British Airways ! BA ! BAW !

British Airways is launching a fresh round of capacity reductions and job cuts to staunch mounting losses and to slow the outflow of cash from the business.

It is reducing capital spending and deferring deliveries of new aircraft, including delays of up to two years in its orders for the Airbus A380 superjumbo, which was being purchased as a new flagship for the BA long-haul fleet.

It was further cutting capital spending this year from £725m to £580m.

BA is struggling ...with a sharp fall in revenues because of shrinking demand for air travel, in particular from its most lucrative premium business passengers.
The decline has been exacerbated by a steep drop in yields or average fares, as airlines are forced to discount fares heavily to try to fill empty seats.

.....The airline said on Friday its premium traffic volumes in June, measured by revenue passenger kilometres, had fallen by 14.9 per cent year on year.

The rate of decline was no longer worsening, however, with premium and non-premium volumes stable at an underlying level for more than three months.

Cargo volumes fell by 9.8 per cent in June year-on-year, while non-premium passenger volumes dropped by 1.3 per cent.

BA is seeking to cut its workforce by nearly 10 per cent from 40,600 at the end of March (on the basis of equivalent full time jobs).
The BA total headcount is about 45,000 including about 10,000 part time employees.
Willie Walsh, BA’s chief executive, has warned the airline is in “a fight for survival” and said two weeks ago the worst of the recession for the airline industry was “still ahead.”

BA has been seeking to renegotiate with Airbus the timing of its pre-delivery payments for new aircraft in an effort to conserve its cash resources.

It said on Friday it had reached agreement with the European aircraft maker (Airbus) to delay the first six of its 12 A380s by an average of five months - the first will still come in spring 2012 - while the second six had been delayed by an average of two years with the last due in autumn 2016 instead of 2014.

The start of deliveries of 24 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, originally due to start in 2010 has already been postponed to at least 2012 because of Boeing‘s difficulties in developing the new jets, and recent further problems at Boeing could add further delays to 2013 easing the pressure on BA’s cash recources.

NEW YORK, Sept. 29, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- British Airways has today launched the first longhaul all-business service flight between New York and London City Airport.

Photos accompanying this release are available at:

http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=6655

http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=6656

Two uniquely configured Airbus A318s will fly twice daily on the new route, which links the hearts of the world's two biggest financial centres.

The historic launch flight bears British Airways' most prestigious flight numbers, BA001 to BA004, formerly used by Concorde.

The new service features 32 fully flat beds in a cabin specially designed to feel spacious and contemporary.

For convenience, customers can check-in for their flight from London City just 15 minutes before departure.

When they land at JFK Airport, they will be treated as domestic arrivals having already cleared U.S. customs and immigration during a brief refuelling stop at Shannon Airport in the west of Ireland.

Simon Talling-Smith, British Airways' executive vice president Americas, said: "Our long tradition of delivering world-beating and innovative new services continues with the launch of this unique route.

"For the first time, New York has a tailor-made premium service to the London Canary Wharf area on its doorstep offering the most productive possible use of time for business people travelling between the two great financial districts."

Richard Gooding, chief executive of London City Airport, said: "Providing long haul services for the first time out of London City is a major milestone in the history of the airport.

"New York is the most demanded destination not currently served from London City. The new route is a key growth opportunity for us and demonstrates the premium nature of London City Airport."

To underline the premium status of the new service, in-flight dining has been developed in partnership with Roast restaurant, based at London's Borough Market, to draw upon their expertise in creating menus that feature the best of British produce and regional specialities.

Arriving UK customers will also be able to enjoy complimentary Health Club access at the London Marriott West India Quay to freshen up before heading into their office or continuing their journey.

British Airways - Trafic en baisse de 0,8% en septembre

publié le 05/10/2009 à 16:40, Reuters



LONDRES, 5 octobre (Reuters) - La compagnie aérienne britannique British Airways a enregistré en septembre une baisse de 0,8% de son trafic passagers par rapport au même mois de l'année précédente, contrariant les espoirs d'un début de reprise du trafic aérien.

Le nombre de passagers "premium", c'est-à-dire voyageant en classe affaires, a poursuivi sa dégringolade en chutant de 7,9% sur un an. Le trafic hors premium a lui progressé de 0,7%.

Le coefficient d'occupation a progressé de 2,4 points à 81,3% grâce à une réduction du nombre de vols.

L'Association internationale du transport aérien (IATA) a estimé le mois dernier que la demande s'améliorait au niveau du trafic aérien mais que le secteur était encore loin des niveaux d'activité qui lui permettraient de renouer avec les profits.

Elle table sur une perte globale de 11 milliards de dollars pour le secteur cette année et sur une nouvelle perte de 3,8 milliards en 2010.

A 14h25 GMT, le titre British Airways gagne 1,9% à 214,3 pence.

British Airways (BA) said Tuesday it would cut 1,700 jobs and freeze pay in its latest action to stem losses due to the global downturn.

British Airways to cut 1,700 cabin crew positions

LONDON, Oct 6 (Reuters) - British Airways (BAY.L) said on Tuesday it would cut the equivalent of 1,700 staff in the United Kingdom and was planning a two-year freeze on basic pay for cabin crew.

As part of the changes, the loss-making airline said that from November it would change the way it rostered airborne staff, flying airplanes with one fewer cabin crew member but still above minimum safety limits.

It said it had consulted with staff on the moves and was not altering anything that required negotiation.

But a union source said the roster alteration was in effect a change to staff contracts, adding the move could bring industrial action nearer.

The airline said it had made its announcement after failing to reach an agreement with unions representing 14,000 cabin crew in spite of nine months of talks.

It said 1,000 cabin crew had volunteered for redundancy and a further 3,000 had opted to switch to part-time working, in a reduction equivalent to the loss of 1,700 positions.

"Without changes, we will lose more money with every month that passes. It is essential we make ourselves more efficient if we are to ensure our long-term survival," the airline added.

(Reporting by Tim Castle; editing by Simon Jessop)

BA facing legal challenge on cabin crew changes

LONDON, Oct 30 (Reuters) - The Unite union on Friday launched a legal challenge against British Airways's plan to change working patterns for 14,000 cabin crew.
The union said it had started proceedings at the High Court for an injunction against BA imposing new pay and conditions on workers from Nov.16.
"BA is changing people's contracts and they are doing it in a unilateral way," a Unite spokeswoman said. "We want to demonstrate that in the matter of contractual changes they are breaking the law."
The union and British Airways had failed to reach agreement in talks, and the union is holding a meeting of its BA members on Monday to discuss the possibility of balloting for strike action.
"The legal action is another flank," the spokeswoman said.
British Airways said in a statement that the changes did not alter contractual terms and conditions for individual crew members.
"British Airways is facing very difficult economic conditions and is heading for a second consecutive year of financial losses for the first time in our history," it said.
"Everyone within the company knows we must reduce our costs to move back toward profitability."

British Airways pleaded guilty in Canadian Federal Court to " fixing surcharges on the sale and supply of international air cargo exported on certain routes from Canada" in 2002-06 and agreed to pay a C$4.5 million ($4.1 million) fine, the country's Competition Bureau announced. Canada now has recovered more than C$14.6 million from BA, Air France, KLM, Martinair and Qantas, and its "investigation into the alleged conduct of other air cargo carriers continues," it said.

BA plunges to £102 million loss, announces 1,200 new job cuts
Monday November 9, 2009
Claiming that "aviation remains in recession," British Airways posted a £102 million ($168.8 million) net loss in the fiscal second quarter ended Sept. 30 that pushed its first-half deficit to £208 million, a nearly fivefold deepening of the £42 million loss incurred during the year-ago period, when it lost £76 million in the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2008.

There are still no "green shoots of recovery" in the industry, CEO Willie Walsh warned, adding, "With revenue likely to be £1 billion lower this year, we can't stand still and further cost reduction is essential." The company will introduce further structural changes in the current semester, including cutting winter capacity by 6% rather than the originally planned 5% and "further manpower reductions of 3,000 by March 2010" in addition to the 1,900 positions already eliminated in the first half. The 4,900 job cuts now planned by the end of the fiscal year on March 31 therefore will include 1,200 in addition to those previously announced. BA currently employs 38,704 workers.

Walsh reiterated that changes to cabin crew working conditions will enter force on Nov. 16 despite a legal challenge from the Unite union, which on Friday stressed that BA's 14,000 flight attendants have not accepted the imposed terms. Results of a strike vote are due on Dec. 14 (ATWOnline, Oct. 27). Walsh said BA will be doing everything it can to "re-engage" Unite but that the company "must continue to reduce our cost base. This is an airline facing structural change and we must respond with a structural change to our cost base."

Fiscal first-half revenue declined 13.7% to £4.1 billion while operating costs dropped 8.7% to £4.21 billion. Operating result for the reporting period, including £48 million in restructuring costs, reversed to a £111 million loss from a £140 million profit last year. Second-quarter operating deficit was £17 million.

Unit cost per ATK fell 5.2% in the first half to 37.98 pence. Excluding fuel and the impact of exchange and restructuring costs, unit costs dropped 5.5%. Traffic revenue per ATK declined 15.7% to 46.83 pence and passenger revenue per ASK was down 10.9% to 4.83 pence. Passenger yield sank 12.2% to 5.99 pence largely as a result of lower year-over-year surcharges and sales mix within cabin class. RPKs dipped 1.3% on a 3% reduction in ASKs, improving load factor 1.1 points to 80.6%.

Walsh also revealed a further delay in deliveries of BA's A380s, with the first aircraft now arriving in 2013. In July, BA said it "extended" the arrival schedule for the first six of its 12 A380s on order by an average of five months and that its first still was expected to arrive in spring 2012, ahead of the Summer Olympic Games in London (ATWOnline, July 7).

Walsh also said BA remains interested in acquiring Lufthansa subsidiary bmi, mainly for its slots at London Heathrow, although it also has identified certain bmi routes that would be valuable to it. Regarding the planned merger with Iberia, he said talks are continuing (ATWOnline, Oct. 15). He repeated that BA "remains confident" on receiving regulatory approval for its joint business agreement with IB and American Airlines and antitrust immunity from the US Dept. of Transportation and the European Commission (ATWOnline, Oct. 27).


by Cathy Buyck

Les salariés de votent la grève pour les fêtes de fin d'année

LONDRES (Reuters) - Plusieurs milliers de salariés de British Airways ont approuvé un mot d'ordre de grève qui pourrait contraindre la compagnie aérienne britannique à annuler des centaines de vols en pleine période des fêtes de fin d'année.
Le mouvement pourrait aussi coûter quelque 50 millions de livres sterling (55,5 millions d'euros) au groupe, en manque à gagner et en remboursement de billets, estiment des analystes financiers.
"La grève aura lieu pendant 12 jours à partir du 22 décembre mais c'est le coeur lourd que nous avons pris cette décision qui va perturber les projets de voyages de milliers de personnes", a déclaré un porte-parole du syndicat Unite lors d'une conférence de presse.
Le mouvement, approuvé par 92,5% des votants, concerne quelque 13.000 membres du personnel de cabine de BA. Le mot d'ordre est lié au conflit entre le syndicat et la direction sur un projet de suppressions d'emplois et de modifications des conditions de travail.
BA souhaite que les trois quarts du personnel de cabinet acceptent une augmentation de salaire de 2% à 7% cette année en échange d'un gel des rémunérations l'an prochain et du passage à temps partiel de 3.000 salariés, ainsi que de la réduction des équipes sur certains vols depuis Londres Heathrow.
"Une grève de 12 jours serait complètement injustifiée et constituerait une réaction très exagérée aux modifications modestes que nous avons annoncées pour le personnel de cabine, qui visent à nous permettre de nous redresser après des pertes financières record", a déclaré la direction.
British Airways, qui a conclu le mois dernier un projet de fusion avec le groupe espagnol Iberia, perd 1,5 million de livres par jour selon les analystes.

UPDATE 2-BA takes legal action to halt Christmas strike

* Carrier seeking injunction to prevent 12-day stoppage
* Alleges irregularities in ballot
* Strike could cost carrier $400 mln-plus - analyst
* BA shares down 2 pct
(Adds legal details, analyst comment, updates shares)
By Rhys Jones
LONDON, Dec 15 (Reuters) - British Airways is taking legal action to halt a 12-day strike planned by cabin crew over Christmas, alleging balloting irregularities.
"The airline called on (union) Unite to call off the industrial action by 1400 GMT. The union has not done so and BA is now seeking an injunction to prevent the strike going ahead," the flag carrier's chief executive Willie Walsh said in a statement on Tuesday.
BA cabin crew voted on Monday to walk out from Dec. 22, escalating a dispute over job losses and changes to working practices.
The airline said it had written to Unite, highlighting irregularities it believes render the ballot invalid.
BA believes ballot papers were sent to staff who had left the company or were in the process of leaving and should not have been balloted, breaching industrial relations law, a BA spokeswoman said.
Some 13,000 BA staff were balloted by Unite, 92.5 percent of whom favoured industrial action.
The airline wants three quarters of its crew to accept pay rises of between 2 and 7 percent this year and a pay freeze in 2010, and for 3,000 staff to switch to part-time working, along with a reduction in onboard crewing levels from 15 to 14 on long-haul flights from London's Heathrow airport. [ID:nLDE5BD0C5]
Shares in BA fell 2 percent to 197 pence by 1550 GMT after analysts said the strike could result in the airline losing upwards of 250 million pounds ($406 million) in revenues.
"Although BA is still to announce the contingency measures it will take, we estimate that the cost of the strike over the 12 day period (pre-depreciation) could (be) 40 to 50 million pounds in lost profits and 250 to 275 million in lost revenues," said UBS analyst Jarrod Castle.
Astaire analyst Douglas McNeill said a deal to avert the strike was unlikely and that BA management had showed "no inclination to back down" because it would have to unpick deals it had made with other sections of its workforce.
Richard Branson, founder of BA rival Virgin Atlantic [VA.UL], called on the British government to step in to prevent damage to passengers' holiday travel plans in future.
"It's obviously extremely damaging to everybody, the company, employees, and most importantly the travelling public," Branson told Reuters.
"In this day and age there must be a better way than strikes to resolve differences -- maybe government should try to look at other ways to resolve disputes rather than the old fashioned way that will mess up so many people's lives."

British Airways has obtained a court injunction blocking a planned cabin crew strike, after the initiating ballot was declared illegal.

Cabin crew, represented by the Unite union, had set out plans to strike for 12 days from 22 December.

A spokesman for BA says that the reasons for the ruling are still being set out, but adds: "It means the strike cannot go ahead."

BA accused the union of allowing ineligible individuals to take part in the vote, and sought the injunction, at the High Court in London, on the grounds that the ballot was invalid.

Unite to re-ballot BA cabin crew "swiftly"

* Lawyers say any strike likely end-Jan 2010 at earliest
* New strike likely to be less than 12 days long
* BA shares down 0.3 pct

By Rhys Jones
LONDON, Dec 18 (Reuters) - The union representing British Airways cabin crew said it would move "swiftly" towards a new ballot, increasing the likelihood of strike action in 2010, after its planned Christmas walkout was ruled unlawful.
"Unite, while not ruling out a future appeal, is expected to move swiftly towards a fresh ballot, believing it to be the surest way to ensure members' voices are heard, so we will be concentrating on this and not a protracted legal process," the union said in a statement on Friday.
BA said it wants to restart talks with unions to head off the prospect of strike action in 2010, which is likely to hit bookings.
"We are open to holding more talks with Unite but cannot pre-empt any decisions they make on re-balloting," a BA spokeswoman told Reuters.
The Unite union said it would re-ballot its members after BA won a court ruling on Thursday to prevent a cabin crew strike that threatened to strand around a million passengers over Christmas.
However, a strike is unlikely to be held until January 2010 at the earliest given the logistical difficulty and the time it will take to organise a postal vote of workers all over the world.
"The ongoing threat of a strike could further damage bookings in the new year. However we think that the duration of the strike might be scaled back from 12 days which, by the union's own admission, was excessive," said Deutsche Bank analyst Geoff Van Klaveren.
"We estimate that BA stood to lose 310 million pounds ($502.4 million) in revenues and 163 million pounds in profits from a 12-day strike. The financial damage will now be much less but still material, in our view."
Shares in BA, which have fallen a fifth in the last three months, were 0.3 percent down at 191.60 pence by 1325 GMT, valuing the airline at around 2.2 billion pounds.
The global recession has battered the airline industry as consumers cut back on trips abroad and lucrative business class passengers fly less, hitting BA's market value.

For a graphic showing BA's falling market value, click on: here

BA is expected to report an average pretax loss of 601.20 million pounds for the year to the end of March, according to a Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S poll of 19 analysts.
The High Court in London upheld BA's complaint that Unite had breached industrial relations law by balloting around 1,000 staff who had left the company or were in the process of leaving. [ID:nLDE5BG0L7]
BA cabin crew had said they would walk out from Dec. 22, escalating a dispute over job losses and changes to working practices. About 13,000 BA staff were balloted by the Unite union, 92.5 percent of whom backed the strike.
Disruption is still possible over the Christmas period if cabin crew decide to call in sick in protest but BA will likely prioritise the most profitable routes to minimise the financial impact.
A Unite spokeswoman said that the union had nothing to say for the moment.
Judge Laura Cox refused Unite permission to appeal, although the union can apply directly to the Court of Appeal, but lawyers expect Unite to re-ballot as soon as possible.
"The union must give BA a week's notice before sending out new ballot papers, which would probably run for three weeks since it's the holidays, so the most realistic time for any strike would be the end of January or the start of February," said Marc Meryon, an industrial relations lawyer at law firm Bircham Dyson Bell.
"What the union needs to work out is how long they will strike for because I think the 12-day strike notice perplexed crew who were expecting one, two or three days of strikes. Unite needs to get back in step with its members before they re-ballot," added Meryon.

Summary of the headline figures

In December 2009, passenger capacity, measured in Available Seat Kilometres, was 4.2 per cent below December 2008. Traffic, measured in Revenue Passenger Kilometres, fell by 4.0 per cent. This resulted in a passenger load factor increase of 0.1 points versus last year, to 76.8 per cent. Traffic comprised a 0.7 per cent decrease in premium traffic and a 4.6 per cent decrease in non-premium traffic. Within premium, Club World was up 1.6 per cent. Despite severe weather in the month, 98 per cent of flights operated.

Cargo, measured in Cargo Tonne Kilometres, rose by 7.2 per cent.


Market conditions

Underlying conditions remain as reported last month with longhaul premium continuing to show signs of improvement.


Strategic Developments

British Airways launched a new service from Gatwick to Innsbruck which operates five times each week.

The airline celebrated 80 years of flying to India and commemorated the anniversary with a series of local events including photographic exhibitions in Delhi and Mumbai to illustrate eight decades of travel.

British Airways launched its winter sale offering savings of up to £350. The sale will run until January 26, 2010, for travel dates between January 1 and November 30, 2010.

Grève - Les personnels navigants de BA consultés le 25 janvier



LONDRES, 18 janvier (Reuters) - Les personnels navigants de British Airways appartenant au syndicat Unite voteront le 25 janvier pour décider d'une éventuelle grève, après l'échec de négociations sur les conditions de travail. Le vote devrait être étalé sur un mois et, si les quelque 13.000 membres du personnel navigant inscrits à Unite le décident, une grève pourrait commencer début mars, prévient lundi le syndicat dans un communiqué.

De son côté, la compagnie aérienne se dit "attristée mais pas surprise" que Unite ait demandé un nouveau vote.

British Airways demande aux trois quarts de ses employés d'accepter une augmentation salariale de 2% à 7% pour l'exercice en cours, puis un gel des salaires pour celui de 2010.

De plus, le groupe souhaite que 3.000 de ses employés basculent en temps partiel et que l'équipage des vols long-courrier au départ d'Heathrow passe de 15 à 14 membres.

"Dans les conditions que nous proposons, nos équipages resteront les mieux rémunérés du Royaume-Uni. Une grève serait totalement injustifiée", déclare BA.

Unite avait annoncé le mois dernier qu'un nouveau vote aurait lieu. Un précédent projet de grève durant la période de Noël avait été jugé illégal.

"Nous avons constamment dit à la direction que ce désaccord, et les torts qu'il cause aux perspectives de BA, ne peuvent être résolus que par la négociation", déclare Len McCluskey, secrétaire général adjoint du syndicat, dans un communiqué.

"C'est toujours notre position et j'espère que l'entreprise profitera au mieux du temps qui reste avant la fermeture du scrutin", ajoute-t-il.

British Airways, 176 millions pour une nouvelle first à la hauteur de la concurrence

Alors même que la compagnie britannique traverse de sérieuses difficultés financières, voilà qu'elle va investir plus de 175 millions de dollars dans la refonte de sa first class. British Airways fait fi des critiques et veut offrir à ses clients "haut de gamme", une classe avant de très haute qualité, comparable aux suites des compagnies du Golfe.



Deux marques viennent résumer à elles seules les efforts de BA pour sa first class: Jaguar et Aston Martin. De Jaguar, la compagnie a pris le luxe, la qualité des matières, la sobriété de l'élégante. D'Aston, le sens du détail et de la perfection. Au final, un lit plat, bien intégré dans une vaste surface qui abrite des stores électriques, une armoire personnelle, une mini armoire au dessus du siège sans oublier un étonnant bureau en cuir qui se transforme en table au moment du repas. Les finitions sont parfaites que ce soit au niveau de l'éclairage, modulable, des prises électriques ou informatique voire même de l'écran grande taille, traité anti-reflet, pour la vidéo.

Il reste que ce projet ne calme pas les inquiétudes du personnel pour son avenir. British, qui devrait annoncer d'importantes pertes d'exploitation pour 2009, ne cache pas son inquiétude face à une possible grève de son personnel de cabine. Il est actuellement interrogé par un vote dont le résultat sera connu le 17 février prochain.

British Airways licencie un responsable syndical en plein vote de la grève

La situation dégénère entre la direction de la compagnie et le syndicat Unite, dont l’un des responsables vient d’être renvoyé pour faute grave par la compagnie. Une décision qui va peser lourd dans les concertations qui sont actuellement menées en vue d’un mouvement de grève.

Duncan Holley, qui représentait le personnel navigant de British Airways au sein du syndicat, vient d’être licencié pour avoir effectué des activités syndicales sur son temps de travail. Le salarié affirme qu'il avait déposé ds jours de congés. Les responsables du syndicat considère cette décision comme un vengeance, quelques jours après que le syndicat ait appelé à voter la grève. Il reproche notamment à la direction de ne pas revenir sur sa décision d’annuler les voyages gratuits pour les employés.

Le syndicat Unite, qui regroupe presque la totalité du personnel navigant de British Ariways, a ouvert en fin de semaine dernière un vote pour une éventuelle nouvelle grève. Ce scrutin prendra fin le 7 mai après les élections législatives, mais aucune date n‘a pour le moment été arrêtée pour la cessation du travail. Les hôtesses et stewards réclament toujours une revalorisation de leurs salaires et une amélioration de leurs conditions de travail.

British Airways : 20 jours de grève dès la semaine prochaine

Le syndicat du personnel navigant de la compagnie britannique annonce vingt journées de grève étalées entre le 18 mai et le 9 juin prochain, après le rejet massif de la proposition de la direction sur les salaires et l’amélioration des conditions de travail.

Le syndicat Unite, qui rassemble la majorité du personnel de bord de British Airways, estime que la direction n’a fait aucune nouvelle proposition recevable et, après avoir consulté le personnel, annonce un mouvement de grève massif passé un délai de préavis de sept jours. Le syndicat annonce des mouvements de grève du 18 au 22 mai, du 24 au 28 mai, du 30 mai au 3 juin et enfin du 5 au 9 juin. «La période de préavis de sept jours est un délai suffisant pour que la direction de British Airways rouvre des négociations sérieuses», déclare le syndicat dans un communiqué.

British Airways déclare de son côté que les vols de Gatwick et London City Airport ne seront pas affectés par cette série de grèves, ayant reçu un soutient massif du personnel basé sur ces aéroports. La compagnie se dit «attristée, mais pas surprise» de ces nouvelles perturbations à venir. British Airways estime avoir fait «une offre équitable», qui reste toujours valable si les salariés changent d’avis.

Beochien a écrit:Bonjour

BA y va pour des 748-F !
Intéressant, mais est ce vraiment rentable ?
3 Units en wet lease, pour 5 ans opérés par une cie "On Behalf"... GSS ?? !
Nouvelle cde pour Boeing ??? Sais pas ??

Beochien a écrit:Bientôt AF qui sait ... les 747, ça finit par s'user ...