Singapore Airlines (SIA) prefaced its report on its annual performance for FY2012/13 with attribution to high fuel prices and lower yields owing to a weak global economy for its lacklustre results. The announcement concluded with an equally dismal outlook, saying very much the same thing, warning that “the global economic outlook remains uncertain with the ongoing weakness in the eurozone and sluggish recovery in the United States” and that “yields …Read More
Tag Archives: Tony Tyler
Optimism returns to aviation
There is renewed optimism for the airline industry, going by the latest industry body Geneva-based International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecast that 2013 will see an improvement in global airline profitability from US$6.7 billion to US$8.4 billion. This has been revised from an earlier estimate of US$7.5 billion. IATA chief economist Brian Pearce said: “I think we are past the low point, which was earlier this year.” The positive mood …Read More
Cathay Pacific stays on the course of expansion
Call it a déjà vu. For Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways, Asia’s largest international airline by passenger traffic as well as the world’s largest cargo airline in terms of traffic in 2010, bumps along the ride are not a new thing nor are they unanticipated. Its then chief executive Tony Tyler, who went on to become the director general (DG) of the Geneva-based industry body International Air Transport Association (IATA), …Read More
Airlines fly into the green divide
A ‘green’ divide is fast developing as climate change legislators turn their attention to airlines, which together contribute about 3% of the world’s total carbon emissions. When the European Union (EU) announced plans to extend the emissions trading scheme (ETS) to cover all airlines landing or taking off in EU territory, North American airlines were first to object, citing an infringement of the Open Skies agreement with the EU bloc …Read More
Airlines face new challenges as global economic slump looms
The real question is not whether the airlines would survive another recession so soon after the 2007-2009 global economic meltdown. In an industry dominated by national players whose fate goes beyond commercial considerations, willy-nilly the majority of them will pull through, perhaps struggle to stay afloat, and emerge badly bruised. While experts generally do not foresee a trough as deep as the previous one, the signs are not all that …Read More
Singapore Airlines’ new LCC may be a mixed blessing
Long viewed as the industry benchmark and the golden standard for premium travel, Singapore Airlines (SIA) surprised the airline industry when it last week announced plans to set up a wholly-owned low cost subsidiary, which is scheduled to commence operations within a year. The strategic objective of Singapore Airlines in setting up a new low-cost carrier (LCC), however, is undoubtedly to take on the competition, especially the growing long-haul low-cost …Read More
Cathay under new leadership: the dawn of a new era?
Running an airline is no easy task. It not only applies to the European and US major carriers, but also to industry leaders such as Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways and Singapore Airlines (SIA). For Cathay Pacific and its new chief executive John Slosar, however, the airline faces a very different environment than his predecessor Tony Tyler did, who went on the become the director general (DG) and chief executive …Read More
Sky is (not) the limit for Cathay Pacific
Call it a black swan event. For the Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways with its roots dated back to 1946, not only did it manage to maintain its nearly perfect record of profitability in every single year but two, it also made a staggering record annual profit of HK$14 billion (US$1.8 billion) in 2010, only two years after its biggest loss in 2008 amid the plummeting air travel demand owing …Read More
Cathay Pacific to face pressure on 2011 profit
Hong Kong-based carrier Cathay Pacific Airways has issued a profit forecast in November last year, predicting its full-year 2010 profit will be no less than HK$12.5 billion (US$1.6 billion). However, with rising labour costs, major investments and surging jet fuel prices in the pipeline, Cathay Pacific may find itself facing a considerable amount of pressure on its 2011 profit. Critically, the airline’s two largest costs – fuel and labour, are …Read More
Cathay right in not holding further pay talks with attendants
While outgoing Cathay Pacific chief executive Tony Tyler reiterates that the Hong Kong-based carrier has plans to ensure travel during Chinese New Year holidays when members of the Flight Attendants Union (FAU) threaten to take industrial actions over a fresh pay dispute, Cathay Pacific’s management are correct and justified in not holding fresh talks with the union. The latest pay dispute with the Flight Attendants Union (FAU) centered on Cathay …Read More