GE Aviation and NASA plan to begin wind tunnel testing this summer to "evaluate counterrotating fan-blade systems" for open rotor jet designs, GE said (ATWOnline, May 26). Testing will be conducted throughout 2009 and early 2010 at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. For the NASA tests, GE will run two rows of counterrotating fan blades with 12 blades in the front row and 10 in the back row.

Air China is cutting its international capacity owing to the market downturn but will not go so far as to defer any aircraft deliveries this year, MD Lou Yongfeng told ATWOnline at this week's IATA annual general meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

Transaero took delivery of two CFM56-7-powered, 176-seat 737-800s. It now flies 17 737s.

SkyWest said it is "aggressively pursuing other opportunities" for the 12 CRJs that are being removed from the Midwest Airlines fleet after that carrier ended its air service agreement with SkyWest and struck a separate deal with Republic Airways to provide regional lift.

Augsburg Airways took delivery of its first E-195. Aircraft seats 116 passengers in two classes and is part of an order for 30 E-Jets placed by Lufthansa two years ago.

Boeing announced the completion of the intermediate gauntlet phase of testing on the first 787, during which pilots and engineers "simulated multiple scenarios using all airplane systems as if the aircraft were in flight, including power, avionics and flight controls." Testing was equivalent to around one week of operations.

Virgin Nigeria said it will take delivery of one 96-seat E-190AR and one 76-seat E-170AR this month. It also announced the appointment of Dapo Olumide as MD and CEO, Richard Murphy as director-engineering services, Erwin Zeiler as head of aircraft maintenance and Joshua Amara as quality and service manager. Olumide, currently deputy MD, will succeed Conrad Clifford, whose contract expires June 18. Separately, industry sources told both the BBC and Reuters that Virgin Atlantic's relationship with VK will end next month, at which point it will have to rebrand.

United Airlines' request for proposals for up to 150 long-haul aircraft does not include the A380, Airbus COO-Customers John Leahy told the Chicago Tribune. "We have been talking with them for quite some time. But the [RFP] is very recent. Unfortunately [for both companies] the A380 is not [currently] included," he told the paper. Sources told the Tribune that UA is not considering the 747-8 either (ATWOnline, June 5).