Aircraft & Propulsion

By Guy Norris
Boeing says returning the 737 MAX safely to service is its first priority and with extra resources being channeled into this effort hinted for the first time this may impact the outline schedule for launching its next proposed airliner project, the new midsize airplane (NMA).
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Victoria Moores
Airlines continue to improve their handling of checked bags, getting more bags to the right destination on time even as the number of airline passengers grows each year.
Aircraft & Propulsion

Malaysia Airlines issued RFPs in April to Airbus and Embraer for the acquisition of 30 to 40 regional aircraft as its looks to solidify routes within Southeast Asia, according to a source familiar with the carrier.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Alan Dron
Regional carrier Silver Airways began operating the ATR 42-600 turboprop in the US April 22, marking Franco-Italian ATR’s return to the US market.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Polina Montag-Girmes
Belavia Belarusian Airlines took delivery of two Embraer E-Jets, an E195 and an E175, on April 20 and 21.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Graham Warwick
Citing traffic congestion in the capital city, a startup has launched a helicopter ridesharing service in Manila, Philippines.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Bill Carey
EASA has certified a new altitude monitoring function on Airbus A320-series airliners, according to NAVBLUE, Airbus’ flight operations and air traffic management subsidiary.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Graham Warwick
The first air carrier certificate for a commercial drone delivery service in the US has been awarded by the FAA to Wing, a subsidiary of Google parent company Alphabet.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Graham Warwick
Integration of the former Bombardier CSeries program into Airbus is progressing well, the head of Airbus in Canada said. “We will deliver more aircraft in the second half of the year than we did in the first half as we continue to ramp up,” said Philippe Balducci, CEO of the Airbus-led partnership that now builds the narrowbody airliner as the A220.

By Sean Broderick
Representatives from nine civil aviation authorities—including the four major state-of-design agencies and China—have accepted invitations from the FAA to conduct a partial review of the Boeing 737 MAX certification, FAA announced April 19.
Safety, Ops & Regulation

By Bradley Perrett
Japanese manufacturer Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. is close to finalizing a refined design for the MRJ70, the shorter version of its MRJ regional jet, and by the end of June, two additional MRJ90 prototypes will be ready for MRJ flight testing, Mitsubishi Aircraft president Hisakazu Mizutani said.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Bradley Perrett
The Russian chairperson of the Chinese-Russian commercial aircraft consortium (CRAIC) board expects the consortium to receive initial orders for its CR929 widebody airliner no earlier than 2023—a differing assessment compared to the late-2019 timing recently suggested by the Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China (COMAC), the Chinese partner in the program.
Aircraft & Propulsion

Air Mauritius received the first of two Airbus A330-900s it has on order at Airbus’s Toulouse final assembly plant April 18; the aircraft are provided under contract with US-based Air Lease Corp. (ALC).
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Sean Broderick, Guy Norris
Targeted checks have turned up issues on 1% of the engine fleet.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Guy Norris, Sean Broderick
Boeing has taken several major steps toward completing upgraded 737 MAX maneuvering characteristics augmentation system (MCAS) flight control law software in recent days, giving the company confidence that it is “making steady progress” in its bid to get the grounded MAX fleet operating again, its top executive said.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Thierry Dubois
Officials from French aerospace industry association GIFAS are predicting the ongoing safety crisis around the Boeing 737 MAX will cause certification costs to increase.
Safety, Ops & Regulation

By Linda Blachly
Aircraft Briefs-April 18, 2019
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Alan Dron
LCC Air Arabia has taken delivery of the first of six Airbus A321neoLRs, the first Middle Eastern airline to operate the extended-range version of the type.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Alan Dron
New African flag carrier Uganda Airlines has taken delivery of the first two of four Bombardier CRJ900 regional jets ordered in July 2018.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Sean Broderick, Guy Norris
CFM International is monitoring its LEAP engine fleet for signs of an issue believed to be tied to the March 26 contained engine failure on a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 that was being ferried to storage.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Alan Dron
Icelandair is wet-leasing Boeing 767s and acquiring a Boeing 757 on a temporary basis to compensate for its 737 MAX 8s affected by the global grounding.
Airlines & Lessors

By Guy Norris
Embraer’s E195-E2 has been awarded simultaneous Brazilian, European and US type certification, clearing the way for initial deliveries of the stretched 146-seat airliner to begin early in the second half of the year.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Sean Broderick
FAA is targeting late May or early June for approving Boeing’s proposed changes to the 737 MAX and issuing an airworthiness directive that would mandate the upgrades and clear the way for US MAX operations to resume, the agency told airline representatives April 12.
Safety, Ops & Regulation

Russia’s United Aircraft Corp. (UAC) is reconfiguring its top management as it prepares to separate commercial aircraft production from UAC’s military programs.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Polina Montag-Girmes
Smartavia Airline, formerly known as Aeroflot-Nord and Nordavia, took delivery of its first Boeing 737-800 in the new branding.
Aircraft & Propulsion