NewsCommercial
Boeing To Sell 300 Jets To China Firms
Boeing has signed deals to sell 300 aircraft to three Chinese firms and set up an aircraft plant in China. The aircraft deals, potentially worth tens of billions of dollars in total, are collectively the largest order Boeing has received from Chinese companies. China's ICBC Financial Leasing separately confirmed it will buy 30 Boeing 737-800s, worth USD$2.88 billion at list prices.
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Comac, Boeing Sign Agreement On China Facility
Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China has signed a cooperative document with Boeing to build a 737 aircraft completion facility in China.
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Machinists To Fight Boeing Over China Plant
The head of Boeing's largest union has pledged to fight for jobs threatened by a proposed factory in China, stepping up a confrontation over the plant as China's president visited the Seattle area. The president of the local machinists union met company representatives after Boeing chief executive Dennis Muilenburg said the company planned to move work on its 737 aircraft to China, but added that there would be no related jobs lost in the United States.
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DeltaTechOps To Test Anti-erosion Fan Coating For JT8Ds
An FAA research program that has helped mature technologies for the latest generation of commercial turbofans has broadened its scope to include demonstration of a coating technique that promises to extend the life of in-service engines.
LinkAirlines
Alaska deploys NASA technology to enhance efficiency
Alaska Airlines has adopted the Traffic Aware Planner application from NASA to improve efficiency for changes to routes. "Up until now there has been no way to deliver comprehensive wind and congestion data to pilots in near-real time," said Tom Kemp, vice president of operations for Alaska.
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Alaska Airlines to increase capacity this year
Alaska Airlines plans to boost capacity by 8% in 2015, said Brad Tilden, chairman, president and CEO of the carrier. "I think we're at a good spot now where the level of supply is appropriate given the amount of demand in the market," he said.
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Alaska Airlines Begins Nonstop Service Between Nashville and Seattle
Alaska Airlines today begins nonstop service between Nashville and Seattle, increasing the number of nonstop destinations from its Seattle hub to 84 - twice as many as Alaska's nearest competitor.
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Alaska Airlines and Icelandair Announce Codeshare
Alaska Airlines and Icelandair have entered into a codeshare agreement and frequent flier partnership, which will give customers easier connections and more ways to earn benefits when flying between the U.S. and Europe.
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American offers mileage bonuses for trans-Atlantic flights
American Airlines is offering mileage bonuses, along with several oneworld alliance members, through Jan. 31. The bonuses will accrue for passengers traveling on trans-Atlantic flights between North America and Europe.
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Delta poised to profit from Asia investment
Delta Air Lines lost out on its bid for a stake in Japanese carrier Skymark, as creditors led by airframe manufacturer Airbus instead opted for a restructuring plan led by an investment from Japanese full service carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA).
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Finnair’s Shareholders’ Nomination Board
The following persons have been appointed to Finnair's (HEX:FIA1S) Shareholders' Nomination Board: Eero Heliövaara, Director General of the Government Ownership Steering Department, Prime Minister's Office (Chairman); Robin Backman, Portfolio Manager, KEVA; and Timo Ritakallio, Chief Executive Officer, Ilmarinen. In addition, the Shareholders' Nomination Board includes Klaus Heinemann, Chairman of Finnair's Board of Directors.
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Jazz flight attendants ratify labour agreement
Jazz Aviation LP, a subsidiary of Chorus Aviation Inc., announced today that its flight attendants, represented by the Canadian Flight Attendant Union ('CFAU'), have ratified their tentative agreement reached on August 27, 2015 . The CFAU represents approximately 820 flight attendants employed at Jazz.
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Transavia mulls Munich base
Air France-KLM, which plans to expand its Transavia low-cost arm beyond its French and Dutch bases, is reportedly considering opening a base in Munich by summer 2016. According to several media reports, it could base up to five Boeing 737s in Munich. An Air France spokesperson in Paris would not comment on the reports. A Munich Airport spokesperson said Transavia is evaluating a Munich base, but nothing has been decided.
LinkAirports
Work stoppage on new Berlin airport could further delay opening
Construction on the new, much-delayed Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BER) has been halted in the entire area beneath the terminal roof. According to BER, a part of the terminal was closed Sept. 18 as a purely precautionary measure due to preparations associated with installation of the smoke extraction funnels on the terminal roof. Three out of 20 ceiling panels were believed to be dangerous because they were fitted with ventilators that were too heavy. BER said it will draw up new evidence of static structural safety for three of the 20 terminal ceiling panels on which the building expert had established higher loads.
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Brazil Mulls Reducing Stake In Airport Concessions
The Brazilian government is considering selling half of its minority stake in five major airports to raise cash and help plug a swelling budget gap, a local newspaper reported. The government, through state civil aviation infrastructure agency Infraero, owns 49 percent of the five airports, located in Brasilia, Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Campinas. It had sold majority stakes in them beginning in 2012.
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BBA Aviation Eyes Acquisition Of Landmark
British aircraft services company BBA Aviation is reported to be in talks to acquire US competitor Landmark Aviation, which could be valued at more than USD$2 billion including debt. BBA is participating in a sale process for Landmark Aviation, which is owned by private equity firm Carlyle and has attracted several bidders, including buyout firms.
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DXB set to exceed previous 90 million capacity limit
Dubai International airport (DXB) is having to revise previous capacity limits to cope with a surge in demand that is outpacing the relocation of services to the new Dubai World Central. Having previously said 90 million passengers a year was the most it could cope with at DXB, Dubai Airports now expects numbers to reach 100 million by the turn of the decade.
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Gatwick Airport pioneers new booking aid for connecting passengers
London’s Gatwick Airport has introduced a new booking service that enables connecting flights between low-cost and full-service airlines to be booked in a single transaction. The new service, GatwickConnects, also means the airport will “look after customers if flights don’t operate as planned,” Gatwick said. “This is the first time an airport has taken the lead to book and safeguard connections.”
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Ramenskoye Airfield’s passenger terminal to be ready by November
The new low-cost carrier (LCC) airport at Ramenskoye Airfield, near Moscow, is expected to open at the beginning of 2016. Design and construction of the airfield’s infrastructure for commercial flights are finished and the 60,000 sq m passenger terminal will be complete in November, Rostec deputy CEO Dmitriy Shugaev said. The airport reached agreements with several carriers at the 2015 MAKS Air Show held in August, Shugaev added, declining to disclose details.
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St Helena airport prepares for opening
The first aircraft ever to land on the island of St Helena in the South Atlantic has arrived to carry out calibration flights prior to the opening of its new airport. A Beech King Air 200, of South Africa’s Flight Calibration Services, arrived Sept. 15 on the rocky outcrop, whose only current link with the outside world is a mail ship that arrives every three weeks from South Africa. The island is a British possession.
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Thailand’s U-Tapao Airport set for major expansion
The Thai government is set to expand the role of Bangkok’s third airport, U-Tapao International, to offer significant passenger and MRO facilities to the region. The airport is currently operated as a joint civilian-Thai Navy base facility, but will open a new $5.5 million passenger terminal in June 2016, increasing passenger capacity to 3 million passengers a year. Between 2018 and 2020, it is projected to handle 5 million passengers.
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Military
Undisclosed African nation buys two C-27Js
Alenia Aermacchi has bolstered its backlog for the C-27J medium transport with an order for two examples from an undisclosed African nation. The purchase brings to three the number of customers on the continent, with the air forces of Chad and Morocco having previously signed for two and four examples respectively.
LinkRegulatory
ICAO Urges Delay In Compulsory Airliner Tracking
Global aviation regulators are urged to delay by two years plans to require automated tracking of passenger planes to avoid a repeat of the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 in 2014, according to an ICAO report. The plan to require all aircraft flying in remote areas to report their position every 15 minutes is the first stage in a broader plan under discussion at the ICAO.
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Aviation Quote
I'm waiting to be told how cobras, hooks, or vectored thrust help in combat. They're great at air shows, but zero energy is a fighter pilot's nightmare. Shoot your opponent down and his number two will be on your tail thinking it's his birthday — a target hanging there in the sky with zero energy.
— Ned Firth, Eurofighter
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