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| Sunday, 25 May 2003 |
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Business |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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SWISS subsidiary for regional operations The airline service of Switzerland, SWISS is modifying its original business model to take account of new market conditions. The industry is presently in a state of flux and in Europe in particular, this means offering lower-cost connections, the airline said. The SWISS Board of Directors has therefore resolved to create a separate subsidiary for regional operations, to be known as SWISS Express. Fears of SWISS being grounded were squashed by a media release from the international airline. No doubt, the threat of SARS has had its toll on the airline industry, but SWISS has sufficient liquidity, despite sizeable losses sustained in early 2003, and there is no question of the airline being grounded, the media release said. SWISS Express will operate from the start of the 2003/04 winter time table period. It will offer a competitively-priced product that is carefully tailored to the regional air travel market, by reducing the cost of regional operations by some 20 per cent from their current levels. The SWISS Express Fleet is expected to consist of SAAB 2000, Avro RJ 85/100, Embraer 145 and (later) the new Embraer 170 and 195 aircraft. The new company will be a fully-owned subsidiary with its own Board of Directors and executive management. The SWISS Board of Directors and executive management have resolved a series of tactical and strategic measures to ensure the airline's sustained success. In view of the SARS epidemic, and the collapse in passenger volumes due to the Iraq War, SWISS has already made extensive temporary adjustments to its schedules. The airline intends to further pursue its current strategy of operating its own network. The company has the means and the basis to operate profitably once the temporary factors prompting the present industry crisis are removed. In doing so, SWISS will continue to provide Switzerland with its connections to the world airline network, thereby making a substantial contribution to the country's economic development. (PJ) |
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