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Airbus close to selling 37 A321 jets to Delta
European planemaker Airbus is close to a deal to sell 37 current-generation A321 passenger jets to Delta Air Lines, three people familiar with the matter said. Such a deal would be worth $4.3 billion at list prices. Airbus declined to comment. A Delta spokesman said "no decision has been made on any aircraft transaction."
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Lockheed LM-100J taking form in Marietta
Construction of first the commercial derivative of the Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules in 24 years has begun in Marietta, Georgia, where fabricators are now assembling the first LM-100J wing. The legacy Lockheed L-100, based on the C-130E, was type certified and delivered in 1965 and production continued until 1992. Just 115 of those commercial derivatives were delivered alongside C-130 models in Marietta for the Pentagon and dozens of foreign military customers.
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Zodiac Aerospace reports drop in H1 operating profit
Zodiac Aerospace said its first-half operating profit fell to 80.4 million euros ($91 million) from 177.6 million and predicted its full-year income would be close to that of 2014/15 after a "significant improvement" in the second half. The French aircraft seats and equipment manufacturer, which has issued a series of profit
warnings, said on Wednesday its profits were depressed in the first half due to ongoing production delays in the aircraft interiors business.
LinkAirlines
Allegiant Air’s MD-80 Plans Depend On Finding A320s
As the fleet becomes increasingly less reliable, Allegiant Air wants to retire all of its MD-80s by 2020, if not sooner, but its plans will depend on how quickly it can source used Airbus A319s and A320s, executives said in a briefing.
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Comair 737 arrives at new St Helena airport
South African carrier Comair has carried out the first large passenger jet landing at the new St Helena airport. The carrier operated a Boeing 737-800 (ZS-ZWG) which touched down just after 12:00 on 19 April.
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Flydubai crash investigators suggest pilot go-around errors
Russian’s Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC) has issued five “prompt” safety recommendations in its interim report on the crash of Flydubai flight 981, a Boeing 737-800 that plunged into the ground after a second missed approach at the Rostov-on-Don airport early on the morning of March 19, killing all 62 aboard.
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Ryanair to test connecting flights
Ireland-based low-cost carrier (LCC) Ryanair will trial flight transfers this summer as it moves another step closer to mainstream airline practices. For years, Ryanair has been a strictly point-to-point carrier, going so far in years past as to actively warn prospective passengers against trying to make connections between two of its flights at major hubs, such as London Stansted.
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United settles board battle; former Air Canada CEO to be chairman
United Continental Holdings has resolved the proxy fight over the makeup of its board of directors by agreeing to make former Air Canada CEO Robert Milton the non-executive chairman of the board. The parent of Chicago-based United Airlines has also agreed to add two board members nominated by activist investors Altimeter Capital Management and PAR Capital Management, hedge funds that together own 7.1% of United.
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United 1Q net profit down 38% to $313 million
United Continental Holdings earned net income of $313 million in the first quarter, down 38.4% from a net profit of $508 million in the 2015 March quarter, as revenue fell 4.8% year-over-year to $8.2 billion. The parent of Chicago-based United Airlines cut first-quarter expenses 4.1% year-over-year to $7.55 billion and the quarter’s operating profit was $649 million, down 12.4% from operating income of $741 million in the prior-year period.
LinkAirports
Istanbul New Airport to be world’s largest
Construction of Istanbul’s third airport, called Istanbul New Airport, is moving forward and should be completed by February 2018. By 2035, the New Airport should serve 260 million passengers annually, making it the world’s largest airport, Turkish Airlines president and CEO Temel Kotil said. “In February 2018 Istanbul New Airport will go in service. Turkish Airlines is already building our headquarters, cargo areas, maintenance facilities, and every full technical scale we need there,” Kotil said.
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Military
US lawmakers want cost data for building 194 more F-22s
The US House Armed Services subcommittee on tactical air and land forces wants to know how much it would cost to resume production of the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor air superiority fighter and it is even willing to consider export options and foreign partnerships as an offset.
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Bill could resurrect Lockheed F-22 Raptor production
The House Armed Services Tactical Air and Land Forces subcommittee is calling for the potential procurement of 194 F-22s, a Lockheed Martin stealth fighter that went out of production almost five years ago. "In light of growing threats to US air superiority as a result of adversaries closing the technology gap and increasing demand from allies and partners for high performance, multi-role aircraft to meet evolving and worsening global security threats, the committee believes that such proposals are worthy of further exploration," the panel wrote.
LinkRotary Wing
Bell speeds 525 prototype to 200kt
Bell Helicopter has now taken its developmental 525 super-medium twin to a speed of above 200kt (370km/h) as it prepares for the arrival of the program’s third flight-test vehicle. The Dallas-based manufacturer says the Relentless has accumulated over 300h of flight and ground testing across its two certification prototypes.
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Aviation Quote
Nine-tenths confidence and one-tenth common sense equals (a) successful aviator.
— John B. Moisant, How to Fly: The Flyer's Manual, 1917.
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