Brazilian airline Gol Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes Monday announced a plan to buy out minority shareholders in its loyalty program Smiles Fidelidade for an undisclosed price, battering the unit’s shares and prompting regulatory scrutiny. Gol said the plan was aimed at cutting costs, improving corporate governance, and removing the pressure of unrealistic analyst forecasts from the loyalty program, in which Brazil’s biggest domestic carrier still holds a 53% stake. But the lack of a buyout price in the announcement, and concerns that Gol could force the deal through over resistance from minority investors, sent Smiles shares diving 39%. That wiped out nearly 2.5b reais ($669m) of market capitalization in the session. “While this might sound like bad news, the reality is we are coming to the table to negotiate a fair deal for everyone,” Gol’s CFO Richard Lark said. Brazilian securities regulator CVM opened a formal analysis of the proposal, the agency said after markets closed on Monday. Gol said it had asked Smiles to set up “an independent special committee” with which it would negotiate the terms of the transaction to then be submitted “where applicable” to shareholders of Gol and Smiles.<br/>The airline also announced that its operational contracts with the loyalty program will not be renewed in 2032.<br/>
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Ryanair has appointed a third managing director at Laudamotion, the Austrian carrier said Monday, tightening its grip on the leisure airline at a time when the Irish company is dealing with unrest among its employees across Europe. Ryanair holds a 75% stake in Laudamotion, whose founder and minority shareholder Niki Lauda is still in hospital after a lung transplant this summer. CE Michael O’Leary and Lauda teamed up early this year after the collapse of Air Berlin in an attempt to expand in Germany and Austria and challenge flagship carrier Lufthansa. Colin Casey, who was a commercial manager for Ryanair, will work together with managing director Andreas Gruber and Lauda, Laudamotion said. “All three managing directors are only jointly authorised to represent the company,” Laudamotion said. One of the most pressing issues is negotiations with the Austrian GPA trade union over a collective wage agreement.<br/>
Kuwait Airways said on Monday it has signed an agreement with Airbus to buy eight A330-800neo airliners following five months of negotiations. Kuwait Airways expects the deliveries to take place between March 2019 and the end of 2026, the Gulf carrier said on its Twitter account.<br/>
Passengers traveling from Washington Dulles and Newark airports shouldn't count on Southwest for nonstop flights to Fort Lauderdale anymore. The airline is cutting two routes to the South Florida hub beginning April 8, a Southwest spokesperson said. Southwest currently operates one nonstop flight per day from Dulles to Fort Lauderdale and up to two per day from Newark, according to the airline's flight schedule. "Our network decisions are based on a variety of factors including the demand from travelers," said Southwest spokesperson Dan Landson. "We are always evaluating our service levels and working to ensure we have the flights in place to meet the needs for traveler demands." After the first week of April, flyers will need an alternative route. Instead of Fort Lauderdale, Dulles fliers can catch a Southwest flight to West Palm Beach instead - about 50 miles from the Fort Lauderdale airport. Newark flyers can catch a plane at LaGuardia Airport in New York City, which is about 30 miles from the Newark airport. <br/>