View:
Download DOC
Download PDF
Download XLS
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): April 1, 2008

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 April 1, 2008, we issued a press release announcing our March 2008 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 March 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.

 

 

April 1, 2008

By  /s/ Lori A. Gobillot

      Lori A. Gobillot

Staff Vice President and Assistant General Counsel

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EXHIBIT INDEX

99.1

Press Release for March 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 MARCH 2008

OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE

HOUSTON, April 1, 2008 - Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) today reported a March consolidated (mainline plus regional) load factor of 82.3 percent, 0.3 points below the March 2007 consolidated load factor, and a mainline load factor of 82.6 percent, 0.5 points below the March 2007 mainline load factor. In addition, the carrier reported a record domestic mainline March load factor of 85.2 percent, 1.0 point above March 2007, and an international mainline load factor of 80.0 percent, 1.9 points below March 2007.

During the month, Continental recorded a U.S. Department of Transportation on-time arrival rate of 68.4 percent and a mainline segment completion factor of 98.9 percent.

In March 2008, Continental flew 8.3 billion consolidated revenue passenger miles (RPMs) and 10.1 billion consolidated available seat miles (ASMs), resulting in a traffic increase of 4.3 percent and a capacity increase of 4.6 percent as compared to March 2007. In March 2008, Continental flew 7.4 billion mainline RPMs and 9.0 billion mainline ASMs, resulting in a mainline traffic increase of 4.8 percent and a mainline capacity increase of 5.4 percent as compared to March 2007. Domestic mainline traffic was 3.9 billion RPMs in March 2008, up 0.9 percent from March 2007, and domestic mainline capacity was 4.5 billion ASMs, down 0.3 percent from March 2007.

For March 2008, both consolidated and mainline passenger revenue per available seat mile (RASM) are estimated to have increased between 5.5 and 6.5 percent compared to March 2007. For February 2008, consolidated passenger RASM increased 5.4 percent compared to February 2007, while mainline passenger RASM increased 5.3 percent from February 2007.

Continental ended the first quarter of 2008 with unrestricted cash and short-term investments balance of $2.51 billion.  This balance excludes $237 million in par value of student loan-related auction rate securities that were previously classified as short-term investments on our consolidated balance sheets.  These securities were reclassified as long-term investments during the quarter.

Continental's regional operations had a record March load factor of 79.7 percent, 1.3 points above the March 2007 load factor. Regional RPMs were 878.8 million and regional ASMs were 1,102.7 million in March 2008, resulting in flat traffic and a capacity decrease of 1.6 percent versus March 2007.

Continental Airlines is the world's fifth largest airline. Continental, together with Continental Express and Continental Connection, has more than 2,900 daily departures throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia, serving 144 domestic and 139 international destinations. More than 550 additional points are served via SkyTeam alliance airlines.  With more than 45,000 employees, Continental has hubs serving New York, Houston, Cleveland and Guam, and together with Continental Express, carries approximately 69 million passengers per year. Continental consistently earns awards and critical acclaim for both its operation and its corporate culture.

For the fourth consecutive year, FORTUNE magazine named Continental the No. 1 World's Most Admired Airline on its 2007 list of World's Most Admired Companies. Continental was also named the No. 1 airline on the publication's 2007 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 fourth year in a row, and "Best Executive/Business Class" for the fifth 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 2007 10-K and its other securities filings, including any amendments thereto, which identify important matters such as the consequences of the company's high leverage, the significant cost of aircraft fuel, delays in scheduled aircraft deliveries, its high labor and pension costs, service interruptions at one of its hub airports, disruptions to the operations of its regional operators, disruptions in its computer systems, and industry conditions, including the airline pricing environment, industry capacity decisions, industry cons olidation, terrorist attacks, regulatory matters, excessive taxation, the availability and cost of insurance, public health threats, an economic downturn in the U.S. and global economies and the seasonal nature of the airline business. 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

MARCH

2008

2007

Change

REVENUE PASSENGER MILES (000)

Domestic

3,870,731

3,836,151

0.9

Percent

International

3,541,997

3,238,761

9.4

Percent

Transatlantic

1,716,250

1,512,874

13.4

Percent

Latin America

1,169,405

1,045,513

11.8

Percent

Pacific

656,342

680,374

-3.5

Percent

Mainline

7,412,728

7,074,912

4.8

Percent

Regional

878,815

878,401

0.0

Percent

Consolidated

8,291,543

7,953,313

4.3

Percent

AVAILABLE SEAT MILES (000)

Domestic

4,542,933

4,557,383

-0.3

Percent

International

4,428,434

3,955,157

12.0

Percent

Transatlantic

2,203,699

1,870,665

17.8

Percent

Latin America

1,381,112

1,266,020

9.1

Percent

Pacific

843,623

818,472

3.1

Percent

Mainline

8,971,367

8,512,540

5.4

Percent

Regional

1,102,650

1,120,365

-1.6

Percent

Consolidated

10,074,017

9,632,905

4.6

Percent

PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR

Domestic

85.2 Percent

84.2 Percent

1.0

Point

International

80.0 Percent

81.9 Percent

-1.9

Points

Transatlantic

77.9 Percent

80.9 Percent

-3.0

Points

Latin America

84.7 Percent

82.6 Percent

2.1

Points

Pacific

77.8 Percent

83.1 Percent

-5.3

Points

Mainline

82.6 Percent

83.1 Percent

-0.5

Points

Regional

79.7 Percent

78.4 Percent

1.3

Points

Consolidated

82.3 Percent

82.6 Percent

-0.3

Points

ONBOARD PASSENGERS

Mainline

4,539,771

4,438,980

2.3

Percent

Regional

1,578,906

1,572,692

0.4

Percent

Consolidated

6,118,677

6,011,672

1.8

Percent

CARGO REVENUE TON MILES (000)

Total

93,478

93,042

0.5

Percent

 

PRELIMINARY TRAFFIC RESULTS

YEAR-TO-DATE

2008

2007

Change

REVENUE PASSENGER MILES (000)

Domestic

10,428,767

10,388,006

0.4

Percent

International

9,494,327

8,702,409

9.1

Percent

Transatlantic

4,477,011

3,957,956

13.1

Percent

Latin America

3,182,659

2,902,069

9.7

Percent

Pacific

1,834,657

1,842,384

-0.4

Percent

Mainline

19,923,094

19,090,415

4.4

Percent

Regional

2,356,778

2,359,645

-0.1

Percent

Consolidated

22,279,872

21,450,060

3.9

Percent

AVAILABLE SEAT MILES (000)

Domestic

12,726,079

12,815,560

-0.7

Percent

International

12,551,800

11,308,601

11.0

Percent

Transatlantic

6,208,622

5,296,254

17.2

Percent

Latin America

3,875,205

3,614,142

7.2

Percent

Pacific

2,467,973

2,398,205

2.9

Percent

Mainline

25,277,879

24,124,161

4.8

Percent

Regional

3,097,526

3,125,950

-0.9

Percent

Consolidated

28,375,405

27,250,111

4.1

Percent

PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR

Domestic

81.9 Percent

81.1 Percent

0.8

Points

International

75.6 Percent

77.0 Percent

-1.4

Points

Transatlantic

72.1 Percent

74.7 Percent

-2.6

Points

Latin America

82.1 Percent

80.3 Percent

1.8

Points

Pacific

74.3 Percent

76.8 Percent

-2.5

Points

Mainline

78.8 Percent

79.1 Percent

-0.3

Points

Regional

76.1 Percent

75.5 Percent

0.6

Points

Consolidated

78.5 Percent

78.7 Percent

-0.2

Points

ONBOARD PASSENGERS

Mainline

12,196,376

11,945,443

2.1

Percent

Regional

4,242,642

4,231,307

0.3

Percent

Consolidated

16,439,018

16,176,750

1.6

Percent

CARGO REVENUE TON MILES (000)

Total

261,294

254,071

2.8

Percent

 

 

PRELIMINARY OPERATIONAL AND FINANCIAL RESULTS

MARCH

2008

2007

Change

On-Time Performance 1

68.4%

71.2%

(2.8)

Points

Completion Factor 2

98.9%

97.7%

1.2

Points

February 2008 year-over-year consolidated RASM change

5.4

Percent

February 2008 year-over-year mainline RASM change

5.3

Percent

March 2008 estimated year-over-year consolidated RASM change

5.5 - 6.5

Percent

March 2008 estimated year-over-year mainline RASM change

5.5 - 6.5

Percent

March 2008 estimated average price per gallon of fuel, including fuel taxes

2.98

Dollars

First Quarter 2008 estimated average price per gallon of fuel, including fuel taxes

2.80

Dollars

1 Department of Transportation Arrivals within 14 minutes

2 Mainline Segment Completion Percentage