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Article: Aerospace coatings: it's tough times for commercial airlines, airplane manufacturers and their suppliers. The good news: aircraft in operation today need to be repainted at some point, and there's always Asia.
- Article from:
- Coatings World
- Article date:
- August 1, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Rodman Publishing. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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It's tough times for U.S. commercial airlines and airplane manufacturers.
According to the Air Transport Association of America (ATA), a trade organization that represents 95% of the U.S. airline industry (including cargo carriers), 2003 will be another year to forget. ATA is predicting the industry will post a loss of approximately $7 billion in 2003. John Heimlich, director, economic and market research at ATA, said he isn't expecting an industry-wide, full-year profit until at least 2005.
With the number of air travelers down, there are fewer flights needed, and airliners are making do with less by cutting back on routes and parking planes. In June ...