SpiceJet said Wednesday it has incorporated a subsidiary that will focus on consumer merchandise and goods business. The move is expected to help the carrier in diversifying its revenue streams. The wholly-owned subsidiary 'SpiceJet Merchandise Private Limited' would engage in business of various goods including readymade apparels, through various channels. The carrier noted that the business would be carried out through various channels such as "in flight sale, online platform, airport shops and retail outlets." In the three months ended March 2016, the airline posted more than 3-fold rise in net profit at INR731.9m. Aided by higher revenues and lower fuel costs, SpiceJet remained profitable for the fifth straight quarter. It had a net profit of INR225.2m in year-ago period. <br/>
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Philippine Airlines is looking to move some of its regional schedules from chronically congested Ninoy Aquino International (NAIA) in Manila to Clark International in Pampanga. PAL CE Jaime Bautista has indicated the airline is considering moving some operations to Clark, 50 miles outside Manila. The move is part of a govt-and-industry drive to ease congestion at NAIA, driven by recently elected Filipino president Rodrigo Duterte. However, Bautista noted that any operational move to Clark would require improved services and infrastructure there. “Not all regional or domestic flights would be transferred,” he added. Duterte has marked congestion and poor customer service at NAIA as high priority issues since his election as president in May. <br/>
When executives at JetBlue Airways gaze east to Europe from their perch in New York, they see a striking similarity to transcontinental domestic routes: abundant business traffic, high fares, entrenched rivals, and in-flight service quality that spans the spectrum. Europe has one crucial difference, though. Fares are even higher and the revenue potential for premium travel even greater. And there is a weakness that a new Airbus jet may help the carrier exploit. JetBlue is positioning itself to grab some market share in a European expansion that could start by 2019. The airline said Tuesday it has taken options to convert 15 Airbus A321neo aircraft to the manufacturer’s newest variant in its A320 family, the A321LR, a single-aisle plane with pond-crossing capacity. <br/>
Flybe has become the latest company to warn of the “very uncertain” outlook for airlines as terror threats and economic uncertainty brought a slow start to its Q2. The carrier reported a “solid start” to the year in the 3 months to June 30, with a 5% increase in revenue to GBP155.8m. However, revenue growth has slowed to only 1% so far in Q2, with revenue per seat falling 11%. Although the company does not expect Britain’s exit from the EU to have a major long-term impact on its business, it said short-term uncertainty in the wake of the vote, combined with terror incidents in Europe, “could have a materially adverse impact.” Saad Hammad, CE, said: The current outlook is very uncertain and we have limited forward visibility due to our late booking profile." <br/>