canyonblue
Everyone loves Southwest
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- Nov 26, 2001
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Southwest Air CFO: Still Rebuilding New Orleans Service
By Ann Keeton, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
CHICAGO -(Dow Jones)- Rebuilding service to New Orleans will remain the top priority this year for Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV), Chief Financial Officer Laura Wright said at an airline conference Wednesday.
By March, the airline will operate 19 daily flights to the Louisiana city, still short of the 26 daily flights it operated before Hurricane Katrina devastated the area last year.
Ticket bookings remain strong, with new service to the Denver market performing well, Wright said. Las Vegas is the top passenger market for Southwest, with 216 daily departures. The airline hasn't yet decided whether to add service to an additional city in 2006, Wright said.
Southwest still expects its costs this year to remain flat with 2005, excluding the cost of fuel and a charge for expensing stock options.
Fuel hedging continues to give the airline a significant advantage over competitors this year. In 2006, the airline has hedged 70% of its fuel needs at $36 a barrel. But, as fuel hedges expire over the next five years, Wright said Southwest will need to generate higher revenue to cover the added cost. The airline expects to do that with gradual increases in fare prices, Wright said.
Wright said Southwest remains committed to being the lowest-cost U.S. airline. So far, she said, it doesn't make sense to add in-flight services that passengers would pay for, as low cost competitor JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU) is considering. The airline is fighting a $24 million bill it received in January for services by the Transportation Security Administration, a government agency, for providing airport security in 2005.
"It's hard to tell you whether we will be successful," Wright said.
***...to cover the added cost. The airline expects to do that with gradual increases in fare prices***
I don't know if that has ever been tried before in this industry.
By Ann Keeton, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
CHICAGO -(Dow Jones)- Rebuilding service to New Orleans will remain the top priority this year for Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV), Chief Financial Officer Laura Wright said at an airline conference Wednesday.
By March, the airline will operate 19 daily flights to the Louisiana city, still short of the 26 daily flights it operated before Hurricane Katrina devastated the area last year.
Ticket bookings remain strong, with new service to the Denver market performing well, Wright said. Las Vegas is the top passenger market for Southwest, with 216 daily departures. The airline hasn't yet decided whether to add service to an additional city in 2006, Wright said.
Southwest still expects its costs this year to remain flat with 2005, excluding the cost of fuel and a charge for expensing stock options.
Fuel hedging continues to give the airline a significant advantage over competitors this year. In 2006, the airline has hedged 70% of its fuel needs at $36 a barrel. But, as fuel hedges expire over the next five years, Wright said Southwest will need to generate higher revenue to cover the added cost. The airline expects to do that with gradual increases in fare prices, Wright said.
Wright said Southwest remains committed to being the lowest-cost U.S. airline. So far, she said, it doesn't make sense to add in-flight services that passengers would pay for, as low cost competitor JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU) is considering. The airline is fighting a $24 million bill it received in January for services by the Transportation Security Administration, a government agency, for providing airport security in 2005.
"It's hard to tell you whether we will be successful," Wright said.
***...to cover the added cost. The airline expects to do that with gradual increases in fare prices***
I don't know if that has ever been tried before in this industry.
