NewsCommercial
AVIC Subsidiaries Share Trading Suspended
Trading in three subsidiaries of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) was halted on Wednesday amid local media reports that said the state-owned aerospace company was preparing to merge them. The shares of AVIC Aircraft, AVIC Capital and AVIC Electromechanical System were suspended indefinitely, the companies said in separate stock exchange filings.
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Boeing Raises Forecast For Indian Aircraft Demand
Boeing estimates that Indian carriers will need 1,740 new aircraft by 2034, valued at USD$240 billion, a senior company executive said. Dinesh Keskar, senior vice president, Asia Pacific and India sales, said in a presentation that 84 percent of the new planes required would be single-aisle, while 15 percent would be wide-body aircraft.
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Frigate Ecojet takes airliner concept to new Europe base
Launching a three-aisle widebody airliner with a geometrically unique, ovular fuselage cross section always seemed an uphill struggle for a start-up Russian manufacturer, but the challenge in the end proved overwhelming. “It is impossible to develop and create this kind of aircraft here,” says Sergey Grachev, director of marketing sales for Frigate Ecojet, a subsidiary of the Rosavia consortium. The problem was not technical but geographic.
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Viking sees hot market in Latin America for updated Twin Otter
Viking sees Latin America as an important market for its updated Twin Otter utility transport aircraft. It is well suited for operators in Brazil's Amazon region and for the growing tourist industry; a new initiative aims to make travel around the country simpler. Viking has also opened a regional headquarters in Panama to serve Central and South America.
LinkAirlines
Air Canada's Quarterly Profit Up 33 Percent
Air Canada reported a nearly 33 percent rise in second-quarter profit, helped by a decline in fuel costs. The company's net income rose to CAD$296 million (USD$226.9 million) in the second quarter ended June 30, from CAD$223 million a year earlier. Operating revenue rose 3.3 percent to CAD$3.41 billion.
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Asiana Airlines 2Q net loss deepens to $72 million
Asiana Airlines posted a second-quarter net loss of KRW85 .4 billion ($72.4 million), deepened from a net loss of KRW11.8 billion for the year-ago period. The airline said the results were due to “passenger business in the second quarter [being] much affected by Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), first confirmed in May. That caused a spike in the number of cancellations of trips by Chinese and Japanese tourists.”
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Delta Air Lines updates TUMI amenity kits
Delta Air Lines has updated its TUMI amenity kits. The new kits feature Malin+Goetz lip moisturizer, mouthwash, body lotion, earplugs, facial tissue and a dental kit.
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Emirates Rejects Delta's Criticism Of Overcapacity
Emirates said that Gulf carriers are not to blame for overcapacity on services between the United States and Dubai, rejecting comments by Delta Air Lines. Delta said on Sunday that it was reducing flights between Atlanta and Dubai this winter, blaming overcapacity on US routes to the Middle East by subsidised and state-owned airlines, underscoring a trade row.
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Jetstar unveils first Q300 for NZ operations
Jetstar Airways has completed the repainting of the first of five Bombardier Dash-8 Q300s that will be used to launch regional services in New Zealand later this year. The aircraft, registered VH-TQM, was repainted from QantasLink colours to Jetstar’s livery in Townsville. The airline adds that the five tubroprops will also undergo a cabin refurbishment before it enters service in December.
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Southwest, American hit record highs with July traffic
Southwest Airlines and American Airlines both set new monthly traffic records in July. Southwest increased its capacity by 7% over last July to meet demand. Meanwhile, American reported the highest monthly traffic in its history with 21.8 billion revenue passenger miles for July.
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Southwest to add service from Nebraska to D.C.
Southwest Airlines plans to debut a nonstop flight from Omaha, Neb., to Washington, D.C., in March 2016. Southwest will fly the route to Reagan National Airport with a Boeing 737.
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On-time performance improves for airlines in June
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, major U.S. airlines recorded an on-time arrival rate of 74.8% for June, up from 71.8% in June 2014. Hawaiian Airlines reported the highest on-time arrivals for the month at 90.5%.
LinkAirports
UK Tells Airport Retailers To Pass On Tax Savings
The British government has called on airport retailers to stop pocketing sales tax discounts meant for passengers after a newspaper investigation into the practice prompted a backlash from consumers. Most airport retailers ask passengers to show their boarding cards at the checkout when paying for goods. While security is often cited as the reason, the Independent newspaper reported stores use the information to avoid paying the 20 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) on goods headed outside the European Union.
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Military
A-10 replacement? USAF strategy calls for 'future CAS platform'
A new strategy document released by US Air Combat Command points to the development of a future close-air-support platform as the service pushes to retire the long-serving Fairchild Republic A-10 – its primary close-in attack airplane used to protect ground troops. The strategy document also emphasises the need for a new long-range bomber to replace old aircraft like the B-52 and B-1B, despite the bomber force’s dual ties to the nuclear mission and realignment under US Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC).
LinkCorporate
Cessna Citation M2 gets nod for airports up to 14,000 feet
The Cessna Citation M2 was approved for operations at high-altitude airports up to 14,000 feet. "This allows customers operating out of high-elevation airports, like many found throughout Latin America, to do more with their aircraft," said Textron Aviation's Chris Hearne.
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Gulfstream G500 resumes flight testing following modifications
Flight testing has resumed on Gulfstream's G500 after a break of "several weeks" to prepare the large-cabin, long range business jet for flutter tests, the company announced on 10 August at the Latin American Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (LABACE). The G500 underwent a number of modifications, says Gulfstream, including the installation of winglet and horizontal flutter vanes and the aircraft's attitude recovery chute. "During the modification period, Gulfstream used simulators to help our pilots prepare for the flutter tests," it adds.
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Multiple orders announced for HondaJet
Honda Aircraft has announced receiving “multiple orders” on the first day of the HondaJet’s debut appearance at the Latin American Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (LABACE). The North Carolina-based manufacturer of the entry-level jet also reported interest from “many more individuals”.
LinkRotary Wing
MD Helicopters' Cayuse Warrior enters combat in Afghanistan
The Afghan air force’s MD-530F Cayuse Warrior scout-attack helicopter has been used in combat for the first time, helping security forces clear insurgents from three rural districts south of Jalalabad. Armed with 50-calibre machine guns and ballistic armor protection, the helicopters operated alongside the service's Mil Mi-17 transport helicopters based at Kabul as part of Operation Iron Triangle on 11 August.
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Aviation Quote
An aircraft which is used by wealthy people on their expense accounts, whose fares are subsidized by much poorer taxpayers.
— Denis Healey, British Labour Party, regards the Concorde.
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Trivia
General Trivia
1. What country has the world’s worst weather?
2. What is the greatest speed ever attained by a human being in flight?
3. Explain how it is possible for two aircraft to maintain a constant distance and bearing from each other while both maintain the same true heading and altitude, yet are flown at different true airspeeds (in no-wind conditions)?
4. What famous pilot also was a bantamweight boxer who won a West Coast Amateur Championship and became a professional boxer?
5. What U.S. airline was first to operate an all-turbine (turbo-prop) fleet, and what U.S. airline was first to operate an all-jet fleet?
6. A pilot is speaking to an FSS specialist and is overheard saying, “I am going to praise God.” Why does this make perfect sense to the specialist?
7. Who was the first politician to use an airplane to travel between campaign stops?
1. What country has the world’s worst weather?
miamiair wrote:4. What famous pilot also was a bantamweight boxer who won a West Coast Amateur Championship and became a professional boxer?
3. Explain how it is possible for two aircraft to maintain a constant distance and bearing from each other while both maintain the same true heading and altitude, yet are flown at different true airspeeds (in no-wind conditions)?
