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Tuesday, February 27th, 2018
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LATEST NEWS
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The first Boeing 787-9 aircraft was welcomed into the fleet of Mallorca-based airline Air Europa on February 26. Air Europa already owns eight 787-8 Dreamliners and has 15 aircraft on order of the stretched 787-9 version, all of which are due to be delivered in the coming years.
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From its Madrid-Barajas hub, Air Europa mainly serves routes within Spain as well as numerous connections to North- and South America. The Dreamliners are used on the connections to Barcelona, Gran Canaria, Miami, Bogotá, Buenos Aires, Santo Domingo, Havana, Tel Aviv, Lima and Sao Paulo.
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StandardAero and Papillon Airways have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for 40 retrofittable Crash-Resistant Fuel Tanks (CRFTs) in support of Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters’ fleet of Airbus AS350 B3 and EC130 B4 tour aircraft. Installation of the first CRFT will take place this April.
“Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters has made the commitment to lead our industry by retrofitting our tour fleet with recently FAA certified crash resistant fuel systems,” says Lon Halvorson, owner and executive vice president, Papillon Airways.
The CRFT has been developed by StandardAero (formerly Vector Aerospace) and Robertson Fuel Systems as a direct replacement for all AS350 models, including the AS350 C, AS350 D/D1, AS350 B/B1/B2/BA/B3 and AS350 B3e (H125), as well as for the EC130 B4. The tank’s unique design features a robust crash-resistant fuel bladder, offering the same capacity as the legacy fuel cell and uses several innovations including magnetic field sensor fuel gauging technology and vent system roll-over protection. The CRFT is compliant with the latest FAR Part 27.952 fuel system crash resistance requirements, even when used in combination with a cargo swing.
Public and regulatory focus on enhanced helicopter safety has continued to grow since the CRFT was first unveiled in 2015. The FAA Reauthorization Act now includes an amendment requiring the FAA to make helicopter owners aware of fuel system retrofits and to urge them to install retrofits “as soon as practicable.”
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Airbus, Delta, OneWeb, Sprint, and Bharti Airtel (Airtel) have combined resources to create the Seamless Air Alliance (SAA), which is intended to kick-start a new era of innovation for airlines on a global basis.
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Using satellite technology, mobile operators who are members of the alliance will be able to extend their services to airline cabins, providing high-speed, low-latency connectivity at normal speeds from the ground to the air, and back again. The result should be a significant reduction in cost for all involved, while at the same time creating a smooth and positive user experience.
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The new alliance is aiming to attract further industry operators which will further help to eliminate costs that would normally be associated with acquisition, installation, and operation of data access infrastructure. According to a press release issued by SAA, this can be achieved by streamlining system integration and certification, providing open specifications for interoperability, increasing accessibility for passengers, and enabling simple and integrated billing.
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“What if the best internet you ever experienced was in the air? Keeping this goal in mind, together, we will enable an affordable and frictionless experience for passengers everywhere,” said Greg Wyler, Founder and Executive Chairman of OneWeb. “With the launch of our first production satellites set for later this year, we’re one step closer to bridging the global Digital Divide on land and in the air.”
“Easy-to-use, high-speed connectivity is part of the next revolution in aerospace,” said Marc Fontaine, Airbus Digital Transformation Officer. “We’re excited to create this seamless experience for our airline customers and their passengers. As we showed with our Skywise aviation data platform, Airbus is committed to innovation that creates value across the aviation industry.”
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Ground testing for Heli-One's Sikorsky S-76B helicopter upgrade program featuring a Universal Avionics flight deck is now complete, with flight testing imminent. The aircraft is operated by a VVIP operator in Asia. The upgraded, modern glass cockpit includes the installation of three EFI-890H Advanced Flight Displays with Vision-1® Synthetic Vision System and a UNS-1Fw Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS)-Flight Management System (FMS).
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Ground testing and upcoming flight testing for the VVIP retrofit program is being performed at Universal Avionics Authorized Dealer, Heli-One Canada, in Vancouver, British Columbia.
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Universal Avionics' well-proven, reliable EFI-890H solution is a customized, cost-effective technology upgrade for the S-76B. The upgrade provides the ability to see the projected flight path when coupled with the display of aircraft traffic, a powerful safety improvement. This allows the operator to see where the other traffic is in relation to the track they intend to take and to judge diverging or converging tracks well in advance. Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (EGPWS) terrain will also be displayed, providing terrain mapping when operating low level in an airport or off-airport environment. When operating in marginal Visual Meteorological Conditions (VMC), this is a tremendous enhancement in safety.
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Air Astana, the national carrier of Kazakhstan will start non-stop flights from London Heathrow (LHR) to Astana, effective June 1st.
Passengers flying direct with Air Astana will benefit from seamless immediate connections to Kazakhstan’s second city Almaty and excellent onwards connections via the airline’s domestic and international network. From Astana, passengers can benefit from convenient international connections to Urumqi, northwest China; Delhi, India; and the Russian cities of Novosibirsk, Omsk, Tyumen and Yekaterinburg.
“We are delighted to have finally secured daily flight status on what is such a prestigious and popular route – the only direct service linking the UK to Kazakhstan,” said Air Astana CEO and President Peter Foster. “London has consistently grown in significance, with both business and leisure travellers and it comes at an opportune time too for the airline strategically, as we start to plan for an IPO listing in both London and Kazakhstan.”
Air Astana offers a three-class product aboard its comfortable Boeing 757 aircraft – 16 seats in business, 108 in economy and up to 12 unique Economy Sleeper Seats.
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Falcon Aviation, one of the UAE’s leading aviation companies specialising in business aviation services, charter and aircraft management, is further broadening its MRO expertise having obtained GCAA approval to start Bombardier Q400 base maintenance in its Fixed Wing Hangar at its Al Bateen Executive Airport HQ, Abu Dhabi.
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It will support its own six-strong fleet of Q400 NGs, three of which are operating on the AOC of Qazaq Air in Kazakhstan, serving domestic routes in the country. Qazak Air will bring one of its Q400s into Al Bateen for maintenance in the next few weeks.
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“We are delighted to have this accreditation to carry out base maintenance and provide MRO on the Q400NGs,” said Falcon Aviation COO Captain Raman Oberoi. Falcon Aviation’s fixed wing and rotary wing MRO at Bateen Airport already holds capabilities for Embraer and Gulfstream Business Jets; the Pilatus PC-12, Airbus Helicopters, Leonardo Helicopters and Bell Helicopters.
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Falcon Aviation is also marking three successful years’ flying on its fixed wing oil and gas operations with daily flight services operated by two Q400NGs - between Al Bateen and Das Island, and between Al Bateen and Zirku Island. The service, which started in September 2015 to serve demand from the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has grown from an initial 61,000 passengers in its first year to 187,000 in 2016, increasing to 215,000 passengers during 2017. Today, the route supports 12 flights daily, back and forth, carrying 700 passengers a day.
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Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has joined forces with Starburst, a global accelerator focused on Aerospace & Defense sectors. This innovative collaboration is expected to be the first step in realizing IAI's objectives to become a significant technological player and strategic partner for startups in the Aerospace & Defense fields, by offering technological and business expertise, technology validation, mentoring and access to such startups' potential markets.
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With presence in three continents, Starburst comprises 300 startup companies and 26 companies in the accelerator, including GE Aviation, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Thales, Airbus and more.
IAI will participate in the election of startups to the accelerator that meets IAI's criteria, and in addition, overseas startups that already participate in the accelerator will present technologies selected by IAI according to pre-determined criteria.
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The model will enable IAI to identify innovative technologies that can contribute to its current and future growth engines and technological roadmap and maintain its position as a technological spearhead, through technical collaboration and equity investments in the forefront of aerospace technology.
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Sabre Corporation has come to an agreement with Hong Kong Airlines, to implement Sabre AirCentre Crew technology, a solution that offers a range of crew scheduling, management, services and analytical capabilities. This new partnership marks a significant collaboration between Sabre and a fast-growing airline in the Asia Pacific region.
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Increased connectivity between the aircraft, flight crew, and airline staff represents a tremendous opportunity for Hong Kong Airlines to optimize its processes both in the air and on the ground. Once fully implemented, Sabre’s Crew Solutions will help reduce controllable delays by improving productivity related to scheduling, benefitting both the flight and cabin crew.
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The technology encourages a proactive approach that fosters timely communication between schedulers and crew members, reduces costs by minimizing crew overage, and contributes to increased productivity by better connecting all touchpoints, promoting better crew utilisation through optimized pairings, scheduling and tracking. Additionally, the solution drives improved operational efficiency by providing a more proactive means of tracking and communicating with crew in real-time.
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Delta Air Lines and United Airlines became the latest major corporations to end marketing ties with the National Rifle Association.
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On its website Delta announced that it has reached out to the National Rifle Association to let it know that the airline will be ending its contract for discounted fares for travel to the association's annual meeting through Delta's group travel program. The company will request that the NRA remove Delta's information from its meeting website.
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Delta’s decision reflects the airline’s neutral status in the current national debate over gun control amid recent school shootings. Delta said out of respect for its customers and employees on both sides, it has taken this action to refrain from entering this debate and focus on its business.
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This is not the first time Delta has withdrawn support over a politically and emotionally charged issue. Last year, Delta withdrew its sponsorship of a theater that staged a graphic interpretation of “Julius Caesar” depicting the assassination of President Trump.
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Norwegian has taken delivery of its 100th direct buy Boeing 737-800 aircraft, the last of this aircraft type in its fleet. Norwegian originally ordered 42 737-800 in 2007 and leased 26 of these aircraft between 2008 and 2016. The airline now has a total of 118 737-800 aircraft in its fleet.
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“Today’s delivery marks the end of an era for Norwegian. When we first introduced the Boeing 737-800 aircraft to our fleet ten years ago, we did so because it was a modern aircraft with a record of reliability, fuel efficiency and low operating costs,” said Bjørn Kjos, CEO of Norwegian. “Now, at the dawn of a new era, our fleet expansion will continue with more environmentally friendly aircraft as we prepare to take delivery of more than 100 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft over the next few years.”
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In 2017, Norwegian took delivery of the first six of 110 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft the airline has on order. These initial aircraft were used to launch the airline’s service between the Northeastern United States and six European destinations, primarily in Ireland.
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Norwegian will take delivery of 12 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in 2018, which will allow the airline to launch additional medium-haul routes throughout its global network.
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