As the airline industry faces sky-high fuel prices, Northwest Airlines announced tonight that it will make even steeper cuts than initially planned.
More Photos
The carrier announced an 8.5 percent to 9.5 percent reduction in capacity for its mainline network for the fourth quarter of 2008, as compared to the fourth quarter of 2007. Northwest said it plans to reduce its DC-9 fleet from 94 to 61 planes this year.
Given fuel prices and "the potential recession," Northwest CEO Douglas M. Steenland announced the cuts at the Merrill Lynch Global Transportation Conference, saying, "I think the access that Northwest holds positions us as well as anybody."
In the past few months, all the nation's major airlines have decided to cut down on the number of planes they fly, and to cut staff as fuel prices have reached record highs. Besides Northwest, Delta, Continental, US Airways, American and United have also announced reductions in the number of planes they will fly.
Today's cuts include those that the carrier previously announced in April. At that time, Northwest said it would remove 15 to 20 aircraft from service -- two this month and the rest in the fall. At that point, the carrier said that in September, it would reduce domestic system capacity by 5 percent, versus its 2008 business plan.
"We don't anticipate anything in addition, but if fuel continues to be challenging, we will have the wherewithall to take additional action," Steenland said today.
Steenland also said the carrier remains pleased with its spring decision to merge with Delta, and called the potential merger "a game changer" that will make the combined carrier "a long-term player in the business." Given the rising price of fuel, he said the potential merger makes even more sense.
To combat fuel prices, several carriers have recently announced they'll charge extra fees, including requiring passengers to pay for a first-checked bag.
"We continue to study the question of whether there ought to be a fee with the first bag," Steenland said.
Northwest has not yet announced which cities or regions of the country will be affected by the cutbacks.
No comments:
Post a Comment