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Aviation History
2002
2002 - 0622.PDF
SALE A320 Singapore Aircraft Leasing Enterprise has placed a follow- on order with Airbus for one A320 for delivery in 2004. The deal lifts the Singapore-based leasing company's Airbus orders to 51, of which 21 have been delivered. CHINESE S-92 Helicopter operators East Asia Airlines and Helicopters Hong Kong have signed a deposit agreement for a Sikorsky S-92 for use on passenger services between Hong Kong and Macau. The joint operators oper ate four Sikorsky S-76C+S between the two Chinese Special Administrative Regions. J-AIR CRJS Japan Airlines has firmed up an option on a Bombardier CRJ 200 for use by subsidiary J-Air. The carrier is one of two CRJ opera tors in Japan, the other being Fair Inc. The agreement increases to five the number of CRJs the Japan Airlines carrier operates or has on order. AIR NIPPON Q300S All Nippon Airways subsidiary Air Nippon has ordered two more Bombardier Dash 8 Q300 turboprops. The deal represents the conversion of one existing option and one new order. Air Nippon now has five 56-seat Q300s on order. Bombardier now has 17 Q Series orders from Japanese carriers. GLOBAL 5000 MOVE Hong Kong's Sino Private Aviation has become the first Asia-Pacific customer for the Bombardier Global 5000 business jet. The high-speed, long range aircraft was launched in early February after the manufacturer secured 15 letters of intent. FLEXJET FRESHMEN Bombardier has signed up two operators - Singapore Technologies' Pacific Flight Services and ExecuJet Australia - to its FlexJet Asia-Pacific char ter network. They join Rainbow Jet of China, Subic International Air Charter of the Philippines and Jet Asia of Macau. ASIAN AEROSPACE 2002 REGIONAL AIRCRAFT ATR plans 'back to basics' approach to future aircraft Manufacturer sees emerging technologies enabling a step-up in operating economics ATR is eyeing opportunities towards the end of the decade to challenge in-development regional aircraft programmes. The Franco-Italian turboprop manufacturer believes technologies emerging in the next few years will allow an aircraft to be developed offering a step change in efficiency and operating economics com pared to existing designs. "Within two to three years there will be new opportunities in terms of engines, structures and avion ics," says ATR chief executive Jean- Michel Leonard. "We aim to be ready [to respond] with the help of our shareholders Alenia and EADS," he adds. Leonard says it will take that long to establish the direction of the business: "The market is con tinuously evolving, and this process has not been completed yet. In the future it needs to come back to basics - both the aircraft and the structure of the airlines." ATR delivered 20 new aircraft last year and expects output to con tinue at similar rates in the near term. Leonard says the current ATR 42/72-500 models will remain unchanged and there is no plan to develop advanced derivatives or a new design in the near term. "To launch now would make no sense - a new turboprop would be very similar to today's aircraft," he says. ATR has secured its first new air craft sale of 2002 with Air Tahiti's purchase of one ATR 72-500. The carrier already operates nine ATR 42/72s. The manufacturer also manages around 100 second-hand ATRs, and recently placed six air craft with four airlines: one ATR 72 with Air Kiribati on the Pacific island of Tarawa; two ATR 72s with a new Canary Islands-based airline Islas Airways; one ATR 42 with Spain's Intermediacion Aerea; and its first aircraft in Malaysia in a two aircraft deal with an undisclosed airline. Three ATR 42 freighters have been placed with Solenta Aviation, South Africa for opera tion on behalf of DHL. CHINESE AIRCRAFT MA60 makes debut Xian Aircraft's Pratt & Whitney Canada PW127- powered MA60 regional turboprop made its international debut at the show, as the manufac turer seeks more orders in the region. Xian says that talks are under way with Lao Aviation regard ing a five-aircraft order for the $11 million 60-seat aircraft, which is based on the Y-7. Xian sees demand for at least 100 MA60s within China. FIGHTER PROCUREMENT Korean FX contest to take final twist Competitors in South Korea's long- running F-X fighter procurement believe the process may take a final twist before a winner is selected, although a decision is widely expected next month. F-X contenders consist of the Boeing F-15K, Dassault Rafale, Eurofighter Typhoon and Sukhoi Su-35. At least two bidders, Boeing and Eurofighter, believe Seoul may "de-scope" the requirement after the ongoing assessment phase, which is due to end in the selection of a winner in April. South Korea's fighter acquisition has been plagued by the fall in the won's strength against the dollar, forcing the ministry of national defence (MND) to revise its budget, and to shelve some procurements to make money available for F-X. Boeing director Korea pro grammes Skip Bennett says he has "no feel" for how Seoul will scale- down the F-X. He says trimming aircraft numbers is unlikely, but eliminating the requirement to maintain system software could be one solution. Eurofighter International presi dent Cesare Gianni says Seoul has not indicated how, or whether, it will cut the F-X requirement. Options include reducing from 36 the number of aircraft acquired or spreading the costs by ordering an initial batch of fighters with a sec ond at a later stage. Alternatively, partnering with one of the four partner nation air forces could save money, he says. Such a link could include shared logistics or training. Dassault says it no longer believes Seoul will scale down the F-X, adding "we believe South Korea will find the money." Dassault's view may be swayed by press reports from Seoul that it offered the lowest bid in the MND's "auction" earlier this year. 10 5-11 MARCH 2002 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL www.flightinternational.com
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