NewsJapan poised to lift 787 grounding Japan's ministry of land, infrastructure and transport says it could lift the grounding of the Japanese Boeing 787 fleet, as early as local evening time on Friday, 26 April 2013. The ministry is awaiting the US Federal Aviation Administration to issue an airworthiness directive to allow the 787 to resume flights after airlines install redesigned lithium-ion batteries and new venting ducts in the electrical equipment bay, a ministry official said. "The minister has announced that after the FAA's directive comes, the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau will issue our directive, If they issue it at US time this morning, we will likely issue it at night, our time," he adds. The US FAA is scheduled to issue an airworthiness directive on 26 April to lift the grounding of the type.
LinkUS Senate Passes Bill To End ATC FurloughsThe US Senate moved quickly late on Thursday to end air traffic controller furloughs that were causing widespread airline flight delays related to last month's automatic federal spending cuts. Without any debate, the Senate unanimously passed legislation giving the Department of Transportation flexibility to use unspent funds to cover the costs of air traffic controllers and other essential employees at the Federal Aviation Administration. The House of Representatives, which is expected to approve the measure, could take it up on Friday, capping a feverish effort by Congress to end the flight delays that were snarling traffic at major US airports and angering travelers.
LinkJapan Expected To Issue 787 Flight PermitJapan's transport minister said the government will issue a technical directive on Friday that would permit the resumption of flights of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The US Federal Aviation Administration gave formal approval on Thursday for a new lithium-ion battery system for the 787, ending a three-month ban and clearing airlines to fly the plane with passengers again.
LinkLOT To Restart 787 Flights In JunePoland's flag carrier LOT expects to restart Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights to Chicago and Toronto on June 5, the company said on Thursday. LOT, the first European airline to take delivery of Boeing's trouble-plagued jets before they were grounded due to battery issues, said earlier this month it would have its two grounded 787s returned to service by mid-June and to receive its third Dreamliner around the same time.
LinkHawaiian to codeshare with China Airlines Hawaiian Airlines plans to launch a codeshare with Taiwan's China Airlines, as it continues to expand its partner network in Asia. The Honolulu-based carrier will begin codesharing with China Airlines via Taipei, says Andrew Watterson, vice-president of planning and revenue management at Hawaiian, on the sidelines of the Phoenix International Aviation Symposium in Phoenix today. It begins three-times weekly Honolulu-Taipei service on an Airbus A330-200 in July. He says that the codeshare will include flights between Taipei and Manila, replacing Hawaiian's nonstop service between Honolulu and Manila that ends on 1 August.
LinkEmbraer maintenance costs cut into JetBlue's profits JetBlue Airways attributes the decline in its first quarter earnings to weakened travel demand, caused by the lingering effects of Hurricane Sandy and unplanned maintenance costs on the engines of its Embraer 190 aircraft. In an earnings call Thursday, the New York-based carrier reports operating income of $59 million for the first quarter, down 33% from the first quarter of 2012. Operating revenue during the period increased 8% to $1.3 billion, but operating expenses climbed 11% to $1.24 billion.
LinkCRJ200 may get new lease of life after scope clause changesIn 2012, three North American mainline carriers adopted revised scope clauses allowing for larger regional aircraft types to be integrated into their fleets. This will augment the number of 50-seat jets that will be available for sale or leasing during the next few years, including the Bombardier CRJ200. This year, these CRJ200s will start to be removed from service, and the influx of available aircraft on the market will increase dramatically in the next three years as carriers receive new orders of larger aircraft types.
LinkChina Signs Deal To Buy 60 Airbus PlanesChina signed a deal with Airbus on Thursday to purchase 60 planes, 18 A330 jets and 42 medium-haul A320-family aircraft. The deal, signed in Beijing during a visit to China by French President Francois Hollande, is worth at least USD$7.7 billion based on list prices. The order for A330s partially lifts a suspension resulting from a dispute with the European Union over airline emissions trading. Tensions appeared to ease when the EU put its scheme on hold for foreign airlines in November. A large entourage of French businessmen is accompanying Hollande, who is the first leader of a major western country to visit China since President Xi Jinping was named to his post last month.
LinkRussian Air Force pilot flies PAK-FA for first timeA Russian Air Force test pilot has flown the PAK-FA fifth-generation stealth fighter for the first time, Sukhoi says. Pilot VP Chkalov, who is assigned to the Gromov Flight Research Institute, flew the aircraft from the Zhukovsky airfield near Moscow on 25 April. Sukhoi says that the two-hour flight was successful. Earlier in April, Mikhail Pogosyan, president of Sukhoi-parent company United Aircraft, said that the PAK-FA would enter operational testing in 2014. "In 2013 we are expected to wrap up its preliminary tests and start operational testing. In 2014, we are planning to start official state tests," Pogosyan told Russian media outlet Ria Novosti.
LinkUnited Continental reports loss for Q1United Continental Holdings posted a loss of $417 million for the first quarter, compared with a loss of $448 million in the same quarter of the prior year. Revenue rose by 1.4% for the quarter as expenses increased by more than 1%.
LinkJetBlue reports Q1 increase in revenue passenger milesJetBlue Airways reported a profit of $14 million for the first quarter, as revenue passenger miles rose by 7.6% for the quarter. "First-quarter results were solid but below those of a year ago, primarily due to Hurricane Sandy-related demand weakness in the Northeast during the peak Presidents Day travel period and higher than expected maintenance costs during the quarter," said President and CEO Dave Barger.
LinkAlaska Air earnings beat Street for Q1Alaska Air reported earnings per share of 62 cents for the first quarter, exceeding Wall Street's expectation of 56 cents. Earlier this month, analysts at Deutsche Bank upgraded their rating of shares of Alaska Air to "buy" from "hold."
LinkHawaiian posts loss for Q1Hawaiian Airlines reported a loss of $17.1 million in the first quarter, compared with a profit of $7.26 million in the same quarter last year. "Our performance was undermined by an extraordinary increase in total industry capacity between Hawaii and the US West Coast and in certain international markets during what is traditionally the weakest quarter of the year," said Hawaiian President and CEO Mark Dunkerley.
LinkGovernment officials should resolve furloughs, US Airways CEO saysDoug Parker, the chairman and CEO of the US Airways Group, said government officials should resolve the Federal Aviation Administration's decision to furlough air traffic controllers. "We can't do this for long without having major disruption to the flying public. And nobody wants that. We're highly hopeful something will get resolved soon," he said.
Link787 battery issue should be resolved soon, Boeing saysBoeing reported a 20% increase in net income for the first quarter despite issues with the 787 battery. Boeing Chairman and CEO James McNerney said the aircraft manufacturer should complete the fix for the battery next month. "The 787 will return to flight with our continuing high confidence in its safety, reliability and overall integrity," he said.
LinkNextGen upgrades do not show clear benefit, airline exec saysSome airlines are reluctant to invest in NextGen technology without a clear cost-benefit case. "There are no clear financial economic benefits for an airplane for ADS-B 'out,' " said Kent Horton, director of engineering for Southwest Airlines. "There are some illusions of better air traffic control or flight times."
LinkWhite House is open to meeting over FAA furloughsWhite House Press Secretary Jay Carney said the Obama administration would be willing to meet with lawmakers over furloughs imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration. "If Congress wants to address specifically the problems caused by the sequester with the FAA, we would be open to looking at that," Carney said. Members of Congress have begun introducing legislation, including a bipartisan bill by Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and John Hoeven, R-N.D., which provides the Department of Transportation more flexibility to manage the FAA cuts.
LinkPassengers encouraged to vent at Don't Ground America websiteAirlines are encouraging their customers to voice their frustration over Federal Aviation Administration controller furloughs to lawmakers and the FAA through the
www.dontgroundamerica.com website. Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal editorial board states that FAA management is purposefully trying to make things as painful as possible by taking measures that include encouraging union workers to take the same furlough day to increase congestion. "I am disgusted with everything that I see since the sequester took place," an FAA employee wrote.
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