Airline Weekly Lounge

The airline industry is navigating its most unpredictable period since the pandemic, with fuel prices, geopolitical tensions, premium travel demand, and aircraft shortages reshaping the competitive landscape. Gordon Smith and Jay Shabat break down the data behind the headlines, explaining why airlines remain profitable despite rising costs and unprecedented volatility.

They also explore the winners and losers across global aviation, from the Middle East's disrupted hub networks and Europe's consolidation wave to the changing competitive dynamics in the U.S. Plus, they preview what to watch as airlines report Q2 earnings and why premium cabins continue to drive the industry's strongest financial results.

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Gordon Smith – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Jay Shabat – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Meghna Maharishi - ⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠

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00:00 Welcome to Skift Playbooks

02:35 Why Oil Sets the Tone

06:28 Airline Profits in Context

10:39 Gulf Disruption and Recovery

12:00 Demand Trends and Rerouting

17:03 Premium Boom Everywhere

19:31 Supply Crunch and Delays

25:37 Unit Costs Beyond Fuel

26:57 Skift Aviation Forum Plug

30:00 Back to Europe Volatility

30:57 Europe Consolidation Outlook

31:36 TAP Sale and EasyJet Bids

33:43 Why IAG Outperforms

34:09 Tourism Boom and Loyalty

37:27 US Market After Spirit

40:29 Premium Gap Delta vs Spirit

44:07 US Consolidation and American Chase

48:05 Q2 Earnings Season Themes

53:04 Global Airlines Scoreboard

57:22 Wrap Up and Subscribe

Ahead of the Farnborough Airshow, for this special episode Gordon Smith and Meghna Maharishi are joined by Darren Hulst, Boeing's VP of Commercial Marketing. The conversation centers on the planemaker's latest Commercial Market Outlook, an annual report which asks how many aircraft the world will need in the decades to come.

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00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

00:45 Boeing Outlook Overview

01:33 Fuel Shock and Demand

04:28 How CMO Is Built

06:22 Big Headlines 44000 Jets

07:55 Where Growth Comes From

10:29 Neutral Forecast and Investment

12:40 Break and Return

13:24 Premium Cabin Boom

17:59 ULCCs After Spirit

20:23 Farnborough Airshow Preview

21:30 Supply Chain Complexity

23:58 Where to Read CMO

24:22 Wrap Up and Subscribe

ClarityPay recently partnered with JetBlue to introduce a new pay-later program that combines embedded financing, loyalty, and personalization to drive incremental revenue.

Learn more about ClarityPay here: claritypay.com/travel

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Gordon Smith – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Jay Shabat – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Meghna Maharishi - ⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠

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00:00 Welcome and Setup

00:28 What Airline Financing Means

00:55 Introducing Clarity Pay

01:45 Interview Begins Financing Shift

03:03 What Clarity Pay Does

04:12 Why BNPL Must Evolve

05:27 BNPL Meets Co-Brand Cards

06:33 Data Trust and White Label

07:49 Personalized Underwriting Example

09:16 JetBlue Partnership and Loyalty

11:42 Measuring Success Metrics

13:10 Future of Brand Control

14:21 Advice for Travel Brands

16:01 Where to Learn More

16:39 Subscribe and Closing

An approach from U.S. private equity firm Castlelake has reopened the question of what EasyJet is actually worth. Gordon and Jay run through the latest takeover chatter before setting the scene for Delta's Q2 earnings.

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Gordon Smith – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Jay Shabat – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Meghna Maharishi - ⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠

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00:00 Welcome and Agenda

00:41 Earnings Season Setup

01:26 Castlelake Bids for EasyJet

04:21 What a Takeover Means

05:52 EasyJet Value and Assets

08:31 EU Ownership Rules

09:44 Who Could Be Next

10:46 Wizz Air and Finnair

19:37 More Targets Aegean to Condor

28:42 Jet2 and Package Holidays

32:33 Break and Listener Notes

33:08 Delta Q2 Preview

33:50 Industry Trends Demand Costs

39:21 Delta Margin and Fuel Outlook

41:20 Wrap Up and Next Dates

Does SAS Really Need 40 A330neos?

In part one, Gordon and Jay discuss SAS Scandinavian Airlines' new widebody order and ask whether the carrier can justify that many additional planes.

In part two, the focus turns to Air New Zealand, where management has just published an updated turnaround plan.

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Gordon Smith – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Jay Shabat – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Meghna Maharishi - ⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠

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00:00 Welcome and World Cup Banter

01:48 SAS Order Breakdown

03:52 AF KLM Vision for SAS

05:07 Copenhagen Hub Consolidation

08:16 Network Growth and Fleet Mix

14:09 Why Copenhagen Wins

17:22 Airshow Timing and Industry Chatter

18:56 Group Rebrand Speculation

23:23 Part Two Air New Zealand Setup

24:58 Air NZ Challenges Fuel and Engines

28:50 Our Future Plan Priorities

32:25 Customer First Means On Time

34:12 Subscribe Forum Earnings Wrap

36:21 Final Thanks and Sign Off