Europe has launched a research project to test the complete supply chain for biofuels, from the feedstock grower to the airline user. The 36-month, €17.4 million ($23.5 million) Initiative Towards Sustainable Kerosene for Aviation (Itaka) will test the use of sustainable biofuel in existing logistics systems and normal airliner operations. Requiring production of 4,000 metric tons of hydrotreated renewable jet fuel, Itaka is aimed at boosting Europe toward its stated goal of producing 2 million tons of biofuel for aviation by 2020.
The engineers’ union at Boeing Commercial Airplanes will begin mailing ballots on Feb. 5 for a vote on the four-year contract proposed by the company, and there also will be a vote on strike authorization. The ballots will be counted on Feb. 19. The bargaining council of the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (Speea) Local 2001 voted on Jan. 31 to recommend a “no” vote on BCA’s proposal and seek authorization to call a strike.
Airbus CEO Fabrice Bregier says the company has been studying alternatives to the lithium-ion batteries it plans to use on board the new Airbus A350, should the need arise. “Nothing prevents us from going back to a classical plan that we have been studying in parallel,” Bregier says.
Brazil’s two largest carriers continue to reduce capacity, while the country’s fast-growing low-cost carriers maintain their aggressive expansion, data from ANAC, Brazil’s civil aviation regulator, show. TAM, Brazil’s largest carrier by capacity, cut domestic available seat kilometers (ASKs) 4% in December, compared with the same month in 2011, but retained 40% of Brazil’s domestic market. For the full year, TAM’s capacity was essentially flat, down 1% from 2011, the data show.
American Airlines’ board of directors by Feb. 15 could announce a decision on a proposed merger with US Airways. The Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport-based carrier’s bondholders currently are bound by a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), but this expires on Feb. 15, and union sources say it is likely that the decision on the merger will be announced once the NDA ends. Last month, American Chairman and CEO Tom Horton said the decision would be announced within weeks.
International Airlines Group (IAG) is pushing ahead with a planned restructuring of its Iberia subsidiary after the Spanish carrier’s unions rejected a last-minute offer to trim proposed staff and capacity cuts. “We’re disappointed that no agreement has been reached. Iberia is ready and willing to negotiate with the trade unions. We are determined and united to implement the necessary changes to secure the future survival and viability of Iberia,” IAG CEO Willie Walsh said following a board meeting held Friday, Feb. 1.
Efforts to clear the hurdles to commercial-scale production of advanced biofuels are focusing on increasing yields from energy crops and reducing the costs of harvesting, transporting and processing the millions of tons of biomass required. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) plans to award $6 million in research contracts to enable delivery of lignocellulosic biomass, such as switchgrass, polar and waste wood, at the volumes and costs required for commercial-scale biofuel production.
Pratt & Whitney has disclosed that it will be making fan blades and high-pressure turbine disks in Singapore for its geared turbofan (GTF) engines. The company held a ground-breaking ceremony on Jan. 31 at the Singapore Seletar Aerospace Park site where the new factory will be located. The 180,000-sq.-ft factory will be next to Pratt’s component repair facility.
Qantas Airways CEO Alan Joyce downplayed the prospect that QantasLink is preparing to order new jets. “We think we have a little bit of life left in the Boeing 717,” Joyce told Aviation Week yesterday on the sidelines of a Oneworld event in Kuala Lumpur marking Malaysia Airlines’ entry into the alliance. QantasLink operates Bombardier Q400s and 717s, and these are used mostly on regional domestic routes in Australia. Qantas recently announced that QantasLink has signed lease deals for more 717s.
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has updated its near-term safety plan, adding 15 new proposed actions to its standing task list and reporting that 32 of 42 items set for completion in 2012 were delivered as scheduled. EASA’s safety plan, the agency’s third, covers 2013-2016. Like previous plans, it combines EASA initiatives with those handled by member states, organizations such as Eurocontrol and industry working groups to establish safety enhancement priorities and comply with International Civil Aviation Organization standards.
Singapore Airlines (SIA) has decided to cut 76 pilots from its payroll as the airline continues to adapt to reduced demand. “The airline had earlier only been releasing pilots upon expiry of their contract” but 76 “pilots are expected to be released by June 30,” says SIA. The carrier says it has already implemented other measures to address the declining demand, such as asking pilots to go on voluntary unpaid leave and suspending recruitment of cadet pilots.
Airlines in Europe are facing almost unlimited liability for damages claims for flights canceled due to extraordinary circumstances, such as bad weather or the closure of airspace, following a Jan. 31 ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ).
Japan Airlines (JAL) will continue to grow its fleet in the coming years, but none of those additional aircraft will be assigned to China-bound routes, Chairman Masaru Onishi tells Aviation Week on the sidelines of a Oneworld event in Kuala Lumpur to mark Malaysia Airlines’ Oneworld membership. Onishi says JAL will take delivery of new aircraft to replace Boeing MD-90s, Boeing 767s and Boeing 777s. He also says the airline’s fleet plan to 2016 increases the total fleet size by about 10 aircraft.
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce remains committed to the concept of global alliances, which he deems “have never been more important,” but notes that “the nature of aviation in the 21st century” offers joint ventures and close partnerships outside of global groupings. Joyce, speaking at Malaysia Airlines’ Oneworld joining ceremony, applauded the alliance’s acceptance of “strong partnerships outside” the membership, calling this policy a “very pragmatic approach.” Qantas last year unveiled a broad partnership with Emirates Airline.
The FAA has granted a one-year exemption on rules that requiring U.S. airlines to carry Atropine in their inflight emergency medical kits, after industry groups warned that a shortage of the heart drug and the likelihood that the requirement would soon force carriers to ground significant numbers of aircraft.
Kuala Lumpur International Airport’s (KLIA) new passenger terminal KLIA 2 will officially open on June 28, one month later than planned. The new terminal will be ready by May, as scheduled, but airport operator Malaysia Airports wants more time to test systems at the terminal, Managing Director Bashir Ahmad told Aviation Week on the sidelines of a Oneworld event in Kuala Lumpur yesterday to celebrate Malaysia Airlines’ entry into the alliance.
SriLankan Airlines says it will begin renewing its long-haul fleet within months, resulting in the phase-out of its Airbus A340s. These aging and fuel-inefficient aircraft are partly to blame for the carrier’s financial difficulties, Chairman Nishantha Wickremasinghe told Aviation Week on the eve of an event in Kuala Lumpur to mark Malaysia Airlines’ entry into Oneworld. It has been widely reported in Sri Lanka’s press that the national carrier has been losing money.
Click here to view the pdf Fuel Watch: Global Jet Fuel Prices (midpoint) As of January 30, 2013, compared with previous week and previous year cts/gal prev. week prev.
