SUPERJET'S SAM146 GETS EUROPEAN APPROVAL
CERTIFICATION Franco-Russian joint venture PowerJet has been awarded European type certification for its SaM146 engine. PowerJet developed the 17,260lb-thrust (76.8kN) SaM146for the Sukhoi Superjet 100. Russian validation is imminent.
ISRAEL'S OFFEQ-9 SPY SATELLITE TAKES OFF
LAUNCH Israel launched its new spy satellite, the Offeq-9, on 22 June from the Palmachim airbase in central Israel. The satellite carries a very advanced optical payload. It was launched by a Shavit booster and reached its initial orbit after 7min. The Offeq-9 joins the Offeq-5 and Offeq-7, also equipped with optical payloads manufactured by El-Op.
GATWICK DROPS LONDON BRAND
AIRPORTS London Gatwick is to be now known simply as Gatwick Airport. It will undergo a £1 billion ($1.48 billion) facelift over the next two years, says Gatwick's owner Global Infrastructure Partners, which also owns London City airport.
INDIA FORCES ICAO STANDARDS ON EXPATRIATES
SAFETY India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation has made it mandatory for expatriate pilots working with Indian carriers to comply with the International Civil Aviation Organisation's standards for spoken English at least to level 4, and to undergo medical checks by Indian doctors. Until now the DGCA has accepted current medical certificates from the pilots' countries of origin.
BA AWAITS IBERIA VIEW ON PENSION DEFICIT PLAN
AGREEMENT British Airways is waiting to see whether a newly agreed plan to address its huge pension deficit will be approved by merger partner Iberia. BA aimed to submit the plan to the UK pensions regulator by the end of June. Iberia can halt the merger if it decides the plan would be detrimental to the economics of the tie-up.
BAGNATO MAKES ATR COMEBACK
MANAGEMENT Former ATR chief executive Filippo Bagnato is returning to head the regional aircraft manufacturer after a three-year spell as executive vice-president for technical and commercial development at co-parent Finmeccanica, during which time he also served as ATR chairman while Stéphane Mayer was chief executive.
EMIRATES OFFERS IN-FLIGHT MOBILE DATA SERVICE
ROLL-OUT Emirates is rolling out an in-flight mobile data service on its aircraft. Seventy-four of the airline's aircraft carry AeroMobile's in-flight GSM solution, which allows passengers to make and receive voice calls and text messages. GPRS will initially be operated over Inmarsat's Swift64 aeronautical service, but an upgrade to SwiftBroadband will be made in a few months.
AFRAA SECRETARY GENERAL STEPS DOWN
RESIGNATION African Airlines Association secretary general Nick Fadugba has resigned from his position just four months after taking up the post. His successor has not been identified.
EU AND USA SIGN OPEN SKIES PHASE TWO
DEREGULATION The European Union and the USA have signed phase two of their Open Skies agreement. The deal was agreed during a transport council meeting in Luxembourg on 24 June.
Source: Flight International
