|

Copa Airlines Announces 2011 Expansion Plans: New Destinations, More Frequencies and Improved Schedules

With the addition of three new destinations as of June 2011, the airline will serve 55 destinations in 27 countries on the American continent, with a total of 180 daily flights from the Hub of the Americas at Tocumen Airport in Panama City, Panama

PANAMA CITY, Jan. 21, 2011 — Copa Airlines, subsidiary of Copa Holdings, S.A. (NYSE: CPA) announced today that as of June 2011 it will increase daily flight frequencies to several countries in its extensive route network, offer more convenient schedules and begin service to three new destinations: Toronto, Canada; Porto Alegre, Brazil; and Nassau, Bahamas.

“Thanks to these new destinations and the increase in frequencies from our Hub of the Americas in Panama City, Copa Airlines continues to expand its coverage and reaffirm its leadership in Latin America and the Caribbean,” said Pedro Heilbron, CEO. “Copa offers flights to more international destinations than any other airline from any other hub in the Region.”

“The Hub of the Americas continues to be the most efficient and convenient connection point on the continent,” Heilbron added. “The increase in flight frequencies will allow us to significantly improve our daily arrival and departure schedules to offer better connectivity, more flight options and more frequent connections throughout the day. In fact some destination will now have up to six daily frequencies.”

In 2010 Copa Airlines transported more than 5.2 million passengers via the region’s most complete route network through the Hub of the Americas. The airline’s on-time performance of greater than 90 percent (measured by industry standards established by the U.S. Department of Transportation), puts the airline in a leadership position in Latin America and among the best in the world. The arrival of 10 new Boeing 737-800 aircraft this year will signal even greater growth.

MORE FREQUENCIES AND CONVENIENT SCHEDULES FOR BUSINESS TRAVELERS

Copa Airlines’ transition as of June 15 from a four-bank to a six-bank operational system (groups of connecting schedules) will allow the airline to better utilize Tocumen Airport’s existing infrastructure as well as offer passengers more and better scheduling options.

As of June 15, the Hub of the Americas at Tocumen Airport will add to its existing flight banks, currently two in the morning and two in the afternoon, a group of early-morning departures – ideal for travelers who want to arrive at their destination early in the day – and a group of afternoon departures.

These operational changes also translate to significant improvements in Copa Airlines’ flight schedules to major destinations on the American continent, such as New York’s JFK Airport and Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C., as well as to South America’s principal cities.
Opportunities for connection will increase throughout Copa’s extensive route network as well, resulting in shorter connecting times, giving the Panamanian airline a firm foothold as the best choice for connectivity and convenient travel schedules.

To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.

Similar Posts

  • |

    Press Release – FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt Breaks Ground on Recovery Act Funded Oakland Control Tower

    For Immediate Release
    October 15, 2010

    OAKLAND, Calif. – Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Randy Babbitt helped break ground today for a new air traffic control tower at Oakland International Airport funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The Oakland International Airport ARRA grant, totaling $33.2 million, is the FAA’s largest, single Recovery Act award.

    “This Recovery Act project will make a difference for the Oakland area economy,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “People will be put to work building an environmentally friendly tower that will better serve the airport and the community.”

    The Recovery Act grant will pay for construction of the 236-foot-tall tower and a 13,000 square-foot base building, as well as some equipment for the facility.

    “This brand new, modernized tower will give air traffic controllers a better view of the airfield and help improve airport efficiency,” said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt. “The Recovery Act is allowing us to make needed investments at airports around the country.”

    Two air traffic control towers currently serve Oakland International Airport. A 158-foot-tall tower on the southern portion of the airfield was built in 1962 as a part of a terminal expansion project. In 1972, construction of a large hangar blocked some views from the south tower, requiring the Port of Oakland to build a second tower to handle traffic on the north runways.

    Replacing both towers with a single one will improve air traffic operations and reduce operating costs. The FAA expects to start using the new tower in 2013.

    The new tower will feature a number of environmental benefits, including a covered parking structure with solar panels on the roof of the base building, which will provide power for the tower and its electrical systems. The tower also will have a geothermal heating system and a rainwater storage system.

    In addition to the Oakland tower funding, the FAA provided a total of $37 million in Recovery Act grants to Bay Area airports.

    Oakland International Airport received a $14.9 million ARRA grant to rebuild a large apron area used by airlines and cargo carriers and to reconfigure a taxiway. By replacing old apron pavement, the project will improve efficiency and allow larger aircraft to use the taxiway.

    San Francisco International Airport received ARRA grants totaling $14.5 million to resurface two runways. The projects leveled out the runways, which tend to settle over time because of ground conditions. The new asphalt concrete resurface also will prevent unexpected runway shutdowns due to pavement breakdown, and will guard against crumbling pavement debris that can damage aircraft.

    In San Jose, a $5.2 million Recovery Act grant is funding the extension of a taxiway at Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport. This project will improve safety by eliminating the need for private planes to cross a runway while taxiing to an engine run-up area.

    An additional $2.4 million in Recovery Act funds is modernizing and making safety upgrades at area facilities and airports.

    Nationwide, $1.3 billion in Recovery Act money has been made available for both airport improvement projects and air traffic control facility and system upgrades. These Recovery Act grants have been distributed to airports that serve commercial passengers, cargo and general aviation.

    To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
  • |

    NTSB SAFETY RECOMMENDATION

    The National Transportation Safety Board recommends that the Federal Aviation Administration:

    Amend 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 to require separate seats and restraints for every occupant. (A-10-121)

    Amend 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 to require each person who is less than 2 years of age to be restrained in a separate seat position by an appropriate child restraint system during takeoff, landing, and turbulence. (A-10-122)

    Amend 14 Code of Federal Regulations Parts 121 and 135 to require each person who is less than 2 years of age to be restrained in a separate seat position by an appropriate child restraint system during takeoff, landing, and turbulence. (A-10-123)

    To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
  • |

    TUIfly Receives First Next-Generation 737 With New Boeing Sky Interior

    SEATTLE, Dec. 14, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Boeing (NYSE: BA) and Hannover, Germany-based TUIfly last week celebrated the delivery of the airline’s first Next-Generation 737-800 with the all-new Boeing Sky Interior.

    TUIfly, which offers scheduled flights and charter services from cities in Germany to destinations in Europe and Northern Africa, has scheduled this airplane’s first passenger flight on Dec. 15 from Hannover, Germany, to Las Palmas on the Canary Islands.
    The 737 Boeing Sky Interior features new, modern-sculpted sidewalls and window reveals, larger stow bins and more headroom around the aisle seats. Other features include a quieter cabin, intuitive placement of switches and call buttons, improved sound quality and different interior lighting schemes. Boeing designed this series of enhancements to improve the overall travel experience for passengers, making the cabin more spacious and comfortable.

    Go on board the TUIfly 737-800 for a video tour of the Boeing Sky Interior presented by one of TUIfly’s flight attendants. The video is available in English: http://www.twitvid.com/4YR9L and in German: http://twitvid.com/5MINX.

    A total of 60 airlines and leasing companies have ordered the 737 Boeing Sky Interior for more than 1,400 airplanes.

    To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.

  • ICAO Press Release: PASSENGER TRAFFIC TO REBOUND IN 2010 AFTER DISASTROUS 2009

    July 14, 2010 —

    MONTREAL, 13 July 2010 – Scheduled traffic of airlines of ICAO Member States should grow by 6.4% this year in terms of passenger-kilometers performed (PKPs) compared to a decline of 2% in 2009, according to consolidated figures collected by the Organization.

    The substantial projected increase reflects positive economic prospects worldwide, based on a 4.5% growth in the world Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as forecast by Global Insight, a major economic forecasting organization.

    Traffic for Asia/Pacific airlines should grow considerably faster than the global average, due to better economic prospects in States such as China and India, where aviation activity is expected to expand more rapidly.

    Middle East, Africa and Latin America regions will also enjoy higher traffic growth as economic conditions improve. North American airlines will grow slower than the world average because of lingering economic weaknesses.

    With expectations of more than 4% annual growth of the world economy for the next three years, world traffic should grow at 4.7% and 4.9% for 2011 and 2012, respectively.

    2009 Revisited

    In 2009, PKPs of the world airlines fell by 2% from the already depressed levels of 2008, the steepest drop in air traffic since 2002. Similarly, on the cargo side, freight?tonne kilometres (FTKs) performed fell by 10.6 % from 2008, representing also the largest decline since 2002.

    Total world international passenger traffic fell by 3.4%. With a decline of 6.5%, the Asia/Pacific region registered the largest drop, followed by North America with a 5% drop, while traffic for Europe, Africa and the Latin America fell by 3.4%, 3.0% and 2.5%, respectively. Only the Middle Eastern airlines posted an increase in international traffic, with a gain of 9.1%, allowing them to raise their share of total international PKPs from 8.2% in 2008 to 9.3% in 2009.

    The world’s domestic markets grew by a modest 0.4% over 2008. The large decreases of 5.4%, 7.4% and 3.4% registered in Africa, Europe and North America respectively, were offset by a robust 8.7% expansion in the Middle East, a continued 5.2% expansion in Latin America and a strong 9.6% growth in Asia/Pacific. Asia/Pacific domestic volumes benefitted from an impressive increase of more than 20% in the domestic Chinese market.

    A common pattern throughout the world was the growth of low cost carriers (LCCs) at the expense of legacy airlines.

    Airline Finances

    Despite the 2009 economic depression, air carriers were able to narrow their losses last year thanks to drastic capacity reductions which helped cut costs and halt yield dilution.

    In 2009, world airlines generated an estimated operating loss of US$ 4.1 billion. This performance marked a partial recovery from 2008 operating losses of US$ 8.9 billion, but still far from the record US$ 19.9 billion operating profit generated by the airline industry in 2007.

    The 2008 and 2009 losses resulted from a weak global economic environment that has led to high unemployment and a severe decline in household wealth. Air travel demand continued to be very weak in 2009, with most airlines of the world experiencing reduced traffic and poor yields.

    The 2008 and 2009 traffic decline prompted the industry to bring capacity more in line with demand, which reduced losses, despite an increase in oil prices ranging from US$ 35/barrel to more than US$ 80/barrel, without showing the extreme volatility of 2008. World airlines emerged from a difficult 2009 well positioned to benefit from a recovery.

    The financial performance of the world’s airlines is expected to improve in 2010 as traffic rebounds.

    To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
  • |

    Boeing Resumes 787 Flight Testing

    – Interim solution verified through extensive testing
    – Schedule assessment expected to conclude in January

    EVERETT, Wash., Dec. 23, 2010 — Boeing will resume flight test activities on the 787 Dreamliner later today. The company has installed an interim version of updated power distribution system software and conducted a rigorous set of reviews to confirm the flight readiness of ZA004, the first of the six flight test airplanes that will return to flight.

    “Initially, we will resume a series of Boeing tests that remain to be completed in the flight test program. That testing will be followed later by a resumption of certification testing,” said Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of the 787 program. Today’s testing will include an intentional deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT), which is a small turbine that is deployed when back-up power is required.

    Boeing and Hamilton Sundstrand completed testing of the interim software updates earlier this week. Verification of the system included laboratory testing of standalone components, integration testing with other systems, flight simulator testing and ground-based testing on a flight test airplane.

    In the last several weeks, the company continued ground testing as part of the certification program. Additional ground testing will be done by the company on the production version of the airplane to further verify performance of the changes being made.

    “As we return to flight test and determine the pace of that activity, we remain focused on developing a new program schedule,” Fancher added. “We expect to complete our assessment of the program schedule in January.”

    Flight testing of the 787 was suspended last month following an in-flight electrical incident on a test flight in Laredo, Texas.

    To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
  • | |

    Non-Compliance Results in FAA Fines

    $160,000 in penalties may be levied against SkyWest Airlines.

    Four passenger flights failed to follow cargo and baggage documentation procedures, resulting in weight, balance, cargo and baggage load data errors.

    Four flights went out without a load manifest that accurately reflected the weight of the cargo and baggage, when the total weight of the aircraft was not computed under approved procedures, and when the aircraft were not loaded according to an approved load schedule.

    SkyWest has paid civil penalties in eight similar previous cases.

    To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.