LAN Airlines SA (LFL), one of the leading airlines in Latin America, reported its preliminary monthly traffic statistics and punctuality indicators for January 2010.
Total passenger traffic for January increased 17.6% year over year. International passenger traffic accounted for approximately 70% of total passenger traffic and domestic passenger traffic accounted for the rest.
Domestic passenger traffic in Chile, Argentina, Peru and Ecuador rose 10.9% while International passenger traffic rose 20.6%.
During the month of January, cargo traffic increased 25.5%. This increase was mainly due to the recovery in import and export markets in Latin America, as well as increased operations to Europe. Of the company’s total flights, 86.4% left on time based on a fifteen-minute standard. This represented a decrease of 4.2 points compared to January 2009.
In December 2009, LAN ordered 30 new Airbus A320 aircraft for the company’s regional and domestic passenger operations (including the domestic operations of its affiliates), to be delivered between 2011 and 2016. In addition to this purchase, LAN’s strategic fleet renewal plan involves the sale of five Airbus A318 aircraft in 2011. Continuing with the expansion and renewal of its fleet, LAN received two new Boeing 767-300 passenger aircraft during the fourth quarter of 2009.
During the fourth quarter of 2009, LAN signed an agreement with Sabre, one of the airline industry’s major operational systems solutions providers globally, to upgrade and incorporate the most advanced technology in the company’s reservations and distribution system, itinerary optimization and operations planning. The implementation process for the new system platforms includes an adjustment and migration period of two to three years. All these will take LAN much higher than the present condition.
Read the full analyst report on “LFL”
Zacks Investment Research