American gave $250,000 to the University of Oklahoma School of Meteorology to establish a professorship dedicated to storm warnings and weather safety.
FAA this week issued two airworthiness directives on Boeing 747 series aircraft. The first, directed at the 100/200/SP series, requires repetitive inspections for cracking of the wing front spar web. FAA said the AD is aimed at detecting fatigue damage, which could result in a fuel leak and increased fire risk. The second, directed at 200/300/400 series aircraft, requires replacing fuse pins in the nacelle strut with new, corrosion-resistant pins.
AlliedSignal will provide maintenance and overhaul service for its auxiliary power units in the Swissair and Sabena fleets and third-party fleets under SR Technics/Sabena Technics service agreements. The five-year contract, covering 173 APUs, is valued at $30 million.
DOT granted Alaska Airlines and Air China International permission to operate code-share service between the U.S. and China. Alaska will display Air China's code on flights from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Portland, Ore., Seattle and Anchorage, and Air China will show Alaska's code on flights from Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou to Portland. Air China's exemption is good for one year, while Alaska's authority will remain in effect indefinitely. (Docket OST-99-5549)
Fairchild said net earnings for its third quarter ending March 28 increased to $20.4 million from $2.4 million the same quarter last year, although the results are not directly comparable because of a disposition. Sales increased by 1.9% to $146.4 million, excluding the divestiture of Solair, sold on Dec. 31. Jeffrey Stiner, chairman, said that Fairchild Fasteners, the company's main operating unit, showed a revenue increase to $103.7 million from $102.9 million as shipments to Airbus members offset lower shipments to Boeing.
Boeing said yesterday it will consolidate St. Louis facilities and eliminate 6,500 to 7,000 local jobs by mid-2001. The decision follows a Greek government decision to buy F16s from Lockheed Martin and Mirages from Dassault instead of Boeing's F15.
TWA has exercised eight options of 31 it held on Stage 3 Standard Gross Weight Raisbeck Systems, with the balance contingent on outcome of disposition of the 727s in its fleet. TWA was launch customer for the Raisbeck system. Raisbeck has orders and options for 153, spread equally between the 727-100 and 727-200. The kit, which takes about 30 work-hours to install, does not increase empty weight or disturb the Boeing airframe or Pratt engines.
Although Vanguard Airlines VP-Marketing and Planning Russell Winter is "delighted" that the Department of Justice is suing American for its alleged predatory behavior, he doubts the country's second largest airline will completely cease bullying small competitors. "Being under scrutiny does not mean they will not continue with certain practices," he told The DAILY yesterday after the DOJ action.
Northwest said it plans to equip its 400-aircraft fleet with automatic external defibrillators and medical kits, beginning late this year. The carrier also will continue its relationship with the Mayo Clinic.
WestJet and Conair have signed a five-year agreement under which Conair will provide the Calgary-based airline with heavy maintenance and engineering support for its Boeing 737 fleet. Conair, based at Abbotsford Airport in Western Canada, has been providing maintenance services to WestJet for more than a year.
Northwest Airlines Cargo will reduce pricing on its guaranteed international express product, Specific Air International, starting tomorrow. The new pricing will be 170% of the applicable contract or tariff rate, a decrease from the existing standard flat rate. Northwest also will increase the space available for the product. Chris Millich, director of product marketing, said yesterday the moves are a "first step toward an integrate product line that will be launched later this summer." Northwest Airlines Cargo operates eight 747 freighters between the U.S.
British Midland and Air Canada will begin code share service between Canada and Amsterdam via London on May 24. Amsterdam is a new addition to Air Canada's route network. British Midland flies London-Amsterdam five times a day.
BAA's group of seven U.K. airports reported overall growth of 6.7% for March and April. Figures for the two months were combined to remove the distortion caused by the timing of Easter. A total of 9.2 million passengers passed through the airports during the two months, 3.6% more than in the same period last year. North Atlantic routes, boosted by competitive fares, grew 12.7%, while other long-haul routes rose 6.6%.
Avidyne unveiled Avidyne Traffic for use as a primary traffic display for TCAS I (traffic alert and collision avoidance system), providing industry-standard symbology and traffic alerts. The product is an option for the Avidyne Flight Situation Display. The Avidyne FSD provides traffic alerts as distance and bearing text messages when displaying Avidyne Radar, Navigator, Lightning or Charts, with one-button access to the full traffic display. Until now, a remote graphics computer was required to display TCAS on a radar indicator.
FAA is proposing an airworthiness directive on Boeing 737 and 727 aircraft. The proposal would require inspection of the breather plug in fuel tank boost pumps and replacement, if necessary. FAA said the proposal was prompted by a report that breather plugs were missing from some pumps. The AD is intended to prevent possible ignition of fuel vapor on the fuel boost pump, which could result in a fuel tank explosion, FAA said.
Lufthansa Engineering and Operational Services said it is the only company in Europe offering InfraTek as a deicing system to airlines, airports and ground-handling firms. Developed by Radiant Energy Corp., InfraTek uses infrared radiation to melt ice and snow from aircraft without the use of expensive, environment-polluting chemicals, Lufthansa said.
American and Japan Airlines, which began code sharing on Pacific flights this week (DAILY, May 11), have received DOT permission to place American's code on JAL flights operated with aircraft JAL wet-leases from its subsidiary, Japan Air Charter, as well as its own aircraft. (Docket-99-4994)
A time limit of four years proposed by FAA to equip aircraft seating six or more passengers with ground proximity warning systems should be reduced to three years for any turbine aircraft and the rule should be broadened to include turboprops, the National Transportation Safety Board said. The safety board also said that the enhanced version of GPWS or Terrain Awareness and Warning System (TAWS) should be required for either turbofans or turboprops.
Cathay Pacific is offering a free companion ticket with each full-fare business- or first-class booking to one of five points - Hong Kong, Bali, Bangkok, Manila and Singapore. The offer is for either one-way or roundtrip purchases to or from New York, Los Angeles or San Francisco. Stopovers in any of the other four destinations are free as well. Travel must be purchased by Aug. 31 and completed by Sept. 15.
U.S. Justice Department took the strongest action to date against alleged predatory activity by U.S. major airlines, charging American with monopolizing service at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport. The lawsuit focuses on American's actions when low-cost carriers Vanguard Airlines, SunJet International and Western Pacific entered the DFW market. American said DOJ is trying to change the law and protect new entrants. American contends that it has done nothing wrong under the existing laws.
Air France launched a summer fare sale through May 19 from New York and Newark to 47 European cities. Fares range from $648 to $698 roundtrip. The sale is for travel through Aug. 11.
Boeing 767 Systemwide Aircraft Utilization Per Day, Fourth Quarter 1998, B767-200, B767-300 Boeing 767 Systemwide Aircraft Utilization Per Day Fourth Quarter 1998 B767-200 American Delta TWA Number of Aircraft Operated 30 15 11 Total Fleet Operations
