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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): November 1, 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 November 1, 2006, we issued a press release announcing our October 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 October 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.

 

 

November 1, 2006

By  /s/ Lori A. Gobillot

 

      Lori A. Gobillot

 

Staff Vice President and Assistant General Counsel

 

 
   
   
   

 

 

EXHIBIT INDEX

99.1

Press Release for October 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 OCTOBER 2006

OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE

HOUSTON, Nov. 1, 2006 - Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) today reported an October consolidated (mainline plus regional) load factor of 79.3 percent, 2.0 points above last year's October consolidated load factor. The carrier reported a mainline load factor of 79.5 percent, 2.1 points above the October 2005 mainline load factor, and a domestic mainline load factor of 83.1 percent, 2.9 points above October 2005. All three were records for the month. In addition, the airline had an international mainline load factor of 75.4 percent, 1.4 points above October 2005.

During the month, Continental recorded a U.S. Department of Transportation on-time arrival rate of 71.4 percent and an October mainline completion factor of 99.6 percent.

In October 2006, Continental flew 7.3 billion consolidated revenue passenger miles (RPMs) and 9.2 billion consolidated available seat miles (ASMs), resulting in a traffic increase of 9.5 percent and a capacity increase of 6.8 percent as compared to October 2005. In October 2006, Continental flew 6.4 billion mainline RPMs and 8.1 billion mainline ASMs, resulting in a mainline traffic increase of 9.5 percent and a 6.6 percent increase in mainline capacity as compared to October 2005. Domestic mainline traffic was 3.6 billion RPMs in October 2006, up 8.0 percent from October 2005, and domestic mainline capacity was 4.3 billion ASMs, up 4.4 percent from October 2005.

For October 2006, consolidated passenger revenue per available seat mile (RASM) is estimated to have increased between 4.5 and 5.5 percent compared to October 2005, while mainline passenger RASM is estimated to have increased between 5.0 and 6.0 percent compared to October 2005. For September 2006, both consolidated and mainline passenger RASM increased 4.8 percent compared to September 2005.

October 2006 sales at continental.com increased 26.0 percent over October 2005.

Continental's regional operations had a record October load factor of 77.3 percent, 0.6 points above last year's October load factor. Regional RPMs were 854.6 million and regional ASMs were 1,105.0 million in October 2006, resulting in a traffic increase of 9.6 percent and a capacity increase of 8.6 percent versus October 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 151 domestic and 136 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

OCTOBER

2006

2005

Change

REVENUE PASSENGER MILES (000)

Domestic

3,584,913

3,317,921

8.0

Percent

International

2,822,048

2,535,725

11.3

Percent

Transatlantic

1,546,101

1,387,163

11.5

Percent

Latin America

655,677

555,753

18.0

Percent

Pacific

620,270

592,809

4.6

Percent

Mainline

6,406,961

5,853,646

9.5

Percent

Regional

854,558

779,923

9.6

Percent

Consolidated

7,261,519

6,633,569

9.5

Percent

AVAILABLE SEAT MILES (000)

Domestic

4,315,902

4,134,740

4.4

Percent

International

3,740,648

3,424,930

9.2

Percent

Transatlantic

2,028,134

1,821,180

11.4

Percent

Latin America

901,038

789,408

14.1

Percent

Pacific

811,476

814,342

-0.4

Percent

Mainline

8,056,550

7,559,670

6.6

Percent

Regional

1,105,028

1,017,333

8.6

Percent

Consolidated

9,161,578

8,577,003

6.8

Percent

PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR

Domestic

83.1 Percent

80.2 Percent

2.9

Points

International

75.4 Percent

74.0 Percent

1.4

Points

Transatlantic

76.2 Percent

76.2 Percent

0.0

Points

Latin America

72.8 Percent

70.4 Percent

2.4

Points

Pacific

76.4 Percent

72.8 Percent

3.6

Points

Mainline

79.5 Percent

77.4 Percent

2.1

Points

Regional

77.3 Percent

76.7 Percent

0.6

Points

Consolidated

79.3 Percent

77.3 Percent

2.0

Points

ONBOARD PASSENGERS

Mainline

3,947,787

3,659,411

7.9

Percent

Regional

1,560,093

1,415,668

10.2

Percent

Consolidated

5,507,880

5,075,079

8.5

Percent

CARGO REVENUE TON MILES (000)

Total

96,408

95,400

1.1

Percent

PRELIMINARY TRAFFIC RESULTS

YEAR-TO-DATE

2006

2005

Change

REVENUE PASSENGER MILES (000)

Domestic

36,040,992

33,171,879

8.6

Percent

International

30,325,388

26,265,327

15.5

Percent

Transatlantic

15,134,401

13,041,983

16.0

Percent

Latin America

8,930,736

7,574,781

17.9

Percent

Pacific

6,260,251

5,648,563

10.8

Percent

Mainline

66,366,380

59,437,206

11.7

Percent

Regional

8,637,199

7,361,791

17.3

Percent

Consolidated

75,003,579

66,798,997

12.3

Percent

AVAILABLE SEAT MILES (000)

Domestic

43,032,142

40,797,835

5.5

Percent

International

38,701,827

33,782,460

14.6

Percent

Transatlantic

19,188,816

16,257,613

18.0

Percent

Latin America

11,365,267

10,024,616

13.4

Percent

Pacific

8,147,744

7,500,231

8.6

Percent

Mainline

81,733,969

74,580,295

9.6

Percent

Regional

11,063,890

9,895,570

11.8

Percent

Consolidated

92,797,859

84,475,865

9.9

Percent

PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR

Domestic

83.8 Percent

81.3 Percent

2.5

Points

International

78.4 Percent

77.7 Percent

0.7

Points

Transatlantic

78.9 Percent

80.2 Percent

-1.3

Points

Latin America

78.6 Percent

75.6 Percent

3.0

Points

Pacific

76.8 Percent

75.3 Percent

1.5

Points

Mainline

81.2 Percent

79.7 Percent

1.5

Points

Regional

78.1 Percent

74.4 Percent

3.7

Points

Consolidated

80.8 Percent

79.1 Percent

1.7

Points

ONBOARD PASSENGERS

Mainline

40,699,650

37,365,379

8.9

Percent

Regional

15,323,268

13,277,401

15.4

Percent

Consolidated

56,022,918

50,642,780

10.6

Percent

CARGO REVENUE TON MILES (000)

Total

890,556

840,376

6.0

Percent

 

 

PRELIMINARY OPERATIONAL AND FINANCIAL RESULTS

OCTOBER

2006

2005

Change

On-Time Performance 1

71.4%

78.1%

(6.7)

Points

Completion Factor 2

99.6%

98.8%

0.8

Points

September 2006 year-over-year consolidated RASM change

4.8

Percent

September 2006 year-over-year mainline RASM change

4.8

Percent

October 2006 estimated year-over-year consolidated RASM change

4.5-5.5

Percent

October 2006 estimated year-over-year mainline RASM change

5.0-6.0

Percent

October 2006 estimated average price per gallon of fuel, including fuel taxes

2.07

Dollars

Forth Quarter 2006 estimated average price per gallon of fuel, including fuel taxes

2.05

Dollars

1 Department of Transportation Arrivals within 14 minutes

2 Mainline Mileage Completion Percentage

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