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Aviation History
1995
1995 - 3355.PDF
'fIiJ-\ TJSJJ^ UJi f BWIA International goes for Airbus mix KEVIN OTOOLE/LONDON BWI International Airlines (BWIA) has settled on a mix of Airbus aircraft including diree A3 40s for its fleet replacement, overturning an earlier announcement that it had selected Boeing types. President Ed Wegel says diat the first two A3 40s will arrive in a year's time to operate die daily service to London from its Trinidad base. The third aircraft will be operated on other European routes, includ ing Frankfurt and Zurich. The airline will also take a mix of eight A320/321s to serve routes between die Caribbean and Norm America, supplemented by die A340s where there is sufficient demand. The exact number and mix of the narrowbodies will be firmed up within the next month says BWIA. The airline originally announced that it planned to take a Boeing fleet of two 767s and eight 757s leased from International Lease Finance. The change in direction appears to have come both from stiff lobbying from Airbus and because of the higher capacity of the A340, which BWIA will operate in a 330-seat two-class configura tion. At least some of the A3 40s will be direct-leased from Airbus. The new aircraft will replace a Lockheed L-1011 and nine Mc Donnell Douglas MD-83s. Fresh from its own privatisation, L-1011 will be replaced by A 340s BWIA has also taken a 29% stake in local carrier LIAT, which was privatised on 10 November. This strategic alliance comes as part of a wider strategy to pull together inter-island services within the Caribbean. Although LIAT will keep its own identity, three other carriers — Cardinal Airlines of Dominica, Carib Aviation of Antigua and Trans Island Air of Barbados — are being over-branded as BWIA Express, to provide feeders for islands not served by the Trinidad long-haul carrier. BWLA says that it is also working with Carib Express, the Barbados-based inter- island carrier part-owned by British Airways. J Slot limits may scupper Virgin's domestic plans VIRGIN ATLANTIC'S planned move into the domestic market is being ham pered by slot restrictions imposed at London Heathrow and Gatwick airports. Richard Branson's airline has re activated Cityair (Chester), a dor mant Virgin Holdings company which has applied to the Civil Aviation Authority for a scheduled operating licence. Virgin says that, while the pro posed services are principally in tended to feed its long-haul routes, it also wants to compete against rivals British Airways and British Midland on the UK's major trunk routes to Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester. Despite Cityair's new entrant sta tus, the indications are that it will be unable to obtain the necessary peak- hour slots at Heathrow. Virgin has admitted that domestic operations from its preferred airport may be doomed to failure and are unlikely to take off as planned in 1996. Virgin is also looking at starting a European regional operation. • American Airlines MD-83 crashed on approach AN AMERICAN Airlines Mc Donnell Douglas MD-83 from Chicago hit trees and force- landed, in heavy rain and darkness, just short of the runway at Bradley International Airport, USA on 12 November. None of the five crew or 72 passengers was injured. Bradley's tower had been dam aged in the storm, but the aircraft had been given unofficial clearance to land, "at the pilot's discretion", says the US National Trans portation Safety Board (NTSB). The aircraft struck trees on a ridge on the approach, some 4.25km (2.25nm) from the thresh old of runway 15. The NTSB says that the engines ingested tree debris, one engine lost power and the other did not develop sufficient thrust to enable a go-around, so the captain elected to land. There was a general windshear warning in force, but the NTSB says that the aircraft's windshear warning system had not activated. During the approach, says the NTSB, the aircraft's flightpath angle, speed and power settings were all appropriate, but it was low and the ground-proximity warning system had given a "sink-rate" alert just before impact with the trees. At least eight people died when a Nigeria Airways Boeing 737-200A skidded off the runway during a landing run at Kaduna, Nigeria, on 13 November. The aircraft was inbound on a domestic flight from Jos, with 130 people on board. It landed at 07.00 local time in reduced visibility, but slewed off the runway — causing a wing to hit the ground. • Turkish order maintains Douglas recovery TURKISH CHARTER opera tor Onur Air has ordered five McDonnell Douglas MD-88s and taken options on five more, continu ing the fourth-quarter turn-around in the fortunes of Douglas Aircraft. Up to the end of September, Douglas had taken orders for just 11 twinjets during the whole of 1995. The order by the Istanbul- based carrier brings tthis year's total of new orders and options to around 174, more than 50% of which are firm orders booked over the past six weeks. The MD-90s amassed 59 new orders and six options during the year. The largest single boost was the Valujet deal for the MD-95, with orders and options for 100, while the Onur Air order brings new MD-80 business for the year to date to 14 firm orders and five options. The undelivered backlog of firm-order MD-80s is now around 31, with a further 45 "options and reserves," says Douglas. Firm-order backlog for the MD-90 is now more than 120, with 76 options and reserves. The slow-moving MD-11 backlog, meanwhile, stands at 26 firm and 61 options. Douglas plans to deliver the first Onur aircraft in early 1997. The aircraft will be used on charter flights from Turkey to Europe and the eastern Mediterranean. The Istanbul-based carrier operates nine A3 20s, all leased from GATDC. According to Airbus, the airline intends to retain five of the A320s and replace the remain ing aircraft with three larger A32 Is next year. • 18 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 22 - 28 November 1995
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