Adrian is Auckland bureau chief for Aviation Week, based in New Zealand. He covers commercial aviation in the Asia-Pacific region.
Adrian was previously based in Aviation Week’s Washington office for nine years, writing for a range of the group’s publications and covering many aspects of the commercial aviation industry. He has won Australasian and international awards for his aviation writing.
Prior to joining Aviation Week in 2002, Adrian covered aviation industry and policy issues for two other publishing companies in Washington. He has also worked for newspapers in Texas and New Zealand, covering a wide range of topics. Adrian graduated from Auckland University with a degree in history and English in 1992.
Despite seeing some promising signs on the demand front, Continental plans to cut 1,700 more positions as part of a new drive to find $100 million in cost reductions and new revenue. These moves were revealed yesterday as the carrier reported a $213 million second-quarter net loss, prompted by a 24.2% decline in passenger revenue, compared with the same period last year. Mainline unit revenue dropped 16.9%, with yield falling 18.3% — worrying declines but no worse than expected.
U.S. major carriers saw passenger revenues drop 26% in June, the eighth consecutive month of year-on-year revenue decline, according to the Air Transport Association. While much of the revenue fall can be attributed to capacity cuts, more alarming was a yield drop of 20.7%. Enplanements were down 6.5% for the month. Cargo traffic is also still suffering — down 20% overall in May, with Pacific cargo down 26%. The ATA data measures seven airlines for passenger demand, and 13 for cargo.
The Senate Commerce Committee yesterday approved its FAA reauthorization bill, with some relatively minor amendments. The more controversial aspects where the Senate version differs from the House were left untouched. Aviation subcommittee Chair Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) said that while these issues could have been included, they would have met resistance on the Senate floor. The committee “felt strongly” that it is important to get the bill out of the Senate and to conference as soon as possible.
