All Systems & interiors articles – Page 803
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News
Swissair reveals Express brand
Swissair is introducing an Express brand to coincide with the launch on 5 November of wet-lease services by Debonair of the UK on behalf of the Swiss flag carrier and Italian independent airline Air One. Debonair will operate one of its British Aerospace 146-200s, painted in Swissair Express colours, ...
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FAA reassures over data use as it launches quality programme
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC With the launch of a long-awaited airline flight operations quality assurance (FOQA) programme, the US Federal Aviation Administration has guaranteed that data obtained from aircraft flight data recorders (FDRs) will not be used against carriers or pilots. So far the programme has been limited to ...
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Helibus nears first flight
Sikorsky has completed initial main transmission and drive train testing of the S-92 Helibus ground test vehicle, clearing the way for the inaugural first flight of the new medium-size helicopter by the end of December and an anticipated production decision in 1999. The manufacturer has completed around 200h of ...
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Somchem unveils warhead
Peter La Franchi/PRETORIA Denel's Somchem division has unveiled a concept demonstrator for a new type of anti-shipping missile warhead, designed to enhance the effect of impact shockwaves in causing structural damage. Somchem is now seeking a development partner to enable full development of the warhead to proceed. The ...
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Triana camera
Lockheed Martin has been selected by the University of California to design and build the Earth polychromatic imaging camera for NASA's Triana mission, the deep space Earth observer proposed by vice president Al Gore to return daily images of the globe from the camera, via the Internet. Source: Flight ...
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A300B2/B4 retrofit provides global positioning capability
Max Kingsley-Jones/LONDON An electronic retrofit developed by Airbus Industrie for the A300B2/B4 twinjet, which provides increased efficiency and meets new navigation requirements, has been certificated. The B2/B4 variants - the first examples of the A300 to be produced - are equipped with analogue, electromechanical-instrument cockpits and, with a few ...
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Raisbeck wraps up study into recertification of DC-9s
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES Raisbeck has completed a feasibility study into a Stage 3 recertification of McDonnell Douglas DC-9s and is canvassing operators before committing to launch the programme. The aerodynamic modification kit, if given the go-ahead, would be available "on or before 1 January, 2000", says James Raisbeck, ...
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UK promises action to crack down on airline violence
Action to stamp out violent behaviour on aircraft has been promised by the UK transport minister, but he has handed to the airlines the task of organising research into the growing phenomenon of "air rage". Following a meeting with airlines and interested organisations in London on 25 November, transport ...
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Canada aims to create more European aerospace partnerships
Canadian aerospace companies are seeking partnerships with Europe, particularly among small and medium-sized enterprises, "-to smooth out our dependence on the USA", according to Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC) president Peter Smith. He believes that Canada's exchange rate, work skills and lower production costs offer good prospects for ...
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IAOPA appeal
The International Council of Aircraft Owner and Pilots Association (IAOPA) is pushing for the Loran-C ground-based navigation aid to be used for augmentation and back-up of global navigation satellite systems (GNSS). In October, IAOPA's World Assembly supported development of a second-generation GNSS, to follow the current global positioning system and ...
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Northwest eyes regional jets
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC Northwest Airlines is expected to decide early next year whether to equip its Memphis, Tennessee-based Northwest Airlink subsidiary, Express Airlines I, with regional jets, according to industry sources. The matter was discussed at the US major's recent board meeting, but a decision was put off ...
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Testing a stretch
Guy Norris/SEATTLEPicture the scene. A Boeing 757-300 emerges from the blackness of a North Atlantic storm, fighting a vicious crosswind with gusts of 40kt (75km/h) or more. Ahead, through the gloom and screaming wind, lies the rain-slicked runway of Iceland's Keflavik Airport. Testing the automatic landing system to its limits, ...
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Workshop
-Sogerma's maintenance group has begun a nine-week programme to carry out the five-year "C" checks on two of Sabena's Airbus A340-300s, which the company says will include structural ageing inspections that have never before been performed on the type. The contract also includes cabin refurbishment. -Lufthansa Technik has been contracted ...
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Airports can be low cost too
Spurred on by the low-cost carriers, Europe's local airports have begun to reinvent themselves as low-cost alternatives to the major hubs. Much attention has been lavished on the rise of Europe's low-cost airlines. But it is not only the carriers which are cutting costs. Following fast on their heels ...
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BA/American put alliance brakes on
Faced with declining yields across the North Atlantic, British Airways and American Airlines have confirmed plans to postpone a full alliance for up to five years. But their revised plans for limited codesharing have failed to dispel US opposition. BA now plans to codeshare with American in the US ...
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Star attracts a galaxy
The Star Alliance will expand to nine full members before the end of 1999, following All Nippon Airlines' (ANA) decision to join. ANA president, Kichisaburo Nomura, says his company will take up full membership at the start of October 1999, following the example of Ansett and Air New Zealand, ...
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Capacity for sell-offs
While a flurry of airport privatisations has taken place across Latin America, a big unanswered question still remains over whether that will extend to the region's real giant, Brazil. Privatisation of Infraero, the Brazilian airports authority, has been talked about for years. But when Cardoso's four-year government auctioned off ...
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Greenwald launches cuts crusade
United Airlines' chairman, Gerald Greenwald, has launched a crusade to cut costs by persuading carriers and manufacturers to standardise aircraft configurations. "Standardisation is an idea that can save airlines a lot of money," he told the SAE/ATA standard aircraft symposium inWashington DC in November. "We are our own worst ...
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SAA dumps sale guidelines
Widely accepted guidelines for the privatisation of South African Airways (SAA) have been turned on their head by chief executive Coleman Andrews. The South African Government had said that it would sell off 49% of SAA, with 30-35% going to a single foreign partner and the balance finding its ...
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Flourishing in Florida
As Miami's major airport struggles to keep pace with the fastest growth in the USA, its smaller rivals are making a bid for more international service. Growth in Florida is a bit like the sunshine - there's always plenty to go around. No matter which way you slice the ...