Asiana Airlines yesterday launched weekly Seoul-Moscow Domodedovo-Vienna cargo flights aboard a 747-400F. American Eagle Airlines will launch six-times-weekly New York LaGuardia-Flint service on Nov. 4 aboard ERJ-135s.
New Dubai World Central International Airport under construction at Jebel Ali awarded the meteorological system contract at JXB to Emirati firm International Aeradio LLC, while the UK's Park Air Systems will be responsible for a VHF atmospheric radar implementation. Procurement and installation of the packages has commenced, the airport said.
Copa Airlines and Aeromexico unveiled a codeshare agreement starting Aug. 1. Initially, Copa will place its code on AM flights from Mexico City to 17 Mexican destinations while the latter will place its code on Copa flights from Panama City to Mexico City, Cancun and Guadalajara.
The National Air Traffic Controllers Assn. is "deeply dissatisfied" with the outcome of the US National Transportation Safety Board's investigation into the Aug. 27, 2006, crash of a Comair CRJ200 in Lexington, Ky., ( ATWOnline, July 27), saying FAA was not sufficiently criticized or blamed for failing to schedule two controllers the morning of the flight.
Macquarie Airports led a consortium that purchased a 9.56% stake in Japan Airport Terminal Co., which owns, manages and operates the three passenger terminals at Tokyo Haneda as well as retail businesses at Tokyo Narita and Osaka Kansai. MAp said the stake cost approximately ¥19.6 billion ($163.3 million) and that its own interest in JAT is 4.79%.
New Brazilian Defense Minister Nelson Jobim, in charge of reforming the country's troubled air traffic system, inspected the main runway at Sao Paulo Congonhas Friday and cleared its reopening 10 days after the fatal TAM A320 crash that killed 199 people. Jobim took charge of the military-run ATC system last week in the aftermath of the accident and as thousands of passengers were stranded at airports plagued by rampant flight delays and cancellations ( ATWOnline, July 26).
China Eastern Airlines created a Beijing Branch Company in order to establish itself further in the capital, where its passenger traffic has increased 15% over the past two years but its market share is just 11%. The Shanghai-based carrier noted that Beijing offers greater opportunities due to its location and next summer's Olympic Games. "We can take advantage of our Beijing Branch Company to expand our network in the Beijing-centered northern region," MD Cao Jianxiong said. Expanding in Beijing is becoming an attractive option for Chinese airlines based outside the capital.
Ryanair announced the following new routes: From Bristol to Turin (weekly from Dec. 22); from Nottingham East Midlands to Belfast City (daily from Oct. 30), Grenoble (weekly from Dec. 22), Poznan (thrice-weekly from Nov. 8), Salzburg (weekly from Dec. 22) and Tenerife (twice-weekly from Oct. 28); from Liverpool to Belfast City (daily from Oct. 30), Budapest (four-times-weekly from Oct. 31), Bydgoszcz (twice-weekly from Oct. 28), Fuerteventura (thrice-weekly from Oct. 30), Grenoble (weekly from Dec. 22), Lodz (twice-weekly from Oct. 29), Salzburg (weekly from Dec.
The US National Transportation Safety Board attributed the Aug. 27, 2006, pre-dawn crash of Comair Flight 5191 at Lexington Blue Grass (Ky.) Airport to errors by the cockpit crew that board members were at a loss to explain. In a draft report released yesterday following an 11-month investigation, NTSB called for enhancements in airport taxiway markings and lighting and the use of in-cockpit map displays.
Dnata, the ground handling arm of Emirates Group, signed a 15-year joint venture agreement with China West Airport Group to provide airport ground handling services at Xi'an Xianyang International Airport. Under the JV, Dnata will hold 45% in Xi'an Dnata Aviation Services with the remainder owned by CWAG.
US and EU announced an agreement "to jointly adopt and provide an improved design for their respective Global Navigation Satellite System signals." The signals will be implemented on the Galileo Open Service and the new GPS IIIA civil signal. "Today's announcement underscores Europe's commitment to interoperability between Galileo and GPS and to managing the Galileo program in an innovative partnership with the [US]," European Commission DC Matthias Ruete said.
American Eagle will launch twice-daily Dallas/Fort Worth-Roswell service on Sept. 5. Delta Air Lines will launch flights to Santa Fe from Los Angeles (daily) and Salt Lake City (twice-daily) on Dec. 10. ExpressJet Airlines will operate the routes aboard 50-seat ERJs.
Continental Airlines will launch twice-daily Cleveland-Ottawa service with a 37-seat E-135 operated by ExpressJet Airlines and a daily CLE-Oklahoma City flight aboard a 50-seat E-145, both on Sept. 30. Spirit Airlines will operate daily Fort Lauderdale-Grand Bahama flights beginning Dec. 13. Lufthansa will resume serving Pakistan with a thrice-weekly Frankfurt-Karachi-Lahore service beginning Oct. 28.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva yesterday fired Defense Minister Waldir Pires, who oversaw the country's military-operated ATC system, while extensive flight delays and cancellations showed no signs of abating as the nation attempted to recover from last week's fatal TAM A320 crash.
Flight delays and cancellations continue to be pervasive throughout Brazil, particularly at Sao Paulo Congonhas, where the main runway has been closed since last week's TAM A320 crash and major restrictions on future operations are being mandated by the government.
SkyEurope Airlines will launch flights from Vienna to Treviso (thrice-weekly) and Lisbon (four-times-weekly) on Oct. 23 using 737-700s. The Slovakian carrier then will offer flights to 15 destinations from its Austrian base.
Dubai Aerospace Enterprise reached an agreement yesterday to take a controlling interest in Auckland International Airport Ltd. DAE's stake, which still must be approved by AIAL shareholders, is expected to be at least 51% and as high as 60% and is valued at as much as NZ$2.6 billion ($2.07 billion). Under terms of the agreement, other bidders will be allowed to submit rival proposals for a controlling stake that AIAL's board also can consider.
Royal Jordanian today is launching a weekly Amman-Damascus 737-200 freighter service. The aircraft will have a capacity of 14.5 tons. RJ said it is "also studying the possibility of opening new freighter routes to other points in the Levant."
Qatar Airways launched daily service to Washington Dulles last week and also announced a new codeshare agreement with United Airlines that will strengthen the Middle Eastern carrier's presence in the US market.
Ethiopian Airlines and Gulf Air entered into a codeshare agreement that initially is covering ET's Addis Ababa-Bahrain service and giving passengers access to both carriers' networks from their respective hubs. Separately, Bahrain Airport Services signed an agreement with Gulf Air to train 25 Bahrainis sponsored by the airline to become aircraft maintenance engineers.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva attempted to assure a shaken nation Friday night that its air traffic system is safe despite two crashes in less than 11 months that combined to kill more than 340 people, insisting in a televised address that "our aviation system is compatible with all the international standards."
Bmi announced enhancements to its Middle East service anchored by the launch of a daily London Heathrow-Cairo flight from Oct. 28 aboard a dual-class A320. The carrier also said it signed an MOU with EgyptAir to enter a codeshare and reciprocal frequent-flier agreement when the service starts. Flights to Amman and Beirut will become daily from Oct. 28. Bmi said restrictions in the bilateral air services agreement between the UK and Egypt will force the cancellation of British Mediterranean Airways' Alexandria service.
Ryanair is moving its Tenerife flights from Tenerife North to Tenerife South from Oct. 18. Flights to Tenerife North will cease Oct 14. The LCC said the change of airport has come about "as a result of requests from passengers to access the southern part of the island and we are delighted to say that we have confirmed slots at Tenerife South Airport for the upcoming winter season."
Comair pilot instructor said in a deposition that the pilots of Comair Flight 5191, which crashed last August in Lexington, Ky., would have failed a flight test that day for several rules violations, the Associated Press reported. The testimony was excerpted in a brief filed by Blue Grass Airport, which is responding to a claim filed by the carrier relating to a lawsuit filed by a victim's relatives, AP said.
Virgin America began selling tickets yesterday on its website and through a toll-free phone number for flights to San Francisco, New York JFK, Los Angeles, Washington Dulles and Las Vegas.
