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  • GlobalStar Adds Belgian TMC Triton to Network

    GlobalStar Adds Belgian TMC Triton to Network

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    GlobalStar Travel Management has expanded its network with the addition of Belgium-based travel management company Triton Travel as a partner, the organization announced. Triton, which works with both small and midsized companies and larger corporates as well as government clients and start-ups, will “benefit from great supplier deals, technology and the knowledge that exists in the GlobalStar network,” according to Triton managing director Danny Vanderghinste. The GlobalStar TMC organization reports operations covering more than 2,500 locations in more than 55 countries.

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    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • STR: January U.S. Occupancy Slips as Rates Rise

    STR: January U.S. Occupancy Slips as Rates Rise

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    January U.S. hotel occupancy declined year over year while average
    daily rate and revenue per available room increased, according to hotel
    analytics firm STR.

    U.S. occupancy in January was 51.9 percent, down
    1.7 percent year over year     and also down from the 52.6 percent posted
    in December 2023    . 

    ADR increased 2.7 percent year over year to $146.33, a
    figure down from the $151.13 reported for December 2023. RevPAR increased 0.9
    percent year over year to $75.99.

    Hawaii’s Oahu Island posted the highest January occupancy
    level among STR’s top 25 markets at 79 percent, up 6.2 percent year over year.
    Minneapolis posted the lowest January occupancy STR’s top 25 markets at 40.7
    percent, followed by St. Louis at 43.7 percent.

    STR’s top 25 markets ” showed
    higher occupancy and ADR than all other markets,” according to the
    company.

    RELATED:STR
    December 2023 results

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    cdavis@thebtngroup.com (Chris Davis)

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  • Extended Stay America’s Kelly Poling

    Extended Stay America’s Kelly Poling

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    Hosted by BTN Editorial Director Elizabeth West

    As extended-stay competition heats up, an established player stays cool.

    Business Travel News editorial director Elizabeth West hosts Extended
    Stay America chief commercial officer Kelly Poling     to talk about
    business travel trajectory in 2024, the recent decline in extended-stay
    occupancy, new competition from major hotel brands, product
    diversification at ESA, and whether the company will move to
    attribute-based selling. Poling offers her vantage point in this BTN video interview.
     ___________________________________________________________________ 

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    businesstravelnews@ntmllc.com (Business Travel News)

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  • FCM Report Shows Q4 Rise in Global Corporate Airfares

    FCM Report Shows Q4 Rise in Global Corporate Airfares

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    Global airfares were up by double-digit percentages year
    over year in the fourth quarter, according to FCM’s Global Quarterly Trend
    Report. The report, based on FCM’s corporate booking data, showed economy
    airfares across 380 city pairs was up $76, or 17 percent, year over year, while
    business airfares increased by $246, or 15 percent.

    In North America, the largest economy fare increase was the
    route between New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and Los Angeles
    International Airport, up 33 percent. Business fares in North America, however,
    were largely down year over year in the fourth quarter. Business fares between
    JFK and Toronto registered the only increase, up 11 percent.

    FCM said airline global capacity is expected to exceed
    pre-pandemic levels this year but that airlines are adding more seats with
    fewer flights as a result of “fleet configuration changes and shifts in
    schedules to meet demand.” In North America, for example, FCM projects the
    number of available seats in the first half of this year will be up 7 percent
    compared with the first half of 2019, but the number of flights will be down 7
    percent. In Europe, the number of seats will be down 1 percent and flights down
    8 percent, according to the report.

    In addition to its own booking data, FCM’s report uses
    Cirium data in capacity analysis.

    On the hotel side, corporate average daily rates in North
    America for the fourth quarter were up 9 percent year over year, but they were
    up only 1 percent compared with the third quarter, which FCM said is an
    indication that rates are stabilizing. In Europe, rates were up 28 percent year
    over year but only 2 percent compared with the third quarter.

    Other regions showed less stable hotel rate movement. In
    Australia and New Zealand, for example, rates were up 19 percent year over year
    and 12 percent quarter over quarter. Corporate hotel rates were up 43 percent
    year over year in Asia and up 14 percent quarter over quarter.

    Car rental rates also are stabilizing, with the global
    average daily rate for car rental generally flat over the course of 2023 at
    $73, the report indicated. That is $20 higher than the ADR for 2019, however.

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  • Capital One Adds Lounge Capacity Tracking, Waitlist to Mobile App

    Capital One Adds Lounge Capacity Tracking, Waitlist to Mobile App

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    Capital One has introduced capacity monitoring and a virtual
    waitlist for its airport lounge network to better manage lounge capacity, the
    company announced.

    The features enable Venture X Business and Venture X
    cardholders to see the capacity of the lounges within the Capital One mobile
    app and join a waitlist when a lounge is at capacity. Once the lounge is
    available, travelers are notified and will have 15 minutes to arrive, with the
    capability within the app to let the lounge know if they are running late or
    decided not to come. Travelers can still join the waitlist in person at the
    lounge if they prefer.

    Capital One said the features are now available to “a
    majority of eligible cardholders” and will be available to the rest over
    the coming weeks.

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    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • Wyndham: Q4 RevPAR Slips Amid Choice ‘Distraction’

    Wyndham: Q4 RevPAR Slips Amid Choice ‘Distraction’

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    Wyndham Hotels & Resorts’ fourth-quarter systemwide revenue
    per available room slipped year over year amid what president and CEO Geoff
    Ballotti on a Thursday earnings call termed the “distraction” of
    Choice Hotels International’s hostile pursuit of the company. 

    Systemwide fourth-quarter RevPAR declined 1 percent year over year
    at constant-currency levels, and U.S. RevPAR declined 4 percent, Ballotti said,
    in part due to what he called a moderation of post-pandemic “revenge”
    leisure travel.

    Still, Ballotti said Wyndham has seen a “double-digit
    increase” in the infrastructure bookings that make up the lion’s share of
    the company’s business travel bookings. He cited several projects made possible
    by U.S. federal infrastructure spending that Wyndham hopes to capitalize on,
    and he noted that the company has “increased our sales force that’s
    selling to these infrastructure accounts by 25 percent.”

    Infrastructure-related travel bookings made up 22 percent of
    Wyndham’s 2023 gross room revenues, according to a presentation for investors,
    with “logistics and other” chipping in another 5 percent and
    corporate transient accounting for 2 percent.

    Ballotti again reiterated the Wyndham board’s opposition to Choice’s
    hostile bid for the company    , citing “the inadequacy of the value of
    the offer,” “the
    significant amount of Choice stock” in the offer and the possibility of
    federal regulatory review.

    Q4 Metrics and Outlook

    Wyndham’s fourth-quarter global RevPAR decreased 1 percent year
    over year at constant currency to $38.90. U.S RevPAR declined 4 percent to
    $44.06. International RevPAR increased 7 percent to $32.12.

    The company projected full-year 2024 systemwide RevPAR growth of 2
    percent to 3 percent year over year.

    Fourth-quarter net revenues were $321 million, compared with $334
    million one year prior. Net income was $50 million, compared to $56 million in
    the fourth quarter of 2022. 

    Wyndham’s total room count at the end of 2023 was 871,800 rooms,
    up about 3.5 percent from one year prior, with U.S. rooms up about 0.8. to
    497,600. Ballotti highlighted Echo,
    Wyndham’s new extended-stay brand    , a dozen of which he said are now
    under construction, with 75 planned to be open in 2026.

    RELATED:  Wyndham Q3
    performance

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    cdavis@thebtngroup.com (Chris Davis)

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  • Sabre: Q4 Air Bookings Growth Slows Amid ‘Temporary’ Corp. Travel Slowdown

    Sabre: Q4 Air Bookings Growth Slows Amid ‘Temporary’ Corp. Travel Slowdown

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    Air bookings through Sabre’s global distribution system slowed in the fourth quarter of 2023 due in part to a slowdown in corporate travel, though executives said that slowing trend has reversed in the first weeks of 2024.

    Sabre’s GDS air bookings through totaled 65.3 million, up 1 percent compared with the fourth quarter of 2023. By comparison, third-quarter air bookings were up 11 percent year over year.

    Sabre’s share of industry air bookings also was down slightly compared with the fourth quarter, at 33.2 percent compared with 34.1 percent in the third quarter. In an earnings call, Sabre CEO Kurt Ekert said the drop came largely from a “temporary slowdown in corporate travel” in the quarter combined with the usual seasonal corporate slowdown.

    “Corporate travel comprises a larger proportion of our client footprint and bookings relative to the GDS industry,” Ekert said. “We have seen a rebound of corporate bookings and resultant strong GDS marketshare performance trends as we start 2024.”

    Sabre’s air booking share for the fourth quarter was up 0.2 percentage points year over year, and for the full year, Sabre’s share was 33.8 percent, up from 32.6 percent in 2022.

    Besides a corporate travel rebound, Ekert said he was optimistic about other growth opportunities, including the continued return of longer-haul international capacity, which has been slower to recover post-pandemic comparted with short-haul international and domestic capacity. Ekert said that there has been a post-pandemic increase in airline direct-connect bookings with online travel agencies that “might be characterized as [New Distribution Capability],” which has had a “negative volume impact” for Sabre. He added, though, that there could be an opportunity to recapture that “as OTAs are seeking our help with automation, shopping and caching solutions to deal with their content, retailing and operational needs.” 

    NDC currently represents only about 1 percent of total volume from travel management companies and brick-and-mortar agencies, and those volumes are “flowing almost entirely through Sabre and other GDSs,” he said.

    Ekert added that low-cost carriers are “a largely untapped opportunity for Sabre” in growing volume and share.

    Non-air bookings through Sabre’s GDS in the fourth quarter grew 14 percent year over year to 12.9 million. Total Travel Solutions revenue was up 8 percent year over year to $621.9 million in the quarter, and Sabre’s average booking fee for the quarter was $6.09, up 11 percent year over year.

    Sabre reported a net loss of $96.4 million for the quarter, compared with a net loss of $165.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. For full-year 2023, Sabre’s net loss was $541.9 million, deepening from 2022’s net loss of $456.8 million. The bigger loss stemmed from an increase of $153 million in interest expenses as well as the $112 million gain in 2022 from Sabre’s sale of AirCentre.

    RELATED: Sabre Q3 results

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    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • Travelogix Expands Sustainability Options with Thrust Calculator

    Travelogix Expands Sustainability Options with Thrust Calculator

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    Travel data solution provider Travelogix is incorporating Thrust Carbon’s Carbon Calculator into its platform as part of a deepening partnership between the two companies, Thrust announced.

    With the integration, Travelogix will broaden its sustainability reporting capabilities beyond DEFRA metrics, and it will be able to offer clients a range of methodologies including ICAO, IATA and Thrust’s methodology. “The current limitations” of DEFRA reporting made the calculator integration “an absolute must due to the complexities and accuracies of the data for interested [travel management companies],” according to Travelogix founder and CEO Chris Lewis.

    At the same time, the companies are introducing a seamless automation for providing Thrust with clean travel data directly from Travelogix’s Analytix data management suite. That will approve accuracy and efficiency of sustainability reporting, letting companies set targets and carbon budgets and receive recommendations on how to reduce their carbon footprint, according to Thrust.

    Netherlands-based corporate travel agency Munckhof will pilot the calculator integration, while U.K.-based Norad Travel will pilot the automated data transfer capabilities.

    Travelogix in August 2022 announced a partnership with Thrust to provide TMC travel data to be processed as emissions data by Thrust.

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    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • EU OKs Korean Air-Asiana Merger

    EU OKs Korean Air-Asiana Merger

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    The European Commission has approved the merger of Korean Air and Asiana Airlines, Korean Air announced Tuesday. The carrier has secured the approval from 13 of the 14 regulatory authorities required. The remaining entity is the United States.

    The EC clearance for the merger is conditional and subject to Korean Air’s compliance with agreed-upon commitments, including divestment of Asiana Airlines’ cargo freighter business and “support to ensure the entry by a new airline on the four overlapping passenger routes between [South] Korea and the European Union,” according to Korean Air.

    Japan in late January was the most recent entity to approve the merger.

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    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Altour Projects Increasing but Stabilizing Business Travel Costs

    Altour Projects Increasing but Stabilizing Business Travel Costs

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    Travel costs in 2024 should increase year over year but not at the “torrid” pace seen in the previous two years, according to Altour’s 2024 Industry Forecast.

    Airline, hotel and car rental rates all are “stabilizing” this year as leisure travel is returning to the levels seen prior to the pandemic, according to Altour. In addition, capacity across the segments is beginning to meet or exceed demand.

    For air travel, Altour projects domestic U.S. airfares will increase 2 percent to 4 percent year over year, although increases in some hub markets could be more than that, given carriers’ built dominance in those markets. Airfares between the U.S. and both Europe and Latin/South America will increase 2 percent to 5 percent, according to the travel management company. Costs could decrease in other regions, such as the Asia/Pacific region, the forecast indicated.

    Altour also noted the corporate sales agreement negotiations in 2023 yielded fewer discount offerings, particularly in U.S. domestic travel that included hub markets, where companies saw “limited, if any, negotiating ability.” International premium travel remains “highly coveted” by airlines and is an area of leverage for travel buyers, and that leverage can be used to achieve better domestic discounts, according to Altour.

    For lodging, Altour projects an overall increase in 2024 average daily hotel rates of 2 percent to 5 percent year over year. The TMC’s hotel consulting team reported that 2024 rates across its consumer rates are up 2 percent.

    That increase is an average of “large fluctuations” among hotel types and markets, according to Altour. Markets servicing a combination of business, leisure and group customers—Chicago, London, Los Angeles, New York and Paris, for example— are projected to have increases above that average, particularly among higher-tier properties, according to Altour. Lower-tier properties, meanwhile, are becoming more dependent on corporate business as the leisure travel boom subsides and will have limited rate increases. Altour said its team has negotiated rates with some hotels in the tier with decreases as high as 10 percent year over year for 2024.

    Average daily car rental rates are projected to increase 3 percent to 4 percent year over year in 2024, according to the forecast. Altour said that while supply chain issues have improved for car rental companies, high labor costs, vehicle acquisition costs and inflation still are driving up rates.

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    mbaker@thebtngroup.com (Michael B. Baker)

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  • Report: U.S. Ext.-Stay 2023 Rates Rise Amid Record-Low Supply Growth

    Report: U.S. Ext.-Stay 2023 Rates Rise Amid Record-Low Supply Growth

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    U.S. extended-stay hotel available room supply in 2023 increased 1.8 percent year over year, the lowest increase on record, according to a new report by The Highland Group. Average daily rates in 2023 increased year over year, allowing for revenue per available room growth even as occupancy declined.

    The small increase in U.S. extended-stay room supply in 2023 follows a similarly modest increase the year prior. The last time such annual supply growth was less than 2 percent was in 2011 and 2012, according to Highland Group partner Mark Skinner, when in the subsequent two years, growth remained below long-term averages. 

    “We expect a similar pattern will emerge over the next two years given that interest rates and construction costs are much higher than they were a decade ago,” Skinner said in the report.

    Most of the 2023 increase in supply fell in the economy extended-stay tier, where the room count increased 6.6 percent year over year, while midprice supply increased 1.5 percent and upscale supply held steady.

    The U.S. extended-stay pipeline, however, is starting to show some sign of a rebound. Rooms under construction in 2023 increased 53 percent, bringing it to a level seen in 2020 after sharp declines in 2021 and 2022.

    Several hotel companies in the past 18 months have announced the development of new extended-stay brands, including Hilton Worldwide, Marriott International, Hyatt Hotels Corp. and Best Western parent BWH Hotel Group.  

    Still, “the near-term risk of extended-stay hotel over supply is very low nationally … and plenty of excess extended-stay demand remains,” Skinner said in a statement. That should allow extended-stay hoteliers to maintain a level of pricing power after another year of rate increases in 2023.

    Overall U.S. extended-stay hotel ADR increased 4.7 percent year over year to $118.80, with upscale ADR up 5.4 percent to $156.43. Overall occupancy declined 0.4 percent to 74.9 percent, although in the upscale tier it increased 1.2 percent to 75.7 percent.

    The rate gains fueled a 2023 RevPAR increased 4.7 percent year over year to $88.98. Skinner noted that RevPAR increase outpaced that of the broader hotel industry, and given projections of year-over-year growth in hotel RevPAR of 3 percent to 5 percent in 2024, “we expect that to continue for the foreseeable future.”

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  • Sales Vet Kristen Shovlin to Retire from Delta

    Sales Vet Kristen Shovlin to Retire from Delta

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    Delta Air Lines VP of sales operations and innovation Kristen Shovlin has announced her retirement, according to a Friday Delta Business LinkedIn post. She has led the sales operations and development team for about 14 years, according to Delta.

    Shovlin joined the airline’s global sales team in 2008, “where she launched the sales operations function with industry-first innovations,” according to Delta. Prior to joining the carrier, she led reservations, customer care and sales support at Northwest Airlines and began her career in 1985 with Republic Airlines as a part-time reservations agent. 

    BTN recognized her as one of the 25 most influential executives in business travel in 2012. Shovlin also was a founding member of the Global Business Travel Association Winit strategic advisory board, and GBTA in 2022 recognized her as one of the “Top 50 Women in Travel.”

    GBTA CEO Suzanne Neufang commented on LinkedIn that Shovlin has been “a beacon of inspiration in our industry. You are leaving big shoes to fill!”

    The date of Shovlin’s last day wasn’t immediately disclosed, nor has Delta announced her successor. Delta did not immediately respond to a request for comment and additional information.

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    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • Former Biz Travel Lead to Take Helm at Expedia

    Former Biz Travel Lead to Take Helm at Expedia

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    Expedia has named Ariane Gorin CEO effective May 13 after announcing
    Peter Kern’s resignation yesterday. Gorin currently serves as president of
    Expedia for Business, overseeing the travel giant’s global B2B business that
    covers an ecosystem of travel suppliers, organizations that advertise on the Expedia
    Group platform and partners powered by Expedia Group technology.

    Gorin also oversaw Egencia, the business travel management
    platform, before its sale to American Express Global Business Travel in 2021.

    Gorin has been with Expedia in various executive roles since
    2013. Expedia Group chairman and senior executive Barry Diller said in a
    statement released about the appointment, “We very much wanted an internal
    candidate to succeed to the CEO position,” and cited Gorin’s “exemplary
    leadership” as key to the decision.  

    Gorin led the Expedia for Business division to 33 percent
    B2B revenue growth in 2023 over 2022. She was central to the dealmaking team that sold
    Egencia
    to Amex GBT in 2021,     while retaining a clear foothold in business travel with
    a long-term content commitment wherein Amex GBT pipes hotel content in from
    Expedia Group to “enhance GBT’s Supply Marketplace,” Gorin said at the time,
    while cementing a business travel revenue stream via bookings for Expedia
    content from the largest business travel agency in the world.

    Diverse revenue streams may prove critical in 2024 with
    Expedia cautioning about a slightly softening travel market going into the new
    year. On the company’s earnings call yesterday, outgoing CEO Kern said, “On
    a macro level, we expect travel demand to remain relatively healthy, but we
    expect growth rates across the world to decelerate.” The company cited falling
    airfare prices from post-pandemic highs as a particular pressure.

    Wells Fargo analysts wrote in a note that the company’s “near-term
    set up looks challenging.” They cited “an ‘acceleration story’ that is
    decelerating with a CEO transition now in play.”

    After completing his term in May, Kern will continue to
    serve as Expedia’s vice chairman and as a member of the board of directors.
    Gorin also has been elected to serve on the board of directors.

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    EWest@thebtngroup.com (Elizabeth West)

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  • Market Compression and Rising Costs Push Mtgs. Bookings to Secondary Cities

    Market Compression and Rising Costs Push Mtgs. Bookings to Secondary Cities

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    Meetings bookings continue to ride a wave of demand in 2024,
    with meeting organizers challenged by rising rates and continuous competition
    for space—especially in top markets. The result, according to meetings industry
    analyst Knowland, is a growing shift to secondary cities.

    January data showed meetings business booked in cities
    outside the firm’s traditional top 25 markets growing at a considerably faster pace
    than in the top-tier group, even while the latter continues to post strong
    numbers.

    Lexington, Ky. led secondary markets with 76.4 percent
    growth in its year-over-year January meetings volume, led by a concentration of
    education industry groups. Syracuse, NY. followed with 34.6 percent growth
    thanks to a strong showing of social and sports-oriented groups. State
    associations helped power Richmond, Va.’s 33.4 percent boost in January
    meetings volume, while Oklahoma City saw a large concentration of technology
    companies underneath its 29.1 percent increase in meetings volume. National
    associations drove a 24.1 percent increase in Louisville, Ky.

    Larger markets remained strong in January, led by hotspot Nashville,
    which gained 16.1 percent over January 2023 meetings volume, led by technology
    companies, healthcare, associations, manufacturing and pharmaceutical business.
    Detroit grew 10.4 percent, boosted by education, banking, manufacturing and
    association groups. New Orleans realized a 7.8 percent year-over-year increase,
    with an influx of association, technology, healthcare, education and nonprofit
    groups, while San Francisco drew pharmaceutical, banking, tech, associations
    and healthcare groups for a 7.3 percent boost in January. Association,
    technology, manufacturing, healthcare and nonprofit groups helped drive a 5.3
    percent meetings volume increase in Tampa last month.

    Northstar Meetings Group’s January Pulse Survey showed major concerns over the elevated cost environment, not only citing accommodation rates, where suppliers project they will maintain pricing power in 2024, but also in terms of food and beverage costs and audiovisual costs. Meeting organizers also cited slow or even lack of response to request for proposals as a major challenge in the high-demand environment, which could be another factor pushing business to secondary markets, where the ease of doing business could be more attractive.

    Knowland’s business mix analysis was notable for the presence
    of technology companies posting a strong showing on the meetings map in
    January. Technology and banking sectors had been a notable holdout in terms of
    business and meetings travel recovery, but major hoteliers in recent months
    have noted an uptick in recent months even for industries that were slower to reach
    pace for travel and meetings bookings.

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    EWest@thebtngroup.com (Elizabeth West)

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  • Itilite Adds Card Product

    Itilite Adds Card Product

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    India-based travel and expense management platform Itilite has launched a card product, providing both physical and virtual cards for payment of travel spending, the company announced. The company, which in recent years has been building its U.S. presence, said it is allowing clients free issuance of unlimited cards, which also enable integration between travel, expense and payment as well as spending controls. The cards come with a 1.5 percent cashback credited to company accounts, and clients that spend at least $100,000 per month on travel receive an additional 1 percent cashback, according to Itilite.

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  • Delta Invests in Premium Lounges, Set to Open in 2024

    Delta Invests in Premium Lounges, Set to Open in 2024

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    Delta Air Lines—which along with American Airlines and United Airlines has seen a continued uptick in premium demand since the pandemic—is investing in premium lounges currently set to join Sky Club lounges at three U.S. airports, the carrier announced Thursday. 

    The first premium lounge is slated to open in June at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. At 38,000 square feet, including a year-round terrace, the premium lounge will be the largest in the Delta network, according to the carrier. The lounge will complement Delta’s recently opened Sky Club in Terminal 4 near Gate A7, along with a third club on Concourse B.

    The other two premium lounges are planned to open during the fourth quarter of 2024, in each Los Angeles and Boston. The Los Angeles International Airport lounge will be 10,000 square feet, feature an outdoor terrace and be directly accessible by elevator from the Delta One check-in area. The new premium lounge will join Delta’s Sky Club, which opened in 2022, as part of the carrier’s LAX modernization plan.

    At Boston Logan International Airport, the premium lounge will join three already-opened Sky Clubs, the most recent of which debuted in August 2023. The premium lounge will include 6,300 square feet for up to 120 guests and will be connected to the BOS-E Delta Sky Club, according to Delta. Premium lounge guests in Boston will have access to both lounge spaces, however “access guidelines” to the JFK and LAX premium clubs “are still being finalized.”

    The existing Sky Clubs and the new premium lounges “will be separate products with separate features,” according to a Delta spokesperson, and the carrier does not have current plans to reposition existing clubs. The airline provided no further detail on the new lounges’ features.

    As travel returned following the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, airport lounge demand increased to the point where there were long lines to gain access to some clubs. A little more than a year ago, Delta tried to address this challenge with increased Sky Club membership prices and restricted access in order to “preserve a best-in-class experience.”

    “We want each of our guests to receive a highly personalized and dedicated level of service,” Delta VP of Sky Club and lounge experience Claude Roussel said in a statement. “Premium lounge customers should feel welcomed and known when they walk in the door, just as they would at their favorite hotel or restaurant.”

    Additional New, Expanded Delta Sky Clubs

    In addition to the new premium lounges in the works, Delta has plans to open or expand four more Sky Club lounges this year. 

    New clubs are projected to open during the fourth quarter in each Charlotte and Seattle. Delta’s first lounge at Charlotte Douglas International Airport will be nearly 15,000 square feet and seat more than 250 people. The lounge at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport’s Terminal A will be more than 21,000 square feet, according to Delta. 

    Scheduled for an early summer 2024 debut is an expanded Sky Club at Terminal C in New York’s LaGuardia Airport, with the addition of a Sky Deck and more than 100 seats. Delta also during the second quarter plans to open an expanded Sky Club at Miami International Airport, which when complete will be about 12,000 square feet and accommodate up to 320 guests, according to Delta.

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  • SITA: 2023 IT Spend for Airlines, Airports Up

    SITA: 2023 IT Spend for Airlines, Airports Up

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    IT spend by airlines and airports in 2023 increased year over year, and more than two-thirds of surveyed airline and airport chief information officers expect continued growth into 2024, according to airline industry technology provider SITA’s 2023 Air Transport IT Insights report, released Tuesday. 

    Planned airline IT spend in 2023 was $34.5 billion, up from $30 billion in 2022. Planned 2023 airport spend was $10.8 billion, up from $8.8 billion a year prior.

    SITA for the report between August and November 2023 surveyed more than “250 senior airline and airport executives, covering a quarter of global passenger traffic.” 

    For airlines, top IT investment priorities include cybersecurity (97 percent of respondents), passenger services (95 percent), cloud services (95 percent) and business intelligent solutions (90 percent). For airports, the top IT investment priorities also included cybersecurity (100 percent of respondents), passenger processing (95 percent), commercial services (94 percent) and airport security (93 percent). 

    One area getting respondents’ attention is passenger identity verification. About 44 percent of airlines have implemented touchless technologies and 35 percent use biometrics for this purpose, according to SITA. Another 24 percent plan to implement touchless by the end of 2026, and 35 percent plan to add biometrics by that time. Ninety percent of airports are investing in major programs or R&D related to biometrics, according to the report.

    For other technology investments, business intelligence is the biggest area for airlines in the coming three years, with 73 percent of respondents investing in “major programs.” Nearly two-thirds of airports and airlines collect and integrate data, and with the rise of generative artificial intelligence, they are “looking to AI and machine learning to leverage this data and generate insights,” according to SITA. Nearly all airlines (97 percent) and 82 percent of airports are investing in AI by 2026.

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  • Recovering Corp. Travel Boosts Hilton’s Q4

    Recovering Corp. Travel Boosts Hilton’s Q4

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    Powered by gains in business transient and small corporate
    group revenue, Hilton Worldwide on Wednesday reported an overall fourth-quarter
    year-over-year revenue per available room increase of 5.7 percent. Meanwhile,
    Hilton announced a loyalty partnership with the Small Luxury Hotels of the
    World boutique hotel collection.

    Fourth-quarter business transient RevPAR increased 4 percent
    year over year on higher occupancy and rates, Hilton president and CEO
    Christopher Nassetta said Wednesday during an earnings call. The gains again
    were led by small and midsized enterprises, he said, but noted that larger
    companies were recovering too.

    “The big corporates finished the year still a bit off,
    probably 5 percent off of where they were but still growing,” Nassetta
    said. “Most segments were relatively strong and either back to or beyond
    prior to pandemic levels, with the exception of probably banking, technology
    and consulting, which were less. But blended together, they weren’t that far
    off.”

    The big corporates finished the year still a bit off, probably 5 percent off of where they were but still growing.”

    Hilton’s Chris Nassetta

    SMEs accounted for about 85 percent of Hilton’s business
    transient mix, as well as a “meaningful and growing percentage of our
    group mix,” he said, and that segment’s RevPAR has surpassed pre-pandemic
    levels. 

    In Q4, “from a RevPAR point of view, business transient
    was ahead, but from an occupancy point of view was still a bit behind,”
    Nassetta said. “We do think that by the time we finish this year, assuming
    the broader consensus view of a reasonably soft landing … we think will be at
    more normalized levels of demand.”

    “Thousands” of organizations have registered for
    the company’s Hilton for Business rewards program, designed for SMEs, since it
    was unveiled
    in January    , he said. 

    Small company meetings helped Hilton’s fourth-quarter group
    RevPAR increase 6 percent year over year, Nassetta said, and the sector remains
    red-hot. “Demand is really strong, he said. “Every quarter is the
    next new high-water mark in terms of bookings for all future periods.”

    Q4 Metrics, 2024 Outlook

    Hilton projected year-over-year increases in first-quarter
    and full-year 2024 RevPAR of 2 percent to 4 percent, a figure below that of
    some recent industry projections, including that of STR and Tourism Economics, which
    forecast     4.1 percent 2024 growth. Still, Nassetta projected Hilton would
    have “pricing power” in the business transient segment and
    “everywhere else,” given “very low supply numbers that are
    continuing and continued decent economic growth.”

    Hilton’s systemwide fourth-quarter average daily rate was
    $156.07, up 2.7 percent year over year. Occupancy increased 2 percentage points
    to 69 percent. RevPAR increased 5.7 percent to $107.69.

    Total fourth-quarter revenue increased 6.7 percent to $2.6
    billion. Net income was $150 million, compared with $333 million in the fourth
    quarter of 2022.

    Hilton’s development pipeline at the end of the fourth
    quarter comprised 462,400 rooms, a record and an 11 percent increase year over
    year.

    Small Luxury Hotels of the World Partnership

    Hilton also announced a partnership with Small Luxury Hotels
    of the World in which customers will be able to book through Hilton channels
    participating properties in the boutique hotelier’s 560-property collection,
    and Hilton Honors loyalty program members will be able to earn and redeem
    loyalty points. Hilton said the partnership would “ramp up in the months
    ahead.”

    While many SLH properties are in resort locations, a number
    are in urban locations, Nassetta said, and “I think business transient
    will be a meaningful component of it, particularly in those hotels in the right
    locations.”

    SLH formerly had formed a similar loyalty
    alliance with Hyatt Hotels Corp.,     but a Hyatt spokesperson confirmed to BTN
    that the companies had “mutually made the decision to end our relationship
    with SLH in the near future,” though World of Hyatt loyalty program members
    still can book participating SLH Hotels on Hyatt booking channels. Hyatt in
    2024 plans to integrate boutique properties listed in Mr & Mrs Smith, the
    London-based booking platform it acquired last year, according to the
    spokesperson.

    RELATED: Hilton
    Q3 performance

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    cdavis@thebtngroup.com (Chris Davis)

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  • Latam’s St. George to Return to JetBlue as President

    Latam’s St. George to Return to JetBlue as President

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    Former JetBlue chief commercial officer Marty St. George on Feb. 26 will return to the carrier and assume the role of president, the airline announced Wednesday. St. George will succeed and report to Joanna Geraghty, who on Feb. 12 will take over as JetBlue CEO.

    In his new role, St. George will oversee marketing, loyalty, network planning, airline partnerships, sales and revenue management, customer support, enterprise and operational planning and corporate communications, according to JetBlue. He also will oversee JetBlue Travel Products, which will continue to be run day-to-day by its president, Andres Barry.

    St. George most recently was chief commercial officer at Chilean carrier Latam. Prior to joining Latam in 2020, he operated an airline strategy consulting practice, where one of his roles was as interim chief commercial officer at Norwegian Air Shuttle, according to JetBlue.  

    He was at JetBlue from 2006 to 2019 in various senior roles, including leading the carrier’s entry into airline partnerships and product strategy, according to the carrier. Prior to JetBlue, St. George held marketing and network leadership roles over nearly two decades at United and US Airways.

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    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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  • NTSB: Bolts Missing on Boeing 737 Max with Door-Plug Blowout

    NTSB: Bolts Missing on Boeing 737 Max with Door-Plug Blowout

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    Four “missing” bolts appear to be the cause of the Jan. 5 door-plug blowout on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, according to a preliminary report released Tuesday by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board. The incident led to a grounding by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration of 171 Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft in the U.S., which was only recently lifted after approved inspections were completed.

    Manufacturing records reviewed by the NTSB showed that Spirit AeroSystems Malaysia manufactured the middle exit door plug on March 24, 2023, and it was received by Spirit AeroSystems Wichita on May 10. The MED plug was installed and rigged on the fuselage before it was shipped to Boeing on Aug. 20. The fuselage arrived at Boeing’s Renton, Wash., facility on Aug. 31.  

    There was work done on Sept. 19 to repair five damaged rivets “on the edge frame forward of the left MED plug,” according to the report. Removal of the bolts was needed to repair the rivets. The repair was completed by Spirit AeroSystems personnel. 

    A photo obtained from Boeing that was attached to a text message between Boeing staff on Sept. 19 “shows evidence of the left-hand MED plug closed with no retention hardware (bolts) in the three visible locations” of where the bolts should have been, according to the report. The ongoing investigation will work to determine what manufacturing documents were used to authorize the opening and closing of the left MED plug during the rivet rework. 

    “Whatever final conclusions are reached, Boeing is accountable for what happened,” Boeing president and CEO Dave Calhoun said in a statement. “An event like this must not happen on an airplane that leaves our factory. We are implementing a comprehensive plan to strengthen quality and the confidence of our stakeholders.”

    The aircraft manufacturer has implemented new inspections of Boeing 737 Max 9 door-plug assembly and similar structures at its supplier’s factory and on Boeing’s production line. The company also is implementing plans to improve the overall quality and stability across the 737 production system, according to Boeing.

    The NTSB report was released the same day FAA administrator Michael Whitaker made a statement before the aviation subcommittee of the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, saying that “our findings during inspections of those aircraft showed that the quality issues at Boeing were unacceptable and require further scrutiny. That is why we are increasing oversight activities.”

    The agency also has increased its oversight activities, including capping expanded production of new Boeing 737 Max aircraft, launching an investigation scrutinizing Boeing’s compliance with manufacturing requirements, having increased floor presence at all Boeing facilities, closely monitoring data to identify and mitigate significant safety trends and risks in the system, and launching an analysis of potential safety-focused reforms around quality control and delegation.

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    dairoldi@thebtngroup.com (Donna M. Airoldi)

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