S A T U R DAY 3 I SATURDAY I 22 NOVEMBER D A Y BRINGING YOU THE NEWS FROM THE ALTA AIRLINE LEADERS’ FORUM 2008 IN CANCUN, NOVEMBER Caribbean Hazy seeking to CEOs buy back ILFC speak out ILFC founder and chairman Yesterday’s Caribbean Steven Udvar-Hazy (pictured) panel featured, from took time out from a hectic left to right front, LIAT’s schedule of global road shows Mark Darby, Bruce to address ALTA yesterday. Nobles of Air Jamaica, His goal is to put together Gilles Filiatreault of a “sophisticated investment Cayman Airways and group” to buy out the huge air - Philip Saunders of craft lessor from current owner Caribbean Airlines, American Investment Group, and was moderated which was rescued by the US by Olivier Houri, government in September. president of Global “We are doing road shows Transportation at meeting with large sovereign Unisys. wealth funds, institutional I For full story see p8 investors and others from Europe, the Middle East and Asia,” says Hazy, who founded ILFC 35 years ago and sold it to AIG in 1990 for $1.3 billion. ALTA TO CARTAGENA ILFC management will also take part in the financing group he is seeking to – KRIETE TO TOP JOB establish. While the credit crash has made raising funds difficult, BY MIKE MILLER/BRENDAN SOBIE the near future to discuss various Hazy says the appetite for the LTA airline members had a efficiency improvements. deal is good. “There are a Aproductive final day of the “There are a lot of things we lot of solid, sophisticated 2008 Airline Leaders Forum, want and are willing to do,” Lan - investors that we are talking securing a breakthrough commit - dois told the Airline Business to, but I can’t predict the ment from the region’s transporta - Daily after making the closing outcome,” he says. tion secretaries, appointing a new speech for this year’s forum. “I “We are looking to close president and selecting a new think everyone needs to work to - on the deal by March 2009,” venue for the 2009 forum. gether. Obviously there’s lots of he says. I Grupo TACA chief executive room for improvement.” Roberto Kriete was selected by his Landois says improving the peers to assume the presidency of management of Latin America’s Humberto Treviño Landois ALTA from Copa chief executive airspace and airports was dis - Pedro Heilbron. ALTA members CEOs had a power breakfast with cussed on a general level yesterday also voted to move the forum to 20 senior government officials rep - morning and “we now need to South America for the first time, resenting 15 countries. ALTA exec - come up with more specific plans selecting the Colombian city of utive director Alex de Gunten and on how it will work”. Cartagena for 2009. Cancun has Mexico deputy secretary of trans - While no specific improvements hosted the forum the last three portation Humberto Treviño Lan - were committed to, the meeting left years and the first two years it was dois said the meeting was Latin America’s airlines confident held at ALTA’s hometown of extremely productive and although Miami. nothing specific was agreed to, the In the morning ALTA airline two sides pledged to meet again in Story continued on Page 8 INSIDE THIS ISSUE Distribution LatAm carriers lie low Page 3 Check in revolution Page 9 sponsored by: Volaris ready for US Page 4 Garza: We’re not low-cost Page 10 More cash for Pluna Page 8 Heilbron wins award Page 11 NEWS Avianca chief LatAm CEOs say Fabio Villegas its time to lie low Airlines in the region expect no growth and sensible cost-cutting to highlight next year’s plan BY MARK PILLING his carrier is taking sensible he Latin carrier bosses on ALTA’s cost-cutting measures like post - Texecutive committee gave out a poning the construction of a unified message yesterday to cope new headquarters building and with the industry crisis: keep your putting in a hiring freeze. Cueto heads down. is one of several CEOs who be - Pedro Heilbron, Copa’s head, lieve further consolidation his country the number of play - which have always been the set the tone: “Right now it is the among Latin carriers is in - ers has dwindled from 14 to 8. pillars of our business.” time to lay low and let the bul - evitable. “Consolidation is unavoidable “It’s very clear the region is in lets fly by.” Although it is virtu - Mexicana chief executive in the next few eyars, but it will very good hands,” summed up ally impossible to tell how tough Manuel Borja Chico says that in take due time.” In Mexico he session moderator, Michael Bell next year is going to be, carriers sees one network carrier and of Spencer Stuart. I are cutting back on their growth two low-cost players surviving, and preparing for a rough 2009, “Right now it is the as well as some regional airlines. say the airline chiefs. time to lay low and let Overall, Heilbron believes the “Airlines will be responsible the bullets fly by” region’s carriers are “highly and careful and flexible,” says Pedro Heilbron focused on obtaining the flexi - For more news, images Roberto Kriete, chief executive CEO, Copa Airlines bility they need while not losing and videos go to: of TACA. “We have lots of flexi - the focus on quality and cost flightglobal.com/ab bility in our fleet where half of it is leased. This gives us the op - tion of renewing leases if we FLYHT spells savings a different way want to grow, or we can return aircraft as contracts end.” TACA is planning zero capacity growth BY MIKE MILLER crew and maintenance issues more efficiently. One in 2009 at present. hen every minute counts, one company be - airline customer has discovered a 5% fuel burn Avianca chief Fabio Villegas Wlieves greater efficiencies can save Latin savings from AeroMechanical’s FLYHT product, says the Colombian carrier will carriers 3.5 minutes every flight. which competes with ACARS as a piece off cockpit continue its fleet renewal pro - AeroMechanical Services, which works with 32 reporting technology. gramme and it will add some ca - airlines, sees airline saving from aircraft data Airlines also are using the system to challenge pacity as Airbus A330s replace collection that can instantly tell whether a decision overflight fee invoices, since the system can identify Boeing 767s. This process will or flight is out of the ordinary. “Serious flight inci - airspace used. Hayden says Latin carriers also can greatly assist in its efficiency dents are reported in 18 seconds,” says Richard improve efficiencies by spotting aircraft operational drive. It will take some capacity Hayden, company president. procedures – such as single engine taxi – and track - out in 2009 as it retires its fleet Savings comes from accurate operational report - ing whether the crew onboard is actually following of 16 MD-80s, he says. ing, identifying errors more quickly, and tracking the fuel-saving processes the airline wants to use. I LAN boss Enrique Cueto says MUSIC TO HER EARS... PUBLISHED BY AIRLINE BUSINESS IN ASSOCIATION WITH AEROCOMM The lucky winner of the ‘business card draw’ for an iPod Nano – presented by Air DAILY editorial team Photography Visit us on the web: Transport Intelligence (ATI) – Mark Pilling Tom Gordon flightglobal.com/ab is Mirja Nissen, Lufthansa Geoff Thomas ©Airline Business 2008 Consulting's director of sales for Brendan Sobie Advertisement sales the Americas. All entrants who Graham Dunn Robert Hancock Got a story? dropped their business cards Mike Miller Come and see us at off at ATI's booth are also Printed by Lower level, entitled to receive a free trial Design & production Pixel Press, Coral Sea 2 of ATI's on-line information Amelia Clark Cancun service, the leading source for the global air transport industry. flightglobal.com/ab November 2008 I Airline Business Daily @ ALTA I 3 NEWS Volaris plans first US route for 2009 Mexican carriers will operate to 10 US airports as Southwest deal comes to fruition Steve Pattison (left) and Enrique Beltranena BY BRENDAN SOBIE the ALTA airline leaders’ forum to flights from several gateways in transborder flights as well as on exican low-cost carrier announce the purchase of V2500 addition to its base at Toluca out - connecting domestic flights in MVolaris plans to launch its Select One engines from IAE. side Mexico City. Mexico while Volaris will be able first route to the US by the end of He says Volaris’ memorandum Beltranena says Volaris and to sell tickets on connecting South - next year and operate to at least 10 of understanding with Southwest Southwest plan to select by the end west-operated domestic flights in US airports by 2015. prohibits Volaris from identifying of February which transborder the US. Volaris chief executive Enrique any specific US airports it is target - routes they will serve. Beltranena expects 78% of Beltranena say the carrier, which ing, but he says they are “the most He says Volaris has already the passengers flying on Volaris’ earlier this month announced a dense airports Southwest is utilis - begun working on a marketing new transborder services will be codeshare agreement with South - ing”. Airports with large South - plan to raise awareness of its brand point-point with the other 22% west Airlines covering new trans - west operations include Phoenix, in the US ahead of the launch of connecting onto domestic flights in border flights, will begin serving its Las Vegas, Baltimore, Orlando and sales. “It’s part of our plan,” he Mexico or the US. first US airport in the fourth quar - Fort Lauderdale.