All news – Page 7775
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No alternative to BALPA/BA deal
Sir - Ivor Bennett has got the wrong end of the stick in his letter "Inconsistency in BALPA policy" (Flight International, Letters, 22-28 November 1995, P68). The facts are as follows. Early in 1995, British Airways proposed the introduction of "cadet cruise-only" pilots, on to the Boeing 747-400 ...
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Researchers glimpse potential in ceramics
Martin Hindley/LONDON APPLICATIONS FOR lightweight, toughened ceramics could be found, in the jet engines of the future, US researchers claim. Materials scientists at Cornell University in New York have developed a technique for "tempering" ceramics - improving their crack resistance at temperatures of up to ...
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P&W completes PW4090 endurance run
PRATT & WHITNEY HAVE completed an 850-cycle endurance run on the PW4090 growth engine for the Boeing 777. The 400kN (90,000lb)-thrust engine was run at its maximum turbine-inlet temperatures and was intentionally unbalanced in a ground run simulating between two and six years of airline operations "under maximum conditions", P&W ...
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Belgian police pick Explorer
BELGIUM'S Gendarmerie has selected the McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Systems (MDHS) MD Explorer for its air component, which operates from Melsbroek air base, near Brussels. Two aircraft will be delivered in 1996, with a third on option for 1998 delivery. They will be used for police work throughout Belgium. ...
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Honda Motor studies small turbofan in USA
HONDA MOTOR is testing a small turbofan engine in the USA, under one of several company research programmes, aimed at developing technology applicable to general-aviation, as well as automotive, use. The 8kN (1,800lb)-thrust, 220kg engine now undergoing altitude testing is equivalent in size to the Williams-Rolls FJ44 turbofan, ...
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Airlines turn to ultrasonic/ eddy-current wheel testing
METOPTIC International is marketing what it claims to be the world's first system for testing aircraft wheels, which combines the use of eddy currents and ultrasonics. Eddy-current inspection systems are used to detect surface faults on the outer surface of a wheel hub, while more sophisticated ultrasonic ...
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USA and China sign new bilateral
THE USA AND China have agreed to a new bilateral air-services pact, which permits the first non-stop service by carriers of both nations. Northwest Airlines has been given approval to begin a thrice-weekly non-stop service between Detroit and Beijingon 1 May, while China Southern, based in Guangzhou, is ...
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US/UK air-safety bilateral finalised
THE USA AND THE UK have signed a bilateral aviation-safety agreement, which eases the oversight of aircraft and simulator certification, as well as maintenance operations. An agreement with the Netherlands was made in 1995 and the US Federal Aviation Administration is also working with Canada, France and Germany ...
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Qantas leases Dash 8 simulator from CAE
QANTAS HAS SIGNED a ten-year lease with CAE for a de Havilland Canada Dash 8 simulator. The simulator will be housed at the Qantas jet base in Sydney. Three Qantas-owned regional airlines (Southern Australia, Sunstate and Eastern Australia), along with National Jet Systems, will be among the users, ...
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Airborne chooses 767 freighter
Graham Warwick/ATLANTA US CARGO CARRIER Airborne Express has agreed to acquire 12 used Boeing 767-200s for conversion to freighters, and plans to acquire between ten and 15 additional aircraft for a total investment of $600 million over eight years. The 767s will be the first wide-body aircraft operated ...
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Australian training plan sparks row
AUSTRALIA'S FLYING training industry has condemned an Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) plan for its restructure, calling the regulatory proposals "...over-regulation and an attempt to create more jobs in CASA". The review recommends sweeping increases in minimum experience and training for instructor ratings at all levels, with ...
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Sabena engine deal
The Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company has ordered engine-test equipment for Rolls-Royce Trent 884 engines from Sabena Technics in Brussels. Source: Flight International
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China starts investing in its infrastructure
CHINA'S AIRLINES are beginning to make substantial investments in infrastructure to match their rapidly growing fleets. China Southern Airlines has awarded AMR's Sabre Decision Technologies (SDT) a contract to develop an operations control centre, while China Eastern has ordered Airbus A300-600R training equipment from Thomson Training & Simulation. ...
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US Navy takes first upgraded E-2C Hawkeye
THE US NAVY has accepted the first Northrop Grumman Group I E-2C Hawkeye upgraded to the Group II configuration. The modernisation programme gives the early-warning aircraft significantly, more target-processing automation. The US aircraft builder is working under three USN contracts, worth $135 million, to upgrade 12 Hawkeyes with ...
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Truckliner delivery
McDonnell Douglas is to deliver the first of 11 Long Beach-built MD-90-30 TrunkLiners to China Northern Airlines in July. Two more twinjets, are scheduled to be handed over, in August and September. China Eastern Airlines will take the first of its nine MD-90s in the second half of 1997. ...
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FSI penetrates regional-jet market
FRENCH REGIONAL airline Brit Air has ordered a Bombardier Canadair Regional Jet full-flight simulator from FlightSafety International (FSI). The simulator will be installed at the airline's ICARE flight-training centre in Morlaix, alongside an FSI-supplied ATR 42/72 simulator. Brit Air is the first Regional Jet operator to acquire its ...
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Second LM2E success gives China a boost
Tim Furniss/LONDON CHINA'S LONG MARCH 2E (LM2E) booster had its second successful launch within 30 days on 28 December, 1995, when it carried the Lockheed Martin-built US Echostar 1 direct-broadcasting communications satellite into geostationary transfer orbit. The Asiasat 2, also built by Lockheed Martin, was launched ...
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Dassault completes Rafale M01 aircraft-carrier tests
DASSAULT AVIATION HAS successfully completed aircraft-carrier compatibility tests in the USA on its Rafale M01, the naval version of the fighter. The aircraft has been returned to its base at the Istres test centre in southern France, for further tests before production commences, in time for entry into ...
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Lockheed Martin inspects complex part inspection
Andrew Doyle/LONDON LOCKHEED MARTIN Tactical Aircraft Systems has performed an ultrasonic inspection of a large, complex, contoured composite component, by linking the inspection device to a computer-aided-design data file and generating a false external "surface". Components with complex external shapes are notoriously difficult to inspect ...
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Iranians poised to fly Blue Bird
IRANIAN AIRCRAFT builder Dorna expects to fly its Blue Bird two-seat light aircraft for the first time in the middle of this year. The Tehran-based company, launched the programme in early 1994, with the original intention of flying the aircraft in 1995. A shortage of funds, followed by ...