Asian Airfares Group Launches BusinessFlights.com

AsianAirfares.com launches a new web site www.BusinessFlights.com providing a travel management solution for small and large businesses.
The site, with its simple travel booking interface, is easy-to-use. Its global search engine automatically redirect users to the main booking portal of AsianAirfares.com, where users can book securely 24/7 for the best possible deals on airline tickets, hotel rooms, vacation packages, car rentals, cruises, and other travel activities. There are over 120,000 hotels and resorts worldwide, more than 15 car rental companies, all major cruise lines and hundreds of traditional and low-budget airlines for you to choose from.
The www.BusinessFlights.com offers over 200 major hotel brands in nearly 10,000 diverse destinations worldwide at discounted rates and features full color hotel brochures and interactive mapping. Our powerful hotel engine provides the widest selection of hotel accommodations throughout the world. Our technology connects directly to the central reservations systems of hotels worldwide, resulting in better rate and up-to-date hotel descriptions. This unique tie-in feature provides travelers maximum cost saving.
The www.BusinessFlights.com is designed for discerned business travelers who would like to take advantage the flexibility and cost-saving features of online booking travel service rather than their traditional corporate services. It tailors to the need of travelers who demands standard of quality even when traveling to the remote corners of the world. Its comprehensive easy-to-use tools also make it easier for companies to arrange board meetings, training sessions, or sales meetings away from their offices.
Asian Airfares Group Corporate Travel Service delivers on-demand travel management solutions for your business. Our industry-leading online technologies provides you with tools you need, and our experienced corporate travel professionals are here to ensure that every travel need is met.
www.BusinessFlights.com is made available by Asian Airfares Group LLC. A worldwide leader in online travel deals. For more information about Asian Airfares Group LLC please visit http://www.asianairfares.com/aboutus.html.

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Boeing Statement on United Arab Emirates C-17

ST. LOUIS, Feb. 24, 2009 -- The Boeing Company is pleased that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has announced its intent to acquire the C-17 Globemaster III, the world's most advanced airlifter. The C-17 continues to serve as the backbone of international airlift missions, supporting numerous humanitarian-relief and peacekeeping efforts around the world. We look forward to partnering with the UAE as it strengthens its airlift capabilities with the C-17, which remains unequaled in performance, versatility and reliability.

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Top 10 spring bargain destinations for families with AsianAirfares.com

Asian Airfares Group Releases List of Spring Break Specials

Today AsianAirfares.com, one of the fastest growing travel Portals in the World, announces the top spring travel destinations for 2009. Spring is one of the best seasons for bargain leisure travel. Often, travelers are so busy gearing up for summer holidays that they completely overlook the good prices and pleasant weather of spring.
As long as you're flexible about your dates and even your destination, it's not too late for your gang to have some fun in the sun (or the snow, or the city). Anytime you can book an air-car-hotel package you'll save money.

Top ten bargain destinations for spring 2009

Spring Hotels Deals*

1) Las Vegas - Hotels starting from $12.50
2) Hawaii – hotels from $65.00
3) Cancun – hotels from 51.00
4) Milan – Hotels from $51.00
5) London – Hotels from $21.50
6) Aspen - hotels from $ 109.00
7) Lake Tahoe – hotels from $29.00
8) Orlando – hotels from $27.90
9) Singapore – hotels from $39.00
10) Sydney – hotels from $ 17.00

You’ll save an average of $325 This Spring when you book Flight + Hotel together
This is why if you’re buying a vacation from AsianAirfares.com and we promise to deliver. You’ll save an average of $315 when you book Flight + Hotel together. Add cars and activities to your trip and save even more!.

*Deals listed above are per Hotel room and only available on certain dates and could change in any given time.

AsianAirfares.com is a Global online travel reservation system designed to save time and money. AsianAirfares.com is a leading seller of discounted leisure travel products online through its Web site, http://AsianAirfares.com/. Visitors to AsianAirfares.com can shop Securely 24/7 for the best possible deals on Airline Tickets , Hotel Rooms , Vacation Packages , Car Rentals , Cruises and travel Activities . Travelers can select from over 120,000 hotels and resorts worldwide, all leading rental car companies, all major cruise lines and hundreds of traditional and low-budget airlines to book travel services instantly and securely.

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Lufthansa airlines

Lufthansa may face a full strike by its cabin crew members after trade union UFO said on Tuesday the latest round of wage talks with the German flagship carrier had failed.

"We will decide on (whether to call for) further strikes today," a spokesman for the union said, adding UFO may ballot for industrial action.

This was the fourth round of talks in which Lufthansa has been offering a wage increase of up to 10 percent. The package includes better work conditions and profit sharing.

Pushing for a better offer, cabin crews represented by UFO have staged protests twice in the past weeks, forcing the carrier to cancel dozens of flights and cope with delays.

Last July, Lufthansa's passenger numbers were hurt by strikes by ground staff and cabin crew as well as walkouts by regional pilots that forced the carrier to cut flights.

The wage agreement that ended that walkout added about EUR100 million euros (USD$126.5 million) a year to costs, the company has said.

Lufthansa earlier this month raised its full-year 2008 outlook, saying its fourth quarter had yielded stronger results than expected, aided by lower fuel costs.

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Airlines Canada

Air Canada only emerged from its last round of bankruptcy protection in 2004. But the economic crisis has hammered most international carriers as traffic has dropped, forcing them to cut routes, reduce capacity and lay off employees.

Air Canada last year cut 2,000 jobs and reduced capacity by 7 percent and has made more cuts since.

Chief Executive Montie Brewer said on Friday -- as Air Canada announced an unexpectedly large loss of CAD$727 million for the fourth quarter of last year -- that the airline would seek to reduce costs by another CAD$100 million and shave capacity by a further 3.5 percent.

The company said on Friday it has shored up its balance sheet with CAD$641 million in new financing, but warned that the recession may put more pressure on its revenue in 2009. Air Canada said it has up to CAD$1 billion of assets it could use to increase its liquidity if needed.

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Air Ryan

order 200 planes for USD$7 billion with delivery starting in 2013, CEO Michael O'Leary said on Tuesday.

Ryanair is not in advanced talks with either of the two on the order and is happy to wait until the plane makers' "order book collapses" to negotiate a better deal, he said.

The planes have a list price of about USD$70 million each but Ryanair expects to negotiate at least a 50 percent discount to pay about USD$35 million - USD$40 million each for a total order of roughly USD$7 billion, he said.

"The sticker price is USD$70 million, but we would never dream of paying anything like that," he told reporters after a news conference on the airline's plans in Italy.

Despite Ryanair's historic relationship with Boeing, O'Leary said he would order planes from Airbus if they offered a cheaper price. In that case, Ryanair would simply designate some of its airport bases as those for Airbus planes, he said.

The planes would be delivered between 2013 and 2016, he said. Ryanair has a fleet of 171 Boeing 737-800s, and has firm orders to bring that up to 310 planes by 2012, he said.

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Air Canada

Air Canada, the country's biggest airline, could be forced to file for bankruptcy protection if it does not secure additional financing and succeed in renegotiating covenants in credit card agreements, UBS analyst Fadi Chamoun said.

"Notwithstanding lower fuel costs, we believe that cash from operations will be insufficient to meet rising pension funding obligations and over CAD$1 billion (USD$800 million) of debt repayment over the next two years," Chamoun said in a note dated February 13.

Covenants in credit card agreements could tighten further in the second quarter and result in the airline being required to maintain higher cash deposits, said Chamoun, who cut his target price for its shares to CAD$1 from CAD$1.50.

"In the absence of additional financing (sale of assets) and renegotiation of covenants in credit card agreements, Air Canada could be forced to file for bankruptcy in our opinion," he wrote.

Air Canada spokeswoman Angela Mah declined to comment on the UBS report.

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g taken to the Erie County medical exam

Speculation has focused on the wintry weather as the cause of Thursday night's crash, when the Dash 8 Q400 turboprop plane pitched wildly in its final approach before plunging to earth, killing all 49 people on board and one person in the house.

Two women in the house survived.

Chealander said it was too early to know whether ice was to blame. The mechanical systems seemed to be working normally, he said, but there would be more clarity when a team in Washington begins a detailed analysis of the flight recorders on Sunday.

The plane's crew reported snow and mist and commented on ice buildup on the windscreen and front of the wings shortly before the crash, according to the cockpit voice recorder.

The delicate and gruesome task of recovering remains and evidence from the site about 6 miles (10 km) from Buffalo Airport was being handled by 100 to 150 NTSB investigators, FBI agents, coroners and volunteer firefighters.

Bodies were being taken to the Erie County medical examiner for identification.

As the plane descended toward the airport with its landing gear down, its nose suddenly and violently moved up and down and its wings see-sawed, investigators said after initial reviews of the flight data and cockpit voice recorders.

Despite witness accounts that the plane nosedived into the house, Chealander said the wreckage was lying flat and the nose was pointed in the opposite direction to the runway.

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Ice Slows Search At Site Of Deadly US Plane Crash

Investigators were hampered by ice on Saturday as they searched for bodies and clues in the wreckage of a commuter plane that crashed into a house in western New York state, killing 50 people.

"It is a slow process but we are making progress," said Steve Chealander of the National Transportation Safety Board.

Despite delays caused by frozen water from fire hoses and the mingling of debris from the plane and house, he told a news conference the NTSB hoped to wrap up the investigation in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence Center by Wednesday.

"The medical examiner believes that three to four days are going to be required to recover the victims of this crash," he said. "They've already pulled some of the folks out of there."

Speculation has focused on the wintry weather as the cause of Thursday night's crash, when the Dash 8 Q400 turboprop plane pitched wildly in its final approach before plunging to earth, killing all 49 people on board and one person in the house.

Two women in the house survived.

Chealander said it was too early to know whether ice was to blame. The mechanical systems seemed to be working normally, he said, but there would be more clarity when a team in Washington begins a detailed analysis of the flight recorders on Sunday.

The plane's crew reported snow and mist and commented on ice buildup on the windscreen and front of the wings shortly before the crash, according to the cockpit voice recorder.

The delicate and gruesome task of recovering remains and evidence from the site about 6 miles (10 km) from Buffalo Airport was being handled by 100 to 150 NTSB investigators, FBI agents, coroners and volunteer firefighters.

Bodies were being taken to the Erie County medical examiner for identification.

As the plane descended toward the airport with its landing gear down, its nose suddenly and violently moved up and down and its wings see-sawed, investigators said after initial reviews of the flight data and cockpit voice recorders.

Despite witness accounts that the plane nosedived into the house, Chealander said the wreckage was lying flat and the nose was pointed in the opposite direction to the runway.

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Asia Holiday Travel Inc offering Tours to China

Asia Holiday Travel Inc offering Tours to China is an associated member of China International Travel Service, Hebei, the People's Republic of China founded in 1973. We are based in San Francisco, the departure point for our tours. Throughout our history, we have been focusing on those destinations we know best and successfully offering varieties of package tours to China, Hong Kong and other Asian countries for more than 20 years. We have sister-offices located in many parts of China. This unique resource and many years of experience are the guarantee of your Trouble-Free travel arrangements and high quality tours that no other agency has been able to match.

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Bombardier Q400s Have Had Few Prior Problems

Canadian plane maker Bombardier said on Friday the crash of one of its Dash 8 Q400 turboprop aircraft near Buffalo, New York, on Thursday night, which killed 50 people, was the first fatal crash involving that type of plane.

A spokesman for Bombardier told CBC television news that 220 of its Q400 NextGen turboprops have been delivered to airlines around the world.

That fleet has logged more than 1 million flying hours and 1.5 million takeoff cycles without a fatal accident, John Arnone, a Bombardier spokesman, told the CBC.

Three Dash 8 Q-400 planes, owned by SAS, were involved in crash landings in Scandinavia due to problems with landing gear in a span of 45 days in late 2007. None of those incidents were fatal.

Montreal-based Bombardier said last week it would lay off 1,360 people due to the downturn in its business jet market. It said that softness could be offset by an expected 10 percent rise in orders for commercial aircraft, led by an increase in demand for the Q400 turboprop.

The company said earlier this week that it had agreed terms with Colgan Air, the airline that operated the plane that crashed on Thursday, on an option to buy another 15 Q400 NextGen turboprop airliners.

That was on top of 15 firm Colgan orders, worth USD$432 million, announced in January for the fuel-efficient, low emission, 70- to 80-seat turboprops.

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Plane Crashes In New York State Killing 50

Plane Crashes In New York State Killing 5A commuter plane suddenly nosedived and crashed into a house in snowy western New York state late on Thursday, killing all 49 people on board and one person on the ground as it burst into a fireball.

Speculation immediately focused on the weather as other pilots in the area reported ice buildup on their wings, but investigators cautioned on Friday that it was premature to determine a cause.

Continental Connection Flight 3407, operated by Colgan Air, was travelling to Buffalo from Newark, New Jersey. Colgan is a unit of Pinnacle Airlines.

The 74-seat plane -- a Dash 8 Q400 turboprop made by Canada's Bombardier -- lost contact with air traffic controllers and went down at about 10:20 pm EST on Thursday (0320 GMT on Friday) a few miles before the runway at Buffalo Airport, authorities said.

It was the third fatal crash since 2003 for Pinnacle and its Colgan unit, according to safety records. The two previous involved flights that were not carrying passengers, resulting in four crew deaths.

Bombardier said it was the first fatal crash involving that type of plane.

Only the tail section of the plane appeared intact, sticking out of a crater as firefighters worked into the day to put out a blaze fed by jet fuel and a natural gas leak.

"It's hard to make sense of it today but God hasn't left us. Two of three people that were in the home that the plane landed on miraculously escaped," New York Governor David Paterson told a news conference. "So we just take what little we can and move forward."

There were 44 passengers, four crew members and an off-duty pilot on board. Among the victims was Beverly Eckert, the widow of a victim of the September 11 attacks in 2001 and an advocate for survivors.

HIGH-PITCHED NOISE

Witnesses in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence Center said the plane came out of the sky in a steep dive.

"I could hear what sounded like a high-pitched sound -- a tube with air rushing through it," Keith Burtis told CNN. "You could feel the ground shake."

Other pilots in the area were concerned about icing, control tower recordings showed.

Commercial aircraft are equipped with de-icing systems but safety experts say even a small buildup of ice on the wings can affect aerodynamics.

Weather conditions were not unusual for that part of western New York at this time of year -- snow, 32 degrees F (0 degrees C) and moderate wind.

Federal investigators recovered the flight data and cockpit voice recorders on Friday and were sending them to Washington for analysis.

The plane was set to start its approach to land when air traffic controllers suddenly lost contact, control tower communications showed.

"It's remarkable that it only took one house," said Dave Bissonette, emergency coordinator for the town of Clarence. "It could have easily wiped out that whole neighbourhood."

Thursday's disaster came less than a month after the successful crash landing of a US Airways jet on the Hudson River in New York City.

All 155 people on board survived after the plane hit birds, taking out both engines, and pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger brought it down safely on the river.0

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Biofuel From Forestry Waste Is Close

New types of green fuels produced using waste from forestry may be among the first new generation biofuels to start production, an executive from Finnish forestry and paper group UPM-Kymmene said on Thursday.

UPM was planning to expand into biofuel production and was currently conducting trials to produce biodiesel, bioethanol and heavy fuel oils from forest residues including tree bark, twigs and stumps, said vice president corporate relations and development Hans Sohlstrom.

Global airlines are likely to use a wide range of new generation bio-jet fuels in coming years rather than fuel from a single crop or plant type, the conference heard from Christian Schuchert, strategy director for Boeing in Germany.

Airline biofuel use could start rising perceptibly from 2010 if the financial crisis does not choke investment in production projects, he said.

Bio-Jet fuels produced from camelina, a type of flax, had already been developed.

Jet fuels from the oilseed jatropha were expected in two to three years, from hydrophyte aquatic plants in two to four years and from algae in eight to ten years, Schuchert said.

Fuels will have to be strictly quality-certified by authorities but attention should be focused on the technical qualities of the fuel rather than the feedstock it was produced from, he said.

Producing new generation bio jet fuels could give developing countries a chance for new economic activity which could also support their national airlines, he said.

Governments worldwide want second generation biofuels to replace first generation green fuels produced from foods such as corn, sugar and vegetable oils, following bitter controversy about whether biofuel production raises food prices.

"According to our plans we should have the necessary information in our hands to make decisions about the first large scale commercial unit by the middle of this year," Sohlstrom said on the sidelines of a conference on second generation biofuels.

"However I am not saying we will make a decision as many things have changed in this financial and economic climate." Any investment could involve hundreds of millions of euros.

If current trials were positive, a start to commercial green fuel production from forest residues could be possible in 2012-2013, he said.

About three million tonnes of forestry residues was likely to be sufficient to produce 200,000 tonnes of biodiesel.

"We believe there are large volumes of residues that could be used for biofuel production in Europe and elsewhere," he said. "Around half of a tree's biomass is currently left as residue which cannot be used for timber or paper production."

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Boeing 787 On Track For Q1 2010 Delivery

Boeing's delayed 787 Dreamliner remains on track for its first deliveries in the first quarter of 2010, Scott Carson, chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said on Tuesday.

The company pushed back the 787 delivery schedule for a fourth time in December, making its plane almost two years late and risking cancellations from angry airlines.

Carson said that Boeing's record order backlog would serve the company well as economic recession "continues to challenge every region of the world."

The company is working to backfill orders that were deferred due to the bad economy, he said.

"We are, as I said, feeling good about 2009, cautiously optimistic about 2010, but prepared to make the rate adjustments we need to," Carson said.

He said that if Boeing had to slow 737 production it might be in the region of 10 percent in 2010.

Boeing would continue to split the market with Airbus, he said, but added new Russian, Brazilian, Chinese, Canadian and Japanese competitors aspired to enter the marketplace.

"We cannot be dismissive of... their attempts," Carson said.

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British Airways Undercarriage Fails On Landing, 4 Hurt

Passengers used emergency slides to evacuate a British Airways plane when its nose wheel collapsed on landing at London's City Airport on Friday, injuring four people, officials said.

The front undercarriage failed when BA flight 8456 from Amsterdam landed at the east London airport on Friday evening with 67 passengers and four crew on board, the airline said.

"As a precaution, the emergency slides were deployed and the passengers were evacuated down the slides onto the runway," BA said in a statement.

A passenger was taken to hospital with a minor injury and one other minor injury was reported, BA said.

The London Ambulance Service, which sent six ambulance crews to the airport, said four people were treated at the scene for minor injuries.

A BA spokeswoman said the plane was an RJ-100, a model manufactured by BAE Systems.

Passenger Justin Fletcher told BBC Television: "It appeared that it was coming in a bit quicker, and on landing the front wheel collapsed."

"There was obviously quite a loud bang as the plane scraped in. Afterwards the stewards and stewardesses were quick to evacuate everyone," he said. "Everyone was quite calm and handled it all quite well."

Reuters photographer Andrew Winning, at the scene, said the plane had come to a halt half-way down the runway, slumped on its nose, with its emergency chutes out. The plane was ringed by several emergency vehicles.

A fire service spokeswoman said the passengers and crew got out of the plane before emergency services arrived. There was no fire and the fire service did not have to intervene, she said.

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Air France-KLM Posts Q3 Loss, To Cut Costs

Air France-KLM swung to an expected third-quarter operating loss and abandoned costly fuel price hedges weighing on its finances, boosting its shares on Friday.

Air France-KLM also announced EUR1.2 billion euros of capital spending cuts, half of them in the coming year, and said it would cut summer seat capacity by 2 percent, in a move adopted by many airlines to help shore up profitability.

The losses were expected since Air France-KLM warned last month of a EUR200 million loss in the three months to December 31 as the economic crisis drove the sector deep into the red. A year ago, it posted a profit of EUR311 million.

Air France-KLM said it had reduced its hedged fuel position to 43 percent for its 2009-10 year, and to 20 percent for each of the following two years.

A drop in the value of its fuel hedging positions -- designed to protect the company against oil prices that peaked near USD$150 a barrel in July, compared with USD$47 now -- accounted for EUR288 million of third quarter net losses.

Air France-KLM posted an overall third-quarter net loss of EUR505 million, having made a EUR139 million net profit a year earlier. Revenue was flat at EUR5.97 billion.

The airline reiterated it expected an operating profit for its 2008-09 year ending March 31, but the level would depend on how the economy developed until then, especially in cargo which is facing a bleak environment.

"In the meantime, we will continue to assess all our costs in order to achieve additional savings wherever possible."

HIRING FREEZE

The airline denied French media reports it planned to sack some of its 70,000 workers but a spokeswoman said it would continue a "normal process" of trimming staff costs through attrition, by freezing recruitment and leaving vacant posts unfilled.

The group reduced staff numbers by about 2,000 last year.

Air France-KLM is the latest of several airlines to report losses, facing what the International Air Transport Association has forecast to be one of the industry's toughest years and a decline in cargo traffic brought on by a slump in world trade.

Overcapacity and evaporating fuel surcharges put pressure on cargo pricing in the third quarter, driving down unit revenue as freight traffic fell by 12.5 percent, Air France-KLM said.

It said long-haul passenger traffic was "relatively resilient" in the third quarter but robust economy travel failed to make up for a drop in first and business class revenues.

Medium-haul suffered from a poor domestic market. France's economy shrank 1.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Air France-KLM has reported a 1.9 percent drop in passenger traffic in January and a drop of more than 20 percent in underlying cargo traffic for a second month.

As a barometer of the way the economy is affecting aviation, industry officials say cargo data could point to further declines in passenger traffic in coming months.

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The commuter plane that crashed near Buffalo

The commuter plane that crashed near Buffalo, New York, late on Thursday was set to start its approach to land when air traffic controllers suddenly lost contact, control tower communications show.

As the tower called in vain for Continental Connection flight 3407 operated by Colgan Air to respond, one controller asked for help to find out what happened to the Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 plane with 44 passengers and four crew on board.

"Colgan 3407. Buffalo Tower. How do you hear?" the controller said.

"This is ground communication. We need to talk to someone at least five miles northeast... either state police or sheriff's department. We need to find out if anything is on the ground," he said.

"This aircraft was five miles out and all of a sudden we have no response to that aircraft."

Another man's voice said: "All I can tell you is the aircraft was over the marker and we're not talking to them now."

The controller then tells other planes the Dash 8 "didn't make the airport."

"Cactus, did you find Colgan?" he says to the cockpit crew of one flight.

"Unfortunately, they said he went down about right over the marker," the crew member responds.

The tape was played on US television networks.

All 48 people on the Colgan flight and one person on the ground were killed when the plane crashed into a house in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence Center and burst into flames.

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Plane Crashes In New York State Killing 49

Forty nine people were killed when a passenger plane crashed into a house 10 miles from Buffalo Airport, New York and burst into a ball of flames late on Thursday, officials said.

The plane, a Continental Connection flight operated by Colgan Air, was on a flight from Newark, New Jersey, to Buffalo with 44 passengers and four crew on board when it crashed in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence Center amid rain and sleet, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.

Erie County Executive Chris Collins said all 48 people on board the plane were killed. One person was killed in the house while two others escaped with minor injuries, he said.

"At this point there is no information whatsoever as to what the cause may be," Collins told a news conference early on Friday. He said the control tower lost contact with the plane before it landed but officials knew of no trouble.

Clarence Town supervisor Scott Bylewski told reporters: "I did hear what sounded like a door slamming... I then went outside of my own house and could see that the sky was red."

"It's remarkable that it only took one house, as devastating as it was. It could have easily wiped out that whole neighbourhood," Dave Bissonette, emergency coordinator for the town of Clarence, said.

"The only recognisable piece of the plane left is the tail," he said.

Colgan Air said the plane was a Bombardier Dash 8 Q400. The plane is a turboprop regional aircraft that can carry more than 70 people. Colgan Air is a subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines.

"All indications are that this is an air safety incident," Amy Kudwa, spokeswoman for the US Department of Homeland Security, said in Washington when asked about any possible terrorist connection.

Weather conditions were not unusual for that part of upstate New York at this time of year -- snow, 32 degrees F (0 degrees C), moderate wind, Bissonette said.

But because of the weather, investigators will look at icing as a potential cause. Safety experts say even a small buildup of ice on the wings can affect aerodynamics although commercial aircraft are equipped with de-icing systems.

Investigators should be able to recover the flight data and cockpit voice recorders, which could yield important information about any mechanical problems or other potential causes.

The Buffalo News quoted Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority spokesman Douglas Hartmayer as saying there was little communication between the plane and the tower before the crash. It said crew members on the flight from Newark had reported mechanical problems as they approached Buffalo.

An aviation source with knowledge of the incident said there was no distress call from the crew.

Colgan Air said in a statement the plane, Continental Airlines Flight 3407, crashed at about 10:20 pm (0320 GMT Friday).

The National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates transport accidents, planned to send a team to the site on Friday morning from Washington.

Continental Airlines said it was profoundly saddened by the crash.

"Continental extends its deepest sympathy to the family members and loved ones of those involved in this accident," said Continental chief executive Larry Kellner in a statement. "We are providing our full assistance to Colgan Air so that together we can provide as much support as possible for all concerned."

It was the first deadly US airline accident since August 2006 when a similar number of people were killed when a Comair jet crashed on takeoff in Kentucky. Crew error was cited in that incident.

The US airline industry has recorded its safest period overall since 2001, flying more than 500 million people annually with three fatal crashes -- all involving smaller regional carriers, not major airlines.

Thursday's crash came less than a month after the successful crash landing of a US Airways jet on the Hudson River in New York City. All 155 people on board survived after the plane struck birds that were sucked into both engines and pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger brought the plane down on the river. Passengers and crew were rescued by ferry boats.

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Pratt & Whitney Canada To Cut 1,000 Jobs

Aircraft engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney Canada said on Thursday it will lay off up to 1,000 workers from its global operations as it responds to a drop in the business jet market.

The company said it told its 10,000-strong workforce on Wednesday that around 10 percent of them would go within the next few months.

Employees of the Longueuil, Quebec-based company were also told they would have to take 10 unpaid days off throughout the year on top of a two-week summer shut down.

"Given the economic context... we've got to put measures in place on one side to reduce costs across the company and on the other side to reduce our global workforce," said Pierre Boisseau, a spokesman for the company.

"The big aircraft manufacturers have... announced production reduction, they've cancelled orders, they've announced staff reduction as well, so this is having a direct impact on our business activities."

P&WC builds engine for companies such as Bombardier, Embraer and Cessna.

Cessna, the world's largest maker of corporate jets, announced last month it would lay off 4,000 people. A week ago, Bombardier said it would cut 1,360 jobs, saying it expected the business jet market to fall by 10 percent this year.

Boisseau said P&WC was still in talks with its customers all around the world in order to determine in which of its facilities it would be cutting back.

Around 7,000 of the company's employees work in Canada, with 5,500 in the province of Quebec.

P&WC also makes engines for helicopters, regional airliners, and smaller aircraft.

The company has also put a hiring freeze in place and said it was looking at other measures to try to lessen the impact on employment levels.

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US Airways Jet Had Bird Remains In Both Engines

Bird remains were found in both engines of a US Airways jet that lost power and ditched in New York's Hudson River last month, US transportation investigators said on Wednesday.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said both engines of the Airbus A320 were damaged and contained "organic material" that was sent to bird experts at the Smithsonian Institution for identification. The board previously had said bird remains were found in the right engine, and now has confirmed the same in the left engine.

The pilot of Flight 1549 bound for Charlotte, North Carolina, radioed to air traffic controllers that the plane had struck a flock of birds, knocking out both engines, shortly after takeoff from LaGuardia airport on January 15.

The jet could not return to LaGuardia or find another suitable landing spot, so the crew glided down to the river. All 155 passengers and crew escaped.

A mechanical problem reported in the right engine two days before the incident had been properly fixed and was not a factor, the safety board said.

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Dubai's LCAL Slashes Dreamliner Order

Dubai-based aircraft leasing firm LCAL has slashed its order for Boeing 787 Dreamliners to five planes from 21 due to the global economic crisis, Boeing's regional spokesman said on Thursday.

The global downturn which has sent much of the industrialised world into recession has hurt airlines as fewer people travel, forcing carriers to review capital spending and abandon less-profitable routes.

"LCAL and Boeing have agreed to reduce the number of LCAL orders," said Fakher Daghestani, Boeing's Middle East communications director. LCAL specifically focuses on acquiring and leasing the 787, according to its web site.

"LCAL is preparing for tough challenges caused by the global recession," Daghestani added, without giving details on when the remaining five planes would be delivered or the value of the deal.

Daghestani declined to say if other clients in the Middle East might also cancel orders.

Gulf Arab carriers, including Emirates had placed billion-dollar orders for planes from Boeing and Airbus, banking on regional economic growth to boost traffic through the hub linking East Asia, Europe and Africa.

Last year, Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways finalised a USD$10 billion, 51-plane order from Airbus, as well as a 45-plane order from Boeing.

But the global financial crisis has also taken its toll on the Gulf Arab region, where a six-year economic boom came to an end late last year as oil prices collapsed.

Dubai, one of seven emirates in the United Arab Emirates, is facing a severe property price downturn that has led to scores of job losses and tens of billions of dollars of project cancellations.

Qatar Airways, which has about 30 787s on order, said in January it was in talks to revise delivery of the jets and was seeking compensation after the manufacturer's latest delay affected the airline's expansion.

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US Airways Crew: "We're Gonna Be In The Hudson"

The crew of a US Airways jet disabled by birds that knocked out both its engines over New York calmly told air controllers: "We're gonna be in the Hudson" before splash landing in the river, according to tapes of the account released Thursday.

The Federal Aviation Administration recordings revealed a four-minute segment of clipped, matter-of-fact radio communication between the pilots of Flight 1549 and controllers, who cleared the skies to get the stricken plane with 155 passengers and crew in for an emergency landing.

The recordings start with the Airbus A320 apparently striking a flock of birds shortly after takeoff on January 15 from LaGuardia Airport, bound for Charlotte, North Carolina.

After takeoff, the New York high altitude controller gives routine instructions to the US Airways jet, code named "Cactus" because the company is based in Arizona.

The following is an abbreviated exchange of communication between radar controllers and Captain Chesley Sullenberger, both of whom misstated the call signs for the flight.

1549: "This is, uh, cactus Fifteen-Thirty-Nine (sic). Hit birds. We lost thrust in both engines. We're turning back towards LaGuardia."

FAA to LaGuardia: "It's Fifteen-Twenty-Nine (sic). He, ah, bird strike. He lost all engines. He lost the thrust in the engines. He is returning immediately."

FAA: "Cactus Fifteen-Twenty-Nine (sic) if we can get it to you do you want to try to land runway one three (at LaGuardia)?"

1549: "We're unable. We may end up in the Hudson."

Controllers at this point repeat runway instructions and again the US Airways crew says it cannot make LaGuardia.

1549: "Oh what's over to our right? Anything in New Jersey, maybe Teterboro (airport)?"

FAA: "Do you want to try and go to Teterboro?"

1549: "Yes"

FAA to Teterboro: "Cactus Fifteen-Twenty-Nine over the George Washington Bridge wants to go to the airport right now."

FAA: "You can land (at) Runway One at Teterboro."

1549: "We can't do it."

FAA: "Okay, which runway would like?"

1549: "We're gonna be in the Hudson."

FAA: "I'm sorry, say again, Cactus?"

Radar contact is lost seconds later and there is no response. Nevertheless, controllers continue to try and get Flight 1549 to an airport, suggesting Newark as a third alternative. Other pilots see the plane hit the water.

Another set of controllers asks a helicopter pilot who has spotted Flight 1549: "Is he still flying?"

HELICOPTER 1: "Looks like he (is) getting lower."

HELICOPTER 2: "Going down."

HELICOPTER 1: "He's in the water."

HELICOPTER 1: "I got him in sight right next to the USS Intrepid mid-

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China Airline Sector Overhaul Unlikely

A major restructuring of China's loss-making airline industry is unlikely in the near term as the government has more urgent issues to tackle, a senior Chinese airlines executive said on Wednesday.

Liu Shaoyong, chairman of China Eastern Airlines, said China should set up a state-owned company which will then hold stakes in its three biggest carriers to improve their synergies and global competitiveness.

China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines and Air China, are the country's three biggest carriers. All have warned of losses for 2008 largely due to slowing air traffic demand amid the global economic slowdown.

"The big three are competing fiercely with each other and yet they are all controlled by the same boss SASAC. That is a huge waste of resources," Liu said.

He was referring to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the ultimate owner of all Chinese state firms.

Liu said he had submitted a proposal to the government during the annual parliamentary meeting in March 2008, but any drastic industry restructuring was unlikely in the near term.

"Personally, I think the current industry structure will remain intact for quite some time as the government needs to handle unexpected situations currently," he said.

China's economic growth slumped to 6.8 percent in the last quarter, dragging down the pace of expansion for all of 2008 to a seven-year low of 9.0 percent as the full force of the global financial crisis struck home.

Chinese premier Wen Jiabao had in January called for prompt action in the first three months of the year to stop the slowdown in the economy.

Sources said the Chinese government was discussing the possibility of brokering a merger of Shanghai-based China Eastern and its smaller peer Shanghai Airlines.

Liu called the proposed merger a "good move", but said the airlines themselves had not held any discussions on equity ties so far.

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BAA Agrees UK Tax Exemptions - Report

Spanish construction and services group Ferrovial has agreed a tax break on capital gains by its British airports unit BAA that could be worth hundreds of millions of pounds, Expansion reported, citing unnamed sources.

After a year of negotiations with Britain's Inland Revenue, Ferrovial has secured exemptions on capital gains from asset sales in 2008 as well as additional planned disposals, such as London's Gatwick Airport, the newspaper said.

The Spanish company is considering indicative offers for Gatwick after it was told by Britain's antitrust regulator to sell the airport as well as London's Stansted because of competition concerns.

Ferrovial will be allowed to keep Heathrow, one of the world's busiest airports, with 65 million passengers a year.

Last month, Heathrow was controversially awarded government approval for a third runway for an estimated GBP9 billion pound (USD$12.74 billion) investment.

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Brazil, Chile, Israel Airlines Fixed Cargo Prices - USDOJ

LAN Cargo, ABSA Cargo and EL AL Israel Airlines agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to fix air freight prices, the US Justice Department said on Thursday, and the companies will pay a total of criminal fines of USD$124.7 million.

LAN Cargo and ABSA Cargo, which is substantially owned by LAN Cargo, will pay a combined fine of USD$109 million while EL AL will pay a USD$15.7 million fine, the Justice Department said.

All three airlines agreed to cooperate with US prosecutors, who have collected more than USD$1 billion in criminal fines from an ongoing probe of price-fixing for air cargo shipments.

LAN Cargo and ABSA Cargo were charged with conspiring to fix prices for fresh flowers, heavy equipment and other goods between February 2003 and February 2006. Prosecutors said that EL AL's participation in the conspiracy lasted from about January 2003 until at least February 2006.

LAN Cargo said on Wednesday that it agreed to pay an USD$88 million fine over five years as part of the US price-fixing investigation.

LAN Cargo said ABSA Cargo would pay a fine of USD$21 million over five years.

The plea agreements are subject to approval by the US District Court for the District of Columbia.

LAN Cargo said it understood the investigation involved more than 30 international airlines.

The Justice Department said 12 airlines had agreed to plead guilty to price fixing as part of the investigation and would pay more than USD$1 billion in criminal fines. It said three executives had agreed to plead guilty and had been sentenced to serve a total of 20 months in jail.

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Cargo, Passengers Boost LAN's 2008 Profit

Chile's leading airline LAN said on Tuesday its net profit rose 8.9 percent in 2008 and 16.1 percent in the fourth quarter as demand for passenger and cargo services offset fuel costs.

LAN said in an earnings statement that fourth-quarter profit was USD$117.1 million, versus USD$100.8 million for the same period last year. For the year, LAN reported profit of USD$335.7 million, compared with USD$308.3 million in 2007.

"This result is mainly a result of greater demand in the markets in which the company operates, for passenger and cargo operations, impacted by the drastic rise in fuel prices that affected the industry in general," the company said in the statement to the local market regulator.

LAN reported a USD$24.5 million loss for fuel price hedges in the fourth quarter, compared to a gain of USD$20.8 million in the same period in 2007.

This year, LAN has 30 percent of its estimated fuel demand hedged for the first quarter, 40 percent for the second quarter and 20 percent for the remainder of the year, the company said.

Revenue in 2008 rose 28.6 percent from a year earlier to USD$4.534 billion, while operating profit rose 29.7 percent to USD$536.18 million, LAN said.

For 2010, it has 10 percent of estimated demand covered.

LAN said under current market conditions it planned to raise passenger capacity 10 percent in 2009 and forecast passenger business growth would be driven in the year by domestic markets in Chile, Peru and Argentina.

LAN's cargo unit said last week it had agreed to pay an USD$88 million fine as part of a price-fixing investigation led by the US Department of Justice, which was offset against the company's results for 2007 and the third quarter of 2008.

LAN's cargo network covers about 75 destinations worldwide. It has operations in Chile, Brazil and Mexico and has been given the green light to set up an affiliate in Colombia.

Parent LAN has affiliates in Ecuador, Peru and Argentina. It accounts for more than half of Chile's international passenger traffic and nearly three-quarters of its domestic traffic.

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Korean Air Q4 Loss Wider Than Forecast

Korean Air Lines reported a worse-than-expected quarterly loss on the weak won but expected it would swing to an annual operating profit in 2009.

Korean Air, the world's largest air cargo carrier, is also set to suffer from declining exports from South Korea, Asia's fourth-largest economy.

Analysts are worried about falling cargo shipments as Korean Air is highly exposed to South Korean sales of tech products such as semiconductors, mobile phones and flat screens to developed markets.

Airlines worldwide face declining demand for passengers and cargo as the global recession deepens. Last week, Japan's All Nippon Airways said it would fall into the red in the current business year for the first time in six years.

Korean Air said it aimed to post a KRW600 billion won operating profit in 2009, compared with a KRW99.3 billion operating loss in 2008, by focusing on overseas travel demand.

Price competitiveness from the weak won and a marketing drive are helping the airline attract more transit passengers, while US visa waiver programme for South Koreans is expected to support demand for outbound flights.

Korean Air posted a KRW659.5 billion (USD$474.4 million) net loss in the October-December quarter. The result compares with net losses of KRW35.3 billion a year earlier and KRW684.1 billion in the third quarter.

Heavy currency conversion losses from the won's weakness, which fell 26 percent against the dollar last year, hit the company's bottom line.

The soft local currency also resulted in higher costs for imported fuel and plane leasing, Korean Air said.

Fourth-quarter sales were KRW2.71 trillion, higher than the KRW2.3 trillion a year earlier.

Shares in Korean Air ended up 0.15 percent, lagging the wider market's 1.42 percent gain. The stock had fallen 1.8 percent after the results.

Korean Air said it would invest KRW870 billion this year to introduce new aircraft and to build a cargo terminal in China.

Separately it said it ordered two additional A380 superjumbo jets from European aircraft maker Airbus, bringing its total A380 order to ten.

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Aerospace Q4 Profit Beats Estimates

B/E Aerospace, the world's biggest supplier of plane seats, posted a quarterly profit that beat most estimates, driven by strong operating margins and a doubling of sales at its distribution unit.

The company also forecast 2009 profit above Wall Street estimates, even as it remained "cautiously optimistic" about the next two years amid a drop in air traffic.

Demand for new planes has fallen sharply amid the global recession and this is expected to hurt several suppliers to original equipment manufacturers.

However, B/E Aerospace has not seen any cancellation of orders, it has only seen deferrals, Jesup & Lamont Securities analyst Alex Hamilton said.

Hamilton expects the company's acquisition of Honeywell International's Consumables Solutions aerospace fasteners distribution unit to boost 2009 earnings considerably.

"The outlook means that the margins are going to be relatively stronger," the analyst added.

B/E Aerospace fits out commercial and business jets with oxygen masks, food trolleys and other equipment, and its customers include world's leading plane makers -- Airbus and Boeing.

For 2009, the company forecast earnings of USD$2.00 a share, excluding HCS integration costs of about 10 cents a share, on revenue of about USD$2.25 billion.

The company forecast a first-quarter profit below market estimates, citing weaker product mix at the commercial aircraft unit, decreased shipments on new aircraft deliveries as a result of the Boeing strike, and lower spares revenue due to airline cash conservation measures.

For the fourth-quarter, B/E Aerospace reported net profit of USD$46.4 million.

Excluding charges, it earned USD$51.9 million, compared with USD$42.3 million in the year-ago period.

Revenue rose 14 percent to USD$526.8 million, driven mainly by the growth in its distribution segment.

Distribution segment revenue more than doubled to USD$232.5 million, reflecting the acquisition of the Honeywell unit.

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Heathrow Airport

Heavy snow disrupted air travel in northern Europe on Monday, halting flights at London's Heathrow Airport and bringing traffic almost to a standstill.

All flights in and out of Heathrow were cancelled for a period before a limited service resumed with long delays and cancellations. One of its two runways was closed.

A Cyprus Airways jet at Heathrow slipped off a taxiway after arriving from Larnaca but came to a safe halt. No-one was hurt.

Gatwick, Stansted and Luton airports reported delays and flight cancellations. London City Airport, which serves the financial district, was closed for the day.

Dublin, Cork and Belfast airports were also forced to cancel some flights.

Tens of thousands of commuters were advised not to attempt the journey into work in London, experiencing some of its worst snow in almost 20 years. Buses were taken off the roads and hundreds of schools were closed across the country, leaving children to play and build snowmen in parks and gardens.

"I'd rather be sledging than at school," said 7-year-old Georgie Cunliffe, in a London park.

Forecasters said Britain would be gripped by a second day of freezing weather on Tuesday with more heavy snow spreading across the country overnight.

Conditions familiar to eastern Europe and other northerly countries notoriously pitch Britain into chaos, its infrastructure ill prepared for the cold.

Northern France also had difficulty as snow blanketed Paris and surrounding countryside bringing major air, rail and road systems to a halt.

London business leaders said the estimated cost to the capital alone could be as much as GBP48 million pounds in lost productivity. The country's Federation of Small Businesses estimated that continuing bad weather on Tuesday could cost the economy more than one billion pounds.

Large parts of London's underground rail network were suspended, forcing commuters to walk or seek those taxis prepared to stay out on the roads.

WEATHER WARNING

Highway authorities warned of hazardous driving conditions in southern and central England and advised people not to drive unless absolutely necessary.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the government was "doing everything in our power to ensure that the services, road, rail and airports, are open as quickly as possible."

The heaviest snow fell in southern England. Epsom in Surrey had depths of 31cm (12 inches), south London had 28cm and the North Downs in Kent saw 25cm.

The Met Office extended severe overnight weather warnings for large parts of the country, including Scotland, Wales, Yorkshire and the Midlands.

Weather experts said southeast England was experiencing some of its worst snow since the early 1990s.

The international rail operator Eurostar also reported delays due to snow in Britain, France and Belgium.

Many workers attempted to walk to their offices, but London's Chamber of Commerce business organisation said lost productivity could cost the capital dear at a time when the British economy is in recession.

In France, traffic jams were recorded on roads leading into the capital during the rush hour and the Paris transport authority said many buses had to be cancelled.

So far, this winter has been Britain's coldest in more than a decade and forecasters expect the cold weather to continue for several more days with freezing winds blowing in from Russia.

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BA/Iberia Merger "Close", 55-45 Split Possible

The chairman of Spain's Caja Madrid, the biggest shareholder in Iberia with 23 percent, said an agreement on a merger between the airline and British Airways was close.

"I believe the operation is close, that's my impression," Miguel Blesa told journalists as he presented the unlisted bank's 2008 results on Monday.

Blesa is also deputy chairman of Iberia.

When asked what was blocking a merger agreement, Blesa said the share split, corporate governance questions and the location of the combined group's headquarters all needed to be resolved.

"The perception now I think is that the share exchange will not be 60-40," he said of the likely stakes to be held by BA and Iberia. "Iberia is now worth more. It will be closer to 55-45."

Caja Madrid said in a later statement that Blesa's estimates for the share exchange were his own and not the bank's.

British Airways chief executive Willie Walsh is expected in Madrid on Tuesday for talks with Iberia Chairman Fernando Conte and other Oneworld alliance bosses.

"The talks are ongoing, no timescales have been set," a BA spokeswoman said.

When the two announced last July they were discussing a merger, British Airways expected to secure around 65 percent of the combined group, but its shares have since dropped, worsened by a profit warning in January.

Together with the pound's recent slide against the euro, Iberia's market capitalisation is now higher than BA's.

Iberia's shares closed up 1.66 percent at 1.84 euros after the announcement. BA lost 3.33 percent to 116 pence, although the airline also suffered due to massive travel disruption at Heathrow, its London hub.

BA cancelled all short-haul flights and long-haul journeys before 1700 GMT due to heavy snow. A spokesman said the weather also disrupted other airlines, and that disruption was likely to continue on Tuesday.

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Alaska Air Posts Q4 Loss After Charges

Alaska Air posted a fourth-quarter net loss on Thursday due to special charges, including realized losses of USD$50 million from early termination of fuel hedging contracts.

The company reported a net loss of USD$75.2 million loss, compared with a profit of USD$7.4 million a year earlier.

Special items also included pre-tax restructuring charges of USD$9.2 million and fleet transition costs of USD$6.7 million.

Excluding special items, Alaska Air reported a profit of USD$16.4 million, compared with a year-earlier loss of USD$17.9 million.

The company said it had nearly USD$1.1 billion in unrestricted cash and marketable securities as of December 31.

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US Airlines Fight FAA Crew Rest Requirements

Seven US airlines have sued the Federal Aviation Administration, claiming the agency broke its own rules and may have compromised flight safety when it set new standards for pilot rest times last year without input from the carriers.

The airlines, including American Airlines, Continental Airlines and United Airlines, filed the lawsuit on December 24 in the the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

The airlines said in the complaint that they should have had a chance to comment on the rules, which would place yet another financial burden on them.

"FAA has neither demonstrated how the rule will advance safety, considered the potential that the rule may actually diminish safety, nor justified the significant costs of the rule against any purported benefit," the carriers said.

Delta Air Lines, which recently merged with Northwest Airlines, was not a party to the lawsuit. Both Delta and Northwest have negotiated separate rules with the FAA governing crew rest requirements on long-haul flights.

The FAA did not comment on the lawsuit on Monday.

The government rules require additional rest time and longer time between flights for pilots on nonstop flights that last more than 16 hours. To comply, airlines would have to put more pilots on those flights and provide more in-flight rest facilities for them.

These changes would drive up costs for airlines, which hope to claw their way out of a financial downturn in 2009.

The vast majority of international flights are shorter than 16 hours, but weather delays can unexpectedly lengthen trips and pilots' workdays.

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United Airlines Widens On Volatile Fuel Prices

United Airlines parent UAL on Wednesday said its quarterly net loss widened on erosion in the value of its fuel hedges as oil prices dropped.

The company said its net loss amounted to USD$1.3 billion, compared with USD$53 million a year earlier.

The airline industry, battered severely last year by high fuel costs, cut capacity in the fourth quarter to offset that bill and to gain pricing power as economic woes eroded travel demand.

UAL said its revenue was USD$4.55 billion in the quarter, down 9.6 percent.

The company said it ended the quarter with an unrestricted cash balance of USD$2 billion.

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AMR, UAL Losses Widen, Tough Times Ahead air

Two of the largest US airlines, American Airlines and United Airlines, on Wednesday posted wider quarterly losses and warned that the economic slowdown in 2008 would likely continue this year, causing larger-than-expected job and route cuts.

UAL, parent of United Airlines, said it would cut 1,000 salaried and management positions from its payrolls this year, while AMR, parent of American Airlines, said it would trim capacity more than expected.

American and United are the first two major carriers to report their fourth-quarter earnings, and their statements muddied the outlook for the entire industry as it grapples with volatile fuel prices and the potential for sagging travel demand.

"It's going to be weak, no doubt about it," said Ray Neidl, analyst at Calyon Securities. "The question is can the airlines, with capacity cuts, keep up with the decrease in demand in a weak economy?"

AMR shares fell more than 21 percent to USD$8.24 on the New York Stock Exchange. UAL shares shed more than 7 percent to USD$10.70 on Nasdaq.

The airline industry, including AMR and UAL, slashed capacity last year to offset their high fuel bills and bolster fares as the economic recession eroded travel budgets.

A 75 percent decline in oil prices in the second half of 2008 greatly eased the fuel price burden for airlines. But it also lessened the value of airline fuel hedges, creating a new problem for the embattled industry.

AMR said its quarterly net loss widened as the price it paid for fuel rose 8 percent in the quarter from a year before.

The company said its fourth-quarter net loss was USD$340 million, compared with USD$69 million a year earlier.

Excluding one-time items, AMR said it lost USD$214 million.

Special items included a USD$23 million charge related to aircraft groundings and capacity cuts as well as a non-cash pension settlement charge of USD$103 million.

The airline industry, including AMR, made hefty capacity cuts in the fourth quarter of 2008 to offset volatile fuel prices and to bolster fares as demand sagged in a weak economy.

The company said it expects its mainline capacity to decrease more than 8.5 percent in the first quarter amid economic uncertainty. AMR said its 2009 mainline capacity will decline by more than one percentage point beyond a previous forecast provided in October.

"We intend to continue managing our business -- from capacity and fleet planning to balance sheet repair, fuel hedging and revenue initiatives -- conservatively and with discipline," AMR chief executive Gerard Arpey said in a statement.

AMR reported revenue of USD$5.47 billion, down 3.8 percent. The company said it ended the quarter with USD$3.6 billion in cash and short-tern investments.

AMR said the company now expects to receive 29 Boeing 737-800 aircraft in 2009 as a result of Boeing's delivery delays, compared with 36 expected previously.

UAL said its quarterly net loss widened on erosion in the value of its fuel hedges, as oil prices dropped.

The company said its net loss amounted to USD$1.3 billion, compared with USD$53 million a year earlier.

UAL reported a USD$370 million cash loss on fuel hedges that settled in the quarter, due to the recent fall in fuel prices. The company also suffered non-cash, net mark-to-market losses on its fuel hedges of USD$566 million.

The company, which cut about 7,000 jobs in 2008, said it would cut another 1,000 salaried and management positions in 2009.

UAL said its revenue was USD$4.55 billion in the quarter, down 9.6 percent. The company said it ended the quarter with an unrestricted cash balance of USD$2 billion.

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Airlines Ask US To Withdraw NY Airport Slot Sales

US airlines have asked the Obama administration to withdraw a government plan for boosting competition and reducing congestion by auctioning takeoff and landing rights at New York-area airports.

The chief lobbying group for the major carriers asked Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to swiftly rescind last year's Bush administration initiative.

"As you noted at your confirmation hearing, auctioning slots does not make sense as a tool to address congestion," James May, chief executive of the Air Transport Association, said in a letter to LaHood dated January 22.

May urged LaHood to act before further litigation on the matter. Airlines sued to block the auctions on grounds the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lacked the authority to carry them out.

A US appeals court stayed the auction plan last month pending further court review.

The Bush administration had sought to sell up to 10 percent of rights for takeoffs and landings at LaGuardia and John F Kennedy airports in New York, and Newark in New Jersey, as a way to streamline operations and facilitate new service.

LaGuardia, Newark and JFK, all popular with business travellers, are among the worst airports in the United States for delays and congestion. Airlines tend to pack their schedules and run many flights with feeder aircraft, especially at LaGuardia.

The tie-ups add millions of dollars annually in industry operating costs, and tend to ripple across the country and affect flights in other cities.

US Airways, Delta Air Lines, Continental Airlines, American Airlines and United Airlines all have hubs or other operations at one or more of the three airports.

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