Boeing's third flight test 787 has been outfitted with 135 seats, multiple lavatories and two crew rests in order "to test the passenger experience elements of the airplane," Director-787 Interiors Tom Galantowicz said, adding that the aircraft will fly "later this month."
Shenzhen Airlines earned a net profit of CNY500 million ($73.1 million) last year, nearly 20 times the CNY26 million surplus posted in 2008. The carrier did not reveal its revenue and expense figures. It transported 15.1 million passengers in 2009, up 27.8%, and enjoyed a 22% jump in cargo traffic to 306 million FTKs. It introduced 14 new aircraft last year, increasing its fleet to 136, and opened 50 new routes.
Tarom expects to join SkyTeam this year, an airline source told ATWOnline, echoing comments from alliance officials in November ( ATWOnline, Nov. 6, 2009). RO also plans to launch new service in March from Bucharest Otopeni to Riga, Bari and Nice. The carrier currently operates four 737-300s, four 737-700s, three 737-800s, four A318s, two A310-300s, seven ATR 42s and two ATR 72s.
AerSale of Florida announced the acquisition of 44 DC-8-71F/-73F freighters, the accompanying CFM56-2C1 engines, spare parts and tooling and a Level D DC-8-70 series flight simulator from an unnamed seller thought to be UPS Airlines, which retired its fleet of 44 DC-8s last year ( ATWOnline, April 24, 2009).
The US National Transportation Safety Board identified pilot error as the cause of the February 2009 Colgan Air Q400 crash that killed 50, stating in its report released late Tuesday, "When the stick-shaker activated to warn the flight crew of an impending aerodynamic stall, the captain should have responded correctly to the situation by pushing forward on the control column. However, the captain inappropriately pulled aft on the control column and placed the airplane into an accelerated aerodynamic stall."
Six of the 10 American carriers that have reported 2009 fourth-quarter results turned a profit in the period, among them AirTran Airways, whose CFO Arne Haak said that "yield and average prices are very different from what we saw 3-6 months ago" and that "even on an absolute basis, things are looking more normal than in quite some time."
British Airways' decision to impose staffing cuts and introduce changes to cabin crew working conditions, which has prompted two strike votes by the Unite union ( ATWOnline, Jan. 21), now is being challenged in court. "It's about whether an employer can, without due notice or negotiation, systematically change the longstanding contracts of employment of its workforce," Unite National Officer for Civil Aviation Steve Turner said.
EasyJet signed a multiyear contract with the UK's Met Office, the country's national weather service, to use its new online ClearFlight solution, designed to help the carrier "anticipate weather-related delays at departure and destination airports around Europe." ClearFlight forms part of the Met Office's new Aviation Briefing Service.
After two consecutive quarterly losses, Singapore Airlines Group returned to the black in its third fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31, posting a S$403.7 million ($286.1 million) profit that marked a 19.7% increase from the S$337.2 million earned in the year-ago period.
Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. contracted Heath Tecna of Bellingham, Wash., to supply flight deck, passenger cabin and cargo compartment linings, galley units, lavatories, emergency escape slides and waste and water systems for the Mitsubishi Regional Jet.
Jiangxi provincial government plans to build a CNY40 billion ($5.85 billion) aviation industrial complex in the capital of Nanchang centering on production of 25% of the fuselage for the country's C919 large commercial transport. Nanchang is about 400 mi. southwest of Shanghai. The local government signed a joint venture agreement with AVIC in December to cooperate on aviation technology and launch the Nanchang General Aircraft Co., which will support AVIC subsidiary Hongdu Commercial Aircraft Co.
Russian government yesterday announced plans to merge a series of smaller airlines, including St. Petersburg-based Rossiya, into Aeroflot. Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin said the consolidation would lift SU's domestic market share to 30%-35% from 15%-20%, according to RIA Novosti. Other carriers involved are Kavminvodyavia, Orenburg Airlines, Vladivostokavia, Saratov Airlines and Sakhalin Airlines, according to ITAR TASS.
SITA deployed the world's first Common Use Self-Service kiosks with an Arabic interface at Sharjah International, the parties announced yesterday. Passengers flying Air Arabia, Nas Air, Sama, Air India and Jet Airways are using the kiosks. SITA also is providing Web check-in for Air Arabia under a five-year deal.
Allegiant Air will base two MD-80s at Grand Rapids from April 27 and launch new twice-weekly flights to Myrtle Beach three days later, its sixth destination from the airport. It will increase its GRR service to 34 weekly flights and will have 60 employees based there.
Boeing announced the transfer of the 787 fatigue test airframe to its structural test rig in Everett. Tests are expected to begin in mid-2010. "Unlike static tests, where loads are applied to the airplane structure to simulate both normal operation and extreme flight conditions, fatigue testing is a much longer process that simulates up to three times the number of flight cycles an airplane is likely to experience during a lifetime of service," 787 VP and GM Scott Fancher said.
Boeing concedes 787-3 all but canceled Singapore Airlines 747-400 completes first multi-sector ASPIRE flight Embraer sees slow recovery in 2010; cautious on new programs Mitsubishi: MRJ design freeze by end of summer IAE wins $300 million V2500 engine order from Sichuan Airlines Additional stories
Ryanair will base one additional 737 at Cork from June through August and launch new seasonal routes to Alicante, Reus, Bordeaux, Faro, La Rochelle, Lanzarote and Malaga. AirAsia X said it will suspend its five-times-weekly A340 service between Kuala Lumpur and Abu Dhabi at the end of February, citing "commercial reasons." It launched the route in November.
Japan Airlines did not decide between American Airlines/oneworld and Delta Air Lines/SkyTeam yesterday as expected ( ATWOnline, Feb. 1), with CEO Kazuo Inamori telling reporters that a decision on a partner and alliance will be finalized "as early as possible." Newly appointed President Masaru Onishi said, "We're talking about the alliance with people concerned within the company. It's also not a matter that can be decided by an individual.
News from Travel Technology Update: Amadeus is rolling out Master Pricer Agent Fare Families, an application that will enable travel agencies to set their own criteria for sorting air fares on their Web sites. Search results can be grouped in up to six fare families, each with similar characteristcs. Criteria can include the publishing carrier, booking class, cabin, refundability, penalties, public/private/corporate fare, etc.
UPS said it finished 2009 "on a high note," reporting significant fourth-quarter improvement and closing out the year with a $2.15 billion profit, down 28.3% from the $3 billion earned in 2008. Full-year revenue fell 12% to $45.3 billion against a 10% cut in costs to $41.5 million. The company's operating profit slipped 29.4% to $3.8 billion to $5.38 billion.
Grupo TACA and Avianca yesterday announced the finalization of their merger agreement and the forming of their joint holding company, to be called Avianca-TACA Ltd. It will be domiciled in the Bahamas and held 67% by Avianca parent Synergy Aerospace Corp. and 33% by TACA parent Kingsland Holding.
Amadeus is rolling out Master Pricer Agent Fare Families, an application that will enable travel agencies to set their own criteria for sorting air fares on their Web sites. Search results can be grouped in up to six fare families, each with similar characteristcs. Criteria can include the publishing carrier, booking class, cabin, refundability, penalties, public/private/corporate fare, etc. Thomas Muller, senior manager of availability and shopping for Amadeus, said the application is not meant to allow agencies to replicate or reorganize airlines' branded fare families.
Singapore government invests in Travelport Iglu gets £4.3 million private equity infusion Is there a place for the iPad in travel distribution? JetBlue completes migration to SabreSonic CSS TravelClick unveils suite of hotel business intelligence solutions Revelex gives cruise sites the power to compete with giants World news briefing
