All articles by David Kaminski-Morrow – Page 160
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NewsVolga-Dnepr starts restoring An-124 fleet to operation
Russian outsize freight specialist Volga-Dnepr is resuming commercial operations with its Antonov An-124 fleet, a month after suspending use of the type. The operator temporarily withdrew the cargo transporter from service after the 13 November accident at Novosibirsk in which one of its An-124-100s suffered an uncontained engine failure and, ...
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NewsEmirates considers refitting A380s with new premium-economy cabin
Middle Eastern carrier Emirates has shown off the new premium-economy cabin fitted to its latest Airbus A380, of which the airline took delivery in mid-December. It comprises 56 seats in a 2-4-2 cross-section, with up to 40in pitch, at the front of the A380’s main deck. Each has a 13.3in ...
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NewsRossiya aims to have nearly 70 Superjets next year
Russian operator Rossiya aims to introduce a fleet of nearly 70 Sukhoi Superjet 100s by the end of next year, as part of a strategic overhaul of Aeroflot Group’s operations. Rossiya says the federal aviation regulator Rosaviatsia has included the Superjet type on the carrier’s air operator’s certificate, ahead of ...
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NewsWizz Air imposes post-Brexit share restrictions to slash non-EU ownership
Central European budget airline operator Wizz Air Holdings is to implement a plan to align its ownership structure to ensure it continues to meet European Union requirements once the UK’s withdrawal from the EU is finalised on 1 January. Wizz Air Holdings says that, if it does not take action, ...
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NewsIcelandair agrees sale-and-lease of two more 737 Max jets
Icelandair Group is selling a pair of Boeing 737 Max jets under a leaseback scheme, ahead their delivery next year. The two Max 9s are due to be introduced to the Icelandair fleet in the second quarter of 2021. Icelandair Group says it has entered an agreement with Sky Aero ...
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NewsIsrair bidders submit final offers ahead of bondholder vote
All three bidders for the Israeli leisure airline Israir have submitted final offers for the carrier, with bondholders set to vote on the proposals on 29 December. The three bidders – BGI Investments, Dor Alon Energy and YH Dimri – had been told to put forward final offers by 28 ...
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NewsUK-EU agreement features review of airline ownership and control rules
Rules governing ownership and control of UK and European Union airlines will be reviewed within 12 months of the entry into force of the new future UK-EU relationship agreement, according to the text of the provisional deal. Under the current situation, EU airlines must be majority-owned by EU interests. Once ...
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NewsStruggling Montenegro Airlines to cease operations
Montenegro Airlines is to cease all operations, attributing the decision to the refusal of the country’s government to continue supporting the carrier. It states that it will “completely suspend” its services from 26 December. Montenegro Airlines has apologised to passengers for the problems this will cause over the next few ...
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NewsAirbus relieved over post-Brexit deal but yet to analyse details
Airbus is yet to assess the consequences of the newly-agreed future relationship between the UK and the European Union. But it believes the “potential disruption” which would have arisen from failure to reach a post-Brexit agreement “has been avoided”. Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury says he “welcomes” the deal, unveiled ...
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NewsYak-40 fitted with propeller for superconducting motor test
Russian researchers are planning to test-fly a Yakovlev Yak-40 modified with a superconducting electric motor and propeller mounted on the trijet’s nose. The Moscow-based Central Institute of Aviation Motors expects the first flights to be carried out in 2021. Siberian aeronautical research centre SibNIA, located in Novosibirsk, installed the electric ...
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NewsInitial Rossiya Superjets to be stationed at Sheremetyevo
Russian operator Rossiya is to base its initial Sukhoi Superjet 100s at Moscow Sheremetyevo, as it prepares to start receiving the type under an agreement with parent Aeroflot Group. Rossiya says the agreement to transfer the aircraft from the Aeroflot fleet was signed on 21 December, and that it will ...
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NewsEASA embarks on comprehensive project to examine cabin-air toxicity risk
Europe’s air safety authority is initiating a project intended to address concerns about cabin air contamination, which will characterise chemical compounds entering the environmental control system from engine oil leakage or dislodged deposits. The three-year project – being put out to tender by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency – ...
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NewsCourt tells all three Israir bidders to submit new final offers
All three bidders battling to acquire Israeli leisure airline Israir will be given until 28 December to submit a best and final offer, a Tel Aviv district court has ruled. The sale of Israir by its parent IDB has been immersed in controversy after bidders were permitted to submit proposals ...
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NewsBelavia’s first E2 handed over by Embraer
Belarusian operator Belavia has receive its first Embraer 195-E2, one of three to be leased to the Minsk-based flag-carrier. Belavia is already an operator of the conventional 195 and 175 regional jets manufactured by the Brazilian airframer. It is leasing three of the re-engined E2s from AerCap. The aircraft is ...
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NewsUganda Airlines takes delivery of its first A330-800
Airbus has delivered to Uganda Airlines the operator’s first A330-800, which subsequently departed Toulouse and is due to arrive at Entebbe on 22 December. The aircraft (5X-NIL) is the first Airbus to be introduced by the African carrier, and the third -800 to be handed over after Kuwait Airways received ...
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NewsVallair A321s to undergo freighter conversion in China
Airbus A321 converted freighter pioneer Vallair has disclosed that nine of the type will undergo modification in China, at the ST Engineering facility in Guangzhou. The initial aircraft to be converted will be MSN1017, a CFM International CFM56-powered twinjet which was originally delivered to First Choice Airways in 1999. Vallair ...
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NewsThird Libyan charged with Pan Am 747 bombing after 32 years
Precisely 32 years after a bomb explosion destroyed a Pan Am Boeing 747-100 over Scotland, the US government has formally charged a third person with the attack on the aircraft. US attorney general William Barr states that the government has filed criminal charges against Abu Agela Masud Kheir Al-Marimi for ...
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NewsRival Israir bidders each lay claim to be declared victor
Sale of the Israeli leisure carrier Israir is continuing to generate controversy among the contending parties, with investor YH Dimri insisting it should be considered the successful bidder. The trustee for the sale issued a position statement on 20 December which said that the YH Dimri offer “cannot be approved”, ...
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NewsSeveral EU governments join Dutch ban on flights from UK
German, Austrian and Belgian authorities are among those which have joined the Dutch government in imposing a ban on flights from the UK following the emergence of a new coronavirus strain. The German federal transport ministry is banning services from the UK, with the exception of flights to repatriate aircraft ...
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InterviewSenate probe: 737 Max test pilots ‘coached’ to fit assumptions on MCAS reaction time
US Senate committee investigators believe Boeing and the US FAA tried to re-affirm controversial assumptions over pilot response times during 737 Max recertification, by pre-determining the outcome of tests on crew reactions to a runaway stabiliser. The Senate committee on commerce, science and transportation has found that Boeing “inappropriately coached” ...