CommercialItaly, Alitalia Shareholders Agree More Etihad TalksThe Italian government, banks and Alitalia shareholders agreed on Monday that talks should continue with Etihad over a potential link-up, a government statement said. The statement, issued after a two-hour meeting, said a deal with Etihad would be a significant opportunity for Alitalia and for Italy. Participants discussed the state of the negotiations and Etihad's requests. The government said it urged Alitalia management to continue the talks, adding that more meetings would take place between the two airlines in the next few days.
LinkComac sells first ARJ21 business jetComac has secured its first order for a business jet variant of the ARJ21 regional jet. Chinese conglomerate Yan Shang Group inked a letter of intent with the Chinese airframer on 10 May, for the purchase of an ARJ21-700 business jet. Financial details of the deal and the delivery schedule are not available. The LOI will not only speed up the development of Chinese-made business jets, but also push forward the development of the ARJ21 series, says Comac.
LinkStruggling MAS Taps Banks For RestructuringMalaysia Airlines and its key stakeholders are in talks with banks for a strategic overhaul that could include the partial sale of its engineering unit and an upgrade of its fleet, people involved in the discussions said. Even before the loss of its flight MH370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8 there was talk that loss-making MAS might need a financial rescue from state investor Khazanah Nasional, which owns 69 percent of the company. "They are sending all these feelers to banks to try and test the waters," said a banking source familiar with the situation. "The most imminent move looks to be on the engineering business, an IPO or trade sale," said the source, who declined to be identified as the talks are private.
LinkAnalysis: Delta success stems from Atlanta hubWhen Delta Air Lines emerged from bankruptcy in 2007, the carrier began focusing on flights to and from its Atlanta hub. "Before the bankruptcy, Atlanta was squandered, used largely to connect passengers between the Northeast and Florida -- a leisure market with little potential to provide revenue premiums," writes columnist Ted Reed. "Now Atlanta has 970 daily departures to 210 destinations including 62 international destinations."
LinkSouthwest: AirTran loyalty program to transfer to Rapid RewardsSouthwest Airlines announced last week that members of AirTran Airways loyalty program will be transferred to Rapid Rewards this year. Southwest acquired AirTran in 2011.
LinkAirbus A350 XWB undergoes water ingestion testing in FranceAirbus has finished water ingestion testing for its A350 XWB at a facility in France. Airbus said testing of its fourth test aircraft, the MSN 4, "validates how the aircraft would behave on a very rain-soaked runway, and verifies that neither the water under the aircraft nor the spray generated by the nose landing gear will enter the engines or APU [auxiliary power unit]."
LinkOpinion: Making the case for extending life of A330Pierre Sparaco says that Airbus should extend the life of its A330, which was introduced in the 1980s, by reengining the aircraft. "The European manufacturer may well decide to reengine the aircraft and upgrade the flight system -- a minimum-cost, low-risk proposition," writes Sparaco.
LinkGlitch shows vulnerability of air traffic computer system, experts sayA common design problem in the U.S. air traffic control system made it possible for a U-2 spy plane to spark a computer glitch that recently grounded or delayed hundreds of Los Angeles area flights, according to an inside account and security experts. In theory, the same vulnerability could have been used by an attacker in a deliberate shut-down, the experts said, though two people familiar with the incident said it would be difficult to replicate the exact conditions.
LinkFAA comments on drone incident that occurred in March An American Airlines Group Inc aircraft almost collided with a drone above Florida earlier this year, a near-accident that highlights the growing risk from rising use of unmanned aircraft, the U.S. air safety regulator said. The pilot reported seeing a small, remote-control aircraft very close to his plane while preparing to land at Tallahassee Regional Airport, said Jim Williams, manager of the Federal Aviation Administration's Unmanned Aircraft System Integration Office. "The airplane pilot said that the UAS was so close to his jet that he was sure he had collided with it," Williams said at an industry conference on Thursday, referring to an unmanned aircraft system.
LinkAutomated passport kiosks speed up entry at Charlotte Douglas InternationalInternational passengers arriving at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina now have the option to scan their passports and make customs declarations at one of 24 automated passport kiosks. Interim Aviation Director Brent Cagle is enthusiastic about the kiosks, which are expected to cut re-entry times for U.S. citizens by as much as 50%. "They are a wonderful amenity, and they are allowing us to more efficiently process passengers," he said.
LinkResearchers study ways to efficiently board planesResearchers say passengers with more than one carry-on bag slow everyone down when they board planes. Seating such passengers away from one another in the airplane cabin, preferably in window seats, would allow everyone else to more quickly board and take their seats. "If you have a row to separate these people they aren't really bumping into each other, that's the idea. They can all be storing their luggage at the same time," said researcher Dr. R. John Milne.
LinkLas Vegas airport: No one has approached us about Airbus A380 It’s the largest commercial passenger aircraft ever built, and it’s big enough to produce massive logistical headaches to airport managers worldwide. The Airbus Industries A380 superjumbo jet can carry up to 555 passengers in a traditional three-class configuration. Make the entire plane economy class, and it can hold as many as 853 people. The plane, which weighs 305 tons empty and first became a part of airline fleets in 2007, has two decks of passenger seating the entire length of the aircraft. Some airlines equip their A380s with lie-flat seats, suites, lounges and beauty salons to emphasize their comfort. Airbus delivered 128 of the planes to customers since 2007 and has another 196 of them on order. Emirates is Airbus’ best customer with 44 orders. Later this year, Australia-based Qantas will begin flying the longest air route ever, with flights on A380s between Sydney and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
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