Malaysia Airlines (MAS) is the latest Asian carrier to boost its presence in the Myanmar market, signing a code-share deal with Myanmar Airways that will increase frequencies between the two countries.
Southwest Airlines Monday revealed its first international destinations, confirming strong hints from CEO Gary Kelly that the carrier’s first year of international service will see it gradually assuming AirTran’s existing footprint. Southwest will begin international service on its aircraft on July 1, connecting Atlanta, Baltimore, and Orlando with both Aruba and Montego Bay, as well as operating between Baltimore and Nassau.
India has lifted a ban on Airbus A380s from flying into the country, a move that will permit international airlines such as Emirates, Etihad, Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines to start its flights to the world’s second most-populous country. “Now, flights of [the] A380 to India will be allowed to airports which are equipped to handle them. At present only 4 airports—Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore have the required infrastructure for operations of the world’s largest passenger aircraft,” Ministry of Civil Aviation says.
The first Boeing 787 to be produced under the 10-aircraft monthly rate has been rolled out at Everett, Wash., in readiness for delivery to International Lease Finance for eventual operation by Aeromexico.
Cyprus Airways’ plans to sell a pair of London Heathrow slots to Qatar Airways have been thwarted after it was undercut by another airline. Aviation Week affiliate Air Transport World understands that the Cypriot carrier was in final negotiations to sell one of its two pairs of scarce Heathrow slots, but the deal fell through when another unidentified airline offered Qatar a slot pair for a better price. The plan won mixed internal buy-in within Cyprus Airways. It is extremely unlikely that the deal will be resurrected.
Reports from United Technologies (UTC) of increasing spares sales continued in the fourth quarter, but the company’s Pratt & Whitney (P&W) subsidiary delivered even more encouraging news for those awaiting an upswing in heavy engine overhaul visits.
INCREASINGLY MEXICAN: Bombardier Aerospace (BA) has a goal to boost local suppliers. According to investment advisors at National Bank Financial, about 30% of the supply of BA’s components comes from Mexican sources, with the goal over the next five years to reach 70%. That means going from eight local suppliers now to 12-15. “If BA is able to achieve this level of local content, the cost savings will become much more meaningful,” the advisors say. The Canadian-based OEM is also relying more on Mexican locals for management.
Horizon Airlines and Republic Airlines have asked the FAA for three more months to comply with new filtered flight data requirements, because challenges encountered by supplier Honeywell mean necessary upgrades can’t be completed on their Bombardier Q400s by the rule’s April 2014 deadline.
The merged American Airlines will combine its two operations centers into American’s existing facility in Dallas Fort/Worth (DFW), shuttering the US Airways flight operations center in Moon Township, just northwest of Pittsburgh. The move, announced in a letter to the affected staff from American Senior VP-Air Operations Tim Campbell, is not a surprise. American CEO Doug Parker has said that the larger DFW facility makes sense as a combined home for the merged carrier’s operations center functions.
Washington A recently released audit lauds the FAA's Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing (Asias) effort for its growth, but urges the agency to boost the program's effectiveness by putting more of its data into the hands of safety inspectors. The FAA, straddling a fine line, says it is trying.
Fixed-base operations are rethinking how they charge for services as they continue to face increased price pressures with little expectation of volume measurably increasing in the near future.
Henry Ogrodzinski, the president and CEO of the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) and a longtime industry advocate, died at his home in Washington, D.C. Jan. 22 after a two-year battle with cancer. He was 65.
Sterile-cockpit rules demand that pilots pay attention to the business at hand at altitudes below 10,000 ft. to minimize distractions during the “critical phases” of a flight, namely takeoff and landing. While the workload during the portion of a flight above 10,000 ft. is typically much lower, particularly during cruise at altitude, does that mean pilots can let their guard down?
After three consecutive quarterly losses, late 2013 certifications of its new Sovereign+ and M2 helped Cessna Aircraft finish the year with a slight fourth-quarter profit and position the company for a 19% growth in revenues in 2014.
Offer the airlines new ways to save millions of gallons of jet fuel and they will practically bite your hand off. That is the clear signal to the aerospace industry as Airbus and Boeing continue to rack up record-breaking orders for their new generation of reengined and more efficient commercial aircraft.
Helicopter Association International (HAI) fears that a provision calling on FAA to develop rulemaking covering helicopters operations over Los Angeles further establishes a precedent of allowing local noise concerns alone to dictate airspace design and access.
Last year was a good year for the commercial aftermarket, which saw an uptick “as the period of spares destocking and maintenance deferral by the airlines draws to a close,” according to RBC Capital Market analysts.
General Dynamics (GD) is crediting its Aerospace group, including both Gulfstream Aerospace and Jet Aviation, for serving as its primary growth engine for both earnings and revenues as the group posted significant gains both in the fourth quarter and on the year, and continued to receive strong bookings.
A sharp rise in fourth-quarter maintenance costs didn’t keep Delta Air Lines from reducing full year-over-year maintenance expenses, despite growing its fleet—a notable achievement for a carrier that minimizes new aircraft expenditures in favor of squeezing the most out of its older airframes.
