The world’s airline industry is heading for more consolidation because of the global recession and a drop in air travel, the United Arab Emirates’ state-owned airline said.
Combinations such as Air France-KLM Group, Europe’s biggest airline, will probably become more common as companies seek to cut costs, Etihad Airways chief executive officer James Hogan said yesterday on Australian Broadcasting Corp’s Inside Business program.
Etihad, based in Abu Dhabi, will seek ways to work more closely with Qantas Airways Ltd, Australia’s largest carrier, he said.
GLOBAL LOSSES
Losses by the global airline industry may total US$4.7 billion this year, almost 90 percent higher than previously forecast, the International Air Transport Association said last Tuesday.
Air France said on Friday it would have a loss for the year ending tomorrow, while British Airways Plc, Europe’s third-largest carrier, was forecasting an operating loss of about £150 million (US$215 million) for the same period.
“We are already seeing a number of airlines under huge pressure,” Hogan said on the program.
“Airlines will have to make decisions as any other business does with regard to their network, their fleet and whether they rationalize, consolidate or continue to invest in expansion,” Hogan said.
EXPANDING
Etihad itself is forecasting a 15 percent increase in passenger numbers this year to 7 million as it expands its network to 55 destinations from 50 and adds aircraft, the airline said on March 18.
The airline is taking market share from the Asian and European hubs, while business within the Gulf region is “still strong,” Hogan said.
Etihad, which starts daily flights from Abu Dhabi to Melbourne today, will still be “under pressure” to achieve its target of becoming profitable by next year, Hogan said.
“Let’s see how the second half of this year goes,” he said.
Sydney-based Qantas announced a codeshare arrangement with Etihad earlier this month for four Middle East destinations.
Taiwan is gearing up to celebrate the New Year at events across the country, headlined by the annual countdown and Taipei 101 fireworks display at midnight. Many of the events are to be livesteamed online. See below for lineups and links: Taipei Taipei’s New Year’s Party 2026 is to begin at 7pm and run until 1am, with the theme “Sailing to the Future.” South Korean girl group KARA is headlining the concert at Taipei City Hall Plaza, with additional performances by Amber An (安心亞), Nick Chou (周湯豪), hip-hop trio Nine One One (玖壹壹), Bii (畢書盡), girl group Genblue (幻藍小熊) and more. The festivities are to
Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain, while crowds in Taipei braved the elements to watch Taipei 101’s display. South Pacific countries are the first to bid farewell to 2025. Clocks struck midnight in Auckland, with a population of 1.7 million, 18 hours before the famous ball was to drop in New York’s Times Square. The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from the 240m Sky Tower. Smaller community events were canceled across New Zealand’s
AFTERMATH: The Taipei City Government said it received 39 minor incident reports including gas leaks, water leaks and outages, and a damaged traffic signal A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off Taiwan’s northeastern coast late on Saturday, producing only two major aftershocks as of yesterday noon, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The limited aftershocks contrast with last year’s major earthquake in Hualien County, as Saturday’s earthquake occurred at a greater depth in a subduction zone. Saturday’s earthquake struck at 11:05pm, with its hypocenter about 32.3km east of Yilan County Hall, at a depth of 72.8km. Shaking was felt in 17 administrative regions north of Tainan and in eastern Taiwan, reaching intensity level 4 on Taiwan’s seven-tier seismic scale, the CWA said. In Hualien, the
‘IRRESPONSIBLE’: Beijing’s constant disruption of the ‘status quo’ in the Taiwan Strait has damaged peace, stability and security in the Indo-Pacific region, MOFA said The Presidential Office yesterday condemned China’s launch of another military drill around Taiwan, saying such actions are a “unilateral provocation” that destabilizes regional peace and stability. China should immediately stop the irresponsible and provocative actions, Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said, after the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) yesterday announced the start of a new round of joint exercises around Taiwan by the army, navy and air force, which it said were approaching “from different directions.” Code-named “Justice Mission 2025,” the exercises would be conducted in the Taiwan Strait and in areas north, southwest, southeast and east of Taiwan
RSS