All Ops & safety articles – Page 1296
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Safety concerns prompt ICAO to rethink pilot licence rules
David Learmount/FRANKFURT The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) is proposing to change fundamentally the basis on which pilot licences are issued. The move is a response to rising concerns over safety, said a senior executive of the organisation at a Flight International conference in Frankfurt. Future pilot licences ...
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UK low costs counter Go
While Ryanair signals it will not concede any ground to British Airways' planned low-cost operation, Go, at London/Stansted, EasyJet is firing the first shots in a legal battle to prevent BA from cross-subsidising Go. With Go yet to reveal details of its routes, in late February Ryanair announced plans ...
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FAA scrambles to defuse timebomb
Tick, tick, tick. The millennium bomb is counting down, potentially to wreak havoc just as champagne corks and fireworks explode to welcome in the new century. Like most bombs, until the fuse is lit no-one is quite sure whether this will be a dud or a disaster, but there ...
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First EMU wave gains momentum
The march towards European Monetary Union now looks unstoppable. By early May the eleven countries which will join the first wave of monetary union on 1 January 1999 will have locked exchange rates and most of Europe will effectively be part of what will become a Deutsche mark bloc. ...
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Virgin flirts with US rules
Richard Branson, chairman of Virgin Atlantic, is calling for the US to open itself up to cabotage, saying he would open an airline there 'tomorrow.' Branson has briefed US congressmen on his wish to see the rules changed so foreign carriers can operate domestic services in the US. 'We ...
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Focus on Phoenix
America West's ups and downs have made Wall Street nervous, but new revenue management skills, a concentration on Phoenix, and codeshares with Continental and Northwest should allow its healthier performance to continue. Karen Walker reports from Phoenix You can only envy the residents of Phoenix, Arizona. Not only do they ...
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Stampede to market
As more airports move into the private sector, airlines are hoping for better service and investment yet worrying about higher prices. Tom Gill reports. Airport privatisation is gathering pace, and although private investment and the introduction of commercial airport expertise appears to be good news for airlines, it is ...
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Marketplace
-Tower Air will wet-lease two Boeing 747-100 freighters to Chilean cargo airline Fast Air Cargo for one year. Fast Air operates three McDonnell Douglas DC-8-73s on services within Latin America and to the USA. -Willis Lease Finance has committed to purchase 12 Boeing 747-100s and spare engines from United Airlines, ...
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High altitude blade cracking may delay 717
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES BMW Rolls-Royce has been forced to redesign high pressure compressor (HPC) blades in the BR715 turbofan for the Boeing 717-200 after cracks developed in the 717's tests. The problem could delay the first flight. The problems, uncovered during high altitude tests in the UK, affect the third ...
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FAA reviews DC-8 freighter safety
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC The US Federal Aviation Administration has launched a review of McDonnell Douglas DC-8 cargo conversions to determine whether safety concerns exist similar to those it believes affect some Boeing 727 freighter modifications. Reviews of freighter conversions ranging from the Boeing 737 to the Lockheed L-188 Electra ...
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Aerospatiale defines future common Airbus flightdeck
Ian Sheppard TOULOUSE Airbus Industrie partner Aerospatiale has launched a major product improvement programme to develop a retrofittable, "freeflight" ready common flightdeck. Also included will be a switch to flat panel liquid crystal displays. The upgraded Airbus flightdeck will be designed for the A320/ A330/A340 range and future ...
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Atlantic plays the name game again and Atlantic Airlines is born
Atlantic Airlines is the new operating name for a Coventry, UK, based company which has previously operated under a variety of titles. "Some people call us Air Atlantique, others Atlantic Cargo, Atlantic Airways, Air Corbiere or Atlantic Air Transport," says chairman Mike Collett. Atlantic Airlines, which operates a fleet that ...
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Alitalia gears up for renewal of long haul fleet
Alitalia's board has approved the lease of three more Boeing 767s in what is understood to be an interim measure as the carrier develops a full blown competition for a long haul fleet renewal plan. The Airbus A330/ A340 and Boeing 777 families are in the contest. The airline ...
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New European safety authority gathers support from industry
Alan George/BRUSSELS Strong support for the establishment of the proposed European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) has been expressed by European aviation industry organisations participating in a consultation process organised by the European Commission (EC). The process also revealed a wide measure of agreement on the form and mission ...
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GE widens 'boltless turbine' work
General Electric is studying the application of its recently developed "boltless turbine" to the entire range of CF6-80C2 and -80E1 turbofans as it perfects the technology for the newest -B7F1 and -B8F versions. The boltless turbine improves performance, reduces parts count, weight and cost, and is being introduced for ...
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Formosa crash
Taiwan-based Formosa Airlines suffered a fatal Saab 340 accident shortly after take-off on a domestic flight from Hsinchu to Kaohsiung. The Taiwan Civil Aeronautics Administration says that the wreckage has been located in the sea 10km (5nm) south-west of Hsinchu. All four crew and nine passengers are believed to have ...
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Definitely maybe
Max Kingsley-Jones/SINGAPORE Airbus Industrie may have just allowed its A3XX high capacity airliner programme to slip by almost a year, but it remains committed to the initiative to provide a European alternative to Boeing's long term monopoly of the market. There are hurdles to cross during 1998, however, before Airbus ...
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Widening the franchise
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON When Cityflyer Express first signed up as a British Airways franchisee in the middle of 1993, it was something of an experiment for both carriers. Five years later the formula appears to be working. When BA hosts fifth anniversary celebrations in July, it will do so with nine ...
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Open skies hostility
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON The tussle between the European Commission (EC) and the member states over who has the right to negotiate transatlantic air agreements has just become more interesting. In the words of one Brussels insider, it is shaping up as one of Europe's "big political games". Legal threats are ...
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Sentimental journey
Tim Furniss/LONDON Watching his fourth sunset of the day, sitting on the deck of the USS Noa recovery ship in the Atlantic Ocean after his splashdown on 20 February, 1962, US Marine Lt Col John Herschel Glenn yearned to return to orbit. On 7 November, 1998, Senator John Glenn, who ...