US AIRLINES REMAIN on track in replacing Stage 2 aircraft with quieter Stage 3 machines, says the US Federal Aviation Administration.
By the end of 1994, the number of Stage 3-compliant aircraft in the US fleet rose from 3,943 to 4,427, while the number of active Stage 2 types fell from 2,372 to 2,250. That takes the proportion of Stage 3 aircraft in the fleet up from 62.4% to 66.3%.
Legislation requires that all Stage 2 aircraft must be replaced, hushkitted, or re-engine by 2000, but, under interim deadlines, the US carriers had to ensure that at least 55% of their fleets were converted to Stage 3 by the end of 1994. The next deadline, at the end of 1996, is for 65% compliance, followed by a 75% target at the end of 1998. The interim compliance can be achieved based on reductions in Stage 2 aircraft.
UPS Airlines is to re-engine its final seven Boeing 727-100s, which should give it a fully Stage 3-compliant fleet by late 1996.
Source: Flight International