The National Transportation Safety Board believes crew members piloting the Pinnacle Airlines CRJ-200 that crashed in October 2004 made huge deviations from standard operating procedures, which left them unable to restart the plane's engines after they induced a stall at 41,000 feet, the upper end of the aircraft's flight envelope.
The U.S. Transportation Dept. yesterday said it will award its coveted China frequencies to United, accepting the carrier's argument that its capital-to-capital flights would provide the most new capacity and open a new U.S. market for direct China service.
Korean Air will begin carrying the Northwest code on cargo flights it operates between Anchorage and New York Kennedy Airport. Korean operates the flights as part of a Seoul Incheon-Anchorage-New York; Northwest already holds authority to code share on the Incheon-Anchorage segment [OST-2004-19670].
Comair management and pilots have enlisted the aid of a mediator for the next round of negotiations as the Feb. 2 deadline to reach a new deal approaches.
Bolivia's ongoing fuel shortage forced both Lloyd Aereo Boliviano (LAB) and Aerosur to increase their international fares as much as 30% and cancel some flights to Madrid earlier this month, a move that inconvenienced hundreds of passengers.
Japan Airlines posted modest domestic and international passenger growth for the Japanese New Year vacation from Dec. 28 to Jan. 8. Internationally, JAL recorded a large jump in the number of passengers traveling from Japan to China, up nearly 31% on the same period of the previous New Year. The airline also saw a moderate increase in the number of passengers traveling from Japan to Korea and Southeast Asia, rising by 3.3% and 5.6%, respectively.
Passenger and freight traffic worldwide rose by 4% and 5%, respectively, in November 2006, according to statistics released by Airports Council International. A 7% hike in international traffic was credited with overall passenger growth during the month, compared with November 2005. A more moderate 3% increase was reported for domestic passenger traffic.
Network communications between the Transportation Security Administration and airports could work much faster under a pilot program to test powerline communications technology. The technology uses existing facility electrical wiring as the physical layer for data communications. "TSA has not yet committed to use any powerline communications providers but is currently testing technology provided by Telkonet Communications System," said spokeswoman Amy Kudwa.
Frontier management reached a tentative four-year pact with pilots that the Frontier Airlines Pilots Association said improves work rules, job protection and retirement benefits. A vote on the deal is scheduled mid-month and, if approved, would take effect March 1. Frontier is in the midst of setting up a new subsidiary to fly Q400 turboprops to smaller markets and is weighing bids from regional airlines to fly up to 20 Bombardier CRJ-700s. -LR
A Frontier A319 passed within 50 feet of another aircraft while executing a missed approach at Denver Airport last Friday morning. The Frontier aircraft broke out of cloud on approach, but the pilot saw a Key Lime Air Swearingen Metroliner on the runway.
JetBlue is poised to become the largest carrier between New York City and the San Francisco Bay Area in terms of daily passengers carried when it starts new service to SFO on May 3.
JFK Terminal 1 has become the latest to sign up for Verified Identity Pass's Clear registered traveler program. Air France is sponsoring the Clear program at Terminal 1 and all airlines operating at the terminal will be able to register their passengers. Verified ID has already announced plans to operate the program at JFK Terminal 7 in conjunction with British Airways.
New Varig is expanding its domestic network in January with new or additional frequencies to points including Rio, Sao Paulo, Londrina, Espiritu Santo, Porto Alegre, Recife, Belo Horizonte, Florianopolis and Fernando de Noronha.
US Airways yesterday added Morgan Stanley as "joint lead arranger" with Citigroup to underwrite the airline's $7.2 billion debt financing for its proposed merger with Delta, and executives hinted said there may be a third firm added in the future.
The future of grounded international low-cost carrier Air Madrid remains uncertain in the wake of the airline's pre-holiday suspension (DAILY, Dec. 18), even as airline executives and workers float ideas aimed at correcting the crisis.
EasyJet last week canceled all flights to Bristol because of concerns over runway safety. The runway was recently paved and EasyJet still has safety concerns when the surface is wet. The airline said it was in discussions with the airport.
The U.S. Homeland Security and Transportation departments are seeking public input into the fate and future of the four-decades-old LORAN system, including whether to cancel it altogether, maintain the current system or spend funds to jump to a high-technology "enhanced" version.
Icaro got the nod from the U.S. Transportation Dept. to fly charters between its home country of Ecuador and the U.S. (DAILY, July 25.) The carrier will use a Boeing 737-200 for the service, which Icaro can operate itself thanks to Ecuador's upgrade in FAA's IASA program earlier this year [OST-2006-25409].
The European Commission tomorrow in Brussels is expected to debate a series of wide-ranging proposals on energy efficiency, climate change, and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, EC President Jose Manuel Barroso told reporters yesterday in Washington. Barroso said measures such as the controversial Emissions Trading Scheme -- which the European Union extended to aviation last month -- comprise some of the "most important challenges of the 21st century."
Airbus yesterday confirmed that low-cost carrier Air Asia has ordered 50 A320s, with options for another 50. The deal has been anticipated since December. The deal brings the Air Asia Group order total to 150 aircraft, plus 50 options. The carrier ordered 60 A320s in March 2005, and another 40 in July 2006. Air Asia is expected to become the second-largest A320 operator in the world by 2012.
