Saab Sensis has been awarded a contract to help San Francisco International Airport (SFO) cope with delays related to a major runway closure, following the success of a similar project at New York Kennedy International Airport (JFK).
The FAA will soon launch the contract process for a major tower-based air traffic management initiative that has been delayed significantly in the past. The tower flight data manager (TFDM) program will upgrade the backbone operating system for the agency’s control towers nationwide. It is the equivalent of high-profile automation upgrades that have previously been launched in the terminal and en-route environments. Most of the major manufacturers active in the ATM field are expected to compete in various teams.
The U.K. government has selected Honeywell’s SmartPath ground-based augmentation system to complement a standard ground-based instrument landing system (ILS) at a new airport being built on St. Helena island. The British overseas territory is located in the South Atlantic Ocean, 1,100 mi. from the African mainland and 700 mi. from the nearest diversion airport.
The financial leasing arm of the giant Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is likely to order Boeing 777Xs, say two industry executives. The quantity under negotiation is unknown. ICBC Financial Leasing also is considering ordering 787s from Boeing, the industry officials say. The aircraft need not be supplied to Chinese airlines. The lessor could place them with carriers elsewhere.
LONDON — Rolls-Royce is researching the potential of permanently installing extremely small cameras in its engines and, separately, using a laser probe to perform minor repairs. “One of the things we’re looking at is really, really, small cameras. Having a camera like that embedded in the engine at all times means we wouldn’t even have to go in with flexible things,” said Rolls-Royce VP customer marketing Richard Goodhead during a briefing at Rolls-Royce’s Derby headquarters.
FAA will need to work with the airline industry to find ways to attract new pilots in light of evidence that the supply pipeline is changing, a government watchdog says. In a Feb. 28 report, the Government Accountability Office finds “mixed evidence” on whether the industry is facing a pilot shortage. Some believe a sufficient supply exists if wages are adequate and job opportunities arise, GAO found. Others, however, express fear that the future supply will be insufficient given the rising costs of pilot training and new first officer requirements.
FAA’s proposed fiscal 2015 budget underscores the agency’s intent to shift more National Airspace System (NAS) funding to users—efforts that have been largely halted in Congress, eliminating the need for what will be a serious stakeholder debate. The budget request’s high points are similar to those pitched—and largely ignored by Congress—in the past several years (DAILY, March 5).
SINGAPORE — PT Garuda Indonesia, Indonesia’s national airline, has become part of the SkyTeam alliance. As a member, Garuda will join an extensive group of airlines from northern Asia – including China Airlines, China Eastern, China Southern, and Xiamen – as well as regional carriers like Vietnam Airlines and Korean Air. This association will help solidify Garuda’s position as a significant player in the growing Asian regional market, company sources say, as well as in one of the largest alliance groups in Asia.
Exelis Corp. is poised to complete the rollout of the vast majority of a U.S. automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) network, which will be by far the largest such system in the world.
CORRECTION: A story on March 5th incorrectly reported the status of FAA’s Contract Tower Program. The proposed Fiscal Year 2015 budget does not include dedicated funding for the Contract Tower Program.
Lufthansa is investing €160 million ($220 million) to add a new premium economy-class cabin, in an effort to lure cost-conscious business travelers back on board. The airline is presenting the new seat at the ITB tourism fair in Berlin on March 5; the first aircraft is to be reconfigured in October.
LOS ANGELES — General Electric’s strategic push to increase the use of non-metallic materials in turbofans has taken a significant step forward with the introduction of the first load-bearing composite rotating part inside the GE90-115B. GE successfully pioneered the use of composites in the fan and casing of high bypass-ratio engines, starting with the fan on the GE90 in the 1990s, and extended the use of the lightweight material to the casing and other static parts of the GEnx family in the 2000s.
Leveraging assets snapped up as part of divestitures from the American/US Airways merger and the elimination of long-standing restrictions on flying out of Dallas Love Field, Virgin America wants to move its North Texas operations from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to Love this fall and launch flights to major U.S. business centers.
Qatar Airways plans to take delivery of its first Airbus A380 in June, possibly coinciding with the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) World Air Transport Summit in Doha, Qatar. According to CEO Akbar Al Baker, the aircraft will be equipped with 517 seats—eight in first class, 50 in business and 459 in economy.
European Parliament, Council and European Commission representatives have provisionally agreed to extend the “stop-the-clock” scope of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) for aviation by four more years, so that only flights within the European Economic Area (EAA) will be covered in calendar years 2013-2016. Flights to and from the EAA’s outermost regions will be fully exempt from the ETS until 2016 and business flights operators with annual CO2 emissions of less than 1,000 metric tons per year will be exempt until 2020.
Mexico is planning to deploy its first air traffic flow management ( ATFM ) system under a deal with Airbus ProSky, as the country looks to give controllers more tools to handle rapid traffic growth. U.S.-based Metron Aviation, a unit of ProSky, will install a Harmony ATFM system for Mexican air navigation service provider SENEAM. It will initially be used in an operational demonstration in Mexico City’s airspace.
LONDON — Rolls-Royce has taken full control of composites manufacturing joint venture Composite Technology and Applications (CTAL), acquiring GKN Aerospace’s 49% stake for £8 million ($13.3 million). CTAL is a Rolls-Royce and GKN Aerospace joint venture established in 2008 to combine Rolls-Royce’s engine expertise with GKN’s composites capability. In December 2012, the partners formally opened a new £14.8 million CTAL facility on the Isle of Wight to research and develop manufacturing processes for composite engine fan blades and fan cases.
Air Berlin is in the process of defining the delivery dates for its incoming fleet of Boeing 787-9s, but no quick fleet exchange is on the horizon. CEO Wolfgang Prock-Schauer says that the airline is working on its strategy for the next five years and will make a decision about the 787s within the next six months.
International Airlines Group (IAG) is hoping to integrate US Airways’ flights into its joint venture (JV) with American Airlines and is eyeing other Oneworld-based partnerships. American and US Airways closed their merger in December and have recently begun rolling out some initial network cooperation moves, expanding their codeshare to include nearly 6,500 daily flights.
The growth rate of air freight traffic continues to accelerate, and current volumes are the highest they have been since mid-2010—when air freight grew at a double-digit annual rate—but there is also ample reason to be cautious, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
With continuing political unrest in Thailand adversely affecting the tourism and aviation industries, and poor results released earlier this week, AirAsia is likely to push back delivery of new Airbus aircraft for its Thai AirAsiaX (TAX) operation.
