News , AIRLINES EXPENSES
MORE EXPENSE CHEATS IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR
MORE THAN 10 PER CENT of employees in the UK have cheated on their expenses in the last year, according to a report from Concur. The expense management
US AIRLINE MERGER WORRIES BUSINESS TRAVEL GROUPS
AMERICAN AIRLINES AND US AIRWAYS have confirmed they are to merge in a US$11 billion deal to create the world’s biggest airline. But business travel groups have warned that the merger is likely to result in higher fares and cuts in flights to some destinations. The new company will keep the American Airlines’ name,
although it will be run by US Airways’ chief Doug Parker, who will act as CEO. American’s boss Tom Horton will be chairman of the board. The merged AA will be part of the Oneworld alliance (US Airways will leave Star Alliance), alongside British Airways, American’s transatlantic joint business partner. The combined airline will be bigger than its US rivals United and Delta, which previously completed their own mergers with Continental and Northwest respectively. The newly expanded AA will offer 6,700 daily flights to 336 locations in 56 countries. Parker said: “Our combined airline joins two highly
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complementary networks with access to the best destinations around the globe, offering increased choices, improved efficiency and better options to explore the globe with our Oneworld Alliance.” AMR, the parent company of American Airlines, will take a 72 per cent stake in the new company, with US Airways owning 28 per cent. The airlines said they expected all of the current American and US Airways’ hubs to be maintained – Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Washington DC. The merger will have to be approved by American’s bankruptcy judge – the airline has been in Chapter 11 protection since November 2011 – and competition regulators. Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the US-based Business
Travel Coalition, warned that travellers would face higher fares and reduced competition due to the merger. “From a consumer standpoint – individual traveller or corporate travel department – there are few benefits to offset the negative impact of this proposed merger, which includes reduced competition, higher fares and fees, and diminished service to small- and mid-sized communities,” he said.
firm commissioned pollster You Gov to survey more than 1,200 workers. The survey found 11 per cent of those questioned had “exaggerated” expense claims during the last year. It also found those working in large private sector firms were more likely to consider exaggerating expenses as“acceptable” compared to their counterparts in the public sector
AIRPORTS
BORIS IDENTIFIES PREFERRED SITES FOR NEW HUB AIRPORT
Boris Johnson
LONDON MAYOR BORIS JOHNSON has put together a team of consultants to draw up plans for three possible sites for a new four-runway hub airport. Johnson and Transport for London have identified three options – expanding Stansted, plus two locations in the Thames estuary – but have ruled out further expansion at Heathrow.
The mayor’s team of consultants includes architects Zaha Hadid, and Pascall and Watson (who designed Heathrow’s Terminal 5), engineers WS Atkins, business advisory service Ernst and Young, and research group Oxford Economics. Feasibility studies on the three locations are expected be completed by October for submission to the Davies Commission, which is looking into the issue of hub capacity for the government. Johnson, speaking before the House of Commons transport committee, said: “The objective is to find a solution that gives us a four-runway hub – preferably a 24-hour four-runway hub. This is what our competitors are going for and, in many cases, already have. We think these three options are best able to produce that solution.” Johnson said the prospect of Heathrow ever having four runways
was “inconceivable” because it would cause “immense political grief and colossal noise pollution”. He added that any new hub airport would “take at least a couple of decades” to complete, with an overall cost of £70-£80 billion, including new rail and road links. “A large proportion would come from the private sector – an airport is a very bankable asset,” Johnson told MPs. “Around £25 billion would come from the public finances for the road and rail infrastructure.”
– 28 per cent as opposed to 13 per cent. Concur’s UK managing
director, David Vine, said: “In recent years, the public sector has faced scrutiny over the accuracy of expense claims, resulting in a mandate for increased transparency. As such, we’ve witnessed a reduction in those who think exaggerating expenses is acceptable. “In a tough economy with
little spare cash, it’s imperative that attitudes within the private sector towards expenses quickly follows suit.”
Digital editor Rob Gill compiles the latest news from
www.buyingbusinesstravel.com
MARCH/APRIL 2013
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