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Aviation History
2002
2002 - 2539.PDF
AIR TRANSPORT COCKPIT SYSTEMS ANDREW DOYLE / SINGAPORE Lido steps up drive to bag funding Singapore arm AeroNet eyes options ranging from joint venture with external partner to outright sale Lido Lufthansa Aeronautical Serv ices is looking to recruit an outside partner to help accelerate develop ment of its electronic flight-bag (EFB), and take advantage of an expected boom in airline demand. Several companies are in talks with the German flight planning and air navigation data provider and a decision is due in the next few weeks, say industry sources. Lido parent Lufthansa Systems will only say it is "reviewing partnership opportunities". Lido's Singapore-based unit Aero Net is developing the EFB and plans Croatian charter and cargo airline Trade Air is expanding its network with new domestic services and a proposal to acquire part of Croatia Airlines' regional operation. Based at Pleso near Zagreb, Trade Air has linked with Osijek-Klisa Airport in eastern Croatia, to oper ate services from the region to Adriatic holiday resorts at Pula, Split and Zadar, as well as the coun try's capital Zagreb. Trade Air is operating at least 10 flights a week on behalf of the airport (which is handling reservation, marketing and sales), with its three Let L-410 UVP-E turboprops. Before hostilities began 11 years ago, Klisa Airport was Yugoslavia's main cargo hub. Since its take over by Croatian authorities in 1998, significant investment has been ploughed into the airport to revive it. A large part of the airline's busi ness in recent years has been gener ated by its DHL cargo contract for services between Zagreb and Bergamo. However, Trade Air is now in talks with Croatia Airlines on a possible takeover of its fleet of three ATR 42s and part of its regional network, as the national carrier moves towards an all-jet to speed up work on the project due to increased airline interest. The need to install cabin video surveil lance systems after the 11 September terrorist attacks in the USA has prompted several carriers to look at buying dual-use hardware and cockpit displays that could also host the EFB. However, AeroNet needs addi tional capital to step up work on the EFB and Lufthansa is consider ing whether the funding require ment could be better met by bring ing in an outside partner. One option could see Lido split operation of Airbus A320 family and BAe 146 aircraft. Trade Air's flight operations ma nager Marko Cvijin says that the type of co-operation between two companies is yet to be determined, but one option could be to code- share on regional flights as well as to expand the network. Meanwhile, Rijeka-based start up Air Adriatic has postponed launch plans until next year, after failing to secure an air operator's certificate in time to begin services this year (Flight International, 19-25 February). Although deals with European tour operators had to be cancelled, Air Adriatic is operating once a week between Dubrovnik and Dublin using sub- chartered aircraft. Its single Boeing MD-82 has been leased to Avioimpex in Macedonia. In another Croatian regional development, German-backed sea plane operator European Coastal Airlines (ECA) is proposing a net work of routes between Zagreb and points on the coastline and islands. ECA is planning "sea-airports" al ong the Croatian coastline and on the islands - but relevant permits from Croatian state and local auth orities are still pending. to accommodate a joint-venture partner or buyer for AeroNet, say industry sources. Honeywell and Rockwell Collins are among the potential partners with whom dis cussions have been held, they add. Lido Aeronet aims to develop a suite of products for the emerging "e-flight" or "paperless cockpit" market. As well as funding, it is looking for a partner to help ex pand its aeronautical database, and possibly supply hardware so it can offer fully integrated products. The company recently secured Qan'tas as launch customer for its Thai Airways International has scaled down a plan to acquire 16 new widebodies, following a re view of its requirements for the next five years. It now wants 12 new aircraft instead. Permanent transport secretary Srisook Chandrangsu's long-term planning committee received the new plan from management last week and plans to present it to cockpit moving-map solution, which will run on Spirent Systems displays installed in the airline's soon-to-be-delivered Airbus A330s. The EFB will provide pilots with electronic access to digitally stored maps, approach plates, perfor mance charts and flight manuals. Aeronet was established in June 2000 as a Lido subsidiary with responsibility for developing mobile and internet-based flight support solutions. Frankfurt-based Lido provides the Operation Center interactive flight planning service, plus navigation data products. s the airline's board on 28 August. 6 Thai's planned order now :- appears to consist of one Airbus e A330-30O, eight A340-500/600s 2 and three Boeing 747-400s. It pre viously planned five A330s (Flight y International, 20-26 August), n Once the board signs the plan e off, government approval will be it needed before firm orders can be o placed, possibly in October. First of five IH14s joins Vyborg Vyborg Airlines has taken delivery of an ex-Uzbekistan Airways llyushin 11-114 turboprop, following overhaul and reconfiguration for flights in European airspace. The airline, which is the first Russian operator of the type, plans to fly five 11-114s, including three new exam ples delivered from the TAPO factory in Uzbek capital Tashkent. Vyborg, a small town near St Petersburg, established the regional air line to operate services from the local Pulkovo airport. Services to destinations in north-western Russia will begin in September, with reg ular services to Scandinavian countries planned next year. EXPANSION IGOR SALINGER / BELGRADE TraHp Airtip-i irrc <;innal AIRCRAFT ACQUISITION Thai scales back widebody buy Trade Air tie-ups signal regional growth move www.fliqhtinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 27 AUGUST - 2 SEPTEMBER 2002 11
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