Continental Airlines

United Continental Holdings Inc.'s (UAL) first-quarter loss narrowed amid fewer merger-related charges and other items as the carrier also reported revenue growth.The product of a 2010 merger of United Airlines and Continental Airlines, the carrier has continued to face the challenge of integrating its two legacy companies.Unit revenue--the amount taken in for each passenger flown a mile--increased 5.9% while capacity decreased 4.9%. The percentage of seats filled--or load factor--increased three percentage points to 81.1%. Passenger traffic contracted by 1.2%."We are encouraged by our unit-revenue performance this quarter, and we are working hard to build on our overall revenue progress this year," said Chief Revenue Officer Jim Compton.The company also reported that unit costs excluding fuel, special charges and some other items rose 11.1%. Late last month, United Continental predicted that its unit costs, excluding fuel expenses, would rise, owing to factors including crew expenses ...

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