Aircraft & Propulsion

Aircraft News-Sept. 21, 2019

LCC Thai VietJet Air has welcomed its first Airbus A321, at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Air pollution, especially in large Asian cities, is believed to be one cause of reliability issues that have affected a large portion of the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000-powered Boeing 787 fleet.

RwandAir is evaluating the Airbus A321LR and Boeing 737-7 to operate on European routes during off-peak seasons.

French Polynesian regional carrier Air Tahiti is considering procuring jets so it can expand international routes from its home base of Papeete, CEO Manate Vivish told ATW on the sidelines of this week’s IATA Aviation Day in Mauritius.

Thai Airways is assessing whether it needs to adjust its fleet upgrade plans, with the latest review expected to be completed by year-end.

Revised compressor blade design nears certification as Rolls uses flying testbed to validate durability of Trent 1000 with cracks still in place.

Airbus sent JetBlue Airways’ latest A321ceo off on its delivery flight Sept. 19 from Mobile, Alabama, with 15.5% renewable jet fuel onboard, continuing a trend the manufacturer started with its Toulouse delivery flights two years ago.

The first Aviation Corp. of China (AVIC) MA700 turboprop airliner is on track for delivery in 2022, the manufacturer said in a program update.

Air New Zealand is suspending two routes from its international network partly because of aircraft shortages caused by ongoing Boeing 787 engine issues.

Boeing’s upcoming decisions will be an indication of how it plans to curb the NMA’s life-cycle cost.

Gulf Air is apparently reevaluating its plan to phase out its Airbus A330s in favor of incoming Boeing 787s.

The first A380 for Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) completed a maiden flight from the Airbus final assembly line (FAL) in Toulouse, France to the manufacturer’s site in Hamburg, Germany.

Brussels Airlines is considering whether to move its wet-lease arrangement from Ireland’s CityJet, following longer-than-anticipated delays in solving technical problems with its Russian-built Sukhoi Superjet 100s (SSJ100s).

China Southern Airlines is looking at a fleet of 150 widebody, long-haul aircraft by 2020 as the Guangzhou-based carrier seeks expansion opportunities.

Regional turboprop manufacturer ATR has named Stefano Bortoli as its new CEO, following the departure of Christian Scherer, who was appointed Airbus CCO.

Mexican LCC Interjet Airlines, the only operator of Sukhoi Superjets in the Americas, is planning to phase out some of its 22 Superjet 100s as part of a fleet restructuring and overall strategic growth plan through 2021 announced Sept. 14.

Boeing, Spirit AeroSystems and CFM all say they are almost back on track, but the depth of 737 production issues has become much clearer recently.

Airbus rolled out Delta Air Lines’ first A220-100 from the painting hangar Sept. 14 in Mirabel, Québec.

Vertical Aerospace wants to take on the airlines with intercity services using carbon-free eVTOL air vehicles.

Air Lease Corp. (ALC) executive chairman Steven Udvar-Házy said Boeing is carefully weighing engine options for the US manufacturer’s new mid-market aircraft (NMA)—dubbed the 797—with a potential go-ahead for the program expected in mid-2019.

Airbus is facing more leadership turmoil after chief commercial officer Eric Schulz resigned Sept. 13.

Nigeria’s Air Peace has ordered 10 Boeing 737 MAX 8s during a signing ceremony in Lagos.

Some operators of Pratt & Whitney PW1100G-powered A320neos are facing a new snag—unusually high engine vibration in the climb phase. Pratt indicated a fix may be identified by year-end.

Boeing’s orderbook surged in August, more than tripling July’s input with firm orders placed for 99 new aircraft, valued at approximately $13 billion at list prices.