S&P Global does not foresee any impact to the ratings of Southwest Airlines or United Airlines from Hurricane Harvey. In an Aug 31 report, S&P indicates that while it expects earnings at both Southwest and United to take a hit from the storm – which closed both Houston Hobby and Houston Intercontinental for at least 4 days after hitting the South Texas coast overnight Aug 25 – it is not predicting a rating downgrade in result. United will feel the biggest impact as Intercontinental is its second-largest hub, the ratings agency says. The airport is a large connecting complex for the carrier, with roughly two-thirds of United's passengers there transiting. "United can, to some extent, reroute passengers or flights, but it will be difficult given already-full flights and the upcoming holiday weekend," says S&P. <br/>
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United Continental plans to resume service at Houston’s main airport by Sept 8, more than a week earlier than it had planned to return to full strength following Tropical Storm Harvey. “Our employees are currently rallying to restore service faster than originally anticipated,” United said Friday. George Bush Intercontinental, United’s second-biggest hub, allowed some flights to arrive and take off Wednesday as floodwaters covering the roads that connect the airport to Houston started to recede. The new concern for airlines in Houston is whether they can guarantee jet-fuel supplies, given that some pipelines have been shut and the Houston energy complex was crippled by the rainmaking monster of a storm. United didn’t comment on its access to jet fuel in Houston. <br/>
South African Airways has denied that employees who've disclosed details of corruption are being victimised. SAA has responded to concerns raised by the public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane. Mkhwebane raised concerns after receiving complaints from whistleblowers at the airline, who claim they’re being disciplined despite an agreement to hold off disciplinary proceedings, pending her preliminary probe. But the airline's spokesman says no such agreement is in place, adding Mkhwebane has no mandate to interfere in human resources problems. “Some of these employees, who are members of this labour union, made derogatory comments which were grossly inappropriate.” He says the carrier is simply trying to deal with ill-behaved employees who've been insulting management. <br/>
Air China and China Southern Airlines were impacted by higher fuel prices in the 2017 first half as the two carriers reported year-over-year 6-month net profit decreases of 3.8% and 11.6%, respectively, to CNY3.3b (US$486m) and CNY2.8b. Air China’s 1H operating revenue rose 8.7% YOY to CNY58.2b while operating expenses rose 15.8% to CNY47.7b. Fuel costs jumped 40.1% YOY to CNY13.6b during the period. China Southern’s 1H operating revenue grew 11.5% YOY to CNY60.3b, while operating expenses increased 20% to CNY53b. Fuel costs rose 50.1% to CNY15.4b. Air China’s passenger boardings were up 5% YOY to 49.2m with an average load factor of 81%, up 1.2 points over the year-ago period. Passenger capacity rose 5% YOY to 119b ASKs while traffic rose 6.5% YOY to 96.4b RPKs. <br/>
Ethiopian Airlines is at the moment negotiating with Nigerian govt to take over the bankrupt Arik Air, a senior official confirmed Wednesday. The director of International Service at the Ethiopian Airlines Group, Esayas Weldemariam, said they were expanding their presence in West Africa. Facing debts and salaries crisis, Nigeria Arik Air was taken over by the govt last February. If both sides agree on negotiations, the deal would be seen as an important step. According to an analysis by CAPA, Ethiopian is aiming to exploit opportunity in the underserved US-West Africa market. The taking over of Arik Air is going to speed up this strategy, while Arik Air operates 3 weekly flights from Lagos to New York JFK. <br/>