NewsCommercial
SkyMall shopping catalog files for bankruptcy
Apparently, airline passengers aren't buying enough garden gnomes, superhero pajamas and heated cat shelters. SkyMall has filed for bankruptcy. The quirky in-flight shopping catalog has been a mainstay on airlines since 1989. Passengers with nowhere to go would pull it from the seatback and flip through the pages. While flying high over Iowa, they could dream about owning a $16,000 multisensory home sauna or maybe just a grill spatula with a built-in flashlight for $29.95. But in recent years, passengers have found other distractions. More planes have seatback TV screens. The federal government now allows us to keep Kindles and iPads on during the entire flight. And most jets in the U.S. now have Wi-Fi meaning passengers can chat with friends back home or actually do work.
LinkAirlines
Flights Cancelled As NE US Braves 'Crippling' Blizzard
A massive blizzard hit the US Northeast on Monday, causing the cancellation of thousands of flights and curtailing mass transit, as officials warned that the storm could dump as much as 3 feet of snow on the region. New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts declared states of emergencies as tens of millions of people were urged to stay home with transit systems suspending services. The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for New York City and surrounding areas between coastal New Jersey and Connecticut, forecast to worsen overnight.
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Airlines offer flexible rebooking to customers affected by historic winter storm
Airlines are offering flexible rebooking options to accommodate passengers traveling in the Northeast region in anticipation of what could be a historic winter storm.
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Aer Lingus Board To Recommend IAG Offer - Report
The Aer Lingus board is set to recommend an improved EUR€1.36 billion (USD$1.52 billion) takeover offer from IAG, Irish national broadcaster RTE reported. The Irish airline said on Monday it was considering a third proposal in six weeks by British Airways owner IAG. Without quoting any sources, RTE said it understood Aer Lingus would issue a statement when the stock exchange opens on Tuesday. A spokesman for Aer Lingus said he was not able to confirm or deny the report. The new proposal is worth €2.55 per share, up from a previous €2.40, and includes a cash offer of €2.50 per share and a cash dividend of €0.05 per share.
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Alaska, Horizon Air employees receive hefty bonuses
Employees of Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air will receive annual bonuses today at around 9% of their annual salaries. "This is the sixth year in a row Alaska and Horizon employees have exceeded their payout targets for performance-based pay," said Tammy Young, vice president of human resources for Alaska Airlines, in a statement. Alaska Air Group is the parent company of both carriers.
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Welcome to Delta Air Lines' $1.4 Billion Terminal Renovation
Even as airline passengers complain of increasingly cramped quarters on planes, there is a battle in the industry to provide a better experience for customers. The best perks don't always get to everybody, but that is part of the airline business model in which you have to pay up for a better experience. However, a terminal renovation recently completed by Delta Air Lines has something for everyone to love, even as those paying more get a little extra. Let's look at why Delta spent $1.4 billion on upgrades at its terminals at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, which include 11 newly opened gates..
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Malaysia Airlines Website Targeted By Hackers
A group calling itself "Official Cyber Caliphate" said it hacked the official website of national carrier Malaysia Airlines, but the airline said its data servers remained intact and passenger bookings were not affected. The website showed a photograph of a lizard in a top hat, monocle and tuxedo, surrounded by the messages '404 - Plane Not Found' and 'Hacked by Lizard Squad - Official Cyber Caliphate'. A rap song could be heard.
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Qantas, Virgin Australia To Absorb Fuel Surcharges
Qantas Airways said it is restructuring its international tariffs to absorb fuel surcharges into base fares, adding that lower oil prices put airlines in a better position to invest in new aircraft, lounges and routes. The move will not reduce overall prices as base fares will be increased to cover the scrapping of fuel surcharges, but the restructure will benefit passengers who use frequent flyer points to buy fares. Qantas was prompted into the change by rival Virgin Australia, which removed its last remaining fuel surcharges, on its US route, last week. Analysts say removing the term "fuel surcharge" from bookings pages was a significant marketing move.
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Government Approves Thai Airways Restructuring
Thailand's military-led government has approved a restructuring plan for Thai Airways in a bid to restore profitability to the national carrier's operations. State-controlled Thai Airways is one of the major state companies to undergo reform after the military seized power in a May coup. The restructuring includes measures to cut operating costs, boost revenue and sell some non-core assets, said Kulit Sombatsiri, director general of the State Enterprise Policy Office. Thai Airways President Charumporn Jotikasthira told a news conference the airline planned to reduce the number of loss-making routes, both domestic and international, by 10 percent this year.
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United Airlines looks ahead to 2015, CEO says
United Airlines is looking ahead to improvements for 2015 after ending 2014 with $1.97 billion in net income for the full year. "We're starting 2015 as a better airline, and we expect to generate far better results," said CEO Jeff Smisek.
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UPS revises earnings estimate for Q4
UPS reduced its earnings outlook for the fourth quarter due to higher expenses for the busy holiday season. UPS predicts adjusted earnings per share of $1.25. "UPS invested heavily to ensure we would provide excellent service during peak when deliveries more than double," said CEO David Abney.
LinkAirports
Dallas Love Field is bustling after end of Wright amendment
Dallas Love Field reported a 46.5% increase in passenger traffic for December on a year-over-year basis, with the airport handling more than 1 million passengers in December. The increase in traffic is largely because of the end of the Wright amendment in October. The end of the amendment allowed the airport to offer nonstop flights to out-of-state destinations.
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San Diego airport handles record number of passengers
As San Diego’s tourism economy has rebounded strongly, so too has local air travel, with Lindbergh Field reporting a record number of passengers flying into and out of the airport last year. In all, San Diego International Airport served 18.7 million arriving and departing passengers in 2014, the highest number in seven years. The airport also set records for total passenger boarding and international travelers, a phenomenon fueled in part by the growing number of nonstop flights, as well as new routes. Last year’s passenger volume represents a nearly 6 percent increase over 2013, while international air traffic of 672,972 passengers in 2014 grew an even more impressive 7.2 percent over 2013, the third consecutive year that Lindbergh had a record-breaking increase in this category.
LinkMilitary
Boeing awarded Indonesian Apache contract
The US government has formally awarded Boeing a contract to build eight AH-64E Apache attack helicopters for Indonesia. The Department of Defense says in a statement that the “firm-fixed-price” foreign military sales (FMS) contract is valued at $296 million. The helicopters will be built in Mesa, Arizona, and are expected to be completed by February 2018.
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Greek F-16 crash kills 10 at Spanish base
Ten people are reported to have been killed after one of the Greek air force’s Lockheed Martin F-16Ds crashed at Albacete air base in Spain, with a fire having resulted in casualties and damage to other aircraft parked on the ground. Understood to have come down soon after taking off on 26 January, the Greek trainer was among a large detachment of aircraft assigned to a NATO Tactical Leadership Program (TLP) course, which started at Albacete on 19 January.
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Israel halts AH-1 sales talks with Nigeria
The USA has blocked any sale by Israel of surplus American-made weapon systems to Nigeria, and indicated that Israeli-made equipment should be exported to the country only "under strict conditions". Nigeria had shown interest in buying surplus Bell AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters that were phased out of service by the Israeli air force in 2013, as well as in Israeli-produced unmanned air systems.
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Boeing, Lockheed move Super Hornet seeker to export market
Boeing and Lockheed Martin will seek to develop an export market for the IRST21 (infrared search and track) pod after gaining production approval from the US Navy, company officials say. “We have shown the IRST capability to lots of people in the international world,” says Mark Gammon, a Boeing senior manager of F/A-18 innovation and growth. “A lot of work has gone on with the US Navy and US government to define the export policy.”
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Malaysia's first A400M nears flight debut
Malaysia’s first A400M Atlas has emerged from the paint shop at Airbus Defence & Space’s San Pablo site near Seville, Spain, ahead of its expected delivery before the end of the first quarter of this year. Production aircraft MSN22 – the A400M programme’s 16th production example – is the first of four tactical transports on order for the Royal Malaysian Air Force. “In the coming days the aircraft will perform its first ground tests and flights before delivery,” Airbus said on 22 January.
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UK details operational conversion unit plan for F-35
The UK’s future operational conversion unit for the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is expected to begin providing training using five of the stealthy aircraft, the Ministry of Defence has revealed. According to planning information disclosed by parliamentary under secretary of state Lord Astor of Hever on 22 January, five short take-off and vertical landing F-35Bs will be used to deliver in-country OCU services from July 2019. The unit will be located at the Royal Air Force’s Marham base in Norfolk.
LinkRegulatory
FAA issues e-cigarette alert
The Federal Aviation Administration has issued an alert on e-cigarettes. Airlines for America said its members will "closely review the FAA safety alert."
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Aviation Quote
The airplane has unveiled for us the true face of the earth.
— Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Wind, Sand, and Stars, 1939.
On This Date
---In 1894... Captain B. F. S. Baden-Powel (the brother of the first Chief Boy Scout) makes a kite ascent from Pirbright Army Camp, England in what appears to be the first use of man-carrying kites outside China.
---In 1908…Pasiphae, a satellite of Jupiter, discovered by Melotte.
---In 1943…The USAAF makes its first daylight raid on Germany.
---In 1955…Ariana Afghan Airlines is founded.
---In 1958…Dr. Hugh L. Dryden, Director of the NACA, in a speech to the Institute of the Aeronautical Sciences, stressed the importance of a well-planned and logical space program embracing both civilian and military uses. He stated that the national space program should be under the joint control of the Department of Defense, the NACA, the National Academy of Sciences, and the National Science Foundation; in addition to research flights, the NACA would coordinate and conduct research in space technology in its own laboratories and by contract in support of both military and nonmilitary projects.
--In 1959…First flight of the Convair 880.
---In 1966…First flight of the Fairchild FH-227.
---In 1967…Treaty banning military use of nuclear weapons in space, signed.
---In 1967…The crew of Apollo/Saturn 204 (more commonly known as Apollo 1 mission) were training for the first crewed Apollo flight, an Earth orbiting mission scheduled to be launched on 21 February. On board were astronaut Virgil I. "Gus" Grissom, (the second American astronaut to fly into space) astronaut Edward H. White II, (the first American astronaut to "walk" in space) and astronaut Roger B. Chaffee, (a "rookie" astronaut on his first space mission). A fire broke out during the test and spread quickly through the cabin. The crew most likely perished within the first 30 seconds from smoke inhalation or burns. Resuscitation efforts were futile.
---In 1969…SAS’ first McDonnell Douglas DC-9-20 enters service.
---In 1972…Civil aviation in Canada is halted by a strike by air traffic controllers.
---In 1973…A U.S. Navy F-4 Phantom II from USS Enterprise (CVA(N)-65) piloted by Lieutenant Commander Harley Hall is shot down over South Vietnam near the Demilitarized Zone. It is the last American fixed-wing aircraft lost in the Vietnam War.
---In 1982…Cessna delivers its 1,000th business jet.
---In 1985…15th Space Shuttle (51-C) Mission-Discovery 3 returns to Earth.
---In 2002... Boeing’s 737, the world’s most widely use twin jet, becomes the first jetliner in history to amass more than 100 million flying hours. The 737 was launched onto the market in 1965.
---In 2012…Spanair ceases operations.
---In 2013…OLT Germany ceases operations.
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Editor’s Choice
Trivia
General Trivia
1. A pilot is number two for takeoff behind a McDonnell Douglas MD–80 and notices that the right elevator of the jetliner is up while the left elevator is down. To whom should he report this?
2. On June 1, 2009, an Air France Airbus A330-200 operating between Rio de Janeiro and Paris crashed into the Atlantic Ocean in the vicinity of the Intertropical Convergence Zone. What is the ITCZ and what causes it to develop?
3. What is the maximum amount of lift that the wings of a typical, 2,000-pound general aviation airplane are allowed to develop?
4. How many aircraft carriers did Germany have during World War II, and what were (was) their (its) name(s)?
5. What well-known aircraft accident was the impetus for establishing the Federal Aviation Agency (later named the Federal Aviation Administration) in 1958?
6. What is unique about the Boeing 737-700IGW?
miamiair wrote:Commercial
SkyMall shopping catalog files for bankruptcy
Apparently, airline passengers aren't buying enough garden gnomes, superhero pajamas and heated cat shelters. SkyMall has filed for bankruptcy. The quirky in-flight shopping catalog has been a mainstay on airlines since 1989. Passengers with nowhere to go would pull it from the seatback and flip through the pages. While flying high over Iowa, they could dream about owning a $16,000 multisensory home sauna or maybe just a grill spatula with a built-in flashlight for $29.95. But in recent years, passengers have found other distractions. More planes have seatback TV screens. The federal government now allows us to keep Kindles and iPads on during the entire flight. And most jets in the U.S. now have Wi-Fi meaning passengers can chat with friends back home or actually do work.
Link
