NewsIndia To Give Away Kingfisher Slots, RightsIndia said it would give away Kingfisher Airlines' slots and foreign flying rights to other operators in the latest blow to the grounded carrier. Kingfisher, controlled by drinks baron Vijay Mallya, has been halted due to a cash shortage, and lenders are trying to recover USD$1.4 billion of loans in default. Kingfisher, which saw its flying license expire at the end of last year, has two years from then to apply for a renewal. But with lenders, airports, and banks looking to recover their dues, and with its slots going to rivals, a comeback could prove extremely difficult for the airline, once India's number two carrier.
LinkSukhoi Superjet Takeoff Abandoned In MoscowA Sukhoi Superjet 100 failed to take off from Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport after one of its engines malfunctioned, Interfax reported, further clouding the future of Russia's first post-Soviet civil aircraft project. The Superjet program hit uncertainty last year after one plane crashed in Indonesia during a promotional flight, which investigators said was due to pilot error and Jakarta air traffic control's lack of a minimum safe altitude system. Russia's Aeroflot, the only airline operating the aircraft so far, also grounded four of its 10 Superjets earlier this month due to technical problems.
LinkAirbus Upbeat On India Despite Airline WoesAirbus is sticking to upbeat forecasts for aircraft demand in India in the face of financial woes creeping across its airline sector, the European plane maker's sales chief John Leahy said on Monday. "I think that you'll still see a lot of growth. Will there be occasional hiccups along the way? Probably. In any rapidly growing market, you'll have some problems," Leahy told reporters in Singapore. The Indian aviation industry lost a combined USD$2 billion last year and all but unlisted IndiGo - an Airbus customer - lost money, complaining of high taxes on jet fuel, expensive airport costs and subsidies to state carrier Air India.
LinkAsur Q4 Profits Rise On Passenger GrowthMexican airport operator Asur said on Monday its fourth-quarter profit rose 57 percent, helped by a double-digit increase in passenger traffic and lower costs. The company, which operates Cancun airport and eight others in Mexico's southeast, reported a fourth-quarter profit of MXP665 million pesos (USD$51.7 million), up from MXP424 million pesos in the year-earlier quarter.
LinkUS Offers Airspace-based Emissions RegimeA US proposal for curbing aircraft emissions would exclude time spent flying over international waters, an approach that some environmental groups say is too timid in addressing the rise in greenhouse gasses from the aviation sector. The proposal would cover just a quarter of aviation emissions, according to some estimates, and is in sharp contrast to a European Union law that would require all airlines to pay a carbon fee for the entire flight if departing or arriving at EU airports. A high-level group of negotiators is trying to develop a global plan to address aviation emissions and will meet again next month in talks sponsored by the ICAO, a United Nations body.
LinkANA extends 787 suspension to 31 MayJapanese carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA) has further extended the suspension of its Boeing 787 operations to 31 May. This is an indication that the 787 launch customer expects the problematic aircraft to stay grounded for at least another three months. Earlier, ANA had only announced plans to cancel 787 flights till 30 March. The carrier will be cancelling more than 1,700 flights in April and May, bringing the total number of flights that will be cancelled - since January - to over 3,600, affecting more than 167,820 passengers.
LinkAir France to finalize A350 order later in 2013 Air France has pushed back the timeframe for finalizing its commitment for 25 firm Airbus A350 XWBs until later in 2013. It had previously indicated the order would be finalized by the end of the first quarter. In September 2011, Air France signed a tentative agreement for 50 aircraft, evenly divided between the Airbus A350 and Boeing 787. It has since finalized its Boeing order, but the A350s have not yet been confirmed.
LinkLessor Avolon predicts gradual transition to re-engined narrowbodies Ireland-based aircraft lessor Avolon said an analysis it conducted on the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737NG and their successors, the A320neo and 737 MAX, concluded that the current versions won’t be quickly displaced when the new versions enter service in 2015 and 2017, respectively. “These new aircraft have no real improvement in terms of range and passenger load and should operate seamlessly” alongside the classic A320 and 737NG, Avolon chief technical officer Lucas Mollan told reporters during a conference call. He added there will be no “big bang approach” in the narrowbody sector as the new aircraft “are phased in incrementally” in airline fleets.
LinkDelta’s Virgin stake to boost SkyTeam’s transatlantic JVAir France-KLM Group chairman and CEO Jean-Cyril Spinetta said he believes Delta Air Line’s 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic will help strengthen SkyTeam’s transatlantic joint venture (JV). Speaking at Air France-KLM’s annual results conference in Paris, Spinetta said: “Delta acquired 49% of Virgin by buying the stake held by Singapore Airlines. That will translate into a strengthening and consolidation of our competitive position there.” He highlighted the strong performance of the JV, which also includes Alitalia. The partnership delivered €9.6 billion ($12.66 billion) in revenues during 2012. Transatlantic unit revenues—excluding currency effects—rose 10.4%, off the back of a 5.3% capacity reduction during the year.
LinkComposite design cited for Learjet 85 delay Problems affecting manufacture of the all-composite airframe of the Learjet 85 has prompted Bombardier to delay entry into service to the third quarter of 2014. The airframer's top executives are unwilling to say unspecified problems have been completely overcome, even as the first flight-test vehicle advances in final assembly in Wichita, Kansas. "I don't want to say the challenges are completely behind us," says Pierre Beaudoin, Bombardier president and chief executive. "There will be additional challenges, but I think we understand very well the work that needs to be done."
LinkDARPA announces new X-plane programThe US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is releasing a requirement for a new experimental aircraft, combining the best of vertical take-off and landing technology with conventional aircraft. The aircraft, one of the rare formally designated X-planes, is meant to both hover and fly at high speeds with efficiency equal to dedicated platforms. Specifications call for an aircraft capable of more than 300kt (555km/h) maximum airspeed; higher than conventional helicopters can achieve, and the ability to hover with greater efficiency than current rotorcraft.
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