Air Canada expects 2014 capacity to grow about 10% next year, a significant increase on the 2-2.5% rise in available seat miles the carrier is forecasting for this year. The 2014 increase in supply is the result of a fleet plan that adds six Boeing 787s, the planned growth of low-cost subsidiary Rouge and the final deliveries of high-density Boeing 777-300ERs, Air Canada said last week during its third-quarter results earnings call.
International Airlines Group (IAG) is making changes in its governance and that of two of its airlines, British Airways (BA) and Iberia. Antonio Vazquez will step down as non-executive chairman of Iberia, and Martin Broughton will resign from his role as BA non-executive chairman, in order to focus on their new roles as chairman and deputy chairman of IAG, respectively.
High-profile AirAsia co-founder Tony Fernandes is returning to a more hands-on role at the low-cost carrier as he assumes the position of group CEO. Fernandes has most recently been serving as non-executive director, and had been focusing much of his attention on the carrier’s Indonesian office, established two years ago partly to oversee AirAsia’s growth in Southeast Asia. AirAsia has established multiple joint-venture franchises across the region.
Avic Engine, well into development of a technically conservative high-bypass turbofan, is pushing to replace affiliate ACAE as the supplier of a Chinese engine for the Comac C919 airliner. In doing so, Avic Engine, the main propulsion subsidiary of state aeronautics group Avic, is offering a more dependable and realistic way for China to accumulate early experience in developing, building and commercial aircraft engines.
The European Commission (EC) is investigating whether a €200 million ($268 million) bailout by the Polish government for the ailing state-owned carrier LOT Polish Airlines earlier this year complies with state-aid rules. The Commission says it is “concerned that the forecasts on long-term viability may not be realistic, and that the proposed capacity reduction may not be adequate to compensate for the distortions of competition.”
Air New Zealand says the world’s first scheduled Boeing 787-9 route will be between its Auckland Airport hub and Perth Airport in western Australian, with the aircraft taking over that flight from Oct. 15, 2014. The carrier is the launch customer for the -9 version of the 787, and the first aircraft is expected to be delivered in July. Before it is assigned to the Perth service, it will be used on some one-off flights on various routes to Australia, an airline spokeswoman tells Aviation Week. These flights, however, will not be advertised as 787 flights.
The Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB) says a rare but potentially dangerous un-commanded nose wheel steering problem in Boeing aircraft is increasing the risk of runway excursions. “As their cause is uncertain and because little is being done to better understand the problem, the Board is concerned that there remains a risk for runway excursions to occur,” says the TSB.
Click here to view the pdf Fuel Watch: Global Jet Fuel Prices (midpoint) As of November 6, 2013, compared with previous week and previous year cts/gal prev. week prev.
Airbus, reasoning that the evolution of maintenance providers has rendered a manufacturer-led competency improvement effort obsolete, is disbanding its MRO Network, Aviation Week has learned. The 17 network members have heard directly from Airbus executives and received formal letters explaining the move, Airbus Senior Vice President-Customer Services and Support Tom Anderson tells Aviation Week. The network will be officially terminated in early 2014, following a contractually obligated notification period in the standard member contract.
Engine manufacturer GE Aviation is to buy 500,000 gal. of biofuel annually for engine testing, beginning in 2016. The company uses more than 10 million gal. of jet fuel a year at its engine test centers. GE Aviation has signed a 10-year agreement with the D’Arcinoff Group to purchase synthetic jet fuel made from a combination of cellulosic biomass and natural gas using the Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) process.
Jetstar Airways has received approval from Australian aviation authorities to operate Boeing 787s, clearing the way for the first scheduled 787 flight on Nov. 13. Jetstar took delivery of its first 787-8 in October, and the initial flight will be from the carrier’s hub at Melbourne Airport to the Gold Coast Airport. On the following day, Nov. 14, it will be used on the Melbourne-Cairns route. The first 787 will be assigned to these two domestic routes for about a month, a Jetstar spokesman tells Aviation Week.
The first requirements for civil certification of unmanned aircraft have been published by a European-led group of national aviation authorities. The airworthiness code is for unmanned helicopters with a maximum takeoff weight of 750 kg. (1,650 lb.). The regulations have been developed by the Joint Authorities for Rulemaking on Unmanned Systems (Jarus), comprising the civil aviation authorities of 22 countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Russia and the U.S., as well as European organizations.
Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary stands by plans to eventually launch a long-haul subsidiary, but these are unlikely to materialize in the next 3-4 years because of the difficulty in securing a sizeable order of new generation widebody aircraft such as the Boeing 787 or Airbus A350 at an attractive price.
Japan Airlines (JAL) says it is considering further action after Japan’s aviation regulator refused the carrier’s request to revise a slot award decision at Tokyo Haneda Airport that favored rival All Nippon Airways (ANA). JAL had requested that Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MLIT) reverse the Oct. 2 ruling that gave ANA a greater share of new slots at Haneda, which is congested. However, an official from the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau—the unit of the ministry which deals with aviation—says JAL’s appeal was rejected on Nov. 5.
Click here to view the pdf Top Carriers - Bogota, Oct. 15-21, 2013, Ranked By Scheduled Outbound ASMs Top Carriers - Bogota, Oct. 15-21, 2013, Ranked By Scheduled Outbound ASMs Departures Airport Share ASMs (mil) Airport Share Seats/Dept.
The Senegalese government will increase its 36% stake in Senegal Airlines to 51% as part of a “substantial” recapitalization of the troubled carrier. The change in ownership is part of a restructuring effort that overhauls the airline’s operations and incorporates regional aircraft into a fleet that currently consists of three Airbus A320s and one ATR 72-500. According to Minister of Tourism and Air Transport Oumar Gueye, negotiations with various undisclosed manufacturers are already at an advanced stage.
Saudi Arabian Airlines’ CEO Khalid Almolhem is strongly in favor of his government selling the airline to private investors, but sees little prospect of that in the short term. “Privatizing the airline will be very difficult as long as there are pricing caps in the domestic market. But it would make much sense for me to be away from the government,” Almolhem said yesterday at the Arab Air Carriers Organization annual general meeting in Doha.
While Boeing’s planned production rate increase to 47 Boeing 737s a month in 2017 will add pressure on its suppliers, the bigger ramifications may come on the aftermarket, an industry analyst suggests. Boeing is already set to increase 737NG rates from the current 38 per month to 42 a month next year. The widely anticipated move to 47 each month, announced last week, will put more 737NGs into service faster as Boeing ramps up a new assembly line to start delivering the 737 MAX in 2017.
Boeing has reached a tentative agreement with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union that, if ratified, will help clear the way for the final assembly of the Boeing 777X and its composite wing in the Puget Sound area of Washington.
