Airline Weekly Lounge Podcast

It’s that time of year again: earnings! Delta Air Lines kicked off the first quarter results season with better than expected financials that reflected the two halves of the quarter; one characterized by Omicron and the other by pent-up demand. Edward “Ned” Russell and Madhu Unnikrishnan also discuss how the U.S. pilot shortage has spread to mid-size carriers Alaska Airlines and JetBlue.

European low-cost carrier easyJet isn’t doing as well as competing LCCs Ryanair and Wizz Air. But make no mistake: easyJet is doing well. The airline’s 20% operating profit margin for the April-through-September period puts it among the most profitable carriers in the world at the moment.

In the U.S., Delta and Alaska Airlines have been waging a battle for Seattle for years. And more recently, Delta and JetBlue are brawling in Boston. Is it possible all three airlines are making money at these highly contested airports? LATAM continues to rebound from the Brazilian recession. Avianca had a good summer despite labor strife and ending service to Venezuela. Finally, we close this episode looking at some growing and slowing airports.

Ethiopian Airlines is growing aggressively—and apparently profitably—while other African carriers are struggling. The airline’s centralized location seems to give it a big advantage over other African carriers. Meanwhile, Ethiopian doesn’t face a lot of competition within Africa. Have its fortunate location and smart business moves made it the biggest carrier in Africa?

In India, where there are way too many seats flying around to easily do business, Indigo is nonetheless making money—perhaps even more than Ethiopian. We also discuss the U.S. Export-Import Bank and, of the world’s 100 biggest airports, which are the fastest-growing and slowest-growing (if not shrinking) ... and why?

Edward Russell and Jay Shabat discuss the latest Airline Weekly profit rankings for the second quarter. Plus, the latest developments at Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific.