New York, Orlando and Pittsburgh. Our route network and schedule make United Cargo the right choice for HerbThyme, says Senior Account Executive Ken Sitzwohl with United Cargo in Los Angeles. But service has always been the key factor, he adds, noting that HerbThyme still prefers United with connections to other car Inside Our Industry * British Airways plc is scrapping all free meals --except breakfast -- on its short-haul flights as the airline continues to trim costs amid a recession-driven downturn in demand for travel. BA said Wednesday that the decision to cut meals on flights lasting less than two hours would save the airline around 22 million pounds (36 million dollars) each year (Associated Press Newswires). Additionally, British Airways is pressing Boeing Co. to renegotiate installment payments on 787 Dreamliners the carrier has ordered. BA Chief Executive Willie Walsh said in an interview in London he is seeking to delay cash payments that all airlines make to Boeing and its European rival Airbus as new planes are being built (Wall Street Journal).
* Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Europe's second-biggest airline, has reached a "material agreement" with the European Union on its purchase of Austrian Airlines AG, according to its Chief Financial Officer Stephan Gemkow (Bloomberg News). On Thursday, Lufthansa also said its second quarter profit fell 88 percent on a slump in sales -- especially of lucrative first- and business-class seats -- due to the global recession (Associated Press). * American Airlines sold 276.4 million dollars of debt backed by aircraft in a scaleddown offering designed to build up cash before the slow U.S. winter travel season. The sale was 20 percent smaller than the Fort Worth-based carrier outlined in a July 20 offering memorandum obtained by Bloomberg News. The memo said the company sought to raise 344.1 million dollars. "They reported earnings since the last transaction, and investors might have some concerns," Betsy Snyder, a Standard and Poor's analyst in New York, said of the reduced size of the sale (Bloomberg).
You can read the full text of this story on the SkyNet version of NewsReal. UAL Corporation's stock (NASDAQ: UAUA) closed Thursday, July 30, 2009, at 4.13, down 0.03 (0.72 percent), on a volume of 7,794,585 shares. The UAUA stock ticker is available on the right side of SkyNet's homepage.
Today's News June 30, 2009 United and Continental Expect DOT to Approve Request for Antitrust Immunity Both United and Continental continue to expect that the U.S. Department of Transportation will finalize approval of Continental's request for antitrust immunity to join our immunized alliance with Lufthansa, Air Canada and several European carriers next month. While the U.S. Department of Justice has objected to certain aspects of the application, the final decision regarding the scope of immunity to be granted to the parties rests with the Transportation Department, which gave preliminary approval to the request several weeks ago. In response to media inquiries, Continental said, "We appreciate that Department of Justice has submitted its comments, which will allow the Department of Transportation to close the docket and move forward with the application. We remain confident that Department of Transportation will approve our application." The final ruling from the Transportation Department is expected in mid-July. Anti-trust immunity, similar to the status that Delta and Northwest Airlines have with KLM/Air France and SkyTeam, would enable Continental to cooperate with us and other immunized Star Alliance airlines on schedules and pricing. American Airlines and British Airways have submitted a similar request to the Transportation Department.
International SOS Provides Employees With Valuable Assistance While Traveling Overseas Have you ever wondered what you would do in an emergency situation while traveling outside of your home country? What if your passport was stolen or you lost your prescription medicine? In today's volatile world, finding yourself in the middle of political or social protests is not even far-fetched.
"The safety and well-being of all of United's people is our No. 1 priority," says Michael Quiello, Vice President-Corporate Safety, Security, Quality and Environment. "So we engaged one of the top firms in the industry, International SOS, to provide security and medical assistance in emergency and non-emergency situations." The new program is available to all employees, retirees and travel eligibles (including Enrolled Friends). Prior to your travels, visit the International SOS Web site (www.internationalsos.com ) which offers medical alerts, cultural tips, visa information, country facts and other relevant information. It's easy to access from the member's section by entering United's member ID number: 11BYCA000027. If you need to find a doctor or have a general health question, medical and dental referrals are simply a phone call away. The centers are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For crews on an active ID and other employees traveling on company business, International SOS will provide medical resources in an emergency or evacuation to a medical center of excellence. For additional information, check the International SOS link on the Travel page of SkyNet under Travel Information. You can also print a member card or view a list of Frequently Asked Questions. Be sure to print your membership card and keep it handy as you travel. It contains our corporate membership number and phone numbers to access International SOS. See SkyNet for more details.
United Interline Pleasure Travel Program Adds KLM and LIAT KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and LIAT are being added to the portfolio of airlines available for employee interline pleasure travel privileges. Medium Zonal Employee Discount (ZED) fares for KLM take effect on July 1 for all employees while medium ZED fares for LIAT took effect June 22.
KLM serves cities across the United States as well as destinations in Canada, Africa, Asia, Europe, Mexico, Latin America, Middle East and the Caribbean.
With hubs in Antigua, Barbados and Trinidad, LIAT offers service to 21 destinations within the Caribbean.
ZED fares are an interline fare program used by many carriers worldwide for spaceavailable travel, replacing industry discount ID90/95 fares for interline travel on several carriers. ZED pricing simplifies and significantly reduces the cost of non-revenue, spaceavailable interline pleasure travel.
For more information on United's employee interline travel privilege program, visit the interline travel page in SkyNet's travel section.
UAL Corporation's stock (NASDAQ: UAUA) closed Monday, June 29, 2009, at 3.47, down 0.01 (0.29 percent), on a volume of 3,582,977 shares. The UAUA stock ticker is available on the right side of SkyNet's homepage.
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Letter From the President Our Progress, Our Future Today's News Feb 1, 2010 Recap of Industry Earnings John Gebo, managing director-Investor Relations, sent a recap of fourth quarter financial results for the major U.S. network carriers and Southwest to all employees via e-mail. Key themes for this quarter, across the network carriers, include the following: * Revenue Recovery. To varying degrees, all carriers commented positively on the recovering revenue environment -- and, importantly, most carriers noted month-to-month sequential strengthening throughout the fourth quarter. * Cost Guidance. Most carriers provided non-fuel unit cost outlooks for the full year. And as described in more detail in the e-mail, most carriers are planning for fairly tight cost control in 2010. * Capacity Discipline. Several carriers echoed the importance of capacity discipline to a recovery in our industry -- and their mostly flat-ish capacity outlooks for 2010 supported that commentary. For additional detail on how United's results for the fourth quarter compared to those of other carriers, please visit SkyNet (at work, offsite). Mileage Plus Introduces Two New Flexible Awards Starting today, our Mileage Plus members can enjoy two new ways to use their miles with our One-Way Awards and Miles and Money Awards. These new awards are part of Mileage Plus' ongoing efforts to give our members more choices and greater flexibility. Mileage Plus' One-Way Awards are available for half the miles of a roundtrip award (starting at 12,500 miles for a domestic Saver Award) for a one-way ticket on United or United Express.
Our members can also stretch their miles further with our new Miles and Money Awards. What this means is if you are low on miles, you can still book a roundtrip award, hotel stay or car rental for fewer miles and make up the difference in cash.
As employees, we know that flying on a space-available basis requires flexibility. That may not be possible when traveling for important events that are locked on the calendar. Spring break, wedding and graduation seasons are coming, and when you can't miss an important milestone, our new One-Way Awards can get you there in time to see the sunset, the bride walk down the aisle or a family member receive his or her diploma.
"Our Mileage Plus members, some of whom are also our own employees, are looking for more ways to get the most out of their hard-earned miles, and we continue to develop new programs that enable them to do just that," said Robert Sahadevan, VP–Mileage Plus. "Our new One-Way Awards and Miles and Money Awards give you the flexibility to use your miles – and fewer of them – by providing more options to book the type of travel you want." More information about One-Way Awards and Miles and Money Awards will be available at www.mileageplus.com. UAL Corporation's stock (NASDAQ: UAUA) closed Friday, January 29, 2010, at 12.23,down 0.40 (3.17 percent) on a volume of 10,198,166 shares. The UAUA stock ticker is available on the right side of SkyNet's homepage.
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