USA: Southwest Planes Collide At Nashville International Airport, Nobody Was Hurt

One of the planes has just landed and was taxiing to the parking lot, while the second was preparing for departure.

During the towing, the Southwest Airlines plane preparing for a flight to St. Louis, Missouri, touched the wingtip of an identical airplane that was supposed to depart for Atlanta, Georgia.

Nobody was injured as a result of the incident.

Judging from the picture, which one of the passengers made during the flight to Atlanta, the other aircraft had damaged the upper part of its vertical stabiliser.

After the collision, both aircraft were temporarily grounded for inspection.

Two Southwest Airlines planes have collided on the tarmac of Nashville International Airport.

Airline officials say no injuries were reported in Saturday (July 21) night's collision.

An emailed statement from Southwest Airlines spokeswoman Michelle Agnew says the winglet of the St. Louis-bound Southwest Flight 1555 "came into contact" during pushback with the winglet of Southwest Flight 4580, headed for Atlanta.

A photograph provided by a passenger onboard the flight to Atlanta showed rainy weather and what appeared to be the top of the other plane's fin clipped off.

The airline says both planes returned to the gate "under their own power" and were taken out of service for evaluation. The Southwest flights will continue towards the scheduled destinations using new planes.

A spokeswoman for the airport directed inquiries to Southwest.


Tourism Observer

USA: American Airlines Will Cancel 115 Flights Daily, Because Of Grounded Fleet Of Boeing 737 MAX Planes

American Airlines announced on Sunday it would scrap some 115 flights per day in the coming months because its fleet of Boeing 737 MAX planes is being grounded until August 19.

America’s leading airline had previously only planned to keep the planes out of commission until June 5, with Boeing facing intense scrutiny after 157 people died in an Ethiopian Airlines 737 MAX crash on March 10, the second deadly crash involving the aircraft in five months.

The global fleet of 737 MAX planes has been barred from flying since mid-March.

These 115 flights represent approximately 1.5 per cent of American’s total flying each day this summer, American Airlines chairman and CEO Doug Parker said in a statement.

But he stressed his confidence in the aircraft overall. Based upon our ongoing work with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Boeing, we are highly confident that the MAX will be recertified prior to this time August 19 he said.

By extending our cancellations through the summer, we can plan more reliably for the peak travel season and provide confidence to our customers and team members when it comes to their travel plans.

Once the MAX is recertified, we anticipate bringing our MAX aircraft back on line as spares to supplement our operation as needed during the summer.

American Airlines had lowered one of its first quarter indicators in light of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes being grounded, along with the partial US government shutdown and technical challenges.

Earlier this week, competitor Southwest Airlines said it would operate its 34 aircraft of the same model starting August 5.


Tourism Observer

USA: Alaska Airlines Goes To El Paso

Alaska Airlines launched operations from El Paso (ELP) on 19 February, with the carrier commencing flights to the airport from San Diego (SAN) and Seattle-Tacoma (SEA).

The airline will operate both routes daily using its fleet of E175s. There is no direct competition on the 2,198-kilometre sector from Seattle-Tacoma, however Southwest Airlines already offers eight weekly flights on the 1,109-kilometre link between San Diego and El Paso.

According to airport data, El Paso handled just over 3.26 million passengers in 2018, with this representing an 11% increase versus the 2.93 million that were handled during the previous year.

Alaska Airlines becomes the airport’s seventh scheduled airline, joining Southwest Airlines (46% market share of passengers in 2018), American Airlines (31%), United Airlines (13%), Delta Air Lines (6.9%), Frontier Airlines (1.9%) and Allegiant Air (1.5%).

Alaska Airlines is a major United States airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, within the Seattle metropolitan area of the state of Washington.

It is the fifth-largest airline in the United States when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and number of destinations served.

Alaska, together with its regional partners, operates a large domestic route network, primarily focused on connecting cities on the West Coast of the United States to over one hundred destinations in the contiguous United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, Costa Rica, and Mexico.

Alaska Airlines is not a member of any of the three major airline alliances. However, it has codeshare agreements with 17 airlines, including member airlines of oneworld, SkyTeam, Star Alliance, and unaffiliated airlines.

Regional service is operated by sister airline Horizon Air and independent carrier SkyWest Airlines.

The airline operates its largest hub at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, and it also operates hubs in Anchorage, Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco and focus cities at San Diego and San Jose.

As of 2018, the airline employs over 21,000 people and been ranked by J. D. Power and Associates as having the highest customer satisfaction of the traditional airlines for eleven consecutive years.

Through the airline's parent company, Alaska Air Group, it is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol ALK and is part of the Dow Jones Transportation Average and the S&P 500 Index.

For the fiscal year 2017, Alaska Airlines reported earnings of US$1.028 billion, with an annual revenue of US$7.933 billion, an increase of 33.8% over the previous fiscal cycle. Alaska Airlines shares traded at over $63 per share, and its market capitalization was valued at US$7.5 billion in October 2018.

Alaska Airlines has 23,400 employees. Alaska's pilot group is represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, International and its over 5,872 flight attendants are represented by the Association of Flight Attendants.

Since May 2005, the airline's baggage-handling operations have been outsourced to Menzies Aviation. This was in response to rejection of a contract between IAM the union which represented the baggage handlers, and Alaska Airlines.

It also allowed the airline to save an estimated $13 million a year. In late 2016, Alaska Airlines created a wholly owned subsidiary McGee Air Services which would compete with Menzies Aviation for ground handling contracts in select Alaska cities.


Tourism Observer

USA: Southwest Airlines Passenger Numbers Soar To Over Seven Million

Southwest Airlines launched its first international route from Nashville on 11 November 2017, a weekly service to Cancún in Mexico. Southwest is the largest operator at Nashville, accounting for 54% of the airport’s total traffic.

Since 2013, the airline has reported an average year-on-year increase in traffic from the airport of 7.8%, with the number of passengers it carries from the Tennessee city growing from 5.49 million in 2013 to 7.45 million in 2017.

Southwest Airlines is the largest operator at Nashville Airport, accounting for a 54% share of the airport’s total passenger movements between October 2017 and September 2018, with over 8.05 million customers being transported to/from the airport by the airline during this period.

To give an idea of how dominant Southwest is at Nashville, the airport’s second biggest operator, Delta Air Lines carried a little under 1.65 million passengers within the same period on 12 routes, accounting for 11% of the airport’s total traffic. Southwest presently operates 39 routes from Nashville on either a seasonal or year-round basis.

Southwest Airlines transported 7.45 million passengers from Nashville in 2017, up 7.7% versus the 6.92 million it transported from the airport in 2016.

The result of last year marks a 54% increase in annual passengers for the airline from the airport versus 2008, when it carried 4.83 million people from the Tennessee airport.

During the past decade, Southwest has reported two years where passenger numbers fell, with 2009 seeing a 3.4% drop in passengers carried versus 2008, and 2012 when numbers fell by 1.0% when compared to 2011.

While full year data for 2018 is presently not available, it should be noted that data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) has confirmed that 8.05 million passengers were transported in the 12-month period between October 2017 and September 2018.

For the first nine months of this year, Southwest Airlines carried just under 6.14 million passengers from Nashville, up 11% versus the same ninth-month period of last year when 5.52 million people were flown by Southwest to and from the city.

If the airline is able to maintain its 11% growth rate for the last quarter of 2018, then it will have flown roughly 8.28 million passengers from Nashville, up 71% versus the same traffic levels encountered in 2008.

Baltimore/Washington and Chicago Midway are Southwest’s top routes from Nashville, with both seeing 35 weekly flights a piece during the week. As stated, the airline operated 39 routes from the airport in 2018, on either a seasonal or year-round basis.

For the airline, last year was a quiet one with regards to adding new destinations, with just two routes being launched from Nashville, namely to Atlanta and Oklahoma City.

However, while the new route count is low, the airline is operating 30 weekly departures to Atlanta, catapulting it into being the airline’s third biggest route from Nashville, while also breaking Delta’s monopoly on the route to the world’s busiest airport.

Looking ahead to 2019, Southwest is already showing that growth is set to continue from Nashville, with the airline already confirmed to add five new routes from the airport this year. The first to launch will be on 7 January when it begins services to New York Newark.

Coincidentally, this route is a relaunch from when the airline closed the airport pair back in April 2016, with this also being the last route that was dropped by the airline from Nashville.

Following on from this, the other four new routes will begin in June, namely Burbank, San Jose, Norfolk and Omaha.

Southwest Airlines operated 39 routes from Nashville in 2018 on either a seasonal or year-round basis, with its two new routes last year being Atlanta and Oklahoma City.

In 2019, the airline has confirmed that it will add five new routes from Nashville, namely New York Newark, Burbank, San Jose, Norfolk and Omaha.


Tourism Observer

USA: $5,000 Cheques For Southwest Airlines Passengers

Southwest Airlines sent $5,000 cheques to passengers aboard a flight that made an emergency landing this week after an engine failed, killing a passenger.

The airline confirmed, for passengers it had sent the cheques along with $1,000 travel vouchers. We can confirm the communication and gesture are authentic and heartfelt, the company said in a brief statement on Friday.

Aircraft with CFM56 jet engine on Southwest flight 1380 blew apart over Pennsylvania on Tuesday, 20 minutes after the Dallas-bound flight left New York’s LaGuardia Airport with 149 people on board.

The engine debris shattered a window on the Boeing 737 plane, killing one passenger – first death in a US airline accident since 2009.

The plane made an emergency landing in Philadelphia.

The Federal Aviation Administration(FAA) said, its working to quickly finalise an airworthiness directive within two weeks that had been proposed in August 2017 after a similar engine failure in a Southwest plane in 2016, which it said would apply to 220 engines

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators on the scene were expected to wrap up their work in Philadelphia on Saturday, the agency said on Friday.

Southwest said after the incident that it was accelerating its existing engine inspection programme out of an abundance of caution and expected to complete it over the next 30 days.

Plane saw Serious damages as a cause of engine failed and an emergency landing forced.

The company has declined to answer questions about the status of those inspections and whether the engine that failed had previously been inspected or whether the inspections have turned up any evidence of defects or metal fatigue.


Tourism Observer

CANADA: WestJet To Cease Flights To Mexico City In October 2018

WestJet will exit Mexico City in October, becoming the latest among several North American airlines to retrench from Mexico's capital city.

This only seven months after WestJet entered the Mexico City market with routes from Calgary and Vancouver.

It's just not performing up to the standards that we would like to see, WestJet chief financial officer Harry Taylor says of Mexico City. We don't want to be cost subsidizing at this point.

Taylor adds that despite retrenching, WestJet still sees long term opportunity to serve Mexico City and could return.

Long term there's something there.

WestJet will operate its last Vancouver-Mexico City flight on 3 October, followed by its final Calgary-Mexico City flight on 27 October.

The carrier launched both routes in March and does not serve Mexico City from any other destination, data shows.

WestJet's move mirrors cuts by other airlines.

Alaska Airlines will stop serving Mexico City on 7 November when it operates it last flight from Los Angeles.

Alaska called that route underperforming and said that the change frees aircraft to launch new routes, such as Seattle to Columbus, Ohio, which the airline plans to start in March 2019.

Alaska also had served Mexico City from San Francisco, but ended that route in May.

Likewise, United Airlines will also cut its Los Angeles-Mexico City flight in October, schedules data shows.

Capacity in available seats from North America to Mexico City jumped 9% year-over-year in the third quarter of 2018, primarily reflecting expansion by low-cost carriers Aeromar, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines, VivaAerobus and Volaris, schedules data shows.

WestJet's move comes as the airline seeks to tighten its operation and bolster its finances.

The carrier has seen costs swell in recent quarters, and posted a second quarter operating loss.

The financial challenges hit amid a broad, companywide transformation under which WestJet is moving upscale, acquiring Boeing 787s, installing business class seats on 737s and adding flights at its hubs.


Tourism Observer

USA: Southwest, Delta, American, Korean And Alaska Drop And Open New Routes

Alaska Airlines will drop a Midwest route from San Francisco; Southwest hints at Hawaii and begins new service out of Los Angeles and Denver; American will fly a new transpacific route temporarily and adds a pair of domestic routes.

Korean plans to add a new U.S. gateway; and Frontier begins code-sharing to Mexico and announces another spate of new routes.

Last fall, Alaska Airlines started service between San Francisco and Indianapolis. And this fall, it will drop that route, effective September 30.

There has been lower than expected demand for these flights and we need to utilize this aircraft to add capacity on other routes, said a spokesperson of Alaska Airlines.

This change is another example of how we are looking across the network and making some tough decisions to ensure we are running as efficient of an operation as possible, so we can continue to offer our customers low fares. Alaska will continue to operate its Seattle-Indianapolis service.

The SFO-Indianapolis route is also served by United with it's cleverly numbered Flight 500, and Southwest has nonstop service between Oakland and Indianapolis.

Southwest made a few more hints this week about its new Hawaii service, revealing details such as its plans to serve meals on flights to and from the mainland.

Schedules are expected to be announced in October with flights starts a few weeks later, we predict November timeframe. Flights will have satellite based wi-fi and movies, too. No word on fares yet.

Southwest Airlines this week kicked off its newest transcontinental non-stop, with daily service between Los Angeles International and Tampa. The LAX-Tampa route is also served by Delta and Spirit Airlines. And at Denver, Southwest this week started new daily non-stops to Cincinnati.

For 10 days in January, American Airlines' usual Chicago O'Hare-Tokyo Narita non-stop will operate via an intermediate stop in Las Vegas.

American said that from January 4 to 14, the daily 787-8 LAS-NRT flight will be marketed by its joint venture partner Japan Airlines to carry passengers to and from the giant Consumer Electronics Show. JAL will continue to offer its own daily non-stops between Chicago and Tokyo during that period.

Meanwhile, American will add a couple of new domestic routes in the months ahead. On November 4, it will launch one daily roundtrip between Dallas/Ft. Worth and Cheyenne, Wyoming, operated by Skywest with a CRJ-200.

On December 22, it will begin one flight a week between its Charlotte hub and New Haven, flown by PSA Airlines with a CRJ-200.

Korean Air is coming to Boston next spring, with plans to begin Boston-Seoul Incheon service five days a week beginning April 12. Korean will use a 787-9 on the route, equipped with six first class suites, 18 lie-flat seats in business class and 245 seats in the main cabin.

Korean will operate the route as part of its joint venture partnership with Delta, which recently announced plans to launch its own new service to Seoul from Minneapolis-St. Paul beginning in 2019.

Later this month, Frontier Airlines and Mexican low-cost carrier Volaris will begin a massive program of code-sharing that will put Frontier's code onto 51 routes operated by Volaris and will see the Mexican carrier's code go onto 120 routes operated by Frontier.

The new code-sharing will apply to Volaris flights from San Francisco to Mexico City and Guadalajara, and San Jose to Guadalajara, Morelia and Zacatecas, among many others.

Meanwhile, Frontier has announced another spate of new domestic routes, mostly starting in mid-November. From Phoenix, Frontier will begin new service to Norfolk, Ft. Myers, Grand Rapids and Madison. From Tucson, it will add service to Denver.

At Tampa, Frontier will start flying to Syracuse, Grand Rapids, Portland (Maine), Norfolk, and Greenville, S.C. And at Ft. Myers, it will kick off seasonal service to Albany, Las Vegas, Phoenix., Portland (Maine), Salt Lake City and Syracuse.

Most of the new routes will offer two or three flights a week.


Tourism Observer

USA: United To Fly New 737 MAX 9s From SFO And LAX To Hawaii.

United will drop a transcontinental route from San Jose, add some domestic regional markets, and start flying new 737MAX9s to Hawaii from the West Coast.

Delta will start service between two business centers, add a Mexico route and increase Havana flights; JetBlue expands Mint service to Central America; and British Airways targets a new U.S. gateway.

United Airlines is throwing in the towel on its daily San Jose-Newark service as of October 26, citing poor traffic numbers.

That leaves three carriers in the non-stop SJC-New York market – Alaska Airlines with a daytime eastbound flight to Newark and a new daily daytime flight to New York JFK; and Delta and JetBlue with eastbound red-eye service from SJC to New York JFK.

United continues to fly from SJC to its hubs at Houston Bush Intercontinental, Denver and Chicago O’Hare.

Elsewhere, United will add some new spokes from its Denver hub. On October 4, it will begin twice-daily service to Monterey, California with CRJ200s.

On December 19 United will launch seasonal daily service from DEN to Mammoth Lakes, California with a CRJ700, continuing through the end of March.

And on August 29, United will add Prescott, Arizona to its route map with daily CRJ200 flights from Denver and six CRJ200 flights a week from Los Angeles. All four of these routes will be operated by SkyWest.

To Hawaii, meanwhile, United is expected to deploy new Boeing 737 MAX9s on some west coast routes in the months ahead.

It will use the new planes to operate six to seven flights a week from LAX to Kahului, Maui starting August 21; daily flights from LAX to Kona as of February 14.

Daily service from San Francisco to Kona beginning March 8; and daily flights from SFO to Maui as of March 9. While efficient, the new planes have become quickly known for ultra-tight seating and teeny-tiny lavatories. Tough for a five hour flight.

Speaking of Hawaii when Chris was in Kauai recently, the word on the street was that production crews were on the island shooting commercials for Southwest Airlines' launch of new flights from the mainland.

Unconfirmed reports are that flights could begin as soon as November. The carrier is currently flying domestic simulations in the hopes of getting ETOPS certification for its 737s soon.

Delta is the largest airline at Raleigh-Durham, and it’s planning to grow there next spring with the addition of a key business route.

On April 1, the carrier will start flying three times a day from RDU to Chicago O'Hare , using 70-passenger E175s with first class, Comfort+ and main cabin seating.

Delta will be trying to pick up a piece of the RDU-ORD market currently dominated by United and American, and maybe a bit of the RDU-Chicago Midway market served by multiple daily Southwest flights.

Delta and Aeromexico will add another route top their joint venture operation on September 17 with the launch of new non-stop service between Detroit and Queretaro, a growing business center northwest of Mexico City.

The route will be served three days a week with a two-class Aeromexico E190. And on October 28, Delta will increase capacity between Miami and Havana by adding a second flight five days a week.

Citing increased demand from customers for its premium front-cabin Mint service with lie-flat seats, JetBlue said it will add weekly Mint-equipped flights to a pair of Latin America and Caribbean markets this fall.

On November 3, it will start Saturday service from Boston to St. Lucia, followed on December 15 by Mint-equipped flights from New York JFK to Liberia, Costa Rica.

Next February, it will resume Saturday Mint service from JFK to St. Maarten.

British Airways will add another U.S. gateway to its network on April 2 when it kicks off new service from London Heathrow to Pittsburgh.

The carrier will use a 787-8 Dreamliner on the route, which will operate four days a week (Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday).


Tourism Observer

USA: Southwest Airlines Makes Expansion Strategies

Southwest Airlines announced expansion in their operations, which will be effective from this week.

These flights were inaugurated from April 8 and saw 11 nonstop routes take off.

The services will take customers to the following destinations and origins:

- San Jose-Boise

- San Jose-Houston

- San Jose-Spokane

- San Jose-St. Louis

- San Jose-New Orleans

- San Francisco-Austin

- Sacramento-Austin

- Sacramento-St. Louis

- Oakland-Newark

- San Diego-Newark

On top of this, the carrier began new intra-Florida services between Fort Lauderdale and Jacksonville, which will operate three times per day.

Southwest also celebrated brand new daily non-stop flights between Raleigh and Kansas City as well as a Sunday-only service between Austin and Indianapolis respectively.

Futhermore, a new Saturday service will be implemented on April 14 between Oakland and Orlando, marking the first time that Southwest Airlines has ever connected the Bay Area and Orlando via a non-stop service.

This service will then be upgraded to daily services from July 2018.

The carrier will also be adding a seasonal service between Kansas City and Pensacola as well as between Orlando and Oklahoma City.

Moreover, Southwest will begin non-stop services between Pheonix and New York’s La Guardia, which will continue until June 2018.

Internationally, the carrier is making some further gains out of Cancun where weekly seasonal flights will operate on Saturdays between Colombus and New Orleans to Cancun.

Southwest currently carries over 120 million passengers per year and have a workforce of 56,000 employees that will help sustain this growth going into the future.

These expansions will come following the number of 737 MAX’s delivered to Southwest Airlines as well as the many more that are on the way.

These aircraft will replace older generation aircraft as well as add to the total fleet, thus allowing Southwest to expand in such a significant manner.



Tourism Observer

USA: Southwest Airlines Introduces Nonstop Flights From Austin, San Francisco To Sacramento

Southwest Airlines has launched daily nonstop flight from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) and Sacramento (SMF) and San Francisco (SFO).

Kevin Sullivan, Southwest’s Director of Corporate Sales, said that the company expects an instant success for these two routes linking the Heart of Texas to Northern California.

Kevin Sullivan said: With our long history in Austin, Southwest’s mission continues to be answering demand from our loyal Customers who seek faster journeys by adding more nonstop service to the places that matter to them most.

The new Southwest daily flight from AUS to SMF will take off at 7:55 p.m. and land at 9:45 p.m., respectively. Return flights depart SMF at 6:30 a.m. and arrive at AUS at 11:50 a.m.

Nonstop service from AUS to SFO will depart at 3:30 p.m. and arrive at 5:25 p.m. Then, it will leave SFO at 5:55 a.m. and arrive at AUS at 11:30 a.m.

In addition, SMF will join the Dallas-headquartered airline to celebrate the launch of the new route.

Southwest Airlines offers over 4,000 daily departures during peak travel season, and currently offers scheduled services to 100 destinations in the United States and ten additional countries.

As of December 2017, it’s the world’s largest operator of the Boeing 737, managing an All-Boeing fleet of 707 aircraft, including 512 Boeing 737-700, 181 Boeing 737-800, and 14 Boeing 737 MAX 8.


Tourism Observer

USA: Southwest Airlines Celebrates 10,000th 737 Aircraft

Thousands of Boeing employees gathered at the company’s Renton, Washington factory to celebrate the 10,000th 737 to come off the production line.

With this airplane, a 737 MAX 8 for Southwest Airlines, the 737 has broken the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for the most produced commercial jet aircraft model.

This incredible milestone is a testament to the work we do every day to build the most reliable and efficient single-aisle airplane in the world, said Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and CEO Kevin McAllister.

It represents more than 50 years of success and achievement on the part of thousands of Boeing employees past and present, our supplier partners, and our airline customers around the globe who put their confidence in the 737.

The 737 previously held this GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title in 2006 for the 5,000th airplane to come out of the Renton factory, a mark that took almost four decades to reach.

Due to growing market demand and higher production rates, the 737 program reached the 10,000th airplane milestone only 12 years later.

The speed at which Boeing achieved this new milestone is very impressive, said Michael Empric, official adjudicator for GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS.

We are excited to once again recognize the 737 and the important role it plays in commercial aviation.

Boeing will increase 737 production from the current rate of 47 airplanes per month to 52 airplanes per month later this year.

The 737 program has more than 4,600 airplanes still on order fueled by sales of the newest version of the 737, the 737 MAX.

737 Facts:

- A 737 takes off or lands every 1.5 seconds

- On average, more than 2,800 737s are in the air at any given time

- More than 22 billion people have flown on a 737

- The 737 has flown more than 122 billion miles, the equivalent of 5 million times around Earth



Tourism Observer

USA: Southwest Receives 737th Boeing 737

Southwest Airlines took delivery of its 737th brand new Boeing 737. For the occasion, Boeing hosted a ribbon cutting event and a signing ceremony at their Seattle Delivery Center.

To officially accept the 737th (N8533S) were Southwest’s Managers of Aircraft Field Services, Bill Rogers, and Peggy Hain; and the Captains that first flew the aircraft, in a representation of all Southwest Airlines employees, Captain Jim Tomallo and Captain Jeff Wolf.

The carrier expressed through their website “their joy” for reaching “an exciting Southwest milestone”, almost 46 years after they started, in 1971, “as a mighty airline with only three aircraft”.

Now that the aircraft was officially received, The Tech Operational Team will be in charge of installation of winglets and WiFi.

Bill Rogers and Peggy Hain, Southwest’s Managers of Aircraft Field Services, are based in Seattle to ensure that every Boeing 737 purchased by the airline meets the carrier’s standards.

Fun fact about this: Both have seen and received plenty of brand new Boeing aircraft for the airline; Bill has overseen 545 new aircraft deliveries since he joined Southwest in 1991, and Peggy has accepted almost 100 new aircraft into the Southwest fleet. She has worked for the carrier since 2009.

Captain Jim Tomallo and Captain Jeff Wolf, the first captains to flew the new aircraft, both agreed to represent all the Southwest Employees by joining Bill and a Boeing representative in signing for the 737th.

Southwest Airlines flies to 101 destinations and serves more than 100 million customers each year. The airline is Boeing’s world largest operator; also they’re one of the largest customers for the manufacturer’s new generation aircraft – 737 MAX, with 200 on order, including thirty 737 MAX 7 and one hundred and seventy 737 MAX 8s.

BELIZE: Southwest Airlines To Fly From Denver International Airport To Belize City

Southwest Airlines along with the Belize Tourism Board (BTB) inaugurated the new non-stop flight from Denver International Airport to Belize City, Belize.

As part of the inauguration, customers heard remarks in the gate area at the Denver International Airport from Southwest and BTB officials and Belize’s Minister of Tourism, Manuel Heredia.

A band and samba dancers also performed at the event.

Southwest is the only carrier to serve this nonstop route and operates Saturday-only however it will move to Saturday/Sunday service on the June 4 schedule which operates through August 14, 2017.

Canadian regulators have approved a request by Air Canada to operate flights between Canada and Belize.

Flightglobal.com says that documents obtained from the Canadian Transportation Agency did not specify routes or a start date and that Air Canada did not immediately respond to a request for comments.

Air Canada has not served Belize since 2005, the earliest available year of FlightGlobal schedules data.

In October 2016, Canadian airline, WestJet launched its first Belize flight between Toronto and Belize and now operates the route during Belize’s high tourism season which runs from November to April.

This news comes after GOB recently announced that departure taxes are set to increase for fiscal year 2017/2018 from US $39.25 to US $59.25 (BZ $118.50).

Tropic Air inaugurated their non-stop service between Belize City International Airport (BZE) and Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Mexico (CTM).

According to a Tropic Air press release, Chetumal becomes Tropic’s third destination in Mexico and its sixth international route overall.

“Tropic will fly to Chetumal three times weekly (Monday, Wednesday and Friday), with a schedule that is convenient for business and tourism travel to the city.

In addition, the early arrival into Chetumal will allow for fast, convenient connections to/from InterJet flights to Mexico City and beyond. In April, the frequency is planned to increase to five times a week,” the release further stated.

“In Belize City, Tropic Air will offer easy connections to/from 10 domestic destinations, such as San Pedro, Caye Caulker, Dangriga, and Placencia, plus Tropic’s own international cities, like Roatan, San Pedro Sula and Peten, Guatemala.

The schedule also allows for connections in Belize City to 23 international destinations on other carriers like Southwest, Westjet, American, Delta, COPA, United and Avianca.”

“We have been working closely with our partners in Chetumal for a few years in order to finally make this service a reality. We are excited to be the first international airline serving Chetumal and to becoming part of the community!” said John Greif III, President of Tropic Air.

“Not only will Belizeans be able to fly directly to Chetumal, but this route connects to the rest of the world, especially Asia, through Mexico City’s hub,” said Steve Schulte, CEO.

USA: United Airlines Shares Fall After Dragging Passenger Off A Flight

Investors still thought United Airlines' decision to forcibly eject a customer from an overbooked flight would have little effect on the company's profits.

But that changed Tuesday, when shares of United fell as much as 6.3% in pre-market trading, dropping $1.4 billion from the now $21 billion company by market cap. By early trading Tuesday, shares were down 4%.

It didn't help that apologies from United and its CEO Oscar Munoz were deemed tone deaf and insensitive by many on social media. Or that more video footage surfaced throughout the day Monday showing the passenger bleeding from the head and clinging to a curtain on the aircraft.

The incident even prompted an investigation by Department of Transportation.

And rather than blowing over after a night's rest, the outrage only grew after Munoz sent an email to employees late Monday defending his staff's action and calling the passenger "disruptive and belligerent." Soon enough, the anger became global, with some questioning the practice of overbooking flights.

In theory, a boycott against United should be a boon for other airlines as consumers seek other options. But that wasn't the case Tuesday, as shares of Southwest Airlines, Delta, and JetBlue also dropped roughly 1%, while the S&P 500 shed less than half a percentage point in comparison. The minor stock fluctuation may also be stemming from FCC chief Ajit Pai's announcement late Monday that he wanted to ban cell phone calls on flights. Shares of American Airlines on the other hand rose nearly 2% after it released a more favorable outlook for the first quarter.

United's 4% drop Tuesday could also be an overreaction to the sheer volume of negative sentiment and press surrounding the airline, at least according to CFRA's analyst Jim Corridore.

"We think this situation was handled in a deplorable fashion, but note that United has the right to refuse boarding to any passenger for any reason.We hope United will respond with apologies and procedural changes," he wrote in a Monday note. "Overall, we think demand for United Airlines flights are unlikely to be affected by this poor customer service incident."

BAHAMAS: American Airlines Non-stop Flights Commencing June 3rd From North Carolina To George Town, Exuma.

Bahamas Ministry of Tourism is pleased to announce American Airlines new non-stop flight service from Charlotte, North Carolina to George Town, Exuma.

American will offer the service starting June 3rd with flight times of approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes. The new route, which will be a weekly flight, will expose The Bahamas to new visitors allowing for greater market penetration.

"The Ministry of Tourism welcomes this new flight by AA to George Town, Exuma from its Charlotte hub. This opens up market access to Exuma by attracting customers from markets like Pittsburgh and Buffalo which have great connections on AA to Exuma via Charlotte," stated Tyrone Sawyer, senior director of Airlift Development in the Ministry of Tourism.

Visitors will have much to do on Exuma. The island, made up small cays, has some of the most gorgeous turquoise waters in the Caribbean and is home to the world-famous swimming pigs.

"We are thrilled to launch our new flight between Charlotte and George Town this coming June, further expanding our already extensive presence in The Bahamas," said Caroline Hollingsworth, American's general manager for The Bahamas. "We currently offer up to 25 daily flights to six destinations in The Bahamas, and this new route will enable us to offer even more options to our local customers and tourists alike."

The Bahamas continues to attract new airlines and nonstop flights from carriers across the globe. In 2016, Southwest Airlines, Silver Airways, Delta, Air Caraibes, among others, added new airlift to the country.

The Islands Of The Bahamas have a place in the sun for everyone. Each island has its own personality and attractions for a variety of vacation styles with some of the world's best golfing, scuba diving, fishing, sailing, boating, as well as, shopping and dining. The destination offers an easily accessible tropical getaway and provides convenience for travelers with preclearance through U.S. customs and immigration, and the Bahamian dollar is on par with the U.S. dollar. Do everything or do nothing, just remember It's Better in The Bahamas.

USA: Southwest Announces 22 New Routes

Southwest Airlines, which plans to grow capacity 3.5% in 2017, has released details on 22 new and seasonal routes, including four international routes originating from its forthcoming international concourse at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida.

As of Nov. 30, 2016, the Dallas, Texas-based carrier had taken delivery of 131 of 155 Boeing 737-800s on order; 32 were delivered through Nov. 30, approximately three per month. At this rate, the remaining 737-800s should be delivered by July, in time for the planned entry-into-service of Boeing’s 737 MAX aircraft, for which Southwest is the launch customer. Southwest has 200 737 MAXs on order.

Southwest’s new five-gate international Concourse A at Fort Lauderdale’s Terminal 1 is scheduled to open June 4. On that date, Southwest will launch 1X-daily service to Grand Cayman. On June 6, the airline will begin new routes to Montego Bay (Jamaica), Belize and Cancun (Mexico). The new routes are pending government approvals and will bring to eight the total number of international routes Southwest will operate from Fort Lauderdale (along with Nassau, Bahamas, and Cuban cities Havana, Varadero and Santa Clara).

Additionally out of Fort Lauderdale, Southwest plans to launch new 1X-daily service to Washington Dulles, 1X-daily service to Philadelphia, and 1X-daily service to Orlando beginning June 4.

The airline will also launch a new 2X-daily Tampa-New York LaGuardia service, as well as a weekend Pensacola-Denver route.

The airline also announced new Ohio routes beginning June 4, concentrating on operations out of Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport and Cleveland International Airport. Southwest plans to end operations out of airports in both Akron-Canton and Dayton on June 3. The new Ohio routes include daily Cincinnati-Baltimore, Cincinnati-Chicago Midway, and Cleveland-Atlanta service. The airline will increase Cleveland-St Louis service to 2X-daily.

Also out of the US midwest, Southwest will introduce new Indianapolis-Newark and Nashville-Minneapolis service, starting June 4.

On the US west coast, Southwest is boosting service from San Diego with two new routes (San Diego-Boise, Idaho and San Diego-Salt Lake City, Utah) and three seasonal routes (San Diego-Newark; San Diego-Spokane, Washington; and San Diego-Indianapolis, Indiana). All routes will begin June 4.

Additional new west coast routes to launch on June 4 include Portland, Oregon-San Francisco; San Jose, California-Reno, Nevada; and a seasonal route between Oakland, California-Newark.

Best Airlines in 2016

The FlightStats OPS Awards recognized best airlines around the world in 2016 for on-time performance. Airlines below deliver the highest percentage of flights to their arrival gates within 15 minutes of the scheduled arrival time. To determine the finalists and winners, FlightStats examines flight status and arrival data aggregated from global sources including civil aviation authorities, airlines, airports, and major airline reservation systems.

The report covers airlines in the following eight (8) categories:

1. Major International Airlines
2. Airline Alliances
3. North American Major Airlines
4. European Major Airlines
5. Asia-Pacific Major Airlines
6. Middle East & Africa Major Airlines
7. Latin American Major Airlines
8. Low-Cost Carrier

This year, the awards expanded to recognize the best Major Global Airline and best Major Global Airline Network in each of the regional categories as well as the international category. “Network” is defined as a system of flights that are marketed by a major airline but are operated by a separate airline partner. Most big, full-service airlines have these types of regional partnerships where as many as 8-10 carriers operate flights on their behalf.

MAJOR INTERNATIONAL AIRLINES
Network
WINNER: KLM
FINALISTS: KLM, Iberia, JAL, Qatar Airways, Austrian, ANA, Singapore Airlines, Delta Air Lines, TAM Linhas Aereas, Qantas

Mainline
WINNER: Iberia
FINALISTS: Iberia, JAL, Delta Air Lines, KLM, Qatar Airways, Austrian, Singapore Airlines, ANA, TAM Linhas Aereas, Qantas

AIRLINE ALLIANCE
WINNER: oneworld
FINALISTS: oneworld, Star Alliance, SkyTeam

NORTH AMERICAN MAJOR AIRLINES
Network
WINNER: Alaska Airlines
FINALISTS: Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines, WestJet, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, American Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Virgin America, JetBlue Airways, Air Canada

Mainline
WINNER: Alaska Airlines
FINALISTS: Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines, WestJet, American Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Virgin America, JetBlue Airways, Air Canada

EUROPEAN MAJOR AIRLINES
Network
WINNER: Iberia
FINALISTS: Iberia, Austrian, Lufthansa, S7 Airlines, Norwegian Air Shuttle, SWISS, Condor, British Airways, EasyJet, Vueling

Mainline
WINNER: Iberia
FINALISTS: Iberia, KLM, Austrian, S7 Airlines, SAS, Lufthansa, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Aeroflot, Condor, SWISS

ASIA-PACIFIC MAJOR AIRLINES
Network
WINNER: JAL
FINALISTS: JAL, Virgin Australia, ANA, Singapore Airlines, Qantas, Air New Zealand, Jet Airways (India), Cathay Pacific, Jetstar, IndiGo

Mainline
WINNER: JAL
FINALISTS: JAL, Virgin Australia, Singapore Airlines, ANA, Qantas, Air New Zealand, Jet Airways (India), Cathay Pacific, Jetstar, IndiGo

MIDDLE EAST and AFRICA MAJOR AIRLINES
Network
WINNER: Qatar Airways
FINALISTS: Qatar Airways, Saudia, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Flydubai, Kenya Airways, Pegasus

Mainline
WINNER: Qatar Airways
FINALISTS: Qatar Airways, South African Airways, Saudia, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Flydubai, Kenya Airways, Pegasus

LATIN AMERICAN MAJOR AIRLINES
Network
WINNER: Copa Airlines
FINALISTS: Copa Airlines, TAM Linhas Aereas, Gol, Aerolineas Argentinas, LAN Airlines, AVIANCA, Aeromexico

Mainline
WINNER: Copa Airlines
FINALISTS: Copa Airlines, TAM Linhas Aereas, Gol, Aerolineas Argentinas, LAN Airlines, Aeromexico, AVIANCA

LOW-COST AIRLINES
WINNER: Iberia Express
FINALISTS: Iberia Express, Air Baltic, Solaseed Air, Air Do, WestJet, Southwest Airlines, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Nok Air, NIKI, Frontier Airlines

Southwest Airlines, Investors Duped

Southwest Airlines Co. investors were duped for a second straight quarter, as the air carrier’s stock suffered another sharp post-earnings selloff on the heels of a big pre-earnings surge.

The stock LUV, -8.46% plunged as much as 12% intraday Wednesday, before paring some losses. Volume spiked to nearly 44 million shares, which was more than five times the full-day average. Southwest reported ahead of the open third-quarter earnings that beat expectations, but provided a downbeat outlook for revenue per available seat mile, a key metric for the airline industry.

Before the reported results, the stock had shot up 14% over the past month.

Helane Becker of Cowen & Co. said she would not be surprised if some investors gave up on the stock, as she wrote in a note to clients that, “again, Southwest is the only carrier to report that it is increasing capacity” from the previous quarter.

Based on the saying that starts, “Fool me once...,” investors should feel shamed, because the same thing happened surrounding second-quarter results.

The stock had run up 14% in the three weeks before the report, then plunged 11% on July 21, the biggest percentage loss in 7 1/2 years, the day of the report following — as one may have guessed — a downbeat outlook for unit revenue.

As the chart above shows, the stock’s pre-results rally was in line with the broader airport sector, as investors were encouraged by the overall industry trend of reducing capacity to improve unit revenue. But investors don’t usually need three strikes to see that one company isn’t keeping up.

The stock has shed 16% over the past six months, while the NYSE Arca Airline Index XAL, -1.85% has climbed 5.2% and the S&P 500 index SPX, -0.17% has gained 2.1%.

“Southwest is the only airline to report that it is seeing no sequential improvement in unit revenue performance,” Becker wrote. She said Southwest’s outlook is even more concerning, considering the performance would still fall short even if the lost revenue from the technology outage in July was added back in.

And if the trouble the company has been having with its labor unions persists, Becker thinks the outlook could get even worse.

MEXICO: Southwest To Fly LA-Mexico

There could be improved air connectivity between Los Angeles and three Mexican destinations if United States authorities approve an application by Southwest Airlines.

The company has filed an application with the U.S. Department of Transportation for twice-daily flights to Cancún and San José del Cabo and a daily flight to Puerto Vallarta.

Southwest spokesman Brad Hawkins said the airline is optimistic that it will gain approval before the end of this month.

It currently flies between eight U.S. cities and four in Mexico.

A consultancy retained by Southwest Airlines projected that new competition on the three routes could result in fares 20% below what they currently average, increase total traffic by more than half a million passengers a year and save those passengers US $50 million annually.

USA: ValuJet 592, What Happened?

Many improvements in aviation safety have come off the backs of airline accidents, and lessons from the ValuJet 592 tragedy are no exception.

On May 11, 1996, Flight 592’s McDonnell-Douglas DC-9 crashed into the Everglades a mere eleven minutes after takeoff from Miami, killing all 110 people on board. On takeoff, improperly packaged and labeled oxygen generators in the cargo compartment caught fire, which quickly spread throughout the plane.

The NTSB stated as the Probable Causes: the failure to properly package and identify unexpended chemical oxygen generators; the failure of ValuJet to properly oversee its contract maintenance program; and the failure of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to require smoke detection and fire suppression systems in class D cargo compartments.

While the bulk of the blame went to contract maintenance company SabreTech, the tragedy left ValuJet’s public reputation in tatters. Even before 592, however, ValuJet had already earned a poor reputation. In its quest to capture the low cost market and maximize profits, the company paid its pilots, crew and other employees rock bottom wages.

Planes and equipment were purchased second-hand, and much of the maintenance was farmed out to third-party vendors, including SabreTech. What’s more, ValuJet had been under scrutiny by the FAA, having had no less than 114 emergency landings in 17 months, and an accident rate 14 times higher than those of the mainline airlines.

After the accident, with its name in tatters, the only way ValuJet could save itself was by acquiring—and taking the name of—AirTran. Today, ValuJet/AirTran’s survival is considered a great example of a turnaround in the volatile airline business, with AirTran ultimately being merged and absorbed into Southwest Airlines.

While the findings of ValuJet 592 have not led to any fundamental industry game changers, insights have led to equipping more cockpits with, and increasing pilot training on, rapid donning 02 masks and smoke goggles; increased oversight in maintenance command and control; and expediting regulations requiring cargo fire warning and suppression systems.

Another legacy of the tragedy has been the public’s increased suspicion of low cost carriers. But, is that suspicion founded? Could any of the newer low-cost startups be the new ValuJet? While Frontier and Spirit, for example, enjoy relatively good reputations with relatively new equipment, Allegiant Airlines seems to be intent on culling a similar ValuJet-style bad rap. This is not without merit: older equipment, lower employee wages and morale seem to be its business model. In fact, it so happens that Allegiant CEO Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr. was also the founder and CEO of ValuJet as well. With its stratospheric operating margins, Allegiant Airlines management may be putting profit ahead of nearly everything else. But, does the company’s frugal formula equate to “unsafe”?

Well, the proof lies in the maintenance pudding. In this regard, Allegiant appears to fare no better. A report by the Aviation Mechanics’ Coalition claims the airline had a “high rate of returns and diversions due to avoidable mechanical issues.” In all, 38 incidents between January and March of 2015—including one that led to our labeling Allegiant one of our 2015 “Turkeys of the Year.”

In that incident, Allegiant fired a captain for diverting and evacuating a plane after smoke in the cabin. If we’ve learned anything from ValuJet 592 and other similar tragedies, it’s that it is deadly to gamble with such a situation. Moreover, second-guessing and firing a captain for a decision that erred on the side of safety sets a very dangerous precedent; the next captain facing a similar decision may hesitate—thus unnecessarily risking the lives of passengers and crew.

(Note: The captain has since filed a lawsuit against Allegiant for “Wrongful and Tortious Termination of Employment.” We believe he has a strong case, and wish him the best of luck.)

In recent decades, technological advancements have vastly improved airline safety. This high tech/complex system world, however, comes with its own double-edged sword—that of potential for failure (see our upcoming Op Ed, “Robot is My Co-pilot,” posting later this month, and in Airways Magazine July 2016 issue). With the increase of complexity in any system comes the increased potential for mechanical failure and, on an aircraft that often has over a million parts, that potential for failure is inherently increased with the age of equipment.

In an Op Ed for The Atlantic entitled, “The Lessons of ValuJet 592,” pilot William Langewiesche writes, “Risk is a part (of airline travel)….The people involved do not consciously trade safety for money or convenience, but they inevitably make a lot of bad little choices. But then, one day, a few of the bad little choices come together, and circumstances take an airplane down.”

In a New York Times article, Marilyn Kubkeck, mother of ValuJet 592 Captain Candalyn Kubkeck, seemed to agree with Langewiesche’s view. “With the Valujet crash, everything that could go wrong, did go wrong, and there were so many broken rules it was unbelievable.”

“Who, then,” Langewiesche asks, “is really to blame?”

In the case of ValuJet, blame came in the form of prosecution, the first-ever of its kind, of several SabreTech employees. Two were ultimately acquitted and before trial a third, Mauro Valenzuela, fled the country to his native Chile, where he remains a fugitive. If caught, Valenzuela could be charged with illegal transportation of hazardous materials, making false statements, and conspiracy, among others, not to mention charges relating to fleeing the country.

So, we ask again: in today’s complex world, are low cost carriers “safe enough?”

Today, your odds of being killed on an airline flight is 1 in 29.4 million. Airline travel, even on what is considered the shoddiest of airlines, is far and away the safest form of travel.

But risk has always been in the eye of the beholder. The bottom line is, it’s up to every individual to determine what level of risk they are willing to endure. In terms of air travel, the perception of that risk is often grossly misplaced. For example, during the carpool to the airport, a family may discuss how much risk they are about to embark upon in the air—remaining oblivious to the fact that their drive is magnitudes riskier than the flight itself.

What, then, of the legacy of ValuJet 592?

Because of the exaggerated perception of risks in low-cost air travel, people may opt to instead drive, and more lives will most likely be lost in cars on the ground than planes in the air.