All air transport news – Page 2552
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McDonnell Douglas
C-17 GLOBEMASTER III The US DoD and Congress have approved a multi-year procurement for 80 additional C-17s for the USAF. This brings the planned fleet total to 120 aircraft by 2005. The decision followed the successful conclusion of a reliability, maintainability and availability demonstration concluded in August 1995 ...
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Northrop Grumman
A-6 INTRUDER The A-6E carrier-borne attack aircraft is being withdrawn from service. A limited upgrade of USN A-6Es added missile-approach warning, towed active decoys, satellite navigation and other improvements. Boeing-built composite wings were retrofitted to 172 A-6s. The last new A-6E was delivered in February 1992. ...
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Maersk begins overhaul of Estonian Air
Max Kingsley-Jones/BILLUND MAERSK AIR has set about ploughing its airline expertise into Estonian Air, following ratification of its agreement to take a 49% stake in the privatised Baltic carrier. In May, the Danish airline, in partnership with investment consortium Baltic Creco, was chosen by the ...
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Frontier dips
Frontier Airlines is the latest of the US start-ups to warn of a likely dip in its fortunes in the September quarter. The Denver-based carrier says that it expects to post a loss over the three months, blaming sluggish traffic, rising fuel costs and rising lease rates. The loss would ...
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Manufacturers' forecasts chart bright future for cargo aircraft
BOEING AND McDonnell Douglas (MDC) are forecasting strong growth in the air-cargo market, with the world's freighter fleet expected to double over the next 20 years. MDC's predictions are slightly more optimistic than Boeing's, with an annual growth rate in air cargo of 7.9%, compared with Boeing's assessment ...
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Maersk ponders Fokker options
MAERSK AIR is examining various options for the renewal of its 50-seat Fokker 50 turboprops, which include the acquisition of a regional-jet type. The Copenhagen, Denmark-based airline, a division of one of world's largest shipping companies AP Moller, operates seven leased Fokker 50s alongside its fleet of Boeing ...
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Computervision improves CADDS 5 design software
COMPUTERVISION has introduced a new version of its CADDS 5 computer-aided-design software, specifically targeted at helping collaborative design of aerospace products. Bedford, Massachusetts-based Computervision says that the CADDS 5 Revision 6 will enable a team of design and manufacturing engineers to work concurrently on an entire assembly, allowing ...
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Georgia Tech develops low-cost MMW
GEORGIA INSTITUTE of Technology is developing an inexpensive millimetre-wave (MMW) radar antenna suitable for use in aircraft all-weather landing systems and missile seekers. A prototype built by the Atlanta-based institute is believed to be the first "Rotman lens" to operate at MMW frequencies - as high as 37GHz. ...
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Bidders line up to rescue Air Liberté
Julian Moxon/PARIS BRITISH AIRWAYS and Virgin Express have emerged among the bidders for Air Liberté, the embattled French independent carrier which has been given six months to secure its future. British Airways made its offer through its French subsidiary TAT. Together, the two airlines would give BA a major slice ...
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TAM 'aid' comes under fire-
Brian Homewood/RIO de JANIERO BRAZIL'S THREE national airlines, Varig, Vasp and Transbrasil, have asked the Government to abolish a tax which they say effectively forces them to subsidise one of their main rivals. The airlines pay 3% of the value of each ticket sold into ...
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TABA cuts fleet as its routes are pruned
BRAZIL'S CIVIL aviation authority (DAC) has begun re-distributing among other carriers 12 routes no longer operated by troubled regional airline TABA. TABA reportedly owes $3.5 million to some 700 employees who were made redundant two years ago, and it has reduced its fleet from eight Embraer EMB-110 Bandeirantes ...
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Russian engines eyed for new US launcher concepts-
Tim Furniss/LONDON RUSSIA'S NK-33 liquid-oxygen/kerosene engines, developed for the N1 Moon rocket project, may be used on two new re-usable satellite launchers being proposed in the USA. The NK-33s, being modified and marketed with US company Aerojet, have been selected, to power the Kistler Aerospace ...
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Cargolux joins AEA
Luxembourg-based Cargolux has joined the Association of European Airlines, becoming the 26th member. The all-cargo carrier operates a fleet of seven Boeing 747s, the third largest all-cargo fleet in Europe, and announced a profit of $11.3 million for 1995. Source: Flight International
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Aerospace in South Korea continues to develop apace.
Paul Lewis/SEOUL SOUTH KOREA has long been recognised as one of the economic miracles of Asia. In the 43 years since the end of the Korean conflict, the country has emerged as a major industrial producer. Having propelled itself to the forefront of the shipbuilding, automobile and electronics ...
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Virgin evaluates widebodies to replace ageing 747 Classics
Andrew Doyle/LONDON VIRGIN ATLANTIC Air-ways has outlined plans to phase out its fleet of six ageing Boeing 747 Classics by 2000, with the acquisition of a fresh batch of widebodied aircraft for delivery from mid-1998. The UK carrier is looking to "-bring in aircraft over a ...
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MEADS R&D work goes to two bidders
THE INTERNATIONAL programme office running development of the $11 billion medium extended air-defence system (MEADS) has awarded $80 million contracts to each of two international joint ventures to conduct programme definition and validation (PDV) research. The international programme, which is to provide the next-generation medium-range air-defence system for ...
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African Fokkers
Ethiopian Airlines received its first of five Fokker 50s on 2 October. The aircraft were ordered in 1995, to replace ATR 42s. Linhas Aéreas de Moçambique (LAM) has leased an ex-Royal Swazi Airways Fokker 100. LAM will use the aircraft to increase frequencies on its domestic and regional services. ...
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European/Chinese regional-aircraft deal hits hurdles
Paul Lewis/BEIJING Chinese and European aerospace negotiators have still to clear major obstacles before any final agreement can be reached for joint development of a new 90- to 140-seat regional aircraft. One of the most critical issues yet to be resolved by the two sides is ...
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Constellation finalises re-equipment plan
Herman De Wulf/BRUSSELS CONSTELLATION, THE Brussels-based charter airline, has selected the Boeing 737-300 to replace its aging 727 fleet, while additional investors have been secured to boost capital. The airline, which had been evaluating the CFM-powered Boeing 737 family and Airbus A320, will acquire up ...
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Marubeni to take a stake in R-R Trent
ROLLS-ROYCE hopes to boost the sales prospects for its Trent turbofan family in the Asia-Pacific region, with the signing up of Japanese trading company Marubeni as the programme's latest risk-sharing partner. The UK manufacturer says that Marubeni will "-co-operate on a range of activities to enhance the sales ...