Delta: Traffic, revenue figure rise modestly

ATLANTA (AP) -- Delta Air Lines Inc. reported Monday that passengers flew more miles and a key revenue measure rose slightly in comparison with the same month last year.

The airline said the 2 percent increase in revenue for each seat flown one mile was due to strong trans-Atlantic traffic and business travel in New York and Atlanta.

The same figure rose 5.5 percent this September and also in October 2012.

Cowen and Co. analyst Helane Becker said the airlines would have a difficult time matching last year's increases in the revenue figure because Hurricane Sandy caused canceled flights last October. When flights are canceled, the revenue figure often rises because airlines put displaced passengers on other planes, making the remaining flights more full.

Shares of Atlanta-based Delta, the world's second-biggest airline behind United, rose $1.01, or 3.8 percent, to $27.65 in late-morning trading.

Delta's worldwide traffic rose 1.4 percent in October, as passengers flew 16.26 billion miles. That includes fliers on Delta Connection regional flights.

Travel within the U.S. slipped 0.2 percentage points, but international travel increased 3.9 percent including an 18.3 percent gain in flying to and from Latin America.

Passenger-carrying capacity rose 3.6 percent. Airlines usually boost capacity by operating more flights or using bigger planes.

With capacity rising faster than traffic, average occupancy dipped to 82.9 percent from 84.6 percent in October 2012. The increase in empty seats occurred mostly on domestic flights.

For the first 10 months of the year, Delta's traffic rose 0.8 percent, capacity increased 0.7 percent, and the average flight was remained unchanged at 84 percent full.

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Mike Bobbitt Named Director Distribution & Revenue for Choice Hotels Canada

Most recently he held the position of chief operating officer at Royal Host Hotels, which is the master franchisor for Travelodge in Canada.

As part of its ongoing growth strategy, Choice Hotels Canada is adding to its executive team with the hire of Mike Bobbitt as director, Distribution & Revenue. The Distribution & Revenue department is newly created as part of an internal restructure, which includes a merger with the Sales department.

Bobbitt comes to Choice Hotels Canada with more than 26 years of hospitality experience working in various senior management roles including vice president of operations at Westmont Hospitality Group, general manager of sales and catering at World Trade and Convention Centre and regional director of sales and marketing at Atlific Hotels. Most recently he held the position of chief operating officer at Royal Host Hotels, which is the master franchisor for Travelodge in Canada.

"Mike has a wealth of experience having spent his career in the hospitality industry where he worked with various Choice properties and other like-minded brands," says Tim Oldfield, managing director, franchise performance for Choice Hotels Canada. "He has a thorough understanding of what it takes to grow hotel revenue and will undoubtedly be an invaluable member of our team."

The Distribution & Revenue department was created in an effort to leverage the company's advances in distribution strategy and also includes e-commerce and revenue management.

Logos, product and company names mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

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