Aircraft & Propulsion

Panama flag carrier Copa Airlines plans to stick to its model of connecting the Americas and will not expand its fleet to include widebody aircraft capable of serving Europe, CEO Pedro Heilbron said at the International Society of Transport Aircraft Trading (ISTAT) Latin America Forum.

Bombardier has “completed certification flight testing” on the CS100, SVP-commercial aircraft sales and asset management Colin Bole said.

The Russian government has formally stated that an explosive device was responsible for the downing of a Metrojet Airbus A321 over the Sinai on Oct. 31 with the loss of 224 lives.

​EasyJet has placed a follow-on order for six CFM-powered A320ceos and 30 A320neos, cementing its position as the world’s fourth largest A320 family operator.

Finnair is planning to increase traffic on its European feeder network with an eye on growing long-haul capacity.

Russia’s Volga-Dnepr Airlines Ilyushin Il-76ТD-90VD aircraft has landed for the first time on an ice airfield in Antarctica.

A United Nations (UN) agency has designated the 1087.7-1092.3 MHz frequency band for worldwide Earth-to-space aircraft tracking, following the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.

KLM took delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 on Nov. 14, an aircraft leased from Aercap which will initially be operated on its Amsterdam-Abu Dhabi-Bahrain service.

Commercial aircraft orders and commitments placed at the Dubai Air Show, November 8-12, 2015. Source: ATW Research.

Lufthansa subsidiary Austrian Airlines plans to launch its first Embraer E195 scheduled flight from Jan. 4, 2016, on the Vienna-Stuttgart route.

Portuguese national carrier TAP Portugal has signed a firm order with Airbus for 53 aircraft from the European manufacturer, it announced Nov. 13.

Airbus is on schedule to deliver the first A320neo by end of 2015 as planned, an Airbus executive confirmed Friday.

Taiwan-based EVA Air has taken delivery of its first re-branded Boeing 777-300ER at the US manufacturer’s delivery center in Everett, Washington Nov. 10-11.

Taipei-based China Airlines expects to take delivery of its first of 14 Airbus A350-900s in July 2016, a spokesperson confirmed to ATW in Taipei.

Embraer is assembling the first of its next-generation E2 regional jets and the program remains on track, according to Embraer Commercial Aviation president and CEO Paulo Cesar Silva.

Aircraft & Engine News-Nov. 11, 2015

The Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) completed its first flight Nov. 11, taking off from Nagoya Airport and flying for about 90 minutes before returning.

Airbus said Ethiopian Airlines’ first A350-900 is taking shape on the final assembly line (FAL) in Toulouse, France.

Bombardier Commercial Aircraft has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Abu Dhabi Aviation (ADA) to establish an authorized service facility (ASF) for Bombardier’s Q Series turboprop regional airliners.

Low-cost carrier Flydubai plans to keep a small sub-fleet of all-economy aircraft even though its move into offering business class is considered a success, according to CEO Gaith Al Gaith.

Qatar Airways is not interested in taking a stake in another European airline, but is looking at the option of buying into Royal Air Maroc (RAM) or

Egypt’s KATO Investment has ordered six MC-21s with four options from Russia’s Irkut Corp. for its subsidiary Cairo Aviation at the Dubai Air Show.

Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. has set the first flight of the Mitsubishi Regional Jet (MRJ) for Nov. 11 at 9:30 a.m. local time at Nagoya Airport.

Airbus will eventually build a re-engined, more efficient neo version of the A380, COO customers John Leahy believes, and entry-into-service could be around 2023.

According to Airbus Chief Operating Officer Customers John Leahy, the A380neo would not only be equipped with new engines. A stretch would require a smaller tail plane for stability, thus could become lighter on a relative basis.