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Aviation History
1997
1997 - 2846.PDF
J£AL>±m=Z BA boosts Gatwick by transferring 777-200s BRITISH AIRWAYS is to widen the role of Airline Management (AML), its low-cost joint venture which operates long- haul routes from Gatwick Airport, as part of an expansion which will see BAs capacity from London's second airport increase bv 25% from mid-1998. It has confirmed plans to trans fer five Boeing 777-200s to Gatwick as part of the expansion from February 1998. These will replace McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30s on routes to Atlanta, Bermuda and Dallas. Meanwhile, BA is transferring its Jamaican services to AML, increasing frequencies to Kingston and Montego Bay to four flights a week from three. AML will also operate new routes to Cancun in Mexico, Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic and Tobago in the Caribbean on BA's behalf, while more flights will be added on most of its own routes. Initially, the AML services will be operated by McDonnell Douglas DC-1 Os leased from BA in the airline's colours, and flown by BAflightcrews. It is expected that the AML DC- 10s will be replaced by Boeing 777s, beginning in 1999, at which time the crewing arrangements may be re-organised. J 777 suffers new engine troubles GUY NORRIS/LOS ANGELES PRATT & WHITNEY and General Electric are inspecting their respective PW4090 and GE90 engines for the Boeing 777, after a new series of problems widi powerplants on British Airways and United Airlines aircraft. The GE90 suffered a crack in a rotating seal on the high-pressure compressor (HPC), between the second and sixth stage, which was unearthed during routine mainte nance on a high-time test engine at Evendale, Ohio. GE says that, by 23 October, some 31 engines with factor ', flight and production test and revenue service experience had been inspected, and one engine, on a BA 777, had been removed with a seal crack. Further inspections on the remainder of the fleet are due to be completed by early November. The P& W problem was discov ered more dramatically when an engine had to be shut down in flightafter a "large bang" was heard as the United 777 rotated on take off from London Heathrow- Airport in the UK. Another incident, not severe enough to warrantan in-flightshut down, was also experienced on another United aircraft shortly after take-off from Los Angeles P&Wthinks that United's 7777PW4000 problems are "unique incidents' International Airport in the USA. The engines involved are being stripped down and inspected to find the cause, although P&W says: "It appears that they were unique incidents. We don't think we have a fleet-wide problem." Investigations are believed to be centred on bearing seals in the base of the engine, particularly since the powerplant in the Heathrow event generated a low-oil warning. GE, meanwhile, seems closer to defining the cause of the HPC cracking in a seal tooth as an "unde sirable seal rub condition". The company believes that the condi tion will be eliminated by "a minor modification of the adjacent honey comb shroud, which is designed to make contact with the rotating seal". GE adds that metallurgical analysis confirms that the crack is ".. .stable and its growth rate is not accelerating". It also says die con dition will be controlled through a periodic inspection programme". • P&W's higher-thrust PW4098 engine has passed a critical fan- blade containment test at East Hartford, Connecticut. The test was the fifth in a series of 13 major certification require ments for the engine which is due to receive certification from the US Federal Aviation Administration in March 1998 for the higher-weight variant of the 777-300. • EC will inspect Delta's new Boeing sole-supplier deal DELTA AIR LINES has signed a definitive 20-year, 644-air- craft, sole-supplier contract with Boeing, but says that the manufac turer cannot enforce any exclusivi ty provisions unless permitted by the European Commission (EC). The EC has said that it will examine the contract, which Boeing maintains meets the terms imposed as a condition of approv ing its merger with McDonnell Douglas (MDC). Delta says that the sole-supplier contract guarantees it the pricing and flexibility benefits of the origi nal "exclusive" agreement. These include the ability to adjust deliv eries, substitute between Boeing models and trade-in aircraft- and even to buy non-Boeing types in certain unspecified categories. The deal supports the replace ment and rationalisation of Delta's domestic fleet, and covers 106 firm orders for delivery from 1998 through to 2006, valued at $6.7 bil lion, as well as 124 options and 414 "rolling options" for aircraft deliv eries through to 2018. Delta is still evaluatingits international fleet re quirements, which may lead to the airline exercising its 777 options. The engine component of the order is still under negotiation, although an $800 million deal is being tied up for the CFM Inter- Type Orders 737-600/700/800 70 757 5 767-300/300ER 10 767-400ER 21 777 Total 106 Options 60 20 10 24 10 124 Rolling options 280 90 19 25 414 Total 410 115 39 70 10 644 Order delivery Engines schedule 1998-2006 CFM56-7 1998-1999 N/A 1998-1999 GE CF6-80C2 2000-2001 GE CF6-80C2 N/A R-R Trent 800 Note: Delivery of the options and rolling options extends to 2018. with the rolling options replacingoptions as they are exercised or expire, and will then be assigned a schedule. N/A: not announced Source: Delta Air Lines national CFM56-7 engine, which powers the 737. In April Delta selected General Electric to power the 767s and the Rolls-Royce Trent for the 777 options (Flight International, 9-15 April, P6). While the airline's existing 90- strong 757 fleet is entirely Pratt & Whitney PW2000-powered, the selection of an engine for the addi tional 757s, including that for 110 options, is still open. Delta also holds 16 options on the Boeing MD-11. with one of the 15 aircraft on firm order still to be delivered. Delta adds that its 15 firm orders and 60 options on the Boeing MD-90 stay in place. It is widely believed, however, that these former MDC products will be removed from Delta's fleet. Q 6 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 29 October - 4 November 1997
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