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UNITED STATES

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT PURSUANT

TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): October 2, 2006

CONTINENTAL AIRLINES, INC.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

DELAWARE

(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)

1-10323

74-2099724

(Commission File Number)

(IRS Employer Identification No.)

1600 Smith Street, Dept. HQSEO, Houston, Texas

77002

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

(Zip Code)

(713) 324-2950

(Registrant's Telephone Number, Including Area Code)

______________________________________

(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

 

Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
 

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act

(17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
 

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act

(17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Item 8.01. Other Events.

On October 2, 2006, we issued a press release announcing our September 2006 performance. The press release is filed herewith as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits
 

99.1

Press Release for September Performance
     

 

 

SIGNATURE

 

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Continental Airlines, Inc. has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

 

CONTINENTAL AIRLINES, INC.

 

 

October 2, 2006

By  /s/ Lori A. Gobillot

 

      Lori A. Gobillot

 

Staff Vice President and Assistant General Counsel

 

 
   
   
   

 

 

EXHIBIT INDEX

99.1

Press Release for September Performance
   

 

 

News Release

EXHIBIT 99.1

News Release

Contact: Corporate Communications

Houston: 713.324.5080

Email: corpcomm@coair.com

News archive: continental.com/company/news/ Address: P.O. Box 4607, Houston, TX 77210-4607


CONTINENTAL AIRLINES REPORTS SEPTEMBER 2006

OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE

HOUSTON, Oct. 2, 2006 - Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) today reported a September consolidated (mainline plus regional) load factor of 78.2 percent, 1.2 points above last year's September consolidated load factor. The carrier reported a mainline load factor of 78.6 percent, 1.2 points above the September 2005 mainline load factor, and a domestic mainline load factor of 81.2 percent, 2.1 points above September 2005. All three were records for September. In addition, the airline had an international mainline load factor of 75.7 percent, 0.3 points above September 2005.

During the month, Continental recorded a U.S. Department of Transportation on-time arrival rate of 81.3 percent and a record September mainline completion factor of 99.9 percent. The airline also achieved a September record number of 100-percent completion factor days, operating 14 days during the month without a single mainline flight cancellation.

In September 2006, Continental flew 6.9 billion consolidated revenue passenger miles (RPMs) and 8.8 billion consolidated available seat miles (ASMs), resulting in a traffic increase of 11.5 percent and a capacity increase of 9.9 percent as compared to September 2005. In September 2006, Continental flew 6.1 billion mainline RPMs and 7.8 billion mainline ASMs, resulting in a mainline traffic increase of 10.7 percent and a 9.0 percent increase in mainline capacity as compared to September 2005. Domestic mainline traffic was 3.3 billion RPMs in September 2006, up 10.0 percent from September 2005, and domestic mainline capacity was 4.1 billion ASMs, up 7.1 percent from September 2005.

For September 2006, both consolidated and mainline passenger revenue per available seat mile (RASM) are estimated to have increased between 4.0 and 5.0 percent compared to September 2005.  For August 2006, consolidated passenger RASM increased 7.2 percent compared to August 2005, while mainline passenger RASM increased 6.1 percent from August 2005.

Continental ended the third quarter with unrestricted cash and short-term investments of approximately $2.5 billion.

Continental's regional operations had a record September load factor of 75.0 percent, 0.8 points above last year's September load factor. Regional RPMs were 791.0 million and regional ASMs were 1,055.3 million in September 2006, resulting in a traffic increase of 17.8 percent and a capacity increase of 16.7 percent versus September 2005.

Continental Airlines is the world's fifth largest airline. Continental, together with Continental Express and Continental Connection, has more than 3,200 daily departures throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia, serving 154 domestic and 138 international destinations. More than 400 additional points are served via SkyTeam alliance airlines.  With more than 43,000 employees, Continental has hubs serving New York, Houston, Cleveland and Guam, and together with Continental Express, carries approximately 61 million passengers per year. Continental consistently earns awards and critical acclaim for both its operation and its corporate culture.

In 2006, Continental Airlines won its sixth J.D. Power and Associates award since 1996. The carrier received the highest rank in customer satisfaction among network carriers in North America in the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Airline Satisfaction Index SurveySM. For the third consecutive year, FORTUNE magazine named Continental the No. 1 Most Admired Global Airline on its 2006 list of Most Admired Global Companies. Continental was also named the No. 1 airline on the publication's 2006 America's Most Admired airline industry list. Additionally, Continental again won major awards at the OAG Airline of the Year Awards including "Best Airline Based in North America" for the third year in a row, and "Best Executive/Business Class" for the fourth consecutive year. For more company information, visit continental.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are not limited to historical facts, but reflect the company's current beliefs, expectations or intentions regarding future events. All forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. For examples of such risks and uncertainties, please see the risk factors set forth in the company's 2005 10-K and its other securities filings, including any amendments thereto, which identify important matters such as the consequences of our significant financial losses and high leverage, terrorist attacks, domestic and international economic conditions, the significant cost of aircraft fuel, labor costs, competition, and industry conditions, including the demand for air travel, the airline pricing environment and industry capacity decisions, regulatory matters, disruptions in its computer systems, and the seasonal nature of the airline busine ss. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this press release, except as required by applicable law.

PRELIMINARY TRAFFIC RESULTS

SEPTEMBER

2006

2005

Change

REVENUE PASSENGER MILES (000)

Domestic

3,300,487

3,000,574

10.0

Percent

International

2,812,972

2,520,513

11.6

Percent

Transatlantic

1,595,883

1,446,512

10.3

Percent

Latin America

613,598

505,938

21.3

Percent

Pacific

603,491

568,063

6.2

Percent

Mainline

6,113,459

5,521,087

10.7

Percent

Regional

790,987

671,442

17.8

Percent

Consolidated

6,904,446

6,192,529

11.5

Percent

AVAILABLE SEAT MILES (000)

Domestic

4,063,216

3,793,995

7.1

Percent

International

3,715,958

3,342,886

11.2

Percent

Transatlantic

2,027,990

1,792,082

13.2

Percent

Latin America

881,062

762,034

15.6

Percent

Pacific

806,906

788,770

2.3

Percent

Mainline

7,779,174

7,136,881

9.0

Percent

Regional

1,055,252

904,619

16.7

Percent

Consolidated

8,834,426

8,041,500

9.9

Percent

PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR

Domestic

81.2 Percent

79.1 Percent

2.1

Points

International

75.7 Percent

75.4 Percent

0.3

Points

Transatlantic

78.7 Percent

80.7 Percent

-2.0

Points

Latin America

69.6 Percent

66.4 Percent

3.2

Points

Pacific

74.8 Percent

72.0 Percent

2.8

Points

Mainline

78.6 Percent

77.4 Percent

1.2

Points

Regional

75.0 Percent

74.2 Percent

0.8

Points

Consolidated

78.2 Percent

77.0 Percent

1.2

Points

ONBOARD PASSENGERS

Mainline

3,574,434

3,249,320

10.0

Percent

Regional

1,421,945

1,239,635

14.7

Percent

Consolidated

4,996,379

4,488,955

11.3

Percent

CARGO REVENUE TON MILES (000)

Total

90,420

82,972

9.0

Percent

PRELIMINARY TRAFFIC RESULTS

YEAR-TO-DATE

2006

2005

Change

REVENUE PASSENGER MILES (000)

Domestic

32,456,080

29,853,959

8.7

Percent

International

27,503,079

23,729,601

15.9

Percent

Transatlantic

13,588,308

11,654,819

16.6

Percent

Latin America

8,274,790

7,019,028

17.9

Percent

Pacific

5,639,981

5,055,754

11.6

Percent

Mainline

59,959,159

53,583,560

11.9

Percent

Regional

7,782,654

6,581,867

18.2

Percent

Consolidated

67,741,813

60,165,427

12.6

Percent

AVAILABLE SEAT MILES (000)

Domestic

38,716,240

36,663,095

5.6

Percent

International

34,960,874

30,357,530

15.2

Percent

Transatlantic

17,160,677

14,436,433

18.9

Percent

Latin America

10,463,929

9,235,208

13.3

Percent

Pacific

7,336,268

6,685,889

9.7

Percent

Mainline

73,677,114

67,020,625

9.9

Percent

Regional

9,958,862

8,878,237

12.2

Percent

Consolidated

83,635,976

75,898,862

10.2

Percent

PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR

Domestic

83.8 Percent

81.4 Percent

2.4

Points

International

78.7 Percent

78.2 Percent

0.5

Points

Transatlantic

79.2 Percent

80.7 Percent

-1.5

Points

Latin America

79.1 Percent

76.0 Percent

3.1

Points

Pacific

76.9 Percent

75.6 Percent

1.3

Points

Mainline

81.4 Percent

80.0 Percent

1.4

Points

Regional

78.1 Percent

74.1 Percent

4.0

Points

Consolidated

81.0 Percent

79.3 Percent

1.7

Points

ONBOARD PASSENGERS

Mainline

36,751,729

33,705,968

9.0

Percent

Regional

13,763,256

11,861,733

16.0

Percent

Consolidated

50,514,985

45,567,701

10.9

Percent

CARGO REVENUE TON MILES (000)

Total

794,843

743,189

7.0

Percent

 

 

PRELIMINARY OPERATIONAL AND FINANCIAL RESULTS

SEPTEMBER

2006

2005

Change

On-Time Performance 1

81.3%

79.5%

1.8

Points

Completion Factor 2

99.9%

96.8%

3.1

Points

Aug. 2006 year-over-year consolidated RASM change

7.2

Percent

Aug. 2006 year-over-year mainline RASM change

6.1

Percent

Sept. 2006 estimated year-over-year consolidated RASM change

4.0-5.0

Percent

Sept. 2006 estimated year-over-year mainline RASM change

4.0-5.0

Percent

Sept. 2006 estimated average price per gallon of fuel, including fuel taxes

2.22

Dollars

Third Quarter 2006 estimated average price per gallon of fuel, incl. fuel taxes

2.22

Dollars

1 Department of Transportation Arrivals within 14 minutes

2 Mainline Mileage Completion Percentage

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