All articles by David Kaminski-Morrow – Page 227
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NewsCrashed Ju 52 was poorly-maintained and not airworthy: inquiry
Swiss investigators have determined that a Junkers Ju 52 was not fit to fly, having been poorly maintained, before it spiralled into the ground after stalling during a sightseeing flight in the Alps. But the inquiry believes that – despite being “not airworthy in a physical or formal sense” – ...
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NewsJu 52 fatal crash probe uncovers atrocious catalogue of safety violations
Swiss investigators have concluded, in a damning inquiry, that a Junkers Ju 52 on a pleasure flight stalled after the crew flew it into a narrow valley at low altitude, at a dangerously low airspeed and with its centre-of-gravity out of limits. The crew intended to exit the valley via ...
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NewsControlling out-of-trim 737 Max will not require ‘exceptional’ strength
Critical to pilots’ acceptance of the Boeing 737 Max’s re-entry into service is the assurance that a serious out-of-trim situation can be easily resolved without the risk of manual controls becoming impossible to manipulate owing to aerodynamic forces. Not only will aircraft need to be modified but Max simulators will ...
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NewsWizz Air optimistic that 2021 will be ‘transition’ year
Central European budget carrier Wizz Air is expecting travel limitations to continue impacting capacity levels over much of the its fiscal fourth quarter – the three months from January to March – but adds that 2021 will be a “year of transition” as restrictions ease. Wizz Air gave the outlook ...
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NewsUkraine seeks to ban overflights by Pobeda and other Russian carriers
Ukraine’s government has approved a proposal to sanction 13 Russian companies, including several airlines which will face a three-year ban on overflying Ukrainian territory. The measure is continuing evidence of the political tensions between the two countries whose relationship deteriorated after the Russian annexation of Crimea nearly seven years ago. ...
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NewsUK regulator clears 737 Max for flight
UK regulators have, as expected, approved the Boeing 737 Max for return to service, publishing a separate airworthiness directive to the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. This separate publication follows the UK’s exit from EASA membership as it completed its withdrawal from the European Union on 1 January. But the ...
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NewsBoeing 737-10 processes to undergo revision after EASA’s Max scrutiny
One crucial consequence of the Boeing 737 Max scrutiny is that development and certification work for the 737-10 will differ substantially from that of the earlier Max variants. Extensive analysis by the US FAA and European Union Aviation Safety Agency following the Max grounding two years ago has led not ...
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NewsEASA yet to approve 737 Max for certain precision approaches
Operators of the Boeing 737 Max in Europe will be prohibited from conducting certain precision approaches until regulators are satisfied that the aircraft can maintain the necessary performance under specific failure conditions. While the European Union Aviation Safety Agency has cleared the 737 Max to return to service, it has ...
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NewsEASA formally clears 737 Max to resume operations
Europe’s air safety authority has formally cleared the Boeing 737 Max to return to service with the publishing of a finalised airworthiness directive. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency published the document on 27 January, following a consultation period which closed on 22 December last year. EASA executive director Patrick ...
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NewsHaste appears pivotal to E-11A crash pilots’ engine misidentification
Military investigators have signalled that haste was a contributing element to a Bombardier E-11A crew’s incorrectly identifying a failed engine and, in response, mistakenly shutting down the functioning one. The E-11A, a US Air Force (USAF) version of the Global 6000 executive jet, crashed some 21nm (39km) short of the ...
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NewsEl Al remains in limbo as Israeli government curbs air travel
Israeli flag-carrier El Al has prolonged the furlough of close to 5,000 personnel at least until the end of February, as the government imposes restrictions on air services. El Al says it has “decided to extend” the unpaid leave of employees until 28 February, putting the figure at 4,864 staff. ...
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NewsRolls-Royce more pessimistic over long-haul recovery in 2021
Rolls-Royce is assuming engine flying hours on twin-aisle long-haul aircraft will reach just 55% of pre-crisis levels during 2021, down from a previous base case of 70%. The outlook reflects the uncertainty over air traffic recovery for the widebody sector and the engine manufacturer expects, on this basis, free cash ...
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Airline BusinessHow trust strained by the DC-10 fractured with the 737 Max
As the domino-chain grounding of the Boeing 737 Max and its gradual patchwork rehabilitation have revealed, unanimous agreement that air safety is paramount does not necessarily translate into a harmonised approach to delivering it. When the European Union Aviation Safety Agency grounded the Max in March 2019, the US FAA ...
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NewsControl of leisure carrier Israir finally handed to new owner BGI
Israeli leisure carrier Israir’s trustee has disclosed that the sale of the airline to new owners BGI Investments has been completed, after a long competitive bidding process. The trustee has informed a Tel Aviv court that, following approval of the BGI bid on 1 January, the sale was completed on ...
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NewsATR 72 damaged after distracted crew lined up with runway edge lights
German investigators have determined that the crew of an ATR 72-200 freighter were distracted while turning for take-off from Cologne, and inadvertently lined up with the left-hand runway edge lights. As the ATR accelerated along the runway it struck several of these lights, inflicting damage to the airframe in the ...
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NewsEncourage crews to report fatigue risk during pandemic: UK CAA
UK civil aviation regulators are stressing that operators need to encourage crews to report fatigue-related occurrences as a result of abnormal duty patterns, in order to ensure that risk-assessment models remain valid during the pandemic. The pandemic has resulted in severe disruption to carriers’ services and forced aircraft crews to ...
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NewsTurkmenistan to take first Airbus jets through A330 freighter conversion
Turkmenistan Airlines has ordered a pair of Airbus A330-200 converted freighters, the first time the Central Asian operator has signed for the airframer’s aircraft. The aircraft are set to be delivered in 2022, following the modification work. Airbus has not detailed the source of the airframes to be converted. Turkmenistan ...
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NewsAirbus to raise A320 production at slower pace than forecast
Airbus is still intending to increase monthly A320 production, but at a slower rate than the originally-expected figure of 47 aircraft. It will raise A320-family monthly output from the current 40 aircraft to 43 in the third quarter, and 45 in the fourth. “Production rates will remain lower for longer,” ...
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NewsAir Austral’s first A220 rolls out in full livery
Reunion-based carrier Air Austral’s first Airbus A220-300 has rolled out of the paintshop sporting the airline’s distinctive livery. The airline ordered three of the twinjet type in October 2019. Airbus has shown off the first of the Pratt & Whitney PW1500G-powered aircraft to be painted, with a vertical fin illustrating ...
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NewsStronger Norwegian business plan convinces government to offer support
Norway’s government has signalled that it is prepared to offer financial support to budget carrier Norwegian, to assist with the restructuring airline’s recovery, but has laid out a number of conditions. The government is stressing that it has no intention of becoming an owner of the carrier. Trade minister Iselin ...