NewsWizz Air UK could be used as consolidation platformCentral and Eastern European
LCC Wizz Air
CEO József Váradi has said that newly launched Wizz Air
UK could be used as a vehicle to acquire assets from other airlines.
LinkWizz Air UK launches flightsCentral and Eastern European
LCC Wizz Air has secured its
UK air operator’s certificate (
AOC) and operating license, paving the way for Wizz Air
UK to launch flights on May 3. London Luton-headquartered Wizz Air
UK has been created to protect Wizz Air from route-right uncertainty, as the
UK prepare to leave the European Union (Brexit). Other major European LCCs, like easyJet and Ryanair, have followed a similar strategy.
LinkAmerican orders 15 E175s and 15 CRJ900sAmerican Airlines has ordered 15 Bombardier CRJ900s and 15 Embraer 175 regional jets, deals with a combined list-price value of roughly $1.4 billion. Deliveries of the CRJ900s with 76 seats to American subsidiary
PSA Airlines will begin in the second quarter of 2019, Bombardier says in a media release.
LinkKnown blade issue caused Air NZ 787-9 engine failures New Zealand investigators have confirmed that two engine failures on Air New Zealand Boeing 787-9s last December were caused by known issues with the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000s intermediate pressure turbine (
IPT) blades. The Transport Accident Investigation Commission’s interim report on the two failures, which occurred on
ZK-
NZE on 5 December, and
ZK-
NZF on 6 December, shows that both aircraft were fitted with ‘Package C’ Trent 1000 engines that failed after take-off from Auckland, forcing the aircraft to return.
LinkQantas 737s in runway incursion, rejected takeoff at PerthAustralian investigators are probing a runway incursion at Perth airport on 28 April involving two Qantas operated Boeing 737-800s. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau says that one of the 737s, registered
VH-
XZM, had landed on runway 03 and exited on taxiway
J2. Although it was required to hold short of the intersecting runway 06, it came to a stop just past the holding point.
LinkFirst Cathay Pacific A350-1000 takes to the airThe first of 20 A350-1000s for Cathay Pacific has completed its initial test flight from Airbus's Toulouse plant. Deliveries of the Rolls-Royce Trent
XWB-powered aircraft to the Hong Kong carrier are scheduled to begin in June. It will become the second operator after launch customer Qatar Airways to receive Airbus's biggest twinjet.
LinkEngine production drives first-quarter revenue growth at MTUMTU’s adjusted pre-tax earnings grew nearly 11% to €175 million ($210 million) during the first quarter – on the back of a 4.6% rise in revenue to €1.02 billion. The German engine specialist says its commercial
OEM business saw the highest revenue increase – the segment's turnover grew 10.6%, to €335 million, mainly driven by sub-assembly production for the
GE Aviation GEnx and International Aero Engines V2500 programs.
LinkRolls-Royce progressing with 787 engine inspectionsSome two-thirds of an initial batch of accelerated inspections on Rolls-Royce powerplants for Boeing 787s has been completed, the engine manufacturer is set to tell shareholders. The intensified inspections cover the Package C model of the engine and are directed at addressing durability of blades.
LinkAutonomous refueling considered for KC-46A upgrade planAlthough the delivery of the first
KC-46A Pegasus is still months away, Boeing is about to launch a follow-on development programme, with potential upgrades including autonomous refueling, improved survivability and new communications systems, says the company’s program manager.
LinkUSAF teaching dogfighting to small autonomous dronesThe
US Air Force Academy is attempting to teach autonomous unmanned air vehicles when to perform combat manoeuvres used by fighter pilots to counter potential swarms of adversarial UAVs. The activity builds on a
US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency-sponsored unmanned air systems swarm competition staged last year between the
US Military Academy, Naval Academy and Air Force Academy, says Del Christman, assistant professor at the
USAF Academy, who leads research on the project. During that competition, student fixed-wing and quadcopter drones autonomously shot a virtual weapon to hit a sensor on an opponent’s
UAV in flight.
LinkTextron unveils thrust-vectoring X5-55 VTOL droneTextron Systems unveiled its
X5-55 vertical take-off and landing engineering testbed at the AUVSI Xponential show in Denver, Colorado, on 1 May. The company developed the aircraft to meet demands from military customers for an unmanned air vehicle that is able to nimbly take off and land vertically from tight spots, while retaining the ability to fly efficiently over long distances.
LinkBoeing plans affordability changes for new wave of P-8 ordersAs Boeing assembles the 100th P-8 Poseidon in Renton, Washington, the company is laying the groundwork to secure dozens of new orders by revamping the design and production process to reduce costs. “We think we’ll build another 100 of them,” says Carl Lang, Boeing’s deputy programme manager for the 737-800A, which is modified to become the anti-submarine warfare as the P-8.
LinkNTSB releases maintenance records on Southwest 737-700 engine failure Maintenance records from the Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 that experienced an inflight engine failure April 17 reveal the fan blades of its CFM56-
7B turbofan engines, which are suspected of causing the failure, had been overhauled 10,712 engine cycles before the accident, the
US National Transportation Safety Board (
NTSB) reported.
LinkBombardier Commercial reports weak 1Q; Airbus CSeries tie-up to close soonNews of a weak first-quarter performance by Bombardier’s Commercial Aircraft unit was offset somewhat by the cash-generating sale of its Downsview aircraft assembly operation, a new
CRJ order, and optimism that the CSeries program tie-up with Airbus will close within weeks.
LinkSouthwest to serve Hawaii from California Southwest Airlines revealed the four continental
US cities from which it plans to operate flights to Hawaii as it moves closer to selling tickets for the service. As expected, all four airports are in California: Oakland, Sacramento, San Diego and San Jose. Southwest, which has called launching Hawaii service its biggest initiative this year, is awaiting extend-range, twin-engine operations standards (ETOPS) approval from
FAA to allow it fly Boeing 737-8 aircraft on the roughly 5-hr., over-water flights from California to Hawaii.
Link Flybmi eyes Bombardier CRJ900/Embraer E190 aircraft to expand fleetUK-based flybmi (formerly known as bmi regional) is looking to expand its fleet of 20 Embraer 134/145 regional jets with Bombardier CRJ900s or E190s, which offer more capacity as the carrier prepares for post-Brexit operations.
LinkAsiana Airlines adds more A350 long-haul routesSouth Korean carrier Asiana Airlines is deploying Airbus A350-900s on an increasing number of long-haul routes as more of the type are delivered. Asiana currently operates five A350s after receiving its latest delivery in April. One more is scheduled to be delivered in July, a spokesman said. The airline ordered 21 A350-900s and nine -1000s. Aside from the sixth A350, Asiana has no other aircraft deliveries scheduled for the remainder of this year.
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