NewsCommercial
Gogo adds North Atlantic Wi-Fi capacity
Inflight connectivity specialist Gogo is has secured capacity on the Intelsat 29e satellite, which will provide immediate broadband connectivity for flights over the North Atlantic. In March 2016, Gogo selected Intelsat to provide Ku-band inflight connectivity though its EpicNG satellites and OneWeb’s planned low Earth orbit satellite constellation.
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Narrowbody backlogs vital to industry's financial health
For Airbus and Boeing, financial health over the next four years depends on two things: executing a historically steep ramp-up for single-aisle aircraft and keeping enough customers in the order book to justify that output hike in the first place. Demand for the newest widebodies from both companies remains strong, but neither 787 nor A350 deliveries are expected to turn a profit at the programme level in the immediate future.
LinkAirlines
Chorus Aviation delivers first of four CRJ1000s to Air Nostrum
Halifax-based Chorus Aviation announced Nov. 18 the delivery of the first of four Bombardier CRJ1000 aircraft Chorus is leasing to Spanish regional airline Air Nostrum. Chorus originally announced the company’s plan to purchase and lease four new CRJ1000 regional jets to Air Nostrum on Nov. 9.
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Alaska Airlines, British Airways to codeshare
Seattle-based Alaska Airlines and British Airways (BA) have established a codeshare partnership, opening up seven US west coast cities and three Hawaiian airports for BA passengers. The codeshare agreement goes into effect Nov. 23. “British Airways and Alaska have been frequent flyer program partners for more than 15 years but … [the codeshare will] forge close ties and extend this partnership further,” BA executive chairman Alex Cruz said in a statement.
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British Airways to increase capacity of Gatwick-based 777-200s
British Airways plans to speed up its move toward “densifying’ its fleet with changes to its Boeing 777-200s. The 25 777-200s based at London Gatwick will see an increase in capacity from 280 to 332 from early 2018. The main change is going from nine abreast to 10 abreast in economy, increasing seats at the back of the aircraft from 216 to 252.
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Eurowings doubles US services
Lufthansa Group low-cost subsidiary Eurowings plans to launch 2X-weekly Cologne-Orlando services beginning July 8, 2017 and 3X-weekly Cologne-Seattle services from July 11, 2017. The company said in a statement the new routes will double the carrier’s US network, in addition to flights to Las Vegas and Miami. It will also re-launch seasonal Cologne-Boston Logan services in 2017.
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Juneyao Airlines’ net profit up 22% in 3Q
Shanghai-based Juneyao Airlines reported a third-quarter net profit of CNY554.3 million ($83.1 million), up 22% compared to a net income of CNY454.5 million in the year-ago quarter. Third-quarter operating revenue grew 24.4% to CNY3 billion while operating expenses were up 26.7% to CNY2.4 billion. The carrier cited business scale expansion, stable growth of market demand and increased operating revenue as the main reasons for the much-improved performance.
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Lufthansa to receive first Airbus A350-900 Dec. 19
Germany’s Lufthansa has confirmed it will take delivery of its first Airbus A350-900 on Dec. 19, 2016. The first 10 Lufthansa A350-900 aircraft will be stationed in Munich for the coming winter. Lufthansa Technik will install the cabin interior, including the new premium economy class, as well as other features, so the aircraft will be ready to begin Munich-Delhi service Feb. 10. Boston will be the next destination to be served.
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Malaysia Airlines to reconfigure A380s for Hajj flights
Malaysia Airlines has confirmed plans to reconfigure and reassign its six Airbus A380s to a new carrier unit dedicated to transporting Hajj pilgrimage passengers. New CEO Peter Bellew detailed the A380 plans Nov. 18 during a panel discussion in Manila at the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) 60th Assembly of Presidents. He said the A380s were “too big and thirsty” for the carrier’s Kuala Lumpur-London Heathrow route and it was “too early yet for a second-hand sales market” for the super jumbo.
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Peach orders Airbus A320neos & more ceos
Japanese low-cost carrier (LCC) Peach Aviation has signed a firm order for 10 Airbus A320neos and three A320ceos, it was announced Nov. 18. The deal marks the first sale of a neo narrowbody to a Japanese LCC and the latest in Airbus’ break into the Japanese market, traditionally a Boeing stronghold.
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Republic Airways takes delivery of new cabin trainer
Indianapolis-based regional airline operator Republic Airways Holdings has taken delivery of a new cabin trainer at the Indianapolis Training Center. The 15-ton, 60-ft.-long cabin trainer is a scaled-down version of an Embraer E170/175 interior, complete with a cockpit, galley, two-class seating, lavatory, emergency escape slide and more.
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SWISS, Lufthansa announce summer 2017 destinations
Lufthansa and Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) have released their 2017 summer destinations. For Lufthansa, new flights include 3X-weekly Frankfurt-Santiago de Compostela (Spain) service from March 27, 2017; 2X-weekly Frankfurt-Bordeaux (France) from April 2; 1X-weekly Frankfurt-Shannon (Ireland) from April 29 and 1X-weekly Frankfurt-Heringsdorf (Germany) from April 15; as well as year-round 1X-weekly Frankfurt-Funchal (Portugal) flights.
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Volga-Dnepr Gulf to perform C checks on UTair 737s
Sharjah-based Volga-Dnepr Gulf will perform base maintenance services on five of Russia’s UTair Aviation’s Boeing 737s in 2016. The first aircraft has already been delivered to Sharjah for a C4 check. The companies announced the partnership in August 2015, when Volga-Dnepr Gulf performed an A check on one of UTair’s 737-400s.
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Volga-Dnepr ends joint venture with Antonov Airlines
Russian heavy cargo specialist Volga-Dnepr Group has confirmed its Ruslan International Antonov An-124-100 joint venture with Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines will end Dec. 31, 2016. “Volga-Dnepr Group’s business collaboration with Antonov will continue for the technical aspects of airworthiness and flight safety support of its An-124-100 fleet,” Volga-Dnepr said in a statement.
LinkAirports
IAD To Open Redskins-Themed Restaurant
Washington DC's airports have announced the latest new names to join their major retail/F&B makeover, which started nearly three years and has already led to the opening of close to 120 new outlets. Among the new concepts will be the region’s first airport Chick-Fil-A, with its family friendly menu along with Pei Wei, freshly prepared Asian-fusion cuisine. Additionally, a second Wolfgang Puck restaurant will join the expanded list of celebrity chef-driven concepts at Reagan National and Dulles International airports.
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Military
USAF completes insulation repairs on operational F-35s
Lockheed Martin and the US Air Force have finished repairs on the last of 13 F-35As affected by a faulty insulation issue earlier this year, though work continues on Lockheed’s production aircraft. The coolant line glitch hit 57 aircraft in September, including 15 fielded F-35As and 42 production aircraft. Repairs to the fielded jets began 7 October and later that month, two F-35As at Hill Air Force Base, Utah were returned to flying operations. In early November, the USAF also fixed one Norwegian jet stationed at Luke AFB, AZ.
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State Department approves Kuwait and Qatar fighter jet sales
Pending Congressional approval, the sales of 72 Boeing F-15QA Strike Eagles to Qatar and 40 F/A-18Es and F/A-18Fs Super Hornets to Kuwait are expected to go through, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced this week. The Qatar and Kuwait sales could help save Boeing’s Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler line at its St. Louis, Missouri facility, which has slowed production of the aircraft to two per month. The Kuwait sale would extend the F/A-18 line through mid-2018 and combined with orders from the US Navy, Boeing would continue building two Super Hornets per month into the 2020s, Boeing officials told reporters in September.
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Brazilian military validates KC-390 certification compliance
The Brazilian military has awarded Embraer a provisional type certificate for the basic configuration of the KC-390 tanker-transport, a step on the way to achieving initial operational capability with the air force in the second half of 2017. “Achieving this milestone demonstrates the design maturity that is allowing the tests campaign to progress as planned and with high efficiency,” says Jackson Schneider, president and chief executive of Embraer Defense & Security.
LinkRegulatory
Europe amends EASA rules to handle emerging issues
Rules governing the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) have been amended to enable it to tackle emerging issues. Aspects of the new rules were welcomed by pilots, but criticized by some of the continent’s major airlines. The European Parliament’s Transport and Tourism Committee (TRAN) voted on amendments to the “Basic Regulation” setting the agency’s framework and competences.
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US To Block American-Qantas Alliance Expansion
The US Department of Transportation has tentatively denied the application by American Airlines and Qantas to expand their existing alliance. DOT said an expanded alliance “would create a potentially anti-competitive environment given the scale of the resulting joint business, which would account for approximately 60 percent of seats between the US and Australia.”
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Aviation Quote
It is probable that future war will be conducted by a special class, the air force, as it was by the armored Knights of the Middle Ages.
- Brigadier General William 'Billy' Mitchell, 'Winged Defense,' 1924.
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Trivia
Airliners And Their First Operators
1. What airline was the first operator of the Airbus A310-200?
Lufthansa
Delta
Air France
Austrian
2. The Boeing 767 is the most common aircraft on transatlantic flights. But what airline is the first user of the Boeing 767-300?
Condor
Japan Airlines
Qantas
American Airlines
3. The Dash 8 is a successful regional Canadian aircraft. Do you know the name of the airline that introduced it for the first time in commercial service?
DLT
Air BC
NorOntair
Air Canada
4. The Boeing 737 is the best-seller of Boeing, many versions of this aircraft are flying around the world. Can you tell me what airline made the inaugural flight of the Boeing 737-400?
British Airways
Varig
United Airlines
Piedmont
5. What was the launch airline of the Boeing 747-300?
Swissair
Saudia
UTA
Japan Airlines
6. The Dutch company Fokker created the Fokker 100 specially designed for short-regional routes with a capacity of 85-107 passengers. Do you know what airline is the first operator of this aircraft?
KLM
Malev
American Airlines
Swissair
7. The consortium Airbus Europe designed the A300 for short-medium haul and high-density routes, it became a successful aircraft and a serious rival for some Boeing models. The question is, can you tell me the name of the first user of the Airbus A300-600R?
American Airlines
Pan Am
Lufthansa
Eastern
8. Who was the first user of the Canadair CL-600-100?
Comair
Air France
Maersk
Lufthansa CityLine
9. Who was the first commercial user of the MD-90?
Delta
SAS
Saudia
Swissair
10. And finally we finish with the aircraft of the future. The Airbus A380 will be the biggest commercial aircraft ever built. Do you know what airline made the first order of this big airplane?
Virgin Atlantic
Emirates
Lufthansa
Singapore Airlines
