Ryanair expects its fiscal 2014 profits to be as much as 5% higher than its record 2013 income, despite warning of rising fuel costs and airport charges, and reduced yields. The Irish airline, which recorded a 13% year-over-year rise in after-tax profits to €569 million ($732 million) in the 12 months to March 31, expects enplanements to increase 3% in 2014, with slower first-half growth of 2% boosted by a 5% gain in the second half of the fiscal year.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit vacated a lawsuit combining claims by airports groups and local communities against the FAA over continuation of the contract air traffic control tower program, as the groups seek a permanent legislative fix.
Qantas subsidiary Jetstar now is expected to take delivery of its first Boeing 787-8 in late September. Qantas has firm orders for 14 787s, and all are earmarked for its Jetstar operation. The first of these aircraft was scheduled to arrive in August, but problems with the aircraft’s lithium-ion batteries caused the overall delivery schedule to be put on hold. A Qantas executive in mid-April estimated that the longest delay would be no more than two months, but it appears that the delay is just one month.
Beechcraft is increasing its product development spending by 300%, as the company studies the potential for a new single-engine turboprop, derivative diesel variants of its Beechcraft Bonanza and Baron aircraft and upgrades and/or derivatives of its King Air and other models, says Shawn Vick, president of Beechcraft International Services Co.
Quick reactions and teamwork by pilots of a Qantas Boeing 737-800 to an unexpected and sudden wind shift may have avoided a runway excursion as the aircraft departed Perth International Airport on Dec. 4. According to the Australian Transport Safety Board (ATSB), the Canberra Airport-bound flight crossed the end of the 6,171 ft. runway at approximately 10 ft. altitude.
British Airways (BA) and Solena Fuels anticipate final permitting of their $500 million GreenSky London waste-to-biofuel joint venture by year-end, leading to commissioning in 2016. The November investment and offtake agreement between BA and Solena to buy jet fuel made from London’s trash is one of the first binding commitments to buy sustainable jet fuels in the industry. The British operator owns 30% of the GreenSky London joint venture.
Privately-owned Malaysian carrier Malindo Air will start operating turboprop aircraft in early June, competing head-to-head with Malaysia Airlines’ turboprop operation Firefly. Malindo in a statement says that it will start ATR 72-600s services on June 3, connecting Kuala Lumpur Subang Airport with Senai International Airport in Johor Bahru, Sultan Ismail Petra Airport in Kota Bahru and Penang International Airport. The airline says this year it will add six ATR 72-600s to its fleet sourced from Indonesia’s Lion Air, which owns 49% of Malindo.
The retirement age for commercial jets may have bottomed out, data for the first four months of this year suggests. An analysis using Aviation Week Intelligence Network’s Fleets database finds an average age of 23 years for 136 jets classified as retired between Jan. 1 and April 30 of 2013. That is the same retirement age a similar database analysis indicated for 2012, when there were about 480 retirements for the full year.
Confident of its future in Europe despite the continent’s current financial woes, Cessna on May 20 confirmed that it will continue investing in the region to position itself for the eventual return to growth. In doubling its European sales force and offering increased options for customers to use its own OEM-operated service centers as an alternative to longer-established independent providers, Cessna arrives at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) this year in optimistic mood.
Dassault, manufacturer of the Falcon series of business jets, says uncertainty in the U.S. market is holding back the recovery in business aviation, contrary to the interests of the aircraft manufacturers and their customers. On May 20, newly appointed Dassault Aviation CEO Eric Trappier during a press conference at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition, said, “The White House has not been very supportive, and we have to fight to protect the rights of our supporters [in the business aviation community].”
May 21–23—13th Annual European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE2013), Geneva, Switzerland, 703-783-9000, www.ebace.aeroJune 6—National Business Aviation Association Business Aviation Regional Forum, White Plains, N.Y., 703-783-9000, www.nbaa.org June 12-13—Airline & Aerospace MRO & Operations IT Conferences - EMEA, Park Inn Hotel, London Heathrow, U.K., www.aircraft-commerce.com/conferences/EMEA2013/Home.asp
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Air traffic controllers have guided an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) through U.K. airspace for the first time as part of the Astraea project. The Autonomous Systems Technology Related Airborne Evaluation & Assessment (Astraea) program was launched in 2006 to look at how unmanned aircraft could be integrated into airspace shared with other air traffic.
Privately-owned Chinese start-up Ruili Airlines will soon announce an order for Airbus A320-family aircraft, possibly next month, says a manufacturing industry source. After six years of refusing to entertain applications from new private airlines, the Civil Aviation Administration of China has given Ruili preliminary approval to begin operations, designating its fleet as six Boeing 737-700 and 737-800 aircraft. The number of A320-family aircraft in the imminent order is unknown.
The U.K.’s air navigation service provider, National Air Traffic Services (NATS), is now offering financial incentives to improve the environmental performance of its service. The company could benefit by up to £2.4 million ($3.1 million) if it manages to achieve the best possible routings for air traffic through U.K. airspace, but may have to pay airlines up to £4.6 million if it performs poorly.
The average age of aircraft in the Southwest Airlines fleet is 11 years, the carrier says. An article in the May 15 issue stated an incorrect average based on a Southwest misstatement of the figure during its annual shareholders meeting.
Heathrow Airport Holdings in a proposal to expand capacity at London Heathrow says that the extra movements provided by mixed-mode operations would significantly impact the local community’s exposure to noise.
African start-up carrier Fastjet has deferred the launch of service in South Africa by up to two months. Earlier this month, the airline detailed plans to wet-lease a Boeing 737-300 to launch a South African joint venture by late May, but it now expects to begin service between OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg and Cape Town International Airport in July.
