Company Watch - British Airways

New York (AirGuideBusiness - Company Watch) May 10, 2009

She worked previously as a reporter at the Spartanburg Herald- Journal, in South Carolina, and the Spokesman-Review, in Spokane, Washington -- where as an intern she was dispatched to the state legislature to rifle through lawmakers' expenses. A trawl through box after box of airline tickets and room service bills brought no story, but left Brooke certain about the importance of accountability.U.K. flag carrier British Airways said the downward trend of falling traffic ceased in April and proportionally filled more seats due to capacity cuts. Traffic measured in revenue passenger kilometers, or RPKs, last month rose 0.9 percent from a year earlier to 9.36 billion RPKs, with total passenger numbers up 1.3 percent at 2.8 million. April's traffic figures were boosted by the timing of Easter, a key period for leisure travel, which fell in April this year and in March, 2008. However, its lucrative premium traffic dropped 17.7 percent on the year, with non-premium traffic up 5.2 percent, BA said. BA said market conditions remained "very challenging, with volume under pressure in premium and yield under pressure in all cabins," and added that yield weakness is being driven by both price and fare mix. It said it was too early to give any indication of the impact of the recent outbreak of swine flu. Traffic to and from the Asia-Pacific region was hardest hit, down 7.1 percent, while all other regions showed increases. Traffic to and from Europe, including the U.K., was the best performing region, up 3 percent. A 2.4 percent cut in capacity meant load factors, which measures how many seats an airline fills with paying passengers, increase 2.6 percentage points to 78.1 percent. Capacity is measured in available seat kilometers. At 1321 GMT, shares traded up 10 pence, or 6.3 percent, at 176 pence. May 6, 2009The court rejected Martin's appeal in May last year, ordering the release of around 2 million receipts submitted by lawmakers.British Airways has reported a sharp decline in premium traffic over April as demand from the corporate travel market continues to drop. The airline's 17.7 percent decrease in demand for business and first class seats deepens the 13 percent decline seen in March. "Market conditions remain very challenging, with volume under pressure in premium and yield under pressure in all cabins. Yield weakness is driven by both price and fare mix," BA said. Airlines have come under pressure as businesses cutback in the midst of a global recession. But BA last week said it would offer 5,000 flights worth [pounds sterling]15m to help small and medium sized (SMEs) UK companies. www.ba.com May 7, 2009Undeterred, Brooke made a second attempt in 2005, which was also blocked."Britain trades on a mythical reputation about the health of its democracy," she said.

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