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NEWS

FAA administrator Babbitt steps down
A day after being placed on administrative leave, Randy Babbitt submitted his resignation as FAA administrator to US transportation secretary Ray LaHood, who accepted it. Prior to Babbitt's resignation late Tuesday, LaHood told reporters earlier in the day that he didn't learn of Babbitt's Saturday night arrest on a charge of driving while intoxicated until Monday when Fairfax, Va., police issued a press release about it. "What I told Randy is that I was very disappointed with the way that I learned about this through a press release," he said.
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Reports: Malev nearing bankruptcy
Malev Hungarian Airlines (MA) could face bankruptcy in the coming weeks, the Hungarian daily Vilaggazdasag reported Tuesday. Hungarian Minister of Finance Tamas Fellegi confirmed to Hungarian media that the Budapest government is holding talks with an investor from the Czech Republic to form a new carrier and a deal could be reached by the middle of next year. The investor is also owner of Czech leisure carrier Travel Service.
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China Airlines eyes Taipei hub growth
Taiwan-based China Airlines (CI) wants to increase its share of transfer business at Taiwan Taoyuan International (TPE) as part of its strategy for international growth and profitability. CI president Huang-Hsiang Sun told ATW during a visit to the carrier’s head office that CI’s share in transit passengers in TPE is “relatively small” and it would like to be viewed “as a network carrier and [for] TPE to become a strong hub.”
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Spring Airlines to launch carrier in Japan
Shanghai-based Spring Airlines, the most successful Chinese low-cost carrier, is preparing to launch a carrier in Japan to gain a deeper foothold in the Japanese market. Spring spokesman Zhang Wu’an said the carrier has registered a company in Japan; however, since foreign investors can hold no more than a one-third stake in a Japanese airline, it is looking for a Japanese partner. Zhang said Spring is negotiating with potential investors in the new entity.
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US Air Sees More Room For Consolidation
US Airways sees room for more airline consolidation as a means to trim capacity and gain pricing power after a protracted downturn, the carrier's chief financial officer said on Tuesday.
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PBGC, Unions Named To AMR Creditors Panel
The US Allied Pilots Association and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation are among nine members named to the official committee of creditors of the bankrupt parent of American Airlines.
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Airbus Wins 1,521 Plane Orders In Jan-Nov
European plane maker Airbus said it won 1,521 orders for its aircraft in the first 11 months of the year.
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EU Court To Rule On Airline CO2 Cap
The European Union's highest court is expected to give its final ruling on December 21 on a European law that would force all airlines to pay for their carbon emissions, an EU source said on Tuesday.
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MAS unveils plan to bring airline back to profit by 2013
Loss-making Malaysia Airlines (MAS) unveiled a business plan on 7 December to bring the group back to the black by 2013. The plan includes a slew of harsh measures including suspending loss-making routes, focusing on cost cutting and aggressive marketing to win back customers. These moves are expected to bring in revenue of up to ringgit (M$) 1.508 billion for the group. The group also announced that it will be launching a premium regional carrier in the first half of 2012 which will, in the long term, fly all the domestic and regional routes serviced by MAS now.
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Avation signs contract for five new ATR72s
Aircraft lessor Avation has inked an agreement with ATR for the purchase of five additional ATR72 turboprops. This latest contract means the lessor now has 13 ATR72s on firm order. The agreement includes an option for another eight aircraft.
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American Airlines may need to change 5-hub strategy, analysts say
American Airlines may have to cut service for its parent company, AMR Corp., to emerge successfully from bankruptcy, experts say. However, the carrier's CEO says the airline is committed to keeping five hubs. "Transformational change is needed here and the indications we've seen imply to me that the board of directors may not have the appetite for that," said Hunter Keay, an airline analyst at Wolfe Trahan & Co.
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Delta Air Lines reports 1.9% dip in traffic for November
Delta Air Lines traffic for November dropped 1.9% from the same month in 2010 as the carrier trimmed capacity by 4.1%. International traffic on the U.S. carrier slid 7.3%, while domestic traffic rose 1.4%. Load factor also increased for November to 81.4%.
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American Airlines traffic drops 1.7% in November
AMR Corp., the parent company of American Airlines, reported a drop in traffic of 1.7% for November. The carrier, which filed for bankruptcy at the end of November, had trimmed capacity by 4% for the month. International traffic fell 1.8% for November, while domestic traffic decreased 1.7%.
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US Airways reports 3.1% increase in traffic for November
US Airways reported a 3.1% rise in traffic for November as the carrier trimmed capacity by 0.8% for the month. The carrier's load factor rose to 83.4%. US Airways also increased its passenger revenue per available seat mile to 13%.
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Southwest Airlines' ramp workers will wear wireless headsets
Southwest Airlines will become the first U.S. airline to require ramp workers to wear wireless headsets. "This will be such a great tool for these guys," said Marc Stank, Southwest's senior manager of safety, standards and regulatory compliance. "This adds another level of safety." The headsets allow ramp workers to communicate with other ground-crew workers and pilots.
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3 union representatives are appointed to AMR creditor panel
The unsecured-creditors panel for the bankruptcy of American Airlines' parent company includes three union representatives, Boeing and several banks. A Justice Department unit appointed the nine-member committee, but some experts questioned the decision to include three unions. "I find it surprising that all three unions made it on a nine-person committee," said Eric Smith, a bankruptcy attorney not involved in the case. "The driving force behind this filing is the labor issues."
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Southwest CEO says JetBlue overpaid for winning slots bid
Southwest CEO and Chairman Gary Kelly said JetBlue Airways overpaid for its $40 million winning bid on slots at airports in the East. "That is absolute madness. It is a guaranteed money-loser," he said. Separately, Kelly told employees that the carrier would have to focus on controlling costs to keep Southwest competitive.
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Chicago's 2 airports are prepared for winter weather, officials say
The Chicago Department of Aviation said the agency is ready for winter weather at O'Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport. The department has assigned more than 500 people total to snow-removal duty at the city's two airports.
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Alliances spell future of airline industry, experts say
Alliances between airlines are the future of the industry, experts say. "In 10 years, it might not make much difference whether it's United or American flying the airplane," consultant Michael Boyd said. "It will be competition among Star, oneworld and SkyTeam."
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Other News

Air Berlin (AB) expects to announce this week that Etihad Airways (EY) has agreed to become an investor, Germany's Manager Magazin reported (ATW Daily News, Nov. 30). According to German media, EY plans to buy a minority stake in AB, which will hold a special board meeting Wednesday. In November, AB transported 2.2 million passengers, down 9.9% compared to the year-ago month. The carrier reduced capacity by 9.1%. AB’s monthly fleet capacity utilization decreased 0.7 point from 74.9% to 74.2%.

Qantas' operations were brought to a halt by severe lightning storms at Perth, Western Australia, for over 7 hr., stranding 18 planes on taxiways with nearly 2,000 passengers, while an estimated 5,000 passengers were stranded in the airline’s terminal. Altogether, 57 QF flights were affected. Safety provisions in QF baggage handlers’ and engineers’ labor contracts preclude working on the tarmac with lightning within 5 km. of the airport. However, other airlines—which have different safety provisions for staff—were unaffected, although the weather also played havoc with their arrivals and departures. One inbound flight was diverted and at least seven were canceled.

Byogy Renewables will seek as much as $30 million in funding from private equity and strategic investors by mid-2012, Bloomberg reported. The funds will be used to commercialize its alcohol-based fuel, and for testing by ASTM International. “The main goal at the moment is certification of the alcohol to jet fuel process,” CEO Kevin Weiss told Bloomberg. “There are several steps through the ASTM process and at each point you generate more data and are required to boost the volume of fuel for the various testing requirements.” He said the company plans to form partnerships with sugar and ethanol producers, as it does not produce the alcohol itself.

Cathay Pacific Airways, Tradelink and Global Logistic System Co. announced a joint effort to promote an end-to-end, paper-free air cargo process flow. The move supports the implementation of the e-freight project, an industry-wide initiative facilitated by IATA, involving carriers, freight forwarders, ground handlers, shippers and customs authorities.

Alaska Air (AS) Cargo announced a cargo tracking service called Alaska Mobile Track, which allows its cargo customers to track and monitor shipments from a mobile phone. With the service, customers send a text message to AS Cargo with their air waybill number and receive a text response with tracking information.

TRAXON Europe expanded its agreement with Turkish (THY) Cargo to enable the carrier to receive FHL (House Air Waybill) and FWB (Master Air Waybill) messages, and to prolong an EDI agreement for a further three years. The agreement gives THY Cargo access to the TRAXON Europe network worldwide.

Baltic Ground Services was awarded a contract from Transaero to provide passenger and aircraft handling services, ticketing and fueling services at the Vilnius Airport. It will service the company’s Boeing 737-500, used to operate the 4X-weekly Moscow-Vilnius route.



AVIATION QUOTE

Fighting in the air is not sport. It is scientific murder.
— Captain Edward V. 'Eddie' Rickenbacker, USAS, 'Fighting the Flying Circus.'

ON THIS DATE

December 7th

---In 1940...First flight of the Fairey Barracuda prototype, P1767.

---In 1941... The Imperial Japanese Navy makes a devastatingly successful surprise attack on Pearl Harbor and other U.S. military facilities on Oahu, Hawaii. Six aircraft carriers launch 353 warplanes in two waves. They sink five American battleships and ten other vessels, damage three other battleships, and destroy 188 U.S. aircraft, killing 2,402 and wounding 1,282. The Japanese lose 29 aircraft, five midget submarines, and 65 killed.

---In 1942..First flight of the Bell XP-63 King Cobra.

---In 1944…Signing of the Convention on International Civil Aviation in Chicago, Illinois.

---In 1945... New Zealand National Airways Corporation is founded with amalgamation of Union Airways, Air Travel and Cook Strait Airways.

---In 1962…First flight of the Aérospatiale Super Frelon.

---In 1964…Beale Air Force Base, California, announced as the home base for SR-71s. Beale AFB was the home base of the SR-71 throughout its entire career. (Q)

---In 1980... Pan Am’s Boeing 747 China Clipper arrives in Peking from New York via Tokyo to complete the first official flight between China and USA since shortly before 1949.

---In 1987… A PSA BAe 146 crashes after a former USAir employee shoots the pilots, killing forty-three.

---In 1990… An Alaska Airlines Boeing 727 takes off from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in visibility of only 500 ft (152 m), the lowest for any airliner takeoff in the US.



DAILY VIDEO





EDITOR’S CHOICE





HUMOR

The scientific theory I like best is that the rings of Saturn are composed entirely of lost airline luggage.

— Mark Russell



TRIVIA

1940’s Trivia

1. What aircraft in 1940 had the first pressurized cabin and flew above the turbulence that upset passengers' stomachs, could fly up to 20,000 feet and had a 12-foot wide cabin that held 33 passengers with berths for overnight travel?

2. The U.S. had mass production of aircraft at the beginning of WWII. Production of planes increased from 500 a year to what number a year by the war's close?

3. What was the first bomber with crew-cabin pressurization and remotely controlled power turrets?

4. What famous aircraft had laminar-flow wings to reduce drag giving improved aerodynamics and had the range to escort bombers across Germany?

5. Computers, using binary language were first used for high-speed calculations for the Manhattan project, for code breaking and for artillery purposes. Later revolutionized design, business and manufacturing systems. What was the organization responsible for this during WWII?

6. The most advanced airliner in the world in 1945 was fully pressurized, flying nonstop from New York to Paris. It was the first transatlantic airliner, flying up to 30,000 feet and opened up high-volume passenger service. What was this aircraft?

7. In 1946, what was the aircraft that greatly reduced traveling time with greater comfort for passengers and made air travel economically viable?

8. In 1947, what was the bomber with six piston engines, plus four jets and gave the U.S. intercontinental bombing capability?

9. What was the 1940 very sophisticated sight used on planes, which enabled bombardiers to make accurate, high-level bombings?

10. Who was the German that built and tested the first jet engine in the late 30s. Whittle designed one, but didn't get to test it on a plane until later. The German engineer's design flew, but not very well. It took another five years to perfect the engine by the end of the war. Germans deployed the first operational jet in 1944 (ME2-62). Who was this German jet engine designer?

Limited answers (and two guesses) from me ...

3. What was the first bomber with crew-cabin pressurization and remotely controlled power turrets?
---> B-29 ???

4. What famous aircraft had laminar-flow wings to reduce drag giving improved aerodynamics and had the range to escort bombers across Germany?
--> P-51 ???


8. In 1947, what was the bomber with six piston engines, plus four jets and gave the U.S. intercontinental bombing capability?
---> Convair B-36 Pacemaker

9. What was the 1940 very sophisticated sight used on planes, which enabled bombardiers to make accurate, high-level bombings?
---> I assume this must be the famous Norden Bomb Sight found on the B-17 ?

10. Who was the German that built and tested the first jet engine in the late 30s. Whittle designed one, but didn't get to test it on a plane until later. The German engineer's design flew, but not very well. It took another five years to perfect the engine by the end of the war. Germans deployed the first operational jet in 1944 (ME2-62). Who was this German jet engine designer?
--> Hans Pabst von Ohain

-HT

graphic, GTFO out of your pictures.

Nosedive wrote:graphic, GTFO out of your pictures.

??

CO777ER wrote:

Nosedive wrote:graphic, GTFO out of your pictures.

??

Look at the chrome next bordering the engine intake. You can see a photog.

I was wondering what you were seeing.