NEWS
Qantas chooses CFM engines to power A320neos
Qantas Group has selected CFM International LEAP-1A engines for the 78 Airbus A320neo aircraft it has on order. CFM valued the deal at $2 billion including spare engines. QF and Airbus last year finalized the single largest commercial aircraft order in Australian history with a contract for 110 A320 family aircraft including the 78 re-engined units. Airlines can also choose Pratt & Whitney PW1100G engines to power A320neos.
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Bankrupt AMR reports $1.7 billion 1Q net loss
American Airlines parent AMR Corp., which is restructuring via the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process, incurred a $1.66 billion net loss in the first quarter, according to a filing Thursday with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
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Southwest earns 1Q profit; eyes 2015 international flights from HOU
Southwest Airlines, which had warned of a first-quarter loss, posted net income of $98 million for the period, improved over a $5 million net profit in the 2011 March quarter.
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Alaska Air Group 1Q earnings down 45%, sees ‘solid’ demand
Alaska Air Group, parent of Alaska Airlines (AS) and Horizon Air, earned net income of $40.8 million in the first quarter, a 45% drop from a $74.2 million net profit earned in the year-ago quarter.
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China Eastern expanding in West China
China Eastern Airlines (MU), which is deepening its cooperation with the Qinghai provincial government, is launching a Xining-Beijing route as part of expansion plans into West China. According to the Shanghai-based carrier, it will provide one aircraft to operate the route but Qinghai will cover operating expenses. The carrier plans to introduce another aircraft at a later date.
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Singapore’s LCC Scoot to launch in June
Singapore Airlines’ new medium- to long-haul low-cost carrier Scoot is taking off ahead of schedule with its inaugural flight from Singapore (SIN) to Sydney set for June 4, followed by SIN-Gold Coast on June 12.
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Hawaiian flight attendants ratify agreement
Hawaiian Airlines flight attendants have ratified a tentative agreement on a new contract that the airline said balances increased compensation for HA’s flight attendants with gains in productivity for the company. The new agreement, which covers HA’s 1,350 flight attendants represented by the Assn. of Flight Attendants, extends through 2016.
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United To Beef Up Travel Perks, Offerings
Air travel demand for the prime summer season is strong, which supports higher fares, but United Airlines aims to bolster other sources of revenue by selling new products and services, the chief executive of the airline's parent United Continental Holdings said on Thursday.
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EU Agrees To Share Passenger Data With US
The European Parliament agreed on Thursday to provide US authorities with data on passengers flying from Europe to the United States, backing down after years of resisting a move the United States says is critical to its national security.
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Austrian Air Eyes Big Savings On Pilots
Lufthansa's loss-making Austrian Airlines (AUA) will cut costs for pilots and flight attendants by shifting their contracts to a sister company offering less generous terms.
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Industry group resurrects 6,000kN F-1 engine for NASA proposal
Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne and Dynetics have announced a resurrected F-1 engine as their entry into the advanced booster engineering demonstration and/or risk reduction (ABEDRR) programme, a precursor to selecting advanced boosters for the Space Launch System (SLS). The liquid oxygen/kerosene-burning, gas-generator cycle engine produces more than 6,600kN (1.5 million lb) of thrust. Five such engines comprised the first stage of the Saturn V rocket, which launched the Apollo series of lunar exploration missions.
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Latest fare price hike underscores US airlines profit concerns
US airlines are continuing to push consumers to accept new fare increases as the industry is poised to announce an overall first quarter loss over the next three weeks. Delta Air Lines on 17 April raised one-way prices by $5 to $10 in certain fare categories in a move widely interpreted as attempting to provoke a fourth successful broad-based fare increase since 1 January.
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Italy may modify tax rule on visiting business aircraft
Italy looks likely to modify legislation which applies a tax on visiting foreign-registered business aircraft that was passed earlier this year. Italy's parliament originally passed an act applying an annual tax on Italian aircraft owners and operators which were not operating public transport flights. This also applied to foreign-registered aircraft that stayed in Italy longer than 48h.
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USAF issues RFI for UH-1N modernization
The US Air Force has issued a request for information (RfI) to modernize its ageing fleet of Bell UH-1N helicopters-potentially to keep the aircraft in service for another 30 years. "In terms of mission capable (MC) rates, the UH-1 remains one of the most reliable platforms within the US Air Force inventory," the request reads. "To provide the UH-1 with an additional 30 years of service and retain its MC rates, the rotary branch is attempting to resolve sustainability and capability shortfalls."
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Other News
Pinnacle Airlines Corp., the Memphis-based parent of regionals Pinnacle Airlines, Colgan Air and Mesaba Aviation,announced Thursday that COO John Spanjers will succeed Sean Menke as CEO.
Mubadala Aerospace has appointed Frederic Dupont as the new head of global sales of its MRO network. Dupont previously served as president and GM of Pratt & Whitney Engine Leasing.
Inflight Productions has added Dee Brady as director of marketing to its global team. Brady, formerly of British Airways, will be “responsible for leading IFP’s marketing initiatives to lead the company’s strategic move toward meeting the needs of airlines to engage passenger in the new complex IFE environment,” it said.
JetBlue Airways appointed Craig Hoskins to the position of VP-safety, effective immediately. He previously served as JetBlue's director of flight safety and joined the airline in 2003.
Eurocopter has commenced training operations with its Dauphin AS365 N3/N3+ full flight simulator (FFS) at Singapore's Seletar Aerospace Park, and has received bookings from five customers.
Bell Helicopter has opened a new office in New Delhi to head all of its operations in India.
Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne and Dynetics have announced a resurrected F-1 engine as their entry into the advanced booster engineering demonstration and/or risk reduction (ABEDRR) program, a precursor to selecting advanced boosters for the Space Launch System.
The US Air Force has issued a request for information to modernize its aging fleet of Bell UH-1N helicopters-potentially to keep the aircraft in service for another 30 years.
The US Air Force space command is looking for ways to battle budget cuts by using smaller satellites, fee-for-service communications and partnering with other nations.
Boeing is offering a version of its CH-47 Chinook transport helicopter as a possible replacement for the Israeli air force's Sikorsky CH-53 fleet, as the service is also showing continued interest in the Bell Boeing V-22 tiltrotor.
Cirrus Aircraft has been given the go-ahead by its new owner to accelerate development of the Vision SF50 personal jet.
Swiss International Air Lines will install fire detection and suppression equipment in the cargo compartments of its 20-strong BAE Systems Avro RJ fleet.
Europrop International is working to halve the time needed to assemble and test the TP400-D6, having delivered the first production-standard example of the A400M transport's turboprop engine to Airbus Military.
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AVIATION QUOTE
When a prang seems inevitable, endeavour to strike the softest, cheapest object in the vicinity, as slowly and gently as possible.
— advice given to RAF pilots during W.W.II.
ON THIS DATE
---In 1861... Thaddeus S.C. Lowe, American inventor and balloonist, makes a balloon trip from Cincinnati, Ohio to the South Carolina coast in 9 hours.
---In 1935... The first passengers leave for Australia on a new Imperial Airways/QANTAS service; the first Australian departures were made from Brisbane on April 17.
--In 1959... Aeroflot puts the 84 to 110-seater Ilyushin IL-18, its first turboprop, into service from Moscow to Alma Ata, Kazakhstan, and Adler, now Sochi, on the Black Sea.
---In 1978…A Korean Air Lines Flight 902, a 707, was hit by a missile fired from a Soviet Sukhoi Su-15 interceptor after it had entered Soviet airspace. This caused a rapid decompression of the fuselage which killed two passengers. The 707 made an emergency landing on a frozen lake near Murmansk, USSR.
---In 1998...An Air France flight from Bogotá's El Dorado Airport, to Quito, using an aircraft leased from TAME and flown by Ecuadorian crew, crashed into a mountain near Bogotá. All 43 passengers and 10 crew died.
DAILY VIDEO
EDITOR’S CHOICE
HUMOR
Osama Passes On
After getting nailed by a Daisy Cutter, Osama made his way to the pearly gates. There, he is greeted by George Washington.
"How dare you attack the nation I helped conceive!" yells Mr Washington, slapping Osama in the face.
Patrick Henry comes up from behind. "You wanted to end the Americans' liberty, so they gave you death!" Henry punches Osama on the nose.
James Madison comes up next, and says "This is why I allowed the Federal government to provide for the common defense!" He drops a large weight on Osama's knee.
Osama is subject to similar beatings from John Randolph of Roanoke, James Monroe, and 65 other people who have the same love for liberty and America. As he writhes on the ground, Thomas Jefferson picks him up to hurl him back toward the gate where he is to be judged. As Osama awaits his journey to his final very hot destination, he screams "This is not what I was promised!"
An angel replies " What did you think I said? I told you there would be 72 Virginians waiting for you."
TRIVIA
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ANCFlyer wrote:I suck at the trivia today, not enough coffee yet I think.
bhmbaglock wrote:It's interesting that Dynetics is partnered with Rocketdyne on the SLS and SpaceX on Stratolaunch. They are getting pretty deeply involved in all aspects of commercial space launch.
It's a bit surprising that the USAF wants to get 40 more years out of the UH-1. It seems likely that with the small fleet left of these that converting over to the Lakota would save money in the long run.
ORFflyer wrote:ANCFlyer wrote:I suck at the trivia today, not enough coffee yet I think.
I've had a pot and a half - still nothing.
