Airlines

The Aruba Airport Authority N.V. (AAA) has once again received notification of being short listed for the World Routes 2009 Airport Marketing Awards to be presented during the 15th World Route Development Forum in Beijing, China held September 13 – 15, 2009. AAA N.V. has been nominated previously for this award in 2006 and 2007. In 2007, AAA N.V. was highly commended and ended in second place in the category of 1 to 5 million passenger movements per year. This year the categories have been reclassified and AAA N.V. has been nominated within the Americas sharing the honors in this category competing for the award with Akron-Canton Airport in Ohio, Dallas-Forth Worth International Airport in Texas and Halifax International Airport in Canada.

The Aruba Airport Authority N.V. (AAA) received official word from AirTran Airways that the necessary paperwork with the US Department of Transportation (DOT) for non-stop direct service on a weekly basis from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and Orlando International Airport to Aruba has been filed. AirTran, using a B737-700 aircraft on both routes configured with 137 seats, expects to start service in December 2009 from Atlanta and February 2010 from Orlando. For more information please contact Mr. Hendrik Croes at the Aruba Airport Authority at (297) 524-2424.

Aruba Airport Authority N.V. (AAA) reports continued growth in passenger traffic in July and August. Revenue Generating Passengers (RGP) at AAA is up by 4.5% and the amount of commercial flights increased with 6.2% for July 2009 compared to the same month in 2008. RGP during the month of August 2009 was up by 1.7% whilst the amount of commercial flights decreased by -1.3% compared to the same month in 2008. Interestingly the RGP results for August 2008 were 4.9% higher than August 2007, a record breaking year, making these results the best for the month of August on record at AAA. In addition, August 2009 RGP results clock in second to March 2008 as the largest amount of RGP obtained in a single month. The North American PFC market grew slightly by 0.5% compared to August

The European PFC market grew by a staggering 24.9% compared to August 2008 with Martinair transporting 8.9% more passengers than KLM during the same period in 2008. Flights from the European market grew by 28.3% compared to August 2008 and are mainly attributed to the increase in flights from London Gatwick and Amsterdam.

Thomson Airlines announces additional weekly direct flights from Manchester, UK in May 2010. It will operate the new weekly service to Aruba from Manchester on Fridays from May 7 – October 23, replacing the existing fortnightly service. This flight is in addition to the weekly direct Gatwick service, successfully introduced for summer 2009 and will depart on Saturdays from May 1 – October 23, 2010. The London Gatwick and Manchester flights are available for travellers booking their Aruba holiday with Thomson Faraway Shores, Thomson Platinum Collection, Thomson Weddings, Thomson Chic & Unique, Thomson a La Carte and First Choice Tropical, First Choice Premier and First Choice Wedding brochures. For more information on the new flights and packages or to book online  visit www.firstchoice.co.uk/aruba

August 2009 Second Highest RGP Month End Record to Date

Aruba Airport Authority N.V. (AAA) continues to see positive growth in passenger traffic for the month of August 2009 amidst continued economic turmoil and uncertainty in demand for travel. Revenue Generating Passengers (RGP) at AAA during the month of August 2009 was up by 1.7% whilst the amount of commercial flights has decreased by -1.3% compared to the same month in 2008. Interestingly the RGP results for August 2008 were 4.9% higher than August 2007, a record breaking year, making these results the best for the month of August on record at AAA. In addition, August 2009 RGP results clock in second to March 2008 as the largest amount of RGP obtained in a single month.
The North American PFC market grew slightly by 0.5% compared to August. The European PFC market grew by a staggering 24.9% compared to August 2008 with Martinair transporting 8.9% more passengers than KLM during the same period in 2008.

Flights from the European market grew by 28.3% compared to August 2008 and are mainly attributed to the increase in flights from London Gatwick and Amsterdam. RGP from Latin America decreased by -7.5%. The Venezuelan government’s decision to cancel all charter flights to Aruba and Curacao earlier this year has an effect during the holiday periods. The Netherlands Antilles saw an increase in PFC of 7.1% compared to August.

“The results of August 2009 are a clear indication that there is a continued positive change in our results since the second quarter” said Peter Steinmetz, Managing Director AAA N.V. “as we mentioned last month, there is still no indication as to the end of the economic turmoil and travel demand remains unpredictable. September will prove challenging as typically there is a decrease in travel after the US Labor Day Holiday weekend. AAA N.V. remains focused on retention of air service and minimizing the impact of the economic downturn. Our relationship with our valued airline partners remains the cornerstone of our success.”

Aruba Airport Authority N.V. Obtains Aruba’s 13th Gateway in the United States

Aruba Airport Authority N.V. (AAA) has received official word from AirTran Airways that the necessary paperwork with the US Department of Transportation (DOT) for non-stop direct service on a weekly basis from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and Orlando International Airport to Aruba has been filed. AirTran will be utilizing B737-700 aircraft on both routes configured with 137 seats and expects to start service in December 2009 from Atlanta and February 2010 from Orlando.

AirTran Airways’ mix of low fares and an affordable Business Class with excellent customer service and one of the world’s youngest all-Boeing fleets has continued to strike a chord with the public. In addition, AirTran is currently one of the most profitable airlines in the United States. “AirTran Airways is thrilled to bring our unique high quality, and high value service to the beautiful island of Aruba” said John Kirby, Senior director of strategic planning for AirTran Airways. “Our new service to Orlando, FL will provide Arubans their first non-stop service to one of the most popular destinations in the world, while our new non-stop Atlanta service provides connecting service to more than thirty destinations in the United States”. Atlanta is currently serviced daily and twice daily during periods of high demand by Delta Airlines.

Additional service from AirTran will create new opportunities within the domestic US market. Direct service to Orlando will not only offer opportunities for new markets to Aruba but will also offer an alternative for the Aruban population to one the most popular US cities. With the expected new service from AirTran our air service partners from the United States will increase to eight of which American Airlines, US Airways, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines and United Airlines are legacy carriers and Jetblue, Spirit and AirTran are our Low Cost Carriers. In addition, our US gateways will be increased to thirteen, Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago O’Hare, Newark, Fort Lauderdale, Washington Dulles, Houston, New York JFK, New York La Guardia, Miami, Orlando and Philadelphia.

Unprecedented high fuel prices during the summer of 2008, the financial crisis which resulted in the worst economic recession and the sharp decreases in demand for travel, make the announcement of new service during these times fantastic. AAA’s policy of air service maintenance and diversification of the route network are its core principles and continue to have successful results. This is illustrated by a positive passenger growth figure for July 2009 of 4.5% and further complimented by this additional and new service announcement. Meetings during events such as Network and AAA’s hosting of Network Latin America 2008 here in Aruba have definitely contributed to AirTran’s decision to file for service to Aruba.

‘Welcome AirTran, welcome home!’ said Peter Steinmetz, Managing Director AAA N.V. “Addition of service during these very difficult times is simply fantastic and our team is committed to ensure the success of both additional service from Atlanta and new service from Orlando. However, we believe that the local market will definitely contribute to the success of the Orlando service. We look forward to the inaugural flight in December.”

Airport of the Year 2009 Awards, Runner-Up Status

Aruba Airport Authority N.V. (AAA) has received word that it has been awarded second place in Skytrax’ World Airport Awards – Best Airports in the Category for Central America and the Caribbean for the second consecutive year. First Place went to Panama City and third place went to Mexico City. Aruba is the only airport in its category that appears in the top three airports in both 2008 and 2009. Awards like these have special value as it is the traveling public who determine the winners by completing the survey. The World Airport Survey is conducted by UK-based aviation research organization, Skytrax.

The World Airport Survey™ is the Airport Survey that guarantees independence and unbiased impartiality. In its 11th year of operation, the study is respected for its transparency and authenticity. The World Airport Awards™ are based on the results from 8.6 million questionnaires completed by airline passengers in 2008/09, covering more than 190 airports worldwide. Passenger interviews include a detailed appraisal for more than 40 categories of product and service quality from check-in to departure, from arrivals to baggage collection – including terminal cleanliness, staff efficiency, staff courtesy, terminal signage, security processing, immigration and customers, walking distances, as well as features like shopping, dining options, and internet services.

“This award is a reassurance that our entire team’s hard work and efforts in upgrading our facilities and maintaining a constant quality product does pay off and that it’s recognized by the traveling public”, Peter Steinmetz, Managing Director AAA said. “Being a tourism destination in such a delicate period, we are very aware that every single part of the experience is of vital importance, having a good experience upon arrival and departure is the key focus of our success”.

Aruba Airport Authority N.V. (AAA) has been actively working together with its valued air service partners in securing sufficient air service from New York JFK airport, Aruba’s strongest market.

American Airlines, Jetblue Airways and Delta Airlines have all responded positively and with receiving word yesterday from Delta Airlines, AAA will continue its support of efforts made by the Aruba Tourism Authority to ensure demand generated to maintain additional service. AAA has been actively participating and advising ATA on target cities and feeders and attend roundtable events organized by ATA and AHATA.
AAA is very pleased to announce that American Airlines has changed the arrival and departure times of their twice-weekly JFK service from late afternoon to 12:20 PM with a 13:30 departure back to JFK as of June 11, 2009.

Jetblue Airways has increased the effective summer period of their second daily JFK flight from March 8, 2009 through September 8, 2009 and even a 3rd Saturday flight on Saturdays during the same period mentioned above. Delta Airlines has added a 3rd JFK flight on Thursdays during the period of July 1, 2009 through September 5, 2009. Each additional flight from Jetblue and Delta consist of 150 and 185 seats respectively.
“This is excellent news and we are extremely pleased with the positive response gotten from our airline partners towards our request for additional service” Peter Steinmetz, Managing Director AAA said. “We will continue to support the efforts of our Tourism partners in securing the demand for our service network at profitable levels. Demand is a priority and competition is fierce world wide.” IATA, the International Air Transport Association, has just released a revised forecast for 2009 and the Director General and CEO, Giovanni Bisignani has bluntly stated that the airline industry is “in intensive care” and that the priority for survival will be the conservation of cash and adjusting capacity to demand.