All articles by David Kaminski-Morrow – Page 163
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NewsWizz Air cuts back summer capacity to contain operational disruption
Budget carrier Wizz Air is limiting summer capacity growth to around 35% compared with the pre-crisis level, in order to reduce risks of operational disruption over the peak period. The airline says it has “further improved the agility and resilience of our network”, measures which include adjusting schedules where a ...
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NewsAirbus forecasts 50% rise in freighter fleet as e-commerce outpaces general cargo
Airbus expects the global freighter fleet to climb above 3,000 aircraft by 2041, with growth in the e-commerce sector outpacing that of general cargo over the next 20 years. The airframer expects deliveries of 2,440 freighters over the two-decade period while the retention of some 630 current aircraft, including those ...
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NewsAirbus fleet forecast simplifies aircraft classifications as single-aisle jets blur boundaries
Increasingly-blurred boundaries between traditional single-aisle and twin-aisle operations have spurred Airbus to simplify aircraft segmentation in its latest 20-year demand forecast. Its outlook to 2041 increases the overall new delivery demand to 39,490 passenger and freighter aircraft – from the previous figure of just over 39,000 – across the next ...
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NewsEl Al resolves pilot dispute with new operations and salary pact
Israeli flag-carrier El Al has reached an agreement with its pilots aimed at settling a dispute over salaries which has caused disruption to the airline’s operations for several weeks. El Al says the agreement – signed by its pilot committee as well as the trade union centre Histadrut – will ...
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NewsMaintenance procedures revised after 737 shed vertical fin structures
Boeing has amended removal and installation maintenance instructions for Boeing 737 dorsal fins after an incident in which a 737-800 arrived at San Diego with several structural components of the vertical fin missing. The aircraft (N820TJ), operating a Swift Air flight, had departed Victorville in California on 19 May 2020. ...
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NewsQantas A350-1000s and undisclosed A350F customer lift Airbus’s widebody orders
Qantas Airways has firmed its order for a dozen Airbus A350-1000s while the airframer has also secured an agreement for another seven A350 freighters, from an undisclosed customer. Two A350 freighters recently identified for Silk Way Airlines, and a single A330-900 for Delta Air Lines, added to a lively end ...
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NewsEuropean Parliament backs draft rules to increase availability of sustainable fuel
Members of the European Parliament have adopted new draft rules broadening the definition of sustainable aviation fuels and accelerating availability levels in a bid to achieve 2050 climate targets. Parliament has raised – from 32% to 37% – the European Commission’s original proposal for minimum availability of sustainable fuel at ...
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NewsZeroAvia tightens flight-test regime after Piper crash probe flags pressure points
ZeroAvia has tightened the experimental regime for its hydrogen fuel-cell aircraft testing, including management of commercial pressures, after a UK investigation into a serious loss-of-power accident uncovered safety weaknesses in the programme. The accident, at Cranfield on 29 April last year, involved a modified Piper M350 (G-HYZA) whose single piston ...
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NewsSAS secures court approval to continue operating under Chapter 11
Scandinavian carrier SAS has obtained court approval to continue operating as normal, following its filing for US Chapter 11 protection. The company has been granted clearance to continue operating as an airline, pay employees’ wages, suppliers’ fees, and taxes, and honour customer programmes including its EuroBonus loyalty scheme. SAS had ...
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NewsZeroAvia’s electric Piper force-landed after windmilling propeller locked out motors
UK investigators have determined that the windmilling propeller on an experimental Piper M350 – which had been modified with a hydrogen fuel-cell engine – locked out power to the electric motors, leading to a forced landing which badly damaged the aircraft. The ZeroAvia aircraft (G-HYZA) had been undergoing a flight ...
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NewsJet2 chair lambasts ‘atrocious’ service from ‘ill-prepared’ UK airports
UK budget carrier Jet2’s executive chair has issued a scathing opinion over the readiness of its base airports to deal with recovering passenger demand, describing them as being “woefully ill-prepared”. Philip Meeson says “most” of the airline’s 10 base airports in the UK have been “poorly resourced” for the volume ...
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NewsAn-124 successor tweaked to feature winglets and larger cross-section
Russian developers have tweaked the design of a proposed successor to the Antonov An-124 to increase its capacity, and assess the potential benefits of winglets. The proposed design – tentatively designated the ‘Slon’, a word meaning ‘elephant’ – has been undergoing windtunnel tests at the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute. Previous testing ...
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NewsLogistics entrepreneur Kuehne overtakes state as largest Lufthansa shareholder
Logistics entrepreneur Klaus-Michael Kuehne has increased his stake in German flag-carrier Lufthansa, becoming the largest single shareholder in the company. Lufthansa Group filings show that Kuehne raised his stake on 5 July from just over 10% to a little more than 15%. The company states that its shareholder structure, as ...
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NewsVertical Aerospace picks battery cell supplier for VX4 eVTOL
Vertical Aerospace has selected the Taiwanese firm Molicel to supply high-power battery cells for the company’s VX4 electric vertical take-off aircraft. The two sides have entered a partnership which will result in Molicel providing its cell technology for integration with Vertical Aerospace’s battery-pack design. Vertical Aerospace says the agreement will ...
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NewsAeroflot Group to consolidate MRO capabilities within A-Technics subsidiary
Russian flag-carrier Aeroflot is to reinforce its maintenance capabilities by transferring infrastructure and personnel to its specialised technical subsidiary A-Technics. It intends to complete the transfer of production facilities – including hangar complexes at Moscow Sheremetyevo – and re-assignment of qualified staff by the end of this year. As a ...
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NewsUnited 737 Max computer examined after ‘blanking’ precedes wrong-runway landing
US investigators are examining a United Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9’s flight-management computer after an incident in which the system’s displays apparently blanked before the aircraft inadvertently landed on the wrong runway at Pittsburgh. The crew had needed to input a number of amendments into the flight-management computer during the ...
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NewsSaudi Arabian sovereign fund establishes new aircraft leasing company
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is to branch into aircraft management and leasing, through the establishment of a lessor branded ‘AviLease’. The Public Investment Fund, which has some $620 billion in assets under management, already supports a diverse number of sectors – such as finance, mining, transport and construction – ...
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NewsSAS Chapter 11 filing 'accelerated' to protect company: chief executive
SAS chief executive Anko van der Werff insists the pilot strike affecting the company did not directly trigger its US Chapter 11 filing, but has accelerated the decision to seek court protection. The board made the decision on 5 July to proceed with the filing, the day after SAS pilots ...
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NewsSAS files for US Chapter 11 protection to push through restructuring
Scandinavian operator SAS has voluntarily filed for US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, as part of its efforts to push through a comprehensive restructuring of its business. Through the court-supervised process it aims to reach agreements with its main stakeholders, restructure its debts and reconfigure its aircraft fleet. It expects the ...
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NewsStar Alliance ties up with Deutsche Bahn to offer air-rail interchange
German rail operator Deutsche Bahn is to become a non-airline partner of Star Alliance, offering surface connections to passengers of the carrier group later this year. Deutsche Bahn will be the alliance’s first intermodal partner from 1 August. It states that the tie-up will “intelligently connect” air and rail, and ...