Continental Airlines Reports December 2008 Operational Performance

HOUSTON, Jan 05, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- CAL | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) today reported a December consolidated (mainline plus regional) load factor of 79.9 percent, 1.2 points above the December 2007 consolidated load factor. The carrier reported a mainline load factor of 80.4 percent, 1.6 points above the December 2007 mainline load factor, and a domestic mainline December load factor of 84.0 percent, 2.6 points above the December 2007 domestic mainline load factor. All three load factors were records for the month. In addition, the airline reported an international mainline load factor of 76.6 percent, 0.5 points above December 2007.

During the month, Continental recorded a U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) on-time arrival rate of 63.3 percent and a mainline segment completion factor of 98.5 percent. Continental's on-time arrival rate was negatively impacted by challenging winter weather conditions throughout its operating network, including a very rare snow fall in Houston on Dec. 10.

In December 2008, Continental flew 7.1 billion consolidated revenue passenger miles (RPMs) and 8.9 billion consolidated available seat miles (ASMs), resulting in a consolidated traffic decrease of 6.7 percent and a capacity decrease of 8.1 percent as compared to December 2007. In December 2008, Continental flew 6.3 billion mainline RPMs and 7.9 billion mainline ASMs, resulting in a mainline traffic decrease of 7.3 percent and a mainline capacity decrease of 9.0 percent as compared to December 2007. Domestic mainline traffic was 3.3 billion RPMs in December 2008, down 9.3 percent from December 2007, and domestic mainline capacity was 4.0 billion ASMs, down 12.1 percent from December 2007.

For December 2008, consolidated passenger revenue per available seat mile (RASM) is estimated to have increased between 3.5 and 4.5 percent compared to December 2007, while mainline passenger RASM is estimated to have increased between 4.0 and 5.0 percent compared to December 2007.

For November 2008, consolidated passenger RASM increased 1.2 percent compared to November 2007, while mainline passenger RASM increased 2.4 percent compared to November 2007.

During the fourth quarter 2008, Continental raised $196 million in cash, after sales commissions, through the sale of 12.6 million shares of Class B common stock at an average price to the public of $15.84 per share pursuant to its equity distribution agreements with UBS Securities LLC and Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated. Continental has concluded this offering. Including the proceeds from this offering, Continental ended the fourth quarter 2008 with an unrestricted cash and short-term investments balance of $2.65 billion.

Continental's regional operations had a December load factor of 76.1 percent, 1.2 points below the December 2007 regional load factor. Regional RPMs were 776.4 million and regional ASMs were 1,020.3 million in December 2008, resulting in a traffic decrease of 2.0 percent and a capacity decrease of 0.5 percent versus December 2007.

Continental Airlines is the world's fifth largest airline. Continental, together with Continental Express and Continental Connection, has more than 2,500 daily departures throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia, serving 134 domestic and 131 international destinations. More than 675 additional points are served via alliance partners. With more than 43,000 employees, Continental has hubs serving New York, Houston, Cleveland and Guam, and together with Continental Express, carries approximately 69 million passengers per year.

Continental consistently earns awards and critical acclaim for both its operation and its corporate culture. For the fifth consecutive year, FORTUNE magazine named Continental the No. 1 World's Most Admired Airline on its 2008 list of World's Most Admired Companies. For more company information, go to continental.com.

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 2007 10-K and its other securities filings, including any amendments thereto, which identify important matters such as the consequences of the company's high leverage, the significant volatility in the cost of aircraft fuel, the company's transition to a new global alliance, delays in scheduled aircraft deliveries, its high labor and pension costs, service interruptions at one of its hub airports, disruptions to the operations of its regional operators, disruptions in its computer systems, and industry conditions, including the airline pricing environment, industry capacity decisions, industry consolidation, terrorist attacks, regulatory matters, excessive taxation, the availability and cost of insurance, public health threats, an economic downturn in the U.S. and global economies and the seasonal nature of the airline business. 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, except as required by applicable law.

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PRELIMINARY TRAFFIC RESULTS DECEMBER 2008 2007 Change REVENUE PASSENGER MILES (000) Domestic 3,349,536 3,692,343 -9.3 Percent International 2,985,131 3,138,375 -4.9 Percent Transatlantic 1,458,911 1,543,411 -5.5 Percent Latin America 980,140 976,440 0.4 Percent Pacific 546,080 618,524 -11.7 Percent Mainline 6,334,667 6,830,718 -7.3 Percent Regional 776,397 792,500 -2.0 Percent Consolidated 7,111,064 7,623,218 -6.7 Percent AVAILABLE SEAT MILES (000) Domestic 3,986,616 4,537,528 -12.1 Percent International 3,894,519 4,125,710 -5.6 Percent Transatlantic 1,931,521 2,021,735 -4.5 Percent Latin America 1,227,987 1,273,197 -3.6 Percent Pacific 735,011 830,778 -11.5 Percent Mainline 7,881,135 8,663,238 -9.0 Percent Regional 1,020,331 1,025,727 -0.5 Percent Consolidated 8,901,466 9,688,965 -8.1 Percent PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR Domestic 84.0 Percent 81.4 Percent 2.6 Points International 76.6 Percent 76.1 Percent 0.5 Points Transatlantic 75.5 Percent 76.3 Percent -0.8 Points Latin America 79.8 Percent 76.7 Percent 3.1 Points Pacific 74.3 Percent 74.5 Percent -0.2 Points Mainline 80.4 Percent 78.8 Percent 1.6 Points Regional 76.1 Percent 77.3 Percent -1.2 Points Consolidated 79.9 Percent 78.7 Percent 1.2 Points ONBOARD PASSENGERS Mainline 3,787,695 4,145,405 -8.6 Percent Regional 1,412,222 1,432,261 -1.4 Percent Consolidated 5,199,917 5,577,666 -6.8 Percent CARGO REVENUE TON MILES (000) Total 71,651 92,231 -22.3 Percent

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PRELIMINARY TRAFFIC RESULTS FULL YEAR 2008 2007 Change REVENUE PASSENGER MILES (000) Domestic 42,853,991 45,356,239 -5.5 Percent International 39,952,773 38,953,687 2.6 Percent Transatlantic 21,273,235 20,136,822 5.6 Percent Latin America 11,632,551 11,174,860 4.1 Percent Pacific 7,046,987 7,642,005 -7.8 Percent Mainline 82,806,764 84,309,926 -1.8 Percent Regional 9,880,333 9,855,804 0.2 Percent Consolidated 92,687,097 94,165,730 -1.6 Percent AVAILABLE SEAT MILES (000) Domestic 51,434,315 54,090,839 -4.9 Percent International 51,092,766 49,048,119 4.2 Percent Transatlantic 27,606,158 25,350,543 8.9 Percent Latin America 14,219,042 13,875,830 2.5 Percent Pacific 9,267,566 9,821,746 -5.6 Percent Mainline 102,527,081 103,138,958 -0.6 Percent Regional 12,983,799 12,598,869 3.1 Percent Consolidated 115,510,880 115,737,827 -0.2 Percent PASSENGER LOAD FACTOR Domestic 83.3 Percent 83.9 Percent -0.6 Points International 78.2 Percent 79.4 Percent -1.2 Points Transatlantic 77.1 Percent 79.4 Percent -2.3 Points Latin America 81.8 Percent 80.5 Percent 1.3 Points Pacific 76.0 Percent 77.8 Percent -1.8 Points Mainline 80.8 Percent 81.7 Percent -0.9 Points Regional 76.1 Percent 78.2 Percent -2.1 Points Consolidated 80.2 Percent 81.4 Percent -1.2 Points ONBOARD PASSENGERS Mainline 48,682,360 50,959,989 -4.5 Percent Regional 18,009,899 17,970,423 0.2 Percent Consolidated 66,692,259 68,930,412 -3.2 Percent CARGO REVENUE TON MILES (000) Total 1,006,327 1,037,614 -3.0 Percent

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PRELIMINARY OPERATIONAL AND FINANCIAL RESULTS DECEMBER 2008 2007 Change On-Time Performance(1) 63.3% 66.4% (3.1) Points Completion Factor (2) 98.5% 98.4% 0.1 Points November 2008 year-over-year consolidated RASM change 1.2 Percent November 2008 year-over-year mainline RASM change 2.4 Percent December 2008 estimated year-over-year consolidated RASM change 3.5 - 4.5 Percent December 2008 estimated year-over-year mainline RASM change 4.0 - 5.0 Percent December 2008 estimated average price per gallon of fuel, including fuel taxes 2.34 Dollars Fourth Quarter 2008 estimated average price per gallon of fuel, including fuel taxes 2.92 Dollars (1) Department of Transportation Arrivals within 14 minutes (2) Mainline Segment Completion Percentage

SOURCE Continental Airlines

http://www.continental.com

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