At age 86, FAA examiner keeps new pilots in Dallas on their toes
For almost six decades, FAA examiner has kept new pilots on their toes
12:00 AM CDT on Friday, September 28, 2007
By JOANNA CATTANACH / The Dallas Morning News
jcattanach@dallasnews.com
His black and white cap tilted at a rakish angle, T.M. Smith readied himself Tuesday afternoon for another test flight with a painfully nervous pilot.
At a spry 86, the World War II veteran and Federal Aviation Administration examiner has been through this routine thousands of times.
The aircrafts may have changed since he first became an examiner about 57 years ago, but the pilots haven't.
"They're all nervous," said Mr. Smith, who tests navigation, pilotage and instrument flying skills.
It's hard to imagine seasoned and rookie pilots fearing Mr. Smith, or Smitty as he's better known around Addison Airport. The fair-skinned grandfatherly figure with a patch of white hair and whisper of a mustache isn't exactly a physically intimidating presence.
But don't let the wrinkles and hearing limitations fool you. Smitty takes his flying seriously and students like Tom Hunse know it.
"His reputation is tough," said Mr. Hunse, who described his first experience in the cockpit with Smitty as "daunting."
"I was surprised, on meeting him, at his stature," Mr. Hunse said. "He carries a seat cushion with him to the airplane."
By his estimates, Mr. Smith has logged 47,000 hours in the skies in and around Dallas and examined 10,000 students. And he has no intention of quitting anytime soon, although his wife of 62 years, Joan, hopes otherwise.
"She would like for me to be home more than I am," Smitty said.
For now, the Ranger, Texas, native continues to educate himself on new aircraft and new technology.
His parents helped pay the $40 fee for ground school. Back in the 1940s, he flew missions for the Royal Canadian Air Force.
"You had to fly primarily by looking out the window," he recalled. Now, "It's easier because the airplanes are easier to fly."
His back office at Classic Aviation in Addison is a testament to 66 years in aviation. A bright yellow replica of a Piper Cub, the plane he flew to get his pilot's license, sits on a filing cabinet near black-and-white photos of cocky, young pilots from his war days.
"I did nothing very distinguished except survive," Mr. Smith said. "Three-fourths of my classmates didn't."
The veteran aviator with an airplane belt buckle and tie once dreamed of becoming a sportswriter. Retired Dallas Morning News sports columnist Blackie Sherrod is his hero.
But it's hard to imagine him doing anything else, says Cassie Green, owner of Classic Aviation.
"He probably knows more about flying any kind of airplane than anybody out there," Ms. Green said. "He just loves it. He's a natural."
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Iceland Fund Puts Heat on AMR
Iceland Fund Puts Heat on AMR
By DANA CIMILLUCA
September 27, 2007; Page A10
AMR Corp. has an unruly passenger on board.
FL Group, a $6 billion investment fund from Reykjavik, Iceland, sent a letter to the American Airlines parent's board on Tuesday urging the company to consider alternatives, including the spinoff of its AAdvantage frequent-flier program, to boost a stock that has fallen almost 50% since January.
FL Group said in the letter it has accumulated an 8.3% stake in the carrier. Previously, it had disclosed a stake of less than 6%.
FL Group says AAdvantage is worth about $6 billion. That is greater than the $5.4 billion market capitalization of all of AMR, based in Fort Worth, Texas, the world's biggest airline by passenger traffic.
"It's a no-brainer," said Hannes Smarason, chief executive of FL, in an interview. He also said AMR should consider offloading its aircraft-maintenance and -repair unit and its American Eagle regional airline. "It's a tough environment for the airlines now, and it's incumbent on the management and the board to find avenues where value can be created."
The fund has tried quietly engaging the company's management, but "we're not getting the response we're looking for."
An AMR spokesman said the company values input from shareholders. It declined to comment on specifics about FL, saying it typically doesn't comment on communications with holders. He added: "Our board and our senior management regularly give careful consideration to the best use of our strategic assets and the impact that those decisions might have in the long run for our shareholders."
Buffeted by surging fuel prices, AMR said late Friday that third-quarter revenue would fall short of analysts' forecasts. The stock, hurt also by fears of a slowing economy, plunged 14% to $20.77 on Monday, its worst percentage drop since April 21, 2003. In 4 p.m. composite trading on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday, the shares rose 22 cents to $21.77.
If AMR were to spin off the frequent-flier program, it would follow in the footsteps of Air Canada parent ACE. ACE's former frequent-flier unit, Aeroplan, has a market value of about $4 billion, double what it was originally worth. Australia's Qantas Airways Ltd. has said it is considering spinning off its frequent-flier program, and United Airlines parent UAL Corp. has said it is considering strategic options for its frequent-flier business.
FL specializes in airline investments. It used to own Icelandair and had a 16.9% stake in easyJet, the European low-cost carrier. It now has a 23% stake in Finnair, the Finnish carrier. Based on data from FactSet Research Systems, an 8.3% stake would make FL the No. 2 AMR holder, after Tontine Management LLC.
FL began accumulating the stake in the fall of 2006. In December, Mr. Smarason called the shares, which were trading at more than $30 each after a 37% 12-month run, "quite attractive."
• Shareholder Push: FL Group, which says it holds an 8.3% stake in AMR, is asking the airline to consider alternatives.
• Eyes on Miles: FL said spinning off frequent-flier business could add value.
• Tougher Skies: The move comes as U.S. airlines face the threat of higher fuel costs with little ability to pass them on to passengers.
By DANA CIMILLUCA
September 27, 2007; Page A10
AMR Corp. has an unruly passenger on board.
FL Group, a $6 billion investment fund from Reykjavik, Iceland, sent a letter to the American Airlines parent's board on Tuesday urging the company to consider alternatives, including the spinoff of its AAdvantage frequent-flier program, to boost a stock that has fallen almost 50% since January.
FL Group said in the letter it has accumulated an 8.3% stake in the carrier. Previously, it had disclosed a stake of less than 6%.
FL Group says AAdvantage is worth about $6 billion. That is greater than the $5.4 billion market capitalization of all of AMR, based in Fort Worth, Texas, the world's biggest airline by passenger traffic.
"It's a no-brainer," said Hannes Smarason, chief executive of FL, in an interview. He also said AMR should consider offloading its aircraft-maintenance and -repair unit and its American Eagle regional airline. "It's a tough environment for the airlines now, and it's incumbent on the management and the board to find avenues where value can be created."
The fund has tried quietly engaging the company's management, but "we're not getting the response we're looking for."
An AMR spokesman said the company values input from shareholders. It declined to comment on specifics about FL, saying it typically doesn't comment on communications with holders. He added: "Our board and our senior management regularly give careful consideration to the best use of our strategic assets and the impact that those decisions might have in the long run for our shareholders."
Buffeted by surging fuel prices, AMR said late Friday that third-quarter revenue would fall short of analysts' forecasts. The stock, hurt also by fears of a slowing economy, plunged 14% to $20.77 on Monday, its worst percentage drop since April 21, 2003. In 4 p.m. composite trading on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday, the shares rose 22 cents to $21.77.
If AMR were to spin off the frequent-flier program, it would follow in the footsteps of Air Canada parent ACE. ACE's former frequent-flier unit, Aeroplan, has a market value of about $4 billion, double what it was originally worth. Australia's Qantas Airways Ltd. has said it is considering spinning off its frequent-flier program, and United Airlines parent UAL Corp. has said it is considering strategic options for its frequent-flier business.
FL specializes in airline investments. It used to own Icelandair and had a 16.9% stake in easyJet, the European low-cost carrier. It now has a 23% stake in Finnair, the Finnish carrier. Based on data from FactSet Research Systems, an 8.3% stake would make FL the No. 2 AMR holder, after Tontine Management LLC.
FL began accumulating the stake in the fall of 2006. In December, Mr. Smarason called the shares, which were trading at more than $30 each after a 37% 12-month run, "quite attractive."
• Shareholder Push: FL Group, which says it holds an 8.3% stake in AMR, is asking the airline to consider alternatives.
• Eyes on Miles: FL said spinning off frequent-flier business could add value.
• Tougher Skies: The move comes as U.S. airlines face the threat of higher fuel costs with little ability to pass them on to passengers.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Here’s Why Richard Branson Should Be Delta Airlines’ Biggest Fan
September 24, 2007, 9:45 am
Here’s Why Richard Branson Should Be Delta Airlines’ Biggest Fan
By Stephen J. Dubner
Last week, Passenger X arrived at the Orlando airport with a first-class e-ticket for New York City. At the airport, the ticket machine spat out a boarding pass for a seat in the back of coach. Why?
The plane, he was told, had been “downsized” from a large jet to a smaller one. There was no first-class section on the smaller plane, so all first-class passengers had been reassigned to coach.
Passenger X asked the Delta agent why the change had been made.
“Mechanical,” he was told.
Passenger X then asked when the change had been made, and wondered why Delta hadn’t phoned or e-mailed to alert passengers to the change — which would have given them time to perhaps fly first-class on a different airline.
The Delta agent responded that she did not know when the change had been made.
Passenger X flies frequently and tries to get work done on planes, so a first-class seat is far more desirable to him than a coach seat. He was disappointed with Delta’s change, but if they’d pulled a faulty jet out of the air — well, plainly, that was a good thing.
Once past security, he asked another Delta representative about the change. This agent, too, did not know when the plane swap had been made, but agreed that Delta should have alerted its first-class passengers. “You paid for the steak but you got the hamburger,” he said. This agent couldn’t have been kinder. He even offered to give Passenger X the customer service number at Delta so that he could arrange for a refund of the difference between the first-class fare and the coach fare.
To which Passenger X said: “Thank you, and no offense, but I’d be surprised — and further disappointed — if you weren’t already doing that on your own.” In other words, should the customer who pays for the steak and gets the hamburger then have to go scrambling himself to recover the price differential?
The Delta agent, still kind, acknowledged that yes, this too was not great Delta policy, but it was the best he could do.
At the gate, a third Delta agent, perhaps even kinder than the first two, looked at Passenger X’s boarding pass and offered to put an empty seat beside him. Very thoughtful! As it turned out, this was a pretty easy task, since the plane was only about 40 percent full, which made Passenger X wonder if the first Delta agent’s story — that the original plane was pulled for “mechanical” reasons — was even true. If the smaller plane was only 40 percent full, then the larger plane was probably only 20 percent full. As such, was it possible that Delta had changed planes because of an economic reason, and not a mechanical one?
Passenger X inquired as to this possibility, and was greeted with blank stares. He did learn, however, that the flight attendants had just flown down on this same plane, from New York to Orlando. At the very least, this meant that the smaller plane had been in service for quite a few hours, certainly enough time for Delta to let its first-class passengers know that their steak was now a hamburger.
In the end, the flight was fine. Two seats in coach are just as good as one seat in first class. But if it had been a jammed-to-the-roof flight, Passenger X would have been one sad puppy.
I can confirm Passenger X’s story because Passenger X is me. Let’s rehearse what happened here:
1. Delta sold a premium good to a customer, then exchanged it, unannounced, for a standard good.
2. Delta stated that it did this because the premium good was damaged, or unsafe; but the observable evidence suggests that this may not in fact have been the case.
3. Delta left the responsibility of getting a refund to the customer.
What should the customer do in this case?
I will do my best to avoid flying Delta in the short term and possibly the long term. What’s interesting to note is that the Delta employees in the airport were all as helpful as could be, but they were all hamstrung by company policy that they couldn’t control.
What does this suggest about the state of the U.S. airline industry?
It’s probably not a good idea for airline companies to alienate their few premium-paying customers, since those tickets help subsidize the very low cost of the standard ticket. I am guessing that the rush-to-the-bottom on airline ticket prices is the reason that so many people find airline travel so unappealing these days: people want cheap tickets — a coach ticket from New York to Orlando is probably cheaper than the cost of gas you’d need to make that trip by car — and they get the level of service that those tickets can buy.
Stories like this one are very good news, however, if you are in the VLJ (very light jet) business, since that is where business travelers are moving. It could also be good news for Richard Branson, who is on an all-business-class binge at the moment, and is rumored to be thinking about offering all-business-class flights in the U.S., the absence of which I have wondered about before on this blog.
For the record, let me say that as much as any of us may complain about airline travel –whether it’s sitting on a tarmac for hours or getting downgraded to coach — I still think the whole thing is a miracle.
Tags: airlines, consumer preferences, Richard Branson, travel
Here’s Why Richard Branson Should Be Delta Airlines’ Biggest Fan
By Stephen J. Dubner
Last week, Passenger X arrived at the Orlando airport with a first-class e-ticket for New York City. At the airport, the ticket machine spat out a boarding pass for a seat in the back of coach. Why?
The plane, he was told, had been “downsized” from a large jet to a smaller one. There was no first-class section on the smaller plane, so all first-class passengers had been reassigned to coach.
Passenger X asked the Delta agent why the change had been made.
“Mechanical,” he was told.
Passenger X then asked when the change had been made, and wondered why Delta hadn’t phoned or e-mailed to alert passengers to the change — which would have given them time to perhaps fly first-class on a different airline.
The Delta agent responded that she did not know when the change had been made.
Passenger X flies frequently and tries to get work done on planes, so a first-class seat is far more desirable to him than a coach seat. He was disappointed with Delta’s change, but if they’d pulled a faulty jet out of the air — well, plainly, that was a good thing.
Once past security, he asked another Delta representative about the change. This agent, too, did not know when the plane swap had been made, but agreed that Delta should have alerted its first-class passengers. “You paid for the steak but you got the hamburger,” he said. This agent couldn’t have been kinder. He even offered to give Passenger X the customer service number at Delta so that he could arrange for a refund of the difference between the first-class fare and the coach fare.
To which Passenger X said: “Thank you, and no offense, but I’d be surprised — and further disappointed — if you weren’t already doing that on your own.” In other words, should the customer who pays for the steak and gets the hamburger then have to go scrambling himself to recover the price differential?
The Delta agent, still kind, acknowledged that yes, this too was not great Delta policy, but it was the best he could do.
At the gate, a third Delta agent, perhaps even kinder than the first two, looked at Passenger X’s boarding pass and offered to put an empty seat beside him. Very thoughtful! As it turned out, this was a pretty easy task, since the plane was only about 40 percent full, which made Passenger X wonder if the first Delta agent’s story — that the original plane was pulled for “mechanical” reasons — was even true. If the smaller plane was only 40 percent full, then the larger plane was probably only 20 percent full. As such, was it possible that Delta had changed planes because of an economic reason, and not a mechanical one?
Passenger X inquired as to this possibility, and was greeted with blank stares. He did learn, however, that the flight attendants had just flown down on this same plane, from New York to Orlando. At the very least, this meant that the smaller plane had been in service for quite a few hours, certainly enough time for Delta to let its first-class passengers know that their steak was now a hamburger.
In the end, the flight was fine. Two seats in coach are just as good as one seat in first class. But if it had been a jammed-to-the-roof flight, Passenger X would have been one sad puppy.
I can confirm Passenger X’s story because Passenger X is me. Let’s rehearse what happened here:
1. Delta sold a premium good to a customer, then exchanged it, unannounced, for a standard good.
2. Delta stated that it did this because the premium good was damaged, or unsafe; but the observable evidence suggests that this may not in fact have been the case.
3. Delta left the responsibility of getting a refund to the customer.
What should the customer do in this case?
I will do my best to avoid flying Delta in the short term and possibly the long term. What’s interesting to note is that the Delta employees in the airport were all as helpful as could be, but they were all hamstrung by company policy that they couldn’t control.
What does this suggest about the state of the U.S. airline industry?
It’s probably not a good idea for airline companies to alienate their few premium-paying customers, since those tickets help subsidize the very low cost of the standard ticket. I am guessing that the rush-to-the-bottom on airline ticket prices is the reason that so many people find airline travel so unappealing these days: people want cheap tickets — a coach ticket from New York to Orlando is probably cheaper than the cost of gas you’d need to make that trip by car — and they get the level of service that those tickets can buy.
Stories like this one are very good news, however, if you are in the VLJ (very light jet) business, since that is where business travelers are moving. It could also be good news for Richard Branson, who is on an all-business-class binge at the moment, and is rumored to be thinking about offering all-business-class flights in the U.S., the absence of which I have wondered about before on this blog.
For the record, let me say that as much as any of us may complain about airline travel –whether it’s sitting on a tarmac for hours or getting downgraded to coach — I still think the whole thing is a miracle.
Tags: airlines, consumer preferences, Richard Branson, travel
This has nothing to do with investments...but an interesting read!!!
Boy survives two-hour flight to Moscow hanging onto plane wing
20:56 | 24/ 09/ 2007
MOSCOW, September 24 (RIA Novosti) - A 15-year-old boy from the Urals suffered acute frostbite after riding the wing of a Boeing-737 plane on a two-hour flight from Perm to Moscow, Russian radio station Mayak reported on Monday.
After clinging on for the entire 1300-kilometer (808-mile) flight to Vnukova Airport, the boy, named Andrei, collapsed onto the tarmac. His arms and legs were so severely frozen that rescuers were at first unable to remove his coat and shoes, the radio station said.
The airport did not confirm the report. "We have no information on this," the Vnukovo press service told RIA Novosti.
However, Moscow's air and water transport control department said the radio's claim was true. A department spokesman said the incident occurred on Friday, and that the boy's parents were immediately informed, and flew to the capital the same day.
Doctors said it was nothing short of a miracle that Andrei survived the flight, with temperatures hitting minus 50 degrees Celsius (-58 Fahrenheit), the radio station said. The Boeing-737 has a cruising speed of 900 kmh (560 mph).
The boy reportedly made the journey after a commonplace domestic dispute. Angry with his father, who reportedly has a drinking problem, and with his mother for siding with her husband in family rows, Andrei ran away to the neighboring village, where his grandmother lives. On reaching the village, he decided to go on, and hitched a 220-km (137-mile) ride to the regional center, Perm, where he was dropped off at the airport.
It remains unclear how Andrei was able to climb on a plane wing un-noticed, and the Perm Airport security service is being asked some serious questions, the radio station said.
Andrei is now being treated in a Moscow hospital, Radio Mayak said.
20:56 | 24/ 09/ 2007
MOSCOW, September 24 (RIA Novosti) - A 15-year-old boy from the Urals suffered acute frostbite after riding the wing of a Boeing-737 plane on a two-hour flight from Perm to Moscow, Russian radio station Mayak reported on Monday.
After clinging on for the entire 1300-kilometer (808-mile) flight to Vnukova Airport, the boy, named Andrei, collapsed onto the tarmac. His arms and legs were so severely frozen that rescuers were at first unable to remove his coat and shoes, the radio station said.
The airport did not confirm the report. "We have no information on this," the Vnukovo press service told RIA Novosti.
However, Moscow's air and water transport control department said the radio's claim was true. A department spokesman said the incident occurred on Friday, and that the boy's parents were immediately informed, and flew to the capital the same day.
Doctors said it was nothing short of a miracle that Andrei survived the flight, with temperatures hitting minus 50 degrees Celsius (-58 Fahrenheit), the radio station said. The Boeing-737 has a cruising speed of 900 kmh (560 mph).
The boy reportedly made the journey after a commonplace domestic dispute. Angry with his father, who reportedly has a drinking problem, and with his mother for siding with her husband in family rows, Andrei ran away to the neighboring village, where his grandmother lives. On reaching the village, he decided to go on, and hitched a 220-km (137-mile) ride to the regional center, Perm, where he was dropped off at the airport.
It remains unclear how Andrei was able to climb on a plane wing un-noticed, and the Perm Airport security service is being asked some serious questions, the radio station said.
Andrei is now being treated in a Moscow hospital, Radio Mayak said.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Canada preparing ports for NAFTA Superhighway
PREMEDITATED MERGER
Canada preparing ports for NAFTA Superhighway
Building 'free trade gateway' between Asia, North America
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: September 11, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern
By Jerome R. Corsi
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
Canada is developing Pacific ports to compete with the U.S. ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, as well as with the Mexican ports of Manzanillo and Lazaro Cardenas, in an attempt to draw a substantial market share of the millions of containers expected to flow into North America in the coming decades from China and the Far East.
To attract Chinese container traffic, the Canadian government has launched a major ports-rail-truck-airport transportation infrastructure designed to build its version of the emerging NAFTA Superhighway.
In October 2006, the Canadian minority government under the direction of Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper launched the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative, or APGCI, as a key component of Canada's national transportation policy.
The idea is to prepare deep-water Pacific Ocean ports on Canada's West Coast to facilitate the import of millions of multi-modal containers from China as a "free trade gateway" between Asia and North America.
WND reported Mexico plans to extend the Trans-Texas Corridor south in what government officials in Mexico are calling a "Trans North America Corridor."
(Story continues below)
According to Transport Canada, Canada's equivalent to the U.S. Department of Transportation, rail and road connections through Prince Rupert and Vancouver in British Columbia will carry the Asian containers into Canada through Edmonton and Calgary in Alberta.
From there, the planned rail-truck-passenger superhighways will head toward Winnipeg, where cross-border connections south will direct the containers from China and the Far East onto the Interstate 35 corridor in the U.S., establishing a major link in the emerging continental NAFTA Superhighway.
Canada Asia-Pacific Gateway conceptual map (Canadian government)
The plan is clearly explained in Canada's National Policy for Strategic Gateways and Trade Corridors, a policy that includes development of the Ontario-Quebec Continental Gateway and Trade Corridor, as WND reported.
The National Policy for Strategic Gateways and Trade Corridors specifies the Canadian federal government has committed $1 billion to develop transportation infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative, identified as "a network of transportation infrastructure including British Columbia's Lower Mainland and Prince Rupert ports, their principal road and rail connections stretching across Western Canada and south (to) the United States, key border crossings and major Canadian airports."
Canada Transport states clearly a major purpose of the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative is to increase Canada's share of North America-bound container imports from Asia.
"Canada's Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor offers world class marine, rail, road and air infrastructure closer to Asia than all its North American competitors," the Transport Canada website announces.
In January, David Emerson, minister of international trade and minister for the Pacific Gateway, led a trade delegation of Canadian transportation and logistics senior executives on a mission to Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai.
During the trip, Emerson and the Chinese minister of communications signed an updated agreement "to foster cooperation on intermodal transportation gateways to support international trade."
Transport Canada articulates how the vision of a North American economy has driven the development of Canadian national transportation policy.
"The integrated North American economy provides the 'platform' for Canada's successful global engagement," a brochure on the Transport Canada website proclaims in the process of explaining Canada's National Policy for Strategic Gateways and Trade Corridors.
According to Transport Canada, between 1995 and 2005, Canada's exports more than doubled, from $3.5 billion to $7.1 billion, in Canadian dollars.
Yet, imports from China dwarfed the numbers.
Between 1995 and 2005, Canada's imports from China grew almost 550 percent, jumping from $3.6 billion to $29.6 billion, in Canadian dollars.
Transport Canada confidently announces "China's recent dramatic growth (in imports to Canada) is expected to continue."
"Canada's Asia-Pacific Gateway is a burgeoning national strategy that is responding to the rise of Asian economies and the challenges and opportunities Asia now poses for Canada," the official website of the Asia-Pacific Gateway states.
The province of British Columbia has devoted $12 billion for new transportation infrastructure and has established the Asia Pacific Trade Council to build marketing links with China and the Far East.
Canada's Prince Rupert and Vancouver are both deep-water ports suited to accommodate the post-Panamax class of container Megaships China is building.
Canada preparing ports for NAFTA Superhighway
Building 'free trade gateway' between Asia, North America
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: September 11, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern
By Jerome R. Corsi
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com
Canada is developing Pacific ports to compete with the U.S. ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, as well as with the Mexican ports of Manzanillo and Lazaro Cardenas, in an attempt to draw a substantial market share of the millions of containers expected to flow into North America in the coming decades from China and the Far East.
To attract Chinese container traffic, the Canadian government has launched a major ports-rail-truck-airport transportation infrastructure designed to build its version of the emerging NAFTA Superhighway.
In October 2006, the Canadian minority government under the direction of Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper launched the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative, or APGCI, as a key component of Canada's national transportation policy.
The idea is to prepare deep-water Pacific Ocean ports on Canada's West Coast to facilitate the import of millions of multi-modal containers from China as a "free trade gateway" between Asia and North America.
WND reported Mexico plans to extend the Trans-Texas Corridor south in what government officials in Mexico are calling a "Trans North America Corridor."
(Story continues below)
According to Transport Canada, Canada's equivalent to the U.S. Department of Transportation, rail and road connections through Prince Rupert and Vancouver in British Columbia will carry the Asian containers into Canada through Edmonton and Calgary in Alberta.
From there, the planned rail-truck-passenger superhighways will head toward Winnipeg, where cross-border connections south will direct the containers from China and the Far East onto the Interstate 35 corridor in the U.S., establishing a major link in the emerging continental NAFTA Superhighway.
Canada Asia-Pacific Gateway conceptual map (Canadian government)
The plan is clearly explained in Canada's National Policy for Strategic Gateways and Trade Corridors, a policy that includes development of the Ontario-Quebec Continental Gateway and Trade Corridor, as WND reported.
The National Policy for Strategic Gateways and Trade Corridors specifies the Canadian federal government has committed $1 billion to develop transportation infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative, identified as "a network of transportation infrastructure including British Columbia's Lower Mainland and Prince Rupert ports, their principal road and rail connections stretching across Western Canada and south (to) the United States, key border crossings and major Canadian airports."
Canada Transport states clearly a major purpose of the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative is to increase Canada's share of North America-bound container imports from Asia.
"Canada's Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor offers world class marine, rail, road and air infrastructure closer to Asia than all its North American competitors," the Transport Canada website announces.
In January, David Emerson, minister of international trade and minister for the Pacific Gateway, led a trade delegation of Canadian transportation and logistics senior executives on a mission to Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai.
During the trip, Emerson and the Chinese minister of communications signed an updated agreement "to foster cooperation on intermodal transportation gateways to support international trade."
Transport Canada articulates how the vision of a North American economy has driven the development of Canadian national transportation policy.
"The integrated North American economy provides the 'platform' for Canada's successful global engagement," a brochure on the Transport Canada website proclaims in the process of explaining Canada's National Policy for Strategic Gateways and Trade Corridors.
According to Transport Canada, between 1995 and 2005, Canada's exports more than doubled, from $3.5 billion to $7.1 billion, in Canadian dollars.
Yet, imports from China dwarfed the numbers.
Between 1995 and 2005, Canada's imports from China grew almost 550 percent, jumping from $3.6 billion to $29.6 billion, in Canadian dollars.
Transport Canada confidently announces "China's recent dramatic growth (in imports to Canada) is expected to continue."
"Canada's Asia-Pacific Gateway is a burgeoning national strategy that is responding to the rise of Asian economies and the challenges and opportunities Asia now poses for Canada," the official website of the Asia-Pacific Gateway states.
The province of British Columbia has devoted $12 billion for new transportation infrastructure and has established the Asia Pacific Trade Council to build marketing links with China and the Far East.
Canada's Prince Rupert and Vancouver are both deep-water ports suited to accommodate the post-Panamax class of container Megaships China is building.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Top 10 Potential Short-Squeeze Airline Stocks
Top 10 Potential Short-Squeeze Airline Stocks
By James Altucher
RealMoney.com Contributor
9/12/2007 6:01 AM EDT
Click here for more stories by James Altucher
With earnings and summer travel results fast approaching and the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday travel season soon upon us, many investors are starting to look at the airlines. However, many short-sellers have taken a negative stance on these stocks and bet heavily against them.
But such a scenario creates some opportunities, because investors may be able to take advantage of these heavily shorted stocks. On any good news, strong numbers or, say, a sharp drop in gasoline prices, these stocks could rise, and rise big, as short-sellers are forced to cover their bets.
With that in mind, Stockpickr combed through the stocks in the sector with the highest short ratios and compiled the Top 10 Airline Short Squeezes portfolio.
As a reminder, the short ratio is the number of days it would take the short-sellers to cover their position, based on the stock's recent average daily volume. Let's take a look at some of the names on the list.
One of the airlines with the highest short ratio is AirTran Holdings (AAI - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), the holding company for AirTran Airways, which serves the eastern part of the U.S. from its hub in Atlanta. The stock has a short ratio of 10.7 with more than 27% of the float shorted.
The airline just reported that its capacity and occupancy reached an all-time record in August. The stock has a price-to-earnings ratio of 26 and a P/E-to-growth ratio of 0.8.
AirTran shares are owned by the five-star Morningstar-rated Gartmore Small-Cap fund (GSXAX), which has generated an outstanding average annual return of 27% over the last three years. Gartmore also owns Regal Entertainment Group (RGC - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), an operator of more than 500 theaters throughout the U.S. that has a short ratio of 7.1.
Another high short-ratio airline stock is Republic Airways Holdings (RJET - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating), which has a short ratio of 8.6 with 9% of the float shorted. The airline operates in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Republic has an existing $100 million buyback program, and it just announced that it would buy back 2 million shares from WexAir LLC, a former majority stockholder. Republic's P/E is 10.5, and its PEG is 0.7.
It is interesting to note that Republic also shows up in the Off Wall Street's Picks & Pans portfolio, a listing of both short and long recommendations from Off Wall Street Consulting Group, an independent research firm that specializes in short-selling.
However, the firm recommended Republic as a buy, along with SAIC (SAI - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), the federal information technology services company, which has a short ratio of 6.1.
SkyWest (SKYW - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating) is another airline with a high short ratio -- 7.2, with 13.7% of the float shorted. The Utah-based airline operates flights to destinations in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. It has a P/E of 10.6 and a PEG of 0.9. It even pays a small dividend of 0.5%.
SkyWest was one of Kiplinger's 10 Stocks for 2007, picks James Glassman considers the best buys of the year. This list also includes Johnson & Johnson (JNJ - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating), Lockheed Martin (LMT - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating) and ConocoPhillips (COP - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating).
For the rest of the potential short-squeeze plays in this sector, check out the Top 10 Airline Short Squeezes at Stockpickr.com.
By James Altucher
RealMoney.com Contributor
9/12/2007 6:01 AM EDT
Click here for more stories by James Altucher
With earnings and summer travel results fast approaching and the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday travel season soon upon us, many investors are starting to look at the airlines. However, many short-sellers have taken a negative stance on these stocks and bet heavily against them.
But such a scenario creates some opportunities, because investors may be able to take advantage of these heavily shorted stocks. On any good news, strong numbers or, say, a sharp drop in gasoline prices, these stocks could rise, and rise big, as short-sellers are forced to cover their bets.
With that in mind, Stockpickr combed through the stocks in the sector with the highest short ratios and compiled the Top 10 Airline Short Squeezes portfolio.
As a reminder, the short ratio is the number of days it would take the short-sellers to cover their position, based on the stock's recent average daily volume. Let's take a look at some of the names on the list.
One of the airlines with the highest short ratio is AirTran Holdings (AAI - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), the holding company for AirTran Airways, which serves the eastern part of the U.S. from its hub in Atlanta. The stock has a short ratio of 10.7 with more than 27% of the float shorted.
The airline just reported that its capacity and occupancy reached an all-time record in August. The stock has a price-to-earnings ratio of 26 and a P/E-to-growth ratio of 0.8.
AirTran shares are owned by the five-star Morningstar-rated Gartmore Small-Cap fund (GSXAX), which has generated an outstanding average annual return of 27% over the last three years. Gartmore also owns Regal Entertainment Group (RGC - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), an operator of more than 500 theaters throughout the U.S. that has a short ratio of 7.1.
Another high short-ratio airline stock is Republic Airways Holdings (RJET - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating), which has a short ratio of 8.6 with 9% of the float shorted. The airline operates in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Republic has an existing $100 million buyback program, and it just announced that it would buy back 2 million shares from WexAir LLC, a former majority stockholder. Republic's P/E is 10.5, and its PEG is 0.7.
It is interesting to note that Republic also shows up in the Off Wall Street's Picks & Pans portfolio, a listing of both short and long recommendations from Off Wall Street Consulting Group, an independent research firm that specializes in short-selling.
However, the firm recommended Republic as a buy, along with SAIC (SAI - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), the federal information technology services company, which has a short ratio of 6.1.
SkyWest (SKYW - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating) is another airline with a high short ratio -- 7.2, with 13.7% of the float shorted. The Utah-based airline operates flights to destinations in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. It has a P/E of 10.6 and a PEG of 0.9. It even pays a small dividend of 0.5%.
SkyWest was one of Kiplinger's 10 Stocks for 2007, picks James Glassman considers the best buys of the year. This list also includes Johnson & Johnson (JNJ - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating), Lockheed Martin (LMT - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating) and ConocoPhillips (COP - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating).
For the rest of the potential short-squeeze plays in this sector, check out the Top 10 Airline Short Squeezes at Stockpickr.com.
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Here are 7 stocks for traders for Monday from TradingMarkets.com
TradingMarkets.com
7 Stocks You Need to Know for Monday
Friday September 7, 3:41 pm ET
By TradingMarkets Research
Here are 7 stocks for traders for Monday from TradingMarkets.com:
Shuffle Master (NasdaqGS:SHFL - News) reports earnings on Monday after the close; watch for $0.13 EPS. SHFL's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Take-Two Interactive Software (NasdaqGS:TTWO - News) is expected to report -$0.69 EPS after the market closes on Monday. TTWO's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
TXU (NYSE:TXU - News) said it had agreed to a $45 billion leveraged buyout by private-equity investors. TXU's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
InterDigital (NasdaqGS:IDCC - News) gained over 10% after the company adjusted Q3 forecasts upwards by about $1 million to $55.5 million. IDCC's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
JetBlue Airways (NasdaqGS:JBLU - News) rose over 1% after the company announced that traffic increased over 13% from August last year. JBLU's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
3M (NYSE:MMM - News) fell on Friday after announcing plans to buy a tape-manufacturer, Venture Tape, for undisclosed terms. MMM's PowerRating (for Traders) is 6.
Beazer Homes (NYSE:BZH - News) fell 10% after announcing that the U.S. Bank National Association had served Beazer with default notices. BZH's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
PowerRatings (for Traders) are courtesy of TradingMarkets.com
7 Stocks You Need to Know for Monday
Friday September 7, 3:41 pm ET
By TradingMarkets Research
Here are 7 stocks for traders for Monday from TradingMarkets.com:
Shuffle Master (NasdaqGS:SHFL - News) reports earnings on Monday after the close; watch for $0.13 EPS. SHFL's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Take-Two Interactive Software (NasdaqGS:TTWO - News) is expected to report -$0.69 EPS after the market closes on Monday. TTWO's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
TXU (NYSE:TXU - News) said it had agreed to a $45 billion leveraged buyout by private-equity investors. TXU's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
InterDigital (NasdaqGS:IDCC - News) gained over 10% after the company adjusted Q3 forecasts upwards by about $1 million to $55.5 million. IDCC's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
JetBlue Airways (NasdaqGS:JBLU - News) rose over 1% after the company announced that traffic increased over 13% from August last year. JBLU's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
3M (NYSE:MMM - News) fell on Friday after announcing plans to buy a tape-manufacturer, Venture Tape, for undisclosed terms. MMM's PowerRating (for Traders) is 6.
Beazer Homes (NYSE:BZH - News) fell 10% after announcing that the U.S. Bank National Association had served Beazer with default notices. BZH's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
PowerRatings (for Traders) are courtesy of TradingMarkets.com
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