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Airbus COO talks up A380 prospects
Airbus COO John Leahy said at the Singapore Airshow that the A380 remains “the only sensible solution” for a rapidly increasing number of travelers in the Asian region. Singling out Southeast Asia, Leahy said the aircraft is better on fuel consumption, quieter, more environmentally acceptable and more comfortable than alternative solutions when handling large passenger numbers.
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Avation orders five ATR 72-600s
Singapore-based leasing company Avation PLC signed a deal for five new ATR 72-600 aircraft with a list price of $130 million at the Singapore Airshow Tuesday. Avation already has 20 of the 72- aircraft type that it leases to operators worldwide. Its customers include Virgin Australia, Flybe, Air India and Fiji Airways. The company will take delivery of the new aircraft over the next two years.
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Boeing 737 Max continues aircraft legacy
Boeing has released the latest version of its venerable 737 aircraft. "With the rollout of the new 737 Max -- the first new airplane of Boeing's second century -- our team is upholding an incredible legacy while taking the 737 to the next level of performance," said Boeing's Keith Leverkuhn.
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Boeing 787 Production To Hit 12 Per Month By Summer
Boeing is ramping up production of the 787 Dreamliner to 12 a month from ten, Beverly Wyse, vice president and general manager of Boeing South Carolina said. Boeing delivered the 100th 787 from its South Carolina plant to American Airlines on Tuesday.
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Bombardier still hopeful for United Airlines CSeries order
Bombardier believes United Airlines’ recent decision to order 40 Boeing 737-700s does not preclude it from selling the CSeries to the Chicago-based airline. The Canadian manufacturer is eager to land a CSeries order from a major North American carrier.
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Embraer forecasts 1,570 new jets for Asia-Pacific by 2036
Embraer Commercial Aviation has forecast that Asia-Pacific airlines will take delivery of 1,570 new jets in the 70- to 130-seat segment, valued at $75 million, over the next 20 years. This represents 25% of the worldwide demand for the segment. According to the global Embraer Market Outlook, the entire market will demand 6,350 new jets in the 70- to 130-seat category, which is valued at $300 billion.
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Aerolease Aviation signs LOI for 10 Mitsubishi Regional Jets
Aerolease Aviation, a Florida-based lessor with a portfolio of 40 used Boeing 757s, signed a letter of intent (LOI) for 10 Mitsubishi Regional Jets (MRJ) plus 10 options. Aerolease becomes the first lessor to commit to the MRJ. “We firmly believe that the asset value of the MRJ has now been recognized in the aircraft finance market,” Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. president Hiromichi Morimoto said Tuesday at the Singapore Airshow.
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Tail-struck A321neo grounded for a 'few weeks'
Airbus expects that an incident which damaged the first A321neo test aircraft will delay the certification campaign by a few weeks. The airframer’s chief executive, Fabrice Bregier, said at the Singapore air show that the aircraft suffered a tail-strike during landing at Perpignan.
LinkAirlines
Air Méditerranée goes into liquidation
French low-cost carrier (LCC) Air Méditerranée has gone into liquidation, after no new buyers materialized to save it. The airline, based at Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées Airport in southwest France, was placed in administration in January 2015 after several years of financial losses, in the hope that a purchaser would emerge.
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American ramps up service from NYC to Bermuda
American Airlines boosted service to Bermuda from New York's John F. Kennedy airport this week. Starting on Monday, the carrier added a second flight to Bermuda. Starting on March 8, the flight will be offered daily.
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Lion Air orders five CAE simulators
CAE and low-cost Indonesian carrier Lion Air have unveiled an agreement at the show for the provision of five full flight simulators (FFS) for the airline's mixed aircraft fleet. The contract was signed in January and includes the provision of three Boeing 737 Maxs simulators, one for the Airbus A320neo and one for the ATR 72-600. The first FFS will be delivered in February 2017.
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Qatar Air Threatens To Cancel Pratt & Whitney Order
Qatar Airways has threatened to cancel an order for Pratt & Whitney Geared Turbofan engines for an order of 50 A320neo-family aircraft, saying the newly developed power-plants had "a lot of problems". Qatar was originally due to take the first delivery in December, but rejected the aircraft due to what it called an engine problem. The first plane went to Lufthansa instead.
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United Mechanics Reject Contract Offer
Maintenance workers at United Airlines have overwhelmingly rejected a new contract offer, their union, adding it will seek approval from US regulators to strike. More than 93 percent of mechanics who voted decided against the company's offer, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters said in a release.
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US, Cuba Sign Pact To Restore Scheduled Flights
American and Cuban officials have signed a memorandum to restore scheduled air service between the two countries after half a century, setting off competition among US airlines for the best routes to the Caribbean island. Officials announced the change in December: that the two former Cold War rivals would add scheduled commercial airline service to the current charter flights.
LinkAirports
Passengers Stranded in Hot Plane for 3 Hours at PHL
A mechanical issue left more than 150 passengers stranded on a taxiway at Philadelphia International Airport for nearly three hours Monday night, Frontier Airlines confirmed to ABC. After shutting off the engines to conserve fuel while waiting for de-icing, the pilot -- slated to fly from Philadelphia to Tampa -- was unable to re-start the plane. He reportedly told passengers the problem with the auxiliary power unit had also wiped out the jet’s heating and air conditioning systems, leaving travelers stuck on a plane with “no air, no circulation and a screaming baby,” according to passenger Shana Laura.
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Military
GAO denies Boeing bid to overturn LRS-B contract
The US government has rejected a Boeing attempt to overturn Northrop Grumman’s hold on a contract to develop and build the US Air Force’s long-range strike bomber (LRS-B). The 16 February decision by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) disputes Boeing’s claim that the air force’s evaluation of the competing bids was “fundamentally flawed”.
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Aviation Quote
The greater the difficulty the more glory in surmounting it. Skillful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests.
— Epicurus
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