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Aviation History
1987
1987 - 1468.PDF
AIR TRANSPORT Fokker 100 gear fails AMSTERDAM The first Fokker 100 proto type was damaged when the starboard landing gear failed during high-speed landing tests at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport on July 31. None of the 12 people on board was injured. Fokker was testing fan stresses on the Rolls-Royce Tay engines in a 170kt aborted take-off with full reverse thrust. For practical purposes the test was performed as a high-speed flapless landing with no lift dumpers deployed. The land ing speed was to be 160kt, followed by acceleration to 170kt after which full reverse thrust would be applied. During the acceleration to 170kt a strong vibration occurred, which Fokker believes to have been a violent shimmy of the starboard main undercarriage. The landing gear torque link main fitting attachment then failed and the right-wheel sliding- member assembly separated. Full reverse thrust stopped the aircraft in a controlled manner, but the wingtip hit the ground near the end of the run, Fokker says. The star board landing gear main fitting hub damaged the runway over a distance of 1,500m. The wingtip, inboard flap, and 2m of the outboard lower wingskin are to be replaced. The ailerons were not damaged. Fokker and undercarriage makers Dowty are investi gating the incident, but do not know yet what is needed to prevent the shimmy. The undercarriage has a "great similarity" to that of the Fokker F.28 but "it is cer tainly a strengthened and modified gear", Dowty says. The test programme is continuing with the second prototype, and Fokker says the impact on the tests will be limited. The damaged aircraft had completed about 170hr and is not expected to resume flying for about five or six weeks. Fokker says it is too early to determine whether the accident will delay certifi cation or deliveries, but expects any delays to be minimal. The Fokker 100 programme had already been delayed. The first deliveries were originally planned for last April, but this has been extended at least to the end of November. Lauda gets his licence VIENNA Lauda Air will be the first independent Austrian airline to fly scheduled international services next May. After 14 months of fighting, it received its licence last week to fly to Beijing and Sydney after satisfying all of the Austrian civil aviation authority's requirements. Lauda Air will fly once a week from Vienna to Sydney and Beijing, both via Bangkok, using a Boeing 767-300ER. The aircraft is scheduled for delivery in April next year, to start services on May 1. The airline is also planning to start services to Tokyo in 1989. Austrian Airlines objected to Lauda's plans throughout the application procedure. Lauda said: "This type of licence application had never happened before, so it was a long procedure, but Austrian Airlines could not stop it as we fulfilled every requirement". Austrian Airlines did not want Lauda to start scheduled international services even to points which it does not serve. The state carrier does not yet have any long-haul services, but is planning to fly to New York and Tokyo in 1989 and is considering Beijing soon after. Lauda Air has an option on a second 767-300ER, and is considering taking the aircraft at the end of 1989 and applying for a licence to serve South America. Its charter operations now serve the continent as well as sunspots in Europe. The charter market is "unbelievably good" now, and this has led the airline into the scheduled arena, Lauda says. The airline has been oper ating for eight years, and since 1985 Itas—one of the largest tour operators in Austria— has been a 49 per cent share holder. The Fokker 100 programme is already about seven months behind schedule, but Fokker says that the recent incident should have a limited effect on its test programme % " „„\ NEWS SCAN The USA and the Nether lands have signed a new liberal bilateral air service agreement. Dutch carriers now also have rights to Orlando, Florida, and US carriers to any point in the Netherlands. Saudi Arabia's flag carrier, Saudia, has banned smoking on domestic flights of less than 2hr—affecting 18 desti nations. It also plans to reduce the number of smoking seats on its international flights. Middle East Airline work ers have appealed to Lebanese President Amin Gemayel and other leaders in the nation, to help get the country's airline off the ground. Fujairah Airport in the United Arab Emirates will open this September, accord ing to the nation's director of civil aviation. It will have a 3,750m runway and be capable of handling all types of aircraft. Manchester Airport in the UK is to have a new £27 million domestic terminal within two years. The devel opment will ease passenger congestion before the termi nal 2 development is finished in the early 1990s, when 12 million passengers a year are expected to be using the airport. East German carrier Inter- flug appears to be considering acquiring both the Tupolev Tu-204 and the Ilyushin 11-96 for the 1990s. Both types are illustrated in the airline's publicity literature. Dusseldorf Airport re corded a 12 per cent increase in passengers in the first six months of this year. It handled almost 4-5 million people and 20,000 tonnes of freight. One third of all German charter traffic passes through Dusseldorf. The airports new Terminal 2 was built exclusively to handle charter flights. Scotland based Air Ecosse has appealed to the Transport minister and House of Lords against the recent revocation of two of its domestic routes. It is still under Adminis tration, but was expected to restart services in early August. FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL, 15 August 1987
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