airline industry

Financial Landscape: Banks Get No Love; OPEC Vs. OPEC

As a new week begins on Wall Street, nobody wants bank stocks, J.P. Morgan Chase hints at changes at the top, OPEC ministers tussle over crude, and airlines are in for some financial turbulence. In fact, the only good news is for France, which apparently won't lose the IMF over the DSK scandal.

Airline Profits Forecast to Fall as Fares Keep Rising

The International Air Transport Association has cut its 2011 profit forecast for the industry in half, and fares are on the rise. The IATA downgraded its 2011 airline industry profit forecast to $4 billion -- 54% less than its March forecast and 78% less than the industry netted in 2010.

Former Northwest Employees Sue Delta Over Pay Discrepancy

A half-dozen Delta Air Lines flight attendants sued the carriers for what they say is discrimination in the form of smaller profit-sharing paychecks for former Northwest Airlines employees, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.

Will Higher Airfares Ground More Flyers?

Cathay Pacific CEO Tony Tyler says when airlines last raised fares in 2008, most travelers kept on flying. But as Mideast upheavals send oil prices skyward and airlines hike fares again, the impact on the bottom line could be quite different.

Boeing's Dreamliner Delays: Outsourcing Goes Too Far

After Boeing announced yet another -- the seventh -- delay in the first delivery of the innovative 787 passenger jet, it's now clear that Boeing's decision to outsource both the design and manufacturing of the plane was more than it could manage.

Delta Lowers Profit Guidance on Winter Storms

The storms last month not only inconvenienced travelers; they also cut into Delta Air Lines's profit, the company warned Wednesday. Delta has lowered its profit guidance by $45 million as a result.

At Last, New Protections for Air Travelers Will Land in 2011

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is raising the bar for the treatment of airline passengers this spring. You'll see more transparency in ticket pricing, better deals for bumped passengers, and reimbursement of luggage fees when checked bags are lost or delayed.

Airline Passengers Now Get Stranded -- Even Before It Snows

Thousands of stuck holiday travelers are just the beginning: Airlines' new policy of pre-emptively canceling flights to avoid snowstorms is lowering their losses, but will likely leave many more passengers without a flight home in the future.

Southwest Airlines CEO's No. 1 Worry: Jet-Fuel Prices

Southwest Airlines is flying high: It's proven consistently profitable, and it serves more passengers than any other U.S. carrier. But as the airline expands its service, CEO Gary Kelly says volatile jet-fuel prices are his biggest concern going into 2011.

Airfares Keep Climbing as Airline Profits Plunge

The International Air Transport Association expects airline profit to plunge 40% this year as fewer passengers travel during the recession and as fuel prices rise. But that doesn't mean you'll necessarily be able to score a good deal: Airfares are likely to keep climbing.

Fewer Seats and Higher Fares Help Airline Earnings Take Off

Delta, US Airways and AMR, the parent of American Airlines, all posted higher-than-expected earnings for the peak summer travel season. Airlines have pushed fares up by limiting the number of seats for sale, and have also seen growing international and corporate travel.

United-Continental Merger Lands Execs a Big Pay Raise

Considering how often airline industry executives complain about how hard it is to run a profitable carrier, one might expect their efforts could go unrewarded -- at least monetarily. Not so at the new United Continental Holdings, where big post-merger raises are coming for top management.

Celebrated JetBlue Flight Attendant to Undergo Mental Evaluation

Steven Slater's daring departure from a JetBlue airplane last month made him the darling of disgruntled airline employees everywhere. But the former flight attendant is showing less braggadocio these days, having agreed to a mental evaluation as he attempts to avoid jail time.

Brazilian and Chinese Tourists Rediscover America

Brazilian and Chinese visitors led a resurgence in foreign tourism spending within the U.S. in the first half of 2010, giving hope to domestic hoteliers, airline companies and others that the travel-spending slump of 2008 and 2009 is over, according to a report released Wednesday.