Systems & interiors – Page 830
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US airport introduces firefighting advances
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC Connecticut's Bradley International has fielded the "Snozzle", a firefighting device manufactured by Crash Rescue Equipment Service of Dallas, Texas, and mounted on one of the airport's two new fire trucks . The Snozzle's adjustable boom can apply fire retardants on hard-to-reach aircraft areas, concentrating firefighting ...
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CSC to run trial of airport smartcard
Ian Sheppard/LONDON Computer Sciences (CSC) is close to launching a trial with a major European airport operator, based on a prototype "contactless" smartcard for airline passengers, which, for the first time, will act as a re-usable boarding pass, electronic-ticket and multiple-airline loyalty-scheme card. Paul Seaton of the company's ...
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Order boom peaks
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON If the latest round of year-end order announcements from Airbus and Boeing seemed to lack some of the high drama of previous years, perhaps it comes as recognition that there may be some tougher times ahead. Quite apart from the internal restructuring issues that pre-occupy both manufacturers, the ...
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Asia-Pacific pathfinders
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE The Asia-Pacific region has been at the forefront of promoting the new communications, navigation and surveillance/air-traffic-management (CNS/ ATM) system since the concept emerged in 1983. These efforts will begin to bear fruit in 1998, with the planned opening and start of trials on key new routes between Asia, ...
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Helibus speeds up
Graham Warwick/Stratford So little has been said about the S-92 Helibus programme since its 1995 launch that the sight of two near-complete prototypes at Sikorsky's Stratford, Connecticut, factory comes as something of a surprise. The wraps are coming off now - nine months before the first flight - in a ...
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Britannia will rule carrier Blue Scandinavia after take-over
Andrew Chuter/LONDON CONTROL of Swedish charter operator Blue Scandinavia is to pass to Britannia Airways following the acquisition by Britannia's sister organisation, Thomson International, of Swedish tour operator Fritidsresor. The UK airline is also expanding its new charter operation in Germany. Thomson International, part of the Canadian-owned Thomson ...
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Battle stations
Boeing's decision to continue the development of the former McDonnell Douglas MD-95, in the new guise of the 717, has effectively redrawn the battle lines in its war with Airbus Industrie. This takes the civil-aviation giants to a new battleground where their tussle for market supremacy can be continued. ...
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Raytheon teams with Jaguar to market special-edition King Air
Graham Warwick/DETROIT Raytheon and luxury-car manufacturer Jaguar have signed a marketing agreement under which the company is to produce a special edition of its Beech King Air twin-turboprop. The US manufacturer plans to produce a dozen Jaguar Special Edition King Air C90Bs in 1998. The first four have ...
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Airbus and Boeing take course for record production figures
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC Airbus and Boeing are on course for record production levels in 1998, with the two manufacturers gearing up for a combined output of 785 aircraft. If achieved, production would improve on the peak of the last boom in 1991, when, along with McDonnell Douglas, the ...
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Boeing firms up the flightdeck design of stretched 767-400
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Boeing has completed the firm design configuration of the stretched 767-400ER, revealing an upgraded flightdeck and a new-look cabin based on the 777 interior design. The bulk of the design was fixed by September 1997, but airline pressure drove Boeing to conduct trade studies on the additional ...
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NASA report warns communicators
A joint NASA-National Science Foundation study of global trends in satellite-telecommunications systems and technology warns that "unless the industry carefully plans some of its more specialised offerings, there may be a costly shake-out due to overcapacity". More than 20 new satellite ventures offering specialised services, particularly the Ku-band, very-high-data-rate ...
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Collins for America
American Airlines has selected Rockwell-Collins as the primary avionics supplier for its new fleet of Boeing 737s and 777s. The ten-year agreement, worth $200 million, allows for guaranteed acquisition pricing and provides for maintenance and logistics support, and includes the GLU-920 multi-mode receiver, traffic-alert collision-avoidance system and WXR-700X forward- looking ...
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Qantas selects IFE
Qantas is set to complete a deal with Rockwell-Collins (Hughes Avicom) to equip its 32 Boeing 747s and 28 Boeing 767s with the US manufacturer's interactive inflight-entertainment (IFE) system. Source: Flight International
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Charter airlines sign up A330-200s to use on long-haul services
Three long-haul charter airlines will introduce the Airbus A330-200 in 1999 and 2000, including UK carriers Airtours International and Leisure International Airways (LIA), and Air Transat of Canada. Airtours, which selected the A330-200 some time ago to supplement its Boeing 767-300ERs on long-haul charters (Flight International, 24 December, 1997-6 ...
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Quick-change artist
Peter Gray/ARLINGTON The tilt-rotor concept has been around for many years, but only recently has the first military application (the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey) received production approval from the US Department of Defense. Even more recently, Bell and Boeing have launched the Model 609 civil tilt-rotor which is scheduled to fly ...
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Dow makes moulded cascades
Dow-United Technologies Composites (Dow-UT) has developed a technique for producing turbofan thrust-reverser cascades using resin-transfer moulding of braided composites. The resulting parts, the company says, are lighter and more durable than conventional multi-part cascades assembled from aluminium or magnesium castings. Dow-UT says that metal cascades, which divert fan airflow ...
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Coliins for Air Pacific
Air Pacific is to equip the three Boeing 737-700s it has on order with Rockwell-Collins avionics, including traffic-alert and collision-avoidance system, forward-looking windshear radar and Inmarsat Aero-I satellite-communications equipment. Source: Flight International
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BA/AA gives up on slots
American Airlines is hoping for a breakthrough in 1998 in its continued battle to win approval for an alliance with British Airways. But concessions will have to be made, particularly at Heathrow. Some 20 months after the proposal first surfaced, the level of frustration in Texas is nearing boiling ...
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African turf fight
Fanie Brand is a juggler. Not of clubs, swords or firetorches, but of airline concepts. At present the senior marketing manager of Uganda-based Alliance Air has no fewer than four concepts on his drawing board, with two due to launch in March. All are part of a complex matrix which, ...
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Help is at hand
Competition officials in Brussels celebrated November by resigning in disgust at the lack of resources available to them. These overseers in the Belgian capital couldn't even clear their desks; they didn't have any. Fortunately for supporters of airline competition in Europe, the departures were from Belgium's own fledgling anti-trust ...