Iridium Communications is targeting Dec. 30 for the eighth and final Iridium Next launch, which would complete the new constellation of satellites supporting space-based tracking of aircraft and flight-deck broadband connectivity.
With air cargo traffic expected to double over the next 20 years, the global freighter fleet will need to expand by more than 70% to satisfy demand, to 3,260 aircraft in 2037 from the current 1,870, according to Boeing’s biennial World Air Cargo Forecast.
Air France has reached a pay agreement with ground staff and cabin crew unions, opening the path for the Air France-KLM group to move forward from a months-long labor conflict and focus on its long-term strategy.
Ryanair said it had signed an agreement with Portuguese pilots’ union SPAC covering seniority and base transfer agreements for its employee pilots and paving the way for negotiations on a full collective labor contract to begin before the end of October.
While political tensions have been affecting Korean Air’s traffic in some markets, the carrier eventually could see benefits from improving international relations, said its president, Walter Cho.
Boeing continues its cautious talk on whether it will launch a new mid-market aircraft (NMA), reiterating that it must still establish a business case.
Final second-quarter airline financial data indicate a drop in airline profitability compared to the year-earlier period. And while industry-wide cash flows have improved this year overall, there are significant differences among regions, according to IATA’s Airline Financial Monitor, released on Oct. 17.
Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency has issued a type certificate for the PD-14 turbofan engine that will power the new MC-21 narrowbody airliner. The first three powerplants will be delivered by year-end to MC-21 manufacturer Irkut Corp.
MRO provider Monarch Aircraft Engineering (MAEL) has finalized the terms of its new ownership structure, with a transaction in which UK investment group Greybull Capital has become its owner.
Cypriot carrier Cobalt Air collapsed after its 49% Chinese shareholder pulled out and a replacement investor failed to come through with the necessary money.
While demand remains strong for Asia-Pacific airlines, yield improvement is still lagging behind fuel price rises, according to the region’s main industry group.
Air France is nearing a deal with its workforce in a months-long pay dispute following negotiations between the new Air France-KLM group CEO Ben Smith and the French airline’s unions.
A Panamanian investment company has purchased the outstanding shares of former Uruguayan flag carrier Pluna Lineas Aereas Uruguayas and, through arbitration, plans to seek financial compensation for Uruguay’s alleged role in wiping the airline out, Aviation Week has learned.
Against the backdrop of increased effects of natural disasters, such as Typhoon Jebi and the Hokkaido earthquake in Japan, the director-general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), Andrew Herdman, said one key area its members will review is the handling of mass air-service disruptions, along with passenger-rights legislation. AAPA members are gathering on Jeju Island, South Korea, for its 62nd Assembly of President which will begin on Oct. 19.
AE Industrial Partners, a private equity investor, has acquired Wichita-baseed Aerostructures Acquisition, doing business as The Atlas Group, a manufacturer of complex assemblies for business, commercial and military aircraft.
Turkish Technic said its third-party MRO business now produces 25% of its total revenue, up from 15% two years ago, attributing the growth to more efficient use of its facilities.
On-demand electric-vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) air-taxi service Lilium is expecting to launch “much sooner” than its 2025 estimate and is scouting downtown locations to start the service.
Bruce Jackson, the president and managing director of U.S.-based connectivity specialist Air Informatics, believes airline Wi-Fi connectivity segment is facing 2-3 years of volatility.
Pressured by a combination of a nearly 7% year-over-year (YOY) depreciation of its national currency and a 46% increase in Mexican peso-dominated fuel prices during the same period, Mexico City-based full-service carrier Aeromexico reported a 617 million peso ($32.5 million) net loss for the third quarter of 2018, versus a 344 million peso net profit in the year-ago quarter.
