Aviation Daily Roundup: June 15, 2022

June 16, 2022

AirAsia X Reveals Plans To Rebuild International Network

AirAsia X (AAX) is preparing to take major steps in its network recovery, as it boosts its route total to seven and signals its intention to add more destinations including London later in 2022. The latest announcements give the clearest indication yet of what the new iteration of AAX will look like. The Malaysian medium- and long-haul LCC grounded all its operations early in the pandemic and underwent a significant restructuring to survive. Credit: Duy Phuong Nguyen / Alamy Stock Photo

Air China To Take Majority Stake In Shandong Airlines

Air China has officially announced that it has commenced the process to take the controlling stake of Shandong Aviation Group, the parent company of Shandong Airlines. The flag-carrier said in a stock exchange announcement that it plans to “hold in aggregate no less than 66% of equity interest” by acquiring shares from Shansteel Financial Holdings. Credit: Rob Finlayson

ATR, Braathens Ready For First 100% SAF Flight

ATR, Sweden’s Braathens Regional Airlines and Finnish fuel producer Neste are preparing to conduct the first commercial flight to use 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in both engines. In preparation, ATR has completed two test flights of an ATR 72-600 prototype with its Pratt & Whitney PW127XT turboprops running on 100% SAF. Credit: ATR

Daily Memo: Piedmont, Envoy Deals Put ALPA Shortage Claims To Test

For years, the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) has argued that the U.S. does not suffer from a pilot shortage, but rather a pay shortage among the regional carriers that serve as farm teams for the major airlines. That theory may soon be put to the test. Envoy Air and Piedmont Airlines—both wholly owned subsidiaries of American Airlines Group—recently announced a pair of near-identical tentative agreements alongside ALPA that will raise pilot base pay by about 15% between 2024 and 2029. Credit: Envoy Air

Air Liquide, Groupe ADP Partner To Enable Hydrogen At Airports

Anticipating the arrival of hydrogen-powered airliners in 2035, Air Liquide and Paris airports operator Groupe ADP have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to create a 50:50 engineering joint venture to help develop hydrogen infrastructure at airports. The agreement follows a year-long feasibility study of 30 airports worldwide, with a focus on Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Paris-Orly, that confirmed the potential of hydrogen to decarbonize aviation, the companies said. Credit: Groupe ADP

Higher-Bandwidth ViaSat-3 Satellites To Serve Aviation First

Satellite operator Viasat is counting on its next-generation ViaSat-3 satellites to drastically improve inflight connectivity, as the first of three spacecraft plans to launch in 2022. The ViaSat-3 project has suffered a two-year delay and entry into service is planned to take place gradually over 2023-24. Each satellite will offer 1 terabit per second, up from ViaSat-2’s 200 megabits per second, says Don Buchman, Viasat VPfor aviation. Coverage will be global, except above the poles. Credit: Viasat

Third-Country Approvals Update Will Not Bring Major Changes, EASA Says

The first of what is expected to be regular updates to Europe’s Third Country Operator (TCO) regulations will not introduce substantive changes, but rather focus on streamlining the process and strengthening its relationship with other operator-focused safety programs, a top EASA executive said. “We have started the rulemaking activity,” EASA Head of Air Operations and Aerodromes Eduard Ciofu told attendees at the FAA/EASA International Aviation Safety Conference in Washington. “But the level of adjustment is relatively modest—some tweaking here and there, allowing us to focus on and remove some of the administrative processes that are proving to be a bit redundant.” Credit: Sean Broderick / AWST

Lufthansa Technik, Diab Develop Greener Composites For Cabin Use

As part of aviation’s endeavor to become sustainable, the manufacturers of cabin-related components are looking for composite materials with a smaller environmental footprint, either recyclable or bio-sourced. While Lufthansa Technik is developing a material that uses vegetal fiber and a bio-based resin, Diab has found a way to recycle the thermoplastic foam in aircraft interior parts. Credit: Lufthansa Technik

Air4All Aims At Personal Wheelchair Access

Disabled persons currently cannot bring their own wheelchair on board commercial passenger aircraft; the Air4All consortium is working on a solution for carriers. The current situation for the disabled is largely considered impractical. The disabled passenger must notify the carrier that they will need assistance. As Christopher Wood, founder of lobbying association Flying Disabled, explains, at the airport, disabled passengers can take their wheelchair (motorized or not) with them into the jetway to the aircraft’s door. At that point, they have to transfer to a so-called onboard wheelchair or aisle chair. Credit: PriestmanGoode

OneWeb, Stellar Blu Claim LEO Broadband Test Flight Success

Two companies aiming to improve inflight connectivity (IFC) have carried out what they describe as the successful delivery of high-speed, low-latency inflight connectivity from a low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellite to a commercial airliner. Communications company OneWeb, which says it has launched around 70% of its planned 648-satellite constellation, and terminal partner Stellar Blu operated a test flight over Texas on May 27. Credit: OneWeb

Air Nostrum Reserves Airlander 10 Hybrid Airships For Domestic Flights

Spanish regional airline Air Nostrum has signed an agreement with Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) that would see it become the launch customer for the British airframer’s Airlander 10 hybrid airship. The deal, valued by HAV as potentially in excess of $600 million, gives Air Nostrum the option of receiving up to 10 of the 100-seat aircraft. Deliveries to Air Nostrum are scheduled to begin from 2026. The airline, which operates regional flights for Iberia, intends to operate the aircraft on domestic routes in Spain. Credit: Hybrid Air Vehicles

Startup Norse Atlantic Launches Long-Haul Low-Cost Flights

Long-haul LCC Norse Atlantic Airways has operated its first flight from Oslo to New York JFK, laying the foundations for its Europe-U.S. transatlantic network. The inaugural Boeing 787 flight departed Oslo at 7:50 p.m. local time on June 14, with a full passenger load. The Oslo-New York service will move to daily starting July 4. Credit: Norse Airways

AirAsia X reveals plans to rebuild international network, Air China to take majority stake in Shandong Airlines and more. Take a look at the daily roundup of air transport news.

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