AMERICAN SECURES FINANCING FOR NEW 737S

American Airlines has taken delivery of the first two of 76 Boeing 737-800s scheduled to arrive until the first quarter of 2011 and has secured financing to cover the majority of the deliveries to replace aged Boeing MD-80s. The 160-seat aircraft are the first new -800s to arrive at American since December 2001.

POWERJET SEEKS $240M TO COMPLETE SAM146

Franco-Russian joint venture PowerJet needs extra funding of $240 million to complete the development of its SaM146 engine, which powers the Sukhoi Superjet 100 . The two risk-sharing partners - Snecma and NPO Saturn - are each to secure half of the required finance to fulfil the turbofan's test programme over the next few months with a view to receiving certification in the fourth quarter of this year.

BACK END BOOST FOR HAL

Hindustan Aeronautics has delivered the first of 200 Gulfstream G150 rear fuselages to Israel Aerospace Industries' business jet division. HAL built a dedicated hangar in Bangalore to supply the seven-year contract, signed in 2007. HAL chairman Ashok Nayak says: "The G150 project augurs well not only for HAL, but also for the national objective of producing a civil aircraft to international standards."

KD-AVIA 'RESOLVES' LEASE DEBT CRISIS

Kaliningrad-based Boeing 737 operator KD-Avia claims to have resolved debt payment problems and returned to normal operations after earlier this month delaying all departures from its base at Kaliningrad Khrabrovo airport, citing a "high volume of debt" to aircraft lessors. Several Russian carriers had been called up to transport KD-Avia passengers to destinations in Europe and Israel.

COBHAM TO BUY CYBER SECURITY SPECIALIST

UK aerospace systems group Cobham is to acquire privately held US cyber security company Argotek for $36.2 million, subject to US government foreign investment approval.

DAIMLER'S UEBBER IN LINE FOR EADS CHAIR

Bodo Uebber, chief financial officer at key EADS shareholder Daimler, has been nominated as chairman of EADS. He is likely on 30 April to succeed Rudiger Grube, who will head state rail operator Deutsche Bahn. Uebber has held senior positions at MTU Aero Engines, DASA and Messerschmitt-Bolkow-Blohm.

BRUSSELS TO RULE ON LUFTHANSA'S BMI DEAL

German flag carrier Lufthansa has formally notified European Commission regulators over its planned acquisition of a controlling stake in UK airline BMI. The EC has given a provisional deadline of 14 May to rule on the takeover. Lufthansa's acquisition will increase its share in BMI to 80%.

ISRAEL 'MUST MAKE SPACE A STRATEGIC PRIORITY'

The chairman of Israel Aerospace Industries, Yair Shamir, has called on the Israeli government to declare space to be strategically important and act accordingly - for example by securing orbits for additional Israeli satellites. He says that the government should form a joint defence company to end the "absurd" competition between the state-owned defence companies IAI, Israel Military Industries and Rafael.

Source: Flight International