All air transport news – Page 2291
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Orenda Recip receives FAA certification for Vee-8 OE-600
Orenda Recip has been awarded US Federal Aviation Administration certification for its OE-600 piston engine, four years after the Ontario, Canada-based manufacturer acquired the Dick McCoon "Thunder" engine programme. The company has orders for 150 engines and options on a further 30 to date, which includes re-engineing de Havilland ...
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Boeing refines 777-200X design to tempt launch customers
Paul Lewis/SEATTLE Boeing has reaffirmed its commitment to launching the planned 777-200X/300X derivatives and is undertaking a fresh examination of a range of payload/range performance enhancements to the design. "The programme is still proceeding and there are some opportunities to make improvements to the 777-200X/300X that we are ...
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ATR forecasts revival in turboprop market
ATR is predicting a revival in regional turboprop sales within the next few years, as aircraft come up for replacement. "There is no way all the 30-seaters will be replaced with jets," believes Antoine Bouissou, president of the US arm, ATR Marketing. He calculates that some 450 30-seat turboprops ...
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Cathay takes first 777-300
Cathay Pacific received the first 777-300 on 21 May, one of seven Rolls-Royce Trent 892-powered aircraft it has on order. The 777 has been awarded 180min extended twin-engine operations by the US Federal Aviation Administration. European clearance is due in August. Delivery of the first of six Thai Airways ...
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Westland prepares compound helicopter demonstrator
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC GKN Westland hopes to launch an advanced compound helicopter (ACH) technology demonstration programme by the end of the year. The aircraft, based on a Westland Lynx, will be equipped with wings and modified Rolls-Royce Turboméca RTM322 engines to demonstrate lift and thrust compounding. A compound helicopter uses ...
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A319M5 takes on 717 in tussle for Northwest 100-seat deal
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Airbus Industrie is pitching its proposed A319M5 head-on against the Boeing 717 in the campaign to sell Northwest Airlines up to 100 of the 100-seaters to replace its McDonnell Douglas DC-9s. The US carrier, which is also planning a 30-seater order, could purchase a total of ...
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Dassault details supersonic jet
Julian Moxon/PARIS Dassault Aviation has revealed key details of its planned supersonic business jet (SSBJ), which it says could be flying "by 2004". The manufacturer is still hesitant about the size of the potential market for SSBJs, but Dassault Aviation vice-president Bruno Revellin Falcoz insisted when a model of the ...
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Airbus plans laminar flow tests in bid to bring down fuel costs
Max Kingsley-Jones/TOULOUSE Airbus Industrie will launch a laminar flow technology flight test later this year as part of its probe into the potential cost and emission reductions resulting from a lessening in aircraft skin drag. The consortium is modifying the tailfin of the prototype A320-100 for tests due to begin ...
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Sfim uses GPS to calibrate aircraft approach paths
Julian Moxon/PARIS French avionics specialist Sfim has developed a new low cost system to replace the optical equipment used for tracking aircraft flying runway approaches when calibrating runway landing equipment. Its Traki trajectography kit uses the satellite global positioning system (GPS) instead of a ground- based theodolite to ...
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Fairchild Dornier launches 728JET
US-German regional aircraft manufacturer Fairchild Dornier scored the show's most significant coup with the launch of its 528/728/928JET family and the confirmation of conditional orders for 165 aircraft. The announcement came alongside the launch of the 42/44-seat 428JETstretched version of the company's 328JET. Apart from confirmation by Lufthansa CityLine ...
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BMW Rolls-Royce finds cure for compressor blade cracks
BMW Rolls-Royce has resolved a compressor blade cracking problem in the BR715 engine. The problem has delayed the start of flight testing of the Boeing 717 regional airliner for several weeks. According to research and development director Günter Kappler, the cracks arose during altitude chamber tests to determine the ...
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Eurojet aims EJ200 variant at thrust vectored Gripen
Eurojet, the Eurofighter powerplant manufacturer, is offering an uprated version of its EJ200 engine to power a thrust-vectored Saab/British Aerospace Gripen demonstrator. The company says that a 700h flight test programme is being planned to explore thrust vectoring on a standard Gripen airframe for the export market. Eurojet has ...
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MIG MAPO reveals MiG-29SMT upgrade details
MIG MAPO has released more details of its MiG-29SMT upgrade for the basic Fulcrum A. These include the potential to fit the aircraft with improved air-to-air and air-to-surface weaponry as well as an upgraded variant of the Klimov RD-33 engine, the RD-43, capable of thrust vectoring. MIG MAPO unveiled ...
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Brazil and Canada plan subsidy accord for regional aircraft
Mediation of the regional aircraft subsidy dispute between Brazil and Canada has left both sides claiming victory. Special envoys appointed by the two governments have recommended means for resolving the dispute, but have not ruled on whether support provided to Bombardier and Embraer breaks international guidelines on subsidies. The trade ...
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British Aerospace aims Jetstream 32EP at Mexico
British Aerospace Asset Management is trying to persuade Mexican regional Aerolitoral to replace its fleet of 27 owned Fairchild Metros with 15 leased Jetstream 32EPs. The approach follows BAe's first deal with a Mexican carrier - to lease five 19-seat J32EPs, with seven options, to Aerocaribe. Cancun-based Aerocaribe, like ...
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Fairchild Dornier aims 428JET at USA
Fairchild Dornier is aiming its new 42/44-seat 428JET primarily at the US regional airline market. President Jim Robinson says the launch of a stretched version of the 32/34-seat 328JET is intended to offset the commonality advantage Embraer enjoys in marketing its 37-seat RJ-135 to 50-seat RJ-145 operators. Continental Express ...
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Saab and BAe remain cautious on leasing tie-up
Saab and British Aerospace are playing down reports that they plan to merge their regional turboprop leasing operations following BAe's decision to buy a 35% stake in the Swedish manufacturer. Instead, the companies say they have begun "benchmarking" their respective asset management operations "-to identify best practices-with a view to ...
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In Love
Continental Express will begin daily Embraer RJ-145 regional jet services from Dallas Love Field, Texas, to Houston, Texas, on 11 June, and to Cleveland, Ohio, on 1 July in competition with Southwest Airlines, which is based at Love Field and operates Boeing 737s. This will be the first time that ...
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Delta III prepared for maiden launch
The first stage of the Boeing Delta III launch vehicle is erected at launch pad 17B at Cape Canaveral, Florida, in preparation for its maiden flight this year carrying the Hughes-built Galaxy X communications satellite. The Delta III stretched first stage uses a similar Rocketdyne RS-27A main engine as used ...
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Reaching for the sky
Dave Higdon/HOUSTON After several false dawns, the much trumpeted renaissance of general aviation in the USA finally appears to have become reality in 1997 - with a hint of a continuing strengthening of the position in years to come, according to figures delivered by the Federal Aviation Administration during the ...