bmi

Heathrow Airport's slot machine: hitting the jackpot again?

British Airways now holds more than 50% of the slots at capacity-constrained Heathrow, thanks to its bmi acquisition. Nevertheless, BA had managed to grow its holding for years, mainly due to secondary slot trading. After years of uncertainty over its legality in EU law, the EU clarified its position in 2008 and allowed the practice. It went on to commission a 2011 study which concluded that slot trading had clear beneficial impacts at Heathrow.

In this report, CAPA analyses the small proportion of the total number of Heathrow slot trades where slot values have been reported in the media and elsewhere. For many years until the mid 2000s, the average traded value per daily slot pair calculated from such transactions was around GBP4 million. A series of trades at more than GBP20 million per pair captured headlines in 2007 and 2008 before the market went underground. Surprisingly, after such a long quiet period, 2013 has seen two deals valuing Heathrow slots at GBP15 million per daily pair.

bmi regional prepares to launch as an independent operator

In a couple of weeks bmi regional will cut the umbilical cord with parent bmi and start operating as an independent regional airline under a new ‘BM’ IATA designator and a softly revamped branding. The airline’s network will encompass four UK domestic routes and 11 European routes.

The decision to enter the market carefully and not with a dazzling big bang proves a responsible management that is fully aware of the prevailing challenges faced by regional airlines in Europe. Airline members of the European Regions Airline Association (ERA) recorded a 2.9% decline in scheduled passenger numbers and a 5.5% fall in scheduled RPKs for 1H2012, showing a drop in demand that reflects the current economic climate and uncertain outlook.

The formal split from bmi on 28-Oct-2012 follows the acquisition of the Aberdeen Airport-based regional airline by Sector Aviation Holdings Ltd (SAH) in May-2012 and the preceding purchase of bmi by British Airways’ parent company International Airlines Group (IAG).

Fiercely independent Virgin Atlantic struggles to attain profitability

Virgin Atlantic Airways has always had an independent approach and part of the carrier's DNA is giving British Airways a run for its money. But competing with its larger archrival is becoming increasingly difficult as British Airways (BA) has considerably enlarged its London Heathrow slot portfolio through the acquisition of bmi, giving it more scope to grow at the congested airport. BA also benefits from antitrust immunity with its oneworld partners on trans-Atlantic routes.

Passenger growth at Virgin Atlantic has stalled as economic uncertainty has settled over Europe. The company accrued a pre-tax operating loss of GBP80.2 million in its latest fiscal year ending 28-Feb-2012, reversing a GBP18.5 million profit recorded in the previous 12 months. Revenue for the company, which includes Virgin Atlantic Airways and tour operator Virgin Holidays, rose 3% year-over-year in FY2012 to GBP2.74 billion but, as CEO Steve Ridgway noted, “with the prevailing uncertainty in the economy, sky high fuel prices and a 25% hike in our air passenger duty fees, converting this sales growth into profit has not been possible”.

IAG vows it will take legacy out of Iberia as losses deepen

International Airlines Group (IAG) is drafting a comprehensive restructuring plan for Iberia that will include short-term downsizing, network reshaping to deliver higher unit revenues and a re-evaluation of all aspects of the business. Job cuts will be an inevitable consequence of the overhaul. Efforts to address the Spanish carrier’s uncompetitive cost structure are not new and date from before the merger with British Airways (BA) in Jan-2011, but results have been insufficient and losses are spiraling out of control as the economic crisis in Spain worsens and the onslaught of LCCs persists.

While Iberia’s pilots continue to fight change other legacy carriers are restructuring and this is threatening Iberia’s leadership position in the Europe-Latin American market. The doubling of the departure taxes at Iberia’s main Madrid and Barcelona bases since 01-Jul-2012 is putting salt on the wound and diminishing the airline’s appeal.

Lufthansa Group presses forward with cost cuts as 2Q profits fall 24%

Europe’s largest airline group has decided to further revise full-year capacity growth downwards to 0.5% and rigorously pursue its SCORE restructuring programme to protect yield and combat the dire operating environment marked by economic uncertainties in Europe, a night-flight ban at its main hub in Frankfurt, increased air traffic taxes and above all high fuel prices. Lufthansa Group’s decision follows an unsatisfactory performance in 1H2012 in its passenger airline business segment, which recorded an operating loss of EUR179 million, widening the EUR100 million operating loss recorded in the year-ago period despite a 7.2% increase in revenue to EUR11.2 billion.

The Group’s airlines recorded diverging results and highlights the need to cut costs at its largest unit Lufthansa while simultaneously increasing synergies between the different airlines. Lufthansa German Airlines amassed a 1H2012 operating loss of EUR300 million (nearly double the EUR146 million operating deficit reported 1H2011) while SWISS and Austrian Airlines earned EUR48 million and EUR26 million, respectively. Austrian’s operating performance reflects the ruthless restructuring implemented by CEO Jaan Albrecht and the noteworthy turnaround is in contrast to the declining performance of Lufthansa Group’s long-standing star SWISS.

bmi’s exit from Star Alliance has a minor effect but potential departure by TAP will be more felt

Bmi’s exit from Star Alliance has only a minor effect on the group’s global footprint, but a potential departure from TAP Portugal would leave a much larger mark on Star’s connectivity especially in the Iberian peninsula, where it already lost Spanair in Jan-2012. TAP, which has an extensive network in South America and Africa that would appeal to any global alliance, is slated to be sold off by the Portuguese government later this year. If TAP were to be sold to a non-Star affiliate, such as International Airlines Group (IAG), it stands to lose three European members in 2012.

Bmi formally exited the Star Alliance network on 20-Apr-2012 following the conclusion of the sale of the UK-based carrier to IAG. Star carriers are in the process of ending their codeshare agreements with bmi as principally Star Alliance does not allow a member airline to codeshare with a member of another alliance although some exceptions are permitted with Star Alliance authorisation.