Airbus Industrie said yesterday it has launched the A330-200, a long-range version of its newest twin-engine widebody. Development costs are estimated at $450 million. Airbus in September launched a longer-range version of its four-engine A340. Both versions were launched without orders from customers. The A330-200, which will carry 256 passengers in three classes over 6,400 nautical miles or 293 passengers in two classes in regional operations, is expected to be service-ready in spring 1998.
Delta Connection carrier Atlantic Southeast's fleet and passenger service workers will remain unionless. Counting ballots yesterday from a representation election sought by the Teamsters, the National Mediation Board found only 205 votes for the union out of 636 eligible voters.
Seattle Professional Engineering Employees Association (SPEEA), which represents 22,000 engineers and technical workers at Boeing, has made a commitment to its striking Machinists colleagues that in its own current contract negotiations, it will not accept conditions that led the IAM to walk out. Members of the Machinists union voted last week to reject a contract proposal agreed to by Boeing and union leaders (DAILY, Nov. 27).
Federal Express and Evergreen are objecting to the show cause order tentatively awarding the 16 available all-cargo frequencies in the U.S.- Russia market. In November, DOT tentatively allotted eight flights to Polar Air Cargo, four to Evergreen and four to Federal Express (DAILY, Nov. 8).
Jet Aspen has asked DOT for permission to begin advertising and accepting reservations for its proposed operations before it receives its certificate, so it can operate the services in the winter ski season. The carrier, which applied for an operating certificate two months ago (DAILY, Sept. 29), said it plans to begin Jan. 24 offering nonstop service to the skiing communities of Aspen and Telluride, Colo., from Los Angeles, Dallas/Fort Worth, Phoenix and Houston.
Despite the recommendation to award more than $7 million to airlines at Los Angeles Airport, City officials are praising DOT Administrative Law Judge Burton Kolko's recommended decision (DAILY, Nov. 27). Kolko found that only some of the costs contained in the $2.06-per-1,000-pounds landing fee were unreasonable, and he awarded a refund to the airlines based on funds used to pay for fire and police services, airport debt service and undisputed errors in airport accounting.
BE Aerospace's Seating Products Division has captured $33 million in new business from Japan Airlines, Singapore Airlines and United. JAL has signed a letter of intent to purchase seats for 44 747 and MD-11 aircraft. Deliveries of the shipsets, beginning in May, will take two years. Singapore has purchased seats for 17 A340s, with deliveries starting this month. BE Aerospace also will supply seats for United's new Premier Connoisseur Class on 20 747s.
Western Pacific Airlines and Colorado-based tour company Mountain Vacations Inc. have formed a company to market vacation packages, called WestPac Vacation Packs. MVI specializes in selling travel to skiing destinations.
Frontier Airlines appointed Rula Fakhouri city manager at its new station in Los Angeles and Al Hepner city manager at San Francisco. The carrier launched service this month from its Denver hub to the two California points.
Dutch carrier Martinair has been selected to receive the bronze award from the Hospitality Sales&Marketing Association for airline advertising in 1994. The Dutch carrier also was one of five airlines selected recently to receive the Distinguished Airline Award from Alrod International.
Fokker said yesterday that Brazilian regional carrier Transportes Aereos Regionais (TAM) has ordered eight F100s jetliners and 10 F50 propjets. Also, an undisclosed customer has ordered six F100s, the Dutch manufacturer said. The contract was signed in Sao Paulo in the presence of Fokker's new owner, Manfred Bischoff, chairman of the management board of Daimler-Benz Aerospace. With the latest orders, TAM will increase its F100 fleet to 23 by the end of the first quarter of 1996.
Lack of pilot unity at Federal Express is hampering the efforts of Air Line Pilots Association members to persuade management to agree to their contract terms. The pilots and the company became free to engage in self- help measures at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, when the 30-day cooling-off period in their contract talks expired. The pilots' Master Executive Council has authorized pilots to initiate self-help measures that now only include declaring all overtime flying as "struck" work, but which the MEC says will escalate over time if the two sides remain at odds.
Loral Air Traffic Control said yesterday it has completed on schedule development of the software for FAA's Display System Replacement (DSR) program. Last April, Loral was awarded a $898 million contract for the DSR, which will replace current aging display processing computers and provide new, advanced workstations for controllers. The next phase of the program, involving system integration of DSR software and hardware, is expected to be completed on schedule in March 1997, said Robert Welte, division president.
U.S. Major Carriers Traffic October, 10 Months 1995 (000) October October % 1995 1994 Change America West Revenue Passenger Miles 1,131,241 964,918 17.2 Available Seat Miles 1,680,077 1,550,083 8.4 Load Factor (%) 67.3 62.2 American
Shorts Group of Bombardier said it is investing 5 million pounds in its advanced composites plant at Dunmurry in Belfast. The investment will enable Shorts to extend its advanced composites business and will lead to 155 new jobs, the company said. The plant now produces composite structures for the Canadair Regional Jet, the Learjet 45, the Lockheed C- 130 and for nacelle systems.
Delta has withdrawn its complaint against India, saying it now has received acceptable slot times at Bombay for Frankfurt-Bombay flights it plans to begin Dec. 1. The carrier filed the complaint last month, saying it was denied its right under the U.S.-India bilateral agreement to operate daily service to Bombay because of India's failure to provide usable slots (DAILY, Nov. 9). (Docket OST-95-805)
Early holiday fare sales and scaled-back capacity yielded some stunning if not record-breaking load factors for U.S. carriers during the Thanksgiving holiday. Favorable weather throughout the country produced completion factors greater than 99% and a high number of on-time arrivals.
BWIA International Airways has leased two Airbus A321 aircraft, powered by IAE V2500-A5 engines, from International Lease Finance Corp., the carrier said yesterday. The aircraft, which will be delivered next June and October, was recently selected by passengers as the best in its class, the carrier said. BWIA will operate the aircraft from points it serves in the Eastern Caribbean to North and South America, replacing MD-83s.
Aeromexico said it has signed a code-sharing agreement with Air France. Effective Nov. 1, the accord will provide more flights, an improved schedule and more convenient connections on Mexico-Paris flights, said Aeromexico. Initially, the carriers will offer eight flights a week on the Mexico-Paris-Mexico route. Under the agreement, flights arriving in Paris will be serviced at Charles de Gualle Airport, Terminal A-2, and passengers will accumulate frequent flyer miles on both airlines' programs.
Boeing during the weekend delivered the fourth special freighter modified this year for Atlas Air, a freighter leasing company. The 747-200 Combi was modified into a freighter at Boeing's Wichita modifications center. It will go into service with British Airways.
Export-Import Bank said it approved financing to support the $95.8 million lease of three 737-300 aircraft to startup carrier Shandong Airlines. Deliveries are scheduled in December, January and August. The aircraft will be sold to a special-purpose corporation that will lease them to the airline. Shandong, the third largest province in China, was described as the country's fastest-growing region. The carrier plans to fly the 737s on internal routes connecting Jinan with Beijing, Shanghai and other major centers.
International express shipments will exceed one million per day next year and could reach 1.1 million per day before the end of 1996, according to a study by Air Cargo Management Group, a Seattle-based aviation consulting firm specializing in the air freight and express industry. In mid-1995, there were 875,000 international express shipments per day, about 16% of domestic U.S. express shipments.
Lufthansa is installing leather seats on all of its Boeing 737 and Airbus aircraft deployed on European routes, including new A319s scheduled to join the fleet in July 1996. Supplied by Keiper Recaro, the seats are scheduled to be in place on the 737s by next month and on all other aircraft by early 1997.
FAA has scheduled a review of its aviation safety initiative Dec. 6-7 in New Orleans. The agency launched the effort following last January's safety summit in Washington, attended by senior executives of airlines and aviation industry firms. In February, FAA issued the results of the summit's working groups in a report calling for zero accidents and making aviation safety a shared responsibility. The working groups will be reassembled at the New Orleans meeting to review what has been accomplished and make changes and adjustments, if necessary.
