Thursday, July 30, 2015
VIENNA
Allegiant Air, the only commercial airline at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport, said Wednesday it’s working hard to move forward in contract negotiations with its pilots.
“It’s moving along nicely,” said Maurice J. Gallagher Jr., chairman and chief executive officer of Allegiant, during a conference call about the company’s second-quarter earnings.
The Las-Vegas based company reported operating income of $92.8 million in the second quarter of 2015 compared with $56.4 million in the second quarter of 2014 – a 64.5 percent increase.
Net income was $54.3 million in the second quarter of this year compared with $33.5 million in the second quarter of 2014 – a 62.1 percent increase.
Earnings per share were $3.18 for the second quarter compared with $1.86 in the same quarter of 2014.
“We are very proud to report our 50th-consecutive profitable quarter,” Gallagher said. “This is rare in our industry and demonstrates the flexibility of the company and the model through the extremes of the past dozen years.”
New routes that were not operated during the same quarter last year accounted for 91 percent of the growth in the quarter.
Five Airbus aircraft purchases drove the bulk of $68 million in capital expenditures for the second quarter of this year.
Allegiant also is looking to launch a loyalty program in the middle of next year.
“Just as important to our success has been the contribution of our team members. Their meaningful efforts have been the foundation of our success,” Gallagher said.
On the other hand, the company’s pilots, represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 1224, have issues with the reduction in benefits and deterioration of a scheduling system.
Allegiant filed for a preliminary injunction earlier this month before a federal court in Las Vegas that would permanently prevent a strike and allow the company and pilots to focus on negotiations.
The ongoing labor activities caused the Federal Aviation Administration to step up surveillance of the airline’s operations.
But Allegiant pilots issued a letter to Gallagher, which was dated Tuesday, stating they were deeply concerned about the “company’s bare minimum approach” to its operations.
“Specifically, we are writing to ask you to put an end to the company’s negotiating charade and join us in negotiations that will bring in fair, industry-standard policies,” the pilots stated.
Additionally, federal officials are investigating why an Allegiant Air passenger jet nearly ran out of fuel before landing at an airport that was temporarily closed to most traffic.
Allegiant said Tuesday it is cooperating with the FAA’s investigation of the incident.
The Allegiant plane with 144 passengers landed safely last Thursday at Hector International Airport in Fargo, N.D., after a flight from Las Vegas.
Though the Fargo airport was the flight’s intended destination, it was temporarily closed for practice by the Navy Blue Angels flying team.
An air-traffic controller can be heard telling an Allegiant pilot his company should have known about the closure, according to audio captured by the website LiveATC.net. The Allegiant pilot said he didn’t have enough fuel to reach another airport.
When the controller said there would be a window to land in Fargo in 20 minutes, the pilot responded, “I don’t have 20 minutes.”
In a statement emailed to The Associated Press, Allegiant did not say whether it knew about the temporary closure at the Fargo airport.
“At this time, we are coordinating with the FAA and the airport to investigate all channels of communication regarding the flight and the circumstances leading to the declaration of emergency,” the airline said.
The airline, a subsidiary of Allegiant Travel Co., offers flights to Orlando, Tampa and Fort Myers in Florida and Myrtle Beach, S.C., from Youngstown.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.