AlliedSignal said its new 331-600 auxiliary power unit has been selected for two growth versions of the Airbus A340. The contract is expected to generate more than $1 billion in original equipment, aftermarket parts, repairs and overhaul services. The first 331-600 engine to test will be this May with entry into service in 2002.
Continental wants to operate U.S.-Mexico code-share service with Northwest and Alaska. Continental applied for exemption authority to code share with Northwest between Detroit and Cancun, Cozumel, Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, Puerto Vallarta and Mexico City; Memphis and Cancun; Minneapolis/St. Paul and Acapulco, Cancun, Cozumel, Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, Puerto Vallarta and San Jose del Cabo, and between Tampa and Cancun.
Air Transport Association (ATA), on behalf of four airlines and supported by pilots unions and industry, is expected to request within two weeks that FAA increase by 15% the maximum flying time from an airport, currently 180 minutes, that carriers may operate Boeing's 777 twin-engine transport. Requests are expected to follow that carriers also be allowed to operate Airbus's A330 twin 207 minutes from a landing site. This summer, FAA is expected to get a request to allow 180-minute extended twin-engine operations (ETOPS) for the next-generation Boeing 737s.
Malaysia Airlines has moved up the launch date of its new service from Kuala Lumpur to Manchester, U.K. MAS began flying yesterday, after originally planning to start July 1. The new route operates with 777s three times a week, and flights in both directions include a stop in Munich. Service to Manchester, MAS's 112th destination, is in addition to 14 weekly flights from Kuala Lumpur to London.
Japan Airlines and Singapore Airlines plan to expand their code-share freighter flights between Tokyo and Singapore from one a week to three a week, beginning next month. Subject to government approval, the two new code-share flights will include one service with a Japan Airline 747-200 freighter and one with a SIA 747-400 freighter. The code-share freighter service began in November 1998. JAL currently operates five all-cargo flights using its own aircraft on the route.
Japan Airlines yesterday confirmed that it is exploring the development of a joint computer reservations system with domestic competitor Japan Air System. The action is being taken to lower costs for both carriers, although JAL spokesman Goro Abe insists that both airlines are being careful to share system costs but not data. "We won't be seeing each other's reservations," Abe said. The joint CRS system could cut reservations expenses up to 20%. JAL and JAS have signed no agreement, and development is expected to take several years.
Air New Zealand passengers soon will be able to look downward and out through the nose of a new Boeing 747-400. The aircraft is outfitted with a landscape camera. Channel 10 of its inflight entertainment system will show downward views and channel 11 forward views, enabling passengers to follow takeoffs, landings and everything in between. ANZ also is conducting trials of inflight cordless phones.
The European Union will postpone its decision on banning hushkitted aircraft, which was scheduled to be formalized on March 9. "We have interest in defusing the tension with the United States," a spokeswoman for EU Transport Commissioner Neil Kinnock said yesterday in Brussels. The U.S. has been opposing EU plans to forbid the addition of hushkitted aircraft to EU carrier's fleets as of April 1.
Uzbekistan Airways (UZB) asked DOT for indefinite-duration authority to block space for Air Ukraine and display its designator code on nonstop New York-Kiev flights. UZB said it will operate its Tashkent-New York service via Kiev rather than Amsterdam, beginning April 2. Air Ukraine has an exemption for Kiev-New York service, and UZB may serve Tashkent-Kiev-New York under its foreign carrier permit. U.S.
The House Transportation Committee has not decided how it will address removal of slot restrictions at Chicago O'Hare Airport in FAA reauthorization legislation it is working on, a committee spokesman said yesterday. He said there is a 50/50 possibility a decision will come this week. The slots provision is attached to FAA reauthorization legislation the panel is preparing for House consideration after a reauthorization for the balance of fiscal 1999 clears Congress.
China Southern Airlines will commit to spending $250 million on facilities and pilot training during the next 20 years at its Western Australia Flying College, said Chairman Yan En Yu. The college is a joint venture between the airline and its managing director, Barney Fernandes. China Southern plans to train 3,000 pilots at the college, 250 kilometers east of Perth. The carrier placed training costs at $100,000 a pilot.
United agreed to a second limited waiver, through June 3, of the 180-day statutory deadline for DOT action on the carrier's complaint against the European Commission and the national authorities of Germany, Denmark, Norway and Sweden. United challenges the EC's intention to impose conditions, regardless of bilateral open-skies rights, on United's alliances with Lufthansa and SAS (DAILY, July 9, 1998). DOT extended the deadline until March 5 (DAILY, Jan.
As the U.K. government moves to separate air traffic control system operations from regulatory oversight, the head of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) sees advantages in a combination of functions that draws criticism of FAA in the U.S. - regulating the system and promoting aviation. "My view is that, while they [the regulators] will remain the guarantors of standards, they will also come to be seen, and to see themselves, as champions of the flying public," CAA Chairman Malcolm Field said in a speech at last week's ATC Maastricht '99 conference in The Netherlands.
Air Transat of Montreal has taken delivery of the first of two A330-200s. The aircraft is the first A330-200 to enter service with Rolls-Royce Trent engines. The aircraft are leased from International Lease Finance Corp. The second will be delivered this spring. This A330 was the 15th to be delivered to ILFC, which has committed to 45, Airbus said. The A330-200 is a longer-range version of the A330. A six-month certification program for the A330-200 and the Trent 772B engines was completed in December.
Sun Country flight attendants, represented by the Teamsters Union, have ratified their first contract with the Minneapolis-based charter airline, with nearly 99% voting in favor (DAILY, Feb. 5). "The recent top management change at Sun Country was helpful to the success of the negotiations," said union representative Vicki Frankovich. The contract guarantees pay increases of 3%-7%, additional pay for extra duty time and improvements in benefits, work rules and working conditions.
American Trans Air, principal subsidiary of Amtran Inc., will begin nonstop Philadelphia-Chicago Midway service May 1, offering three nonstop flights each weekday and two a day on the weekend. Introductory one-way fares will start at $69. Discounted fares to other destinations include Dallas/Fort Worth, $89, Denver, $109, and Los Angeles, $109.
The ICAO Council has adopted more stringent limits on aircraft engine exhaust emissions based on a recommendation of its Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP), Council President Assad Kotaite said yesterday. Kotaite reported that CAEP is acting on engine noise as well, resuming deliberations recently on certification standards more stringent than the current Chapter 3 rules.
TWA will report an estimated $21 million first quarter profit from the sale of shares in telecommunications firm Equant N.V., part of the SITA Foundation.
Travelocity.com is offering bonus frequent flyer miles through March 31 for members who purchase an airline ticket on selected airlines, plus a hotel stay or car rental. The Sabre-owned online travel vendor will give 1,500 frequent flyer miles in addition to its standard mileage awards. U.S. and Canadian customers can qualify for bonus miles on American, America West, Continental, Delta, Northwest and United.
A memorial service for Robert Burkhardt, retired aviation writer, who died Jan. 17 at his home in Lewes, Del., will be conducted Saturday, March 13, at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.
Midwest Express will launch four Milwaukee-San Antonio one-stop flights via Kansas City, beginning May 10. The flights are timed to provide passengers with convenient connections on Midwest Express and Skyway Airlines to destinations throughout the upper Midwest. Chairman and Chief Executive Timothy Hoeksema said MD-80s that entered service in existing markets freed a DC-9 for the new service.
