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Wednesday, April 25th, 2018
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LATEST NEWS
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Ryanair has announced the exercising of 25 Boeing 737 MAX 200 “Gamechanger” options and in so doing now has 135 firm orders for the new higher-capacity variant of the 737 MAX 8.
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Ryanair first placed an order for 100 of the “Gamechanger” jets, with an option for a further ten, at the Paris Airshow in 2017. The new model has eight more seats than the Boeing 737-800NG.
According to Ryanair’s Chief Financial Officer Neil Sorahan, the “Gamechanger” option will see the incorporation of “the latest technology engines and winglets which will reduce fuel consumption and noise emissions, ensuring we remain Europe’s greenest, cleanest airline, while allowing us to continue to lower fares as we grow to 200m annual customers by 2024. We look forward to taking delivery of our first “Gamechanger” in Spring 2019.”
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The “Gamechanger” aircraft will reduce fuel consumption by up to 16% and reduce noise emissions by 40%, while offering 4% more seats per flights (197 v 189) which will enable Ryanair to further reduce fares.
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These aircraft, which are valued at more than US$3 billion at current list prices, increase Ryanair’s total orders to more than 650 Boeing 737’s since it first partnered with Boeing back in 1994, and form a critical part of the low-cost carriers plan to be servicing 200 million passengers per annum by 2024.
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Ryanair currently has the youngest European all-Boeing fleet with an average age of six and a half years.
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JetBlue Airways has reported its results for the first quarter 2018. JetBlue has reported diluted earnings per share of $0.27. This compares to JetBlue’s first quarter 2017 diluted earnings per share of $0.24 cents. Pre-tax income was US$110m, a decrease of 9.2% from the first quarter of 2017. Pre-tax margin was 6.3%, a 1.3 point decrease year over year. Net income was US$88m compared to US$82m in the first quarter 2017, up 7%.
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First quarter 2018 revenue per available seat mile (RASM) grew 6.1%, year over year, including the net benefit from Holiday calendar placement. Operating expenses per available seat mile, excluding fuel (CASM ex-fuel) was 3.1%, within the initial guidance range, despite a lower completion factor and offset by timing of maintenance expenses.
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JetBlue signed a multi-year agreement with Pratt & Whitney for the purchase and maintenance of GTF engines, as work on the Structural Cost Program continues.
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JetBlue ended the quarter with approximately US$779m in unrestricted cash and short term investments, or about 11% of trailing twelve month revenue.
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United Airlines has taken delivery of its first 737 MAX 9 aircraft from the Boeing Delivery Center in Seattle, WA.
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The new aircraft reduces fuel use and CO2 emissions significantly compared with older generation aircraft. In honor of this more eco-friendly aircraft, United has given the MAX a new livery, similar to its fuel-efficient Boeing Dreamliner aircraft, so that employees and customers can easily recognize the plane and its superior fuel efficiency.
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United expects to take delivery of two more 737 MAX 9 aircraft this month and will have 10 737 MAX 9 aircraft by the end of 2018. As previously announced, the aircraft will enter United's schedule June 7, with service between the airline's hub at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport and five cities – Anchorage, Alaska; Austin, Texas; Fort Lauderdale, FL; Orlando, FL. and San Diego.
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The aircraft will operate on additional routes from Houston and Los Angeles International Airport starting June 29.
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Alaska Air Group has reported first quarter 2018 GAAP net income of US$4m compared to US$93m in the first quarter of 2017. First quarter adjusted net income excluding special items such as merger-related costs, an employee bonus awarded in connection with the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and mark-to-market fuel hedge accounting adjustments was US$18m, compared to US$124m in the first quarter of 2017.
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Alaska generated approximately US$310m of operating cash flow and used approximately US$235m for capital expenditures, resulting in approximately US$75m of free cash flow for the first three months of 2018. Alaska held US$1.5bn in unrestricted cash and marketable securities as of March 31, 2018.
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Vallair, the aircraft trading, leasing and specialist MRO organisation, has completed the acquisition of six Airbus A321-200 aircraft (MSN891, MSN677, MSN827, MSN835, MSN968 and MSN974). These aircraft will be attributed to short term lease programs within Vallair’s current portfolio and will serve as initial feedstock for the Company’s launch of the Airbus A321-200 P2F program.
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Vallair was recently announced as the launch customer of the A321-200 P2F with EFW/STA cargo program in addition to an earlier launch announcement with A321 Precision in October 2017.
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The A321 & A320 P2F conversion programs, launched in 2015, are a collaboration between ST Aerospace, Airbus and EFW (Elbe Flugzeugwerke). ST Aerospace is responsible for the engineering development phase, up to the Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) approval by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Airbus contributes to the program with Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) data and certification support, while EFW leads the overall program and marketing & sales.
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ARGUS International has promoted John Illson to Executive Vice President of Professional Resources In System Management (PRISM), a wholly-owned subsidiary of ARGUS International.
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In his new role, Illson will be responsible for providing leadership and direction for the five independent PRISM divisions that deliver multiple services to the air carrier, business aviation, helicopter and unmanned market segments.
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In his prior role as Senior Vice President, Certification Services and Regulatory Assistance, Illson earned the respect from both civil aviation authorities and commercial aviation management teams. He has expanded PRISM’s suite of services to include developing the ICAO-required State Safety Programs that establish the oversight infrastructure and processes to approve and monitor certificate holders within each State.
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He will report to Bill Yantiss, ARGUS International EVP and Chief Operating Officer.
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HAECO Americas, a subsidiary of the HAECO Group with headquarters in Greensboro, North Carolina, USA, officially opened its newest and state-of-the-art fifth hangar at Piedmont Triad International (PTI) Airport, on April 24.
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The event was held inside the US$60M hangar, which spans 250,000 ft² and is the largest maintenance space within the HAECO Americas portfolio. At full capacity, the fifth hangar will employ an additional 500 more aircraft technicians and support staff.
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The new hangar can accommodate up to eight next-generation narrow-body aircraft, or two next-generation wide-body aircraft and two next-generation narrow-body aircraft. The hangar will also receive a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified rating, in keeping with HAECO’s commitment to its sustainability goals.
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Widerøe, Scandinavia’s largest regional airline, has completed the first scheduled passenger flight of an Embraer E190-E2 on April 24. The aircraft, registered LN-WEA and operating as flight WF622, departed Bergen Airport at 7:56 am and arrived at Tromsø Airport at 9:39 am local time.
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The flight marks the official entry into service of the first of three new E-Jets E2s that Embraer has developed to succeed its first-generation E-Jets. Deliveries of the larger E195-E2 are planned to start in 2019, and in 2021 for the smaller E175-E2.
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StandardAero has appointed Marc Drobny as President of the company’s Business Aviation division. Mr. Drobny replaces Marc McGowan who is retiring, after six years with StandardAero.
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Drobny most recently served as President of Executive Jet Management (EJM), the aircraft management and charter division of the Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary NetJets and one of the largest business jet operators in the world with over 200 aircraft and more than 50 different aircraft types under management.
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During his nearly 13 years at EJM, Marc served in a variety of strategic, operational, sales, marketing, customer service and executive roles, capping off his career as President of a +US$400m business.
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Airbus Helicopters and Schiebel have tested Manned Unmanned Teaming (MUM-T) capabilities between an H145 platform and a CAMCOPTER® S-100 Unmanned Air System (UAS), thus becoming the first European helicopter manufacturers to demonstrate this technology with the highest level of interoperability (LOI°5).
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The companies carried out test flights with the support of the Austrian Armaments and Defence Technology Agency. The two aircraft jointly flew different scenarios including the detection of objects hidden in places not accessible by traditional helicopters. The S-100 was controlled and piloted by an operator sitting in the helicopter. During the flights, the control was also temporarily handed over to a ground-based control station by the pilot in order to simulate the return of the manned helicopter for refueling.
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The trials carried out by Airbus Helicopters and Schiebel went up to MUM-T LOI 5. This allows the manned platform to exercise full control of the UAS including its take-off and landing. LOI 1, the lowest level, is the indirect receipt and /or transmission of sensor data obtained by the UAS to the manned aircraft.
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AERO Vodochody AEROSPACE, a Czech aircraft manufacturer with a background of supplying proven military light jets around the world, AERO Vodochody AEROSPACE a.s., Israel Aerospace Industries, a leader in defense systems technologies, have signed a partnership agreement relating to technical and marketing cooperation for the light combat L-159 aircraft.
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The cooperation draws on the tradition and experience of Aero Vodochody in the field of military light jet aircraft, the L-159 proven robust platform which has been successfully operated and tested in NATO joint operations, Red Air exercises and real combat missions, and IAI's innovative and cutting-edge technologies.
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The partners have agreed to integrate new state-of-the-art avionics and other solutions, on the L-159 platform , and to jointly market the aircraft. This approach is focused on further strengthening the already proven L-159 and enhance its position in the light attack market.
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UPCOMING EVENTS
June 5, 2018 – Jury’s Inn Hotel, Prague
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