NewsCommercial
Boeing sets roll-out date for 737 Max 9
Two months before the anticipated entry into service of the 737 Max 8, Boeing has scheduled the official roll-out of the first 737 Max 9 for 7 March in Renton, Washington. The public debut of the stretched and re-engined single-aisle keeps the programme on track for first flight in April followed by entry into service in 2018.
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Bombardier ponders next new aircraft
Bombardier has years to go on its turnaround plan, but the Canadian manufacturer is far enough along to begin thinking of its next new aircraft, president and CEO Alain Bellemare said at the US Chamber of Commerce’s 2017 Aviation Summit March 2. Bellemare said the company still did not know whether the next platform would be a commercial air transport or business jet, but the “good news” is consideration of some aerospace platform is underway, he told the conference in Washington DC.
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Airbus A350-1000 completes extreme cold weather tests in Canada
The Airbus A350-1000, the larger variant of the A350 slated to seat 366 passengers in a typical three-class configuration, has undergone rigorous ground and flight tests in the extreme operating conditions of Iqaluit, Canada. The Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97-powered aircraft completed its first flight in November 2016.
LinkAirlines
Aeroflot reports $640 million net profit for 2016
Russia’s Aeroflot Group reported a 2016 net income of RUB38.8 billion ($640 million), reversing a RUB6.5 billion net loss in 2015. The results are published according to International Financial Reporting Standards. Full-year revenue rose 19.4% to RUB496 billion year-over-year (YOY), producing an operating profit of RUB63.3 billion, up 43.4% YOY. Total operating costs for the year grew 16.6% to RUB432.6 billion.
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Alaska Airlines to provide higher wages
Alaska Airlines will contract with subsidiary McGee Air Services for baggage handling at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. The move will provide higher wages and a workers union
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Delta stops MD-88 scheduled operations at New York La Guardia
Delta Air Lines said it will stop flying MD-88 aircraft on a scheduled basis at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, effective March 2. Instead, the Atlanta-based carrier said it would fly existing MD-88 routes “on a mix of quieter, more fuel-efficient Airbus A320 family aircraft, Boeing 737s and a limited number of MD-90 mainline aircraft, minimizing environmental impact at the busy airport and reducing overflight noise for millions of nearby residents.”
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Oman Air takes delivery of first stretched 787-9
Oman Air has taken delivery of its first Boeing 787-9. The stretched version of the widebody aircraft joins four earlier 787-8s in the fleet. The Omani flag carrier has outfitted its latest addition with a two-cabin layout comprising 30 lie-flat business-class seats, plus 258 economy-class seats. This compares to 18 business- and 249 economy-class in the smaller variant.
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SalamAir opens first international route to Dubai
Omani low-cost carrier (LCC) SalamAir has operated its first international route, just a month after it began operating domestic services in the sultanate. The first international sector, between the Omani capital Muscat and Dubai, in the neighboring United Arab Emirates, took place Feb.28 and will operate initially into Dubai World Central. However, from March 26, it will fly into Dubai International.
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United CEO on Gulf carriers: ‘Those airlines aren’t airlines’
United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz has staked out a hardline position on alleged Gulf airline subsidies, warning of a “huge uproar from Americans” when the full scope of the issue becomes widely known and US jobs are potentially lost. Speaking March 2 at the US Chamber of Commerce Aviation Summit in Washington DC, Munoz made clear that he and United will aggressively push the US government to take action against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar over what Munoz considers to be completely unacceptable government assistance to Emirates Airline, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways.
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United to kick off major network expansion this summer
nited Continental is pursuing an aggressive expansion of its domestic flight network, including adding dozens of new flights this summer. United is adding Champaign/Urbana, Ill.; Columbia, Mo.; Rochester, Minn.; and Santa Rosa, Calif., to its network.
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United's Kirby calls for dual takeoffs, landings in Newark, N.J.
United Airlines President Scott Kirby said dual approaches and departures would improve operations at New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport. Kirby cited the dual operations at San Francisco International Airport as an example.
LinkAirports
Jersey set to become first British airport to embrace remote tower technology
Jersey Airport is set to become the first provider of Remote Tower Service technology in the British Isles following an investment of £1.3 miliion on the new system. The decision by Ports of Jersey to embrace the new technology was driven by its desire to be able to continue to provide air traffic services in the event of a catastrophic technical failure of equipment or the need to evacuate the main Air Traffic Control facility at Jersey Airport.
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Military
AW139 bid for Huey replacement kicks off with a glitch
Boeing and Leonardo’s joint bid for the US Air Force’s UH-1N Huey helicopter recapitalization did not take off last week after a system aboard the AW139 failed. Though an impending thunderstorm had threatened to cancel the 25 February media flight, reporters were waiting on the ground next to the helicopter after one of its modular avionics units malfunctioned. The two MAUs aboard the AW139 communicate with each other but also run independent responsibilities such as monitoring the aircraft’s engines. Before the media flight, one MAU gave the pilot a “miscompare,” says Andrew Gappy, director of US Navy programs at Leonardo.
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Vietnam eyes Israeli weapons for air force use
Vietnam is considering a purchase of advanced weapon systems from Israel, with the nation’s air force eyeing an advanced version of the Israel Military Industries (IMI) Delilah standoff-range air-to-surface missile. The system was included in recent discussions between Vietnamese president Tran Dai Quang and IMI chairman Yitzhak Aharonovitch in Hanoi. Israel has become a significant partner to Vietnam in defense activities.
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RAAF A330 MRTT fleet achieves final operational capability
The Royal Australian Air Force has achieved final operational capability for its fleet of Airbus Defense & Space A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport aircraft. Designated as the KC-30A in RAAF service, the milestone signifies that the full capability of the aircraft, including using its refueling boom, is now available.
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Aviation Quote
Fighter pilot is an attitude. It is cockiness. It is aggressiveness. It is self-confidence. It is a streak of rebelliousness, and it is competitiveness. But there's something else - there's a spark. There's a desire to be good. To do well; In the eyes of your peers, and in your own mind.
I think it is love of that blue vault of sky that becomes your playground if, and only if, you are a fighter pilot. You don't understand it if you fly from A to B in straight and level, and merely climb and descend. You're moving through the basement of that bolt of blue.
A fighter pilot is a man in love with flying. A fighter pilot sees not a cloud but beauty. Not the ground but something remote from him, something that he doesn't belong to as long as he is airborne. He's a man who wants to be second-best to no one.
- Brigadier General Robin Olds, USAF.
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Trivia
Airplane - The Movie Trivia
1. What is the name of the little girl on the plane who needs a heart transplant?
Linda
Laura
Lindsey
Lisa
2. What is the name of the original pilot of the airplane?
Ted
Victor
Clarence
Roger
3. Where is the airplane scheduled to land?
Chicago
New York
Minneapolis
Detroit
4. Does Ted order a seat in smoking or non-smoking?
Answer: (One Word - Smoking or Non-smoking)
5. How old is Randy the flight attendant?
28
26
25
32
6. What does the little kid, Joey, eat on the plane?
Fish
Mystery Meat
Lasagna
Steak
7. After the war, Elaine and Ted joined the Peace Corps. What tribe did they introduce to American culture?
The Mohicans
The Molombos
The Haidans
The Dodgers
8. What happens to Rex Kramer's cigarette when he throws it out the window?
It comes back to him
It explodes
It sets someone on fire
It does nothing
9. Randy the flight attendant is married.
True
False
10. Who is the actor who plays Dr. Rumack?
Robert Hays
Robert Stack
Lloyd Bridges
Leslie Nielsen
