All air transport news – Page 2453
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BA boosts Gatwick by transferring 777-200s
British Airways is to widen the role of Airline Management (AML), its low-cost joint venture which operates long-haul routes from Gatwick Airport, as part of an expansion which will see BA's capacity from London's second airport increase by 25% from mid-1998. It has confirmed plans to transfer five ...
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Boeing pays the price for production crisis
The full financial impact of Boeing's growing commercial production and delivery crisis has been revealed, with costs estimated at $2.6 billion attributed to late deliveries and recovery plans. The bulk of the costs, some $1.6 billion, are associated with penalty payments for late deliveries in the third quarter, ...
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EC will inspect Delta's new Boeing sole-supplier deal
Delta Air Lines has signed a definitive 20-year, 644-aircraft, sole-supplier contract with Boeing, but says that the manufacturer cannot enforce any exclusivity provisions unless permitted by the European Commission(EC). The EC has said that it will examine the contract, which Boeing maintains meets the terms imposed as a ...
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737 awaits test
Boeing says that the European Joint Aviation Authorities has not yet defined the nature of the final certification tests for its newly designed overwing exits for the Next Generation 737 series. The JAA has approved the new design under the "equivalent-safety finding" principle, but has demanded tests before final certification. ...
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FedEx leads orders for rigid cargo bulkhead
FedEx is to replace the nylon nets used in its fleet of older widebody aircraft to protect crew from the hazards of loose cargo pallets, with a new rigid cargo bulkhead from US structures specialist Tolo. The barrier is based on Tolo's patented Grid-Lock technology and is formed ...
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Airbus supplement: Airbus history
When the seeds which were to spawn today's Airbus Industrie were first being sown in the mid-1960s, the term "air bus" was a generic expression adopted by the industry to describe a short- to medium-range airliner proposed to meet increasing demand on busy European air routes such as London to ...
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Airbus supplement: A319 flighttest
Peter Henley/HAMBURG The 124-seat A319 is the smallest of the Airbus Industrie family of airliners, featuring the same basic flightdeck and similar handling characteristics to all the other Airbus fly-by-wire (FBW)aircraft. A "shrink" derivative of the 150-seat A320, the A319 is offered with the same engines ...
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RSAF purchases additional F-16C/Ds
The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is to expand its fleet of Lockheed Martin F-16C/D fighters with an order for another 12 Block 52 standard aircraft. Singapore's follow-on purchase will allow it to deploy at least two squadrons of F-16C/Ds locally. The additional aircraft are likely to ...
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ARIA concludes deal to lease II-96M/Ts
Aeroflot Russian International Airlines (ARIA) has reached agreement to acquire its Pratt & Whitney PW2337-powered 20 Ilyushin Il-96M/Ts through lease financing rather than direct purchase. ARIA's order includes 17 passenger Il-96Ms and three Il-96T freighters, to be purchased by a joint-venture leasing company established by the National Reserve ...
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Hamburg Airlines to fold after partner talks fail
Andrzej Jeziorski/MUNICH Hamburg Airlines managing director Udo Klien confirms that the carrier will fold at the end of the year, after the failure of partnership talks with regional carrier Augsburg Airways. Augsburg is now planning instead to extend its Hamburg operations within its existing Team Lufthansa ...
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Pilots warned of software glitch
Flight manuals for the Airbus A320 family are being amended to alert pilots to a "software anomaly" which can cause the aircraft to adopt "an unintended flight path". The US Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness directive (AD), to take effect on 3 November, is sufficiently urgent for the FAA to have ...
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Saab ready to close regional-aircraft lines as orders dry up
Julian Moxon/PARIS Saab Aircraft will shut down production of its 340 and 2000 turboprops in 1998 and leave the regional-airliner market altogether, unless new orders can be secured by the end of 1997. In a statement, Saab warns that the decision could come as soon as ...
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Augsburg updates
Augsburg Airways of Munich is to acquire up to five new Bombardier de Havilland Dash 8-200s and -300s regional turboprops, to be based at Hamburg Airport and signalling an expansion of its Team Lufthansa franchise. The first of the aircraft will be delivered in January 1998, while the airline has ...
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Stretched 777 takes to the air
The first Boeing 777-300 had a "flawless" maiden flight from the company's Everett site on 16 October, completing the 4h 6min test mission at Boeing Field, Seattle, with no technical problems. Boeing 777 programme chief pilot Frank Santoni says: "We spent 4h shaking the aircraft down thoroughly. You ...
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Airbus aims at A320 production boost
Airbus Industrie chief operating officer Volker Von Tein has raised the possibility of an increase in the production rate of the A320 family from the planned 18 per month - but only if the consortium secures an order for 120 aircraft from US Airways. The current rate of ...
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Airbus to rule at German Britannia?
Britannia Airways is considering an all Airbus fleet to expand its new German charter market service. The carrier, which launches its operation with a flight from Berlin-Schonefeld on 3 November using a Boeing 767-300ER, could decide to switch to the European built aircraft by 1999. The foray into ...
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China Airlines begins fleet modernisation
China Airlines (CAL) is undertaking a fleet-modernisation programme, phasing out its older Boeing 747s from passenger operations, and closing on an order for ten long-range widebodies. Two of the carrier's three remaining Pratt & Whitney JT9D-powered Boeing 747- 200Bs will be removed from the fleet for conversion by ...
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American 777 decision holds key to engine-growth plans
American Airlines has been given until 3 November by Boeing to define its 777 fleet requirements as engine makers General Electric and Rolls-Royce study growth powerplants for the proposed long-range -200X and stretched -300X versions in response to a revised request for proposals from the US carrier. American ...
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Air Littoral cancels Bombardier CRJ options
Air Littoral has cancelled options for five Bombardier CanadairRegional Jets (CRJs) due to be delivered in 1998. The action follows a pilots' strike begun on 13 October and was still under way as Flight International went to press. The dispute, which has hit up to 60% of flights, ...
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Unions side with Boeing in Sabena order battle
Unions at Sabena have intervened in the fight between Boeing and Airbus to secure a contract to replace the carrier's Boeing 737-200 with a threat of industrial action if the airline decides in favour of the Airbus A319. The Belgian flag carrier is due to make a decision ...