Airbus yesterday operated its first test flight powered by a PurePower PW1000G engine using an A340-600 in Toulouse. The engine features Pratt & Whitney's Geared Turbofan technology. P&W Commercial Engines President Todd Kallman said, "Demonstrating the Geared Turbofan technology throughout its entire operating envelope using the Airbus A340 flight test aircraft. . .will provide us with valuable installation and operating data." The Airbus/P&W flight test program follows 43 flight hr. on Pratt's 747SP flying testbed.
Ryanair said it "may" decide to close its Valencia base Friday over a dispute with the regional government, which the LCC claimed "has opted to support other airlines who have not provided a fraction of the growth which Ryanair has to the airport" and has failed to reply to its "proposal on how to ensure the continued growth" at VLC. It set Friday as a deadline for that response. No further details were provided.
Goodrich yesterday signed a data license agreement with Boeing for the use of detail engineering design to obtain parts manufacturing authority for replacement landing gear parts. License allows Goodrich to manufacture certified PMA parts under its FAA-approved system and distribute directly to operators.
AirAsia X hopes to announce its first UK service from its base at Kuala Lumpur International's low-cost-carrier terminal next month and commence the route in March, CEO Azran Osman Rani told ATWOnline at the Routes Leaders Forum in the Malaysian capital.
B/E Aerospace yesterday announced a deal with Airbus valued at more than $1 billion to provide galley systems for A350 XWBs. Systems are designed to accommodate aircraft's "flex zones" and allow airlines to select various galley positions and configurations. Deliveries will begin in 2013.
Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines, India's two largest private carriers, yesterday announced the formation of an "alliance" that will include codesharing on both domestic and international flights and a wide-ranging pooling of resources.
Airstream International Group announced the lease of four ERJ-145s to regional startup Athens Airways. Aircraft currently are operated by Flybe and will be delivered to Athens starting next month. Airline is scheduled to begin flying next April to "most of the basic regional Greek destinations," Airstream said.
Iberia flew 4.43 billion RPKs in September, down 6.3% from the year-ago month. Capacity fell 1.4% to 5.5 billion ASKs and load factor dropped 4.2 points to 80.6%. TAM flew 1.91 billion domestic RPKs in September, up 15% year-over-year, against a 17.5% increase in ASKs to 2.95 billion. Load factor fell 1.4 points to 64.6%. International RPKs jumped 41.5% to 1.33 billion, capacity rose 25.4% to 1.66 billion ASKs and load factor was up 9.2 points to 80.4%.
Jetstar Airways announced plans to launch daily flights from Auckland to Sydney and Gold Coast on April 28. Its transtasman schedule currently comprises 28 weekly A320 return flights from Christchurch to SYD, OOL, Melbourne and Brisbane. The move increases competition on the AKL-SYD route, which currently is operated by seven carriers and will see Pacific Blue, Virgin Blue's low-fare international arm, launch service today with nine-times-weekly flights. It already operates daily AKL-MEL. On Feb. 1, Emirates will replace its daily 777-300ER AKL-SYD with an A380.
Australian investigators said there is no evidence linking the use of mobile telephones or laptops with last week's Qantas A330-300 inflight incident that injured more than 70 people ( ATWOnline, Oct. 9) as has been speculated. The aircraft remains grounded at Learmonth while Australian and French investigators, Airbus and QF staff examine its computers.
Embraer delivered 37 commercial jets, nine executive jets and two aircraft for defense/government use in the third quarter compared to 38 commercial and nine business aircraft in the year-ago period. The Brazilian manufacturer received 13 commercial orders during the quarter and its firm order backlog was valued at $21.6 billion, up 4.3% year-over-year. Nine-month deliveries totaled 145 aircraft, up 34%, and it reaffirmed its estimate that it will deliver 195-200 aircraft this year. Separately, LAM Mozambique Airlines signed a contract for two E-190s plus two purchase rights.
Air Berlin confirmed that it is discussing a possible merger with TUIfly, whose effort to combine with Condor and Germanwings was scuttled when Condor parent Thomas Cook withdrew last month ( ATWOnline, Sept. 30). "There are talks, but no results," an AB spokesperson told Bloomberg News.
Jazeera Airways has partnered with NBK Capital and DVB Bank to launch a Kuwait-based aircraft lessor called Sahaab Aircraft Leasing, the companies announced yesterday. Sahaab has been capitalized at $375 million and plans to order 40-50 aircraft from Boeing and Airbus next year, according to press reports. Jazeera CEO Marwan Boodai told Reuters that the low-fare airline will be Sahaab's first customer and that "the Gulf offers plenty of growth opportunities. Cash is here."
Malaysia Airlines is postponing its decision on its long-haul fleet renewal owing to current market conditions, CEO and MD Idris Jala told ATWOnline at the World Route Development Forum in Kuala Lumpur. "It is clear that we will delay the process to look at a widebody aircraft order. We are not in a hurry," he said. MAS had anticipated analyzing future widebody requirements in the current quarter to complement its spring commitment for 35 737-800s plus 20 options ( ATWOnline, April 1).
Rockwell Collins will provide Aer Lingus with a suite of avionics including MultiScan weather radar, GLU-920 Multi-Mode Receiver and a range of communication and navigation offerings on six A330s. Deliveries are slated to begin next year.
SkyWorks Leasing entered a comprehensive aircraft management and remarketing agreement with Philip Morris Capital Corp. covering the latter's entire portfolio of 119 aircraft currently on lease to US carriers. Deal includes asset management services such as technical management and supervision, future dispositions, sales and re-leases. Terms were not disclosed.
News from Travel Technology Update: Amadeus plans to introduce Crazy Shopping, an application that will free searches from the tyranny of origin, destination and time frame, in the second quarter of next year. The new search functionality enable users to query airlines in new ways: "I live between Frankfurt and Munich and can fly from either airport. I would like to go to either Thailand or Indonesia. Show me my options." Or, "I have €600. Where can I go?"
Greater Toronto Airports Authority will reduce landing fees at Toronto Pearson by 0.4% next year and terminal charges by 0.6%, offering "projected savings" for airlines of C$28 million ($23.9 million).
China Eastern Airlines expects to report a significant loss for the first nine months of 2008 owing to the sharp decline in domestic market conditions and a CNY720-per-ton increase in third-quarter jet fuel prices. CEA posted a CNY212.5 million ($31 million) net loss in the 2008 first half and said it will deepen due to a "decline in domestic demand starting from the third quarter" that it said will continue for the time being as a result of the global economic slowdown.
Thales Training and Simulation and A J Walter Aviation added the A330 to a flight simulator support program under an agreement announced last week. Program also covers the A320 and 777 and includes maintenance and spare parts for instruments and avionics.
Continental Airlines' third-quarter result, scheduled to be released Thursday, will include $91 million in special charges, it said in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Alitalia investor group CAI will delay its formal offer to the airline's administrator by two weeks to Oct. 28, when it will hold a shareholder meeting to approve a charter and capital increase, Agence France Presse reported ( ATWOnline, Oct. 3).
Pratt & Whitney restructured and placed its Commercial Engines, Global Service Partners and Global Material Solutions operations into a new unit named Commercial Engines & Global Services that will be led by Todd Kallman as president. Kallman has headed the Commercial Engines business since 2006. Global Service Partners is Pratt's maintenance, repair and overhaul organization and Global Material Solutions is its engine parts business that is developing non-OEM parts for the CFM56-3.
Amadeus said Qantas completed migration to its Altea Customer Management System streamlining sales, reservations, inventory and departure control management capabilities. Migration "is an unprecedented milestone in the industry and makes Qantas the first to become fully operational on the entire Altea platform," the company said.
