All articles by David Kaminski-Morrow – Page 176
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NewsCzech carriers apply for protection to stabilise finances
Czech operator Smartwings Group has formally sought temporary creditor protection to buy time to achieve financial stability during the air transport downturn. Smartwings Group, which includes both Smartwings and Czech Airlines, says it has filed with a Prague court for an extraordinary moratorium. The temporary measure provides space to negotiate ...
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NewsLondon Gatwick operator plans to cut a quarter of workforce
London Gatwick airport’s operator is proposing to axe 600 jobs across its business, about a quarter of its employees, as a result of the air transport downturn. It will enter a formal consultation process with employees to discuss the restructuring. Gatwick is managed by a venture between Vinci Airports, which ...
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NewsAviastar tests new robotic line to accelerate Il-76 assembly
Russia’s United Aircraft has introduced a new automated production line for Ilyushin Il-76MD-90A heavy transports which is intended to enhance substantially the assembly process. The technological processes are being tested at the Aviastar manufacturing facility in Ulyanovsk. Compared with the previous traditional process, the automated line will reduce by four ...
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NewsCrisis interrupts Croatia Airlines talks to cancel A320neo order
Croatia Airlines has disclosed that it has been discussing the cancellation of its Airbus A320neo order, the latest twist in a single-aisle situation dating back 12 years. Its order for four of the re-engined jets was placed in September 2015 – four months before the type entered service – with ...
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NewsKuwaiti lessor ALAFCO defers Airbus deliveries
Kuwaiti lessor ALAFCO has reached an agreement with Airbus to defer aircraft deliveries, in the wake of the air transport downturn. ALAFCO has 75 Airbus A320neos on order, of which it has received 33. It has also yet to take delivery of any of its 10 A321neos. The lessor says ...
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NewsSAS impairs older fleet as it pushes back Airbus deliveries
SAS has pushed back deliveries of two Airbus A350-900s and eight A320neos, which will reduce the Scandinavian operator’s capital expenditure for 2021-24. But the company insists it is “still committed” to achieving an all-Airbus fleet by 2023, to reduce fuel consumption and maintenance costs. “We have made progress on our ...
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NewsSAA restructuring team sifts through unsolicited investor approaches
More than 10 unsolicited approaches expressing interest in South African Airways have been received from potential investors and partners. The South African government’s department of public enterprises states that the approaches concern SAA and its subsidiaries Mango Airlines, SAA Technical, and catering arm Air Chefs. “[We have] been busy assessing ...
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NewsUkrainian 737 recorders indicate crew survived initial missile strike
Flight recorders from the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 shot down over Tehran captured 19s of information after the first missile strike, and revealed discussions in the cockpit on the state of the stricken aircraft. Both the cockpit-voice and flight-data recorder were cut off after 19s and did not register ...
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NewsHandler Swissport to deleverage under financial restructuring scheme
Ground-handling firm Swissport is set to undergo an extensive restructuring, having obtained a commitment for €300 million ($354 million) in liquidity from creditors. The transaction would take its overall liquidity to €500 million by adding to the €200 million currently available to the company.. This interim funding would ultimately be ...
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NewsFastjet shareholder provisionally agrees financial support
African budget operator Fastjet Group has obtained a commitment from its main shareholder, Solenta Aviation Holdings, to underwrite a capital raise of at least $1.5 million, providing the company with much-needed funding. Fastjet Group has been struggling with dwindling cash resources as it copes with flight restrictions in Zimbabwe and ...
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NewsFirst German armed forces A350 nears certification and delivery
Germany’s government has unveiled the first of three Airbus A350-900s which have been configured for the special air mission wing of the ministry of defence. The aircraft – designated 10+03, and the first of the type not destined for commercial service – has undergone modification at the Lufthansa Technik facility ...
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NewsVueling revises go-around training after Birmingham approach incident
Spanish carrier Vueling has amended simulator training to include high-energy approaches and go-arounds, after investigators probed an Airbus A320 incident at Birmingham which involved two aborted approaches and triggering of angle-of-attack protection. The crew had struggled to reduce the aircraft’s speed after commencing the final stages of the area navigation ...
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NewsIran ATR 72 suffered tail-strike after dual input during flare
Iranian investigators have disclosed that the captain of a landing Iran Air ATR 72-600 intervened to reduce descent rate during the flare, resulting in dual control inputs, but could not avert a hard touchdown. In the moments before the initial touchdown the aircraft was probably subjected to a downdraft, says ...
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NewsAir Baltic pushes back A220 delivery schedule
Latvian carrier Air Baltic is rescheduling the delivery of its remaining Airbus A220-300 fleet, aiming to complete their introduction by early 2024. The airline, which has taken 22 of its 50 ordered A220s, says it has reached an agreement with the airframer to rejig the delivery schedule for the outstanding ...
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NewsIcelandair options broaden as crew duty schedules shift closer to limits
Icelandair’s new collective agreements with aircrew means pilots and flight attendants will work closer to theoretical maximum limits, and enable the airline to explore new network prospects. International regulations restrict pilots and cabin crew from operating more than 900 block hours per year. Icelandair says that, given the structure of ...
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NewsIcelandair: Keflavik hub stands to benefit as non-stop competitors retreat
Icelandair Group has warned that if its operation collapsed, the Reykjavik Keflavik hub would take years to rebuild and, as a result, would cause substantial damage to the country’s economy. The company, which is preparing a $150 million share issue, has outlined the bleak consequences of receivership to potential investors ...
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NewsIcelandair expects four-year recovery as it revises share issue
Icelandair Group expects to start its recovery ramp-up in the second quarter of 2021, but its conservative approach will not return the operator to pre-crisis levels until 2024. The company has detailed its position to potential investors as it prepares for a share offering intended to raise IcKr20 billion ($148 ...
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NewsPalestinian Airlines offers Fokker 50 fleet for sale
Palestinian Airlines has put up for sale its pair of Fokker 50 turboprops, but insists its operation is not closing down. The carrier commenced operations in mid-1997 with pilgrim transport to Jeddah. It subsequently established its base at Gaza airport which opened the following year, but Israeli forces destroyed the ...
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NewsSwedish debt office denies credit guarantee to Norwegian's local operation
Scandinavian budget carrier Norwegian’s Swedish division has been denied a credit guarantee by the Swedish national debt office. The office states that it has “decided to reject” the application because guarantees can only be granted to airlines considered financially viable on 31 December 2019. It says there was a “very ...
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NewsAirbus ditches active moisture-control on A321XLR
Airbus has reversed its decision to offer an active anti-condensation system as an option for the long-range A321XLR, ditching the idea in favour of a passive system. The dry-air generation system, for moisture control, is being removed as an option for the aircraft. Swedish specialist CTT Systems had disclosed in ...