Along with fleet changes, Air New Zealand is rolling out a new livery.

Airline rankings reveal conflicting trends in early stages of rebound

$450,000 and 80—the amount the Experimental Aircraft Association will pay—under protest—to FAA to cover the expenses of the four-score additional controllers and supervisors required to manage traffic at the July 29-Aug. 4 AirVenture gathering in Oshkosh, Wis., during which 8,000-10,000 aircraft are expected to alight and depart. This is the first time the agency has charged for the service.

SAS made a bold decision to renew its entire long-haul fleet. But whether the airline will actually survive and be able to fund the investments, is beyond its control. That decision is made by the European Commission.

Until the mid-1990s, nearly 75% of all airline maintenance was performed in-house. In part, that was due to lack of credible alternatives, but it was also a vestige of the pre-deregulation period when maintenance and operations stood as essential and equal pillars of an airline's success, with cost being a far less important element than it is today.

Rank: 2nd, revenues greater than $6 billion Sales (12 months through Dec. 2012): $18.1 billion

Rank: 1st, revenues of $2-6 billion 2012 sales: $2.2 billion

The Eureka! moment of its creation came during a sit-down at a barbeque restaurant in Denison, Texas, back in 1991. As things turned out, there must have been magic wafting from the Jones Family BBQ firebox, because one of business aviation's greatest successes was served up that day along with the brisket, ribs and pulled pork.