Israel Aircraft Industries' Bedek Aviation Group will convert up to six 747-400 Combis into Special Freighters under a contract with EVA Airways valued at $100 million. Order includes four firm and two option aircraft. Work on the first begins in the second half of 2007.
Mesaba Aviation filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection yesterday, a victim of the financial problems at Northwest Airlines, which sought bankruptcy last month and defaulted on $30 million in payments related to Mesaba's participation in the Northwest Airlink program.
Bombardier revealed in Gothenburg that Royal Jordanian Airlines will introduce at month's end its first previously owned Q400 turboprop, the first to be operated in the Middle East. The aircraft, which will be used to launch the new Royal Jordanian xpress brand, will be joined shortly by a second. Royal Jordanian xpress will take the place of the former regional brand Royal Wings to denote an upgraded service.
Airbus announced yesterday that the A380 is going on a demonstration tour at the end of October, marking the first time it will be seen outside Europe. MSN001, the first A380 to fly and one of five taking part in the flight-test program, will visit Frankfurt for airport compatibility verification tests. It then will fly to Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in the first half of November. The plane will be on display at the Dubai Air Show in the second half of the month.
Qantas will add a fifth weekly nonstop service from Brisbane to Los Angeles from Jan. 28 using a 747-400. It will go to double-daily service between Melbourne and Los Angles from eight flights per week, with seven operating nonstop and seven via Auckland. Services between Australia and the US mainland will rise to 39 per week from March when it commences new service to San Francisco.
Alitalia and its trade unions agreed to an additional €65 million ($78.2 million) in annual cost savings over the next three years. The savings will be included in the updated Business Plan 2005-2008, which will be discussed by the airline's board today. The accord involves efficiency measures and productivity improvements for pilots, flight attendants and ground staff, but does not contain further job cuts or pay reductions.
BAE Systems Regional Aircraft leased two 29-seat Jetstream 41s to Eastern Airways, raising the number of aircraft in the British airline's J-41 fleet to 19. Eastern is now the largest fleet operator of the type outside the US.
Sabre Holdings said it signed a five-year agreement with AirTran Airways under which the Orlando-based LCC committed to make "all its fares and inventory available through the Sabre Travel Network and Travelocity." Additionally, Travelocity Partner Network will become the sole supplier of hotel, cruise and AirTran Vacations packaging for the AirTran website.
US Airways named Hal Huele senior VP-technical operations. Huele, 57, most recently was senior VP-safety and regulatory compliance. He replaces John Prestifilippo, who joined Spirit Airlines as senior VP-technical operations. Also departing US Airways for Spirit was MD-Europe Tony Lefebvre, who becomes senior VP-customer service for the Ft. Lauderdale-based budget carrier.
MAXJet Airways, which plans to launch service between New York JFK and London Stansted Nov. 1, said it signed a lease for a second 767 and a letter of intent for its third, with both expected to arrive in early November.
Air Atlantique took delivery of the first of two ATR 72s purchased from Finnair. The Coventry-based carrier expects to have the aircraft in service, along with its three other ATRs, by the end of October.
Iberia decided not to participate in the privatization of AeroMexico and Mexicana, citing unfavorable market conditions. According to AFX in Madrid, Iberia Chairman Fernando Conte previously expressed concern over the ability of the two airlines to compete with their current business structure against emerging low-cost carriers. He also was not satisfied that foreign investment would be kept to 25%. However, according to Reuters, Spain's Globalia, which owns Air Europa, is interested in bidding for the airlines.
Airbus, a week after the program received formal go-ahead, announced that Eurofly signed a letter of intent for three A350-800s for delivery from 2013 ( ATWOnline, Oct. 7). The Italian leisure airline also signed up to lease two A330-200s powered by PW4000s starting in late 2006. Including the Eurofly deal, Airbus now has 143 commitments for the A350 and expects to hit 200 by year end.
SITA INC said British Airways, Cathay Pacific, China Eastern and Malev signed contracts with a total value of $10 million for its new Airfare Insight solution. Airfare Insight, part of SITA's Airfare suite of applications, enables airlines to manage their entire fare structure in one system.
Japan Airlines on Oct. 30, will begin codesharing with China Eastern Airlines on three domestic routes: Shanghai-Chengdu, Shanghai-Chongqing, and Shanghai-Shenzhen, a total of 42 weekly flights. JAL already codeshares with Hainan Airlines on seven weekly flights between Beijing and Chengdu. It also operates JAL China Express with Hainan Airlines from Beijing to three Chinese cities and on six routes from Beijing in cooperation with China Southern Airlines.
Comair, Delta Air Lines' Regional subsidiary, announced Thursday it will cut 250-650 more jobs as part of its effort to reduce costs by $70 million in support of the parent company's emergence from Chapter 11. Comair announced 350 layoffs at its Cincinnati hub five weeks ago. A company spokesman told ATWOnline yesterday that the airline will examine the impact of a planned December reduction in fleet size and traffic before deciding how many layoffs will be required. Those cuts likely will not happen before year end. The changes will not be immediate.
ATR announced an order from Air Tahiti for an ATR 72-500 scheduled for delivery in June 2008. The airline currently operates 10 ATRs and holds orders for five more. Air Tahiti officials said the new aircraft will handle the additional traffic generated from resorts being developed on Bora Bora. ATR also said that Spain's Binter Canarias ordered a new ATR 72-500, which is set for delivery in mid-2006. It currently operates a fleet of 13 ATRs.
The European Parliament's Transport Committee called for the introduction of a community blacklist of operating bans or air traffic rights restrictions on carriers that do not meet international aircraft safety standards. The list should cover not only EU aircraft but also aircraft chartered from companies in non-EU countries.
Qantas began implementing enhanced QuickCheck facilities in Brisbane, permitting passengers with hold luggage to check in using the airline's automated ticket kiosks. Service is scheduled to begin in Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra during the next two months.
Smiths Detection unveiled Tuesday its Hi-Scan 6040aTiX, a new multi-view X-ray inspection system promising to detect and pinpoint explosives in carry-on baggage. The machine can replace other Hi-Scan systems without necessitating significant changes in checkpoint design, the company said. It is expected to go into full production by mid-2006.
Atlantic Air Transport, part of English charter company Air Atlantique Group, took delivery Oct. 7 of its first ATR 72. The turboprop, purchased from Estonia's Aero Airlines, joins a fleet of three ATR 42-300s operating ACMI contract and ad hoc passenger and cargo flights. Skyways Aviation arranged the transaction.
Former Canadian Airlines pilots yesterday refused a request by Air Canada and the Air Canada Pilots Assn. to participate in a new round of mediated talks over the integration of Canadian and Air Canada pilot seniority lists following AC's purchase of Canadian five years ago ( ATWOnline, Sept. 26). The rejection does not threaten Air Canada's potential order for up to 96 777s and 787s, which is subject to separate negotiations, the company said.
United Airlines intends to recall approximately 300 pilots next year to meet an expected increase in flying. This is about 16% of the pilot population currently on furlough, or 5% of the airline's total pilot population. As of Oct. 7, United had recalled 234 pilots in 2005 out of 2,172 on furlough.
AirTran Airways' customer service representatives, ramp workers and reservations agents filed with the National Mediation Board for representation by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters yesterday. The work groups number 2,400 employees, and excluding salaried and management staff are the last nonunionized employees at AirTran. The carrier's mechanics, stock clerks and tech training instructors already had affiliated with the Teamsters.
Airservices Australia and European Aeronautical Group signed a dealership agreement on Oct. 6 giving AA the rights to market and sell EAG's Navdata products throughout Australasia and the Far East.
