News from FlightGlobal – Page 2200
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Manufacturers' perspective
Production, reliability and certification issues have dominated the 737's debut Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Between them, Boeing and CFM International faced the fastest ramp-up in production and delivery of any commercial airliner with the 737NG. Since delivery of the first aircraft to Southwest Airlines in December 1997, some 250 examples ...
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Fairchild wraps up 328JET testing and confirms stretch plans
Andrew Doyle/OBERPFAFFENHOFEN Fairchild Aerospace has almost completed flight-testing its 328JET30-seater and expects to receive certification from the European Joint Aviation Authorities and the US Federal Aviation Administration by 1 July. First deliveries to US carrier Skyways will take place that month. Meanwhile, the US company claims to have ...
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Boeing maintains 717 campaign
Andrew Doyle/MUNICH Boeing aims to boost sales of its 717 regional jet by taking a role in maintenance support and certificating a "Lite" version that could cut airport and navigation charges for airlines. The move comes as Greek flag carrier Olympic signs as the type's first European airline operator. Its ...
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Airbus' Japan sales drive pays off with Mitsubishi contract
Andrzej Jeziorski/TOKYO Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has secured its first airframe components subcontract on an Airbus Industrie programme as the European manufacturer steps up its sales efforts in Japan. The contract, awarded to Mitsubishi via Airbus partner British Aerospace, covers production of an A319/A320 wing root component, the shroud ...
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Delta-ALPA skirmish may start scope clause battle
Paul Lewis/WASHINGTON DC Delta Air Lines and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) have locked legal horns over the use of Comair regional jets on the new Boston-Washington DC shuttle in what could be the opening shots of a much wider battle over pilot scope clauses. ALPA is ...
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Air Europe A320s arrive for Alitalia challenge
Marco Messalla/ROME Italy's Air Europe has received the first two of five leased Airbus A320s for its new north-south domestic network in competition with Alitalia. One more A320 will be delivered in time for the 8 May start of scheduled services from Milan's Malpensa Airport to Catania and Palermo, ...
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Airlines move back to Libya
Alan George/BRUSSELS Airlines have moved quickly to resume flights to Libya after the suspension of UN aviation and other sanctions following the North African country's surrender of the Pan Am 747 Lockerbie bombing suspects. EgyptAir has started two flights a week from Cairo to Tripoli and two weekly round ...
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WAEA aims for DVD specification
The World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA) aims to have a final specification for digital versatile disk (DVD) by the end of the third quarter, paving the way for the technology to be introduced in flight. DVD is the latest consumer technology to have captured the imagination of the in-flight ...
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US Airways joins the P@ssport providers
Emma Kelly/LONDON Sony Trans Com has secured a third customer for its P@ssport interactive in-flight entertainment system, with US Airways ordering the equipment for an initial seven Airbus A330-300s. The P@ssport order could increase, as the carrier holds options on a further 30 A330s. The first A330, which will ...
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Lufthansa agrees to buy up to 120 Fairchild 728JETs
Andrew Doyle/FRANKFURT Fairchild Aerospace has secured a major breakthrough in its bid to develop the 728JET - Lufthansa's supervisory board has decided to approve the purchase of up to 120 of the regional airliners by its CityLine commuter subsidiary. The German flag carrier has signed a firm order for 60 ...
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Airbus presses on with A3XX as Boeing studies LAPD
Airbus Industrie is stepping up A3XX development work and has reaffirmed its commitment to a launch decision in early 2000. Meanwhile, Boeing continues to play down its Large Aircraft Project Development (LAPD) study efforts in favour of low-cost 747-400X alternatives. "The pace is picking up and Airbus and its ...
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CFMI lobbies Airbus on A318 powerplant
Julian Moxon/PARIS Guy Norris/LOS ANGELESCFM International is in talks with Airbus to try to get its CFM56-5A engine included as a powerplant for the newly launched Airbus Industrie A318. But the European consortium is sticking to its position that it is "offering only the Pratt &Whitney PW6000". Air France, Lufthansa, ...
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EC bows to US pressure on hushkits
The European Commission (EC) has formally approved a ban on the European operation of aircraft fitted with hushkits, but in a last-minute concession to the USA has postponed the regulation's implementation by a year, until 1 May, 2000. As part of the compromise deal thrashed out in the past ...
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Iridium looks for avionics supplier as AlliedSignal quits
Emma Kelly/LONDON Iridium is in talks with avionics manufacturers following AlliedSignal's decision to drop its involvement in the new satellite system operator's aeronautical services for airlines. AlliedSignal is the sole supplier of avionics for Iridium's aeronautical services for the airline and general aviation markets. The manufacturer's single-channel Iridium ...
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Shorter story
Smaller may not always be better, but for Embraer it is a route to further success Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DCIt seems a simple, sensible approach: take a proven airframe, shorten the fuselage to produce a smaller aircraft, leave the rest unchanged, and avoid the time and cost of developing a new ...
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The big squeeze
European regional aviation is coming under pressure, and airlines are pessimistic about future expansion Chris Jasper/LONDONOn the face of it, the story of regional aviation in Europe is one of unparalleled success. The sector was the first in Europe to be liberalised, with the 50 and 70-seat markets freed to ...
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Scope for change
Pressure is mounting for the reform of regional airline pilot scope clauses Paul Lewis/WASHINGTON DC The simmering debate over regional airline pilot scope clauses is slowly coming to the boil. With most labour agreements due for renewal from next year, pressure is building from a range of sectors - airlines, ...
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FAA plans for VHF broadcast weather service
The US Federal Aviation Administration wants to provide a VHF broadcast network to send weather information to the cockpits of appropriately equipped general aviation aircraft. It will soon issue a request for proposals to commercial weather providers to develop and supply the service. The system will be two-tiered. The ...
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Eurofighter passes test milestones
Eurofighter has explored about 90% of the flight envelope of its initial operating capability (IOC) baseline configuration. Tests are pushing ahead, with the aim of the four Eurofighter partners receiving IOC air-defence configured aircraft in 2002. DaimlerChrysler Aerospace's DA5 aircraft is flying with the FCS 2B/1 software that gives Eurofighter ...
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Lufthansa signals end to Asian malaise
Andrew Doyle/FRANKFURT Lufthansa has revealed that Asian passenger traffic is expected to recover fully by the end of this year, but warns that over-capacity on transatlantic routes is still hurting yields. Despite unveiling record DM2.5 billion ($1.26 billion) pre-tax profits for last year - up 42% on 1997 ...