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First Leap-powered A320neo moved to flight-test team
Airbus has transferred the first CFM International Leap-powered A320neo to its flight-test organization. A320 program chief Klaus Roewe says the transfer on 21 April means the aircraft, fitted with Leap-1A engines, will begin undertaking ground maneuvering tests ahead of first flight. The first flight will take place in "very, very few weeks", says Roewe: "Maybe we can even count it in days."
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Boeing Reports Strong First-Quarter Results
The Boeing Company reported first-quarter revenue increased 8 percent to $22.1 billion on higher commercial deliveries (Table 1). Core earnings per share (non-GAAP) increased 12 percent to $1.97, reflecting strong performance across the company, and GAAP earnings per share was $1.87. The Company reaffirmed its 2015 financial and deliveries guidance.
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Boeing 787 unit loss declines, but deferred costs rise
Cost control on the Boeing 787 program showed some improvement on a unit basis in the first quarter, but the company remains far from break-even. If deferred production, unamortized tooling and other costs are factored in, Boeing lost an average of $30 million on each of the 30 787s delivered in the first quarter. That represented an 11% decline from a $34 million unit loss on each of the 35 787s delivered in the fourth quarter of last year.
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Component flaw delays GEnx engine shipments to Boeing
A “production quality” problem in the first quarter caused GE Aviation to miss scheduled shipments for 29 GEnx engines, but so far the delay has not affected deliveries for the 787 and 747-8, says GE and Boeing officials. GE Aviation plans to deliver nearly all of the delayed engines during the second quarter and meet a yearly target of shipping 275 to 300 GEnx engines, GE senior vice-president and chief financial officer Jeff Bornstein said on a 17 April earnings call. Boeing confirms that the tardy shipments have not caused the 787 or 747-8 programs to delay deliveries to customers.
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Safran Q1 Revenue Up 14 Pct, Confident On LEAP Engine
Safran pledged to meet performance targets on its latest jet engine as it unveiled a 14 percent jump in first-quarter sales. Quarterly group revenue rose 14.3 percent to EUR€3.935 billion (USD$4.22 billion), up 2.4 percent on a like-for-like basis. Safran confirmed its 2015 forecasts for revenue to grow by a percentage in the high single digits and recurring operating income to increase by a percentage in the low double digits.
LinkAirlines
Allegiant Travel Company Announces the Purchase of Three Additional A320 Aircraft
Allegiant Travel Company today announced that it has purchased three additional A320 aircraft. The aircraft were most recently operated by a carrier in Europe and are scheduled to enter the Allegiant operating fleet in 2015. "We are happy to announce another successful transaction to acquire three additional high quality, used A320 aircraft," said Jude Bricker, Senior Vice President of Planning. "Since the beginning of this year, we have committed to fifteen incremental A320 series aircraft that will be added to our future operating fleet," concluded Bricker.
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American relies on employee feedback for uniform design
American Airlines has adapted prototypes for its employee uniforms, and will conduct another wear test over the coming months. The carrier conducted an initial wear test with 400 employees earlier this year for the uniforms, which are slated to debut in 2016. "We've taken a lot of that feedback and revised some of the designs," said Casey Norton, American spokesman.
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ANA develops new economy class seats with Toyota Boshoku
All Nippon Airways (ANA) has developed a new economy class seat with Toyota Boshoku. The carrier says the seats will be introduced during the summer season on domestic services. It also intends to install a total of 1,560 seats on six Boeing 767-300 aircraft by fiscal year 2016. The seats will be mounted in a 2-3-2 configuration, be 17.5in (44.5cm) wide, and have a 31in seat pitch.
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Delta Air Lines plans to install LED lighting on entire fleet
LED light bulbs are on their way to becoming the norm for home lighting. But LEDs have applications way beyond the home. VR reports that Delta Airlines, for example, has just pulled a surprise move—committing to upgrade its entire fleet of planes to energy efficient LED lighting within the next three years. My initial reaction was to write a headline about how "LED lighting will lead to greener flying", but then I checked my hyperbole. True, less electricity used means less fuel burned, but the VR article estimates that the fuel efficiency improvements are likely to be in the region of a "0.0XX%" boost. (Still, apparently that amounts to $50,000 per plane per year.)
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EasyJet coy over A321 interest
EasyJet is examining the potential of the Airbus A321 but resists being drawn over a possible switch. The carrier's rival Wizz Air has already converted a number of orders to the larger type, and disclosed that it is taking them in a high-density 230-seat configuration. Speaking during the delivery of EasyJet's 250th Airbus, chief executive Carolyn McCall said the A321's range over the A320 could enable the carrier to explore routes "further afield".
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JetBlue updates pricing model for Mint premium service
Last June, JetBlue began a new chapter of its history with the introduction of its Mint premium service. Instead of using its standard all-coach configuration, JetBlue added a 16-seat premium cabin with full flat-bed seats for some of its new A321s. (Four of the seats even come as private mini-suites!)
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LAN avails of 787 ETOPS certification
LAN Airlines has inaugurated its Boeing 787 service from Chilean capital Santiago to Auckland in New Zealand. The 12h 44min flight, which landed on 18 April, was operated with a 787-8 (MSN 38471).
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Southwest Airlines helps fund public spaces in U.S. cities
Southwest Airlines is lending a hand by funding public spaces in major U.S. cities. A new plaza opened today in Baltimore thanks to a Heart of the Community grant from the carrier. Another grant is helping refurbish a vacant lot in Milwaukee into a venue for outdoor concerts and markets.
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United to deploy 767s on international routes from N.J. airport
United Airlines plans to deploy Boeing 767s on four international routes from Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, N.J. United previously used 757s for the routes.
LinkMilitary
Japan Coast Guard orders Falcon 2000 MSA
Japan’s Coast Guard has selected the Dassault Falcon 2000 Maritime Surveillance Aircraft (MSA) to fulfill a patrol requirement. A statement from Dassault says that the type was selected following a competition, but does not state the number of aircraft involved. Dassault’s partners in the deal include L-3 Platform Integration and Thales.
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First Norwegian F-35 takes shape
Lockheed Martin is moving closer to delivering an F-35 to its fifth customer nation, with Norway’s first example having had its three fuselage sections joined on 9 April. Currently on the final assembly line in Fort Worth, Texas, aircraft AM-1 will now have its control surfaces added, along with other systems and its Pratt & Whitney F135 engine.
LinkUAV
USN X-47B performs dry air refuelling connection
The US Navy’s Northrop Grumman X-47B unmanned combat air system – demonstration (UCAS-D) testbed has carried out a dry aerial refuelling contact with a tanker ahead of fuel transfer testing. The X-47B engaged with the Omega Boeing K-707 tanker over Chesapeake Bay on 15 April after taking off from NAS Patuxent River in Maryland, but no fuel was transferred, according to the US Naval Air Systems Command.
LinkSpace
Virgin Galactic to test new spaceship 'this year'
Virgin Galactic expects to begin testing a second SpaceShipTwo this year to replace the suborbital rocketplane lost in last year’s fatal test flight crash. The company confirmed remarks attributed to chief executive George Whitesides at last week’s Space Symposium conference in Colorado, but stressed that testing includes work on the ground and “ultimately flight tests will be dictated by safety and readiness rather than deadlines”. The operation remains grounded while the US NTSB continues its investigation into the 31 October incident at Mojave, which killed Michael Alsbury and left the other test pilot, Peter Siebold, seriously injured.
LinkCorporate
Dassault prepares Falcon 5X for 2 June roll-out
Dassault is preparing to roll-out its Falcon 5X business jet on 2 June at its Bordeaux-Merignac facility, and says the all-new large-cabin long-range business jet is on track for first flight in the second half of the year. The French airframer launched the 5,200nm (9,630km)-range twinjet in October 2013. With a fuselage diameter of 2.7m (8.9ft) and a cabin height of 1.98m, the 5X is the largest aircraft in Dassault’s six-strong high-end business jet family, and boasts the widest cabin in its class.
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Aviation Quote
Please accept my sincere thanks for your recent letter and for the enclosure describing the Sāo Paulo helicopter rescues. . . . I had it read to me (my eyesight has failed to such an extent that I can no longer read) and found it interesting indeed.
I always believed that the helicopter would be an outstanding vehicle for the greatest variety of life-saving missions and now, near the close of my life, I have the satisfaction of knowing this has proved to be true.
— Igor Sikorsky's last letter, to Jerome Lederer, dictated the day before he died at age 84, 15 October 1972.
On This Date
---In 1858...Max Karl Ernst Ludwig Planck born in Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
---In 1939... The U.S. Civil Aeronautics Authority raises the eligibility age for obtaining a private pilot license to 18 years from the previous 16 years of age.
---In 1945… The United States Navy puts its first radar-guided bomb, the SWOD-9 "Bat" into use, dropping it from Consolidated PB4Y Liberators on Japanese shipping in Balikpapan Harbor.
---In 1962…Ranger 4 - USA Lunar Hard Lander launched. First US lunar impact of the Moon.
---In 1988... The U.S. government’s ban on smoking on flights of two hours or less goes into effect. “No Smoking” signs remain lit on 80% of domestic airline flights. Flight attendants are to be armed with gum and candy for those in anguish.
---In 1994... Airbus delivers the first of 25 Airbus A300-600F dedicated freighters to the specialized package carrier, FedEx. This all-cargo version can carry up to a maximum payload of 120,855 lb over a range of 1,900 nautical miles.
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