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 2007Q1 513 368 109
Problems with the CSeries’ supply chain have forced Bombardier Aerospace to push the first flight of its baseline CS100 to as late as June 2013, up to six months later than initially planned.
There is a growing confidence among the larger of the U.S. regional operators that the industry, while still adapting to an evolving environment, is set for a rebound, albeit with a smaller number of competitors.
A 3-D holographic radar system that removes wind farm interference from primary radar returns could be operational as a commercial product by late 2013 at an undisclosed U.K. airport, according to the developer of the system, U.K.-based startup Aveillant. When wind farms are located within 20 nm of an airport, reflections from the rotor blades can mask the position and altitude of aircraft in a large area near the facility, a problem that is of growing concern as the desire for more wind farms proliferates worldwide.
Air Algerie President and CEO Mohamed Salah Boultif says he sees big potential for another major hub in North Africa as economies grow and countries recover in the aftermath of the Arab Spring revolutions.
Grupo Aeromexico expects to finalize an order for 10 additional Boeing 787-9 aircraft before the end of the year. The aircraft were part of a 90-aircraft Boeing order announced in July, but details on how many 787s would be part of the order had not been disclosed. The 10 787s would replace the airline’s current fleet of four leased Boeing 777s over the course of the next decade, an Aeromexico spokeswoman tells Aviation Week. Financing for the order still is being finalized, she adds.
Pinnacle Airlines’ flight attendants have reluctantly ratified a six-year agreement that provides the airline $6.4 million in concessions for its Chapter 11 restructuring. The Association of Flight Attendants (AFA), while acknowledging the need for a new contract, disparaged the way it was achieved. “Ratifying the tentative agreement does not mean we like it. Ratifying the agreement means we understand the value of preserving an enforceable contract, hourly wage rates, affordable health care and job protections . . .
Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines could expand their code-sharing services into a broader joint venture, but sources close to the airlines say speculation about cross-ownership or a full merger is inaccurate. Neither airline is commenting publicly on the negotiations. Temel Kotil, CEO of Turkish Airlines, on the sidelines of the Arab Air Carrier Organization’s annual general meeting in Algiers, told Aviation Week it was “too soon to comment” on the issue because any statement could influence the outcome of the talks.
Boeing and NASA are preparing to start a new, potentially riskier phase of flight tests of the X-48C blended wing body (BWB) research aircraft at Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards AFB in California. The unmanned aircraft, which notched up its 100th flight on Oct. 30, is a rebuilt twin-engine derivative of the three-engine X-48B tested between 2007 and 2011.
Southwest Airlines is suing Wells Fargo Bank over its refusal to accept the return of one Boeing 737 aircraft that has come off lease and another that comes off lease early next year.
Delta Air Lines will offer lie-flat seats in business class on flights from Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle to New York, initially using Boeing 767 aircraft that are being pulled from international service to get an early start on two of the routes. The airline also will modify Business Elite cabins on Boeing 757 aircraft for service by adding 16 lie-flat seats, which are being installed under a contract with BE Aerospace. But that modification, on 18 aircraft, will take up to 24 months and also includes the addition of 44 premium economy seats.
The Arab Air Carriers Organization (AACO) is making another push for liberalizing intra-regional air transport. AACO Secretary General Abdul Wahab Teffaha, speaking yesterday at the AACO annual general meeting in Algiers, said the Arab world should “adopt the successful model of the European Union” by offering free market access, liberalized ownership and control regulation, and free movement of people and goods.
A new partnership with Cathay Pacific will help Air New Zealand refocus its Hong Kong operations on connections to mainland China and other Asian destinations, following the New Zealand carrier’s decision to eliminate its Hong Kong-London flights.
The transition of Lufthansa’s non-hub, short-haul flying to Germanwings could take significantly longer than planned if the airline and its unions cannot agree on the terms of operating the segment, company sources say. The airline currently is in negotiations with cabin crew union UFO about a new collective bargaining agreement, and a mediation proposal is due next week. There are early signs that the union might not agree to the company’s offer, which could lead to further industrial action in December.
The Allied Pilots Association (APA) says scope and pay are the two outstanding issues it and American Airlines management have left to resolve in contract negotiations this week. In a message to members, the union says the contract language is almost completely written, but “there are only a handful of open paragraphs still being worked.” The goal is for the union’s leadership to decide this week whether to send the contract to membership for a ratification vote.
