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Aviation History
1999
1999 - 1325.PDF
Alitalia move brings Wings alliance closer ALITALIA HAS joined the Northwest-KLM alliance, bringing a step closer a third major global airline grouping to compete with the Star Alliance and one- world. The three-way grouping is expected to lead to the formation later this year of the global Wings Alliance, which could include part Northwest-owned carrier Continental Airlines. The deal had been expected since November and awaits US Department of Transportation anti-trust approval, which could come as early as August. This will enable die three airlines to co-ordi nate their transatlantic networks and improve the efficiency of their respective operations. Its fall benefits will not be realised, however, until the USA and Italy have agreed on a full open skies accord, which Italian trans port minister Tiziano Treu says will be signed "within a year". The two governments signed a new traffic agreement in November, which provided for an open-sky regime once US anti trust immunity had been granted. The open skies deal is crucial to the Italian Government's plans for Rome's Fiumicino Airport, which suffered badly from the transfer to Milan Malpensa of many of Alitalia's international flights. The hope is that Air France will be attracted to the Northwest- KLM-Alitalia grouping. The French carrier, the last major European airline not involved in a potential global alliance, offers huge advantages with its new hub at Paris Charles de Gaulle, profitable operations and a new open-skies deal with the USA.. • Malaysia Airlines low-fuel danger spans two years DAVID LEARMOUNT/LONDON THE UK CIVIL Aviation Authority claims to be unable to find reports which British Airways says it filed on a series of incidents involving Malaysia Airlines (MAS) 747-400s that arrived critically low on fuel at London Heathrow Airport. BA is the engineering service provided at the airport for the Asian carrier. While MAS continues to deny that it has been breaking fuel regu lations, the CAA has confirmed that, on 5 July last year, an MAS Boeing 747-400 broadcast a "Pan" emergency call, declaring a fuel shortage as it approached London. The record of MAS' fuel emer gencies, starting in July 1997, was revealed when a Heathrow-based engineer filed an MAS fuel-short age report in February this year, using the Confidential Human Factors Reporting System Flight International, 12-18 May). The CAA's subsequent investi gation uncovered 10 other such events by checking BA records. As a result, the CAA says, on 22 February, senior staff from its Safety Regulation Group flew to Kuala Lumpur where they "receiv ed assurances" from Malaysia aviation authorities that the situa tion would be corrected. BA says that it filed reports with the authorities and MAS whenever arrival fuel levels were dangerously low. Six events, BA says, were "so serious" that it reported them to the CAA, using Mandatory I -• ^~ : S /:.. ___! R_ •nlllkki 4 ^1 "-~*f» _____ . J tii|lMllitiliiiliiwiliriiiii]iiti'iiiimr Timinnrw ] rctefo 4 _T If wa_-at|aiwmmmmmmm j ^Bjjp^ The CAA has uncovered records of10 further MAS fuel regulation breaches Occurrence Report (MOR) forms, although MORs are mandatory only for UK registered aircraft. Yet the CAA says that it has no record of any reports being filed about MAS fuel shortages, except the MOR filed by the UK air traffic services about the 5 July Pan call. It is not resolved whether the reports were not lodged with the CAA, or if the CAA has lost track of them. The authority has asked BA for copies of the documents. Further evidence of MAS fuel policy is emerging following publi cation of the Heathrow incidents in Flight InternationalhstwtehAfor- mer MAS pilot alleges: "We were constantly bombarded with notices and, occasionally, telephone calls from fleet managers in Malaysia for taking more than the minimum fuel as calculated by the company on a mass print-out navigation log for the route in question and which took no account of weather/ loads/timing." The US publication Aviation Daily says "a senior Malaysia Airlines flight operations official" in Kuala Lumpur told it that, for more than two years, pilots "have been under orders to carry minimal fuel when weather conditions are favourable, to save on costs". The UK Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions says it only knew of the problem in March. On 12 May, Malaysia officials arrived in London for discussions. After the talks, UK aviation minis ter Glenda Jackson said: "MAS has co-operated fully with the depart ment in reviewing their fuel policy and examining why, on a very few occasions, low fuel levels may have been recorded on completion of a flight. "Their offer to provide us with weekly reports of fuel levels of air craft arriving in the UK has been incorporated into their conditions for operating into this country." • Swissair takes partners on first step towards marketing merger SWISSAIR AND Sabenaplanto merge their sales, marketing, product management and network activities into a single organisation which may eventually take over the commercial operations of all Qualiflyer Group carriers. "Project diamond", as it is known, involves setting up a cen tral commercial unit called Airline Management Company (AMC), based in Zurich but carrying out some of its operations in Brussels. In a letter to employees, the Swiss and Belgian flag carriers say they will be "looking to divide our functions between Zurich and Brussels as evenly as possible", while emphasising that the two will "continue to operate as indepen dent business entities". Swissair owns49.5% ofSabena. Working groups will analyse the organisational structure and finances of the two airlines, and findings will be reported in time for a decision in June. Swissair parent SAirGroup con firms that AMC will eventually take over the running of the commercial departments of all the Qualiflyer Group carriers, avoiding trie need for decisions to be approved by their respective boards. Other Qualiflyer airlines include Austrian Airlines and TAP Air Portugal. • FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 19 - 25 May 1999 5
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