NewsCommercial
Airbus to implement A380 door retrofit by end of year
An Airbus spokeswoman said retrofitting A380s with new seals and coverplates for the aircraft doors will begin before the end of 2014. "We are working closely with our customers to determine on a case by case basis with each of them when to perform the retrofit, for example during their routine maintenance checks," said the spokeswoman.
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Boeing donates test 787-8 to Museum of Flight
Boeing has donated one of its original flight test 787-8s to the Museum of Flight in Seattle. The manufacturer has handed over MSN ZA003, which is the third 787 produced, to the museum during a ceremony held on 8 November. ZA003 was used extensively in the interior certification program for the 787, and later circumnavigated the globe several times during the ‘Dream Tour’ in 2011 and 2012. The aircraft is powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines.
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Bombardier shows off CSeries test planes in push for U.S. sales
Canada's Bombardier Inc has been showing its new medium-range CSeries jet to potential U.S. buyers, a spokeswoman said on Friday, as its test program advances after a summertime halt due to an engine problem. The Canadian planemaker is interested in showing the aircraft to a number of U.S. mainline carriers, including United Continental Holdings Inc, said spokeswoman Marianella Delabarrera. She declined to say who has seen it so far. "We're trying to capture as much of the interest as possible," said Delabarrera of the ongoing demo tour. "We really don't want to disrupt the flight testing if we can prevent that, but there are times when it's convenient." The closely watched CSeries is being tested at Bombardier's facilities in Mirabel, Quebec, and Wichita, Kansas.
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SMBC Aviation Capital orders 80 737 Max 8s
SMBC Aviation Capital has ordered 80 Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, the largest single order for the re-engined variant from a leasing company. The deal is valued at more than $8.5 billion at list prices, Boeing says in a statement. SMBC has also become the 50th customer for the 737 Max series, and takes the programme’s total orderbook to more than 2,400 aircraft.
LinkAirlines
Air Canada to expand business class, premium economy in long-haul fleet
Air Canada will expand its International Business Class to all of its 77-300 ER aircraft and add a premium economy section to its A330-300 planes. Air Canada’s business-class cabin will feature fully lie-flat seats with ergonomic cushions and entertainment screens. Meanwhile, premium economy will feature greater recline and more legroom.
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Air China, Air Canada To Cooperate On Flights
Air China and Air Canada aim to launch a comprehensive joint operation scheme late next year, which will cover all flights between the two countries, Air China said. The two carriers, both members of the Star Alliance, would cooperate in sales, marketing and airport service operations for all bilateral flights, the company said in a statement.
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American Airlines F/As Reject Contract
American Airlines flight attendants narrowly rejected a joint contract, in a defeat following the merger of American and US Airways last year that brought together a combined workforce of some 24,500 US-based stewards. The contract was defeated by 16 votes, according to the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents both legacy American Airlines workers as well as those who joined from US Airways. Had it passed, it would have been the first contract since the merger of the two airlines to apply to workers from both carriers.
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BA quickens retirement of 767 fleet
British Airways is to quicken the retirement of its Boeing 767s and has advanced slightly the delivery schedule of its Airbus A380 and Boeing 787 fleets. The airline aims to have only four 767s in its long-haul fleet by the end of 2015, compared with seven previously. Parent company IAG says that all the long-haul 767s will be retired by 2016. They will be replaced by 787s. In a fleet schedule disclosed during an investor briefing, IAG shows that BA has slightly accelerated the 787 delivery schedule and will have 13 by the end of next year.
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Shares of JetBlue Airways reach 52-week high
Shares of JetBlue Airways rose more than 5% to a 52-week high of $12.85 in afternoon trading Thursday amid a broad rally in airline stocks. Plummeting oil prices in the last week have helped the airline stocks to recover following major declines in the last month stemming from the Ebola outbreak. The quelling of the fear of the further spread of Ebola has also provided a boost to the sector. More than 9.2 million shares had changed hands as of 3:03 p.m., compared to the average volume of 8,513,130.
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Kingfisher Airlines Facing Trading Suspension
India's two main stock exchanges will suspend trading of shares of grounded Kingfisher Airlines from December 1 for failing to comply with rules on reporting financial results. Kingfisher, founded by drinks baron Vijay Mallya and once India's No.2 carrier, has not flown for more than two years. The company last reported its financial results for the three months ended December 2013. The exchanges will also suspend trading of UB Engineering, part of Mallya's UB Group, from December 1, they said citing the company's failure to report financial results for two consecutive quarters to end-June.
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Southwest unit revenue jumps 3% for Oct.
Southwest Airlines said unit revenue for October rose by around 3% on a year-over-year basis. "Revenue momentum has continued into the fourth quarter, and we continue to see favorable trends," said Tammy Romo, chief financial officer. The carrier plans to report October traffic on Monday.
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United Airlines ending Atlantic City service
United Airlines is ending service to and from Atlantic City after just eight months of serving the East Coast gambling resort. The company issued a statement Friday saying the service between Atlantic City International Airport and Chicago and Houston is "no longer sustainable." It was just the latest blow to the struggling seaside resort, which has seen four of its 12 casinos go out of business so far this year, with a fifth likely to close next month. Flights to and from the airport began in April and were hailed by officials including Gov. Chris Christie as a key step toward bringing more visitors and business to Atlantic City.
LinkAirports
Rooftop park planned for JetBlue terminal at JFK
JetBlue Airways is bringing a patch of the Highline, a popular elevated park in Manhattan, to John F. Kennedy International Airport. Next year, the carrier plans to unveil a rooftop park on top of Terminal 5. On Wednesday, JetBlue held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its $200 million addition to the terminal
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St. Louis airport mulls renting out vacant terminal for events
Sitting on a surplus of empty gates, Lambert-St. Louis International Airport soon may rent out the unused Concourse B for holiday parties and other events at up to $1,500 a day. The St. Louis Airport Commission voted Wednesday to make it available. “We’ve got some great spaces,” Lambert Director Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge said. “We may as well turn them into ... some opportunities for revenue.”
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Fla. airport unveils plans for $943M expansion
When Joe Lopano talks about what the Tampa International Airport of the future will look like, he sounds more like a real estate developer than the airport's CEO. Other times, he sounds like he's planning a romantic evening. "You have a little something to eat, maybe a glass of wine," Lopano said Thursday. "You watch the sunset. Then you go to the airside and get on your plane. "It will be completely awesome." TIA's top executive was showing off architectural renderings of what the airport will look like when its $943 million expansion and renovation project is completed in 2017. TIA officials said the new renderings are very close to what the finished product will look like.
LinkMilitary
Russia tests engine for new bomber
Russian military aircraft engine designer Kuznetsov has announced completing bench tests of a new propulsion system in development for a next-generation bomber. The Samara-based company says in a 7 November news release that the early bench test supports the Russian government’s plan to complete first flight of the promising aviation complex - long-range aviation (PAK DA) aircraft by 2019. The Russian air force launched PAK DA in 2009, selecting Tuploev – maker of the Tu-95 and Tu-160 bombers, and the Tu-22 supersonic bomber – to design the new aircraft.
LinkRegulatory
FAA Approves Move By Atlanta-Area Airport
A decision by the US FAA has moved forward plans by a small Georgia airport to begin commercial airline service, despite strong opposition by Delta Air Lines and the city of Atlanta. The approval by the Federal Aviation Authority, related to the handling of federal grants for the Paulding Northwest Atlanta Airport, clears the way for the environmental study that is seen as the last major step before the FAA would decide on whether to allow commercial service at the single-runway airport, located about 40 miles from Atlanta. The tiny airfield has become a lightning rod in the rolling hills northwest of Atlanta. County officials and business leaders say it would spur economic growth and create jobs, and have signed a deal with Propeller Investments, a New York private equity fund, to develop business there.
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Aviation Quote
There are only two reasons to sit in the back row of an airplane: Either you have diarrhea, or you're anxious to meet people who do.
— Henry Kissinger
On This Date
---In 1907... Henri Farman makes the 1st flight in Europe of over one minute in his Voisin-Farman I biplane in France.
---In 1907... Louis Bleriot introduces what will become the modern configuration of the airplane. His No.VII has an enclosed or covered fuselage (body), a single set of wings (monoplane), a tail unit, and a propeller in front of the engine.
---In 1972… Southern Airways Flight 49 from Birmingham is hijacked and, at one point, is threatened with crashing into the nuclear installation at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. After two days, the plane lands in Havana, Cuba, where the hijackers are jailed by Fidel Castro. The hijacking, the most bizarre, prolonged and death-defying in the annals of U.S. aviation history, will be the subject of a true account reported by the author Ed Blair in the book Odyssey of Terror, published by Broadman Press in 1977.
Daily Video
Editor’s Choice
Humor
A Little Boy, Awe Struck
A little boy was standing in front of a mirror in the rest room at John F. Kennedy Airport, when in walked a Marine staff sergeant, dressed in his dress blues.
The little boy turned to the Marine and said, "Wow! Are you a Marine?"
The Marine replied, "Why, yes I am, young man.
Would you like to wear my hat?"
"Boy, would I!," said the little boy.
He took the hat and placed it on his head and turned to admire himself in the mirror.
As he was looking in the mirror, he heard the door open and through a ray of bright light, a man entered the room.
But, this was not just a man -- he was more than a man.
He was an US Army Airborne.
The little boy turned and went over to the soldier. As he approached him, he could see the reflection in his boots. His eyes widened as he stared up at the soldier's chest full of medals and combat ribbons.
He tried to speak, but he couldn't.
Finally, he took a deep breath, and managed to say, "Excuse me, Sir. Are you a paratrooper?"
The paratrooper replied with a thunderous voice, "Why yes, I am!! Would you like to shine my boots?"
The little boy smiled, and said, "Oh, no sir!! I'm not a Marine. I'm just wearing his hat!"
Trivia
General Trivia
1. What is the most likely cause of an accident resulting from a climbing downwind turn (in a strong, steady-state wind) near the ground and shortly after takeoff?
a. The pilot failed to account for the increased stall speed unique to turning downwind.
b. An airplane tends to overbank more during a downwind turn than an upwind turn.
c. During a downwind turn, the headwind becomes a tailwind that causes a loss of airspeed.
d. The pilot reacts to a sense of increasing groundspeed.
2. With respect to encountering an increasing-tailwind type of wind shear, which of the following do/does not belong?
a. Airplane tends to sink.
b. Groundspeed increases.
c. Indicated airspeed increases.
d. Pitch attitude decreases.
3. True or false; Everything else being equal, a given airliner operated more efficiently when passengers were allowed to smoke en route than after 1988 when the smoking ban took effect.
4. True or false; As its name implies, an aircraft or automotive alternator produces alternating current (AC).
5. True or false; Upward-folding wing tips are an available option for purchasers of the Boeing 777. This enables the aircraft to fit in relatively small parking spaces.
6. True or false; A pilot pre-flighting an airplane notices that each rivet head has a circular indentation. This is caused by the device that drives the rivet.
