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Aviation History
2002
2002 - 0065.PDF
AIR TRANSPORT CARGO VLADIMIR KARNOZOV / MOSCOW East Line again considers II-76TF rather than 11-96 Grounding and financial losses following contraband investigation scupper original plan East Line Airlines is again seeking to acquire the Ilyushin I1-76TF - the stretched, Aviadvigatel PS-90- powered version of the four- engined Russian freighter - after dropping plans to acquire Ilyushin 11-96 freighters. According to airline director Aleksei Raevsky, the Moscow-based airline and cargo carrier has decided to remain committed to ramp-equipped freighters such as the 11-76. Its planned acquisition of freight-converted Il-96s fell through'due to the investigation by Russia's federal security service (FSB) which started in 2000 after contraband cargos were found on board an East Line-operated I1-76TD carrying Chinese goods to Moscow. The FSB investigation resulted in a partial grounding and losses of over $10 million for the airline. Because of the financial setback, East Line was unable to fund the completion of two Il-76TFs by Tashkent-based TAPO, which were ordered in 2000 and due for deliv ery in late 2001 and early 2002. However, the carrier is understood to have resumed talks with state leasing company UzAviaLeasing on the joint funding of the first I1-76TF that is near to completion at TAPO - it is missing engines and 30% of its avionics. The airline describes the ll-76TF's performance as "very promising", as it can carry 15t more payload than the stan dard Aviadvigatel D-30KP-powered I1-76TD and its hourly fuel consumption is 2.5t lower. The TF is based on the military I1-76MF which has almost com pleted acceptance trials with the Russian air force. Ilyushin says the civil model will only need a short certification programme. Meanwhile, Raevsky says the air line will not modify its ageing I1-76TD fleet to International Civil Aviation Organisation Chapter 3 standards, as he hopes that there will be enough services to airports that do not ban Chapter 2 aircraft. Raevsky hopes that some dedi cated cargo airports in Europe will continue to accept noisy freighters even after the April cut-off date. The airline will operate its passenger flights to Europe with Chapter 3- compliant Yakovlev Yak-42Ds, while four newly acquired Chapter 2 II- 86s will be used on charter opera tions to China and the Middle East. AIRCRAFT PRODUCTION Boeing plans second moving 737 line this year Flow time for Boeing 737s through the company's Renton assembly site in Washington has been cut from 23 to 18 days with the appli cation of a moving production line, and is expected to reduce further to 17 days by the end of January, says Boeing. Unlike the original Boeing chain-driven 717 moving line at Long Beach, California, the aircraft on the Renton line are moved along continuously by automated guided tug vehicles. The tugs are hitched to large work platforms that move along the line with the aircraft as it is assembled. Three of the four positions on the first mov ing line, number four, are occu pied. The fourth is expected to be aligned later this month. Line number three, the second 737 assembly line, is due to follow line four's transition later this year. "When it does so the flow time will go to 50% of its original duration," says Boeing. Moving-line simulations also The 737s are moved along the line in Renton by automated tugs continue on the single remaining 757 line, number one. The second 757 line was de-activated at the end of November 2001, although Boeing says the closure was planned well ahead of September and reflects improved efficiencies, rather than the recent drop in orders. Unlike the 737 line on which the aircraft are pulled by tugs, the 757s are pushed by special tugs attached to the nose gear. Only two of the four final assembly line positions are presently aligned, and Boeing says there is "no timescale yet" for the final imple mentation of the moving line on the larger twin jet. • AirTrain Newark, the new direct rail link from New York Newark airport to New York City and points across New Jersey, has been averaging 1,500 pas sengers a day since its opening three months ago. Two million passengers are expected to use the service this year, and this number is expected to eventually increase to more than three mil lion annually. • The construction of a second runway at Shang hai Pudong International Airport is being accelerated at the instruction of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). It is now due to be com pleted in early 2005, after the government's investment was increased by 210 million yuan ($25 million) to 2 billion yuan. • Amsterdam Schiphol airport will reduce landing fees for air craft of over 20t by 4.5% from 1 April to help airlines cope with difficult times following the 11 September terrorist attacks. An 11.5% increase of the Passenger Service Charge had already been postponed on 1 November and this will be con tinued through 2002 to stimulate travel by air. • The main runway at Simon Bolivar International Airport in Guayaquil, Ecuador, has been extended to 2,800m (9,180ft). The next phase of development will see the runway widened by 14m to 60m. • The parliament in Belgium has passed a bill allowing the gov ernment to privatise the Brussels International Airport Company (BIAC) which runs Brussels Zaventem airport. BIAC is to become a limited company which will allow private capital to participate. The airport real estate, estimated to be worth between €200 and €250 million, will be sold by the gov ernment to BIAC. BIAC may buy shares in its future main user Delta Air Transport but BIAC participation would be low key. • The construction of India's first private sector international airport has moved a step closer, with the conclusion of a share holders' agreement paving the way for signing of the final con tract. The airport will be located at Devanahalli on the outskirts of Bangalore and is due to be completed in 2005. www.flightinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 8-14 JANUARY 2002 11
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