Saturday, February 18, 2012
AviTrader Daily Aviation News Alert
This is an overview of all articles linked within the selected daily newsletter.
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SkyWest signs agreement with Embraer for 100 firm and 100 options E175 Regional Jets
May 21, 2013
SkyWest has entered into an agreement with Embraer for the purchase of 100 new E175 dual-class regional jet aircraft. Of the 100 aircraft, 40 are considered firm deliveries and the remaining 60 aircraft are considered conditional until SkyWest enters into capacity purchase agreements with other major airlines to operate the aircraft. Deliveries for the 40 firm aircraft are anticipated to begin in the second quarter of 2014 and continue through mid 2015. The aircraft will be configured in 76 seats in dual-class. The agreement also includes options for an additional 100 E175 aircraft and would be valued at $8.3bn if all 200 aircraft are ordered. The initial 40 firm aircraft outlined above will be operated by SkyWest Airlines, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SkyWest, under a new agreement with United Airlines.
Wings Air to become largest ATR operator with 60 aircraft
February 16, 2012
Lion Air and the European regional turboprop manufacturer ATR signed a contract at the Singapore Airshow, for the purchase of 27 additional ATR 72-600 aircraft. Once these aircraft will be integrated into the fleet of Lion Air’s regional subsidiary Wings Air, it will become the largest operator of ATR aircraft with a total fleet of 60 aircraft (20 ATR 72-500s and 40 ATR 72-600s). Wings Air introduced its first ATRs in January 2010 and currently operates a fleet of 16 ATR 72-500s across its domestic network in Indonesia. The airline plans to receive its 60th ATR 72 by the end of 2015.
SriLankan Airlines and Lufthansa Technik sign 5-year component
February 16, 2012
SriLankan Airlines and Lufthansa Technik have signed a 5-year component supply contract for the carrier’s Airbus A320 fleet. Spare parts will be supplied to the airline’s home base at Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo, where also the main base stock of certain Aircraft-On-Ground (AOG) relevant components is being kept. Repair and pooling of the components will be done at Lufthansa Technik’s base in Hamburg. However, the customer support is located in Bangalore, India, and therefore in the same time zone. This ensures the fastest response time for all customer needs besides Lufthansa Technik’s general 24/7 AOG Desk.
CEBU Pacific selects Rolls-Royce TotalCare
February 16, 2012
Rolls-Royce is to provide Philippines airline Cebu Pacific with long-term TotalCare service support for Trent 700 engines on up to eight Airbus A330 aircraft. The contract will be worth up to $280m. Cebu Pacific will use the aircraft to launch long haul operations in the second half of 2013 and these will be the first Trent engines in the carrier’s fleet.
SIA Engineering opens line maintenance unit in San Francisco
February 16, 2012
SIA Engineering Company (SIAEC) announced the official opening of its line maintenance facility in San Francisco. SIA Engineering (USA), a wholly owned subsidiary of SIAEC, started operations at San Francisco International Airport on February 1st, 2012. This comes three years after SIA Engineering (USA) launched its line maintenance business in the United States at Los Angeles International Airport. The opening of SIAEC’s latest line maintenance facility in the United States further extends the Group’s global network of line maintenance stations, which covers, in addition to Changi, 27 airports in Australia, Hong Kong, United States, Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam. The line maintenance network across these seven countries handles approximately 800 flights daily round-the-clock for more than 70 airlines.
SIA Engineering secures MRO contract for Scoot’s B777 fleet
February 16, 2012
SIA Engineering signed an Aircraft Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul (MRO) services agreement with the new low-cost carrier Scoot. The MRO agreement covers heavy and light airframe maintenance checks, line maintenance and defect rectification. It is a two year agreement with an option of a one-year extension. Scoot, wholly-owned by Singapore Airlines, will be operating the Boeing 777-200ER for its medium and long-haul sectors.
ST Aerospace and Cosworth form strategic technical alliance
February 16, 2012
ST Aerospace and Cosworth Group (Cosworth) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly develop heavy fuel engine systems for unmanned systems customers in the Asia Pacific markets. The technical alliance will leverage ST Aerospace’s expertise in propulsion-to-airframe integration and operator HMI requirements, alongside Cosworth’s class-leading heavy fuel engine technology, for incorporation into the final engine systems, to bring greater value to customers in the region.
Sabena technics signs license agreement with Boeing
February 16, 2012
The VIP completion branch of Sabena technics has entered into a licensing agreement with Boeing, for the modification of Boeing aircraft. The new license comes as part of the ramp-up of the VIP aircraft completion and upgrade activity at the Bordeaux, France facility of Sabena technics.”The attribution of this license is the first step toward becoming a licensed Completion Center, which we expect to happen sometime in late 2012 or early 2013,” said Christophe Bernardini, CEO of Sabena technics. He added:”The BBJ operators worldwide can now benefit from Sabena technics’ recognized expertise for maintenance and modifications while our dedicated VIP cabin team performs a touch-up, upgrade or full refurbish of their VIP or corporate cabin.”
JetCorp continues to keep customers connected with addition of Learjet 60 WiFi STC
February 16, 2012
JetCorp Technical Services, a subsidiary of Canadian-based Flying Colours Corp., has increased the breadth of its connectivity offering following the completion of a Supplemental Type Certificate for the Aircell Cabin Telecommunications Router (CTR) on a Learjet 60. Installation and certification of the Aircell CTR provides in-cabin Wi-Fi capability for Aircell’s continental America focused Gogo Biz inflight internet service. The system can be used on lap tops, tablets, and even smart phones enabling passengers to surf the internet, retrieve and answer email with attachments, and access their corporate VPN.
Honeywell equips Eastar Jet with Auxiliary Power Units
February 16, 2012
Honeywell Aerospace has been awarded a contract to provide its auxiliary power units (APUs) and a three-year maintenance program for Eastar Jet’s growing fleet of Boeing 737-800 NG aircraft. This agreement provides Eastar Jet with a reliable, high-performance APU solution with easy maintainability and lower cost of ownership.
In addition to Honeywell’s standard APU product warranty, the agreement will provide a comprehensive suite of aftermarket maintenance solutions catering to Eastar Jet’s specific needs. Eastar Jet’s current fleet totals six B737-800 aircraft, and the South Korea-based low-cost airline is looking to more than double that to 14 aircraft by 2015.
Bombardier awards Learjet 85 contract to Comtek Advanced Structures
February 16, 2012
Comtek Advanced Structures (Comtek), a subsidiary of Avcorp Industries, has been awarded a contract by Bombardier Aerospace under which Comtek will design, manufacture and support the floor panels for the Learjet 85 business jet. Comtek currently supplies the floor panels for Bombardier’s Q400 turboprop and CRJ700, CRJ900 and CRJ1000 regional jets and has done so since the program’s start. The Learjet 85 aircraft program contract marks a significant expansion of Comtek’s relationship with Bombardier as a provider of similar design-build products for business aircraft. Under a separate agreement with Bombardier, Comtek also provided flooring spares through its global distribution network for Q-Series 100/200/300 turboprop aircraft.
JEJU AIR chooses Honeywell’s Advanced Avionics Technology
February 16, 2012
South Korean low-cost carrier JEJU AIR has selected Honeywell Aerospace to provide a full suite of avionics for its new fleet of Boeing 737-800 NG passenger aircraft. This multimillion-dollar contract covers six aircraft that are expected to be delivered between 2013 and 2017. JEJU AIR will be the first LCC in North Asia to fly Boeing 737 NG aircraft with Honeywell’s full avionics suite.
Spirit Airlines announces fourth quarter and full year results
February 16, 2012
Spirit Airlines reported fourth quarter 2011 and full year 2011 financial results. Net income for the fourth quarter 2011 was $24.0m compared to $9.6m in 2010. Full year pro forma adjusted net income was $95.5m, full year 2011 GAAP net income was $76.4m. EBITDAR for the fourth quarter 2011 was $70.7m, resulting in an EBITDAR margin of 25.8% excluding unrealized fuel hedge gains and special items. For the full year 2011 EBITDAR was $275.0 million, resulting in an EBITDAR margin of 25.7% excluding unrealized fuel hedge losses and special items. Spirit ended the year with $343.3 million in unrestricted cash.
SkyWest reports fourth quarter net loss of $18.0m
February 16, 2012
SkyWest, Inc. reported operating revenues of $899.9m for the quarter ended December 31, 2011, compared to $796.3m for the same period last year. SkyWest also reported a net loss of $18.0m for the quarter ended December 31, 2011, compared to $37.2m of net for the same period last year.
Bill Ayer retiring as CEO of Alaska Air Group
February 16, 2012
The Alaska Air Group board of directors and Bill Ayer, chairman and chief executive officer, announced that Ayer will retire as CEO of Air Group and its subsidiary carriers, Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, effective at the company’s annual shareholder meeting on May 15th. Brad Tilden, a 21-year veteran at Air Group, will succeed Ayer as CEO of Air Group and the company’s two airlines and will remain as president of Alaska Airlines. Ayer will continue to serve as chairman of the board.
AMR Corporation posts fourth quarter net loss of $1.1bn
February 16, 2012
AMR Corporation, the parent company of American Airlines, recorded consolidated net loss of $1.1bn for the fourth quarter of 2011 compared to a consolidated net loss of $97m in the fourth quarter of 2010. AMR recorded fourth quarter 2011 consolidated revenues of approximately $6.0bn, an increase of 7.4% year-over-year. For fiscal 2011, AMR recorded a consolidated net loss of approximately $2.0bn, which compares to a consolidated net loss of $471m for fiscal 2010.
Qantas’ half year profit down 83%
February 16, 2012
The Qantas Group reported net profit of A$42m ($45m) for the six months ended December 2011, down from A$241m during the same period in 2010. The company said that last years strikes cost it A$194m, while fuel costs surged 26% to A$2.2bn during the period.
Kingfisher Airlines’ 3rd quarter loss widens
February 16, 2012
Kingfisher Airlines reported a 4.44bn rupees loss in the third quarter that ended in December 2011, compared to a loss of 2.54bn rupees the previous year. Kingfisher lost 11.8bn rupees in the first nine months of the current fiscal year that ends in March 2012, a 35% rise from the previous year. Revenue in the third quarter fell 15.2% to 13.42bn rupees.
Pascal Bouchiat appointed Chief Financial Officer of Thales
February 17, 2012
As of April 2012, Pascal Bouchiat will be joining Thales as Chief Financial Officer. He will be a member of the Group’s Executive Committee, in charge of financial control and accounting, corporate finance and treasury, investor relations, tax and insurance. Previously, Pascal Bouchiat had been Chief Financial Officer at Rhodia, in charge of finance, information systems and Rhodia business services.
SR Technics enhances VIP design and engineering capabilities
February 17, 2012
SR Technics, part of the Mubadala Aerospace Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) network, has received Production Organization Approval from the Swiss Federal Office for Civil Aviation (FOCA), enabling SR Technics to take aircraft interior design and engineering to innovative levels. All interior design and engineering will be carried out at SR Technics’ VIP Completion Centre in Zurich, which opened last year. The first aircraft to undergo the SR Technics’ VIP experience arrived in the third quarter of 2011.
Sabena technics completes first aircraft modification for Phoenix Aircraft Leasing
February 17, 2012
Sabena technics, the French independent MRO and completion center, completed its first aircraft modification for Singapore-based aircraft lessor Phoenix Aircraft Leasing. For their first collaboration on aircraft maintenance, Phoenix Aircraft Leasing contracted Sabena technics for the cabin modification and livery painting of an A310 aircraft recently purchased for one of its Asian customers.
ST Aerospace and Aerosim sign MOU to develop advanced maintenance training systems
February 17, 2012
ST Aerospace and Aerosim Technologies (Aerosim) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly develop advanced maintenance training systems. Together, the two companies will set up maintenance training centres globally at Aerosim academies, ST Aerospace’s technical training centres and other locations. Under the terms of the MoU, both parties will collaborate on the development of training curriculum, software and computer-based training (CBT) systems to support aircraft type training for Airbus A320, A330, A340, A350, A380, Boeing 737, 747, 767, 777, 787 and MD11. The training software will be engineered for basic engineering and type courses certified by Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and European Aviation Safety Agency, which will be used in both training centres globally.
SIA Engineering secures VietJet Air contract
February 17, 2012
SIA Engineering (SIAEC) announced the signing of an Inventory Technical Management (ITM) Services Agreement with VietJet Air, a low-cost airline based in Hanoi. The five-year contract, covering VietJet’s fleet of six A320 aircraft, will see SIAEC providing a wide spectrum of ITM services, including spares pooling and support, as well as component repair and overhaul.
TP Aerospace qualifies for AS9120 Rev. A
February 17, 2012
TP Aerospace released that during a Quality Audit conducted by URS (United Registrar of Systems Limited) in February 2012, the company scored the 100% required correctness and secured a recommendation to the new AS9120 Rev. A approval. Being recommended for the AS9120 Rev. A approval, TP Aerospace will be the only aviation business sector company in Denmark currently meeting this highest level of approval. The AS9120 Rev. A revision focuses heavily on customer satisfaction, risk assessment, product conformity and process measurement, analysis and improvement using the new ‘Process Approach’ to auditing.
