SAS and Estonian Air reached a codeshare agreement under which Estonian Air will place its code on SAS's daily Stockholm-Vilnius service beginning Oct. 31.
Boeing has been forced to temporarily ground a 787 flight test aircraft after one of its Rolls-Royce Trent 1000s experienced an engine surge during flight testing. The engine has been removed and a new one will be installed. The incident occurred last Friday at Roswell, N.M. A replacement engine arrived early this week and is being installed.
Cathay Pacific Airways has firmed up its previously announced commitment for 30 A350s ( ATW Daily News, Aug. 5). The purchase was finalized in Hong Kong Thursday by CX CEO Tony Tyler and Airbus COO-Customers John Leahy. Cathay will use the A350s on routes to Europe as it replaces its A340 fleet and grows its 777-300ER fleet, which is dedicated to longer-range US routes.
SAS's board of directors named Rickard Gustafson the airline's new president and CEO. Gustafson, 46, will replace Mats Jansson, who will step down Oct.1. "Rickard Gustafson is an experienced leader, with extensive international experience, who has demonstrated that he can generate good results....The entire board agrees that Gustafson is the right person to take on the challenges in SAS, to continue the implementation of the Core SAS strategy and ensure profitable growth," said SAS Chairman Fritz Schur.
ICAO's 37th General Assembly, which meets Sept. 28-Oct. 8 in Montreal, will attempt to achieve a unified position on aviation and emissions ahead of the upcoming UNFCCC COP16 meeting in Cancun in late November. But the organization will be challenged, given the differing negotiating positions held by key stakeholders as outlined by Air Transport Action Group Executive Director Paul Steele Thursday at the Air Transport Action Group 5th Aviation & Environment Summit in Geneva.
Airlines will need 466,650 pilots and 596,500 maintenance personnel over the next 20 years to accommodate demand for new and replacement aircraft, according to a Boeing crew assessment forecast. The crew assessment forecast, based on Boeing’s Current Market Outlook, states that airlines will require an average of 23,300 new pilots and 30,000 new maintenance personnel per year from 2010 to 2029.
US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on Thursday reiterated the Obama administration's commitment to implementing a satellite-based ATC system, saying that the "best way forward for NextGen…is [legislatively enacting] a 6-yr. plan" to fund and deploy the system.
Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, on Thursday delivered a strong endorsement of the ICAO process for helping international aviation meet its obligations to address climate change.
Boeing pushed back hard against claims by French officials and others that the World Trade Organization's interim ruling on alleged subsidies received by Boeing, released confidentially to US and EU officials Wednesday, is comparable to an earlier WTO finding that A380 launch aid provided to Airbus constituted "prohibited export subsidies."
Boeing said Thursday its 737NG production rate will increase to 38 per month in the second quarter of 2013, up from 31.5 currently and a planned increase to 35 per month in early 2012.
French officials claimed Wednesday the World Trade Organization has ruled that "massive subsidies" provided to Boeing "violate WTO rules," but US officials said that characterization of a report that remains confidential is inaccurate.
Lufthansa delayed its new four-times-weekly Munich–Baghdad service that was supposed to start Sept. 30 until further notice, citing weak demand. Subsidiary Austrian Airlines also postponed its Vienna–Baghdad service until further notice. Blue1 launched daily Helsinki–Munich flights aboard a 717 seating 212 passengers.
Vueling Airlines flew 1.21 billion RPKs in August, an 8.6% increase year-over-year. Capacity jumped 12.1% to 1.47 billion ASKs and load factor fell 2.6 points to 82.1%. WestJet operated 1.44 billion RPMs in August, up 8.2% on the year-ago month. Capacity climbed 11.3% to 1.75 billion ASMs and load factor fell 2.3 points to 82.2%.
Air France announced it has completed retrofitting 31 of its 37 A320 family aircraft with new seats that were jointly designed by AF and Recaro to offer an additional 2 to 3 in. of legroom (pitch remains at 32-in. depending on the aircraft) and a 15-degree recline. The seat is 40% lighter compared to the older seat, representing an average of 750 kg. per aircraft, which the airline said enables it to reduce fuel consumption by 1,700 tonnes per year and CO2 emissions by 5,200 tonnes annually.
Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co. said its Superjet 100 has "successfully completed the full scope of certification on-ground strength testing." It noted that all of the SSJ100's main components "were extensively tested to study the airframe structure behavior. The parts have been exposed to different loads up to 150% more than the normal operating conditions and all aircraft components performed at the expected level."
Two retired Japan Airlines’ ground staff are suing the airline, seeking immediate and full payment of their retirement benefits, according to Nikkei Business Daily. The newpaper reported that the two ground staff, who retired in February, received just one-third of their benefits in March.
Germanwings, a subsidiary of Lufthansa, announced it is considering changes to several routes as a result of the country’s new “ecological tax” on air travelers, a GWI spokesman told ATW (ATW Daily News, Sept. 2).
CAC Commercial Aircraft Co. on Wednesday in Beijing signed a contract with Airbus to become the sole supplier of A350 XWB spoilers and droop panels, a deal the European manufacturer said completes its pledge to allocate 5% of the next generation aircraft's production to China (ATW Daily News, Nov. 27, 2007).
IATA reported that international premium air traffic growth remained strong in July, rising 13.8% year-over year for the month “despite rising uncertainties about some economies.” Premium traffic's growth rate continues to outpace that of economy traffic, which IATA said was 8.8% higher year-over year in July.
CAC Commercial Aircraft Co. on Wednesday in Beijing signed a contract with Airbus to become the sole supplier of A350 XWB spoilers and droop panels, a deal the European manufacturer said completes its pledge to allocate 5% of the next generation aircraft's production to China (ATW Daily News, Nov. 27, 2007).
AJW Aviation announced a 3-yr. pool access contract with DHL Aviation Americas to service its 757 fleet. TIMCO Aviation Services will expand its Macon, Ga. airframe facility to include 767 widebody aircraft. It has serviced narrowbody aircraft including 737s, 757s and A320s at the site since 1998.
Canadian regional Jazz Air announced Tuesday that its 43 crew schedulers represented by CAW ratified the tentative labor agreement that was reached Sept. 9 ( ATW Daily News, Sept. 10). The agreement covers a 3-yr. period expiring June 30, 2012. Jazz President and CEO Joseph Randell said, "The conclusion of this agreement marks the end of the negotiation process with all our labor groups."
Allegiant Travel Company, parent of Las Vegas-based leisure carrier Allegiant Air, said it will increase the capacity of its 57 MD-80s from 150 seats to 166 seats. It said it will invest $50 million in the retrofit. The carrier's three 130-seat MD-87s will not be reconfigured.
