Daily2018-02-20

LATEST NEWS

Wednesday, June 12th, 2019

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Ryanair announces acquisition of new subsidiary – Malta Air

Ryanair has agreed to purchase Malta Air, a Maltese start-up airline, creating a new subsidiary to the Ryanair Group of low-cost carriers in addition to Buzz (Poland), Lauda (Austria) and Ryanair (Ireland). Initially, the new airline will take over all Ryanair’s 61 current routes and operating six aircraft, but this number is expected to increase to ten over the next three years as the number of routes increases. The six Malta-based aircraft will be given a new livery in time for the summer of 2020. As part of the creation of a new airline, not to be confused with the existing flag-carrier Air Malta, the Maltese government will hold a “golden share”, giving it the right of veto over major changes. Malta air will not challenge Air Malta on the Maltese carrier’s routes, which are primarily to major European destinations, Africa and the Middle East.

In addition to transferring six aircraft to the new airline, it is understood that Ryanair will also be re-registering a further 50 aircraft on the Island. This could indicate that the low-cost carrier is looking to use Malta as a maintenance hub. In moving Ryanair-based aircraft from France, Italy and Germany onto the Malta AOC, this will allow those crews to pay their income taxes locally in France, Italy and Germany instead of Ireland where they are currently required to pay income taxes under Ryanair’s Irish AOC.

GECAS appoints Priscilla Branco new Regional Manager for Latin America & Caribbean

GECAS has appoined Priscilla Branco as its new Regional Manager for Latin America & Caribbean (LAC). Branco, a native of Rio de Janeiro, has over a decade of experience working in the aviation sector in the LAC market. In this role, she will be responsible for developing and executing the commercial strategy for GECAS’ fixed wing aircraft for the region.

Branco joins GECAS from Azul Airlines where she has spent the last ten years working with the company in a variety of roles. Most recently, she was the Head of Aircraft Programs, leading aircraft and engine purchasing, leasing and financing. 

EASA publishes EU wide rules on drones

EASA has published European rules on drones to ensure drone operations across Europe are safe and secure. The rules will amongst others help to protect the safety and the privacy of EU citizens while enabling the free circulation of drones and a level playing field within the European Union.

The new rules include technical as well as operational requirements for drones. On one hand they define the capabilities a drone must have to be flown safely. For instance, new drones will have to be individually identifiable, allowing the authorities to trace a particular drone if necessary. This will help to better prevent events similar to the ones which happened in 2018 at Gatwick and Heathrow
airports. On the other hand the rules cover each operation type, from those not requiring prior authorisation, to those involving certified aircraft and operators, as well as minimum remote pilot training requirements. The new rules will replace existing national rules in EU Member States.

While the EU regulation will enter into force in the next 20 days, it will be applicable only in one year, to give Member States and operators time to prepare and implement it. As of June 2020 operators of drones will need to register in the Member State where they have their residence or their main place of business.

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United Airlines to connect to Airbus' Skywise

United Airlines has become the latest U.S. airline to connect to Airbus’ open-data platform, Skywise, following an agreement recently signed between the airline and Airbus. United will leverage Skywise to enhance all aspects of its maintenance and engineering operations on its Airbus fleet.

With flexible and visual tools, Skywise enables airlines to store, access, manage and analyse data more efficiently while also benchmarking against other airline users’ trends. Skywise provides all technology elements in one place, including data warehousing, visualisation, alerting, and even machine learning packages, allowing United and other airlines to nimbly develop and deploy their own analytical products.

In addition, Skywise seamlessly connects with the data integration platform, Palantir Foundry. United began using this platform in 2018, and the combination of Palantir Foundry and Airbus’ Skywise will provide United with the data and tools to enhance its operational reliability.

Mango Airlines selects Acro’s Series 3 Ultra economy class seat

Johannesburg based, low-cost carrier Mango Airlines has selected once again Acro’s Series 3 Ultra Economy Class seat for two B737-800 aircraft. Acro has a long-standing relationship with the airline and this latest order results in the delivery of fourteen shipsets in total since Mango first selected the seat in 2014.

Mango operate a fleet of B737 aircraft on domestic routes to major cities including Cape Town, Durban, George, Bloemfontein and Port Elizabeth and regional flights between Johannesburg and Zanzibar.

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Astronics mourns passing of Board Chairman Kevin T. Keane

Astronics Corporation released that Kevin T. Keane, a member of its Board of Directors for nearly 50 years and Board Chairman for 45 years, has passed away on June 10, 2019 in Buffalo, NY.

Kevin T. Keane had joined the Board and began his career with Astronics in 1970, and was named the Chairman in 1974. He served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company from 1974 to 2002. He was actively involved in the community, serving on several boards and volunteering his time with numerous organizations.

S7 Technics and Lufthansa Technik jointly present Cyclean®

Moscow Domodedovo-based S7 Technics and Lufthansa Technik have jointly held Russia’s premiere presentation of Cyclean®, an aero engine cleaning process which has been developed by Lufthansa Technik and is now brought to the Russian aviation market by aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services provider S7 Technics.

Lufthansa Technik and S7 Technics signed their agreement for operating Cyclean® in Russia in the summer of 2018 and, after using it for less than 12 months, the Domodedovo station has now completed more than 250 individual engine washes, each one benefiting from the reduced time required for the procedure compared with other engine core cleaning systems. The other big advantage of Cyclean® is the possibility of operating it in outside air temperatures (OATs) as low as minus 10°С.

“Before we got Cyclean® it would take between five and six hours to wash a pair of CFM56-5В/7В engines. Now it’s down to three hours,” reveals Andrey Soldatov, engineer at S7 Technics’ engine lifecycle management department. “Another advantage is the lower OATs in which the equipment can be used. The previous technology we used allowed the cleaning procedure with OATs down to minus 5°С, which imposed significant limits in the autumn and spring periods,” Soldatov adds.

Another big advantage in adopting the Cyclean® system is the corresponding reduction in engine
performance deterioration rates, primarily the exhaust gas temperature (EGT) margin, S7 Technics has found.

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Precision Aircraft Solutions completes 3rd B757-200 conversion for Asia Pacific

Precision Aircraft Solutions has completed its third 757-200 passenger-to-freighter conversion for Asia Pacific Airlines (APA).

Conversion of MSN 25140 was completed at Flightstar Aviation in Jacksonville, FL and will be put into service soon after redelivery. The Asia Pacific Airlines 757-200PCF will enter service and support the expanding Pacific Asia network.

GTLK Europe closes US$265 million refinancing

GTLK Europe, an Ireland-based international company, engaged in leasing and trading of a wide range of air and sea vehicles, has refinanced three 2015 vintage Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, all subject to long term leases with Aeroflot.

The facility was underwritten by DVB Bank SE, PK AirFinance, a GECAS Company, Credit Agricole CIB, The Korea Development Bank and NEC Capital Solutions Limited. PK AirFinance acted as Agent and Security Trustee of the facility.

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EmbraerX unveils new electric flying vehicle concept

During Uber Elevate Summit 2019 in Washington, D.C, EmbraerX has unveiled a new electric flying vehicle concept . The event convenes a global community of manufacturers, investors, policymakers, and government officials, all working to make the urban aerial ridesharing vision a reality.

The aircraft concept, with electric vertical take-off and landing capability, known as eVTOL, is part of the EmbraerX multi-project approach. Embraer’s disruptive business subsidiary is working on a collaborative effort to enable and accelerate the urban mobility ecosystem.

EmbraerX’s human-centric approach has been instrumental in the eVTOL project, focused on user experience and passenger peace of mind, with the goal of making the aircraft easily accessible to every person.

This new aircraft concept results from a broad range of tests and simulations, aiming at operational optimization for the urban environment, considering high reliability, low operating costs, a lower noise footprint, fully electric powered and progressively autonomous.

EmbraerX is also engaged in a variety of tailored solutions for the ecosystem, including a new business platform, named Beacon, designed to foster collaboration and synchronize aviation services companies and professionals in a streamlined and more agile way, to keep aircraft flying Additionally, in partnership with dozens of air traffic controllers, academics, pilots and industry experts, EmbraerX has proposed a very practical, simple and robust urban air space design to allow more aircraft to fly in urban environments.

AerFin secures EASA Part 145 Certification

AerFin has received EASA Part 145 maintenance organisation approval certification for its engine MRO services at its 100,000 ft² UK facility, extending its aftermarket services and move towards enhancing its MRO capability across multiple platforms.

The approval will see AerFin’s capabilities expanded to include engine piece part component inspection, testing, certification, borescope inspections and engine module swaps complementing AerFin’s existing engine disassembly capabilities

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StandardAero appoints Roger Ross President, Airlines and Fleets

StandardAero has appointed Roger Ross as President of the company’s Airlines and Fleets division. He will be located at the company’s Scottsdale, Arizona, headquarters office and be responsible for the largest division of StandardAero, with multiple sites in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Africa and Australia.

Ross previously served as President of Esterline Technologies, Sensors and Systems and has more than 25 years of accomplished leadership in the Aerospace Industry. During his career, Ross managed a number of successful operations for Goodrich Aerospace rising through leadership positions in operations and engineering, covering MRO and Engine Programs as well as Aerostructures and Actuation systems. Following the acquisition of Goodrich by United echnologies, Ross continued to manage large global businessP&Ls for both OEM and Aftermarket systems in multiple domestic and
international locations.

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