American Airlines posted Thursday quarterly profit and 2019 guidance that beat Wall Street estimates thanks to higher fares and healthy passenger demand, sending its shares up nearly 6%. Smaller rivals Delta Air Lines Inc and United Airlines had kicked off Q4 earnings earlier this month with profits that also beat analysts' expectations. American said revenues per mile flown would be flat to up 2% in the current quarter. American said it expects its revenue growth to outpace rivals. It forecast US$1b of additional revenue in 2019 as it continues to optimise its network, expands its Premium Economy product and adds new gates at its Dallas-Fort Worth and Charlotte hubs. The company also said it sees more than $300m of cost savings in 2019. <br/>
oneworld
IAG abandoned an 8-month pursuit of Norwegian Air Shuttle, leaving the indebted airline reeling as it faces a cash crunch during the slow winter season. IAG “does not intend” to make a further bid and will be selling a 3.9% stake in due course, it said Thursday. Norwegian slumped as much as 26%, the most ever, while IAG reversed earlier declines to trade higher. CE Bjorn Kjos previously rejected 2 offers from IAG as undervaluing the business. The BA owner responded by saying it wouldn’t engage in a bidding war, though CE Willie Walsh hinted that he was still interested in November, fuelling speculation about a sweetened approach. IAG’s decision to walk away will spur concerns about Norwegian’s ability to weather a cash crunch after the company announced last week that it would close some bases and routes as overcapacity squeezes fares across the industry. <br/>
Japan Airlines has scheduled its Airbus A350-900 to fly on the Tokyo Haneda-Fukuoka route from September. The carrier revealed the debut for its newest type in its latest update of its schedule for the year to the end of March 2019. The first of the carrier’s A350-900s, MSN 333, is due for delivery in June, making it the first Airbus jet in JAL's fleet since it phased out the former Japan Air System A300s in the early 2010s. Three more A350-900s are due for delivery by the end of the year, with deliveries of the remaining 14 of the type spread out to 2023. JAL also has order for 13 of the larger -1000 variant, with deliveries set to commence in 2021. <br/>