NewsIncidents/Accidents
Catering truck collides with Flyadeal Airbus A320 jet
A Flyadeal Airbus A320neo aircraft has suffered damage after a collision with a catering truck at King Khalid International Airport (RUH), Riyadh, Saudia Arabia.
Shortly after the incident, photographs of the Airbus A320neo aircraft, registered as HZ-FAP, appeared on social media, revealing the aircraft's severely bent radome.
No injuries were reported.
Prior to the incident, the aircraft conducted a one hour and 30 minutes flight between Tabuk Regional Airport (TUU) in Saudia Arabia and RUH airport, according to Flightradar24.com data.
The damaged aircraft is 0.4 years old and was delivered to Flyadeal in December 2021, according to Planespotters.net.
LinkCommercial
Ukrainian president Zelensky wants to rebuild An-225 Mriya to honor hero pilots
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky wants to build another Antonov An-225 Mriya in honor of the pilots who have died in the war.
According to a report on May 20, 2022 from news agency Interfax Ukraine, Zelensky announced the intention during an online meeting with Ukrainian students.
The unique and much-loved Mriya was the heaviest cargo aircraft in the world, but was destroyed in fighting at Hostomel airport (HML) in March 2022, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The An-225 was being kept in a hangar at the base, also known as Antonov Airport.
LinkAirlines
United opens its largest club in the country
United Airlines on May 19 announced the opening of its new, nearly 30,000 square-foot United Club location at Newark Liberty International Airport, offering travelers a modern design, enhanced amenities and culinary offerings, locally-sourced art and furniture pieces and views of the Manhattan skyline.
Located in Terminal C3 near gate C123, this club is the largest club in United’s network, and is opening just in time for the Memorial Day holiday, which the airline expects will be one of its busiest travel weekends so far this year.
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SIA Group reduces its net yearly loss by 78%
The Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group carried 3.9 million passengers in FY2021/22, up six-fold from a year before, with international air travel recovering in the last six months as global border restrictions eased. The Group ramped up passenger capacity (measured in available seat-kilometres) in a calibrated manner, growing from 24% of pre-Covid levels in April 2021 to 51% by the end of FY2021/22 in March 2022.
Singapore’s launch and subsequent expansion of the Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) scheme was the game changer for the Group. It facilitated quarantine-free mass travel for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic began, and significantly boosted the demand for flights to and through Singapore. By deploying capacity and increasing services in an agile manner, SIA and Scoot were among the first to launch flights for all VTL points. This allowed the carriers to capture the pent-up demand for air travel as it returned.
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Silk Way West Airlines further expands its global network in the US with DFW service
Silk Way West Airlines expands its US network by adding regular services to and from Dallas/Fort Worth, the second major freight hub in the country to be served by scheduled services alongside Chicago O’Hare.
In addition to the Dallas/Fort Worth and Chicago routes, Silk Way West Airlines operates charter flights to Rockford, Illinois, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky and Rickenbacker airports.
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Austrian Airlines returns to Los Angeles
With the resumption of flights to Los Angeles, Austrian Airlines offers an additional destination in North America: Initially, the red-white-red flag carrier offers five weekly flights to L.A. Starting in July, six weekly connections with Austrian Airlines largest aircraft, a Boeing 777-200, will link Vienna with the City of Angels.
The inaugural flight with the flight number OS 081 took off on May 20 from Vienna International Airport. Passengers of this flight have already experienced a special Hollywood-feeling prior departure. Hollywood’s crème de la crème, Sandra Bullock, Marilyn Monroe and Arnold Schwarzenegger, awaited the guests in the recently newly opened Pier East. Wax figures from Madam Tussauds were popular motives for selfies and caused camera flashes all over the Los Angeles gate. In addition, all passengers were looked after with typical American donuts.
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flyadeal operates flight with an all-female crew in first for Saudi Arabia
Saudi carrier flyadeal has operated a flight with an all-female crew, the first time in Saudi aviation history.
In a social media post on May 20, 2022, the low-cost airline said that the all-female crew operated Flight 117, a domestic flight from Riyadh to Jeddah, on an Airbus A320. The majority of the crew are Saudis, the airline added.
First officer Yara Jan is the youngest female Saudi pilot at the age of 23 and she spoke to Arab News about the flight.
“As a Saudi woman trying to lead my country with a proud step it was a moment of pride and joy,” Jan was quoted as saying in the article.
Link
India’s Jet Airways receives AOC ahead of relaunch
Jet Airways has received its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on May 20, 2022, allowing it to move towards a relaunch later this year.
“We have our AOC, and now we focus on building up the rest of our team as we prepare to resume operations,” Jet Airways announced in social media posts.
The airline received its AOC after carrying out a series of test and proving flights.
Link
What’s the most expensive ticket on Lufthansa? $24,000 for San Francisco
Travel demand is back with a vengeance and people are willing to pay for tickets if a statement made by Lufthansa’s (LHAB) (LHA) chief executive is anything to go by.
The airline’s most expensive ticket is currently $24,000 for a San Francisco-Frankfurt (SFO-FRA) round trip in first class, Carsten Spohr told an event at the Aviation Club of Washington DC.
But don’t try booking. “We’re sold out,” news agencies quoted Spohr as saying of the pricey tickets.
LinkAirports
Airports group ACI Europe sees passenger traffic returning faster than expected
Airports association ACI Europe believes passenger traffic will return to pre-pandemic levels faster than expected, thanks to pent-up demand for travel.
The association, which represents over 500 airports in 55 countries, said on May 20, 2022 that it now expects passenger traffic at Europe’s airports to be down 22% on 2019 levels. That compares with a previous forecast made in October 2021 for traffic to fall 32%.
ACI Europe said it also expects a full recovery to pre-crisis levels in 2024, rather than 2025.
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Poland invests in new Solidarity Transport hub airport
General Ben Hodges, former Commander of U.S. ground forces in Europe told the Polish Press Agency, that Poland’s planned new hub is what NATO needs in terms of military mobility and what the EU has in mind when discussing military mobility. Events in Ukraine show that these words are even more relevant today.
Solidarity Transport Hub (STH) is a new greenfield airport, prepared by Polish government since 2017. It is to be built in 2027 with capacity of 40 million passengers annually in the first phase. Its most important feature will be an integration of air, rail, and road transport.
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Largest ever rollout of biometric technology in U.S. to take place at MIA
Passengers departing from Miami International Airport will soon be able to board their international flights with just the quick, touchless click of a camera, thanks to a recently approved contract that will implement biometric boarding at all of Miami International Airport’s (MIA) 130+ gates.
Installation is expected to be fully completed in 2023. When finished, the project will be the largest implementation of biometric technology at any U.S. airport.
LinkMilitary
Boeing’s Starliner successfully docks to ISS on key flight test
Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft successfully docked to the International Space Station (ISS), completing the main goal of its uncrewed Orbital Flight Test-2.
The spacecraft, which is designed to take astronauts to the ISS, launched on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket at 18:54 Eastern time from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on May 19, 2022.
On May 20, 2022 at 1928 Central Time (0028 UTC, May 21, 2022), the spacecraft made its first connection with the space station. Because there were no astronauts onboard, the CST-100 Starliner’s autonomous systems and ground controllers in Houston guided the spacecraft through the maneuvers required to get closer to the ISS and dock. ISS astronauts also gave the spacecraft some commands to verify controls.
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UK Ministry of Defence launches helicopter fleet replacement tender
The British Ministry of Defence launched a tender for the procurement of up to 44 New Medium Helicopters (NMH) on May 18, 2022.
These new aircraft will replace several types of helicopters, namely the 23 Puma HC2 and the three Bell Griffin HAR2 of the Royal Air Force, and the five Bell 212s and the six Dauphin IIs of the Army Air Corps.
Four manufacturers are expected to enter the competition. Airbus has already announced its participation with the H175M, produced locally at Broughton, Wales, by Airbus Helicopters. Leonardo will offer the AW149, assembled in Yeovil, England. Two US manufacturers, Bell Textron and Sikorsky, are also likely to join, with the Bell 525 and the S-70M.
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Aviation Quote
Mountains should be abolished. At least that'd stop all those aeroplanes bumping into every other peak . . . It's just happened . . . in Nepal . . . Kathmandu . . . I was reading the story in the paper. Here . . . look."
- Hergé, in The Adventures of Tin Tin in Tibet, 1960.
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Trivia
C-130 Hercules Trivia
1. In what year was the first C-130 flight?
1954
1961
1957
1962
2. Which version of the C-130 is purpose built for landing on ice?
HC-130
SC-130
LC-130
C-130i
3. Which of the following nations uses the C-130 as an aerial tanker for its fighters?
Philippines
Norway
New Zealand
Spain
4. The standard C-130J has how many propeller blades per engine?
6
3
4
8
5. A C-130B model has external fuel tanks located where?
Between the engines
At the wing tips
Outboard of the outboard engines
The C-130B has no external fuel tanks
6. Which of the following is a designation of a Royal Canadian Air Force C-130?
CC-130H
RC-130
C-130C
C.3
7. C-130s have been used in many roles, but which of the following is just a concept?
Float plane
Fire bomber
Drone launch and control
Satellite capsule recovery
8. Which is not a common C-130 nickname?
Herky Bird
Spectre
Provider
Trash Hauler
9. Which aircraft has the most similar capabilities to the transport version of a C-130?
B747
C-160 Transall
C-131
An-2
10. The C-130 has flown many famous missions. In which of the following did the C-130 play the central role?
Operation El Dorado Canyon
Operation Beer Run
Operation Arc Light
Entebbe hostage rescue
