FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1991
1991 - 0075.PDF
BUSINESS Pawan Hans seeks expansion funds BY M SUNDARESAN IN BOMBAY Pawan Hans (PHL) has sub mitted plans to the Indian Government to purchase 22 more helicopters for around Rs3,000 million ($166 million) over the next five years. Company chairman Air Cdre C M Singla says the Govern ment may not be able to finance the entire project, forcing PHL to look for interest-free loans from customers like the Oil and Natural Gas Commission. The fresh investment, partly aimed at replacing its 19 Wes- tland 30s, is needed to help reverse PHL's poor financial performance. The company also operates Aerospatiale Dauphins. The Indian operator is look ing for eight five-seat light heli copters, ten eight-seat medium helicopters and four large 25- seat helicopters. The Advanced Light Helicopter, now being de veloped by Hindustan Aeronau tics, is one of the possible con tenders. PHL's Westland 30s were grounded for a year from Sep tember 1989 following two seri ous incidents, losing the com pany Rs4,460 million. During the year to March 1990, PHL made a totSl profit of Rs83l million. It has a cash surplus of Rsl69.5 million. The company was heavily criticised in an official Govern ment report for its maintenance and pilot training procedures. According to Singla, talks about offshore operations are taking place between PHL and certain Middle East countries, n Dassault wins 34 orders Dassault Aviation has a re cord 34 firm orders for its family of Falcon business jets in 1990 — mainly for the Falcon 50 and Falcon 900 trijets. The record level of orders has been reached in a year when North America, which is tradi tionally the major market for this type of aircraft, weakened significantly. Outside the USA, the market has shown a steady growth. By the end of 1990, 25 op tions had been taken on the Falcon 2000 wide-bodied twin- jet, which was launched offi cially at the NBAA convention on 4 October, 1990. In November, Dassault chair man and chief executive officer Serge Dassault said that the company intended to boost its business-jet activities over the next five years to help compen sate for the downturn in mili tary markets. By 1995 it is hoped to lift sales of civil aircraft to between 40 and 50 a year and raise the portion of Dassault turnover from the present level of 20% to 35% (Flight International, 5-11 December, 1990). D Austrian in the black for 20th year Austrian Airlines is expecting to show an increase in gross income of 13.3% to $878.7 million for 1990. Overall profit should total $35 million — the 20th consecutive year the carrier has shown a profit. Austrian expects to show that 2,250,000 passengers flew on its scheduled flights in 1990, an 8.7% increase. Projected figures for the cargo business show an increase of 12.4% to 31.854t. Austrian plans to make in vestments amounting to $176.7 million in 1991. A further $19 million is expected to be spent this year on the construction of a new maintenance base at Vienna Airport. D Air India is suffering twice over from the crisis in the Gulf Air India losses predicted Air India is expected to make a Rs2,000 million ($110.7 million) loss for the current financial year, according to India's Minister for Civil Avia tion, Harmohan Dhawan. He told Parliament the antici pated loss was caused by sharp increases in oil prices due to the Gulf crisis and fall in revenue caused by the termination of Bofors/Swedish Ordnance starts operations Swedish Ordnance-FFV/ Bofors AB, the new defence company owned jointly by FFV and Nobel Industries, has started operations. The merging of the opera tions is considered vital to as sure long-term profitability, as export markets weaken and de fence spending in Sweden falls. Swedish Ordnance comprises the artillery, ammunition, mis sile and propellant manufactur ing activities of Nobel Indus tries. FFV Ordnance and Sutech AB in Linkoping are included in the new company. The merged company is ex pected to generate total sales of about SEK5 billion ($892.5 jnil- lion) per annum. Equity" in Swedish Ordnance will amount to SEK600 million with the company's equity/assets ratio (excluding advances) in excess of 25%. • flights to Iraq and Kuwait. Dha wan believes rationalisation of operations and cost cutting will improve the situation. The suspension of Indian Air lines Airbus A320 operations had caused a loss of about Rs42.9 million a week, Parlia ment was told. Dhawan says that Indian re gional carrier Vayudoot has an aged and uneconomic fleet and an unremunerative fare struc ture. Dhawan said it was imper ative to rationalise operations to ease losses. • GIAT purchases FN of Belgium GIAT of France has acquired FN of Belgium in a deal signed on 31 December, 1990. FN, best known for its pro duction of small arms, also operates the FN Moteurs air craft engines division at Mil- more, near Lie. General Electric F100 en gines for F-16 A/B Fighting Falcons to cover Belgian and Western European require ments are assembled there, along with components for CFMI civil engines and Ariane rocket motors. The Belgian company hopes to achieve a BFrl6,000 million ($500 million) turnover by next year. It will continue to provide jobs for 3,200 workers. A slump in military orders resulted re cently in over 400 job cuts at FN Moteurs. • FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 9 - 15 January, 1991 13
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
