Orders for Embraer commercial jets moderated in the third quarter, but the company could still end the year with a book-to-bill ratio of more than two.
Peach Aviation, a low-cost carrier being established in Japan by All Nippon Airways and other investors, has received government approval to begin operating its first routes in March 2012. The approval, granted by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation, gives Peach the right to operate to congested airports, beginning March 1. The airline plans to operate three roundtrip flights a day on the Osaka Kansai-Sapporo route and four daily flights on the Osaka-Fukuoka route. Peach says airfares will be announced in late November.
China Eastern and its Shanghai Airlines subsidiary reported they cancelled their cumulative order for 24 General Electric-powered 787-8s on Oct. 17 while reportedly ordering 15 A330s in a move that reflects not only the costs to Boeing’s program of its long development delay but also an apparent strategy shift for the Chinese carriers.
Dubai International Airport is the first Middle East facility to offer travelers modular sleeping pods containing a full-sized bed, a touch-screen television and high-speed Internet access, says Larry Swann, creator of SnoozeCube. Ten of the sound-proof units have been installed adjacent to Gate 122 in the airport’s Terminal 1. The units may be used on an hourly basis with rates starting at about $17.80 per hour for the first four hours.
Thomas Kinton, former executive director of the Massachusetts Port Authority, has been named a senior aviation adviser at Boston-based Parsons Brinckerhoff, a consulting, planning, engineering and construction management organization. He will advise on projects, represent Parsons to the industry and participate in strategic planning.
Introducing the Aero 100 Airfare Benchmark Index Designed for anyone with risk on the future level of airfares – for example Airlines, Banks/Credit Card Companies, Corporate Travel Managers, etc. The Aero 100 Airfare Benchmark Index tracks daily airfares within the domestic airline market. The Aero 100 delivers financial risk mitigation and protection against constant fluctuation of airline ticket prices by providing the price settling mechanism for Commodity Futures Contracts.
Juan Santamaria International Airport in San Jose, Costa Rica, has partnered with the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) and the Overseas Private Investment Corp. to provide funding for projects aimed at more than doubling its passenger capacity. The banks have disbursed $100 million in loans to the airport’s operating company, Aeris Holding, S.A. The funding will allow it to reorganize airport operations, restructure debt and complete pending construction projects. Additional funding will be needed to complete expansion phases.
Sri Lanka’s air force has taken delivery of two Chinese-built Xian Aircraft MA60 turboprop passenger aircraft for its domestic commercial airline operation, Helitours, which also plans to expand internationally. Sri Lanka is a political ally of China, which is understood to have facilitated the sale with “soft loans.”
Thai carrier Happy Air, a Saab 340 operator, has suspended all operations indefinitely. The Phuket-based carrier says in a statement on its website that it has “suspended operations for a business reorganization and upgrade of services.” It does not specify exactly when it will restart except to say, “We will resume operations shortly.” Calls to the airline’s offices went unanswered.
Airbus aims to make the Tianjin, China, final assembly line “a totally integrated part of the Airbus industrial system,” says Airbus China President Laurence Barron. That goal is to be achieved as part of negotiations to extend the Airbus presence in the city beyond the 2016 expiration date of the existing contract. Those negotiations are to be started well in advance.
Thai Airways International has received board approval to buy Krung Thai Bank’s 10% stake in Thai low-cost carrier Nok Air for 165 million baht ($5.4 million), according to the Star Alliance carrier. “The purchase of Nok shares will increase Thai’s holding from 39% to 49%,” it says, adding that the move will give Thai the ability “to determine strategic policies for Nok to be a competitive low-cost carrier, protecting the market share from other budget and low-cost carriers.”
China Southern plans to begin flying its Airbus A380s on international routes in the first quarter of next year after gaining experience with the 507-seat aircraft on domestic routes. The airline on Oct. 14 received the first of five A380s on order and will receive a second in December. President Si Xianmin says the airline will use the first two aircraft on domestic routes—among Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou—to build operational experience. It will then expand the route network overseas.
Bombardier Q400 operator Porter Airlines on Dec. 15 plans to launch winter service between its hub at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and Burlington International in Vermont. “Our new service to Vermont is a perfect complement to our current winter schedule already featuring prime destinations, such as Mont Tremblant and Quebec City,” says Porter President and CEO Robert Deluce. The seasonal service to Vermont ends April 8.
Hawaiian Airlines and All Nippon Airways, which already code-share on cargo flights, have signed a deal to begin code-sharing on passenger services and hope to begin to do so as soon as Oct. 30, pending U.S. Transportation Department approval. The U.S. and Japanese carriers signed a partnership agreement a year ago and began code-sharing for cargo services last December (Aviation Daily, Dec. 22). Initially, Hawaiian will carry ANA’s code on some of its Hawaii flights, and ANA will display Hawaiian’s code on intra-Japan and Tokyo-Honolulu services.
Delta Air Lines and US Airways expect to close the deal on their slot transaction for New York LaGuardia and Washington Reagan National airports by Dec. 1, Delta CEO Richard Anderson says in a message to employees. In his Oct. 13 message, Anderson also tells employees that Delta will invest $100 million in the US Airways terminal that Delta will take over after the transaction is finalized.
European Export Credit Agencies (ECA) have agreed to provide export credit guarantees to Airbus A320-familiy aircraft assembled in China, a significant development because ECA guarantees are becoming more important for securing aircraft financing.
Travelport , New York, appointed Gavin Baiera, managing director at investment adviser Angelo, Gordon & Co., and Richard Buccarelli, managing director at JP Morgan chase, to the board.
Virgin Australia and Hawaiian Airlines are due to launch their code-share arrangement by the end of this month after more than six months of discussions between the carriers. The agreement will enable Virgin Australia to sell tickets on Hawaiian’s five weekly flights between Sydney and Honolulu, which are due to be increased to daily service from Dec. 14. Flights among the Hawaiian islands are also covered by the new deal. An existing interline agreement gives Hawaiian access to Australian and New Zealand markets beyond Sydney.
CAE’s order intake for commercial flight simulators has moved ahead of the total for the comparable time last year, with announced sales of four Level D machines, taking to 19 its haul for the first half of its 2012 fiscal year. By the mid-way point of its 2011 fiscal year, CAE had booked 16 full-flight simulator orders. The Canadian manufacturer went on to log 29 orders for the full year, up from 20 in fiscal 2010.
Iraq’s civil aviation organization has taken control of the Baghdad airspace sector from the U.S. military and is now responsible for all of the nation’s airspace for the first time since 2003. The U.S. Embassy in Iraq says the handover from the U.S. Air Force to the Iraq Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA) occurred on Oct. 1. The Baghdad/Balad sector is the busiest and most complex airspace sector in the country.
Tempe, Ariz.-based StandardAero’s Business Aviation unit is working to diversify the scope of its service offerings and move into international arenas, beginning with Europe.
