All air transport news – Page 2377
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Delta III waits on launch pad for maiden flight
Boeing's first Delta III is pictured on Pad 17B at Cape Canaveral, Florida, being prepared for its maiden flight scheduled for 3 August, carrying the Hughes HS-601 Galaxy 10 communications satellite. The Delta III, which can place 3,810kg into geostationary transfer orbit, comprises a stretched Delta II first stage ...
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FAA finalises parachute testing
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES The US Federal Aviation Administration is close to completing tests on a parachute system that will allow Cirrus Design's SR20 aircraft to decelerate and drift down to the ground in the event of a mechanical failure or other emergency. Tests on the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) ...
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Further delays hit PW4098-powered 777-300
The long-delayed flight tests of the Pratt & Whitney PW4098-powered Boeing 777-300 are not expected to resume until at least the end of this month following an incident at SeaTac International Airport, near Seattle, in which a new engine slipped in its handling cradle. P&W says that the PW4098, ...
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Going separate ways
Andrzej Jeziorski/TOULOUSE After months of negotiations, ATR and British Aerospace put an end to their Aero International (Regional) (AI(R)) partnership on 3 July with the signing of the official termination documents, retroactively valid from the beginning of the month. Two-and-a-half year old AI(R) - formed under French law as a ...
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Guizhou to expand as China Southern takes control
Guizhou Airlines is preparing for a major expansion of its aircraft fleet and domestic network following an agree- ment for China Southern Airlines to acquire a controlling interest in the Chinese provincial carrier. The Guiyang-based airline has received the first of three Boeing 737-300s on a seven-year dry lease ...
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Iranian carrier negotiates for ex-PAL A300B4s
The Iranian charter airline Mahan Air is close to finalising a deal for three Airbus A300s as part of its fleet restructuring from Russian to Western equipment. The five-year-old airline, based in Kerman, southern Iran, operates an all-Russian fleet of two Tupolev Tu-154Ms and two Ilyushin Il-76s. Negotiations are ...
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JAA 'category A' approval nears for Explorer helicopter
The European Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) is expected to certify the Boeing MD Explorer helicopter to "category A" performance levels by the end of the month, according to the manufacturer. The long-awaited clearance rates the MD 902 version as capable of safely continuing flight during a landing or ...
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Jet Airways prepares to lease ATR 72s
Ian Sheppard/LONDON Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE Jet Airways is close to signing a deal with ATR to lease eight new ATR 72 turboprops for an initial period of three years. This is the first move by the privately owned Indian domestic airline to form its own feeder fleet. Raj Desai, Jet Airways' ...
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Lockheed Martin drops acquisition
Douglas Barrie/LONDON Lockheed Martin has abandoned its attempt to acquire Northrop Grumman, exasperated with US Government opposition to its proposed $8.3 billion deal. After what has proved to be more than 12 months of fruitless negotiation, Lockheed Martin walked away from the planned acquisition on 16 July, describing ...
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Marketplace
-Continental Airlines has taken delivery of its first of 28 Boeing 737-800s. -Airtours International has confirmed its order for two additional Rolls-Royce Trent 700-powered A330-200s, bringing its orders for the type to four. The second batch will be delivered in the fourth quarter of 1999 for operation by Airtours' Danish ...
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More Asian carriers negotiate order deferrals
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE Korean Air (KAL) and Singapore Airlines (SIA) are negotiating with Airbus Industrie and Boeing to defer up to 16 widebody aircraft due for delivery in 1999 and 2000, as Asia's economic downturn takes its toll on air traffic. Industry and airline sources suggest that KAL is ...
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Nuclear experts aid air safety
Ian Sheppard/LONDON Sandia National Laboratories is helping the US Federal Aviation Administration to devise a new approach to airline safety which the FAA hopes will assist its 3,500 inspectors in tracking safety trends and predicting airline operating deficiencies. Calling on its knowledge from decades of systems engineering work ...
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P&W begins to assemble PW7000 prototype
Pratt & Whitney is preparing to assemble the next Joint Technology Demonstrator Engine (JTDE), the XTE-66. The demonstrator, which will begin tests later this year, also forms an initial prototype of the next generation PW7000 fighter engine family. Like the XTE-66, the PW7000 family is planned around the XTC-66 core. ...
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Pacific ambitions
Guy Norris/GUAM Below the warm, crystal-clear waters of Bikini Atoll lagoon lies the mammoth Second World War aircraft carrier USS Saratoga. Almost 270m long, she is bigger than the Titanic and is the world's largest diveable underwater wreck. Resting upright on the bottom, her bridge is a mere 12m below ...
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PAL rescue plan goes into extra time
Philippine Airlines (PAL) has been given US and Philippine bankruptcy protection until the end of July, allowing the local Securities Exchange Commission (SEC)-appointed "rehabilitation committee" extra time to finalise and present a financial rescue plan. The troubled national carrier is temporarily shielded by the SEC from any claims made ...
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Pressure points
International pressure is mounting for the process of aircraft accident investigation to be opened up, just as it is increasing on those countries seen to be underperforming in airline safety. It is vital to understand the positive and negative effects of this pressure for transparency, however. Investigators themselves are ...
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Proteus confirms options to take Fairchild Dornier 728JETs
Proteus Airlines, the fast-growing French carrier which is a launch customer for the Fairchild Dornier 328JET, has confirmed its commitment for 10 options on the 70-seat 728JET. It is also "positioned" on the yet-to-be-launched 90-seat version. The decision to move to larger aircraft is part of the airline's strategy ...
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TrunkLiner future lies in the balance as China nears decision
The future of the troubled Boeing MD-90 TrunkLiner programme is hanging in the balance with the Chinese Government expected to decide the fate of the programme shortly. Aviation Industries of China (AVIC) is facing the prospect of its second major setback in recent months after the collapse of the ...
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Virgin Express aims for Ireland
Ian Sheppard/LONDON Brussels-based low-cost carrier Virgin Express will this month apply for a Republic of Ireland air operator's certificate (AOC). This will see the airline establish a new base in Ireland at a fraction of the cost of operating from Belgium. The airline says it has no intention ...
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Double standards
Any remaining doubts that action on airline safety is needed in South Asia and Asia-Pacific have been dissolved by the accidents that occurred in the first six months of 1998. After the 2 February Cebu Pacific Air fatal accident, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) broke its characteristic neutral silence ...