All Ops & safety articles – Page 1178
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News
Getting the e-price right
KEVIN O'TOOLE CHICAGO The advent of the Internet has begun to change the way that the world does business, but for the airline industry many of the issues that it brings are already familiar. While businesses anxiously puzzle out what implications the Internet will have for their sales, it seems ...
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Capitol route to chaos
KAREN WALKER WASHINGTON DC Everyone in the USA agrees that urgent action is needed to cope with increasing capacity constraints. The problem remains how to wrench control from Congress. Democracy may have notched another coup on 10 November, but it was a bitterly disappointing day for the US air traffic ...
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Judge rules out Canadian's takeover
DAVID KNIBB SEATTLE Everything came to a screeching halt late on the last business day before shareholders were set to vote on the counter-proposals from Onex and Air Canada. Quebec judge Justice Wery ruled that Onex's offer to acquire 31% of Air Canada and merge it with Canadian was illegal. ...
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Seating giant B/E faces bumpy ride
Chris Jasper/LONDON Aircraft interiors specialist B/E Aerospace has issued a profits warning for its current fiscal year and the next after experiencing major difficulties in its seating products group, the largest single element of B/E's business. Florida-based B/E, the world's largest manufacturer of aircraft seats, blames production problems ...
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Brighter spots on horizon for USA
Given heavy losses from Trans World Airlines and US Airways, the latest round of third quarter results from the US majors could have played much worse on Wall Street than it seems to have done. Most aviation analysts were keen to point to some bright spots on the industry's horizon ...
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In Brief
EC to tackle ATC delays The Association of European Airlines has gained backing from the European Commission (EC) for a political solution to the worsening delays in Europe's airspace. EC vice-president and Transport Commissioner Loyola De Palacio has given the issue prominence in her transport work schedule, following the ...
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In Brief
WTO rules on aircraft tax Washington has appealed against a World Trade Organisation (WTO) ruling that foreign sales corporations are an illegal subsidy. US exporters use these corporations to shield income from tax. That creates opportunities for tax-based leasing on such exports as aircraft. If the ruling stands, Boeing ...
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No borders, please
In documenting a sorry year for European air traffic management (ATM) - so far - the independent Performance Review Commission (PRC) has nevertheless thrown the industry more than a few crumbs of comfort. There is considerable latent traffic capacity, it says, which is waiting to be released, and all that ...
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Hong Kong starts US bilateral round
Hong Kong and the USA were due to have opened their first round of air services talks in four years in mid November in a key test of Hong Kong's resolve to liberalise. The two-day round was due to have begun on 17 November in Washington DC with ...
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Virgin Express heals Belgian CAA squabble
Herman De Wulf/BRUSSELS Brussels-based low-fare airline Virgin Express has had its air operator's certificate (AOC) extended for four months after resolving differences with the Belgian Civil Aviation Administration (BCAA) over changes in its senior management and the transfer of aircraft from the Belgian to the Irish register. Days after ...
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KAL to face further operating ban
NICHOLAS IONIDES/ATI SINGAPORE Korean Air (KAL) faced further criticism in November when a US NTSB report concluded that the 1997 crash of one of its Boeing 747-300s on Guam was largely due to pilot error. South Korea's Civil Aviation Bureau (KCAB) - also criticised in the report for not ...
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BA tests wireless gatelink at Heathrow
British Airways plans to launch a six-month trial of wireless gatelink communication technology at London Heathrow Airport, starting in March or April. Initially, a Boeing 747-400 will be equipped with a gatelink antenna, radio modem unit and an airborne server in a project also involving SITA, Rockwell Collins and Penny ...
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Grounded TAESA awaits inspection
TAESA, Mexico's third largest airline, is to remain grounded until Mexican authorities complete a full safety inspection. The transport ministry says the discovery of "anomalies and incidents" had led to the decision. Suspension of the low-fare carrier's operating certificate has come two weeks after the crash of one of ...
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British Midland decides on the Star attraction
GÜNTER ENDRES LONDON After intensive talks with all the major alliances, with the obvious exception of oneworld, British Midland has opted to team with Lufthansa and the Star grouping. BM is expected to join in spring or summer of next year. The alliance signing is backed by Lufthansa taking ...
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Reclaiming ATC
Taking air traffic control services away from government is starting to look like a necessity as Europe and the USA continue to battle with near-gridlock. But airlines too will have to be realistic about the cost of renewing the neglected infrastructure. For years, airlines on both sides of the ...
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Restructuring airspace fix 'best for European ATC'
Complete restructuring of Franco-Swiss, German and Central European airspace is the best solution to Europe's air traffic management (ATM) woes in the short and medium term, reveals a report by Eurocontrol's Performance Review Commission (PRC). The second report issued by the PRC, which comprises 12 independent airline and air ...
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FAA approves Raisbeck enhanced King Air kit
Raisbeck Engineering has been awarded US Federal Aviation Administration approval to offer its enhanced performance modification kit for all models of Raytheon Beech King Air 200s. The kit, which includes a ram air recovery system, improved performance leading edges, dual aft body strakes and high flotation gear doors, has ...
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Bombardier/Embraer trade dispute flares up again
Paul Lewis/WASHINGTON DC Brian Homewood/RIO DE JANEIROThe long-running war between Bombardier and Embraer over subsidies has flared up again, with each accusing the other of failing to comply with World Trade Organisation (WTO) rulings, and again referring the matter back to the international body. The latest battle centres on counter-claims ...
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NASA begins work on aeroelastic wing testing
An advanced aeroelastic wing and laser-based gust monitoring device is under test at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center in California as part of efforts to create better design tools for future airliner wings. The University of California, Los Angeles, gust monitoring and aeroelasticity (GMA) experiment is investigating the dynamic ...
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Pilots applaud ADS-B after human factors evaluation
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC A human factors evaluation of the automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) system has shown the technology can significantly improve pilot awareness. The tests, led by the US Cargo Airlines Association (CAA) and UPS Aviation Technologies, are being analysed by Johns Hopkins University, which is due to issue a ...