Pakistan International Airlines plans to sell eight 747s to cut costs, a spokesperson told the Associated Press in Karachi.

Technical problems will postpone delivery of the first Sukhoi Superjet indefinitely, the Russian manufacturer announced yesterday. First deliveries originally were slated to begin by late 2008. "The airplane is currently in the final testing stages and it will make its first flight within a month," Alexei Fyodorov, CEO of United Aircraft Building Corp., told RIA Novosti. "Our specialists are working round the clock to meet our obligations to contractors."

Silvio Berlusconi, who is favored to take over as Italian prime minister following next month's elections, said Friday that he will reject Air France KLM's acquisition of Alitalia if and when he assumes office.

Avianca inked a $750 million, 15-year OnPointSM solution deal with GE Aviation for MRO services on CFM56-5Bs powering 50 A319s and A320s. Work will be conducted at GE's facility in Petropolis, Brazil.

Germany and Russia reached an agreement on moving Lufthansa Cargo's regional transit hub from Astana in Kazakhstan to Krasnoyarsk in Siberia, ending a dispute that had resulted in the temporary cessation of LHC's Russian overflight rights. "Our overflight rights via Russia are now granted," LHC Chairman and CEO Carsten Spohr told ATWOnline last week in Frankfurt, adding that LHC will move to Krasnoyarsk once operational and commercial conditions are met and modernization projects at the airport are completed. He expects the earliest possible date to be sometime in 2009.

Frontier Airlines reached agreement to sell two of its 49 A319s and two of its 11 A318s to VTB Leasing, which in turn will lease them to St. Petersburg-based Rossiya Airlines. SkyWorks Leasing arranged the sale. Financial terms were not disclosed. The move is part of the Denver-based carrier's effort to modernize its fleet in the face of high energy costs. President and CEO Sean Menke characterized its recent financial losses as "clearly not acceptable" and vowed to make necessary changes (ATWOnline, Jan. 28).

Bombardier announced the sale of six CRJ700 NextGens to an unidentified carrier. The deal includes 10 options. Firm orders are worth $207 million at list prices and the contract value will increase to around $562 million if all options are exercised.

Air France KLM confirmed that its restructuring of Alitalia will include approximately 1,600 job cuts, fleet downsizing and the transfer of some 2,800 AZ Servizi employees to AZ Fly with the remaining AZS staff retained for up to two consecutive periods of four years. State severance schemes will be implemented for the employees who lose their jobs.