Northrop Grumman is looking at the potential of “really large” unmanned airships for commercial freight transportation, says Tom Vice, president of the company’s Aerospace Systems segment. Comparing the impact of such a system on air freight operations to the advent of Boeing’s 747 freighter in its day, Vice says that while there is “a lot of work to do” on the concept, the company has looked at promising technologies and that the company would continue the work—if it opts to do so—in partnership with a large airfreight hauler such as FedEx or UPS.
Click here to view the pdf Nonstop Passengers Per Day Each Way, Los Angeles - Vancouver Nonstop Passengers Per Day Each Way, Los Angeles - Vancouver Alaska Air Canada Others 2008Q1 495 381 141
London’s airports urgently need extra capacity, but finding the best locations for new runways—and deciding if the city needs a single, main hub airport—are likely to be major subjects for debate in the coming years.
Latam Airlines Group has reduced its capacity expansion through to the end of 2015 by 21 narrowbodies and one widebody. The revision reduces the company’s aircraft investment by $1.1 billion, some 17% less than planned when Latam was created a year ago with the merger of LAN Airlines and Grupo TAM.
All Nippon Airways (ANA) will maintain a low-cost operation at Tokyo Narita International Airport with the launch of Vanilla Air one day after its joint venture with AirAsia ceases operation Oct. 31. In June, AirAsia and ANA announced the joint venture AirAsia Japan, which started in 2012, would cease operation. Vanilla Air will start operations Dec. 1 using AirAsia Japan’s air operator certificate. Routes and ticket sales will be announced next month, says Tomonori Ishii, Vanilla Air’s recently appointed president.
Flight tests of a laser radar designed to detect clear air turbulence (CAT) are winding up in Europe, with the goal of reducing passenger and crew injuries by providing sufficient advance warning of an encounter. The ultraviolet (UV) lidar sensor is being tested under the €5.6 million ($7.4 million) Thales-led Delicat program, which is supported by the European Union. Developed by German aerospace center DLR, the lidar has been flown in a Cessna Citation II research aircraft operated by Dutch aerospace laboratory NLR.
What started in the cockpit and on the hangar floor is now touching the tarmac, making its presence felt in line maintenance and ground operations. The migration of mobile information technology is something short of a torrent, but “I think it’s going to accelerate very quickly,” says Freelon Hunter, Boeing’s director of fleet and maintenance solutions for Commercial Aviation Services. The use of mobile devices has grown 100% in the space of a year and he contends that within five years “a standard part of the mechanic’s tool [kit] will be a mobile device.”
Click here to view the pdf Nonstop Passengers Per Day Each Way, New York LaGuardia - Toronto Pearson Nonstop Passengers Per Day Each Way, New York LaGuardia - Toronto Pearson Air Canada American Eagle Others 2008Q1 628
Aviation Week 2013 Commercial Fleet & MRO Forecast! The MRO Fleet, Forecasts and Data you need to accurately plan and strategize for the future. See for yourself with a free demonstration: AviationWeek.com/FleetMRO Aviation Week Intelligence Network Click here to view the pdf
As demand from the U.S. military for its small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) winds down, AeroVironment is looking to move into the tactical missile, mission services and commercial markets. International sales of its small UAS, production ramp-up on the Switchblade lethal unmanned aircraft and finding customers for surveillance services and the Global Observer hydrogen-fueled high-altitude/long-endurance UAS are key to the company’s strategy to diversify its business.
If there are winners in a high-stakes, high-expectations program that generated a mere 262 orders in its first 13 years, then the engine OEM with a 55% share of the business would qualify. Measuring by total aircraft in service and awaiting delivery, the Engine Alliance (EA) GP7200 is the preferred powerplant for Airbus A380 customers, winning 134 of 243 orders with engine choices specified. (Three orders on the books—officially, at least—totaling 19 aircraft remain without engine choices.)
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has rejected calls to sell the government’s majority stake in loss-making Malaysian Airlines System (MAS), arguing that its financial performance is improving. The carrier reported a loss of 176 million ringgit ($53.5 million) for the three months ending June 30, compared with a loss of 349.3 million ringgit a year earlier, although the operating result swung to a small profit of 7.9 million ringgit from a loss of 101.9 million ringgit. Revenue rose to 3.8 billion ringgit, up 14.3% from a year earlier.
Click here to view the pdf Top Nonstop Airport Pairs: Canada - U.S., 12 Months Ending December 2012, Ranked By Onboard Passengers Onboard ASMs % Chg. Seats Per Load
Click here to view the pdf Arab Air Carrier Organization Monthly Traffic: June 2013 Arab Air Carrier Organization Monthly Traffic: June 2013 RPK % Chg. ASK % Chg.
A demonstration at a computer hacking conference in Amsterdam in April 2013 brought aviation cybersecurity into the public eye. At the so-called “Hack in the Box” annual conference, security consultant Hugo Teso described how an Android application for a smartphone could in theory be used to remotely control an aircraft’s flight path by exploiting weaknesses in the onboard aircraft communications addressing and reporting system (Acars) data link and the flight management system.
Etihad Airways has agreed to invest in Air Serbia and will soon add a stake in Jet Airways to its portfolio. Now it is looking at another investment—in LOT Polish Airlines—but the fate of Etihad affiliate Air Berlin shows that the road to financial success can be very long.
Bangladesh is close to signing the U.S.’s 111th Open Skies accord after tentatively agreeing to the first air services agreement between the two countries. The deal, when formally signed, will provide airlines from both countries unrestricted access both to and beyond each nation’s air transport system, says the U.S. Transportation Department. “This agreement will strengthen and expand our strong trade, tourism and people-to-people links with Bangladesh, benefitting U.S.
The Aerospace States Association (ASA) has joined with two national state-government organizations to create guidelines for states crafting legislation to protect citizens’ privacy from unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) without endangering the nascent industry.
