Aircraft & Propulsion

Boeing is conducting taxi and final system tests of the 777-9 at its Everett, Washington site where, depending on weather and other factors, it hopes to conduct the long-awaited first flight of its new long-range 777X flagship family as early as Jan. 23.

China Southern Airlines expects to receive its first COMAC ARJ21 regional jet in March, the airline said, detailing initial operations.

Airbus will build another final assembly line for the A321neo in Toulouse, a consequence of high demand for the aircraft and serious production problems at its Hamburg site.

Kopter is advancing development of its single-engine SH09 in Sicily.

Could it be the end of Bombardier Aviation?

Boeing stakeholders may find out more information about the costs of the 737 MAX fiasco during the company’s Jan. 29 report on 2019 financial results. While Boeing previously identified $5.6 billion in pretax customer compensation for aircraft operators, and added $3.6 billion to the 737’s program accounting block-cost, financial analysts, consultants and others see those figures as just a beginning.

The FAA’s certification process is not fundamentally flawed and “was followed” during the Boeing 737 MAX certification, but shortcomings in key guidance, global perspective, safety assessments, and agency staffing should be addressed to improve the system, an independent committee’s report found.

Bombardier said it is reassessing future participation in its Airbus A220 partnership amid an increase in business jet deliveries in 2019

A modified Airbus A350-1000 performed eight automated takeoffs using an image recognition system on Dec. 18, 2019 in Toulouse, Airbus said Jan. 16.

Boeing will study the certification challenges of its Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) ultra-efficient airliner concept as part of a new phase of work following wind tunnel tests that prove the basic viability of the 737-class aircraft design for typical airliner cruise speeds of Mach 0.8.

French startup offers new tool for instructors, as trend emerges for data analysis and eye tracking in pilot training.

Boeing ended 2019 with 380 commercial airplane deliveries—fewer than the number of 737 MAXs it has in storage—and saw its cumulative net order book shrink, largely because of a drop in MAX commitments.

Sluggish widebody demand exacerbated by several market-specific headwinds point to potential production-rate cuts for several Airbus and Boeing programs, a Bloomberg Intelligence analysis contends.

The investigation into Iran’s Jan. 8 downing of Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) Flight PS752 is beginning to take shape, with participants from affected countries urging transparency and a thorough probe into the disaster.

Boeing is facing a second civil penalty for installing unairworthy slat tracks on 737s—this one covering 178 MAXs.

Airlines are under more pressure than ever before to step up efforts to reduce their impact on climate change.

Increasingly detailed work continues to show efficiency benefits from the incremental hybridization of aircraft propulsion

Readers discuss small module reactors, the U.S.-NATO relationship, an unusual plan for a new midmarket airplane, and Latin letters in China.

David Calhoun faces a bevy of tasks as Boeing’s new CEO, but the most important job for industry may be finding his replacement.

More airlines are buying sustainable fuel and more production capacity is coming on line, but cost remains a major issue.

Boeing’s efforts to keep 737 Next Generation and MAX training as similar as possible included limiting external discussion of the maneuvering

Scope clauses play a big impact on the Embraer E175 fleet and its existing and emerging competitors.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says initial intelligence points to an Iranian surface-to-air missile bringing down PS752.

Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury has said the company is committed to its operations in the UK despite Brexit.

Airbus announced plans Jan. 9 to increase A320-family production to seven aircraft per month at its plant in Mobile, Alabama beginning early 2021, up from its current rate of five per month.