Lack of aviation experience should not be a hindrance for Ellen Engleman, President Bush's lead contender to head NTSB. Engleman, who is administrator of DOT's Research And Special Programs Administration (RSPA), was CEO of Electricore Inc.-a non-profit consortium that focused on developing advanced transportation and energy technologies. "There's no problem with having a non-aviation person leading the agency," said former NTSB Managing Director Peter Goelz. "It happened in the past, when Jim Hall took over, and his leadership was first rate."
The Department of Justice said it is finally planning to sign off and release rules establishing procedures for non-U.S. citizens to undergo background checks before training on aircraft that weigh 12,500 pounds or more.
The TSA formally extended the compliance date until April 1 for operators to implement security and screening programs called for in the "Twelve-Five" and "Private Charter" security regulations.
US Airways yesterday won a second conditional approval from the Air Transportation Stabilization Board for a $900 million federal guarantee of a $1 billion loan and received kudos for its reorganization efforts from the normally tightlipped ATSB Executive Director Daniel Montgomery.
Leading Senators yesterday joined DOT Inspector General Kenneth Mead in urging FAA Administrator Marion Blakey to curb the extra pay agreements that are contributing to a rapid rise in controller workforce costs. Speaking at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing yesterday, Mead said more than 1,000 controllers earned at least $150,000 in 2002, compared with 65 in 2000. Last year, 10 senior controllers earned about $200,000 a year. The average base salary for fully certified controllers is $106,000, 47% more than the 1998 average of $72,000.
Senate Commerce Chair Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) warned FAA yesterday that lawmakers need the agency's reauthorization request or his panel will go ahead with the reauthorization process without it. FAA Administrator Marion Blakey promised to present a proposal soon. Blakey and DOT Inspector General Kenneth Mead testified yesterday about some of the agency's unresolved problems and budget needs during the committee's first FAA reauthorization hearing (See related story, page 3).
PHILIPPINE AIRLINES will resume its Manila-Kuala Lumpur service with the summer schedule, offering four flights a week with a Boeing 737-400. The service was suspended at the height of the Asian financial crisis in 1998, which also saw PAL grounded for more than a week.
Lufthansa Flight Training (LFT) plans to offer three additional flight simulators at its Frankfurt Airport facility in 2004. LFT ordered an Airbus A330-300 simulator from CAE. The company selected Thales Training and Simulation as the supplier for its Airbus A320-200 and Boeing 747-400 simulators. Total cost for the equipment is US$43 million. -LR
Airlines worldwide are bracing for a 15%-20% traffic plunge should war break out in Iraq, IATA Director-General Giovanni Bisignani says, based on how 1991's Gulf War affected air travel. "This is a modest estimate taking into account that the price of fuel has gone up 30% over the last four months," Bisignani said. "The industry in Europe has not fully recovered from the aftermath of the attacks in 2001 and the airlines in the U.S. are still having a hard time."
France's highest administrative court, the Conseil d'Etat, yesterday rejected Air Lib's request to have its operating certificate restored. The fate of the airline now rests with the commercial Court of Creteil, where the airline is expected to enter a bankruptcy proceeding within days unless a last-minute savior reverses its desperate situation.
There's no money in the White House's fiscal 2004 budget proposal for the Small Community Air Service Development Program -- created by Congress and the regional airlines -- and the Regional Airline Association thinks the program will likely die. Congress approved it two years ago as an adjunct to Essential Air Service but didn't push for further funding.
The U.S. Defense Department over the weekend officially authorized the use of commercial airlines to provide capacity to fly troops and cargo to the Middle East in preparation for a possible war with Iraq.
UPS plans to furlough up to 100 pilots by September, the Independent Pilots Association (IPA) said last week. A 30-day notice was mailed to 19 pilots, and a further 81 could follow, the IPA said. UPS is still in contract negotiations with the union.
A simmering dispute over a proposed new wage agreement with pilots is seriously threatening easyJet's planned takeover of British Airways subsidiary DBA (Deutsche BA). After negotiations failed to produce a deal, easyJet told DBA's pilot union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) that it's breaking off talks and that last week's improved proposal is easyJet's last offer. EasyJet also told DBA Managing Director Martin Wyatt it is suspending meetings of the bilateral integration group that has been laying the groundwork for the takeover in recent months.
Chile and its civil aviation authorities will hold talks this week with their counterparts in Peru and Uruguay to discuss the progress of bilateral and regional agreements on open skies, including cabotage and seventh-freedom rights. Talks with Peru are especially touchy because the country recently said it would renounce the open-skies agreement sponsored by the Asia/Pacific Economic Forum. Peru alleges the agreements put Peruvian airlines in jeopardy but has not made a final position. -LZ
United's top executives in Chicago yesterday launched a month-long campaign to present details of its transformation plan to internal and external groups. Yesterday, the airline's senior team met with about 250 company leaders to give employees a chance to ask questions about the plan and provide feedback. Later this week, United officers will present the plan to employees across the country, as well as elected officials and customers.
Air France's largest pilot union, Syndicat National des Pilotes de Ligne (SNPL) and two other organizations called for strikes Feb. 17- 20 to support pay demands. Their previous strike in early February forced Air France to cancel up to 15% of operations for four days. In a separate initiative, nine Air France unions are calling for a group-wide 55 minutes' work stoppage tomorrow to protest the company's privatization plan, which will be examined by the French senate on that date. -MT
Finnair sold and leased back its oldest MD-11 to and from Babcock & Brown Aircraft Management. The airline said the transaction would add EUR13 million (US$14 million) to its first-quarter results. Finnair concluded a similar deal earlier this month; the combined sale price was $70 million, the airline said. Finnair plans to operate MD-11s until the latter part of the decade but wants to control the risk in aircraft resale values. -JF
Air Europa signed a 10-year maintenance contract with Lufthansa Technik AG to maintain and overhaul the CFM International CFM56-7B26 engines powering the airline's 16 Boeing 737-700s. Air Europa signed a contract with Lufthansa Technik in 2001 to maintain GE CF6-80 engines that power the carrier's 767-300s.
A heightened national security threat level prompted FAA and the Transportation Security Administration to impose a new range of flight restrictions for general aviation aircraft over the Washington, D.C., area from yesterday morning, following the tightening of airport security announced last week. The new restrictions, imposed until further notice, apply to a new 30-nautical mile Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) around Washington and an existing 15 nm zone. Waivers granted for the 15 nm area have been rescinded, and holders must reapply for them.
Thai Airways International's twice-daily Boeing 737-400 flights to Phnom Penh will remain suspended until Feb 14. The flights were suspended Jan. 27, following the attacks on the Thai Royal Embassy in Phnom Penh by local residents and retaliatory attacks at the Cambodian Embassy in Bangkok by Thais.
Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) is looking for a way to boost Essential Air Service funding, which takes a huge hit in the President's fiscal 2004 budget. The White House wants to slash EAS funds to $50 million, which would mean cutting service to 50 communities (DAILY, Feb. 4). The program is currently funded at around $113 million and provides service to 114 small communities.
International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC) is leasing nine new Boeing 737-700NGs powered by CFM56-7B22 engines to AeroMexico. The airline is scheduled to take delivery of the aircraft starting in November 2003 through December 2004. Each aircraft has a lease term for seven and a half years.
