NewsCommercial
Chorus Aviation To Buy Five Bombardier CRJ900s
Chorus Aviation has signed an agreement to buy five Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft with an option to buy an additional five. Based on the list price of the CRJ900, the order is valued at about USD$229 million and could increase to USD$467 million, if Chorus exercises its right to purchase the additional aircraft, Bombardier said.
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MRJ FTA-2 prepares for May flight
Mitsubishi Aircraft says the second prototype for its MRJ regional jet program is undergoing engine tests, as it readies for its first flight. In a newsletter, the Japanese manufacturer says FTA-2 will move forward with taxi tests in May, followed by flight tests.
LinkAirlines
Aeromexico reports $9 million net profit in 1Q
Grupo Aeromexico reported first-quarter net income of MXP161 million ($9 million), down 12.6% from a net profit of MXP185 million in the year-ago period. The Mexico flag carrier cited the positive aspect of lower fuel costs and the negative impact of the Mexican peso depreciating against the US dollar for the results. During the first quarter, the peso depreciated 20.9% relative to the dollar.
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French start-up Air2 sets timeframe for launch
Air2 is planning to begin operations within 12-18 months. Speaking to Flightglobal at the Routes Europe conference in Krakow today, founding partner Bruno Bouault said the French start-up carrier was seeking to source two to three aircraft with between 140 and 160 seats, such as an Airbus A319, and then grow the fleet to 10-12 units within three years.
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Air Canada to debut more flights to Caribbean
Air Canada is launching flights from Montreal and Toronto to new destinations in the Caribbean. "Air Canada is solidifying its position in the Canadian leisure market by offering more flights to more sun destinations during the 2016-2017 winter season," said Benjamin Smith, president of passenger airlines for Air Canada.
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JetBlue Q1 results beat analyst expectations
JetBlue Airways posted net income of $199 million, or 59 cents per share, for the first quarter. The results exceeded analyst expectations of 53 cents per share.
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Lufthansa Cancels Nearly 900 Flights Due To Strike
Lufthansa has cancelled 895 flights on Wednesday due to airport strikes by the Verdi union.
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Spirit 1Q net profit down 10%; scraps A319 retirement plans
Florida-based ultra low-cost carrier (ULCC) Spirit Airlines reported a first-quarter net profit of $61.9 million, down 10.1% from net income of $69 million in the 2015 March quarter, as the airline continues to make adjustments under a new CEO. Spirit’s first-quarter operating revenue rose 9.1% year-over-year to $538.1 million while expenses increased 13.7% to $436.8 million, producing an operating profit of $101.3 million, down 7.3% from operating income of $109.3 million in the prior-year period.
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SriLankan Airlines Told To Cancel Airbus Orders
Sri Lanka's prime minister has instructed debt-ridden national carrier SriLankan Airlines to cancel four of eight Airbus A350 aircraft orders, and seek revival via a new international partner. "We have ordered SriLankan Airlines not to go ahead with the deal for the four Airbuses for which manufacturing has not begun," Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said in a press briefing.
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Japanese LCC Vanilla Air expands fleet, routes
Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) low-cost subsidiary (LCC) Vanilla Air has taken delivery of the first of three new Airbus A320-200s from Singapore-based lessor BOC Aviation. The new aircraft, which are part of a region-wide expansion program, will add to its eight existing A320s. The Tokyo-based LCC said it intends to grow its fleet to 25 aircraft by 2020. In 2013, ANA rebranded AirAsia Japan as Vanilla Air.
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Xiamen Airlines Orders 10 Boeing 737s
Xiamen Airlines has signed a CNY5.5 billion yuan (USD$851 million) order with Boeing for 10 737s. Xiamen parent China Southern and other mainland carriers have been placing large aircraft orders as they build out their fleets to meet travel growth in China.
LinkAirports
Taiwan key to Asia flights to Miami
After years of discussions about how to strengthen the link between Asian businesses and Miami, aviation officials put together an Asia taskforce to plan how to finally do so. The taskforce, created last year, aims to engage businesses with Asian origins or interests by using questionnaires, inviting foreign aviation representatives and working in collaboration. “Our studies have shown that for Miami there is not a China market, per say. There really is not. There are not enough people that will fill a plane to come from mainland China to Miami,” said Emilio González, Miami-Dade Aviation Department director and CEO. Although passenger traffic from China is low, he said, there is very robust Asia traffic. Taiwan’s Taoyuan International Airport in the capital city of Taipei is expanding and will soon have the capacity to host 60 million passengers a year. “If you add up, for example, all of the travelers that come from Asia – South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, mainland China and Taiwan – now you can fill planes,” Mr. González said, “so what we need to do is find the right airline with the right hub that will make this a profitable route.”
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DFW recognized by EPA as a greenhouse gas management leader
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport received an award from the Environmental Protection Agency. DFW is the first airport to receive the EPA award for greenhouse gas management. "We are committed to leadership in sustainability within our industry and will continue to focus on reducing our carbon footprint," said Sean Donohue, CEO of the airport.
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Military
Boeing's fourth and final KC-46 test aircraft takes flight
Five years and two months after being selected to build the US Air Force’s new-generation KC-X aerial tanker, Boeing has launched its fourth and final test aircraft of the KC-46A program. The 767-2C aircraft, which will be used for type certification and is not currently outfitted for aerial refuelling, took off from the company’s widebody aircraft plant in Everett, Washington on 25 April and landed 1h and 40min later at Boeing Field, south of Seattle.
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Italian Typhoons demonstrate air-to-ground IFF capability
Italian air force Eurofighter Typhoons have been used to demonstrate to NATO the ability to detect friendly ground forces using a modified air-to-air identification friend-or-foe (IFF) system. A NATO-observed trial took place over Pratica di Mare air base, near Rome, during which Finmeccanica’s Mode 5 reverse-IFF system was integrated on board Tranche 1 aircraft. It simulated interrogating Italian army vehicles for friendly signal emissions which, once verified, ensured the fighter held off from firing at allied forces.
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Tokyo plans 50 X-2 flights in coming year
Japan envisages a one-year test campaign for the Mitsubishi X-2 technology demonstrator, with around 50 flights planned. The aircraft’s 25min maiden flight, on 22 April, saw it reach an altitude of 12,000ft and a top speed of 200kt (370km/h), says Hirofumi Doi, manager of Japan’s Future Fighter Program at the defense ministry’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA).
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Aviation Quote
Get rid at the outset of the idea that the airplane is only an air-going sort of automobile. It isn't. It may sound like one and smell like one, and it may have been interior decorated to look like one; but the difference is — it goes on wings.
— Wolfgang Langewiesche
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Trivia
General Trivia
1. Why was Kiwi International Air Lines, a U.S. scheduled air carrier from 1992 to 1999, named after a flightless bird (a kiwi)?
2. In fighter-pilot parlance, tallyho means that enemy aircraft have been sighted. It is colloquially used in civil aviation to mean that traffic is in sight. What is the source of this expression?
3. The Century-series fighters began with the North American F-100 Super Sabre, the McDonnell Douglas F-101 Voodoo, the Convair F-102 Delta Dagger, the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, and so forth. The McDonnell F-110A Spectre became better known as what famous airplane?
4. What is VH and why is it more significant now than it has been in the past?
5. Frequently presented by the president of the United States in a White House ceremony, the Robert J. Collier Trophy probably is aviation's most prestigious award. Who was Robert J. Collier?
JLAmber wrote:1. Why was Kiwi International Air Lines, a U.S. scheduled air carrier from 1992 to 1999, named after a flightless bird (a kiwi)?
It was staffed by Eastern crew who had recently been made redundant, hence them being flightless.
3. The Century-series fighters began with the North American F-100 Super Sabre, the McDonnell Douglas F-101 Voodoo, the Convair F-102 Delta Dagger, the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, and so forth. The McDonnell F-110A Spectre became better known as what famous airplane?
F-4 Phantom II
