News
US Airlines Cancel Flights As Sandy Approaches
Hurricane Sandy will likely cause financial headaches for US airlines that cancelled more than 7,000 flights to and from the Northeast corridor on Sunday.
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Mallya Will Not Sell 'Family Silver' For Kingfisher
Indian tycoon Vijay Mallya does not have to do a deal with UK drinks giant Diageo and will not sell prized assets to rescue his grounded Kingfisher airline, he said at the weekend.
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Iraq Searches Syrian-Bound Iran Flight
Iraq has stopped and searched an Iranian flight bound for Syria to check for weapons being shipped to President Bashar al-Assad, but found only humanitarian aid, authorities said on Sunday.
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Honeywell Sees Growth In Corporate Jet Sales
Demand for corporate jets has begun to recover from a post-recession low and is likely to rise over the next decade, with USD$250 billion worth of new aircraft delivered by 2022, according to a forecast by Honeywell.
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Portugal Receives Eight Bids For ANA
Portugal moved closer to selling airport operator ANA, attracting eight preliminary offers in a deal that could help the indebted country raise up to EUR€2 billion (USD$2.6 billion).
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United 787 deliveries delayed further
United Airlines will receive its next few Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners later than it expected, as it faces further delays to delivery of the aircraft since receiving its first in September. The Chicago-based Star Alliance carrier said that subsequent deliveries of the 787 are delayed, in an employee bulletin on 26 September. It had planned to receive four additional aircraft this year. United received its first Dreamliner (N20904) from Boeing on 22 September and flew it to Houston Intercontinental on 28 September.
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Pratt & Whitney completes first PW1100G test engine
Pratt & Whitney has completed assembly of its first PW1100G test engine that will eventually power the Airbus A320neo. The geared turbofan will undergo testing at Pratt & Whitney's facility in West Palm Beach, Florida, the company says. The engine manufacturer plans to run eight PW1100G test engines over the next 24 months. These will be built at the engine manufacturer's facilities in West Palm Beach and Middletown.
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Boeing extends 777X timeline range to early 2020s
Boeing chief executive James McNerney on 24 October extended the length of the timing range for introducing a new version of the Boeing 777 by at least a year. The timeframe for entry into service of a re-engined 777 has been described as "end of this decade" previously by Boeing officials. But, McNerney, speaking on a conference call, suggested the schedule could be even longer.
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Tough climate drives new push for Greek merger
Fresh attempts by Aegean Airlines to merge with Olympic Air illustrate the continued tough conditions facing the Greek market. Aegean renewed attempts to merge with Olympic by agreeing a deal with the latter's owners, Marfin Investment Group, to buy a 100% stake in the unit for €72 million ($93 million). The move is part of efforts to turn round the financial fortunes of the two carriers, which posted a combined loss of €65 million last year.
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Virgin’s A380 order depends on economy and oil price
Virgin Atlantic has pushed back its Airbus A380 deliveries to 2017 and says that the eventual operation of the superjumbo will depend on the prevailing market conditions near the time. Speaking in a wide-ranging interview, Virgin Atlantic chief executive Steve Ridgway - who leaves the airline next spring - said that plans for the A380 introduction were on the backburner for the moment.
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Boeing's departure fails to break cluster's Spirit
More than any other company, Boeing made Wichita the "Air Capital of the World". Beech, Cessna and Lear certainly played their part, but Boeing brought the mass production of B-29s here in the Second World War, B-47s and B-52Hs in the Cold War and finally the major fuselage sections for all of its commercial airliners. Around Boeing's factory in the southeast corner of the city arose a network of hundreds of mom-and-pop machine shops, many of which are still active today.
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FedEx to build Shanghai Pudong hub
FedEx plans to invest more than $100 million to establish a hub at Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG). FedEx is the third international air express operator to establish a hub at PVG. UPS did so in December 2008 and DHL has established its North Asia hub at PVG.
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Finnair hails record buoyant 3Q, launches further cost cuts
Finnair (AY) has reported a third-quarter net income of €50.8 million ($65.9 million), up more than 200% from a €1.9 million profit reported in the year-ago period. The airline said these best-ever results were largely attributable to increased turnover, a high load factor, improved unit revenue, and cost cutting. Turnover rose 7.1% to €650.3 million for the quarter, while expenses increased 3.3% to €603.5 million, producing an operating profit of €48.9 million, up 77.2% from a €27.6 million operating profit in the prior-year quarter.
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Boeing sees $820 billion commercial aircraft market in North America through 2031
Boeing said North American airlines will take delivery of 7,290 aircraft valued at $820 billion through 2031. In a market forecast presented this week, the manufacturer said the North American commercial fleet will grow from 6,650 aircraft currently to about 8,830 by 2031 (including aircraft retirements). Boeing Commercial Airplanes VP-marketing Randy Tinseth said, “The long-term outlook for the North American airline industry is approximately 3% annual traffic growth through the forecast period. The market is shaped by aggressive growth of low-cost carriers and the need to replace aging airplanes in the fleets of the established network carriers.”
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Other News
Caribbean ATR72 cowling panel detaches on takeoff: The cowling panel of an almost-new Caribbean Airlines (BW) ATR72 became detached during takeoff on flight BW300 bound from Piarco (POS) to for Caracas Friday morning. The aircraft returned to POS “without incident,” under normal power. The cowling panel detached at about VR (rotation speed), BW said. After the aircraft landed the runway was briefly shut down before the aircraft - on the authorization of the Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority - was moved to a BW facility where it went through an initial inspection. BW has so far found no additional damage.
Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are urging the European Commission to put pressure on member states to meet their obligations as the Dec.4 deadline nears for the implementation of Functional Airspace Blocks (FABs)—a key element of the Single European Sky (SES) initiative. Where necessary, this pressure should include possible sanctions, they said. At a Plenary Session Transport, the MEPs adopted a resolution reminding member states “that they have publicly committed themselves to achieving the goal of a Single European Sky, overwhelmingly supporting the relevant legislation,” and insisting that “they must remain proactive and involved in the implementation of this legislation.” The resolution points out that “the proper functioning of the SES can only be assured if the various implementation dates are strictly honored by all concerned.”
Virgin Atlantic (VS) has reinstated its London Heathrow-Mumbai (LHR-BOM) service four years after exiting the Indian route. The UK carrier dropped the sector due to worsening economic conditions in its home market. With the British economy starting to grow again and India continuing to boom, spokeswoman Fay Burgin said the time was right to re-start services. The decision was influenced by the success of VS’s daily LHR-Delhi (DEL) service in recent years: “Demand for our Delhi route has been unprecedented,” Burgin said. Passenger numbers rose 13% on the sector last year.
Austrian Airlines (OS) is looking to replace its nine Fokker 70s and 15 Fokker 100s regional jet fleet by the end of 2016-17. OS CEO Jaan Albrecht told ATW that all of its Fokkers are paid for and the Lufthansa Group carrier is looking for a replacement. “Austrian wants to use the strong buying performance of Lufthansa. It should be a type (of regional Aircraft) which is also used within the Lufthansa group,” he said, declining to give details on a specific type.
EasyJet (U2) chief Carolyn McCall is aiming for 3%-5% organic growth over the next 3-5 years, as the airline continues to assess a possible aircraft order. “We will continue to grow modestly, we are quite pragmatic about that, but it is growth,” said McCall, addressing the European Aviation Club in Brussels. “There is still a lot more low-fares airlines can do in the market. EasyJet can continue to grow in markets we are already in, which is much lower risk. We don’t need new markets to grow.” McCall identifies France and Portugal as possible targets for this growth. “We see Portugal, despite its economic position, as an opportunity,” she said. Also, in France, low-cost carriers have just 24% penetration compared with 40% in other European counties, giving scope for expansion.
London’s Stansted Airport (STN) has begun a three-month trial of a new walk-through security arch type body scanner that “instantly detects any potential threats and prohibited items,” the airport said, and uses a generic mannequin-type computer image to highlight for security officers the specific area to search. The ProVision scanner, manufactured by L-3, is designed to provide an additional and less intrusive method of security screening by reducing the need for pat-down searches. It uses radio frequency millimeter wave technology, not X-rays or any ionizing radiation.
US FAA is proposing a $354,500 civil penalty against Phoenix-based US Airways (US) for allegedly operating a Boeing 757 on 916 flights when it was not in compliance with federal aviation regulations. The FAA alleges US removed and replaced a leaking engine fuel pump on the aircraft Aug. 3, 2010, and failed to carry out FAA-required tests and inspections before returning the aircraft to revenue service. The alleged-noncompliant flights took place between Aug. 3 and Dec. 3, 2010.
Aviation Quote
There are pilots and there are pilots; with the good ones, it is inborn. You can't teach it. If you are a fighter pilot, you have to be willing to take risks.
— General Robin Olds, USAF.
On This Date
---In 1917... An American-built DH-4 flies for the 1st time.
---In 1976… Last flight of the Big Tail SR-71 (959). (Q)
Daily Video
Editor’s Choice
Humor
The Brothel
The madam opened the brothel door and saw a rather dignified, well-dressed, good-looking man in his late forties or early fifties.
“May I help you sir?” she asked.
“I want to see Valerie,” the man replied. “Sir, Valerie is one of our most expensive ladies. Perhaps you would prefer someone else,” said the madam.
“No, I must see Valerie,” he replied
Just then, Valerie appeared and announced to the man she charged $5000 a visit. Without hesitation, the man pulled out five thousand dollars and gave it to Valerie, and they went upstairs. After an hour, the man calmly left.
The next night, the man appeared again, once more demanding to see Valerie. Valerie explained that no one had ever come back two nights in a row as she was too expensive. But there were no discounts. The price was still $5000.
Again, the man pulled out the money, gave it to Valerie, and they went upstairs. After an hour, he left.
The following night the man was there yet again. Everyone was astounded that he had come for a third consecutive night, but he paid Valerie and they went upstairs.
After their session, Valerie questioned the man, 'No one has ever been with me three nights in a row.
“Where are you from?” she asked
The man replied, ' Ontario '.
“Really?”, she said. “I have family in Ontario.”
“I know,” the man said. “Your sister died, and I am her attorney. She asked me to give you your $15,000 inheritance.”
The moral of the story is that three things in life are certain.
1. Death
2. Taxes
3. Being screwed by a lawyer
Trivia
General Trivia
1. A pilot is practicing an on-pylon. He notices during the turn that the pylon is slipping ahead of the wingtip. He should
a. climb and reduce airspeed.
b. climb and increase airspeed.
c. descend and reduce airspeed.
d. descend and increase airspeed.
2. A pilot is practicing an around-pylon in a counterclockwise direction while under the influence of an easterly wind. On which of the following headings will rate of turn be greatest?
a. 090 degrees
b. 180 degrees
c. 270 degrees
d. 360 degrees
3. There are three types of airmets. A phonetic letter names each type. _____ refers to IFR conditions and/or extensive mountain obscurations; _____ is issued for turbulence, high winds, and low-level wind shear; and _____ advises of icing and freezing levels.
a. Airmet Sierra, airmet Tango, airmet Zulu
b. Airmet Tango, airmet Sierra, airmet Uniform
c. Airmet Uniform, airmet Zulu, airmet Sierra
d. Airmet Zulu, airmet Tango, airmet Sierra
4. A U.S. military fighter pilot broadcasts the word Winchester. What is the significance of this transmission?
5. What was the first type of jet aircraft to fly nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean?
6. In the jargon of flight attendants, what is a thumper?
