All news – Page 6329
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Netherlands F-16 cuts cause furore
Stewart Penney/LONDONOpposition is building in the Netherlands Parliament over plans in the country's Defence White Paper 2000 to disband a Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) Lockheed Martin F-16 squadron and cut the number of fighter units to five. A parliamentary debate is set to take place in February. Although equipment ...
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Cost hike to bomber improvements
Technical problems have increased the estimated cost of software upgrades for USAir Force Rockwell B-1 bombers by $46 million. The cost hike is disclosed in the US Department of Defense's latest quarterly Selected Acquisition Report (SAR). Cost increases in the $2.16 billion B-1 Conventional Mission Upgrade Programme are blamed ...
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USN to restart target contest
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC The US Navy is re-opening its $100 million Supersonic Sea-Skimming Target (SSST) competition. The contest was terminated earlier this year because of USN concerns that the bidders could not replicate the advanced anti-ship missiles now in development. The USN was originally due to select an ...
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Marketplace
Manx/British Regional Airlines is to boost its BAe 146 fleet to four aircraft with the acquisition of an ex-Ansett Australia 146-300. The aircraft will enter service next March in time for the summer schedules. Pegasus Aviation has acquired a Boeing MD-83, which is currently on lease to German charter operator, ...
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Canada wants to fly MD-11 in crash investigation
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) wants to conduct test flights with a Swissair Boeing MD-11 with its inflight entertainment system activated as part of the continuing probe into the 2 September, 1998, crash of the same craft, off Nova Scotia, the TSB confirms. Tests are intended to ...
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Virgin fires starting gun for Australian no-frills market
Paul Phelan/CAIRNS Virgin Group owner Richard Branson unveiled plans in Sydney at the end of November for a low-cost Australian domestic airline in the style of Europe's Virgin Express. Branson says he hopes to have his new no-frills airline, provisionally titled Virgin Australia, fully operational well before the ...
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Workshop
Aeronavali has concluded two separate deals with Boeing on FedEx aircraft. The first covers passenger-to-freighter conversion of 11 Boeing MD-11s, while the second is the advanced common cockpit conversion of 34 McDonnell Douglas DC-10s (to MD-10 configuration). Both contracts will be managed by Boeing Airplane Services. Rolls-Royce is expanding its ...
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Asia Pacific's carriers rally
Andrzej Jeziorski/TOKYO Asia's airline industry has staged a convincing recovery from the downturn which shook the sector following the region's 1997 financial crash. The Association of Asia-Pacific Airlines (AAPA)reveals that most of its member carriers have exhibited 11 months of growth. Asia Pacific is enjoying a resurgence of traffic, ...
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Airports
Delta Shuttle has re-opened its Marine Air Terminal facilities at New York La Guardia, from which services to Washington DC and Boston operate, following a $7.5 million refurbishment. Rome Fiumicino Airport has inaugurated a new satellite terminal which will be used exclusively for extra European Union flights, and will be ...
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BAE targets bigger Airbus stake
Andrew Doyle & Laura Hailstone/LONDONNewly launched BAE Systems aims to secure a bigger stake in Airbus Industrie when the consortium is transformed into a single corporate entity. The size of the holding will be based on new valuations of the partner companies' Airbus assets and will be determined in negotiation ...
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EC approval puts new Honeywell in business
The new Honeywell began trading on 2 December following European Commission (EC) approval for the merger of avionics giants Honeywell and AlliedSignal. EC clearance, which follows US Department of Justice (DoJ) approval, came after the partners agreed to certain undertakings to allay EC concerns over the merger. The EC's ...
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Mergers
Finnair has sold tour operator subsidiary Finntours to Thomson Travel Group company Fritidsresor, subject to competition authority approval. Saab's takeover offer to Celsius shareholders will run from 6 December to 23 February, with a Parliamentary vote on the deal likely to be held in mid-February. Teledyne Technologies has begun operating ...
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Business studies
Embraer's decision to make a concerted effort to enter the business aircraft market with corporate variants of its EMB-135 and EMB-170 regional airliners came as no surprise. It is not enough for the company to build a good aircraft, however. The manufacturer will need to accommodate a type of customer ...
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Delta replacement by 2001, says Boeing
The Boeing Delta III could be replaced by the Delta IV medium version of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) as early as 2001, according to Boeing sources. The earlier-than-expected replacement date follows two launch failures by Boeing Delta IIIs this year. Boeing admits underestimating the technological challenge of ...
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Inmarsat commits to fourth generation satellite system
Inmarsat's board approved plans at the beginning of this month to develop a $1.4 billion fourth-generation satellite system. Requests for proposals for the new system, which will be in service by the end of 2004, are due to be issued this month. The space segment will comprise two in-orbit ...
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Booster cracks
Japan says the LE-7 main engine of the H2S vehicle, which failed to place the MTSAT spacecraft into orbit on 15 November, suffered from cracks in the liquid hydrogen fuel tank or combustion chamber, causing the turbopump to stop operating 4min after the launch. The booster veered off course and ...
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The perfect gift
DeeDee Doke/LONDON Seeking the perfect gift for the aerophile who has everything? Look no further than the 1999 Christmas catalogue from US department store Neiman Marcus: item 50a, described as "a frequent flyer fantasy come to life", is an unfinished Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) for $35,250,000. Adding an interior of ...
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Lap of luxury
Interior completion has become a booming market as business jet sales are soaring Kate Sarsfield/LONDONIt's boom time for the business aviation industry. Sales of new and secondhand aircraft are growing as more and more of these machines are snapped up to serve as business tools for company executives and as ...
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Uzbekistan to purchase Ilyushin Il-103 crop sprayer variant
The Uzbekistan Government has reached an agreement with Ilyushin and MAPO to buy 100 Il-103s in a new agricultural crop sprayer version under development. Russia's Federal Service of Air Transport has ordered 30 piston-powered, two-seat singles, which it proposes to use at approved flying schools as basic trainers. Last year, ...
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CJ2 makes progress
Cessna has mated the wing and fuselage of the first production CJ2 business jet "ahead of schedule". The $4.3 million aircraft is due for certification in May, with first deliveries lined up for the fourth quarter. Two prototypes have clocked up over 400h since flight testing began in April. A ...