The Army Aviation and Missile Command plans to install as many as 1,500 advanced datalinks in four types of helicopters over the next six to seven years. Apache, Blackhawk, Chinook and Kiowa rotorcraft will receive the IDM-304B (improved data modem), which is in the final stages of development by Symetrics Industries of Melbourne, Fla.
American Airlines named James Ream, president and CEO of ExpressJet, senior VP of its maintenance and engineering operations effective Jan. 1. Ream succeeds Carmine Romano, who retired after 41 years with American. Romano was VP for base maintenance before he was named MRO VP in 2007.
A 35-year MRO program came to an end on Nov. 4, when Boeing Defense Australia delivered the final Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) F-111 fighter-bomber it was contracted to service under the Deeper Maintenance program. Aircraft A08-135 was the 28th F-111 Boeing has worked on since becoming part of the program in 2001. Deeper Maintenance was initiated by the RAAF in 1974, shortly after it added the F-111 to its combat fleet. Boeing has since 2001 performed more than 500,000 hours of MRO on F-111s.
Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies appointed Juergen Haacker COO, Paul Horstink VP of airframe services, David Hope VP of technical services and Talal Yahiya Al-Riyami executive VP of quality and safety management.
Part sales plummeted in 2009, and airline part stocks declined as aircraft, especially part-hungry older models, were grounded. Most look for a recovery beginning in 2010. Orders for expendables will likely turn up with traffic. Rotable sales will begin to recover as maintenance events increase, hopefully in the second half or 2010. But full recovery in rotable sales likely awaits restocking of inventories when airlines are stronger financially. That may not come until 2011, or even 2013, in the most pessimistic scenario.
Voicing concerns for the survival of Europe’s airlines, the Association of European Airlines (AEA), which represents Europe’s most important network carriers, has called for a stakeholder summit on the European aviation industry.
Pratt & Whitney and China Eastern Airlines’ Shanghai engine joint venture became the first facility in China to receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. It is also the 21st such building to be designated LEED outside the U.S.; only 5% of fewer than 4,000 LEED buildings worldwide attain platinum certification. The Qingpu district MRO opened in September 2009 and carries out CFM56 engine repairs. IT
Lufthansa Technik announced a preliminary agreement to form an MRO joint venture with Oman Air. The partners will build a hangar at Muscat Airport capable of handling two widebody and two narrowbody aircraft at a time. The facility, to open in 2012, will handle aircraft maintenance through C checks for A330, 737NG, Embraer and ATR aircraft operated by Oman Air and other airlines in the region. In the interim, Oman Air will perform 737NG C checks in Malta or at other existing LHT facilities in Budapest and Sofia.
LONDON—Ground engineers across Europe likely will come under even greater pressure to fix aircraft faults more quickly following a November ruling by the European Court of Justice. Passengers on flights delayed for more than three hours now can seek similar compensation from airlines as passengers on cancelled flights because they are in a “comparable situation” to those on cancelled flights, as each suffers a loss of time. Current EU regulations entitle passengers on cancelled flights to €250 (US$373) to €600 (US$905) in compensation.
Magellan Services Co. to install an active ventilation system for lavatories, galleys and non-essential equipment throughout Boeing 737-700 aircraft, STC ST10952SC
Further pressure on the MRO sector came from an EU proposal submitted to the United Nations climate summit in Copenhagen in December. It proposes that emissions from aviation be cut by 10% by 2020 from 2005 levels and calls for all parties to work through ICAO to enable an agreement in 2010 and approval by 2011. The EU supports the use of market-based instruments to reduce aviation emissions and says ICAO should develop such tools.
Airbus launched a winglet upgrade for the A320 family that promises to provide a 3.5% fuel-burn improvement over the existing wingfence design. New Zealand Airways is the launch customer for the "sharklets." Airbus is still working on a winglet retrofit option for the A320, but it will not be the sharklets. It is looking at its own design but also is talking to Aviation Partners, which may be involved in building the sharklets. The A320 will be the first to get the devices, with a planned in-service date of late 2012.
Most airlines expect their parts inventories to decline further in 2010 and to make more use of vendor-owned inventories and pools. These are a few of the preliminary results of a survey Aerostrategy and IATA are conducting.
Despite the economic downturn, the use of outside chemical management services is holding steady in the aerospace and aviation sectors as more companies seek to outsource not only inventory control but data reporting, disposal, purchasing and other costly tasks.
What is bmi's fleet age and utilization? Mahoney: Our narrowbody Airbuses are six years old, the Boeing 737s are around 13 years old, and the A330s are around eight years old.
Fokker Services launched its FlyFokker program, which consists of four programs—Take Off, Take Care, Take Over, and Take Next—aimed at supporting start-up operations, in-service Fokker aircraft, aircraft phase-out and transfer. Its goal is to maintain its current number of in-service aircraft and to offer airlines an alternative to delaying maintenance or parking Fokker aircraft.
AviIT finished implementing its eMan technical publication management solution with Toronto-based FBO Skyservice Business Aviation. It also released the Web-based version of the eMan suite, called eManWeb. Contracts Military
MARIETTA, Ga.—With a recession pinching procurement budgets around the globe and deliveries of Airbus A400M slipping, some Lockheed Martin C-130 suppliers are seeing an opportunity to offer a host of avionics upgrades to keep the tactical airlifters flying and ensure their access to preferred air routes for years to come.
iPod Integration Equipment Rockwell Collins added an integration feature for its Digital Total Entertainment System and Enhanced Total Entertainment System for widebody aircraft that allows passengers to output video and audio from their iPods or other portable media device into the aircraft’s IFE system. Passengers then can listen or watch their own media files via in-seat displays or headphones. The new equipment includes USB charging capabilities and is designed to work with iPhone, iPod Touch, iPod Classic and iPod Nano as well as other portable media devices.
SR Technics plans to open a narrowbody MRO facility in Malta to provide base and heavy maintenance for narrowbody aircraft operating in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. The four-bay facility, to open in early 2012, is part of SR Technics' plan to redeploy airframe and other labor-intensive activities to low-cost areas and to increase proximity to its customer base.
Taikoo Spirit Aerosystems Composite opened in Jinjiang, Fujian Province. Shareholders invested $27.2 million in the new company, which claims to be the first in mainland China to repair and overhaul composite components for both narrowbody and widebody aircraft. Shareholders include HAECO (41.8%), Spirit AeroSystems (31.54%), Taikoo (Xiamen) Aircraft Engineering (10.76%), Cathay Pacific Airways (5.45%), China Airlines (5.45%) and Quanzhou Export Processing Zone Investment Management (5%).
