China Southern, Air France to share revenue on Paris-Guangzhou route SkyTeam members China Southern Airlines and Air France signed an agreement to launch a joint venture on the Paris–Guangzhou route beginning Nov. 1 that includes revenue sharing. Link
Air New Zealand warns that ACCC alliance rejection could threaten its future Air New Zealand warned that the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission rejection of its alliance with Virgin Blue could threaten the airline's future. Link
Lufthansa appoints new CEO; orders 40 Airbus aircraft worth $4.3 billion Lufthansa Group announced Wednesday that, as expected, Christoph Franz will succeed Wolfgang Mayrhuber as chairman and CEO of the Lufthansa Group. Carsten Spohr will succeed Franz as CEO of Lufthansa German Airlines and has been appointed to the group’s Executive Board and Karl Ulrich Garnadt was named chairman and CEO of Lufthansa Cargo AG. Link
Walsh says BA still ‘interested’ in Qantas; Joyce shuns merger talk Two years after merger talks collapsed between Qantas and British Airways, BA CEO Willie Walsh says the company is “still interested in dealing with the Australian airline.” However, QF is turning its back on any merger with BA and will focus on internal growth in Asia, according to CEO Alan Joyce. Link
NTSB: Parking brake error behind JetBlue tire fire, evacuation The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) says pilots of a JetBlue Airbus A320 that experienced landing difficulties at the Sacramento International airport on 26 August had mistakenly engaged the aircraft's parking brake during the approach. Upon touchdown after an otherwise normal arrival, the first officer, who was flying, experienced a "rapid deceleration" which he described to the captain as feeling like a main landing gear tire blow out. Flight 262, inbound from Long Beach, was carrying 86 passengers and five crew members. The captain took control after the initial touchdown, maintaining directional control and stopping the aircraft about 610m (2,000ft) from the touchdown point. Link
Other News
US FAA achieved a safety breakthrough Wednesday, announcing a program that will, for the first time, integrate voluntary safety information reported by pilots through the Aviation Safety Action Program with voluntary safety information from air traffic controllers participating in the Air Traffic Safety Action Plan. This will give the agency a more complete picture of the national airspace system by making it possible to review and assess safety events from the perspective of pilots and controllers. United Airlines and its pilots have the first agreement in place to participate in the demonstration program. “This revolutionary program will give us an incredible amount of data that will help us find problems, make corrections and avoid incidents,” Federal Aviation Administrator Randy Babbitt said. “I applaud air traffic controllers, pilots and airlines for their dedication to keeping our aviation system as safe as possible.” FAA said the program "will develop processes and policies to share and analyze relevant safety information in a non-punitive way consistent with the basic principles of Safety Management Systems." A total of 73 air carriers have 169 ASAP programs for pilots, mechanics, flight attendants and dispatchers. ATSAP is an agreement between FAA and the National Air Traffic Controllers Assn.
Flydubai announced it reached eight year sale/leaseback agreements worth more than $750 million with GECAS and Babcock and Brown Aircraft Management, covering nine yet-to-be-delivered 737s. The agreements will secure the carrier's financing requirements until June 2011. The agreement with GECAS covers six aircraft, while the one with BBAM is for three. GECAS has previously financed four aircraft for Flydubai and BBAM three. "When we went out to the markets this time to seek financing for our aircraft we were overwhelmed by the response," FZ CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith said. "At the end of the day we received offers for far more aircraft than we needed to finance...I believe this is a reflection not only of our position but also of the confidence the financial community around the world has in Dubai." FZ operates nine 737-800NGs to 22 destinations, and expects to take delivery of four additional 737-800NGs before the end of the year. The four aircraft will be outfitted with new Boeing Sky Interiors as well as Lumexis IFE, as part of a previously-announced contract.
Romanian LCC Blue Air, which is reportedly facing financial problems, is undergoing major changes to its network and will shut down a total of 10 routes by Oct. 31, Romanian media outlets reported. The affected routes include services from its main base at Bucharest Baneasa to Lisbon, Vienna, Cuneo and Thessaloniki. Blue Air CEO Sherif Ussama has been quoted saying that Blue Air is getting ready to lay off pilots and flight attendants, after having canceled all domestic flights and cutting flight capacity by 33%. Blue Air’s single-aircraft base in Larnaca, which was launched this spring, closed Sept. 15. Some of the freed capacity will be switched to UK flights. No information about the carrier’s financial performance is available on its website. Blue Air, which was founded in 2004, employs 780 and has operated up to four 737-800s, three 737-300s, two 737-400s and one 737-500. The fleet is also undergoing a restructuring process.
Air Berlin will launch four-times-weekly Berlin Tegel–New York JFK services in May 2011, which AB said will strengthen its position in Berlin along with the opening of the Berlin Brandenburg International Airport and its full membership into oneworld, which is planned for early 2012. AB will increase its DUS–New York JFK services from five-times-weekly to daily flights from summer 2011. AB will codeshare with American Airlines.
Turkish Airlines celebrated the 50th anniversary of its Istanbul Ataturk–Frankfurt route on Sept. 22, which offers four-times-daily services.
Continental Airlines on Wednesday shifted its operations at Orlando International Airport from Terminal A to Terminal B. Its gates will move from Airside 1 to Airside 3 on Thursday.
Allegiant Air will launch twice-weekly Phoenix Mesa service to Idaho Falls and Bozeman, Mont. Nov. 12, as well as service to Ft. Myers from Grand Rapids and Lexington, Ky. Nov. 18. It will also launch twice-weekly Youngstown–St. Petersburg/Clearwater service Nov. 17 and twice-weekly Elmira, N.Y.–Ft. Lauderdale service Nov. 19.
Star1 Airlines of Vilnius, according to unconfirmed media reports, has paused operations after its sole aircraft (737-700) was seized at Dublin Airport. AirBaltic said it is "in touch" with Star1 management "to offer assistance," with stranded passengers. The carrier began operations last July (ATW Daily News, Jan. 22).
Qantas increased six-times-weekly Sydney–Johannesburg 747-400 service to daily.
AVIATION QUOTE
For some years I have been afflicted with the belief that flight is possible to man. The disease has increased in severity and I feel it will soon cost me an increased amount of money, if not my life.
— Wilbur Wright, beginning of his first letter to Octave Chanute, 13 May 1900.
ON THIS DATE
September 23, 1913
French pilot, Roland Garros, becomes the 1st person to fly across the Mediterranean, a distance of 470 miles. He lands in Tunisia 7 hours and 53 minutes after taking off from France, which is of particular note because he only had enough fuel for 8 hours of flight.
On the outbreak of the First World War, Garros was sent to serve on the Western Front. He realized that he would have more success in dogfights if he could find a way of firing a machine-gun through the propeller. Working with Raymond Saulnier, a French aircraft manufacturer, Garros, added deflector plates to the blades of the propeller of his Morane-Saulnier. These small wedges of toughened steel diverted the passage of those bullets which struck the blades.
Now able to use a forward-firing machine-gun, he went out searching for his first victim. On April 1, 1915, Garros approached a German Albatros B II reconnaissance aircraft. The German pilot was surprised when Garros approached him head-on. The accepted air fighting strategy at the time was to take 'pot-shots' with a revolver or rifle. Instead Garros shot down the Albatros through his whirling propeller.
Three Hunters chartered a local bush pilot to fly them for a hunting weekend. Upon returning on Sunday afternoon the young pilot noticed additional cargo waiting for him. Camping gear, rifles, three large grinning hunters and each toting a deer from their weekend spoils.
The pilot quickly explained the small aircraft was already going to be overweight and the deer were going to have to be left behind. The hunters protested dismissing the importance of being overweight and said:
" Last year we loaded all of this stuff and the deer!"
The pilot, not to be outdone, caved to the excess load.
The poor aircraft bumped and weezed down the short grass strip and inevitably ended pranging into the bushes at the end.
Picking weeds off himself, the pilot asked the hunters:" are you sure you guys loaded all this stuff?"
"Oh yes we did, but last year we crashed over there!"
TRIVIA
Tail ID
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
And let's get one thing straight. There's a big difference between a pilot and an aviator. One is a technician; the other is an artist in love with flight. — E. B. Jeppesen
2 looks as if it should be Iranian, but it's not Iran Air. 3, Indian Airlines? 4 is indeed Jet Airways. 7 is a PIA special tail. 10 is Uiag__w_l in a really dodgy font.
My friend and I applied for airline jobs in Australia, but they didn't Qantas.
ANSWERS: 1. Avia Euroline 2. EP, Iran Asseman Airlines 3. IC, Indian Airlines 4. 9W, Jet Airways 5. NL, Shaheen Air Int’l 6. 1I, Novair 7. PK, Pakistan International Airlines 8. Royal Jet 9. RV, Caspian Airlines 10. SD, Sudan Airways 11. Y9, Kish Air
And let's get one thing straight. There's a big difference between a pilot and an aviator. One is a technician; the other is an artist in love with flight. — E. B. Jeppesen
to me. 
