All Ops & safety articles – Page 1330
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News
Latin five set to liberalise
South America's five Mercosur nations are taking a significant if limited step towards open skies in the southern cone. The presidents of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay have inked an accord that would give airlines from those countries the right to launch third and fourth freedom services ...
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Easy ride on the Hill for mega-deal
The face of special-interest politics in Washington is changing, and American Airlines is wearing a smile. An overhaul of the Senate Commerce Committee means the airline finds itself with new-found clout. The rise of Arizona Sen John McCain to chairmanship of the committee is a big win for American Airlines. ...
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Shares rise in the east
Four days before the Chinese New Year, China Eastern Airlines made an auspicious debut on the world's markets by raising an estimated US$250 million. The success of the issue should pave the way for the other Chinese majors to follow suit, although holding company China National Aviation Corp may well ...
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Indian policy is a let down
India's revised civil aviation policy has led to charges of protectionism after it failed to set an investment limit for foreign airlines and airports in Indian carriers. The strategy is being viewed as another setback for Singapore Airlines' planned joint venture with Tata Industries, which remains on hold in the ...
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Top of the curve
In some airline boardrooms, the champagne corks are finally popping. After years in the doldrums, the airline business appears to be on course to report record profits for the second year running. Still, in this business even the best news tends to come with a few caveats, and this initial ...
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US cracks softest nuts
Hard on the heels of a landmark open skies pact between the US and Singapore, neighbouring Malaysia is poised to sign a similar deal - giving Washington a significant boost in cracking the tough nut of protectionism that exists in Asia-Pacific. The US hopes the breakthroughs will have ...
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Safety but at what cost?
The industry has given its unqualified support to the report by the White House Commission on Aviation Safety and Security, despite the ambiguity over how its costly recommendations will be funded. But then it's not exactly good for business to criticise the findings of an inquiry in to ...
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Viasa future looks bleak
Iberia and the Venezuelan government were playing a game of brinksmanship at presstime after flag carrier Viasa ran out of cash and ceased operations on 23 January. Both sides are believed to be willing to let the airline fold but, according to one source close to the negotiations, ...
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Union strife to bite in US?
The dispute between American Airlines' management and its pilots appears to have set the tone for a year of discontent across the US that could help to fuel more strife elsewhere. At presstime, American's management and the Allied Pilots Association remained locked in stalemate just hours away from ...
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BA-AA rivals round on DOT
The posturing surrounding the proposed American Airlines-British Airways alliance has moved across the Atlantic with the US Department of Transportation coming under growing pressure from rivals to act. In the most extreme case, the outspoken chairman and chief executive of Continental Airlines, Gordon Bethune, is threatening to ask ...
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Alitalia in for a rough ride
The European Commission has asked Alitalia to reassess its proposed restructuring plan and even then looks set to rule that the carrier's planned injection is state aid. It will also be looking at Alitalia's linkup with Air France, while both carriers suffer further industrial unrest. The revelation that ...
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El Al tackles weekend trip
The Israeli government is coming under fierce pressure to lift the ban on flag carrier El Al's operations on the Sabbath. The limitation of a six-day operation is blamed for $50 million of the airline's $120 million loss in 1996 and contributed to last year's shelving of its planned privatisation. ...
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Disquiet on the state aid front
The debate over continuing state support to Europe's airlines refuses to roll over and die, just like the concept of the national flag carrier, which lies at its heart. With four cases on Brussels' books, 1997 may yet prove to be a landmark year. The European Commission's scrutiny of ...
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Euro agents' work cut out
European travel agents need to start convincing airlines of their worth. The decisions by alliance partners Lufthansa and SAS, as well as KLM, to slash their agents' commissions are expected to trigger Europe-wide cuts, following the trend set by US carriers. KLM plans to lower domestic commissions from ...
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Lufthansa and SAS extend partnership to cargo flights
Lufthansa Cargo and SAS Cargo have prepared a plan to extend the Lufthansa/SAS strategic partnership - which has to date concentrated on passenger operations - into the cargo field. From the end of March, the airlines' cargo sales teams will offer both companies' products and services. Integration of ...
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Maintenance needs stepping up-...
Sir - You attribute to maintenance error three aircraft accidents and 260 fatalities in the Airline Safety Review for 1996 (Flight International, 15-21 January, P31). Engineering departments/ organisations must act now, to prevent an increase in this statistic. I suggest replacing accountant types with professional engineers at management ...
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Mystery in the East
Far from encouraging foreign airlines to invest in India's burgeoning civil-aviation industry, the much-heralded new aviation policy recently announced by India's United Front Government has confused and bewildered overseas investors. India's powerful Cabinet Committee On Foreign Investment (CCFI) has announced that foreign airlines will no longer be permitted ...
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Brit'Air order launches Canadair stretched CRJ
FRENCH REGIONAL airline Brit'Air is the launch customer for the stretched, 70-seat Bombardier Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ)Series 700, with a firm order for four aircraft. The Canadian company says that it has options and conditional orders for a further 28 aircraft, plus memoranda of understanding for another 35, ...
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BAe consolidates training services
British Aerospace has restructured its training services and products into a new corporate entity, to be named British Aerospace Training Services. The group will incorporate the company's training centres at Prestwick, Scotland, and Tamworth, Australia, as well as its interests in Singapore-based Asia Pacific Training and Simulation, North Sea Range, ...
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Ayres plans to test revised Loadmaster in windtunnel
US agricultural- and utility-aircraft manufacturer Ayres is shortly to begin windtunnel tests on aerodynamic revisions to its LM200 Loadmaster freighter. The Loadmaster was launched at the November¹ 1996 National Business Aircraft Association show in Orlando, Florida, and is being developed in the first instance for parcels carrier FedEx. ...