Airtran 2005 Annual Report Download - page 7

ANNUAL REPORT PG 05
:: Letter from Joe and Bob
gave us a tremendous feeling of accomplishment to give
back to the Atlanta community by helping build the world’s
largest aquarium.
On the nationwide partnership front, we’ve teamed up with
American Express and have become part of their Membership
Rewards®program. So card-carrying Amex members can use
the points they earn toward flights on AirTran Airways.
Our other partners continue to provide a constant revenue
stream. Like Juniper Bank, the bank that now offers the new
AirTran Airways Visa Signature. Or Hertz, where customers
who book their car rental through AirTran Airways can earn
A+ Rewards Credits.
So how do we keep low fares low? Admittedly, it’s not easy.
But we’re innovators. And we’ll continue to bring new ideas
to the proverbial table to make things easier and more
affordable for our travelers.
In 2005, it was adding blended winglets to all our aircraft.
This new technology improves wing efficiency, saving around
90,000 gallons of fuel per aircraft per year, while increasing
aircraft performance. At a time when fuel costs are rising,
we continue to be savvy and efficient in our operations.
Keeping our costs and our fares down, allows us to continue
offering great value to our customers.
We’ve also overhauled our Web site. With 60 percent of our
bookings now coming from airtran.com, we’re always looking
to enhance its look, feel and functionality. It’s streamlined, has
a host of new features and is more customer-friendly than ever.
We also inked deals with third-party Web sites like Travelocity,
as well as such travel agent systems, Sabre, Cendant and
Worldspan and we are one of the first airlines to reduce our
distribution costs. Each relationship deepens our distribu-
tion channels, which offers more options for our customers
and easier ways to book travel with us.
The bottom line? It is working.
On December 31, 2005, our stock closed at $16.03. For the
year, AirTran Airways capacity grew 28 percent and traffic
outpaced growth by increasing 33 percent. And we’ve
increased operating revenues 39 percent over 2004. We want
to grow the incre mental sources of revenue that complement
and enhance our core business and we saw the reemergence
of AirTran Airways cargo service with revenues that nearly
doubled those of two years ago.
When all is said and done, we are poised for an exciting and
profitable future. We have the right equipment at the right
price. We have excellent growth opportunities. We have and will
continue to be a big beneficiary of industry restructuring. We
will prosper from capacity that continues to exit our markets.
Who knows what we’ll come up with in 2006 to top all of this.
But we can’t wait to see how we make it work.
Cordially,
Joe Leonard, Chairman & CEO Robert L. Fornaro, President & COO