A bipartisan clutch of U.S. lawmakers has signaled that the U.S. should bring an Article 84 complaint against the European Union in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) challenging the legality of the EU’s emissions trading system (ETS).
Brazilian operator GOL Linhas Aereas Inteligentes could shrink this year as it adapts to an unexpected dip in domestic demand and the continued integration of Webjet Linhas Aereas Economicas. The new guidance marks a further decline in 2012 expectations for GOL, which only a month ago dropped a previous available seat kilometer (ASK) growth target of 4% to 0-2%.
Airbus is adding three suppliers to its catalogue for the Airbus A350. Jamco America will offer its new premium business class seat “Journey.” It targets the long-haul business segment and can be installed in a six- or seven-abreast configuration. It is always forward facing and can be converted into a flat bed. EADS Sogerma will put its Equinox business class seat in the catalogue offering. Airbus says it can be turned into a flat bed, too, with its pitch similar to current products.
The White House is tapping FAA Acting Administrator Michael Huerta to become the next FAA administrator, but the nomination may take some time before Congress acts on it. The White House March 27 announced its intention to nominate Huerta to fill the role vacated by Randy Babbitt in December. Huerta currently is deputy administrator of the agency and has been acting administrator since Babbitt’s departure.
Panasonic Avionics has bought a majority stake in inflight telephony provider Aeromobile Communications. As part of the transaction, Aeromobile’s previous owner, Telenor, will remain on board as a minority shareholder. The deal was announced on the opening day of the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg, Germany.
LAN Airlines no longer expects to finalize its merger with Grupo TAM by the end of the first quarter and will make no public comment on a new date for consolidation until mid-April at the earliest. The airlines, which have deferred their merger several times because of regulatory reviews and lawsuits opposing their union, have for months said the deal will be completed by the end of March. Then, during LAN’s fourth-quarter results conference call in February, LAN executives said the completion date had slipped into the first week of April.
Thales and China Electronics Technology Avionics (CETCA) are setting up a joint venture to develop inflight entertainment (IFE) products for the Comac C919 narrowbody currently under development. The agreement comes after more than two years of negotiations. Operations are expected to begin in the third quarter following regulatory approvals. Contracts were officially signed at the Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg on Tuesday.
Grupo Aeromexico’s dominance of the country’s long-haul market is being reinforced with the carrier’s decision to lease two more Boeing 787-8s from International Lease Finance Corp. (ILFC). The deal adds to a 2006 accord between the two companies for three 787s, which complement two General Electric-powered 787-8s ordered by Aeromexico that same year.
Click here to view the pdf Nonstop Passengers Per Day Each Way, Los Angeles - Toronto Pearson Nonstop Passengers Per Day Each Way, Los Angeles - Toronto Pearson Air Canada American Others Check Total 2006Q3
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 Check Total 2006Q3 809
Boeing is looking to buy rights to additional land for further expansion of its manufacturing operations in North Charleston, S.C., as it ramps up activity across North America to cope with the ongoing surge in civil airliner work. “There’s a lot of expansion because we have a lot to build,” says Boeing Commercial Airplanes President James Albaugh. ”We’re going to grow here in Puget Sound. We’re going to grow in Charleston. We’re going to grow in Salt Lake, in Winnipeg,” says Albaugh. “Production is 40% up over the next several years, so we need to expand.”
Cessna is teaming with China’s state-owned aerospace conglomerate Avic, a further sign that western aircraft makers wishing to gain greater access to a burgeoning consumer market will be manufacturing in China. The U.S. aircraft maker has signed two separate agreements with Avic and its related companies. The first is to establish joint ventures “that will pursue various activities pertaining to the development of general aviation businesses in China, including the establishment of an aircraft service network in China,” says Cessna.
AMR Corp. has asked its bankruptcy court to reject all nine of its collective bargaining agreements after months of negotiations with its unions failed to produce a single concessionary accord.
LAN Airlines will use its first two Boeing 787-8s on routes from Santiago to Buenos Aires, Los Angeles, Madrid and Frankfurt, beginning in the fourth quarter. Speaking Monday during the FIDAE air show in Santiago, Chile, LAN Marketing Director Pedro Margozzini said the first two airplanes are expected to be delivered in the fourth quarter. He declined to be more specific. The Los Angeles flight will operate via Lima, Peru, and the Frankfurt flight will connect through Madrid.
Confronted with changes in industry economics and what seems to be the inevitable demise of small, and possibly larger, regional jets—governments and small communities in the U.S. may soon face tough choices over the future of scheduled service at small regional airports. “I think we’re coming to a tipping point where we’re going to have to decide what the real needs are,” Kelly Johnson, airport director for the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, said at the recent FAA Aviation Forecast Conference in Washington.
Japan Airlines will begin route proving flights for the Boeing 787 within Japan later this week, following delivery of the first two aircraft to Tokyo on March 26. The airline became the second carrier to accept the 787 following a double-delivery ceremony March 25 at Boeing’s Everett, Wash., facility. JAL is also the first to operate the General Electric GEnx-1B-powered version, and plans to inaugurate 787 services with a flight from Tokyo Narita to Boston on April 22.
Recaro Aircraft Seating plans to double its manufacturing capacity over the next three years to keep pace with growing demand. The company is adding another U.S. factory, which will more than double floor space. It also is opening a China-based facility that initially will serve the local market. Capacity at its Schwabisch Hall, Germany, headquarters also is being increased.
American Airlines’ pilots union is objecting to scope changes proposed for colleagues at sister carrier American Eagle Airlines. Eagle’s unions last week were issued their plan of reorganization under parent company AMR Corp.’s Chapter 11 restructuring. For the pilots, that plan includes a change in the current language applicable to the largest aircraft type, adding six seats to the 70-seat limit on jets and four seats to the 74 currently allowed on turboprops.
The German government will acquire a 15% stake in EADS, twice as much as previously planned. The German finance ministry has set aside additional resources in the 2012 federal budget to enable the move, a government official said.
TAP Portugal managed to eke out a €3.1 million ($4.1 million) net profit in 2011 despite a 37% increase in fuel costs. TAP’s operating result was down 60%, however, as a result of the cost hike and came in at €41.1 million.
