Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL and CAL.A) achieved its highest on-time performance for the five-day July 4 holiday period this year amid its heaviest load factors in company history. This record was set during the peak travel period, June 30 through July 4, when the airline accomplished an average on-time arrival rate of 87.2 percent, the highest on-time rate ever for that period, along with record load factors of 80.8 percent. On Friday, June 30, Continental set an all-time high load factor of 89.7 percent. Continental also had a high completion factor, with only 16 cancellations systemwide for the five-day period. On Sunday, July 2, the airline finished the day with a 100 percent completion factor, which means there were no cancellations.

“This high operational performance is all the more incredible given the extremely heavy load factors we experienced over this record five-day holiday,” said C.D. McLean, Continental’s executive vice president of operations. “Performance records like these wouldn’t be possible without the determination and dedication of the 51,500 hard-working men and women of Continental Airlines.”

Continental Airlines is the fifth largest airline in the U.S., offering more than 2,200 departures daily to 136 domestic and 87 international destinations. Operating major hubs in Newark, Houston and Cleveland, Continental (www.continental.com) serves more international cities than any other U.S. carrier, including extensive service throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia.

Continental is in the top quarter of FORTUNE magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work for in America,” and is ranked the nation’s No. 1 airline in customer satisfaction for long and short-haul flights by Frequent Flyer Magazine and J.D. Power and Associates. Continental has received numerous awards for its BusinessFirst premium cabin (Condé Nast Traveler, OAG, Entrepreneur and SmartMoney magazines), OnePass frequent flyer program (InsideFlyer’s Freddie Awards) and overall operations and management (Air Transport World’s 1996 Airline of the Year).

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