New President Of Government Airline Aerolineas Argentinas Takes Over
July 16 2009 - 1:39PM
Dow Jones News
Mariano Recalde on Thursday took over as president of
Argentina's two government-owned airlines, Aerolineas Argentinas
and Austral Lineas Aereas, and defended the July 2008
nationalization.
"There are some who want Aerolineas Argentinas to do badly,"
Recalde said in a statement, referring to recent press reports
which raised several issues about the airlines, including
punctuality.
Between January and June, flights were on time 77% of the time,
an improvement from the 38% figure in July 2008, Recalde said.
"This type of information hurts the business of the airlines
Aerolineas Argentinas and Austral Lineas Aereas, because they
discourage sales of tickets, which is essential to the financial
and economic recovery of the companies and the public service they
provide," Recalde said.
The government expropriated the airlines from Spain's Grupo
Marsans SA, saying it had failed to deliver on its service
promises. The government and Marsans are still arguing over terms
of the takeover.
Recalde said the airlines' operating deficit has fallen by
two-thirds over the last year.
On Wednesday, local newspaper Clarin reported that the
government was subsidizing Aerolineas to the tune of $1.5 million
per day.
Aerolineas didn't respond to a request for comment.
President Cristina Fernandez appointed Recalde after moving the
previous head of the company, Julio Alak, to the Justice Ministry,
as part of a broader cabinet in the wake of June 28 midterm
Congressional losses.
Recalde, 37 years old, is the son of Representative Hector
Recalde, of the ruling Front for Victory party. He trained as a
lawyer and most recently worked with a number of labor unions, and
is seen as being closely associated with Hugo Moyano, leader of
Argentina's powerful General Confederation of Labor, or CGT.
The airlines' board of directors has four government
representatives: Recalde, vice president Juan de Dios Cingunegui,
Eduardo De Pedro and Gustavo Simeonoff. There are two employee
representatives on the board: Jorge Mateos and Javier Acosta.
Aerolineas recently unveiled plans to renew its fleet of
aircraft, including aircraft from manufacturers Airbus, part of
aerospace giant European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. NV
(EAD.FR), the U.S.'s Boeing Co.'s (BA) and Brazil's Embraer-Empresa
Brasileiras de Aeronautica SA (ERJ).
In June, the company received two Boeing 737/700s, the first new
airplanes it has bought in 16 years. Another nine leased aircraft
are scheduled to be delivered by the end of the year.
The government also signed a deal with Airbus to buy between 15
and 20 new A330 and A340 aircraft for long-haul travel, taking over
part of a contract originally signed with Spain's Marsans.
And Austral, which focuses on the domestic market, in May bought
20 aircraft from Embraer, which will be delivered at a rate of two
a month starting in early 2010. The aircraft cost $600 million, of
which 85% is being financed by Brazil's National Development Bank,
or BNDES.
-By Matthew Cowley, Dow Jones Newswires; +54 11 4103 6740;
matthew.cowley@dowjones.com