Air China's net profit for 2015 is likely to jump 60-80% from last year thanks to an increase in revenue and a substantial fall in fuel costs, the carrier said Monday. Air China said in a stock exchange statement it had "captured strong market demand and increased its capacity deployment", which helped to boost revenue. Net profit attributable to equity holders rose to CNY3.78b (US$574.6m) in 2014. Air China said in October its net profit jumped 98.1% from a year earlier in the first 9 months thanks to lower fuel price and robust travel demand. The airline said it had lowered costs in 2015 by "improving the matching of aircraft models, routes and markets, optimising debt structure for interest rate and foreign exchange rate risk aversion, and actively advancing the measures of 'promoting direct sales and lowering agency fees'."<br/>
star
Air Canada workers, represented by the IAMAW, ratified a new 10-year collective agreement. The IAMAW represents 7,500 Air Canada employees who work as technical, maintenance and operational support employees in the airline’s airport, maintenance and Air Canada Cargo operations. The agreement has been approved by the Air Canada board of directors. This agreement with the IAMAW is the sixth agreement reached by Air Canada and its unions, following the conclusion of new agreements on collective agreement terms for 10 years with Air Canada Pilots Association representing the airline’s 3,000 pilots and CUPE representing its 6,500 flight attendants, as well as new agreements with Unifor representing the airline’s 4,000 customer service and sales agents in Canada, the IBT representing its US unionised workforce and UNITE representing its UK unionised workforce.<br/>
Like a 747 loaded to capacity, United Airlines is rising — slowly, steadily and improbably. Many passengers had all but given up on the airline after a painful merger with Continental Airlines in 2010. United had managed to alienate customers ranging from frequent fliers to ordinary vacationers, thanks to significant cuts in its loyalty program and new policies that seemingly demanded fees for everything. Not surprisingly, its customer service scores were among the lowest in the industry. But, in September, United’s new CE, Oscar Munoz, said enough was enough. The changes have been small, but they’ve added up. In November, the airline eliminated an unpopular US$50 processing fee for tickets refunded to passengers after unplanned events. In December, it announced that, starting this month, it would serve a choice of snacks to economy class passengers at no additional charge. It also plans to eliminate another charge this month: a $25 fee for ticket receipts.<br/>
Qantas and Air NZ have suspended flights to Vanuatu due to safety concerns about its airport runway, a blow to tourism and the Pacific island nation's recovery efforts after a cyclone last year. Virgin Australia, however, said it would continue to fly to Port Vila, after its investigators examined the runway over the weekend and deemed it safe. Australia and New Zealand account for the bulk of visitors to Vanuatu, which relied on tourism for more than a third of its GDP last year. In March, the island was ravaged by Cyclone Pam, which wiped out more than 90% of its crops. Air NZ, which flew once a week from Auckland to Port Vila, said it had sent its last flight Sunday. "Weather and jet engine activity are resulting in loose material on the runway," a spokeswoman said. Qantas said it had cancelled a code-share agreement with Air Vanuatu over concerns about the condition of the runway.<br/>