A new privately owned Georgian air carrier, FlyGeorgia, will soon begin offering commercial flights. Founded in 2011, the airline will operate a pair of Airbus A319s in its initial stage and operate regular flights from the Georgian capital of Tbilisi to destinations in Europe, the CIS, the Middle East and South Asia, including London; Rome; New Delhi; Dusseldorf, Germany; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Fabio Sciacca (see photo) has joined New York-based FlightSafety International as director of sales for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He was international sales director for the Piaggio P180 Avanti and Avanti II aircraft.
Jeff Potter has been named president and CEO of Boyd Group International, Evergreen, Colo. He was chief operating officer of resorts operator Intrawest.
When it comes to saving money in the Defense Department, budget experts and secretaries of defense invariably explain that personnel costs are a Pentagon millstone that will continue to grow heavier. According to a new report, by 2039, these costs could outweigh all other military obligations—squeezing out investments in hardware and requiring reductions in the size of the force.
In response to customer requests for more late-night departures between Newark, N.J., and Copenhagen, Scandinavian Airlines will add three late-night weekly flights. Beginning April 1, 2013, the flights will run Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays. They will leave Newark at 11:30 p.m., arriving in Copenhagen at 1:15 p.m. the next day, and depart from Copenhagen at 6:25 p.m., arriving in Newark at 8:50 p.m. the same day.
Avic Aircraft thinks it is time that turboprop airliners are widened—if only because passengers seem to be getting wider, too. The Chinese manufacturer plans a notable jump in airframe diameter for its proposed 76-seat MA700 regional aircraft, a competitor for the established, relatively svelte ATR 72 and Bombardier Q400. MA700 entry into service is now slated for 2017, having slipped repeatedly while Avic has been preparing the technical and probably political ground for project launch. It should be followed by a version seating more than 90 passengers.
USAF Lt. Col. (ret.) Price T. Bingham (Melbourne, Fla.)
The need for the U.S. Navy to dedicate some of its P-8s to the overland, joint-service wide-area surface surveillance (WASS) mission (AW&ST June 18, p. 39) is likely to grow significantly due to problems inherent in the U.S. Air Force culture. Since its creation as a separate service, USAF has focused almost exclusively on counter-air and strategic attack. USAF has never been enthusiastic about the unprecedented WASS capabilities provided by Joint Stars.
Count on the persistence of states in the U.S. South to pursue aerospace jobs, regardless of setbacks, and on the perseverance of manufacturers to oblige them.
As aerospace and defense suppliers head to this year's Farnborough air show, two of their biggest customers present a stark picture of an industry going in two directions. Boeing Commercial Airplanes is hoping to roll out big orders for its reengined 737 MAX narrowbody jet at the show, further proof of airlines' seemingly insatiable appetite for more efficient aircraft.
Bell Helicopter has added suppliers to its Bell 525 Relentless program, the world's first “super-medium” helicopter. The Textron company signed agreements with Goodrich for ice-protection systems, Israel Aerospace Industries for passenger seating, Mecaer Aviation Group for landing gear, Kuka for major structure-tooling and Pacifica Engineering for rotor- and drive-tooling. GKN Aerospace and Triumph Group will supply airframe-structure, complex machining and composites.
How large can “big fan” engines get? For almost 50 years since the genesis of the high-bypass-ratio turbofan, fan size has increased proportionately to thrust. But is that about to change?
It is an interesting time for U.S. aviation. Airbus, by unveiling plans to assemble narrowbodies in the U.S., has created the perfect opportunity for a turf war between the world's two largest airframers. Delta Air Lines' new pilot contract indicates a major shift in mainline feed, and US Airways and AMR Corp.—as has become the norm since the beginning of the year—continue to battle for the hearts and minds of workers, legislators and investors to support their respective views on what may be the last consolidation among legacy carriers for decades to come.
This Spanish-built Airbus Military C295, flying over San Pablo Airport in Seville during a test flight, is the first of nine of the airlifters that the Indonesian government has ordered for its air force. The first aircraft is due to be delivered toward the end of September. Indonesia's deputy defense minister, Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, told Aviation Week earlier this year that the first three or four C295s would be made in Spain but the others would be assembled in Bandung at Indonesia's state-owned aircraft manufacturer Indonesian Aerospace (IAe).
Robert R. Fafinski and Michael J. Opat have been added to the board of directors of Minneapolis-based Sun Country Airlines. Fafinski is CEO of the Fafinski Mark & Johnson law firm, and Opat is chairman of the Hennepin County (Minn.) Board of Commissioners.
The long-running Concorde legal drama will soon return for another surreal season. In November, the Versailles Court of Appeal is slated to render its verdict after once again scrutinizing the evidence related to the July 25, 2000, crash of an Air France supersonic jet. And in January 2013, the same court is expected to question Jacques Herubel, a retired Aerospatiale engineer whose responsibilities included Concorde.
In a rerun of its 2010 elections, the Netherlands could go to the polls in September with parliament having voted to withdraw from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, and the future of its participation hinging on which party wins the most seats. The opposition Labor Party (PvDA) plans to submit a proposal to end Dutch participation in the program to the lower house before the election. PvDA has only 30 of the 150 seats in the assembly, but is aligned with other anti-F-35 parties that together control 78 seats.
With several members facing debt crises at home, the European Space Agency (ESA) is paring Earth-observation spending plans ahead of a key budget meeting in November. The initial five-year, €1.9 billion ($2.4 billion) proposal for ESA's fourth Earth Observation Envelope Program (EOEP) will instead involve €1.6 billion over four years, says Volker Liebig, ESA director of Earth-observation programs.
