CommercialAirbus Completes Overhaul, Major Projects On TrackAirbus Group completed an overhaul of Europe's largest aerospace group on Tuesday by changing its name from EADS and reaffirming a pledge to deliver on existing projects before embarking on risky new ventures. Shareholders adopted the name change to Airbus Group by a 99.99 percent margin, bringing the company's legal title into line with that of its plane maker subsidiary and ending what chief executive Tom Enders called the "Babylonian confusion" of several brands. "There is clearly a positive implication for our... acceptance in the market and for integration within Airbus," Enders told reporters after the vote, which endorsed the name already being used by the group since January.
LinkState Department Tells US Citizens To Leave Libya ImmediatelyThe State Department on Tuesday told US citizens in Libya to leave the country immediately, warning that the security situation remained "unpredictable and unstable." "The Department of State warns US citizens against all travel to Libya and recommends that US citizens currently in Libya depart immediately," the State Department said in a new travel warning.
LinkReal-Time Airliner Tracking May Take 2-3 YearsGlobal standards to track aircraft in real time may not be ready for two to three years, a senior ICAO official said, although the process could be accelerated as airlines adopt voluntary measures. IATA has formed a group to come up with methods for tracking by the end of September, responding to public concern following the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappearance. IATA said its members would implement measures voluntarily, before any rules were in place. "Typically a global standard can take 2-3 years to put in place," Nancy Graham, director of the ICAO Air Navigation Bureau, told reporters in Kuala Lumpur.
LinkICAO comments on tracking procedures Major airlines are united on the need for real-time tracking of commercial aircraft following the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines (MASM.KL) Flight MH370 and have not raised cost as a concern, a senior official with the United Nations' aviation agency said on Monday. Member countries of the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) governing council agreed earlier this month on the need for global tracking, although they did not commit to a binding solution or timeline. Instead, the global airline industry group, International Air Transport Association (IATA), agreed to come up with proposals for better tracking by the end of September. IATA said its members would implement measures voluntarily, before any rules were in place.
LinkJet Airways Posts Record Quarterly LossIndia's Jet Airways reported its biggest-ever quarterly loss as costs jumped and it took a charge on its investment in a subsidiary. Jet, which last year sold a 24 percent stake to Etihad, said on Tuesday that standalone net loss was INR21.54 billion rupees (USD$366.5 million) for its fiscal fourth-quarter to end-March, compared with a loss of INR4.96 billion rupees a year earlier. The latest quarterly loss was Jet's fifth in a row. Jet, which has been without a full-time chief executive since January, named Cramer Ball as its new CEO, pending regulatory approvals. Ball previously worked as the CEO of Air Seychelles.
LinkA350 subjected to extreme hot and coldAn Airbus A350-900 test aircraft has undergone two and half weeks of extreme weather tests at a laboratory in Florida. “The A350 XWB test aircraft (MSN2) has completed extreme weather tests at the McKinley Climatic Lab at Eglin Air Force base in northwest Florida,” says Airbus in a statement. “The tests which go beyond certification requirements were carried out over a 2.5 weeks period at the unique testing facility. During the tests, the A350 and its various systems and cabin installations were subject to extreme hot and cold temperatures in a true testing environment.”
LinkCarriers opt for larger Airbus A321s over A320sThe Airbus A321, which seats 187, is gradually edging out the Airbus A320, which seats 150. The larger A321 is more fuel efficient than its predecessor, which also makes it an attractive choice. "We're going to be continuing to migrate up to bigger and bigger aircraft," said Scott Kirby, president of American Airlines. The A321 trend has also taken flight at JetBlue according to CEO Dave Barger, who says the larger plane can "better match capacity with demand" and is "the ideal aircraft for our high density markets (and) a sub fleet of the A321s will power our Mint premium service on the New York-Los Angeles and New York-San Francisco markets."
LinkAnalysis: Delta strategy leads to solid investmentAnalysts say Delta Air Lines shares face a bright outlook as the carrier reduces its debt. "Delta's recent announcements of improved returns to shareholders in the form of higher dividends and more stock repurchases indicate the confidence of Delta's management in the strategies it is enacting," writes Gemstone Equity Research.
LinkRepublic Airways to keep CSeries order, CEO says Republic Airways is concerned about the slow pace of sales of the new Bombardier CSeries jet but has no plans to cancel its large order set for delivery beginning in about two years, the airline’s CEO said Thursday. Bryan Bedford said the U.S. carrier continues to believe the plane has “game-changing technology” which is being proven through flight testing. And he’s not upset by delivery delays. But he’s told the Montreal-based manufacturer that he can’t understand why the plane isn’t selling better.
LinkColumnist finds the skies are getting friendlier Has air travel gotten better? Or did it simply get so bad after 9/11 that any improvement feels like a reprieve, sort of the way someone being interrogated by a dark ops team feels when the water boarding stops? I confess I got very cranky in airports in those dismal days when TSA screening was new and the fear level was high. Every time I languished in an interminable security line having to strip down, open up bags and watch grannies and little kids get groped in random, idiotic searches, I seethed inside – angry that a gaggle of lunatic, homicidal religious zealots had forced Americans to enter these rights-free zones where one poorly conceived joke could get a person kicked off a flight and put into detention for questioning.
LinkCause of Ala. incident still undetermined Whether the pilots who died in a UPS crash last August in Alabama were too tired or overloaded by automated cockpit information is at the heart of differing accounts filed this week with the National Transportation Safety Board. UPS and the Independent Pilots Association concur that the crew did not respond in time as Flight 1354 descended too quickly and too steeply before it crashed at 4:47 a.m. Aug. 14. The Airbus A300-600 crashed a mile short of the runway, killing Capt. Cerea Beal, 57, of Matthews, N.C. and First Officer Shanda Carney Fanning, 37, of Lynchburg, Tenn.
LinkCost outweighs benefit of DOT rule proposal In a USA Today op-ed, Airlines for America Senior Vice President and General Counsel David Berg wrote that the Department of Transportation's proposed rule, which requires airlines to give additional information to the GDSs, represents government interference at its worst. "The marketplace is already working, as several airlines have reached agreements with GDSs. Consumers deserve a rule that puts them first and lets the marketplace work, rather than distorts it and potentially has the unintended consequence of increasing fares and losing service," he writes. Berg added that it's ironic for the Transportation Department to call for added transparency on optional services, while the agency is content to bury federal taxes within the base price of a ticket.
LinkDOT tentatively approves IATA data plan The U.S. Department of Transportation has given its tentative approval of International Air Transport Association's Resolution 787. The resolution lays the foundation for new XML messaging standards for airlines and third-party vendors. The communication standards group OpenTravel said that the DOT announcement would bring "better transparency and consumer choice" to the marketplace.
LinkChicago will offer about $784M in bonds for airport improvementsChicago will sell about $784 million in bonds to fund improvements to the Chicago Midway International Airport. The funds will be used to make improvements to the airport's runways, purchase land and pay for noise-abatement projects.
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