The Alamo or Gunfight at the OK Corral? Air France and Lufthansa/Austrian Pilots’ Strikes

In the copycat world of European passenger aviation, Executives at both LH Group and Air France-KLM have embraced the ‘inevitable’ need for a LCC to compete with Ryanair, easyJet, Vueling, Wizzair and Norwegian Shuttle. As mentioned in an earlier blog this month, AF-KLM are seeking to ramp up their LCC subsidiary – Transavia – to […]

Aviation Op-Ed – September Edition

As a very frequent flyer with Lufthansa Group, I received to much fanfare (and cost – they paid for an envelope to be sent to me containing expensive bleach white color printed pamphlets) about two new ‘benefits’ afforded its frequent flyers: the ‘all-new’ Miles and More Selections for passengers who more than meet the status […]

How are European LCCs doing financially?

According to the Centre for Aviation (CAPA2014) the average EBIT margin for full service carriers in Europe in 2013 was just 3 percent. As has been discussed at length in previous posts at this blog, that poor performance is neither surprising nor unavoidable. Nevertheless, it is interesting to look at the performance of some of […]

Passenger Aviation Innovations in 2014

It’s time for another look at attempts at passenger experience innovation in the aviation sector. Here are my top 5 innovations that have appeared this past year. Let me know what you think! 5. Air France-Servair ‘Surprise’ Menus Attempting to play to its cultural strengths, for the high rollers and business passengers on long-haul flights, […]

More Losses in European Aviation – September 2014 Edition

Air France/KLM registered operating losses of 643 M EURO for 2013 for its short- and medium-haul flights, fortunately compensated for by a healthy 800 M EURO in its long-haul operation. As part of its “Perform 2020” plan, the airline group claims that it will continue to focus on efficiency improvements in its business. Perhaps more […]

The Battle against Seat Recliners: The Knee Defender!

This week, a fight broke out between to customers on United Airlines flight from Newark to Denver because one passenger was using the Knee Defender, a $21.95 lock that attaches to a tray table and jams the reclining mechanism of the seat in front. The male passenger, seated in a middle seat of row 12, used […]

Second Thoughts on Hybrid Airline Strategies

As has been frequently discussed at this blog, there is a discernible trend in the passenger airline business towards convergence of the so-called low-cost and full service business models. This convergence has focused primarily on cost control and additional revenue generation separate from the ticket price. Airline executives at full-service carriers have dressed up […]

Irrational Claims and Decisions in Aviation – August 2014 edition

Etihad Purchases Alitalia “After much effort, a year of work and many late nights, we did it,” Alitalia CEO Gabriele Del Torchio announced on August 8, 2014 as Etihad purchased almost half of the ownership of the permanently failing Italian flag carrier, Alitalia. The money paid? A cool 560 million Euros. Examining Alitalia’s […]

“Methinks the Lady Doth Protest Too Much” – The Seeming Irrelevance of Customer Feedback

In the business world, there are four cliches that are the most overused but carry the least sincerity when spoken by the leader who utters them: (a) Change is the only constant (b) We need to think outside the box (c) Our most valuable resource is our people (d) The customer is King/Queen Among […]

European Airline Awards 2013

Below are my awards for European airlines in 2013 plus some pointers and thoughts for 2014 Surprising Performer in 2013 and My European Airline of the Year – WizzAir After several years of losses, the Hungarian LCC has turned a corner having Europe’s lowest cost per passenger mile in 2013 (lower than Ryanair) and has […]