NewsMH17 Shot Down
Malaysian Airliner Shot Down Over Ukraine, 295 Dead
A Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 was brought down in eastern Ukraine on Thursday, killing all 295 people aboard and sharply raising the stakes in a conflict between Kiev and pro-Moscow rebels. Ukraine accused pro-Moscow militants, aided by Russian military intelligence officers, of firing a long-range, Soviet-era SA-11 ground-to-air missile. Leaders of the rebel Donetsk People's Republic denied any involvement and said a Ukrainian air force jet had brought down the intercontinental flight. Separatists have said that they took control of such a missile system last month and had used it to shoot down a Ukrainian military transport plane that was destroyed on Monday.
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MAS updates MH17 casualty list to 298
Malaysia Airlines says 298 passengers and crew were lost aboard MH17, up from the 283 previously stated. In addition, the carrier says it begin using alternative routes on its flights to Europes, while noting that the route used by the MH17 had been declared safe. “With immediate effect, all European flights operated by Malaysia Airlines will be taking alternative routes avoiding the usual route,” says Malaysia Airlines.
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Putin seeks 'objective' investigation
Russian president Vladimir Putin has ordered the country’s government and military to offer full support to the authorities looking into the loss of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17. He says that the crash of the Boeing 777 is “absolutely unacceptable” but adds that it “would not have occurred” if there had been peace in eastern Ukraine. There is no formal confirmation that a hostile act brought down the aircraft, which had been operating a service from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.
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No distress call received before Malaysian 777 crash
No distress call was transmitted by the crew of the crashed Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200 lost over eastern Ukraine while operating an Amsterdam-Kuala Lumpur service. Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak disclosed the information during a briefing in the wake of the destruction of flight MH17 on 17 July. The absence of an emergency call could indicate a sudden event overcame the aircraft and its occupants.
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MH17 was operating above closed airspace: Eurocontrol
Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 had been operating 1,000ft above the upper limit of closed airspace at the time of its disappearance over eastern Ukraine. Pan-European air navigation service Eurocontrol states that the aircraft was flying at 33,000ft when radar contact was lost. It states that the route had been closed by Ukrainian authorities up to 32,000ft. But the route was "open at the level at which [MH17] was flying", says Eurocontrol. In the wake of the loss of the Boeing 777-200ER, apparently with no survivors, the Ukrainian authorities have extended the restrictions within the Dnipropetrovsk flight information region, the airspace in which the jet was travelling.
LinkCommercial
Airbus tests fix for doors on A380
Airbus said it is testing fixes to its doors on the A380. "It's a comfort issue, not a safety issue," an Airbus spokesman said at the Farnborough Airshow. The fix is expected to be approved by European safety authorities in the fall.
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Airbus, Boeing outpace deals at previous U.K. air show
Airbus and Boeing neared $100 billion in deals at the Farnborough Airshow in the U.K., which is held every two years. In 2012, the air show garnered $72 billion in aircraft deals. Airbus introduced its A330neo at the air show this year.
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Airbus to boost production of A350
Airbus said it plans to eventually boost production of its A350 to 12 planes a month. "We'll see improvements and additional buffer in our capacity as we keep improving processes that'll give us potential for further increases," said Didier Evrard, A350 program director, at the Farnborough Airshow.
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Boeing matches 787 cabin pressure in 777X cabin revamp
Any re-engining programme is about obtaining the maximum fuel efficiency benefit at the least cost while accepting certain compromises. For the 777X, Boeing would introduce an all-new engine and scale up the composite wing technology from the 787. But that is where the cost an risk was supposed to end. The compromise of re-engining the 777X meant accepting the cross-section and cabin experience of the original 777, bypassing the 787’s advances in cabin pressurisation and other technologies.
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Lockheed lands LOI for 10 LM-100Js from ASL Aviation
ASL Aviation Group has signed a letter of intent to purchase 10 Lockheed Martin LM-100J freighters, a development that will see Lockheed move forward with certification of its civil version of the C-130J Super Hercules. The LM-100J will have a list price of about $65 million and deliveries should start in 2018, says Lockheed Martin Aeronautics executive vice-president Orlando Carvalho at the Farnborough air show.
LinkAirlines
American adopts US Airways policy on fuel hedges
American Airlines has eliminated its fuel hedges, adopting a policy from US Airways. "Just like any insurance, you figure out what the cost of that insurance is," said CFO Derek Kerr. "And our belief has been that because of the volatility of fuel, the cost of the insurance far outweighs the benefit of that insurance."
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HK Airlines To Drop A380s In Order Reshuffle
Hong Kong Airlines is preparing to cancel an order for 10 Airbus A380s after an associated leasing company struck an expanded deal to buy 70 smaller A320-family aircraft, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Asked about the status of the order at a news conference, Airbus officials said it remained on the company's order book. Since March, however, the order is no longer attributed in the order book to the airline itself but to an "undisclosed" customer, according to Airbus data.
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Norwegian Air Q2 Hit By Higher Costs
Norwegian Air Shuttle reported disappointing second-quarter results on Thursday hit by competition and one-off costs, prompting the budget airline to trim its growth plans. Europe's third-largest low-cost airline by revenue said its costs would be higher than expected due to an earlier strike and unexpected leasing expenses. Operating profit before leasing and depreciation fell to NOK535 million kroner (USD$86.36 million) from NOK699 million a year earlier. Norwegian has taken market share from Scandinavian flag carrier SAS for several years and fended off repeated challenges from Ryanair.
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Transaero plans to take A330neos and A330s
Russian carrier Transaero is to order 12 Airbus A330neos and eight baseline A330s. Airbus says the agreement is contained in a letter of intent with the Moscow-based airline.
LinkAirports
Orlando's $170M people mover project may lead to new terminal
Orlando International Airport plans to build a $170 million people mover system and the project could be a key step in construction of a new terminal. The new people mover will act as a train from south Florida and transport people to a depot launching in 2017, but it and a new shuttle planned as part of the project also may connect to a possible new international terminal.
LinkMilitary
Rafael pitches new sensor pod to UK
Rafael is in discussions with the UK Ministry of Defence regarding the potential integration of the former’s TopLite Multi-High Definition (MHD) electro-optical payload onto Royal Air Force aircraft. The pod incorporates a variety of sensor types, and would be ideal for UK - which already uses other payloads from the company - Rafael says.
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Aviation Quote
The quality of the box matters little. Success depends upon the man who sits in it.
— Baron Manfred von Richthofen, AKA The Red Baron.
On This Date
---In 1914... French pilot, Maurice Guillaux, makes the first official airmail flight in Australia. His cargo includes 1,785 letters, some Lipton’s Tea and OT Lemon Squash.
---In 1914... The Aviation Section of the U.S. Army Signal Corps is formed in Washington, D.C., with 60 officers, 260 men, and 6 airplanes.
---In 1915... Katherine Stinson becomes the first woman to loop the loop in an airplane. The stunt pilot performs the full rotation of her airplane over Chicago.
---In 1919... Self-styled Baroness Raymonde de Laroche, the first Frenchwoman to get her flying license, is killed in a flying accident in Northern France.
---In 1921... John H. Glenn, Jr., the first American to orbit the earth, is born in Cambridge, Ohio. After being selected by NASA with the first group of astronauts in 1959, he makes his historic orbital flight on February 20, 1962.
---In 1941…The first RAF aircraft equipped with radar.
---In 1942…the world’s first operational jet-powered fighter aircraft and first mass-produced jet aircraft, the Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe, is flown in Germany for the first time.
---In 1943…US Navy airship K-74 is shot down by a German submarine, the only airship lost to enemy fire during World War II.
---In 1965…the first Russian satellite to complete a lunar flyby, Zond 3, is launched.
---In 1966…Gemini 10, the first mission to complete a double rendezvous with other spacecraft, is launched from Cape Canaveral.
---In 1971…Southwest Airlines (WN) commences flight operations.
---In 1984…Beverly Lynn Burns becomes the first female Boeing 747 airline captain, flying PEOPLExpress flight 604 from Newark to LAX. The achievement earned her extensive media attention, congratulatory honors from several local politicians–and even an invitation to President Ronald Reagan’s second inauguration. By the time she retired from Continental in 2008, she had captained the 727, 737, 747, 757, 767, 777 and DC-10.
---In 2002…First flight of the Boeing YAL-1A Airborne Laser (ABL).
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