NewsNordica 1Q passenger traffic up 17%, forecasts strong growthEstonia’s national airline Nordica transported 125,000 passengers in the 2018 first quarter, up 17% compared to the year-ago quarter. The state-owned carrier said that—based on strong ticket sales for summer destinations—further growth is expected. The most popular destinations were Warsaw, Stockholm and Munich. Nordica accounted for 25% of market share at Tallinn Airport in the first three months of the year.
LinkIndia’s Vistara prepares for international servicesIndian full-service domestic airline Vistara has taken delivery of its 20th aircraft, passing the Indian government’s threshold for an airline to operate internationally, which is planned for later this year. The airline’s latest A320neo landed at New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport April 4, joining six other A320neo and 13 A320ceo models and completing the carrier’s initial aircraft order.
LinkAir China opens fifth freedom Houston-Panama routeBeijing-based Air China exercised its fifth freedom rights with an April 5 inaugural flight of its first direct Beijing-Panama City route—via Houston, Texas—after receiving approval from the US Department of Transportation. The opening of the route comes after the signing of a bilateral civil air traffic rights agreement between Panama and China in November 2017, which opened the door for additional Chinese airlines to launch service to the Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport (PTY), increasingly Latin America’s most crucial hub.
LinkGulf Air reveals new branding, prepares for first 787Bahraini flag carrier Gulf Air expects to take delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 by the end of this month, the airline said April 6, as it unveiled the first look at its new branding. The airline expects its Boeing 787-9—the first of 10—to be delivered on April 27. It marks the start of a complete rollover of the airline’s fleet, with the new orders including 17 Airbus A321neo and 12 A320neo, as well as six further options for 787s.
LinkPhilippine Airlines to use A350s on long-haul routesPhilippine Airlines (PAL), which expects the first of six Airbus A350-900s to be delivered by the second half of June, plans to deploy the new aircraft on long-haul routes later this year. The initial A350 will likely be flown on some routes around the Southeast Asia region initially, a PAL spokesman told ATW’s sister publication Aviation Daily.
LinkQatar Airways to acquire 25% share in Moscow VnukovoQatar Airways plans to buy a 25% stake in Russia’s third busiest airport, Moscow Vnukovo. An MOU outlining the stake purchase was signed in Doha by Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker and Vnukovo International Airport chairman Vitaly Vantsev. The talks between Qatar Airways and Vnukovo were revealed last week during Al Baker’s visit to Moscow. Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service later said the deal would need to get government approval because it is a foreign investment in a strategic asset. The Russian government now holds a 25% stake in Vnukovo. The other shareholders are Russian private investors, including Vantsev.
LinkUnited's first 737 Max receives swoop liveryThe 737-9 is the first aircraft type in the US carrier's fleet to receive the swoop livery since it was introduced on the Boeing 787 in 2012. United is scheduled to take its first three 737-9s (MSNs 43430, 43431 and 43434) this month, with 10 aircraft due in 2018, its fleet plan shows. The Chicago-based airline has 61 737-9s and 100 737 Max 10s on firm order.
LinkLong-running A350 flirtation ends with American 787 orderAmerican Airlines' decision to commit to the Boeing 787 ends one of the longest-running customer engagements with the Airbus A350. US Airways originally ordered 20 A350s towards the end of 2005, after the carrier emerged from bankruptcy protection and embarked on a merger with America West Airlines.
LinkEmbraer and Widerøe reveal cabin details of first E190-E2The newest interior on the block almost certainly belongs to Norwegian regional carrier Widerøe and its Embraer 190-E2, the first of the re-engined variant to be handed over. Delivered on 4 April, the twinjet will enter revenue service on 24 April, linking the Norwegian cities of Bergen and Tromsø.
LinkSouthwest reports 3.7% growth in March passenger trafficSouthwest Airlines reported increases in its March traffic, capacity and load factor, including a 3.7% increase in its revenue passenger miles over last year. The carrier's load factor was 85.1% in March, up one point over last year and a new record for the month.
LinkDallas airport, American Airlines to invest in customer experienceDallas-Fort Worth International Airport and American Airlines have reached a $20 million agreement to renovate and improve the customer experience at Terminal E, adding six more gates and more concession space. The project is scheduled for completion in summer 2019.
LinkJetBlue's Airbus A320neo planes to feature P&W enginesJetBlue Airways' new Airbus A320neo aircraft will feature Pratt & Whitney Geared Turbofan engines, which are designed to be quieter and reduce environmental impact. The engines will power the carrier's total fleet of 85 Airbus A320neo planes, with deliveries scheduled to begin next year. "By bringing the latest engine technology, these engines will allow us to maximize aircraft performance and efficiency, while lowering cost and our carbon footprint," said JetBlue executive Jeff Martin.
LinkAerCap picks Air France-KLM’s technical arm for 777 upgradeAir France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance has won a contract from AerCap to refurbish the cabins of three Boeing 777s. The MRO provider says the deal covers 777-300s that are set to join an unnamed airline’s fleet. The modification of the first aircraft is scheduled to start in October.
LinkBombardier switches focus to CRJAfter making its AIX debut last year with a production-standard cabin mock-up of the newly in-service CSeries, Bombardier is back at Hamburg, but this time the emphasis is on its CRJ family and the Atmosphere cabin it unveiled last year. It comes as the Canadian manufacturer anticipates an upswing in demand for its 18-year-old family of 65- to 100-seat jets.
LinkFACC gears up to deliver first Airspace luggage bins for A320FACC is showing at Hamburg a mock-up of the overhead stowage compartments it will supply for the new Airspace-themed cabin on Airbus A320s as it gears up for series production of the larger units in the last quarter of 2018. The Austrian manufacturer is also looking at the potential for retrofitting the branded “Airspace XL Bins” in existing narrowbodies.
LinkBelugaXL emerges with its Trent enginesAirbus has rolled out its new BelugaXL high-capacity transporter with its Rolls-Royce Trent 700 engines installed. The aircraft, MSN1824, is set to commence flight-testing during the summer. Airbus has yet to fit the winglets to the A330-based aircraft. Its construction and modification building, able to house two BelugaXL aircraft, is too narrow for winglet installation.
LinkCirrus Vision Jet awarded 2017 Collier Trophy Cirrus Aircraft's SF50 Vision Jet has been awarded the 2017 Robert J Collier Trophy by the US National Aeronautic Association (NAA). The single-engined personal jet, which entered service in December 2016, was the only business aircraft in the nine-strong shortlist for the annual contest.
LinkTaking command of an aircraft carrierI grew up in a blue-collar house in Massachusetts. As a kid I loved fast, noisy things. I remember building models of rockets, airplanes and racing cars and imagined myself as a fighter pilot or racing car driver. I didn't have the money to pursue the latter, so chose a naval aviation career. I had only traveled in an airplane three times before I entered flight school.
Link France and Germany to push ahead with new joint MPAFrance and Germany are to jointly develop a future maritime patrol aircraft (MPA), with a letter of intent covering the program to be signed by the nations' defense ministers on 27 April. Destined to replace the countries' respective fleets of Dassault Atlantique 2 and Lockheed Martin P-3C Orions, the new aircraft will be available to coincide with the out-of-service dates for both models, says the German navy. This is likely to be in the 2030s.
LinkThailand commissions four T-50 trainersThe Royal Thai Air Force has commissioned the first four Korea Aerospace Industries T-50TH advanced jet trainers. The commissioning ceremony took place on 4 April at Thai air force base, says KAI in a statement.
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