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Aviation History
2003
2003 - 2334.PDF
AIR TRANSPORT REGULATION DAVID LEARMOUNT & JUSTIN WASTNAGE / LONDON Passenger payout rule ushered in Compromise between European Parliament and Commission will see compensation offered for delay or denied boarding European airline bodies have caut iously welcomed a last-minute com promise hammered out between the European Parliament and the European Commission on passen ger compensation and assistance. The proposal to award payouts to any victims of denied boarding or delay was passed earlier this month after several rounds of intensive lob bying from industry, led by the European Regions Airline Assoc iation (ERA). Under the new bill, payouts have been settled and more exemptions added. Airlines have welcomed changes to the rules that clear airlines from compensation payouts for delays outside their con trol, such as weather, technical issues or strikes. The deadline for notifying passengers of any cancel lation has also been extended to two weeks from one. Loyola de Palacio, EC vice-presi dent in charge of transport and energy, says the agreement "paves the way for completing and strengthening the existing rights". The Association of European Airlines says the new proposal is an operationally "workable compro mise". However, the cost burden could disadvantage EU carriers com peting on transatlantic routes with US airlines, it warns, because of their high ratio of intra-EU flights. The bill must now be approved by European transport ministers and the European Parliament before becoming law by mid-2005. The ERA says the wider EU trans port White Paper "European Transport Policy for 2010" presents a fragmented and incomplete plan that has an anti-airline agenda. The association has identified 37 specific points where EU legislation discrim inates against air transport. • The European Parliament has threatened to take the EC to the European Court if it fails to halt "illegal transfer of airline passenger data to the USA". The US Transportation Security Admin istration has demanded that for eign airlines hand over profiles of airline travellers to the USA. However, under EU law, personal data can be passed on only after citizens give their consent. BA says the crew were unaware of the deflation until landing at Heathrow SUPERSONIC SERVICES Concorde proves safer tyre design As Concorde approaches its final days in service it has unwittingly proven the performance claims made for the new design of tyre introduced as a result of the crash in July 2000 near Paris Charles de Gaulle, write David Learmount and Max Kingsley-Jones. The Mach 2 airliner operates its last passenger services with British Airways on Friday (24 October). On 12 October, BA's New York Kennedy to London Heathrow BA002 ser vice suffered a tyre deflation without explosion or fragmentation, vindicating tyre manufacturer Michelin's claims for its new NZG radial ply tyre, a compul sory fit for the Concorde fleet since the accident. The airline says the deflation must have taken place at the end of, or soon after, the take-off run, as the crew were unaware of the event until landing at Heathrow. Concorde's "flat tyre detection system" only alerts pilots to tyre fail ures during the take-off run between 10kt (19km/h) and 135kt. It senses unequal tyre pressure through uneven loading on the landing gear trunnion. BA says the crew completed the landing run normally. The passengers were disembarked and the wheel changed before the aircraft was towed to a hangar for inspection. The supersonic airliner era will end with the arrival of the last three Concorde passenger services at Heathrow on 24 October, with the final touchdown - from New York - scheduled for 16:00. BA is expected to announce the destiny of its seven Concordes this week. SEE FEATURE P34 PROFITS DARREN SHANNON / WASHINGTON DC US unions could shun cost-cutting measures US unions not already tied to con cessions packages could be moving away from accepting cost-cutting measures that the airlines say are essential for sustainable profitability. The battle cry began last week following Northwest Airlines' announcement of an unexpected $42 million net profit for the three summer months. Almost immediately its mechanics union, the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, declared the results indicative of the industry's cyclical nature, and that profits at Continental Airlines and Northwest demonstrate that the "worst is over". This stance, more vocal than other union statements, but not too far removed from their general sentiments, conflicts directly with that of the airlines. Northwest admits that its first profitable quarter since early 2001 was unexpected and led its third quarter statement with renewed calls for its unions to concede to demands for $1 billion in annual labour savings. Delta Air Lines - which has just enforced new working rules on its non-unionised flight attendants - last week also appealed to its pilots to return to the negotiating table to consider "reasonable" cuts. BRAND Regional affiliates come together under Lufthansa Regional name Lufthansa is tightening up its Team Lufthansa group of regional affiliates, under the new brand Lufthansa Regional. Air Dolomiti, Augsburg Airways, Contact Air, Eurowings and Lufthansa CityLine will now be run by a single steering committee, including former Lufthansa Cargo chief of operations Werner Knorr and the chief executives of the five airlines, which will divide operations between the airlines - potentially leading to several carriers sharing the same route. All the airlines except Air Dolomiti will repaint their aircraft in Lufthansa Regional colours, and tickets will be sold through Lufthansa's sales department. Cirrus Air and Cimber Air, formerly mem bers of Team Lufthansa, will not be involved in the partnership. 8 21-27 OCTOBER 2003 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL www.fliqhtinternational.com
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