Brazilian startup Azul Linhas Aereas Brasilias is closing in on a 10% share of Brazil’s domestic traffic, and it appears the majority of these gains come at the expense of the country’s largest operator, Grupo TAM.
Japan Airlines (JAL) sees demand continuing to recover strongly from a post-earthquake slump in the middle of the year, although the carrier is wary of the effect of the European debt crisis on traffic.
Etihad Airways ordered 10 more Boeing 787-9s and two additional 777Fs. The airline’s combined firm commitment for the 787-9 now stands at 41 aircraft, making Etihad the largest customer for the variant. CEO James Hogan said that the 787s will be delivered from 2014 to 2019 and that initial routes include Istanbul, Frankfurt, Dublin, Kuala Lumpur, Beijing and Nagoya.
India’s tax authorities have frozen the bank accounts of cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines and warned the company of legal action for non-payment of service taxes.
Antiguan carrier LIAT returned to its full schedule Dec. 9 although last week’s pilot sick-out was likely to affect services for days. The dispute was caused by the Dec. 5 dismissal of Michael Blackburn, chairman of the carrier’s pilot union, the Leeward Islands Airline Pilots Association (LIALPA). For the following two days all but one flight was canceled as every rostered pilot called in sick, but by the third day limited services had resumed. All pilots reported for duty on Dec. 9.
U.S. lawmakers are still trying to reach an agreement on a new FAA reauthorization bill by the end of the calendar year, if only their party leadership will agree. The issues have been largely whittled down to a contentious National Mediation Board rule and the number of takeoff and landing slots at Reagan Washington National Airport. But the fate of the bill is now in the hands of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). Officially, they have until Jan. 31 to act.
The EADS board of directors has postponed a decision on key appointments and corporate governance changes at least until January. The delay is believed to be linked to concerns in the French government over the more centralized structure that is currently being prepared within the largest European aerospace group. The board met on Thursday without making any decisions.
Air travel safety is at its best level ever, but there are still serious regional exceptions and specific causes of accidents that are cause for concern.
Airbus has started joining the front fuselage of the first Airbus A350 at its Saint Nazaire plant in France. The section comprises the nose section made by Aerolia and the forward fuselage from Premium Aerotec. The entire part is 21 meters (69 ft.) long. Once completed, it will be flown to the final assembly line in Toulouse by Beluga, likely in early 2012. The fuselage will be part of the static test airframe used for load and fatigue ground testing. It will be followed by MSN1, one of five aircraft to be used for the flight-test campaign.
Bombardier Aerospace , Montreal, appointed Stephen Young VP-sales, aircraft leasing companies; Torbjorn (Toby) Karlsson VP-sales, Asia-Pacific; and Raphael Haddad VP-sales, Middle East and Africa, all in the company's Commercial Aircraft division.
By the end of this month Republic Airways is likely to announce a chief operating officer, VP-finance, VP-operations and senior human resources manager for its Frontier Airlines subsidiary, as Republic begins taking its promised steps to separate Frontier from the parent company.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Ingrid Lee at [email protected] (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) Dec. 14—Aerospace Industries Association’s Year-End Review and Forecast, Mayflower Hotel, Washington, www.aia-aerospace.org Dec. 14—International Aviation Club Monthly Luncheon featuring Ambassador to the European Union, João Vale de Almeida, The City Club of Washington, (202) 508-8937, [email protected]
Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier and Embraer may get the lion’s share of attention, but the airplanes they build are the sum of systems and parts that are procured from hundreds of suppliers around the globe. So it is not surprising that United Technologies Corp.’s $18.4 billion deal to acquire Goodrich is generating a lot of speculation about the future of the aerospace supply chain. Will others move to counter a new aircraft “super supplier” that will sell everything from Pratt & Whitney engines and Hamilton Sundstrand electronics to Goodrich brakes and landing gear?
As scientists worry about the prospects of another Icelandic volcano erupting—with the potential to cause serious disruptions to air travel—EasyJet is moving forward with an effort to place ash-cloud detection equipment on its aircraft.
The U.S. Trade Representative challenged the European Union’s claim that it has complied with World Trade Organization’s (WTO) ruling on subsidies for large civil aircraft. The USTR filed its report on Dec. 9 and asked the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body to impose countermeasures, which would not take effect until after further WTO deliberations, the U.S. agency says in a statement. Although the amount of countermeasures varies, the USTR says it can range from $7 billion to $10 billion annually. The EU released its report last week.
American Airlines , Fort Worth, named Suzanne Rubin president of its AAdvantage loyalty program, succeeding Maya Leibman, who was recently promoted to chief information officer and senior VP-information technology.
Pinnacle Airlines Corp., the parent company of U.S. regional carriers Pinnacle Airlines, Mesaba Aviation and Colgan Air, will try to modify its agreements with mainline air partners, equipment and property lessors, debt holders and vendors in an effort to cut costs and turn a profit in 2012. But when it comes to aircraft leases and mainline partners, it may have to rely on Delta Air Lines to be in an accommodating mood. As of mid-November, Pinnacle Airlines operated 123 of its Bombardier CRJ200 aircraft on lease, all leased or subleased from Delta.
Lufthansa Technical Training , Hamburg, named Chief Operating Officer Holger Beck chief commercial officer. Karsten Schmidt, who was managing director of Lufthansa Systems Aeronautics, will become COO.
You can now register online for Aviation Week events. Go to www.aviationweek.com/conferences or contact: Lydia Janow, 212-904-3225 or 800-240-7645 ext. 5 (U.S. and Canada only) Feb. 1-2, 2012—MRO Middle East 2012, Dubai, United Arab Emirates March 7—54th Annual Laureate Awards, Washington March 13-14—Innovation Supply Chain Showcase, Orlando, Fla. April 3-5—MRO Americas 2012, Dallas April 3-5—MRO Military Conference & Exhibition, Dallas Nov. 29-Dec. 1—Certification Together-AeroConseil, Toulouse
Industry advocates are pushing the U.S. Transportation Department (DOT) and FAA to help fight a lawsuit filed by the environmentalist group Center for Environmental Health (CEH) over the sale of leaded aviation gasoline in California. CEH warned avgas suppliers last spring that it intended to sue under California’s Proposition 65 for exposing the public to lead without forewarning.
Click here to view the pdf Data Watch: Top Carriers, Caracas-Madrid, November 20-26, 2011, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Data Watch: Top Carriers, Caracas-Madrid, November 20-26, 2011, Ranked By Scheduled Seats
