CAPA Americas Aviation & LCCs Summit

Day 2 - Thursday 27 April 2023

09:10-09:15

5 mins

Chairperson’s Welcome

09:15-10:00 

45 mins

Latin American market evolution – A new competitive landscape beset by both new and familiar problems 

The competitive landscape in Latin America has been profoundly altered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Three of the region’s largest airlines have emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, ULCCs continue to proliferate and consolidation is gathering pace and scale. But, some familiar challenges remain: heavy taxation of the industry by the region’s governments remains a distinct threat, and regulatory and infrastructure issues remain unresolved. Outside of this, clouds of uncertainty are being cast for Latin American operators, with persistent uncertainty, social unrest and macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges.

Moderator: IATA, Regional VP Americas, Peter Cerda

Panel:

ALTA, Executive Director & CEO, Jose Ricardo Botelho

Aeromexico, SVP, Institutional Relations, Government, Airports and Industry Affairs, Cuitlahauc Guitierrez

Arajet, Senior VP Customer Experience, Carlos Mesa,

COPA, Head of Government Relations, Maria Luisa Navarro

Viva Aerobus, Strategy & Transformation Director, Facundo Ladousse

10:00-10:10

10 mins

Innovation Roadshow - API Global Solutions

API Global Solutions, Chief Commercial Officer, Ramzi Kamel

10:10-10:55 

45 mins

Labor – Skill shortages, pay and productivity

 Airlines spent 2021 and 2022 striving to rebuild workforces that were slashed during the pandemic. Airline employment has now retuned to close to normal, although some skilled roles remain in high demand and the dynamics of the labor market have shifted.

• Employees at most North American airlines, particularly pilots, have unprecedented leverage in the latest rounds of negotiations. Will those operators be successful in gaining some productivity improvements to offset some of the labor costs increases?
• Have the pay increases already instituted by some airlines succeeded in retaining pilots?
• Have training bottlenecks that hampered some US operators last year smoothed out? 

Moderator: Korn Ferry, Senior Client Partner, Michael Bell

Panel:

• Frontier, VP-HR, Steve Schuller
• Saltchuk Aviation Shared Services, VP Human Resources, Tim Healey
• Atlas Air, Chief Human Resources Officer, Patricia Goodwin-Peters
• Sun Country, SVP, Chief Human Resources Officer, Eric Levenhagen
• United Airlines, Director, Aviate & Pilot Hearing, Kyle Sucher

10:55-11:00

5 mins

Prize Draw

11:00-11:30

30 mins

Coffee break & Networking

11:30-12:15

45 mins

Networks and planning – what lessons can be learned from the last few years?

Network planning is the bedrock of airline operations, but the pandemic meant airlines had to throw out their traditional approaches to networks and schedules and adopt more responsive and flexible models. As US capacity touches upon pre-pandemic levels, what are the lessons that can be drawn from the last few years?  

• With some smaller markets becoming less viable for larger US carriers, how are ultra low cost and start-up airlines viewing their network opportunities? 
• How are the relationships between US major airlines and their regional partners evolving in light of challenges in pilot hiring and retention? 
• Are the low cost new entrants in longer haul market rewriting the historical narrative that most of those operators are unsuccessful? 

 Moderator: ASM Global Route Development, Senior Vice President, Lee Lipton

Panel:

Southwest, SVP Network Planning & Network Operations Control, Adam Decaire

Sun Country, Chief Revenue Officer, Grant Whitney

Breeze, CCO, Lukas Johnson

12:15-13:00

45 mins

Start-ups: How are they fairing and what lessons have been learned?

More than 25 new airlines have started operations since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Americas proving particularly fertile ground for new airlines looking to take advantage of a disrupted market. In the US Breeze and Avelo – both launched in 2021 - have their own distinct business models that avoid direct competition with larger US operators. Meanwhile, Northern Pacific plans to launch later this year and believes Alaska is an attractive destination for travelers from North Asia, as well as a viable transit point. 

In Canada, Flair and Lynx Air are pursuing ultra low cost models and competing more directly with Air Canada and WestJet. 

• How are these upstarts fairing in their respective markets, and what lessons have been learnt in their startup phases? 

Moderator: CAPA, Senior Analyst Americas, Lori Ranson

Panel: 

Northern Pacific, CEO, Rob McKinney

Norse Atlantic Airways, President, Charles Duncan

Arajet, Senior VP Customer Experience, Carlos Mesa

13:00

Chairperson’s wrap up

13:00-14:00

Closing Lunch & Networking