HOUSTON, June 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/—Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) today reported a May 2003 systemwide mainline jet load factor of 75.9 percent, 2.4 points above last year`s May load factor. Continental reported a record May domestic mainline jet load factor of 77.3 percent and an international mainline jet load factor of 73.6 percent for May 2003.
The airline reported excellent operational performance in May, breaking nine of 12 operational records for the month of May. During the month, Continental recorded an on-time arrival rate of 86.7 percent and a systemwide completion factor of 99.9 percent for its mainline jet operations, operating 13 days without a single flight cancellation.
In May 2003, Continental flew 4.8 billion mainline jet revenue passenger miles (RPMs) and 6.4 billion mainline jet available seat miles (ASMs) systemwide, resulting in a traffic decrease of 6.3 percent and a capacity decrease of 9.2 percent as compared to May 2002. Domestic mainline jet traffic was 3.0 billion RPMs in May 2003, down 3.1 percent from May 2002, and May 2003 domestic mainline jet capacity was 3.9 billion ASMs, down 5.7 percent from May 2002.
Systemwide May 2003 mainline jet passenger revenue per available seat mile (RASM) is estimated to have increased between one and three percent compared to May 2002. For April 2003, RASM decreased 1.1 percent as compared to April 2002.
ExpressJet Airlines, a subsidiary of Continental Airlines doing business as Continental Express, separately reported an all-time record load factor of 70 percent in May 2003, 4.3 points above last year`s May load factor. ExpressJet flew 486.4 million RPMs and 695.2 million ASMs in May 2003, resulting in a traffic increase of 41.4 percent and a capacity increase of 32.7 percent versus May 2002.
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 2002 10-K and its other securities filings, which identify important matters such as terrorist attacks, domestic and international economic conditions, the significant cost of aircraft fuel, labor costs, competition, regulatory matters and industry conditions, including the demand for air travel, the airline pricing environment and industry capacity decisions. 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.
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