NewsCommercial
Boeing suspends 777X loads testing after pressurization failure
Final loads testing on Boeing’s delayed 777-9 has been suspended while investigations continue into the failure of a cargo door during pressurization evaluations on the static test airframe at Everett, Washington, Sept 5. The incident occurred during the final phases of the 777X major structural test campaign, which is being conducted in a purpose-built steel rig at the company’s production site.
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Airbus, Thai Airways to build new MRO facility in Thailand
Airbus and Thai Airways plan to begin construction of a new, expanded MRO facility at Thailand’s U-Tapao Rayong Pattaya International Airport next year, as part of the airport’s development program.
The two companies have agreed to build the replacement MRO center as a joint venture (JV).
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Airbus, China deepen partnership at Tianjin assembly line
Airbus is expanding the scope of work of the A320-family assembly line in Tianjin, China, adding more equipping of fuselages.
The line, jointly owned by Airbus, AVIC and the Tianjin municipal government, will begin applying the additional processes on aircraft for delivery in the second quarter of 2021, the company said.
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Report: Russia, China nears location decision on CR929 center
Russia and China are reportedly close to selecting a location for the Chinese-Russian commercial aircraft consortium (CRAIC) CR929 program’s engineering center, an issue that has been delaying progress in development of the widebody airliner.
Moscow seems to have finally persuaded Beijing that the center should be located in Russia.
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Rolls fast-tracks Trent blade modifications after Norwegian 787 incident
Rolls-Royce is fast-tracking the removal of certain older Trent 1000 intermediate pressure turbine (IPT) blades and modifying its blade-life calculation methods in the aftermath of a Norwegian Boeing 787 engine failure near Rome linked to blades that cracked before established life limits. The Aug. 10 incident occurred just after Norwegian 787-8 LN-LND departed Rome–Fiumicino International Airport (FCO) for Los Angeles.
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PICTURES: Airbus delivers 1,000th Super Puma helicopter
Airbus Helicopters has delivered the 1,000th rotorcraft from its Super Puma family – a H215 for the aviation division of Germany's Bundespolizei federal police.
Handed over during a ceremony at the airframer's Marignane headquarters in the south of France, the heavy-twin is the fourth and final aircraft from a 2016 order.
LinkAirlines
Air Canada looks at ways to improve Air Transat fleet utilization
Air Canada continues to reveal little about its plans for Air Transat beyond keeping the leisure airline’s brand and Montreal headquarters, but a senior executive said that getting its aircraft flying more often will be a near-term focus. “We’ll look at ways to improve their asset utilization,” Air Canada CFO Michael Rousseau said at the recent Cowen Global Transportation Conference in Boston.
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Air France voices interest in Aigle Azur as rescue plan sought
Air France has expressed an interest in French leisure carrier Aigle Azur, which is suspending flight operations in the face of financial and operational difficulties. “We are looking at it; we are interested in their activities,” Air France CEO Anne Rigail said on stage at the World Aviation Festival in London Sept. 6. “We are looking at it and will study it very carefully.”
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Flyadeal to decide on A320neo engine by November
Saudi LCC flyadeal expects to make an engine decision for its order of Airbus A320neos within the next two months, the airline’s CEO said Sept. 6. Speaking to ATW on the sidelines of the World Aviation Festival in London, flyadeal CEO Con Korfiatis said he anticipates a decision between the CFM LEAP-1A and the Pratt & Whitney PW1000G “around the end of October or start of November.”
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SAS, Brussels Airlines adjust North American routes
Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) and Brussels Airlines are altering several North American routes in 2020.
SAS will transfer its Los Angeles-bound service from Stockholm to Copenhagen, with 6X-weekly Copenhagen Kastrup services beginning Jan. 13, 2020, and daily flights from March 31.
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China Airlines finalizes order for six Boeing 777Fs
Taiwan’s China Airlines (CAL) has finalized an order for six Boeing 777F freighters in a deal worth $2.1 billion at list prices. The new aircraft will replace 747-400Fs currently in service.
The flag carrier previously announced its intent to order six 777Fs at the Paris Air Show in June and the order was confirmed in July, reflected as an unidentified customer among Boeing’s orders and deliveries. CAL confirmed to ATW that deliveries are scheduled to occur between 2020 and 2023.
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JetBlue considers serving 'multiple' London airports
JetBlue Airways is evaluating the possibility of serving more than one London airport under its plan to start transatlantic flights to Europe in 2021.
Speaking at the Aviation Festival in London on 5 September, JetBlue chief operating officer Joanna Geraghty said that the airline is looking at London Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton and Stansted as potential arrival points.
LinkAirports
TSA unveils new checkpoint at Las Vegas McCarran International Airport
This first-of-its-kind scanner is hoped to increase the level of security offered at Las Vegas’ airport, while decreasing queue time.
The TSA and Las Vegas McCarran International Airport (LAS) have unveiled the Innovation Checkpoint, a collaborative effort between TSA’s Innovation Task Force and the airport that allows for side-by-side testing and evaluation of emerging security technologies in a live checkpoint environment. This is the first and only one of its kind nationwide.
LinkMilitary
US Army intends to buy 15 Airbus UH-72A Lakotas
The US Army intends to buy 15 more Airbus UH-72A Lakota utility helicopters and is considering an option to buy two more.
The service indicated its intent to buy the aircraft in a sole-source requirement notice posted online on 5 September. Airbus Helicopters says it has not received a request for proposal from the US Army and does not know the specific configuration or intended use of the helicopters.
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UK prepares to test combined strike with Royal Navy and RAF
The Royal Navy (RN), Royal Air Force (RAF) and UK industry are approaching a crucial demonstration of the country's formative carrier strike capability, with the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth at the heart of the activity.
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BAE Systems studies production path beyond Eurofighter Typhoon
For the UK Royal Air Force (RAF), 2019 has been a truly momentous year for the Eurofighter Typhoon. First, the type assumed full strike responsibilities over Iraq and Syria, in a seamless transition from the service's retiring Panavia Tornado GR4s. This was enabled by the £425 million ($517 million), 70-month Project Centurion activity, which added new precision attack weapons.
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Dassault sees strong Rafale deliveries in first half
Dassault Aviation saw its operating profit double to €250 million ($276 million) during the first half of 2019 on the back of sharply higher net sales.
Adjusted net sales nearly doubled to €3.1 billion for the six months ended 30 June, with deliveries of 17 Falcon business jets and 10 Rafale fighters to export customers. In the first half of 2018, the company delivered 15 Falcons and only two Rafales.
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Aviation Quote
It was over in a blink of an eye, that moment when aviation stirred the modern imagination. Aviation was transformed from recklessness to routine in Lindbergh's lifetime. Today the riskiest part of air travel is the drive to the airport, and the airlines use a barrage of stimuli to protect passengers from ennui.
- George Will, 'Charles Lindbergh, Craftsman,' 15 May 1977, The pursuit of Happiness, and Other Sobering Thoughts, 1978.
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Trivia
General Trivia
1. How was milkweed used to save pilots and crewmembers during World War II?
2. While in the traffic pattern, you overhear a pilot "requesting the option." The controller tells this pilot that he is "cleared for the option." This means that the pilot may execute his choice of five maneuvers. What are they?
3. What was so unusual about the first fighter aircraft used by the Israeli Air Force?
4. To what does the north pole of a magnetic compass point?
1. The north magnetic pole
2. The south magnetic pole
3. The geographic South Pole
4. None of the above
5. The world's first man-carrying airplane powered by jet propulsion flew in
1. October 1910.
2. November 1920.
3. December 1930.
4. January 1940.
