FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
2004
2004-09 - 1978.PDF
AIR TRANSPORT IN BRIEF TENDER BRENDAN SOBIE / YOKOHAMA JAL ready to ask for bids for new narrowbody fleet Airbus and Boeing to battle for major order as carrier looks to replace single-aisle aircraft Japan Airlines (JAL) is preparing to release a tender for about 50 new narrowbody aircraft to replace its fleet of Boeing MD-80/90s and Boeing 737-400s. Industry sources say Airbus and Boeing anticipate that JAL will place a large order for Airbus A320 family aircraft or 737s within the next few months for deliveries starting in 2006 or 2007. Sources say JAL's narrowbody aircraft requirement has leap frogged ahead of a requirement for Boeing 767 replacements. JAL issued a tender for 767 replace ments at the end of last year but then decided to postpone a poten tial order of Boeing 7E7s. JAL is now not expected to look again at 767 replacements, required from 2009 or 2010, for at least several more months. Airbus and Boeing initially expected JAL to issue a tender for MD-80/90 and 737-400 replace ments last year. But the carrier decided against issuing the tender and pushed back the requirement until the end of the decade. Sources say engine problems earlier this year with the MD-80 fleet JAL inherited from its takeover of Japan Air System (JAS) and changes in the domestic market have prompted JAL to again move the requirement. JAL was forced to briefly ground its 25 MD-81/87s in January after compressor vane cracks were found in several Pratt & Whitney JT8D- 217-series engines. Sources say if JAL does not replace this fleet in the next few years it will also have to invest heavily in upgrades to meet new area navigation requirements. ANA's decision to launch a low- cost carrier in March to improve its domestic market share also may be forcing JAL to reconsider its domes tic strategy. After completing the JAS merger earlier this year, JAL caught up with ANA in the domes tic market, where the latter had long been the dominant player. ANA last year ordered 45 737-700s for delivery from October 2005. Sources say Airbus is confident it can win the JAL narrowbody com petition because JAL, unlike ANA, prefers two sources of aircraft. JAL's only Airbus aircraft, A300s, will be phased out over the next few years. FREIGHTERS Carrier is fifth to sign up for 747-400 cargo conversions Japan Airlines has become the fifth airline to publicly commit to Boeing's 747-400 passenger-to-freighter conversion programme with a deal for up to seven modifications. The carrier says it has finalised agreement to have three of its passenger 747-400s converted under Boeing's Special Freighter programme in 2006 and 2007. It has also taken options on another four conversions. The first converted aircraft is to re-enter service in May 2006, says JAL, followed by the second before the end of that fis cal year on 31 March 2007. The third will enter service after April 2007. The work is likely to be performed at Taikoo (Xiamen) Aircraft Engineering in China, in which Boeing and JAL have minority stakes. Airbus is also hoping to sell JAL Airbus A380s. The 7E7 is still con sidered the favourite over the pro posed Airbus A350 in the 767 replacement competition when ever that is revived. Airbus is also pushing the A380 to ANA but sources say ANA will only order A380s if JAL does. Sources say JAL may initially order only about 30 narrowbodies and hold off for several years before deciding on the full requirement. In this scenario, JAL would replace its fleet of over 40 MD-81/87s and MD-90s but keep its fleet of just over 20 Boeing 737-400s. This less-expensive option could be attractive to JAL given its recent poor financial performance and would probably only be pursued if 737s were selected in preference to the A320. DATA MONITORING Airbus in conjunction with US- based Teledyne Technologies is about to begin delivery of an off- the-shelf flight data monitoring (FDM) system to 23 committed operators of both Airbus and Boeing aircraft. The manufactur ers have completed line operations testing of the system with European carriers Hapag Lloyd and Finnair. The FDM prod uct, known as AirFASE, can enable airlines not only to monitor flight operations exceedences, abnormalities or trends they define themselves, but also com pare them to standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organisation, European Joint Aviation Authorities and the US Federal Aviation Administration. SINGAPORE SAFETY Singapore has launched a confi dential aviation incident reporting programme, dubbed Singapore Confidential Aviation Incident Reporting (SINCAIR). The city state's Air Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) says it is "part of Singapore's continuous efforts to improve and enhance aviation safety in Singapore". It says the SINCAIR programme is in line with the International Civil Aviation Organisation's recommendation for a voluntary incident reporting system "which is non-punitive and affords protection to the sources of information to com plement the current Mandatory Incident Reporting System".The AAIB adds: "With the implemen tation of SINCAIR, Singapore joins other ICAO member states such as the USA, UK, Canada and Australia that have also established similar systems." '( £J r • Enhanced Vision Systems • Electronic Flight Bags • Flight Deck Systems • Aeronautical Communications CiMC electronics II9O3 • 2003 100 Years of Innovation www.flightinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 12-18 OCTOBER 2004 11
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
