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Aviation History
1992
1992 - 0702.PDF
HEADLINES Spain withdraws from defensive aids for EFA Spain has withdrawn from the development phase of the £1.5 billion defensive-aids subsystem (DASS) for the Eu ropean Fighter Aircraft, leav ing only the UK and Italy to go ahead with what was orig inally a four-nation pro gramme. The development contract, finally signed on 13 March after a nine-month delay, will see the Marconi Defence Sys tems-led EURODASS consor tium go ahead with the development, at a cost of £200 million. The Spanish decision to "...continue to examine its options", according to the country's ministry of defence, effectively removes Spanish industry, in the shape of Ini- sel, from the development. Spanish financial concerns first came to light (Flight International, 5-11 February), when, despite a UK parlia mentary announcement that the contract award was immi nent, none was forthcoming. The last-minute hitch was caused by a Spanish decision to review its commitment to the development phase of the DASS, a move which has now led to its withdrawal. • See Defence P 12 BA stays in Germany by buying into Delta Air British Airways (BA) has gained a secure foothold in the domestic German market by leading the acquisition of Delta Air, which will now operate as Deutsche BA. The British carrier is taking a 49% stake in the Fried- richshafen-based regional Ger man airline with the remaining 51% being held by a consortium of German banks. The acquisition represents a coup for BA, which since early 1991 has been attempting to set up a Berlin-based airline to take over from its Internal German Services (IGS) operation set up under the post-war treaty. At the start of 1991, the Ger man Government told BA that it would have to wind up IGS by the end of 1992. Initially', BA had hoped to continue the air line under a different name and with 51% German ownership, but plans were repeatedly blocked by union resistance and Lufthansa's lobbying. Delta Air, which was founded in 1982, was owned previously by Swiss regional carrier Cros- sair and German industrialist Friedrich von Bohlen und Hal- bach. The airline has a staff of 158 and operates nine 34-seat Thai Airways A330 plans over-ruled AThai Airways International commitment to buy seven Airbus Industrie A330s has been overturned by the Thai Govern ment. The aircraft's lower seat ing capacity compared with the Boeing 777, was reportedly a major factor in the decision. A Thai Airways commitment for six A330s, in addition to eight previous orders, was an nounced in September 1991. It is unclear how the seven re jected aircraft are distributed be tween the two orders. The seven were part of a $2.73 billion package of 19 new air craft sought by the carrier, which must obtain prior Gov ernment approval for any order. Another factor behind the de cision not to go ahead with the A330s, came from government instructions to reduce the types of aircraft engines used. The outgoing Thai Govern ment backed the Thai Airways request for the remaining 12 aircraft, four 747s and eight 777s. The timing of another government aircraft acquisition proposal by Thai Airways will become clear after the Thai gen eral election. • Saab 340s and a 16-seat Dornier Do.228, both twin-turboprops, on a 16-route domestic network with international services to Geneva, Zurich and Paris. It has ordered two Saab 2000s. "The next stage in the new airline's development will be the introduction, within a few months, of new Boeing 737-300 aircraft in order to build up a network of domestic and inter national services," says Richard Heideker, who will remain as Delta Air's managing director. Deutsche BA will apply quickly to expand its route net work, and BA says it is confident the applications will be success ful. It seems certain that some of the routes will be those of BA's IGS. BA still operates the IGS using British Aerospace ATPs and One-Elevens. • Canadian pursues American alliance yields with a 10% increase in capacity planned by domestic rival Air Canada — despite an already significant overcapacity in the market. Canadian president Kevin Jen kins says the carrier needs a "...capital injection to improve the balance sheet although we are not contemplating a deal where control is an issue". He says that Canadian has "...sus pended talks with other airlines ...to focus our energy on a trans action with American." • Canadian Airlines Interna tional and American Air lines have started detailed discussions on a strategic alli ance. The carriers have been in informal talks since late in 1991. The possible terms of the alli ance are unclear although it will involve an equity purchase by American. Joint marketing pro grammes and reciprocal services are said to be under discussion. Canadian Airlines has suffered heavy losses in the last two years and faces a further reduction in SAAB 2000 TRIALS STORM AHEAD Initial taxiing trials on the Saab 2000 turboprop airliner were carried out despite a blizzard at Linkoping on 14 March, as Saab Aircraft works 24h a day to meet the April deadline for the first flight. Although the new Allison GMA2100/Dowty propeller combination is noisier than hoped for, "...we see nothing to prevent us meeting the [noise] targets", says project leader Johan Qster. He claims that the sound is not the "scream" of a turboprop and that it fades quickly with distance: "it is more like white noise". FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 25 - 31 March, 1992
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