All air transport news – Page 2229
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News
Routes
-San Juan-based Sun Airways, a charter air carrier, has initiated services between Puerto Rico and Orlando and Fort Lauderdale with one Boeing 727-200. -Sabena has begun daily direct flights from Brussels to Catania (Sicily) and four weekly flights to Palma de Mallorca (Spain) and Faro (Portugal) from 18 December. -Virgin ...
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SilkAir probe 'may prove inconclusive'
Andrzej Jeziorski/SINGAPORE Twelve months after the crash of a SilkAir Boeing 737-300 on 19 December 1997, officials investigating the accident admit that "human factors" are the only avenue of investigation which remains open. But they add that it is difficult to assess accurately the state of mind of ...
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Cathay seeks higher productivity in costs drive
Andrzej Jeziorski/SINGAPORE Cathay Pacific Airways has agreed on productivity increases with ground staff as it negotiates with cabin crew and begins early talks with pilots' unions, as part of its drive to improve efficiency and cut costs. According to the airline, the productivity gains are being rewarded with ...
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Crossair predicts big profit for 1998 but warns on ATC delays
Andrew Doyle/MUNICH Swiss carrier Crossair is forecasting bumper results for 1998 on the back of a 26% surge in scheduled passenger traffic. But the SAirGroup regional subsidiary complains that European air traffic control (ATC) delays reached their worst ever level last year - a situation it describes as ...
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Ethiopian deal sees new skies open up for Sukhoi Su-27
Alexander Velovich/MOSCOW Ethiopia has taken delivery of about 10 Sukhoi Su-27 fighters, becoming only the third non-CIS nation after China and Vietnam to operate the aircraft. The ex-Russian air force aircraft were delivered by An-22 transport aircraft from Krasnodar. One of the Su-27s is thought to be at ...
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Jet airliner sales flat for the third year, but shipments are up
Jet airliner sales recorded a third consecutive flat year in 1998, with Airbus Industrie and Boeing together taking 1,100 orders worth $75 billion. Shipments have continued to increase, with the 780 aircraft delivered representing a 40% increase on 1997. Provisional figures compiled by Flight International show orders split roughly ...
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Sikorsky S-92A Helibus completes maiden flight
Flight testing of the Sikorsky S-92A Helibus medium helicopter began on 23 December. With its maiden flight successfully concluded, attention has now switched to a final decision by the company on a production go-ahead later this year. The first General Electric CT7-6D-powered prototype S-92 made its inaugural flight from ...
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RTIP deal agreed
Northrop Grumman's bid to win the UK's Airborne Stand-Off Radar (ASTOR) has been strengthened by a contract to begin development of an upgrade for the US Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System. An advanced active-array radar to be developed under the Radar Technology Insertion Programme (RTIP) forms the basis ...
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Sundstrand boosts Airbus APU life
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Sundstrand's Auxiliary Power International (APIC) plans to boost the in-service life of its APS 3200 auxiliary power unit on the Airbus single-aisle aircraft family with a block upgrade in the next few months. APIC is confident of growing business on the 100-seat A318 after being selected ...
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P&W sketches out PW6000 test plan
Pratt & Whitney plans to run the first engine tests of its PW6000 turbofan in July 1999, and will flight test the initial engine on powerplant manufacturer Pratt & Whitney Canada's Boeing 720 testbed in early 2001. The timescale depends partially on Airbus giving the go-ahead for the formal ...
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Concern on Shuttle safety as ISS gathers pace
The NASA Kennedy Space Centre's Shuttle safety chief, Tommy Holloway, has warned staff to be on the alert for breaches in safety as the pace of orbiting International Space Station (ISS) components increases over the next few years. The warning to be extra vigilant about quality control and safety ...
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Changes at Aerolineas
American Airlines' purchase of an 8.5% stake in Aerolineas Argentinas has started the Argentinian carrier on a major restructuring. Promptly after the $25 million purchase closed, Aerolineas ordered 12 Airbus A340s as the first step of its new business plan to refleet and expand. Delayed for months by regulatory ...
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Boeing cuts as growth slows
As Boeing announced another dose of bad news at the end of 1998 - more job cuts and a slowing down of production - it heads into the New Year hoping to convince Wall Street that these measures will finally put the company ahead of the worldwide economic downturn. ...
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New commission cap sparks fury
United Airlines has capped commissions on international tickets at $50 one-way and $100 roundtrip, setting off a furore in the US travel agency community. The move has prompted the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) to put together plans to file a complaint to the US Department ...
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China to go it alone on jet
China's aircraft manufacturers are reworking plans to develop a smaller regional jet than the cancelled AE31X. Hong Kong sources say the manufacturing companies of Harbin, Xian, Shaanxi and Shanghai, with Shanghai Aircraft Research Institute and Xian Design and Research Institute, have agreed on 58/ 78-seater versions of a regional ...
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News in Brief
Japanese start-up - Japanese startup Amakusa Airlines has ordered one 39-seat Bombardier de Havilland Dash 8-100Q in preparation for its launch in the spring of 2000. The airline, which follows Symark and Air Do into Japan's newly opened domestic market, is majority owned by a local government interests. Money ...
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Jet Airways expansion questioned
The 25 aircraft expansion programme of Jet Airways, India's largest independent domestic carrier, has run into trouble. The finance ministry has requested details from its civil aviation counterpart on why the Tata-Singapore Airlines (SIA) joint venture was rejected while approval was given for Jet Airways ...
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BA takes over CityFlyer
News that British Airways would take over CityFlyer Express finally came as little surprise. The regional airline was its first franchise partner back in 1993 and has thrived from flying in the BA colours. In the process CityFlyer has built up a valuable block of slots at London Gatwick, integral ...
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News in Brief
Short and wide - British Midland has ordered 10 50-seat Embraer RJ-145 regional jets and is seeking six long-haul aircraft for its proposed US routes. A choice is expected to be made soon between the Airbus A330-200 and the Boeing 767-300. City Bird cargo - City Bird of Belgium has ...
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Italy phases in open skies
This January the Italian Government will select the first carriers to fly to the USA under the first stage of the phased open skies agreement signed between the two countries in November. The new air services agreement allows for one daily return service out of the USA and another ...