All air transport news – Page 2323
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News
Qantas and Virgin compete for Cathay's surplus 747-200s
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE Cathay Pacific Airways has entered into detailed discussions with Qantas of Australia and Virgin Atlantic Airways to sell its fleet of seven surplus Boeing 747-200 passenger aircraft. Qantas is also being offered an interim development of the proposed 747-400 increased-gross-weight (IGW) variant by Boeing to meet the carrier's ...
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Emirates nears A340 decision
Ian Sheppard/LONDON Emirates Airlines is preparing to make a decision on its long-awaited requirement for ultra-long-range aircraft. The airline signed a letter of intent (LoI) with Airbus for up to A340-500s in November 1997, but has kept the manufacturer waiting because of Boeing's last-minute attempt to meet performance demands ...
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CFMI takes lion's share of 1997 orders
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES The General Electric/ Snecma alliance CFM International (CFMI) won orders for 1,314 CFM56 engines in 1997, selling more for 100-seat-plus aircraft than all other large-civil-engine manufacturers combined. Although there is some dispute over the exact figure for the year, with some independent analysts claiming that ...
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Safety-authority plans detailed
Julian Moxon and Alan George/BRUSSELS New details of the planned European Air Safety Authority (EASA) have been revealed by European transport Commissioner Neil Kinnock. In spite of the progress, he admits that there remain "several very difficult political issues" to be resolved. The European Commission (EC) has called ...
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GE prepares for GE90 growth possibility
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES General Electric is to upgrade its GE90 compressor design to reduce fuel consumption by 1.5-2%. Although the move is aimed at the Boeing 777-200IGW (increased gross-weight), the company is preparing for the possibility that a substantial market will develop for future growth versions. The US ...
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Marketplace
-Egyptair has signed a firm contract with Airbus Industrie for four A340-600s, including two orders and two options. It will introduce the 400-seat, Rolls-Royce Trent 500-powered A340 in 2003. -Southern Air Transport has taken delivery of a Boeing 747-200F, acquired from Northwest Airlines, which is being operated ...
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R-R reaches deadlock in Trent investment talks
Rolls-Royce has reached an impasse in its negotiations with Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) and Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries (IHI) on taking a risk-sharing stake in the development and production of the new Trent 500/600/8104 engine series. The two Japanese manufacturers had hoped to sign memoranda of understanding with R-R for ...
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Routes
-Northwest Airlines is suspending its three-times-weekly services between Detroit and Seoul, South Korea, from the beginning of February because of the economic downturn in the region.. -Frontier and Mountain Air Express (MAX)will start codesharing on 4 March at Denver International Airport, Colorado. -Canadian Airlines and LanChile will begin an ...
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Crashed SilkAir 737 hinge bolt 'was installed'
Boeing says that an elevator hinge bolt, previously believed to be missing from the SilkAir Boeing 737-300 which crashed on 19 December, 1997, was installed at the time. In a letter sent on 27 January to all 737 operators, the manufacturer says: "An examination of the wreckage gives clear evidence ...
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Wexford adds to Embraer orderbook with letter for 40 ERJ-135s
Wexford Aviation has signed a letter of intent for 40 Embraer RJ-135 37-seat regional jets, worth $500 million. The agreement is similar to an earlier deal for 20 firm orders, with 20 options, for Embraer RJ-145 50-seat regional jets, worth $700 million. Greenwich, Connecticut-based investment firm Wexford plans to ...
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Workshop
-Pemco Aeroplex has been awarded a maintenance contract by Mesa Airlines to carry out line maintenance, technical support and transit checks in support of Mesa's Bombardier Canadair Regional Jets in operation through Birmingham International Airport, Alabama. -AeroCorp has signed a contract with Continental Airlines to undertake heavy scheduled maintenance of ...
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US airline profits are 'best ever'
The major US airlines ended 1997 with their strongest profits on record, but the celebrations were accompanied by the promise of more turbulence ahead, with the fall-out from Asian economic crisis and the prospect of a renewed round of consolidation closer to home following the Continental/Northwest Airlines tie-up. With only ...
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USA makes last-ditch ASTOR effort
Douglas Barrie/LONDON A high-level US delegation visited the UK in early January in an eleventh-hour attempt to persuade the Government to procure a variant of the Northrop Grumman Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS) to meet its Airborne Stand-Off Radar (ASTOR ) requirement. The delegation, say US sources, ...
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AOPA criticises FAA wing-spar mandate
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) says that a proposed wing-spar airworthiness directive (AD) affecting 8,300 Aeronca and American Champion aircraft is unnecessary. The private pilots' group seeks exemptions for all non-aerobatic, lower-gross-weight aircraft such as the original Aeronca Champ and Chief and derivative aircraft such as the ...
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BFGoodrich delivers two more private 'Super 27s'
Two further Boeing 727-200s, modified to "Super 27" configuration, have been delivered to private customers by BFGoodrich Aerospace's Aerostructures group (formerly Rohr) in California. The Super 27 upgrade allows the 727 to meet Stage 3 noise requirements and involves replacing the two outboard engines with Pratt & Whitney JT8D-217Cs ...
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PZL-Swidnik upgrades SW-4 prototype with flight-control system
Polish helicopter manufacturer PZL-Swidnik is fitting a hydraulic flight-control system from French manufacturer SAMM to its third SW-4 light-helicopter prototype. The four/five-seat helicopter, powered by a single 335kW (450shp) Allison 250-C20R/2 turboshaft has undergone 70h of flight testing since it was first flown on 26 October, 1996, and is ...
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Airbus urges AE31X speed-up to compete with Boeing 717
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE Airbus Industrie and its Chinese and Singapore partners are discussing speeding up development of the proposed smaller AE316 member of the planned AE31X family of regional aircraft, in response to Boeing's relaunch of the former MD-95 twinjet as the 717-200. It is understood that Airbus Industrie Asia (AIA) ...
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British Airways is ready to Go with no-frills contender
British Airways is to launch its London Stansted based "no-frills" division under the name Go. The launch is set for early in the second quarter of 1998. Go's chief executive Barbara Cassani denies that the new airline's remit is to eliminate new low-cost entrants such as easyJet, but warns that ...
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Latin carriers link for A320 deal
Three major Latin American carriers, TAM of Brazil, TACA Group of El Salvador and LanChile, are in final negotiations with Airbus Industrie to place a joint order for up to 130 A320-family aircraft. The deal should be concluded by March. LanChile confirms that it has already signed a letter ...
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Wexford agrees to acquire US regional
US Airways Express carrier Chautauqua Airlines is to be acquired by US investment firm Wexford Aviation, which plans to place some of its recently ordered Embraer RJ-135 and RJ-145 regional jets with the Indianapolis-based airline. Greenwich, Connecticut-based Wexford has agreed to acquire 100% of privately held Chautauqua, which had ...