Systems & interiors – Page 775
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France and UK invite JOANNA proposals
The French and UK ministries of defence have issued an invitation to tender for a fourth generation electro-optical targeting pod technical demonstrator programme (TDP)that could lead to an operational system entering service late in the next decade. The Joint Airborne Navigation and Attack (JOANNA) TDP will be split equally ...
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Safety first
Korean Air is making a concentrated effort to improve safety and save itself from isolation - and possible collapse Andrzej Jeziorski/SEOUL Korean Air (KAL) executives speaking to the press these days face an unusual dilemma: how can an airline confirm, and simultaneously deny, that it has a problem with its ...
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JAL/JAS link launches 'Big Three' entente
Andrzej Jeziorski/SINGAPORE Andrew Mollett/TOKYO Japan Airlines (JAL) and Japan Air System (JAS) are planning to launch joint international services from late October in what is seen as a significant move towards closer co-operation among the country's three major airlines. The carriers were expected to make a formal application to ...
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FAA satellite programme investigated
The US General Accounting Office (GAO) has launched a Congressionally requested investigation into the US Federal Aviation Administration's satellite navigation programme following concerns about the agency's plans to move from a ground-based to a satellite-based navigation system. The GAO expects to report next spring. The study follows an investigation ...
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Mind games
Twenty months into one of the most controversial accident investigations of the decade, SilkAir has told the world that a pilot who apparently intended to kill himself and 103 others was "by the best standards of the industry-fit to fly". To put it charitably, this demonstrates a disturbing readiness ...
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Star partners unite to repel oneworld bid for Air Canada
Brian Dunn/MONTREAL Chris Jasper/LONDON Air Canada and its Star Alliance partners are gathering their forces in a bid to fight off an attempted takeover of the flag-carrier masterminded by rival oneworld leader American Airlines, acting in tandem with the Toronto-based Onex conglomerate, owner of caterer Sky Chefs. The Onex/American ...
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Proven pedigree
Low cost, low noise and low vibration led Eurocopter's design priorities for its AS350B3 Peter Gray/MARIGNANE Eurocopter's AS350B3 has a long pedigree. It is the latest version of a helicopter intended to succeed the popular Alouette and Lama, both of which have established a reputation for high reliability and ...
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CAL crash raises fresh fears
Brent Hannon/TAIPEI Andrzej Jeziorski/SINGAPORE The crash on 22 August of a China Airlines (CAL)Boeing MD-11 at Hong Kong International Airport has placed both the airline and the airport authority on the defensive. In a bad week for Asia-Pacific air safety, the crash was followed days later by a ...
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ARINC kicks off next classic upgrade talks
ARINC is talking to two flight management system (FMS) suppliers about the next stage of its cockpit upgrade programme for classic aircraft. The move follows recent US Federal Aviation Administration supplemental type certification (STC) for phase one of the communication upgrade for Boeing 747 Classic aircraft. The first phase ...
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Hapag-Lloyd pushes reluctant Airbus on A310 replacement
Andrew Doyle/MUNICH German charter carrier Hapag-Lloyd's effort to replace its Airbus A310s is being frustrated by the reluctance of Airbus and Boeing to commit to developing new short/medium-range widebody types. The airline is one of a growing band of operators, including Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines, that seek A310 ...
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Boeing-GE 777X deal sparks EC probe into exclusivity
Chris Jasper/LONDON The European Commission (EC) is poised to launch an investigation into airframe-engine exclusivity deals following the sole supplier agreement between Boeing and General Electric on the Seattle giant's planned ultra-long-range 777X. Outgoing EC competition chief Karel Van Miert ordered that a file be opened on exclusivity deals ...
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Boeing adds Ilyushin engineers to design team for cargo 767
Andrew Doyle/MOSCOW Boeing has signed a contract with the Ilyushin design bureau to bring up to 35 Russian engineers into the design team working on a passenger-to-freighter conversion for the Boeing 767. The Ilyushin employees will work on the project at the Boeing Design Centre (BDC) in Moscow, ...
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Orlando courts Europeans
Virgin Atlantic Airways has signed a long-term agreement for a $58 million international 12-gate terminal to be built at Orlando airport, Florida. The recent approval of the lease, which runs until 2008 for one gate, is described by Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) officials as "unique" for a foreign ...
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Majors eye Kennedy terminals
Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are weighing up major investments in new terminal facilities at New York's Kennedy Airport, already in the middle of a massive $9 billion redevelopment programme for new terminals and infrastructure. Delta and United operate from outdated and overcrowded facilities while many of ...
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Profits on a plateau
Kevin O'Toole In the final analysis, the airline industry's financial results for 1998 were once again a mix of the encouraging and the depressingly familiar. Overall profitability came out at almost identical levels to the year before. The industry should perhaps take heart from that fact, given the dire ...
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Controlling the future
Peter Bennett VIENNA Commercialisation, privatisation and the empowerment of Eurocontrol are possible solutions to Europe's growing delays. The solution for Europe's air traffic delays is simple. First, look at the causes - a fragmented air system controlled by a patchwork of control centres that leads to the inefficient management ...
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Raising the internet stakes
Dennis Blank ORLANDO The explosion of online travel booking in the USA - stimulated by offerings of bargain basement ticket fares - is attracting the wrath of travel agents. But US major carriers cannot ignore this rapidly growing marketplace. This year, the customary late summer round of airfare bargains across ...
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Negotiating change at ALPA
Karen Walker WASHINGTON DC ALPA's new president, Duane Woerth, says he is not afraid of change. But the US pilots he represents are beating the same drum: they expect to see their airlines' profitability reflected in new contract negotiations. If Duane Woerth is looking for a fight, he does a ...
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BA reins in again
Lois Jones LONDON British Airways may have stayed profitable through the last recession but it is now fighting to stay out of the red For over a decade British Airways has been the shining example of how a profitable airline should look. But it could be about to fall from ...
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United offers more business legroom
Jane Levere NEW YORK Battling, like every other carrier, for the higher-yield market, United Airlines is installing improved seating at the back of the cabin in its domestic fleet in order to reward its most frequent or full-fare economy passengers. The carrier is reconfiguring the first six to 11 rows ...