All news – Page 6702
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Workshop
AAR Landing Gear Services has signed a five-year agreement with Condor Cargo Technik to overhaul the landing gears of the airline's Boeing 767s. Hapag-Lloyd has placed a 12- year deal with SR Technics to overhaul CFM56-7s on its 16 Boeing 737-800s. The Swiss company has also extended its contract with ...
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Galaxy re-engining options opened up
Paul Lewis/MARIETTA Lockheed Martin has dissolved its C-5 Galaxy re-engining partnership with General Electric. It is soliciting competing proposals from Pratt & Whitney and Rolls-Royce as the US Air Force leans towards making the airframer sole source contractor for C-5 re-engining. Draft requests for proposals (RFP) have been sent to ...
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DARPA plans robotic workhorse
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) plans to demonstrate a robotic spacecraft capable of refuelling, repairing or reconfiguring satellites in orbit. If it is funded, the Advanced Space Transportation and Robotic Orbiter (ASTRO) technology demonstrator would be flown in late 2001. With ...
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Columbia returns to Kennedy after initial mission hiccups
Tim Furniss/LONDON The STS93/Columbia Space Shuttle mission ended on 28 July with a night landing at Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The launch on 23 July - thwarted earlier by an erroneous sensor at T-7s and by lightning - continued to be eventful after it was airborne, coming close ...
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Farewell Mir mission extended five days
Russia has extended by five days the Mir space station mission by cosmonauts Viktor Afanasyev, Sergei Avdeyev and Jean-Pierre Haignere. The crew, of what will probably be the last Mir mission, was scheduled to return to earth on 23 August. Despite the impending end of the Mir station, experimental ...
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Globalstar launch
Boeing's Delta II booster launched a further four Loral Globalstar satellites into orbit from Cape Canaveral on 25 July, bringing to 32 the number of Globalstar communication satellites in orbit. The launch will enable Globalstar to initiate a regional service in September. The establishment of a full 48-satellite constellation, with ...
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RAF Canberras receive survivability upgrade
Tim Ripley/LONDON The Royal Air Force's five veteran BAC Canberra PR9 strategic reconnaissance aircraft are receiving a defensive aid suite (DAS) upgrade to increase their ability to penetrate hostile airspace safely. The Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA) at Boscombe Down designed and is fitting the upgrade, but the programme ...
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USA/Russia argue over Il-96 Exim Bank deal
The delivery of 20 Ilyushin Il-96M/Ts to Aeroflot Russian International Airlines is being held up by a US/Russian wrangle over import duties on new Boeing aircraft for the Russian national carrier. The US Government is believed to have linked the release of $1 billion in Exim Bank funding for ...
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ANA hijack triggers security crackdown in Japan
Andrzej Jeziorski/SINGAPORE The death of an All Nippon Airways (ANA) Boeing 747-400 captain at the hands of a knife-wielding hijacker has caused a tightening of security at all Japanese airports. His method of beating security has become clear. According to ANA, the Japanese transport ministry has instructed all ...
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BA-American revise alliance plans
British Airways and American Airlines are resigned to the rejection of their transatlantic alliance plans by US regulators, but say they will press ahead with ties not requiring anti-trust immunity. The two are "looking at codesharing" in Europe and North America, the UK flag carrier says. The US Department ...
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CRJ-700 nets UK customer Maersk
British Airways franchise carrier Maersk Air has confirmed plans to operate the 70-seat Bombardier Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ), as flight testing of the Series 700 gets in to its stride. The Birmingham, UK-based subsidiary of Denmark's Maersk Air has placed orders for three CRJ-700s for delivery in 2001/2002, and taken ...
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CargoLifter recruits as lift-off nears
Heavy logistics company CargoLifter has begun recruiting specialist aerospace engineers as it approaches the final assembly stage of its giant CL160 rigid airship. With 140 staff today, the company expects to be employing more than 250 next year. Construction of the assembly hangar at Brand near Berlin, Germany, is ...
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Texas Turbine flies TPE-331 DHC Otter
Texas Turbine Conversions has begun test flying an AlliedSignal TPE331-10 turboprop-converted de Havilland Otter, for which it hopes to win a supplemental type certificate by the end of the year. The 670kW (900hp) engine will replace the Otter's current 450kW Pratt & Whitney R-1340 radial piston engine, offering a ...
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Tax break recommended for UK training
Training for pilots and maintenance engineers in the UK should be made more accessible to potential students by removing the 17.5% value added tax (VAT) from the price of training courses, the UK parliamentary transport committee has recommended in a recent report. The recommendation has been welcomed by the ...
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GE90 engine variant flies
General Electric has begun tests of the GE90-94B turbofan for the Boeing 777-200ER on its 747 testbed. US certification is due next April and service entry with Air France the following November. The tests are expected to validate features of the advanced three-dimensional high-pressure compressor for the 777-200X/300X's GE90-115B. Source: ...
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Serving Africa
For East African airlines it is cheaper to send for spares from Europe than keep them in stock Michael Wakabi/KAMPALA What Links Europe to a small scheduled operator in East Africa? A lot, according to Dick Turinawe, Uganda Airlines' general manager. Fleet size and configuration, capital constraints, frequencies and ...
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European aerospace sales rise by 6%
Europe's aerospace industry enjoyed another successful year in 1998, with turnover continuing the upward trend that began in 1996 and expected to rise again this year, despite an anticipated levelling out of civil aircraft sales. The European Association of Aerospace Industries (AECMA) predicts growth will continue in the long-term subject ...
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KAI merger advances with delays
The three South Korean manufacturers planning to form Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI) are to move ahead with their merger despite the lack of a creditor-approved business plan. Samsung Aerospace, Daewoo Heavy Industries and Hyundai Space & Aircraft signed a heads of agreement to proceed with their planned merger on ...
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Roton takes off
The Roton Atmospheric Test Vehicle (ATV) has flown for the first time, performing three take-off and landing manoeuvres to 8ft (2.4m) in a 4min 40s test on 23 July. The reusable ATV is a proof-of-concept for a single-stage-to-low earth orbit vehicle. The Rotary Rocket-designed vehicle has no rocket motor and ...
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USAF plans F-16 improvements
Paul Lewis/WASHINGTON DC The US Air Force is drawing up plans for a Falcon Star structural enhancement package to sustain the operational life of the large numbers of early Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter versions in its fleet and overseas. Falcon Star is intended as a follow-on to the ...