All Ops & safety articles – Page 1295
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FAA approves cargo 747 conversion fix
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES GATX-Airlog is preparing to "re-enter" the Boeing 747 freighter conversion market after the USFederal Aviation Administration approved company-developed service bulletins (SBs) which will finally allow operators to revive the prospects of several grounded 747Fs. The event marks a major breakthrough for Airlog, which has been ...
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Hispano-Suiza takes new angle on gearbox
Ian Sheppard/PARIS Hispano-Suiza has carried out new extreme attitude tests on the BMW Rolls-Royce BR715 engine accessory/transfer gearbox assembly for the Boeing 717. The tests are designed to ensure that the aircraft can cope if it encounters an abrupt drop in air density. Jean-Luc Doublet, vice-president of Hispano ...
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China Southern fails to impress
Financial markets have given a lukewarm welcome to China Southern Airlines' first full set of results, the carrier listed in Hong Kong and New York a year ago. Despite a headline profit improvement, there are concerns over static domestic traffic and plans to lay off capacity. Although the airline's bottom-line ...
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Domestic upheavals
Brent Hannon/TAIPEI A series of fatal accidents has halted 11 years of rapid expansion by Taiwan's second-tier airlines, and an era of mergers and consolidation is at hand. The nine commercial airlines than once flew Taiwan's domestic skies will soon be cut to five, with further reductions likely. EVA Airways ...
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Marketplace
++ Australia's biggest independently-owned regional carrier, Brisbane-based Flightwest Airlines, will buy at least four 19-seat British Aerospace Jetstream 32EP (enhanced performance) to replace Raytheon Beech King Airs on routes to remote-areas. The airline has also upgraded several regional routes formerly flown by Embraer EMB-120 Brasilias, with the acquisition of a ...
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Suicidal crash?
Last December's SilkAir crash in Indonesia may have been caused by a suicidal pilot. The cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder stopped working before the crash. Investigators are considering whether one pilot may have turned them off. Source: Airline Business
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ILFC negotiates with Airbus and Boeing for 100-seaters
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Leasing giant International Lease Finance (ILFC) has confirmed negotiations with Airbus Industrie and Boeing over a possible purchase of the 100-seat A319M5 and 717-200. "The 717 is under review by ILFC, as is the A319M5. We're talking, we're considering, but I can't give you any ...
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Armenian begins fleet renewal with Airbus A310
Armenian Airlines has begun the first phase of its fleet modernisation with a deal to lease a secondhand A310-200, which it expects to be the start of move to a large Airbus fleet. The deal, which represents Armenia's acquisition of its first Western-built aircraft, will see a Pratt & ...
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GE90 inspections continue after 777 Heathrow surprise
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES General Electric expects borescope inspections of 28 GE90 engines to be completed by 5 April following the failure of a low pressure turbine (LPT) of an engine on a British Airways Boeing 777-200IGW at London Heathrow on 12 March. The incident caused serious disruption at Heathrow ...
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PAL overrun adds to Pacific Rim troubles
David Learmount/LONDON A Philippine Airlines (PAL) Airbus Industrie A320 ploughed off the end of the runway at Bacolod, Philippines, on 22 March, killing three people on the ground. Large numbers of passengers and people living just outside the airport, where the aircraft came to a halt, were seriously injured, ...
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Ariana Afghan crash
This Ariana Afghan Airlines Boeing 727-200Adv (YA-FAZ) hit a mountain 15km (8nm) south of Afghanistan's capital Kabul on 19 March, during its daylight descent from Kandahar 450km to the south. All 45 people on board were reported to be killed. Source: Flight International
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Debonair in row over aid
Debonair may sue the southern Italian regional government of Calabria for damages following delays in a contract to operate services from Reggio Calabria and Lamezia to Rome, Turin, Florence and Bologna. 'We still believe the authorities will be true to their commitments but we'll be firm to make sure ...
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Cost cutting pays off as Gulf Air climbs back into profit
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON Gulf Air edged back into profit during 1997 after a cost-cutting campaign overcame two years of financial crisis. The carrier's troubles began to unfold in 1995, when it recorded operating losses of $135 million, running up another deficit of $58 million in 1996. Ahmed Bin Saif Al Nehyan, ...
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Air France to open up
The French government and Air France may be ready for the flag carrier's partial privatisation, but its employees certainly are not, and some are gearing up for strike action. The French government has announced that up to 20 per cent of Air France is to be floated on the ...
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El Al discusses no frills spin-off
Arie Egozi/TEL AVIV El Al is studying the creation of a low fare joint venture airline which could help it reduce its operating restrictions on the Jewish Sabbath. The Israeli national carrier sees a niche for a low cost airline for operations on "no frills" flights to destinations ...
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Ayres picks Alabama site for assembly of the Loadmaster
Ayres is to assemble its LM200 Loadmaster cargo aircraft in Dothan, Alabama. The aircraft manufacturer, which is based in Albany, Georgia, selected Dothan over another Georgian town, Americus, as the site for fuselage manufacture and final assembly of the aircraft. The decision was influenced by a combination of $4 ...
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Second Asia tier tumbles
Doomsday gloom as heavy as last summer's smoke hangs over southeast Asia's second tier airlines. Rising currency costs and plunging traffic are hammering carriers in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines. 'We will not be able to make it until April,' warns Benny Rungkat, secretary general of the ...
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Asia's fireless dragons
Traditionally cosy and secure, nestling in the world's highest growth region, can Asian airlines find the panic button now that the bad times are here? For some the bottle is always half empty, to others it's half full. But to proclaim the virtues of a bottle with just the ...
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US six get big in Japan
Six US airlines and 13 cities will receive a total of 106 new weekly flights to Japan under a tentative agreement inked by the US and Japanese governments, following the signing of the new civil aviation bilateral in February. US carriers gaining new rights are American Airlines, Continental Airlines, ...
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Iberia pilots in civil war
Iberia pilots are up in arms over plans to wetlease aircraft and hire pilots from domestic rival Air Europa and intend to carry out eleven hour strikes every Monday and Friday between 27 March and 31 July. The pilots are protesting at plans for a one year contract to wetlease ...