News from FlightGlobal – Page 2302
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Tu-154 crashes as China flags ATC plans
China Southwest Air lines has grounded its fleet of four remaining Tupolev Tu-154Ms after one crashed on 24 February, killing all 61 people on board. The aircraft, descending towards its destination at Wenzhou, dived steeply into the ground with no time for an emergency call from the pilots. The ...
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City Bird orders 747-400Fs
Herman De Wulf/BRUSSELS City Bird, the Belgian low-cost long-haul airline, is undertaking a major expansion of its all-cargo operations which will see it introducing two new Boeing 747-400 freighters next year. The Brussels-based airline confirms that it has placed orders with Boeing for two 747-400Fs for delivery in ...
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717 beats performance targets as production version flies
Guy Norris/Los Angeles MaxKingsley-Jones/London Boeing has revealed that its 717 twinjet is bettering its performance targets by up to 5%, as the first production example, "P-1", made its maiden flight from Long Beach, California on 24 February. Boeing's just-released performance details of the baseline 717 reveal it is ...
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Air France and Lufthansa poised for A318 launch commitments
Max Kingsley-Jones/LONDON Airbus Industrie is aiming to launch its A318 twinjet by the end of the month, with European flag carriers Air France and Lufthansa being prime targets to boost the new 100-seater's commitments beyond the 100 mark. Subject to a commercial launch at Farnborough last September, Airbus ...
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Airbus focuses A3XX efforts on alliance groups
Andrew Doyle/MUNICH Airbus Industrie predicts that the world's four main airline alliance groupings will absorb almost three quarters of all A3XX-sized aircraft delivered by 2020, with most going to just two - oneworld and Star Alliance. Moves by the major alliances to combine their networks and improve asset ...
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Iberia will scrap Aviaco brand when pilots agree to merger
Max Kingsley-Jones/MADRID Iberia is planning to absorb its Aviaco domestic subsidiary at the earliest opportunity, but will not take any action until pilots at the two airlines resolve union issues. Details of the move emerged as the Spanish flag carrier revealed a 117.5% increase in net profit last ...
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Mergers
* Lufthansa subsidiary GlobeGround has agreed to buy US-based Hudson General in a move that should end a take-over battle for the airport services provider. The GlobeGround offer tops earlier bids from Ranger Aerospace, Ogden and a group of Hudson managers. GlobeGround - which already owns 49% of Hudson affiliate ...
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Sabena in the black as European traffic takes off
Herman De Wulf/BRUSSELS Belgian flag carrier Sabena attributes its first net profit in 40 years to sustained growth in Europe, with the airline's low exposure in Asia shielding it from the full impact of the economic downturn there. The airline made a net profit of BFr703 million ($20 ...
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Indian Airlines drops fleet renewal plans
State-owned Indian Airlines has shelved plans to replace its fleet of 11 ageing Airbus A300B2/B4s and 12 Boeing 737-200s, opting instead to pursue a refurbishment programme. The programme, which will include an interior refit, will allow the aircraft to be operated for "several more years", according to Indian Airlines. ...
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KLM to order 747s
KLM is poised to order four Boeing 747-400s. It already operates 19 of the type, of which 14 are combi-configured. KLM aims to standardise a longhaul, widebody fleet which includes 747 Classics, MD-11s and 767-300ERs. Source: Flight International
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Embraer wins order for a LOT of ERJ-145s
LOT Polish Airlines is to acquire up to 12 Embraer ERJ-145 regional jets as part of a major restructuring plan which is aimed at reversing three consecutive years of losses. The carrier will use its new fleet of 50-seaters, replacing Boeing 737s, to boost frequencies on low-density routes to ...
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Control snags hit Metrojet 737
A Metrojet Boeing 737-200 suffered a sudden unexplained roll in the cruise at 33,000ft (10,000m). The 737, operated by the US Airways' low-fare subsidiary, made a safe precautionary landing and the US National Transportation Safety Board is investigating. The in-flight incident follows changes to the 737 rudder system, prompted ...
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Marketplace
*Sabena has contracted to lease a three-year-old ex-Malaysia Airlines, Pratt & Whitney PW4000-powered Airbus A330-300 in April on a six-year-lease from International Lease Finance (ILFC). Sabena operates three General Electric CF6-powered A330-300s on lease from Airbus, and will also add three new PW4000-powered A330-200s from ILFC from August. *The ...
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Routes
* From 31March, KLM uk will withdraw all operations from Guernsey in the Channel Islands, including services to Southampton, London Stansted and Amsterdam. * British Airways' low-cost division Go is to expanding its services to south-west Europe, with new services from London Stansted to Faro and Malaga from the ...
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UPS goes with Pratt & Whitney PW4000
United Parcel Service (UPS) has choses Pratt & Whitney's PW4158 turbofan for its planned fleet of 75 new Airbus A300-600 freighters. It is the engine's first freighter application. The deal, worth up to $3 billion, is P&W's largest single sale of the 2.39m (94in) fan-diameter PW4000 engine series in ...
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America West pulls put of UAL talks
America West has pulled out of talks with potential buyers, including United Airlines (UAL), complaining that the "expressions of interest" received were "highly conditional". Chairman Bill Franke says America West will continue to go it alone as the USA's ninth largest airline, adding that he is confident that the ...
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International plans for Israir
Arie Egozi/TEL AVIV Domestic Israeli airline hopes to break into the charter business with a "flexible approach" to luring customers Israir, a small Israeli domestic airline, is preparing to go international. After years of operating domestic flights, mainly on the Tel-Aviv-Eilat holiday route, Israir is bracing for its ...
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Maintaining training
Andrew Doyle/FRANKFURT The introduction of new European regulations and the growing power of simulation technology were the hot topics at the Flight International-sponsored Aviation Maintenance Training Conference held on 15-16 February As pressure increases on aircraft maintenance firms to step up the quality of their work at less ...
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AASI is on the brink of Jetcruzer certification
Advanced Aerodynamics & Structures (AASI) hopes to clinch US type certification for its Jetcruzer 500 low-cost corporate turboprop by mid-1999, with first deliveries beginning by year-end. The manufacturer, based in Long Beach, California, was originally due to begin deliveries by the end of 1998, but has suffered substantial delays ...
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Majors play the mating game
US carriers are again testing the water with a series of new acquisition proposals. Perhaps it has something to do with the season, but it is almost exactly a year since they last indulged in a frenzy of mating activity and the US majors are at it again. Only this ...