All air transport news – Page 2248
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News
GE90-powered Continental 777 hits ETOPS proving flight hitch
This new General Electric GE90-powered Continental Airlines Boeing 777 had to carry out a precautionary diversion following a starboard engine low oil-quantity alert during a transpacific extended range twin engine operations (ETOPS) proving flight for the airline. The aircraft, en route on a nonstop New York-Tokyo flight on 7 October, ...
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PAL seeks foreign capital as resumption nears
Philippine Airlines (PAL) is due to resume skeleton international flights from 15 October, following the restart of domestic services with a much reduced fleet of aircraft. It is now seeking to attract new foreign investors, with efforts focused on Cathay Pacific Airways and Northwest Airlines. International operations will begin ...
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R-R plans joint European repair venture
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE Rolls-Royce is in discussions with Swissair and Lufthansa to form a new tripartite engine repair and overhaul facility in Europe as plans to establish a similar joint venture with Singapore Airlines (SIA) have slowed in the face of Asia's economic crisis. The UK engine manufacturer is understood to ...
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Airbus/Boeing poser faces Air France
Julian Moxon/PARIS Air France is considering the purchase of an initial 15 Airbus A330-200s or Boeing 767-300ER/400ERs to satisfy part of its future long-haul requirement and has asked General Electric, Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney to come up with offers for both types. Selection is being held up ...
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EC and Italy reach last-gasp airports agreement
The European Commission and the Italian Government have reached a last-minute agreement on a traffic distribution system between Milan's two airports at Linate and Malpensa, where a new hub is to open on 25 October. The deal, agreed in principle, followed a day of intense negotiations on 8 October ...
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Sabena turbine failure
A Sabena Boeing 737-200 with 104 people on board suffered an uncontained starboard engine failure just after take off from Brussels Zaventem for Lisbon, Portugal, on 26 September. Upwind from runway 25R, engine parts from the Pratt & Whitney JT8D-15 rained on the village of Diegem, damaging cars and houses. ...
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Australia throws challenge to flailing Air Niugini
Brisbane-based Flight West Airlines has expanded plans for new services between northern Australia and Papua New Guinea (PNG), further challenging embattled Air Niugini on one of its prime revenue earning routes. The Australian regional carrier now plans to add two direct flights weekly between Cairns and PNG's second city, Lae, ...
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MD-82 overrun at Ulsan adds to Korean Air's catalogue of woe
Korean Air's (KAL) battered safety record suffered another blow on 30 September when a Boeing MD-82 landing in wet weather at Ulsan Airport overran the runway by 150m (470ft), less than two months after another major incident at Seoul involving a KAL Boeing 747-400. According to the airline, three ...
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BA 777 order leads to launch of Trent 895
Rolls-Royce has launched the 95,000lb (423kN)-thrust Trent 895 engine on the back of an order to power up to 32 Boeing 777-200ERs ordered by British Airways (Flight International, 30 September-6 October). The 895 is identical to the current Trent 800, but has increased thrust because of higher temperature margins. ...
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SilkAir replaces 737s and Fokker 70s with V2500 Airbus A319/320s
SilkAir has added the first of eight International Aero Engines V2500-powered Airbus A320s and A319s to its fleet. The regional arm of Singapore Airlines has orders for four A319s and four A320s, with a further 10 aircraft on option. Because of the downturn in the region, SilkAir will use ...
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German operator goes solo
Andrzej Jeziorski/Munich German tour operator Frosch Touristik International (FTI) is to found its own airline. Operations are due to get under way early next year with a fleet of three Airbus A320s. The name of the airline and its home base remain to be announced. According to FTI ...
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MTU/Snecma sign Asia deals
MTU and Snecma Services have signed separate initial agreements with China Southern Airlines and China Southwest Airlines respectively, to establish engine overhaul and maintenance joint ventures in Asia. Under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between MTU of Germany and Guangzhou-based China Southern, a feasibility study is to be conducted ...
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Comair includes 70-seaters in big Canadair Regional Jet deal
Max Kingsley-Jones/LONDONComair has placed the biggest single order ever for the Bombardier Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ), with a 10-year agreement for up to 150 aircraft, including its first deal for the stretched 70-seat version. The 50 firm orders are worth more than $1 billion. The deal from the Cincinnati-based Delta ...
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DHL standardises on A300B4 freighters for European services
Herman de Wulf/BRUSSELS DHL International is standardising on the Airbus A300B4 freighter for its European operations and says it will need more than the 14 aircraft it has already agreed to acquire. The European arm of DHL has its main hub in Brussels handling some 250t of freight a night. ...
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EVA pursues options to fill business void
Brent Hannon/TAIPEI EVA Airways has been talking to oneworld and the Star Alliance and hopes to join one of the alliances as soon as it decides which is most suitable, says president and vice-chairman Frank Hsu. Meanwhile, the airline is boosting its cargo business to fill the void left ...
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FAA invites ETOPS extension proposal
Any US extension of the 180min rule for extended range twin engined operations (ETOPS) would be granted on the basis of "equivalent safety" to existing rules, says the US Federal Aviation Administration. The agency says: "We have told the operators/manufacturers they should make a proposal for extending ETOPS beyond ...
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Garuda system reliability queried
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE A US lawsuit filed against Sundstrand has called into question the reliability and effectiveness of the company's Mk2 ground proximity warning system (GPWS), following the fatal crash of a Garuda Indonesia Airbus A300B4 in Sumatra a year ago. The Chicago-based Nolan Law Group, representing the family ...
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Go goes for growth as fleet grows
Max Kingsley-Jones/LONDON Go, the British Airways low-fare affiliate, says the primary reason behind the move to almost triple its fleet to 13 aircraft over the next 15 months is to enable it to boost its route network, but the airline denies that it plans to take over routes from ...
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GPA reborn after signing Texas deal
GPA is set to re-emerge under a new name as a small independent lessor later this year following a deal with US venture capital partnership Texas Pacific to acquire up to a 47.7% shareholding in the Irish lessor. The deal comes three months after a memorandum of understanding was ...
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Marconi tests head-up display system for 737
Certification flight testing of Marconi's HUD2020 head-up display (HUD) system for the Boeing 737 began on 28 September with a 2h 35min test flight from Mojave, California. The HUD, mounted by Tracor Flight Systems in the flightdeck of a 737-200 "-worked well during the initial flight", says Marconi, which ...