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Commercial

​MRJ first flight pushed back to third quarter
Mitsubishi Aircraft has confirmed that the first flight of its MRJ regional jet has been pushed back to September or October 2015 from the second quarter. The Japanese airframer says the delay will not impact deliveries, which are due to begin in the second quarter of 2017. “Presently static strength testing and manufacture of the second and subsequent flight test aircraft are all proceeding smoothly,” says Mitsubishi in a statement.
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New airline seats pack in more features
New airline seats are being developed with the goal of creating a seat packed with features and amenities, writes Jason Rabinowitz in Forbes. He notes Panasonic's Jazz concept seat with amenities built in. "Every feature a passenger in economy could want (except more legroom) is packed into this seat," he writes. "Rather than a screen that appears as if it was placed in a carved-out hole in a seatback, it's flush in the seat in front of you. The tray table acts as an integrated wireless mobile phone charger with inductive charging."
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Airlines

American Airlines Group Reports March Traffic Results
American Airlines Group's total revenue passenger miles (RPMs) for the month were 18.4 billion, down 0.6 percent versus March 2014. Total capacity was 22.4 billion available seat miles (ASMs), down 0.9 percent versus March 2014. Total passenger load factor was 82.1 percent for the month of March, up 0.3 percentage points versus March 2014.
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Copa Airlines To Buy 61 Boeing 737s
Panama-based Copa Airlines will buy 61 Boeing 737 MAX 8 and MAX 9 aircraft in a deal worth USD$6.6 billion at list prices. Copa said in a statement it will use the planes to replace existing aircraft and support the carrier's plans for strategic growth.
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JetBlue says FlyFi product has exceeded expectations
How does a company react when its product is even more successful than it expected? For JetBlue and its inflight Wi-Fi partners Thales and ViaSat this is a very real challenge. JetBlue introduced its FlyFi product in late 2013 with a tiered pricing model. Basic usage would be free but streaming or other bandwidth-intensive usage required the (rather pricey $9/hour) paid option. That decision was made because, “[W]e expected that [the free product] would not be able to support streaming so the paid product was designed to facilitate customers who wanted to stream video,” according to Jamie Perry, the carrier’s VP brand & product development. But it turns out JetBlue underestimated the capabilities of the system.
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Lufthansa Frequent Flyer Accounts Hacked
Lufthansa said hackers had managed to break into the accounts of some of its frequent flyers and use their miles to make purchases, just two weeks after British Airways suffered a similar attack. The hackers used lists to try to match usernames and passwords - when one matched, they made purchases using the miles on the frequent flyer's account. "After some signs of misuse on the Lufthansa website, we took immediate action," a spokesman said.
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Southwest boosts load factor in March
Southwest Airlines posted a 6.7% increase in revenue passenger miles for March on a year-over-year basis. The carrier also boosted its load factor to 84.5% in March from 82.7% in the same month last year.
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United offering 787 service to 6 continents
United Airlines is now deploying its Dreamliner 787s to six continents. United added a 787 flight from Houston to Sao Paulo earlier this week. The only continent not served by a 787 is Antarctica.
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Airports

Kan. airport to open new terminal next month
The new terminal at Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport will open with a little capacity yet to go. When commercial flights begin in May, the terminal will utilize nine of 12 total gates as it waits for demolition of the old terminal to allow aircraft to access the final three. The airport expects to bid that demolition work in June and begin in the fall. But not all of the old terminal will be gone.
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Military

​Australia confirms order for two additional C-17s
The Royal Australian Air Force has confirmed that will acquire two additional Boeing C-17 strategic airlifters, which will bring its fleet of the type to eight. The deal represents an investment of A$1 billion ($770 million), says the Australian Department of Defence department in a statement. Of this amount, A$300 million will be spent upgrading facilities at RAAF Amberley, where 36 Sqn is based.
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Regulatory

Japan, South Korea Ease Flight Bans On Thai Airlines
Japan and South Korea authorities have eased flight bans on Thai carriers by allowing NokScoot and Thai Air AsiaX to fly charter flights for two months to reduce the impact on passengers. NokScoot, a joint venture between Thailand's Nok Airlines and Singapore Airlines' Scoot subsidiary, will fly empty planes from Singapore to pick up passengers in Bangkok before flying to Japan in April and May, Somchai said. NokScoot chairman Patee Sarasin said he expected to receive formal permission from South Korean authorities in the next few days.
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Corporate

Pilatus posts record profits
Pilatus Aircraft, the Swiss manufacturer of the PC family of business aircraft and military trainers, has posted its strongest-ever annual results. The Stans-based airframer recorded revenues of Swfr 1.174 billion ($1.2 billion) between January and December 2014, 16% higher than in 2013 – its previous record year. Earnings climbed by 30% during the same period to over Swfr 200 million.
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Aviation Quote

Hey - what's happening here?

— Captain Robert Loft, Eastern Air Lines flight 401, 29 December 1972, last recorded words before crashing into the Florida everglades.

On This Date

---In 837 A.D... Best view of Halley's Comet in 2000 years.

---In 1919... The Vickers Vimy Commercial, a civilian version of the bomber with an enclosed fuselage capable of holding a maximum of ten passengers, makes its maiden flight in Kent, England.

---In 1925... The first regular U.S. air-freight service is initiated by Henry Ford, linking Detroit, Michigan and Chicago, Illinois.

---In 1954…Robert Oppenheimer accused of being a communist.

---In 1959…USAF launches Discoverer II into polar orbit.

---In 1959…Vanguard SLV-5 launched for Earth orbit (failed).

---In 1966... Boeing announces in Seattle an order worth $525 million from Pan Am for 25 Model 747 jumbo jets.

---In 1967…SR-71 (966) was lost. Pilot Earle Boone and RSO Butch Sheffield survived.

---In 1984…11th Space Shuttle Mission (41C)-Challenger 5-returns to Earth.

---In 1985…Atlantis ferried to Kennedy Space Center via Ellington AFB, Texas

---In 1989... The first flight-tests of the Pratt & Whitney / Alison propfan engine are carried out in the U.S.

---In 1990… First flight of the Sukhoi Su-27IB prototype.

---In 2010…Unable to adjust their thrust settings due to an engine malfunction, the flight crew of Cathay Pacific Flight 780, an Airbus A330-342 with 322 people on board, is forced to land at Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong, China, at 230 knots (265 mph; 426 km/h), 95 knots (109 mph; 176 km/h) higher than normal landing speed. The aircraft makes a successful landing, but 57 passengers are injured during the subsequent emergency evacuation.

---In 2013… Lion Air Flight 904 crashes short of the runway at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali, Indonesia. All 101 passengers and 7 crew on board survived the accident. The aircraft involved was a Boeing 737-8GP, registration PK-LKS, operated by Lion Air and owned by Avolon.

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