All Systems & Interiors news – Page 841
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News
IFE problems make BA reconsider programme
Emma Kelly/ORLANDO British Airways is re-evaluating its interactive in-flight entertainment (IFE) programme following reliability problems with the B/E Aerospace Multi-media Digital Distribution System (MDDS). The deal is valued at up to $225 million, depending on the number of aircraft equipped. The MDDS, selected by BA in ...
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AmWest pilots clear Airbus deal
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES America West has confirmed a deal valued at $1.4 billion for up to 46 Airbus Industrie A319-100s and A320-200s after securing a last-minute agreement with the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). The order was initially outlined a year ago, but prolonged negotiations over ...
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Beating the weather
Graham Warwick/Atlanta In late August, NASA's Boeing 757 testbed was to be seen taxiing around Atlanta, Georgia's, Hartsfield Airport, occasionally taking off, only to land a few minutes later. Despite the excellent weather, NASA was testing technology which comes into its own when visibility deteriorates. The Low Visibility ...
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AOPA demands free databases for GPS
Free or low-cost updates of navigation databases may be provided by the US Federal Aviation Administration in a bid to promote general-aviation use of the global-positioning system (GPS). The US Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) says that update costs of up to $700 a year associated with ...
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Emirates 777 Trent engine fails during take-off
A Trent 800 engine from an Emirates Airlines Boeing 777 which suffered a catastrophic engine failure during take-off is being examined by Roll-Royce. The take-off was continued and the crew shut down the engine and returned to Dubai, where the aircraft was landed safely. Emirates declines to comment, ...
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Airbus/CASC finalise Hua Ou support centre
Airbus Industrie and China Aviation Supplies' (CASC) new Hua Ou Aviation Training and Support Centre in Beijing is in the final stages of being fitted out and is scheduled to begin full operations at the end of October. The joint venture recently received its final approval from China's ...
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AEA hits out as Europe's ATC delays soar
AndrzejJeziorski/MUNICH The Association of European Airlines (AEA) is calling for a fresh drive towards a single integrated European air- traffic-control (ATC) system, in response to rising traffic and record delays in Europe in recent months. Worsening punctuality figures on European routes show a "severe problem", with ...
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Zurich leads battle to penalise polluters with landing-fee rise
AndrzejJeziorski/MUNICH Zurich Airport has become the world's first major airport to introduce an emissions charge, amounting to as much as 40% of normal landing fees, for operators of aircraft which fail to meet the highest environmental standards. The charge, introduced from 1 September, is balanced by ...
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Boeing outlines five 747 growth options
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DCPaul Lewis/SEATTLE Boeing is discussing with airlines five possible 747 derivatives as it moves towards a decision in early 1998 on which (if any) option to pursue. Airlines are being shown study aircraft with various combinations of capacities for up to 500 passengers and ranges of ...
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Dasa tests flight management
AndrzejJeziorski/MUNICH Daimler-Benz Aerospace (Dasa)is beginning a six-month flight-test campaign for a new flight-management system (FMS), the NFS-5000, developed by its Ulm, Germany-based subsidiary Navigation and Flight Guidance Systems (NFS). The system creates flight plans for pilots, who simply have to enter their point of departure and ...
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Low fares or bust?
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON Air South's recent bankruptcy has struck a chill note for US start-up airlines. Although the carrier may have been a relatively small player, its demise is dangerously close to home for a low-cost airline sector in which nobody is looking secure. The financial performance ...
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Condor studies long-range 757
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES German charter airline Condor Flugdienst is studying a longer-range version of the Boeing 757 as well as the recently launched 767-400 as part of a long- term strategy to introduce extended range and higher payload aircraft into its fleet. Condor, which was the ...
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P&W effort to improve PW4000 reliability starts to pay dividend
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Pratt & Whitney says that an upgrade effort to counter reliability problems on more than 1,600 PW4000 engines is showing results, with a "dramatic reduction" to in-flight shutdown rates. The upgrade effort, known as the Number 1 reliability programme, involves around 100 service ...
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PZL-Mielec reveals 30-seater Skytruck stretch
Polish aircraft manufacturer PZL-Mielec has unveiled two new stretched variants of its 18-seat M-28 Skytruck development of the Antonov An-28 twin-turboprop. The M28-03 and M28-04 are being marketed as the Skytruck Plus. The fuselage has been stretched by 1.84m, and the cabin ceiling raised by 0.25m, allowing passengers ...
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Into the limelight
Despite the loss of the first prototype, Beriev's Be-103 shows great promise Paul Duffy/TAGANROG Of the ten major ex-Soviet design bureaux, perhaps the least known to the outside world is Beriev. There are two main reasons for this. Firstly, Beriev is based in Taganrog, a ...
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BA aims to fly Qantas 747-400s in stopover periods
British Airways is seeking clearance from the UK Civil Aviation Authority to allow its pilots and cabin crews to operate Qantas Boeing 747-400s on routes from London Heathrow Airport for an unlimited period. An application to the CAA from BA says that the approval is "-initially to facilitate ...
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STAe thinks again on AE31X
Paul Lewis/BEIJING Singapore Technologies Aerospace (STAe) is having second thoughts about participating in the planned joint Sino-European AE31X aircraft programme because of financial and workshare uncertainties. According to industry sources, STAe has in recent weeks voiced reservations to partners Airbus Industries Asia (AIA) and Aviation Industries ...
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Boeing may install new cockpit on 767-400ER
Boeing is considering the introduction of a new cockpit on the recently launched 767-400ER, in a move which could result in existing versions of the 767, the 757 and, eventually, the 747-400, being updated. Air Transport Intelligence, the new Reed Aerospace on-line news service, says that a decision ...
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AlliedSignal reveals China manufacturing plans
AlliedSignal Aerospace is aiming to finalise the first of three planned manufacturing joint ventures with Chinese industry by October, strengthening its bid to participate in the Sino-European Airbus/Avic/Singapore Technologies AE31X programme. The first joint venture involves a partnership with China Aero Technology Import & Export (CATIC) to produce ...
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Keeping promises
Emma Kelly/London The in-flight-entertainment (IFE) industry has undergone a radical change this year, with the leading hardware providers finally conceding that they are guilty of over-promising and under-delivering to their airline customers. After years of trying to meet airline requests for ever-more ambitious IFE applications, the makers have ...