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NEWS

Pilots union chief accepts blame for lack of progress with American
The president of American Airlines' pilots union said Tuesday that the union itself is to blame for the glacial pace of contract talks with the carrier. "Instead of concentrating on the most immediate and important items, we created a wish list for a 'dream contract,'" Dave Bates told the Allied Pilots Association board of directors. With about 320 items still on the table, Bates said it could take 12 years to wrap up negotiations at the current pace.
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Delta aims for flat-bed seats on all wide-body international flights
Delta Air Lines says its entire fleet of 32 A330 aircraft will get lie-flat seats in business class by 2013. The move is part of Delta's $2 billion international modernization program, and it comes on top of an announcement that international flights will be revamped with a premium "Economy Comfort" section. "[W]ith this announcement, Delta now plans to offer full flat-bed seating in BusinessElite on all international wide-body flights, or more than 150 aircraft, by 2013," the company said in a press release.
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Smart aviation funding is an investment in America
Noting that commercial aviation supports nearly 11 million U.S. jobs, ATA President and CEO Nicholas E. Calio writes that "Congress must consider investment in a modern air traffic management system in tandem with high-priority airport infrastructure." The current outdated air traffic control system is a tremendous drag on the economy, he said. "Accelerating the implementation of NextGen will significantly reduce flight delays, enhance the productivity of the economy, improve safety and have a positive impact on the environment by reducing fuel consumption and limiting CO2 emissions." Calio also emphasized the need to move on from discussion to implementation.
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Ticket prices rise as oil prices continue to climb
On Monday, several carriers boosted some of their fares by as much as $60 for a round-trip ticket, according to Rick Seaney of FareCompare.com. JPMorgan analyst Jamie Baker said the "select" increases were the first recently aimed at business travelers, who are less likely to put off or cancel trips because of rising prices. "This is based on the increased cost of doing business, particularly fuel," a spokeswoman for United Continental noted, and Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition, said a backlash appeared unlikely. The airlines, "rightfully, are beginning to get ahead of the oil spike that may be coming," he said.
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Teen arrested in laser incident at LAX
The FAA says a 14-year-old was arrested on Tuesday after allegedly shining a laser beam at the cockpit of a plane landing at Los Angeles International Airport. "It's potentially very dangerous to shine a laser at an aircraft because a laser can distract a pilot, and there have been cases where pilots have suffered temporary vision problems as a result of being struck by a laser beam," an FAA spokesman noted.
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Lawmakers pressure TSA to release radiation reports
The Transportation Security Administration has not yet released reports that show how much radiation airport scanners emit. Lawmakers requested that the TSA release the information two months ago. "The public has a right to know, and there isn't something so sensitive that requires holding it back," said Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah. A TSA spokesman said the TSA will release the information in the next few weeks after it ensures that it does not contain any sensitive information.
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Senators aim to keep body-scanner images private
Sens. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and Ben Nelson, D-Neb., have proposed amending the aviation bill to include a measure that would punish anyone who misuses airport body-scanner images. Violating the measure could be a federal crime carrying a prison term of up to one year and a fine of $100,000 per incident. The move would address some of the concerns travelers have raised about the images.
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WestJet's 2010 profit rises 39% to $138 million
WestJet posted 2010 net income of C$136.7 million ($138 million), up 39.3% over a C$98.2 million profit in 2009, on a 14.5% jump in revenue to C$2.61 billion. Despite the strong results, the fast-growing carrier announced Wednesday it will defer delivery of six 737NGs from 2012-2015 to 2017-2018.
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Babbitt pushes Congress to pass 'long-term' FAA reauthorization bill
US FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt told the House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Tuesday that "the failure to enact long-term, comprehensive" FAA reauthorization legislation, stalled in Congress since 2007, "has had troubling impacts."
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SAS reports $335 million 2010 loss
SAS Group incurred a net loss of SEK2.22 billion ($335.4 million) for 2010, narrowed from a SEK2.95 billion deficit in 2009, but swung to a SEK47 million fourth-quarter profit, turned around from a SEK1.3 billion net loss in the prior-year period.
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Hainan Airlines expects to report sixfold earnings increase for 2010
Hainan Airlines said it expects to report 2010 net income of more than CNY2.01 billion ($306 million), a sixfold increase over a CNY335 million net profit reported for 2009.
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Canada takes FAA to task for rotorcraft “run dry” exemption
Canada transportation safety officials are calling on the US FAA to remove from helicopter certification standards a clause that allows manufacturers to bypass a traditional 30min transmission run-dry capability for "extremely remote" failures.
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Air India to receive first 787 in Q4
Air India will receive its first Boeing 787 in the fourth quarter of 2011, says the US airframer. The aircraft was originally scheduled to be delivered in September 2008.
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Rolls-Royce civil aerospace profit down 20% in 2010
Rolls-Royce's civil aerospace division has reported a 20% fall in underlying profit in 2010, as its earnings were dented by last November's Trent 900 failure on a Qantas Airways Airbus A380.
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Other News

SecTrans, Airlines and ORD Mayor meet. Chicago Mayor Richard Daley met Wednesday with United Airlines Chairman, President and CEO Jeff Smisek and American Airlines Chairman and CEO Gerard Arpey in Washington, where US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood served as a mediator in talks aimed at resolving the dispute between the city and the carriers over Chicago O'Hare expansion. UA and AA last month filed a lawsuit in Illinois to stop the city from moving forward with the second phase of ORD expansion, arguing that the city government failed to get clearance from the carriers before approving $3.4 billion in modernization projects at the busy airport.

Norwegian Air Shuttle launched Row 44 onboard high-speed broadband on Tuesday. “This is a product that no other airline in Europe is currently offering, which gives us a huge competitive advantage,” Norwegian Director of IT and Business Development Hans-Petter Aanby said.

Japan Airlines and American Airlines announced they have begun joint sales for Japan-to-North America flights. The two carriers will commence their previously announced transpacific joint business on April 1.

Emirates Airline said it will operate an Airbus A380 from Dubai to Kuwait on Feb. 26. It serves the route four-times-daily with a mix of Boeing 777 and A330 service. It said it has "no immediate plans to operate the A380 on the route permanently," but wants Kuwaiti customers "to try our A380 services." It will mark the first time for an A380 to land at or take off from KWI.

Icelandair chose Discover the World Marketing to assist the carrier in expanding sales and marketing development in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Russia and the Ukraine.



AVIATION QUOTE

My first shock came when I touched the rudder. The thing tried to bite its own tail. The next surprise I got was when I landed; she stalled at a hundred and ten miles an hour.

— Jimmy Haizlip, commenting on his only flight in the Gee Bee.



ON THIS DATE

February 10, 1923

An experimental night flight arrives to Le Bourget, France, from Croydon, England. The pilot has given his position by radio and used the aviation light beacons to make his approach.


February 10, 1962

American U-2 pilot Gary Powers, shot down and arrested in the U.S.S.R. in May 1960, is released in exchange for Soviet spy Colonel Rudolf Abel.
Gary Powers had been sentenced to 10 years in a Soviet prison. But Captain Powers, then 32, walked into West Berlin across a bridge separating the city's east and western sectors. At the same time Russian spy Colonel Rudolph Abel crossed in the opposite direction. Colonel Abel had served five years of a 30-year term for running a spy ring in the US.



DAILY VIDEO





EDITOR’S CHOICE





HUMOR

An elderly gentleman....

Had serious hearing problems for a number of years. He went to the doctor and the doctor was able to have him fitted for a set of hearing aids that allowed the gentleman to hear 100%.

The elderly gentleman went back in a month to the doctor and the doctor said, 'Your hearing is perfect.. Your family must be really pleased that you can hear again.'

The gentleman replied, 'Oh, I haven't told my family yet.

I just sit around and listen to the conversations. I've changed my will three times!'



TRIVIA

Tail ID

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2.


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5.


6.


7.


8.


9.


10.

Great video, thanks!

I'll give the trivia a try:

1. Air Jamaica
2. Damn, I've seen this one before...
3. MEA
4. Royal Jordanian
5. FlyLAL
6. Malaysia Airlines
7. Austrian Airlines
8. Uzbekistan Airways
9. JAT
10. Qatar Airways

ANSWERS:

1. JM, Air Jamaica
2. FI, Icelandair
3. ME, Middle Eastern Airlines
4. RJ, Royal Jordanian
5. TE, FlyLAL- Lithuanian Airlines
6. MH, Malaysian Air
7. OS, Austrian Airlines
8. HY, Uzbekistan Airways
9. JU, Jat Airways
10. QR, Qatar Airways

If you're already posting 2-11-10;s stuff I need to go to bed . . .

Blasted time zones and office hours . . .