Low-cost leisure carrier Transavia France is planning to grow its fleet to 30 Boeing 737-800s by 2017, nearly triple the figure it operated in 2013. Last year Paris Orly-based Transavia France’s passenger numbers swelled by 38.7% to hit 2.7 million, after it shifted its focus from tour operator work to direct-sell flying. Transavia France added three aircraft to its fleet to support this growth, taking it from eight to 11 aircraft in 2013, but it will need more aircraft this year as it prepares for a further 25% hike in passenger numbers.
The drag-reducing benefit of flying in formation has been known for decades—far longer if you are a bird—but making it practical is the challenge. Geese join up in V formations when they migrate, but all are headed in the same direction; finding opportunities for formation flying within military and commercial air-transport networks crisscrossing the globe is harder.
When presented next month, NASA's fiscal 2015 budget request will be the first to be shaped by a new strategy for aeronautics research. The tough choices made by the agency to align its limited aeronautics funding with that strategy will become clear. Research into ultra-efficient subsonic and low-boom supersonic aircraft will make the cut, as will efforts to increase system safety, efficiency and autonomy, but work in areas such as rotorcraft and all-electric light aircraft are hanging in the balance.
The “Big Three” Persian Gulf carriers—Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways—are increasingly heading in different directions and distinguishing their strategies. Etihad has created the first part of its “Etihad Regional” system; Qatar is venturing into Saudi Arabia with a new affiliate airline, while Emirates remains a purely widebody hub-and-spoke carrier.
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.
Southwest Airlines’s international expansion, set to begin this year as part of wrapping up its integration of AirTran Airways, won’t include major changes from AirTran’s existing international network until at least 2015, Southwest President and CEO Gary Kelly confirms.
Regional aircraft manufacturer ATR says 2013 was a record year for deliveries, though the joint venture between Airbus and Finmeccanica’s Alenia Aermacchi division fell short of a goal to deliver 80 aircraft this year. CEO Filippo Bagnato said ATR sold 89 aircraft in 2013 and delivered 74 units during the year, beating the previous year’s record of 64. Firm orders were valued at $2.1 billion, with total sales volume amounting to $4.65 billion, including 106 options.
Click here to view the pdf Fuel Watch: Global Jet Fuel Prices (midpoint) As of January 22, 2014, compared with previous week and previous year cts/gal prev. week prev.
Surplus parts, already well-established in the engine aftermarket, are becoming more prominent in the components world and may be responsible for smaller across-the-board OEM spare parts price increases, a Canaccord Genuity survey of maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) service providers reveals.
