= CONTINENTAL AIRLINES ANNOUNCES =0A$241 MILLION THIRD QUARTER PROFIT =0A =0A= Operating income of $280 million is third quarter record; company accrues r= ecord profit sharing=0A =0AHOUSTON, Oct. 18, 2007 =96 Continental Airlines = (NYSE: CAL) today reported third quarter 2007 net income of $241 million ($= 2.15 diluted earnings per share). Excluding a special charge of $12 millio= n for pilot pension plan settlement charges, Continental recorded net incom= e of $253 million ($2.25 diluted earnings per share), an improvement of 73 = percent compared to the same period last year.=0A During the quarter, reven= ue grew 8.6 percent compared to the third quarter 2006, to a record $3.8 bi= llion. Continental=92s operating income increased 45.8 percent over the sa= me period last year, to a third quarter record of $280 million. =0A=93Our s= uccess is due to the hard work and dedication of my co-workers,=94 said Lar= ry Kellner, Continental=92s chairman and chief executive officer. =93Their= commitment to great service has enabled us to record the highest quarterly= revenue in our company=92s history.=94=0AThrough Sept. 30, 2007, the compa= ny has accrued $157 million for its current year profit sharing, a $59 mill= ion increase over the same nine-month period last year. The actual amount = of profit sharing that the company will be able to distribute to employees = in February 2008, could increase or decrease depending on the company=92s f= ourth quarter financial results. Employees have also benefited from stock = option appreciation. At yesterday=92s closing stock price of $36.23 per sh= are, the realized and unrealized gains from their options were approximatel= y $200 million.=0AThird Quarter Revenue and Capacity=0ARecord passenger rev= enue of $3.5 billion increased 8.7 percent ($280 million) compared to the t= hird quarter 2006, led by strong international revenue growth. =0AConsoli= dated revenue passenger miles (RPMs) for the quarter increased 5.7 percent = year-over-year on a capacity increase of 3.7 percent, resulting in a record= third quarter consolidated load factor of 83.8 percent, 1.6 points above t= he previous third quarter record set in 2006. Consolidated passenger reven= ue per available seat mile (RASM) for the quarter was up 4.8 percent year-o= ver-year. =0A Mainline RPMs in the third quarter 2007 increased 7.4 percent= over the third quarter 2006, on a capacity increase of 5.4 percent. Mainl= ine load factor was a record 84.3 percent, up 1.6 points year-over-year. C= ontinental=92s mainline yield increased 4.1 percent over the same period in= 2006. Third quarter 2007 mainline RASM was up 6.0 percent over the same p= eriod last year as a result of record load factors, a domestic yield increa= se of 1.3 percent and an international yield increase of 7.0 percent.=0APas= senger revenue for the third quarter of 2007 and period-to-period compariso= ns of related =0Astatistics by geographic region for the company=92s mainli= ne and regional operations are as follows:=0A=0A=0A=0APassenger=0ARevenue= =0A(in millions)Percentage Increase (Decrease) in=0AThird Quarter 2007 vs. = Third Quarter 2006=0APassenger=0ARevenue =0ARASM=0AASMs=0A =0ADomestic$= 1,491 7.3 % 2.5 % 4.7 % =0ATrans-Atlantic776 22.2 % 9.8 % 11.3 % =0ALatin A= merica393 11.1 % 9.9 % 1.1 % =0APacific277 10.2 % 9.9 % 0.2 % =0ATotal Main= line$2,937 11.7 % 6.0 % 5.4 % =0A =0ARegional$ 574 (4.5)% 4.7 % (= 8.8)% =0A =0AConsolidated$3,511 8.7 % 4.8 % 3.7 % =0A=0A=0AOperatio= nal Accomplishments=0ADuring the quarter, Continental recorded a U.S. Depar= tment of Transportation (DOT) on-time arrival rate of 77.3 percent and a sy= stemwide mainline segment completion factor of 99.3 percent. =0A = =93Despite air traffic control challenges, my co-workers delivered excelle= nt service this quarter, allowing us to again grow our revenue,=94 said Con= tinental=92s President Jeff Smisek. =93Continental=92s operations continue= to be adversely impacted by our nation=92s antiquated air traffic control = system, which is not keeping up with the demand for air travel in this coun= try, especially along the northeast corridor.=94 =0A Continenta= l=92s employees earned $12 million in performance incentives during the qua= rter for running the best on-time operation among the major network carrier= s in August and September, and for finishing in the top three of the major = network carriers for on-time performance in July. Continental=92s employee= s have earned on-time incentives eight out of the past nine months.=0ADurin= g the quarter, Continental announced a plan to grow its capacity at Clevela= nd Hopkins International Airport by 40 percent over a two-year period. The= company will initially operate 50 new flights, principally on regional jet= s, and add 20 new nonstop destinations by next summer, including seasonal s= ervice to Paris. =0AContinuing its international expansion, Continental i= naugurated nonstop service between its New York hub at Newark Liberty Inter= national Airport and Mumbai, India on Oct. 1. In addition, the DOT tentati= vely allocated seven weekly frequencies for Continental to operate nonstop = service between New York/Newark Liberty and Shanghai and through-flight ser= vice between Cleveland and Shanghai beginning March 2009. =0AThird Quarter = Financial Results=0AContinental=92s mainline cost per available seat mile (= CASM) increased 3.1 percent (3.3 percent holding fuel rate constant) in the= third quarter compared to the same period last year. =0ADuring the quarte= r, the price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed at a p= eak of $83.32 per barrel on Sept. 20, 2007. Yesterday, crude oil prices re= ached a new intra-day record high of $89.00 per barrel. Continental=92s an= nualized fuel costs increase by approximately $44 million for each $1-per-b= arrel rise in the price of jet fuel. =0A=93The high cost of fuel continues= to pose challenges for us, but we=92ll keep working those costs we can con= trol,=94 said Jeff Misner, executive vice president and chief financial off= icer. =93We are very close to finalizing a couple of major supplier cost r= eduction initiatives that, along with several other smaller initiatives, sh= ould save us approximately $100 million annually on a run-rate basis when f= ully implemented, with some savings beginning in the fourth quarter.=94=0AC= ontinental continues to enhance its fuel efficiency. The carrier is about = 35 percent more fuel efficient per mainline revenue passenger mile than it = was in 1997. With mainline RPMs up 7.4 percent for the third quarter, main= line fuel consumption increased only 4.9 percent. =0ADuring the quarter, t= he company completed installation of winglets on 11 long-range 737-300s an= d work continued on the project to install winglets on 37 of the company=92= s 737-500s. Continental expects to have winglets installed on more than 20= 0 mainline aircraft by the end of the year. Winglets increase aerodynamic = efficiency and decrease drag, reducing fuel consumption and emissions by up= to five percent.=0AContinental hedged approximately 35 percent of its fuel= requirements for the third quarter of 2007. As of Sept. 30, 2007, the com= pany had hedged approximately 30 percent of its projected fuel requirements= for the fourth quarter of 2007, and 10 percent for the first quarter of 20= 08. =0A Continental ended the third quarter with $3.0 billion in= unrestricted cash and short-term investments. =0AOther Accomplishments=0A= Continental contributed $125 million to its pension plans during the quarte= r and an additional $75 million in October. The company has contributed $3= 36 million to its pension plans in 2007, significantly exceeding its minimu= m funding requirements of $187 million for the calendar year.=0ADuring the = quarter, Continental entered into agreements for the sale of 15 Boeing 737-= 500 aircraft to a Russian carrier and a subsidiary of a Russian leasing com= pany. The first aircraft has been delivered. The remaining aircraft are s= cheduled to be delivered between November 2007 through December 2008. Cont= inental will operate each aircraft until shortly before its delivery date.= =0ADuring the quarter, Continental began a multi-year marketing agreement w= ith the New York Giants, signing on as the team=92s official airline. The = agreement includes cooperative advertising and joint marketing fan promotio= ns through 2010. =0ACorporate Background=0AContinental Airlines is the worl= d=92s fifth largest airline. Continental, together with Continental Expres= s and Continental Connection, has more than 3,100 daily departures througho= ut the Americas, Europe and Asia, serving 143 domestic and 140 internationa= l destinations. More than 400 additional points are served via SkyTeam alli= ance airlines. With more than 45,000 employees, Continental has hubs servi= ng New York, Houston, Cleveland and Guam, and together with Continental Exp= ress, carries approximately 67 million passengers per year. Continental con= sistently earns awards and critical acclaim for both its operation and its = corporate culture. For more company information, visit continental.com. = =0AContinental Airlines will conduct a regular quarterly telephone briefing= today to discuss these results and the company's financial and operating o= utlook with the financial community and news media at 9:30 a.m. CT/10:30 a.= m. ET. To listen to a live broadcast of this briefing, go to continental.c= om>About Continental>Investor Relations. =0AThis press release contains f= orward-looking statements that are not limited to historical facts, but ref= lect the company=92s current beliefs, expectations or intentions regarding = future events. All forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainti= es that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the f= orward-looking statements. For examples of such risks and uncertainties, pl= ease see the risk factors set forth in the company=92s 2006 10-K and its ot= her securities filings, including any amendments thereto, which identify im= portant matters such as the consequences of the company=92s significant fin= ancial losses and high leverage, the significant cost of aircraft fuel, its= high labor and pension costs, service interruptions at one of its hub airp= orts, disruptions in its computer systems, and industry conditions, includi= ng the airline pricing environment, industry capacity decisions, industry c= onsolidation, terrorist attacks, regulatory matters, excessive taxation, the availability and cost of insur= ance, public health threats and the seasonal nature of the airline business= . The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any for= ward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise a= fter the date of this press release, except as required by applicable law. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> If you wish to unsubscribe from the AIRLINE List, please send an E-mail to: "listserv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx". Within the body of the text, only write the following:"SIGNOFF AIRLINE".