US FAA said it fixed a glitch in its National Airspace Data Interchange Network based near Atlanta that caused more than 600 flight delays Tuesday, including numerous delays as long as 90 min. at several major airports in the eastern US ( ATWOnline, Aug. 27). The system failed for about 6 hr., forcing all flight plans to be filed with FAA's only other NADIN in Salt Lake City. That system overloaded as a result of the extra work and some flight plans had to be entered manually. Operations were back to normal yesterday.
KLM took delivery of its first 737-700. It ordered 13 as part of a €3 billion ($4.4 billion) fleet renewal that commenced in 2002. The 737-700s will replace its -300s and -400s. Three more -700s will be arriving later this year. Separately, KLM will add four weekly frequencies to its daily Amsterdam-Hong Kong 747-400 Combi service from March 29.
Lufthansa Technik Switzerland, formerly Swiss Technik, will launch operations under its new name on Oct. 1. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Lufthansa Technik.
Spanish authorities have recovered the engines of the Spanair MD-82 that crashed on takeoff last week and will disassemble them "screw by screw" to try to determine whether a thrust problem contributed to the accident, the head of the crash investigation said yesterday.
Embraer signed a five-year collaborative inventory parts service contract with Chinese regional Kunpeng Airlines to manage the supply and distribution of spare parts. Separately, it has begun training pilots, cabin staff and technicians employed by Brazilian startup Azul Linhas Aereas, which is scheduled to launch operations in January. Azul has 36 E-195s on firm order plus 20 options and 20 purchase rights ( ATWOnline, May 7).
Virgin Atlantic Airways selected Mercator's Skychain as its new cargo reservation and business management solution. Implementation is expected by May 2009.
China Eastern Airlines posted a net loss of CNY212.5 million ($31 million) in the 2008 first half, narrowed from a CNY305.6 million deficit in the prior-year period, on a 6.6% lift in operating revenue to CNY20.31 billion. Operating expenses jumped 10.52% to CNY21.94 billion, triggered by a 22.8% surge in fuel expenses to CNY8.57 billion. A currency exchange gain of CNY1.95 billion, more than double that reported in the year-ago semester, helped offset "declining domestic market demand" and high fuel prices that still impacted the result significantly.
Two hijackers who took over a Sun Air 737-200 on Tuesday released the 95 passengers and crew yesterday in Kufra, Libya, and surrendered to authorities without violence, according to widespread press reports. The hijackers reportedly demanded to be flown to Paris.
Southwest Airlines informed US FAA this week that it does not intend to pay a $10.2 million safety penalty by tomorrow's deadline, potentially setting the stage for a US Dept. of Justice lawsuit against the carrier. The LCC is being fined for operating 46 737 Classics for nine days in March 2007 after it had disclosed to FAA that the aircraft were in noncompliance with an airworthiness directive ( ATWOnline, Aug. 19).
ACSS submitted a new software release for its runway incursion product, SafeRoute-SAMM 2.5, for certification by US FAA. The product enables own-ship and other aircraft to be displayed on a moving map of the airport surface using a Class 2 electronic flight bag. According to ACSS, installation of Surface Area Movement Management will allow operators to take advantage of FAA's recently announced cost-share program to help fund installation of runway incursion safety systems on aircraft. ( ATWOnline, July 15).
Australia's Regional Express Holdings reported a net profit of A$24.3 million for the fiscal year ended June 30, up 3% from the prior year. Fourth-quarter profit climbed 31.7% year-over-year to A$8.3 million despite the fact that Rex is entirely unhedged. Executive Chairman Lim Kim Hai said 2008-09 earnings should "remain at relatively the same levels" assuming the price of fuel and the US dollar are static. Rex operates 38 Saab 340s to 23 Australian destinations.
Aegean Airlines reported a net profit of €5.5 million ($8.1 million) for the first half of 2008, down 13% from the €6.4 million it earned in the year-ago semester. Revenue rose 26% to €262.7 million on a 13% increase in passengers to 2.6 million, comprising an 8% growth in domestic enplanements and a 24% gain internationally. EBIT fell 42% to €6 million.
Air Canada and Jazz flew a combined 5.02 billion RPMs in July, down 0.6% year-over-year, against a 2% fall in capacity to 6.05 billion ASMs. Load factor rose 1.2 points to 83%.
Air China's first-half net income fell 20.7% to CNY1.24 billion ($180.8 million) on surging oil prices and softening traffic resulting from May's Sichuan earthquake and heightened security surrounding the recently completed Olympics. The company reported an operating loss of CNY336 million, a significant reversal from the CNY1.37 billion earned in the year-ago semester. The carrier remained in the black thanks to currency gains of CNY1.92 billion as the stronger yuan reduced the value of its US dollar-dominated debt.
Qantas is understood to be moving toward an order for the 365-seat 777-300ER as Boeing pulls out all stops to thwart a commitment to the rival A350-1000.
Bahrain Air signed a letter of intent for the acquisition of up to six A320s. It said the order would increase its fleet to 11 aircraft upon delivery. Dates were not announced. The privately held carrier currently serves 10 destinations.
Incheon said it is "indefinitely" postponing plans to launch a joint venture LCC with Singapore-based Tiger Airways. The planned airline, Incheon Tiger Airways, was to serve China and Japan with A320s from Incheon ( ATWOnline, Nov. 6, 2007). The city cited "widespread negative opinions about the project" but said the startup remains a future possibility.
GE Aviation yesterday announced a deal with Afriqiyah Airways for CF6-80E1s to power three firm A330s and three options. Firm engine order is valued at more than $100 million and deliveries are slated to begin in May 2009. The CF6-80E1 incorporates technology from the Tech CF6 program. Tripoli-based Afriqiyah currently operates CFM56s on its A320 fleet.
Midwest Airlines said it will complete the rollout of its two-class 717 cabin by Oct. 21, at which point it will offer 40 2-by-2 Signature seats and 59 redesigned economy seats on each flight ( ATWOnline, May 30, 2007). Passengers paying higher refundable fares will be assigned a Signature seat at no charge, or they may reserve a seat "for a modest fee" when booking or at check-in, Midwest said.
A US FAA computer system near Atlanta that processes flight plans failed yesterday, causing delays at major airports throughout the US, with the heaviest disruptions occurring in the eastern part of the country.
Airports of Thailand this week announced plans to invest THB77.9 billion ($2.27 billion) in upgrades and expansion at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, which opened two years ago. Plan still requires Transport Ministry and cabinet approval and is designed to increase passenger throughput by one-third to 60 million over the next six years with the addition of a third runway and midfield terminal, the Bangkok Post reported. Construction is scheduled to start by the end of next year and be completed in 2014.
Air New Zealand blamed a NZ$300 million hike in fuel expenses for a 1% decline in profit for the fiscal year ended June 30 to NZ$218 million ($154 million) from the NZ$221 million reported in the prior year. The year-over-year profit drop was a more significant 24% to a normalized NZ$197 million compared to last year's normalized NZ$259 million. Normalized earnings exclude net gains and losses on nonhedge-accounted and ineffective derivatives in other financial periods.
Virgin Atlantic yesterday reported a net profit for the year ended Feb. 29 of £47.7 million ($88.2 million), up from £6.6 million the previous year, citing a surge in business travelers at Virgin Atlantic Airways.
Eurowings majority owner Albrecht Knauf, which holds 51% of the German carrier that is part of Lufthansa's regional system ( ATWOnline, March 7), plans to sell its shares to LH, according to several domestic press reports. Knauf reportedly wants to complete the transaction by October.
