Ethiopian Airlines and General Electric completed a purchase agreement for 20 GEnx engines plus three spares to power 10 787s ordered by the carrier (ATWOnline, May 2). The value of the deal is $330 million at list prices.

AirBridge Cargo will base an IL-76 freighter provided by parent Volga-Dnepr Group in Krasnoyarsk to "meet growing demand" in eastern Russia.

Two well-known sayings immediately spring to mind when summing up the 787 cockpit and its avionics systems: "A picture is worth a thousand words," and "information is power."

We've seen a resurgence of interest in turboprop aircraft as oil prices have risen. Do you see any market opportunities for Embraer in that side of the market? I do think that the [high] fuel prices will make short routes economical for the turboprops.

Swiss International Air Lines is getting rid of its final ERJ-145, replacing the 50-seat aircraft with an RJ85/100 that seats 85-100. Swiss operated 25 ERJs at one point, taking first delivery in 2000. Company officials said the ERJ was "only partially able to meet operating requirements, in view of its limited seat capacity." Last summer, the carrier decided to standardize its short-haul operation with an all-Avro fleet.

SkyWest Airlines took delivery of two CRJ900s, the first of 17 firm orders that will be operated for Delta Air Lines. Currently, SkyWest, which also operates in partnership with United Airlines, has a fleet of 324 50- and 70-seat CRJs. "This aircraft will allow us to reach further into new markets, giving Delta the flexibility and competitive cost aircraft they need in their Salt Lake hub," SkyWest President and CEO Ron Weber said. Addition of the 86-seat CRJ900 makes the airline an operator of all three Bombardier regional jet types.

Tassili Airlines of Algeria signed a contract valued at $103 million for four Q400s. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in third-quarter 2007. The carrier is a subsidiary of Sonatrach State Energy Group, which will use the aircraft to transport workers to oilfields.

Pratt & Whitney said last week that it secured nearly $1.5 billion in new business for its Commercial Engines unit at the Farnborough Airshow earlier this month.