NewsAir Canada continues to eye closer United tiesAir Canada continues to evaluate closer ties with United Airlines, as competitors WestJet and Delta Air Lines work towards a joint venture between Canada and the USA. "We'll have to go back and look at how we can strengthen our JV with United," said Michael Rousseau, chief financial officer of Air Canada, in response to how the carrier plans to respond to Delta and WestJet at a CIBC investor conference on 26 September.
LinkAir India A320 floated before Jammu overrunIndian investigators have determined that an Air India Airbus A320 conducted a destabilised approach to Jammu and landed a third of the way down runway 36 before overrunning. The aircraft (VT-ESL) dipped below the glideslope after descending past 500ft and reached maximum deviation at just 180ft, before it began to regain the approach path at 160ft.
LinkQantas picks Wellcamp airport for first pilot training campusQantas will open the first campus of its pilot academy at Toowoomba’s Wellcamp airport in mid-2019. Construction of the facilities for the pilot training centre is expected to start in the next month. The cost of the investment has been put at A$35 million ($25.4 million), which Qantas says is largely being funded by private sector partners.
LinkA330-900 approval comes 50 months after launchAirbus is preparing to deliver the first A330-900 to launch operator TAP Air Portugal, after belatedly securing European certification for the first member of its re-engined A330 family. While its original 42-month schedule for developing the A330neo proved over-ambitious, Airbus obtained approval for the aircraft from the European Aviation Safety Agency on 26 September.
LinkUS Marine Corps’ F-35B makes first air strike in Afghanistan The US Marine Corps used the Lockheed Martin F-35B to launch an air strike in Afghanistan on 27 September, the first ground attack by the stealth fighter. The F-35B Lightning took off from the USS Essex, a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship, in the Arabian Sea and launched an attack on a reportedly fixed Taliban target using an undisclosed weapon. Citing operational security concerns, the US Navy declines to give additional details on the mission, though a video posted by the service indicates that a precision-guided bomb was used.
LinkLeonardo eyes African market for armed M-345Leonardo has set its sights on potential future light-attack aircraft sales in Africa, after signing a co-operation agreement with South Africa's Paramount Group linked to its M-345 jet trainer. Announced during the Africa Aerospace & Defence exhibition near Pretoria on 20 September, the pact – embodied through a letter of intent – will evaluate the "development of an operational configuration of the M-345" for the African market, Leonardo says.
LinkUK prepares for F-35B carrier trialsThe UK has taken delivery of its latest example of the Lockheed Martin F-35B, as an integrated test force (ITF) prepares to evaluate the short take-off and vertical landing type from a Royal Navy aircraft carrier for the first time. Announcing its acceptance of a 16th F-35B in mid-September, the UK Ministry of Defence said the jet would be transferred to the US Marine Corps' MCAS Beaufort site in South Carolina to support testing.
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