NewsDelta Cuts First-Quarter Revenue ForecastDelta Air Lines on Tuesday curbed a closely watched growth forecast, saying federal budget cuts hurt demand for government travel and potential flyers resisted the company's efforts to raise ticket prices. The news sent Delta's shares down 8 percent and hurt other airline stocks. Some analysts said the sell-off appeared to be overdone because Delta's profit picture was largely unchanged. Delta said that unit revenue rose at a lower pace in March than in the previous two months. Its unit revenue last month rose 2 percent, compared with a rise of 5 percent in February and 5.5 percent in January.
LinkANA Pilots To Do 787 Resumption TrainingAll Nippon Airways, the biggest customer for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, will put its pilots through training to resume flights in June, sources said, after Boeing completed more than half of its tests to get its new battery system certified. ANA is also likely to use the 787 initially for cargo flights once the new battery system is installed, to reassure the public about safety before restarting passenger flights, one of the sources said. Regulators grounded all 50 787s in use by airlines worldwide in mid-January after lithium-ion batteries overheated on two aircraft -- a Japan Airlines jet parked at Boston's Logan airport and on an ANA flight in Japan. ANA operates 17 of the carbon-composite jets and has cancelled more than 3,600 flights up to the end of May.
LinkEADS Adopts EUR€3.75 Bln Share BuybackEADS announced a share buyback worth up to EUR€3.75 billion (USD$4.81 billion) on Tuesday to dampen sales by a dismantled group of core shareholders, following a radical shake-up of its structure. The buyback, to be carried out over 18 months, is equivalent to around 11 percent of the value of the Airbus parent group based on Tuesday's near-record closing price of its shares, which have been rising in anticipation of the overhaul. As part of changes intended to make the Franco-German-led company more market-friendly, EADS is buying back shares to prevent an overhang of stock released by French media group Lagardere and German car firm Daimler.
LinkPoland Looks To End Limits On LOT Share SalePoland's government wants to scrap a law forbidding the sale of a majority stake in its flag carrier LOT, hoping the prospect of outright control will attract buyers for the airline, already on life support. The government, which injected EUR€400 million (USD$514 million) into LOT in December when it warned it was running out of cash, said the inability to buy more than 49 percent of the carrier was deterring would-be purchasers. "Poland will be able to offer a majority stake, which will give the opportunity to attract a stable and strong investor, either from the sector or a financial one, who will ensure LOT's dynamic growth and will allow it to effectively compete with other carriers," Treasury Minister Mikolaj Budzanowski said.
LinkAir Cargo Recovery Hinges On Euro Zone Risk - IATAThe global air cargo market is set to extend its slow recovery unless a fresh blow to confidence from the euro zone reverses the trend, IATA said on Tuesday. The International Air Transport Association said global freight demand grew by 2.0 percent year-on-year in February, after adjusting for calendar effects. "This is welcome news after two consecutive years of contraction," IATA chief executive Tony Tyler said in a statement.
LinkStorm ice suspected in Etihad A340 cruise incident Pilots of an Etihad Airways Airbus A340-600 diverted to Singapore after a sudden encounter with turbulent weather during cruise generated unreliable airspeed data and left the jet unable to maintain altitude separation requirements. While en route to Melbourne at 35,000ft, and approaching the PIPOV waypoint over the Indian Ocean, the returns from the aircraft's weather radar - which had no auto-tilt function - suddenly intensified to indicate surrounding convective weather. Airspeed on the captain's primary flight display rapidly dropped from 283kt to 77kt before fluctuating, and the standby instrument recorded a fall from 280kt to 142kt. The first officer's reading stayed stable.
LinkBoeing looks beyond batteries on latest 787 test flight Boeing today completed two 787 test flights that was unrelated to the battery failures. The first of two 2h12min flights started at Paine Field in Everett, Washington, and landed at Boeing's flight test centre in Moses Lake, Washington. That was followed by a short hop back to Paine Field. Boeing did not reveal details about the flight test, but the 787 had endured technical problems other than battery failures. Until the fleet-wide grounding caused by a pair of lithium-ion battery failures in early January, federal and public attention had focused on the 787's unique electrical system. The P150 panel, which helps distributes electrical power around the aircraft, was linked to numerous malfunctions in December. Boeing had described the glitches as normal teething issues faced by any new aircraft that enters service.
LinkSukhoi bids to fix Superjet landing-gear glitch Sukhoi is to release a service bulletin aimed at addressing landing-gear problems with the Superjet 100, following an incident at Moscow Sheremetyevo. The incident, involving Aeroflot aircraft number 95017, resulted in the aircraft returning to the airport after the crew heard "increased noise" from the nose-gear after departure on 7 March, says Sukhoi. Inspection showed damage to an actuator link from the nose-gear door. The incident followed a number of other problems with landing-gear retraction on the type.
Link400th Citation CJ3 rolls off Wichita production line The 400th Cessna CJ3 rolled off the production line in Wichita, Kansas, on 25 March, about eight years after the light business jet entered service. The CJ3 is a member of the 20-year-old Citation Jet family - also referred to as the Model 525 series. It is positioned between the in-service CJ2+ and Cessna's top-of-the-range light jet, the CJ4. Flightglobal's Ascend Online Fleets database records an installed base of 394 CJ3s worldwide, of which 10 are parked. Cessna delivered 21 of the eight seat-types last year, 22 in 2011 and 20 in 2010. The CJ3 IS powered by two Williams FJ44-3A engines, has a maximum range of 3,470km (1,875nm), a flight ceiling of 45,000ft (13,725m) and is certificated for single pilot operations.
LinkUS Airways to opt for American legacy systems, CEO saysDoug Parker, the chairman and CEO of US Airways, said the merged American Airlines-US Airways carrier will use American's legacy systems. "Our goal is to keep all of that in place [at American] and just overlay it on the smaller airline," Parker said during a U.S. Chamber of Commerce Aviation Summit.
LinkAnalysts predict Q1 loss for United ContinentalAnalysts surveyed by FactSet predicted United Continental would report a first-quarter loss of $1.01 per share. Meanwhile, Evercore Partners lowered its guidance on the carrier's shares from "overweight" to "equal weight."
LinkAirports try to become less attractive sites for birdsReported collisions between aircraft and wildlife rose to 11,590 in 2012, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Birds are the most common form of wildlife that collide with aircraft, and airports have taken steps such as removing ponds and trees with fruit or seeds that attract birds.
LinkJet fuel strengthens on Los Angeles spot marketThe price of jet fuel strengthened by 3 cents on Monday on the spot market in Los Angeles. BP announced plans to perform maintenance this week at its refinery in Southern California, which supplies 50% of the jet fuel used by Los Angeles International Airport.
LinkAmerican paints carbon fiber aircraft for metallic finishCarbon fiber aircraft reduce fuel costs, but the planes do not have a metallic finish. American Airlines searched for a metallic paint for its 777s to match the rest of its aircraft. "Metallic paint doesn't exist in the airline industry, so we worked with a paint vendor to create this pearlescent finish," said Jill Surdek, brand manager at American Airlines.
LinkSupreme Court refuses to hear challenge on DOT rulesThe U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear a challenge by three U.S. airlines against Department of Transportation rules that require taxes and fees to be included in advertised airfares. Spirit Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Allegiant Air argued the rules violated the free-speech rights of carriers.
LinkTSA budget cuts arise from consolidated spending billThe Transportation Security Administration faces budget cuts from the fiscal year 2013 consolidated spending bill. The agency "is working diligently to analyze the fiscal year 2013 appropriations bill and sequestration impacts, and is developing a plan to implement this budget in a way that minimizes the impact on operations and our workforce," TSA said.
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You have to get your own coffee
