NewsFarnborough
Airbus withdrew A380 to ‘pressure’ Qatar
Airbus cancelled plans to display Qatar Airways’ A380 at the Farnborough air show to “bully” the airline into taking delivery of the aircraft. That’s the view of the airline’s boss Akbar Al Baker. Speaking at the show, Al Baker says he is disappointed that the aircraft could not be at the show and said that the decision for it not to be on display was down to Airbus. “Quite frankly, we were expecting that they would not deliver the aircraft to us before Farnborough but we [still] expected Airbus to showcase the aircraft to the public,” he says. “They decided [not to bring it, rather than Qatar Airways] because it is their aircraft, it’s not my aircraft yet. This was absolutely disappointing to Qatar Airways.”
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First A350-1000 parts take shape
Airbus has started manufacturing forgings for the root joint on the centre wing-box of the A350-1000, the largest member of the twin-engined aircraft family. Centre wing-box assembly will commence by the end of this year with the aim of delivering it to the St Nazaire plant in 2015. A350 programme chief Didier Evrard, speaking during the Farnborough air show, added that the airframer started work on carbonfibre wing-box covers in June. He says these components have a long lead time on the A350-1000 and amount to “the longest pole in the tent”.
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Production lessons learned on 787 – McNerney
Boeing has learned lessons from its ill-fated decision to outsource so much of the 787’s design and production to first-tier suppliers, says chairman and chief executive Jim McNerney. A near-collapse of Boeing’s production system was one of the factors behind the long hiatus in the Dreamliner program, between roll-out in July 2007 and entry into service in October 2011. “The good news is we built the right airplane,” McNerney said in a briefing at the Farnborough air show. “But we drew the line in the wrong place. We’ve redrawn that line. We will be doing more of the manufacturing and engineering [on future programs in house],” he says.
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BOC Aviation Orders 43 Airbus A320s
BOC Aviation, the aircraft leasing arm of Bank of China, placed an order for 36 Airbus A320ceo and seven A320neo planes. The lessor told a news conference at the Farnborough Airshow that 17 of the 43 planes would be A321s. The first eight A320ceo aircraft will be powered by IAE engines, with decisions for the rest of the fleet to follow, Airbus said.
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Farnborough Airshow orders exceed $50B on first day
More than $50 billion in orders were placed on Monday on the first day of the Farnborough Airshow in the U.K., according to estimates. Air Lease Corporation placed a $6.9 billion order for Airbus A330neos, while Monarch Airlines provisionally placed a $3.1 billion order for Boeing 737 Max 8s.
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Aircraft manufacturers to keep up production, execs say
At the Farnborough Airshow in the U.K., executives from aircraft manufacturers and suppliers said they plan to keep production rates strong. "We track deferrals and cancellations and they are below historical averages right now," said Boeing CEO Jim McNerney. "We see ongoing strong demand and we're going to produce to it."
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Qatar signs for 100 777Xs
Qatar Airways has signed its largest-ever order at the Farnborough air show with a deal for up to 108 Boeing 777s, comprising 100 777Xs and eight Freighter variants. “This is the largest single aircraft order made by Qatar Airways, worth in excess of $40 billion at list prices,” says Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar Al Baker. The deal includes 50 firm orders for Boeing’s new General Electric GE9X-powered 777-9X, along with 50 purchase rights, as well as four additional 777F orders and four options.
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SMBC Aviation Capital Orders 115 Airbus A320s
Japanese aircraft leasing company SMBC Aviation Capital has signed a firm order for 110 A320neo and five A320ceo planes in a deal worth around USD$11.8 billion at list prices. SMBC said in a statement that it had options to convert the majority of the A320neo aircraft and all of the A320ceo aircraft into larger A321 variants. The company will announce its engine choice at a later date.
LinkAirlines
AirAsia Boss Advises Lufthansa Against LCC Expansion
The head of Asian low-cost airline AirAsia, Tony Fernandes, said Lufthansa's potential expansion into budget long-haul flights was risky and the airline would perhaps be better off not doing so. Lufthansa's new chief executive, Carsten Spohr, last week unveiled plans for more low-cost expansion in Europe under its Germanwings and Eurowings units and said it was in talks over expanding its SunExpress unit into low-cost long-haul travel. "I know why they want to do it but it's dangerous to have a low-cost and a full-service carrier in the same group because invariably you compete with each other," Tony Fernandes said at the Farnborough Airshow after he signed a tentative deal to buy 50 A330neos for long-haul unit AirAsia X.
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American Airlines, Hawaii's Island Air to launch codeshare
Hawaii interisland carrier Island Air and American Airlines have announced a codeshare agreement, enabling both companies to sell seats for each other’s flights on their websites. The deal also permits the two airlines to issue boarding passes at the airport to travelers flying on connecting routes, permitting passengers to skip checking in again or transferring baggage when flying on connecting Island Air and American Airlines service.
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Hawaiian Airlines CEO reflects on past decade
Mark Dunkerley, the president and CEO of Hawaiian Airlines, said the 85-year-old airline has grown into its own in the past 10 years. "Really all we've done in the last decade or thereabouts is get the various aspects of the business working well together," he said. "And having achieved that it really has allowed us to grow out of our traditional network and expand more broadly."
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JetBlue traffic, PRASM rose in June
JetBlue Airways reported a 4% increase in passenger traffic for June on a year-over-year basis. The carrier also posted a 3% increase in passenger revenue per available seat mile.
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US Airways, Finnair ink codeshare deal
US Airways is cozying up to its Oneworld partner Finnair this month, with codeshares set to appear on a number of Finnish flights. The arrangements see US Airways placing its ‘US’ flight code on Finnair-operated flights between its Helsinki hub and various destinations across Europe and the United States, a Finnair spokesperson confirmed to Australian Business Traveller. On the list is Finnair’s daily New York (JFK) flight, which picks up a US Airways code from July 24 2014.
LinkAirports
Column examines use of independent airport lounges
Independently operated airport lounges are opening up around the world as airlines start flying new long-haul aircraft to secondary markets, and business travelers seek what one executive calls “the little luxuries” in an industry increasingly dominated by low-cost carriers. Two of the largest companies running these lounges are Swissport, based in Zurich, and Plaza Premium Lounge Management, based in Hong Kong. Swissport purchased the lounge operator Servisair last year and also owns Airspace Lounge, based in Dulles, Va., while Plaza Premium Lounge Management operates a network originally focused on Asia but that has since expanded in Australia, the Middle East, Britain and Canada.
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Travelers check online for tips on airline seats, meals and more
Travelers are more commonly checking websites for passenger-generated information about airline meals, lounges and even specific airplane seats.
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Why Europe’s airspace user charges are rising
Graham Lake, principal at Aviation Management, on why the success of efforts to tackle costs is a mixed picture across the region’s service providers. European air navigation service provider (ANSP) charges were brought into sharp relief in early June when the German ANSP, DFS, announced increases of up to 30% in 2015, leading to an immediate and predictable outcry from the Association of European Airlines. This price jolt is a symptom of the severe difficulty that some ANSP managers face and in this case, if it happens, will place Germany at odds with its EU Single European Sky (SES) obligations.
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Militia Tightens Control Of Tripoli Airport
Libyan militia fighters with anti aircraft guns and mortars on Tuesday fanned out across Tripoli's airport, transformed into a battlefield by two days of fighting. US Secretary of State John Kerry said Washington was working to help end the violence that has brought the north African country to the edge of chaos three years after the uprising that toppled dictator Muammar Gaddafi. At least 15 people have been killed in the capital and the eastern city of Benghazi since Sunday. Fighting between rival militias at the capital's airport damaged the control tower and wrecked 11 civilian aircraft parked on the tarmac. The main terminal building has been turned into a field hospital.
LinkMilitary
AW149 gains Italian military certification
Italy’s Armaereo defence aviation procurement body has completed military type certification of the AgustaWestland AW149 following a series of operational tests with the country’s air force. The type certificate was handed over at a ceremony at Farnborough attended by Italian defence minister Roberta Pinotti.
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RAF completes upgrades to Tornados in Afghanistan
The Royal Air Force is continuing to upgrade its Panavia Tornado GR4 ground attack aircraft despite the looming retirement of the type from operational service. At Farnborough the RAF announced all eight of its Tornados operating in Afghanistan have undergone enhancements as part of a programme known as capability upgrade strategy (pilot) or CUS-P. The modification adds secure communications systems, a tactical data link and the ability to carry Raytheon's Paveway IV precision-guided bomb, says Air Cdre Dave Waddington, the RAF's Tornado force commander.
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RAF plans new Sentinel work
Following UK Prime Minster David Cameron’s pledge to continue the in-service life of the Royal Air Force’s Raytheon-developed Sentinel R1 surveillance aircraft until 2018, the squadron that operates the aircraft is making plans to extend the type's operational capability. Speaking at the Farnborough air show, RAF 5 Sqn commanding officer Wg Cdr David Kane welcomed the government’s 14 July commitment to the aircraft’s continued operation as part of a £1.1 billion ($1.9 billion) funding boost. “As a squadron we have been waiting on this for a long time and are obviously happy to have it,” Kane says. “We now have another three to four years in the game and this gives us the opportunity to do more.There is definite scope for growth.”
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US Navy stresses importance of Growler’s electronic attack role
The increasing complexity of the steps required to land weapons on targets is driving greater need for electronic attack aircraft like Boeing's E/A-18G Growler. "There is an ever growing place for this airplane," Capt Frank Morley, the US Navy's Super Hornet programme manager, tells reporters during a Farnborough media briefing. The sensors carried by Growler are becoming more "critical to putting weapons on targets," he adds. Morley's comments come as Boeing seeks additional orders from the US military and foreign partners for its F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and Growlers.
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US Navy and Boeing praise P-8A
Though Boeing’s P-8A Poseidon anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft remains years away from reaching full operational capability, it is already proving its mettle on deployments with the US Navy, according to program officials. Capt Scott Dillon, the service's program manager for marine patrol and reconnaissance, speaking at a Farnborough briefing, said the fleet of 14 P-8As are performing “exceptionally on deployment” and matching the capability of the service's to-be-retired Lockheed P-3 Orions. Concern about the P-8A’s ability to operate at low altitude over the ocean has proved unfounded, Dillon says, noting that head-up displays provide improved situational awareness for pilots.
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Aviation Quote
I pay those guys to fly, so let them fly. I'll be damned if I'll pay them to just sit there.
— reportedly Eddie Rickenbackerer CEO Eastern Airlines. Eastern aircraft were some of the last to be equipped with autopilots, his pilots saying if it wasn't in Captain Eddie's SPAD he won't buy it. Quoted in 'Human Factors in Multi-Crew Flight Operations' by Orlady & Orlady.
On This Date
---In 1930... Transcontinental and Western Air (TWA) is formed when Transcontinental Air Transport and Western Air Express merge.
--- In 1947... Geoffrey Tyson test-pilots the first jet fighter to be modified as a flying boat.
---In 1947…First flight of the Saunders-Roe SR.A/1 TG263.
---In 1948…First flight of the Vickers Viscount.
--- In 1957... Major John H. Glenn of the U.S. Marines sets a new record for a coast-to-coast flight across the U.S. The flight from Los Angeles, to New York takes just over three hours in a U.S. Navy Crusader supersonic jet.
---In 1965…First flight of the North American OV-10 Bronco.
---In 1969... The Apollo 11 Saturn V rocket blasts off from the Florida Space Center in route to the first moon landing.
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Humor
No Frills Airline
You'll Know It's a No-Frills Airline If:
1. They don't sell tickets, they sell chances.
2. All the insurance machines in the terminal are sold out.
3. Before the flight, the passengers get together and elect a pilot.
4. If you kiss the wing for luck before boarding, it kisses you back.
5. You cannot board the plane unless you have the exact change.
6. Before you took off, the stewardess tells you to fasten your Velcro.
7. The Captain asks all the passengers to chip in a little for gas.
8. When they pull the steps away, the plane starts rocking.
9. The Captain yells at the ground crew to get the cows off the runway.
10. You ask the Captain how often their planes crash and he sez, "Just once."
11. No movie. Don't need one.
12. Your life keeps flashing before your eyes.
13. You see a man with a gun, but he's demanding to be let off the plane.
14. All the planes have both a bathroom and a chapel.
Trivia
Russian Aerospace Names
1. IOMAKYN
2. VTPOEUL
3. OIHKSU
4. VEEBIR
5. LAYVEKVO
6. LUNISHYI
7. NOTVAON
8. RCVIUEGH
9. CLVHIKONA
10. EYACSMHVHIS
