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Aviation History
1991
1991 - 0170.PDF
HEADLINES Poor 1990 airline results reflect rising fuel prices French reshape nuclear force France's Armee de l'Air is to be restructured into three main commands by 1 Septem ber. All airborne nuclear weap onry will come under one com mand which — like all French nuclear forces — will take or ders directly from the President. Under the new structure, nu clear-capable aircraft (Dassault Mirage 2000Ns, Mirage IIIEs, Mirage IVs and SEPECAT Jag uars) of the Force Aerienne Tactique will come under the control of the Force Aerienne Strategique. Air defence (including the operation of Boeing E-3F air borne early warning and control aircraft) will be under the Com- mandement Air des Forces de Defence Aerienne. Military air transport will remain with the Commandement Transport Aerie Militaire. • Soviets train on Canadian A310s Canadian Airlines is training over 40 Aeroflot pilots to operate the Airbus A310-300 wide-body airliner. The Soviet carrier is set to receive the first of five A310s, ordered on 24 January, 1990, in November. The Soviet crews are being trained on Canadian's Thom- son-CSF A310-300 simulator. To date the Canadian carrier has trained 24 Aeroflot pilots in flight instruction and systems training. It seems that many of the pilots operate the llyushin I1-62M and Ilyushin-86. Canadian says that the pro gramme to train the Soviet pi lots is ongoing, and it expects to train 40-45 pilots altogether. Canadian Airlines is in the process of selling 12 ex-Wardair A310s to the International Air plane leasing company, with de livery of the final aircraft ex pected in 1992. In the meantime, three of the aircraft have been sold to a group of international banks headed by Matsui Tayo Kohi of Tokyo. Canadian is now leasing the aircraft back, and will buy them again before 1992. D BY DAVID LEARMOUNT US airline losses reached $2 billion last year — twice as high as anything previously re corded according to figures re leased by the US Air Transport Association (ATA). A further $600 million in losses are ex pected in the first quarter says the Association. The vast majority of the year's loss was accumulated during the last quarter. The ATA says the main cause has been Gulf crisis generated fuel price rises. At the end of the third quarter, losses were $240 million; esti mates of fourth-quarter losses top $1.7 billion. On 2 August, aviation fuel cost 16.8c/litre (63.5c/gal). The price peaked in October at 36.7c and was fairly stable throughout December around 21cc. If there is little or no ASTA Aircraft Services, the Australian aircraft mainte nance company, is expected next month to announce plans to take partners into its over haul and modification business at Avalon in Victoria. New shareholders will take a total holding of 49%. They will include British Airways and two maintenance companies, one of which is Asian. Neither ASTA nor British Air ways is willing to discuss the plans, which are at an advanced stage. The programme includes the modification of seven BA 747-100s — which were to be modified at Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering (HAECO) — and "protected slots" for -200 work. Work to meet ageing-aircraft requirements has increased to the point where BA has had to split its 747 business between the two contractors and delay Middle Eastern oilfield damage during the Gulf conflict, the price is expected to decrease —resulting in the ATA forecast of considerably reduced first- quarter losses. Traffic for 1990 showed re cord totals "... spurred primarily by growth in international travel", says the ATA. Passenger numbers were up by 3% to 467 million, revenue passenger kilo metres (RPK) by 5.7% to 457 billion and departures by 4.6% to 6.9 million. Air freight in creased 2% and mail 5.6%. Domestic traffic on its own, however, was disappointing: passenger numbers were up only 1.5% and RPKs 2.4% in the first 11 months. Vigorous inter- national^ growth pushed over seas passenggr numbers up by 12% and,RPKs by 15.7%. The second yjjar running inter national services provided the long-term 747 disposal plans. The first 747 went to HAECO last October, and the last should be completed in early 1993. Additional work arising from the airworthiness assurance task force ageing-aircraft studies has more than doubled maintenance time, meaning that HAECO can not complete all 14 aircraft be- industry's solace: in 1989 do mestic passenger numbers dropped by 5.5 million, though the overall drop was reduced to 2 million by international traffic increases. The ATA reports that domes tic revenue per passenger kilo metre increased by 2% to an average 7.26c per kilometre. Of all domestic trips, 91% involve discounts, the average discount being 65% off full fare. This year more than 250 new jets will be delivered into US airlines' fleets, says the ATA, expanding the total fleet to 4,200 aircraft. The Association judges 1990 a safe year, stating that there was a total of 11 fatalities and four fatal accidents in 6.9 mil lion flights. Fewer fatalities have occurred in only five years since 1938, the first year in which safety data was recorded. • fore mandatory inspection thresholds are reached. The first 747 bound for ASTA under the new deal is expected to fly to Australia in early April. The contract runs to early 1994, when modifications to BA's 17 Boeing 747-200s must begin. BA will now have two 747s out of service simultaneously. • ASIA partnership plans expected BA set to become shareholder in Australian 747 maintenance programme 4 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 23 - 29 January, 1991
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