Bombardier executives report that the first flight of the company’s all-new Learjet 85 is “very close,” but the manufacturer does not plan to determine a certification and delivery schedule until the aircraft has flown for a few months. While the company makes final preparations for the first flight, it continues to progress toward certification this year of the Challenger 350 and final designs for its top-of-the-line Global 7000 and 8000 programs.
ExpressJet has the option to walk away from agreements that have 36 50-seat regional jets—about 9% of its fleet—flying under the United Express flag before 2016 if the regional operator fails to secure more favorable terms, an SEC filing by ExpressJet parent SkyWest Inc. (SI) reveals.
The Airbus A350-900 makes its first full international air show debut here at Singapore as questions continue to grow over the future of its planned smaller sibling, the A350-800.
European budget carriers Ryanair and Wizz Air have become the latest airlines to relax restrictions on the use of personal electronic devices (PED) on takeoff and landing. Wizz Air rolled out its new PED policy on Jan. 28, followed by Ryanair on Feb. 6. Both carriers are allowing device use throughout all phases of flight, so long as they set to “flight mode.”
Part 135 operations, which posted a “banner year” in 2013, are on pace to carry that momentum into 2014, but Part 91 and fractional operations are expected to remain flat to down in the early part of 2014, business aviation analyst Argus forecasts. Argus, which tracks business aircraft arrival and departure information in the U.S. and Canada, found that despite a strong end to 2013, flight operations for the year were still down overall 0.3% from 2012.
Bombardier plans to begin full fly-by-wire (FBW) flights of the CSeries in March. Since its first flight in September, the all-new narrowbody airliner has been flying in back-up “direct” FBW mode. The CSeries is Bombardier’s first fly-by-wire aircraft, and the company is moving cautiously. The full “normal” FBW control law, which includes envelope protection, is part of the Block 3 software build.
When it comes to the fiscal 2015 budget request from the Obama administration, if you like your current major aerospace and defense program, you can keep it—for now. With the politically charged nature of final 2014 appropriations and their late-cycle passage Jan. 17, and next month's release of the 2015 request and accompanying long-term budget blueprint, more than the usual high-level information is already known about the White House's formal request as far as 2018.
Bombardier, which missed its targets for business jet deliveries in 2013 with the delays in the Learjet 70/75 program, is expecting those shipments to increase by more than 10% in 2014. Bombardier is forecasting that it will deliver 200 business jets in 2014, up from 180 in 2013.
Delaying the CSeries’ entry into service by at least 12 months has increased the development cost for the new narrrowbody airliner to $4.4 billion, Bombardier says. The previously stated figure was $3.4 billion, but was calculated under earlier accounting rules and so is not directly comparable, says CEO Pierre Beaudoin. Flight-testing delays have pushed back service-entry of the initial 110-seat CS100 to the second half of 2015, from mid-2014, with the 130-seat CS300 to follow six months later. Bombardier has firm orders for 201 aircraft.
Finnair has nominated former bmi CEO Nigel Turner to its board in a move which is slated for formal approval on March 27. Turner was appointed as CEO of bmi in October 2004 and ran the airline until late 2009, when he ceded the role to Wolfgang Prock-Schauer. Turner is now deputy chairman of lessor Jetscape, a member of the board for ATM-provider NATS and deputy chairman of NATS owner The Airline Group.
It is clear that preventive maintenance can bring reliability and predictability to a fleet, but can it position a diligent carrier above the mean? Delta Air Lines is testing—and perhaps proving—the hypothesis.
Airbus is at a crossroads. It needs to address its major twin-aisle product line disadvantage to Boeing, while simultaneously implementing organizational reforms that could leave the company with less cash for new product development.
Airbus A380 launch operator Singapore Airlines (SIA) is pushing hard for improvements to its biggest long-haul aircraft. While the aircraft “is performing according to what it was supposed to do on the main hub missions, the world has changed since it was launched,” Singapore Airlines Executive Vice President Commercial Mak Swee Wah tells Aviation Week.
An irony is playing out here over the U.S. government's fiscal 2015 budget: Not since the last recession ended has there been such widespread acknowledgement in Washington of where federal spending is headed, thanks to the so-called Ryan-Murray budget deal in December and 2014 appropriations, which became law Jan. 17. But Congress increasingly will be unable to do anything about it as 2014 continues.
The structure of the first Mitsubishi Regional Jet is complete and nearing the stage of final assembly, while program managers consider how fast they can build the type to make up for development delays. Mitsubishi Aircraft and its airframe builder and major shareholder, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, appear to be inclined towards the high end of a range of contemplated production rates, though they are wary of the ability of their supply chain to keep up.
Airbus and Boeing are faced with satisfying a complex set of new requirements when it comes to winning orders from state-owned South African Airways (SAA), complying with offset conditions that are more typical for the defense industry than for commercial aviation. Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba has told SAA management to abandon its current plans to renew the airline’s long-haul fleet and to issue a new request for proposals (RFP) that includes assurances made by industry to place work in South Africa.
Indian regional start-up Air Costa has firmed up ambitious growth plans by signing an order for up to 100 Embraer E2 jets at the Singapore Air Show. The deal is made up of 25 firm orders each for the E190-E2 and the E195-E2. It includes the same number of options.
Senior Australian politicians appear increasingly sympathetic to Qantas’ appeals for government help, but it remains unclear what sort of relief will be politically feasible.
Anticipating passenger growth in the coming years of 3-5% per annum, Singapore's government hopes to increase passenger capacity by 15 million per year with a new Terminal 4 (T4) due to open in 2017, and to build a “mega-terminal” T5 to boost capacity by another 50 million by the mid-2020s. Those moves together would bring capacity to 132 million passengers annually.
