FLYING FIELD

Boeing Training & Flight Services Receives FAA Provisional Approval For 787 Dreamliner Pilot Training Courses

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 13:47:00 +0000

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 17 (Bernama) — Boeing Training & Flight Services has been granted provisional approval for its 787 Dreamliner pilot training courses by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). With the 787 pilot training courses, pilots can transition to the new airplane in five to 20 days, depending on pilot experience. Boeing 777 pilots can qualify to fly the 787 in as little as five days, given the high level of commonality between the two airplane types. “Gaining FAA approval for our courses is a significant milestone as we ramp up to the start of flight training,” said Mark Albert, director of Simulator Services and 787 Training Program, Boeing Training & Flight Services in a statement for Bernama from Seattle. “It validates our approach to provide world-class training solutions at great value for the 787 Dreamliner.” Local FAA offices will approve individual operator training courses and these may be based on provisional approvals. “This achievement is another important step in ensuring the readiness of our 787 support products and services,” said Mike Fleming, 787 director of Services and Support, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Boeing Training & Flight Services is working with the FAA to obtain provisional approval of the training devices at which point formal pilot training will commence. The provisional designation will be removed once the airplane is fully certified. The Boeing 787 pilot training program uses a sophisticated suite of training devices including a full-flight simulator, flight training device and desktop simulation station to ensure that pilots are ready to fly the Dreamliner. “The Training & Flight Services team stands ready to provide best-in-class 787 pilot training,”

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Emirates Airline to Order More Than 30 Boeing 777s

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 17:50:00 +0000

LONDON—Dubai's Emirates Airline will announce on Monday an order for more than 30 Boeing 777 jetliners, with a catalog value of more than $7 billion, according to a person familiar with the transaction.

The order, to be announced at the Farnborough Air Show, will follow an order the fast-growing Persian Gulf carrier placed with Boeing Co. rival Airbus last month for 32 of its A380 superjumbo jetliners, valued at $11.5 billion. Airbus is a unit of European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. Officials from Emirates and Boeing declined to comment.

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The US and Russia in Vienna spy swap

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 09:26:00 +0000

Austria, July 09, 2010: The US and Russia have taken part in the biggest spy swap since the Cold War, in an exchange at Vienna airport.
One plane brought 10 Russian agents deported from the US after a court hearing at which they admitted being agents for a foreign country.The other was said to have brought four people convicted of spying in Russia but given a presidential pardon after they signed to admit their guilt.
Both planes took off again after about 90 minutes.
The Russian Yakovlev Yak-42 plane said to be carrying the four people pardoned by Moscow had landed at Vienna airport at about the same time as the Vision Airlines Boeing 767-200 from New York, carrying the Russian agents.
Television pictures showed the two aircraft parked side-by-side on the runway. Covered aircraft stairs were brought up to both planes and none of the agents could be seen being transferred.
The next destinations of the planes have not been confirmed.

Read more..
However, a senior Russian official was earlier quoted by a news agency as saying the Russian agents were expected to arrive back in their homeland on Friday.
The lawyer for nuclear specialist Igor Sutyagin, one of those released by Russia, confirmed that his client had left Moscow, Austrian media said.
Russia’s foreign ministry acknowledged the swap, saying it would mean the “return to Russia of 10 Russian citizens accused in the United States, along with the simultaneous transfer to the United States of four individuals previously condemned in Russia”.

AirAsia and Jetstar set to fly further

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 21:29:00 +0000

A low-fare, long-haul business model will soon be trialled by two of Australasia's major airlines, Qantas and AirAsia.

Qantas’s Jetstar division will add budget long-haul flights from Singapore later this year while AirAsia X will take flights to about 70 cities from its Kuala Lumpur hub.

AirAsia X currently charges around US$400 for a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Stansted Airport just outside of central London.

The long-haul carriers are hoping to squeeze more people into their planes for the long trips to London.

Both airlines manage to fit around 30 percent more seats onto their planes than full-service carriers in the region.

The new long-haul jets will also offer premium-class seats on their flights of more than five hours.

A330 crash last year...none on Boeing

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 21:17:00 +0000

Airbus is a bureaucratic nightmare that makes really scary aircraft. See:

link

This analysis clearly demonstrates that the computer killed everyone on the aircraft, The hard part is that the pilots could do nothing as they could not operate the aircraft without it.

This could not happen on Boeing aircraft -- yes, the sensors could lie to you but you can still fly a 777 by "seat" feel without the computer.

Source : Strategy Page

ANA to order five Boeing 777-200 ERs and five 767-300 ERs

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 11:05:00 +0000

ANA (All Nippon Airways) Boeing 777-281 ER JA717A (msn 33415) NRT

Originally uploaded by Airliners Gallery

ANA (All Nippon Airways) (Tokyo-Haneda) is proceeding to order five new Boeing 777-200 ERs (for FY 2012 delivery) and five 767-300 ERs (for FY 2010 delivery).

GE Aviation Provides Advanced Systems on Boeing 787 Dreamliner's First Flight

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 13:41:00 +0000

GRAND RAPIDS, MI - GE Aviation Systems is a key supplier on the 787 Dreamliner providing aircraft systems from take-off to touch-down, the common core system and the landing gear system, on its historic first flight.

GE supplies the common core system, which serves as the aircraft's central nervous system, and the landing gear system. In addition, the GEnx-1B is the best-selling engine on the 787, with orders from more than 1,100 engines for 40 customers around the world.

“We are delighted to share this historic milestone with Boeing and provide the latest integrated systems technologies for the 787,” says Lorraine Bolsinger, president and CEO, GE Aviation Systems. “We are pleased to be working with Boeing and to be a member of the 787 team.”

GE’s common core system (CCS) is the backbone of the Boeing 787’s computers, networks and interfacing electronics and provides the primary computing environment for the Dreamliner. The remote data concentrators (RDC) are designed to consolidate inputs from the aircraft’s systems and sensors and distribute it via the Rockwell Collins avionics full duplex switched Ethernet network. GE developed the common core system on the Wind River VxWorks 653 partitioned operating environment. The CCS is designed, manufactured and tested at GE’s U.S. locations in Washington and Michigan and at its Cheltenham, United Kingdom, facility.

GE’s integrated landing gear system controls the deployment and retraction of the aircraft landing gears, including the nose landing gear steering and the brake control and monitoring systems. In addition to the normal package of mechanical hardware, GE provides the flight deck interfaces and local control electronics. The program is supported by the Company’s facilities in Washington State and in the UK. GE Aviation, an operating unit of GE, provides jet engines, components and integrated systems for commercial and military aircraft. GE Aviation has a global service network to support these offerings.

Eyes on Qatar Airways at Dubai Air Show

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 06:20:00 +0000

Qatar Airways is making its largest ever presence at the Dubai Air Show – the Middle East’s premier aerospace event – taking place at Airport Expo in Dubai this week.

A brand new Boeing 777-200 Long Range aircraft flown in from the manufacturer’s base in Seattle, is on static display during the five-day event, which kicked off yesterday.

Also on show is a Bombardier Challenger 605 aircraft, one of three corporate jets belonging to Qatar Airways’ recently set-up subsidiary, Qatar Executive.

Together with a dedicated two-tier chalet and exhibition stand, this year’s event marks a significant presence for Qatar Airways – its largest ever in the show’s history.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker is attending the event, which once again propels the award-winning airline into the international spotlight, showcasing its Five Star hospitality to visitors from around the world.

The Five Star-ranked carrier currently operates a modern fleet of 72 aircraft to 84 diverse business and leisure cities across the Middle East, Europe, Africa, South Asia, Far East and North America from its hub in Doha, capital of the State of Qatar.

One of the fastest growing airlines in the world which only launched operations in 1997, Qatar Airways currently has outstanding orders for more than 220 aircraft worth over US$40 billion.

“The Dubai Air Show is regarded as one of the world’s leading aerospace industry events of the year and Qatar Airways is using this opportunity to demonstrate that the airline is committed to continued growth, while at the same time showcasing two of its newest aircraft and world renowned hospitality,” said Al Baker.

“Over the next few years, Qatar Airways will be receiving on average over one aircraft per month, which shows our confidence in the aviation industry against the economic situation that has been making headlines around the world.

“We are positive about the future of the industry and setting a positive signal for the world’s aviation industry.”

Qatar Airways’ third Boeing 777-200LR – and 11th Boeing 777 overall – will be deployed on the Doha – Melbourne route non-stop from December 6, marking the airline’s entry into the Australian market for the first time. The service will launch with three-flights-a-week, rising to daily from January 1 following the addition of a second Boeing 777-200LR aircraft dedicated to the route.

The Boeing 777-200LR is the longest range passenger aircraft in the world, capable of connecting any two major cities non-stop.

The Boeing 777 fleet features one of the most spacious passenger configurations in the air today, with a 2–2–2 layout in Business Class offering a 78-inch seat pitch, with each seat converting into fully flat horizontal beds.

The Long Range version of the aircraft features 42 seats in Business Class and 217 in Economy. Regardless of class of travel, every passenger has a personal seat-back interactive entertainment system offering a choice of more than 900 audio and video options.

At the Dubai Air Show two years ago, Qatar Airways announced confirmed orders for 27 Boeing 777 aircraft, with a further five on option, together with orders for 30 firm and 30 option for the Boeing 787 Dreamliners.

In June this year at the Paris Air Show, Qatar Airways announced the setting up of a corporate jet subsidiary, Qatar Executive, with three aircraft now in the fleet – all Bombardiers.

Qatar Executive currently operates two Bombardier Challenger 605s, as well as a Bombardier Challenger 300, capable of flying non-stop up to 4,000 nautical miles serving destinations throughout Europe, Africa and Asia from the carrier’s Doha hub.

Statistics from the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) show that the corporate market in the Middle East has grown at an average of 13 per cent a year since 2000. Nine years ago, there were 200 corporate jets based in the Middle East, more than doubling in size to 450 in 2008 with estimates of further growth over the next few years.

According to CAPA, the corporate jet market in the Middle East is estimated to be worth between US$500 million and US$700 million a year.

Added Al Baker: “With forecast figures showing strong growth in the corporate jet market, we believe it is a clear opportunity to capitalise on this trend, hence the creation of our new business unit, Qatar Executive in the summer.”

Record visitor numbers of around 50,000 are expected during the week at the Dubai Air Show with the largest number of exhibitors of around 950, including approximately 200 companies new to the market.

Qatar Airways, the only Middle East airline ranked Five Star by leading industry monitor Skytrax, is not only wooing visitors with two of its state-of-the-art aircraft on static display, but also using the Dubai Air Show to showcase its superior inflight products.

At the exhibition stand, visitors have a chance to try out the airline’s fully flat Business Class seats, currently deployed across Qatar Airways’ Boeing 777 fleet. Apart from soon flying to Melbourne, the Boeing 777s serve three US destinations – New York, Washington and Houston – together with selected points in Asia and the Middle East.

The airline’s fleet will increase to more than 120 aircraft by 2013 and destinations served are set to rise to over 120 in the next five years.

Following the launch of services to Melbourne, Qatar Airways plans flights to Australia’s largest city of Sydney in 2010, with a further two yet-to-be-announced European points due to be added over the next few months.

Korean Cautious As It Adds Another 777

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 22:08:00 +0000

Guggenheim Aviation Partners celebrated the delivery of a Boeing 777-300 extended range aircraft on Nov. 9 that Seoul-based Korean Air will operate under lease.

The delivery comes as South Korea’s top airline posted its second straight quarterly net profit and predicted further recovery albeit with caution for 2010.

Korean reported a net profit of $228 million for the third quarter of 2009. Its cargo and passenger business showed a slight improvement in October partly due to lower fuel costs.

"As oil prices continue to stabilize and the won strengthens further, the airline expects to deliver better performance in the coming year," the carrier said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the 777-300ER marks Guggenheim’s first leasing arrangement with Korean and the first new Boeing passenger airplane delivery to the aircraft leasing company. Guggenheim, which has offices in Seattle, London and Singapore, is scheduled to take delivery of an additional five 777s.

PIA Achieves Another Milestone: New Aircraft Maintenance Facility Inaugurated

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:13:00 +0000

KARACHI (October 31 2009): Managing Director PIA, Captain Mohammad Aijaz Haroon inaugurated a state-of-the-art test facility for PW127 engines installed on ATR 42-500 aircraft. He also initiated another major project to establish a full functional Engineering Complex, which will include most modern Landing Gear overhaul facility scheduled to be completed by December 2010.

He appreciated the efforts of PIA employees on this feat saying that PIA would soon revive its past glory, the airline was going in the right direction and this achievement was part of its strategic initiatives of creating various revenue streams to combat rising operating costs in a declining market. He further hoped that with the innovations, teamwork and dedication PIA would become profitable again.

The Test Centre inaugurated also has the capability to test Auxiliary Power Units (APU) installed on Boeing 777 and Airbus A310-300 aircraft. This state-of-the-art test facility adds to the list of numerous firsts in PIA of pioneering and implementing cutting edge technologies to maintain its services.

This upgradation of PIA Engine Test Facilities will enhance PIA's ability to fully overhaul PW127 engines of all aircraft with saving of US $2 million annually in repair costs abroad. The current project was completed in 12 months period with a huge saving of Rs 20 million.

Pratt and Whitney Canada the OEM (original equipment manufacturer) of PW127 engines Test Cell Team was also present during the correlation testing and certified PIA test cell as conforming to both regulatory as well as meeting all operational requirements.

The MD emphasised that under the leadership of DMD Salim Siyani, PIA has embarked on a challenge to become a full functional leading MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul) in the region. Airlines like Lufthansa, United, Delta, Air France, Northwest and American have successfully adopted this model. The national carrier currently has test capability for testing engines like General Electric CF6-50, General Electric CF6-80, CFM International CFM56-3 installed on B747-200, A310-300 and B737-300 aircraft to perform full engine overhaul on CF6-50, CF6-80 aircraft engines respectively.

PIA also performs major aircraft maintenance checks on current fleet of Boeing 737, Boeing 747, Boeing 777, ATR, Airbus A310-300 and hundreds of major components including thrust reversals, APUs, Generators Status etc. This Speaks highly for the capability of PIA's skilled and dedicated engineering professional staff.

The Deputy Managing Director, Salim Siyani said that the World MRO Business was a $45.1 billion market, of which 9.5 billion was in Asian region. The increase MRO spending was driven by Labour costs and weak dollar around the world consequently the MRO unit cost was increasing, he added. He said that this was creating a great window of opportunity for PIA and the aviation Industry.

He told that highly experienced Engineering staff, full service aircraft and Engine Overhaul facilities, test calls and training centres combined with the team work of motivated professionals, PIA will continue leap forward to becoming a premier Maintenance Repair and Overhaul facility in the region.

Later, Managing Director distributed certificates and cash prizes to the employees of Engineering Department and Works Division for their performance and efforts in completion of the project. The ceremony was also attended by other senior officials of the airline.

Boeing pitches 777 to THAI

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:55:00 +0000

The US planemaker Boeing will be strenuously promoting its B777 series as replacements for the ageing high-capacity jets Thai Airways International will be retiring in the next five years.

Boeing is positioning its 777 family as a highly efficient replacement for the 747 series.

Boeing believes the track record, updated technology, and improved efficiency and economy of one of its flagship planes will have strong appeal in the flag carrier's forthcoming major fleet modernisation plan.

On THAI's drawing board is a plan to acquire four to six wide-body long-haul aircraft and five to seven twin-aisle jets for medium-haul operations over the next five years, according to a THAI insider.

Over the long term, the national carrier will also be seeking to replace its old aircraft with new ones as part of a strategy to rejuvenate its fleet, whose average age is 11.6 years, in order to appeal to passengers and take advantage of better fuel efficiency.

New planes are meant to replace THAI's old jets such as B747-400s and Airbus's A300-600s that are approaching their end of service. These planes are less economically efficient and face future flying restrictions in some regions due to high carbon dioxide emissions.

Larry Loftis, vice-president for Boeing's 777 programme, sees the B777-300ER, the long-range variant of the twin-engine B777 series, as an ideal replacement for THAI's 18 B747-400s, some of which are 15 years old.

The sizes of the B747-400 and B777- 300ER are similar, their ranges are comparable, and the fuel efficiency from operating a twin-jet 777 versus the four-engine jumbo jet are reasons for THAI to consider it as a replacement, he said.

The 777 costs $257 million or more depending on options, and can carry up to 365 passengers 14,685 kilometres, such as Bangkok to New York, non-stop.

"We've seen, over the last few years, a number of operators replacing their old 747s with the triple seven," he said.

Chris Flint, director of sales for Boeing Commercial Airplanes in Thailand, said: "Replacing the 747-400s with 777-300ERs makes sense for European Union routes because of the unknown impacts of cap-and-trade emissions policies."

Boeing will also push its new version of the 747 jumbo jet expected to be ready for flight early next year.

"For large markets that might have capacity restrictions, we certainly would recommend replacing the 747-400 with the new 747-8," said Mr Flint. "It really comes down to the size of the market, the frequency of service, the airline business model, and the nature of the market."

Boeing believes its 777 bests European rival Airbus's A340-600, a similar four-engine jet, due to new improvements.

"We tried to take technologies that were evolving with our 787 and 747-8 and apply them to the 777 family as part of the refinement," said Anita Polt, regional director for product development at Boeing.

Among the improvements is a new wing design featuring raked winglets, more efficient engines that emit 5-13% less carbon dioxide while being quieter, and greater application of advanced materials such as alloys and composites.Boeing said sales performance of its B777 series over Airbus's A340 family bear these differences out.

Since the 777 programme was launched in October 1990 until July of this year, Boeing has received 1,116 orders by 56 operators including THAI. Airbus has only 558 orders, giving Boeing a 66% share.

There are 20 older B777 series aircraft operating in THAI's fleet. The flag carrier also has 10 older A340 series and 12 A330-300 jetliners operating, with eight more A330-300s slated for delivery between 2009 and 2010.

As airlines delay deliveries of new aircraft due to the industry downturn, Boeing executives believe they can meet an early delivery timeframe for 777s if THAI requires.

Boeing is shifting down its 777 production rate from seven a month to five in mid-2010. It also does not believe its much-delayed 787 Dreamliner will compete with the 777 but will function as a complement.

The US planemaker's initial focus is to roll out a small version of the 787 capable of carrying 210 to 250 passengers up to 15,200 km. It would be smaller than the 777.

Thai Airways to Expand Air Freight in 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 16:36:00 +0000

Lease new aircraft for dedicated cargo operations

THAILAND – Following on from last week's stories concerning developments in the Vietnamese and Chinese air freight sectors comes the news that Thai Airways has just taken steps to increase its own air freight capabilities.

The airline has signed a deal with US operator Southern Air to lease all the cargo space available on two of their new Boeing 777-200 wide-body freighters. The arrangement is the first step to Thai Airways finally realising their announced intention to expand into the cargo market, a strategy that has long been delayed by a lack of suitable aircraft.

The agreement with Southern means that Thai will be able to offer a dedicated air freight service from 2010 which will initially operate from Bangkok to Europe, with expansion into a broader Asian and the North American and Australasian markets ultimately envisaged.

If the cargo routes prove successful Thai is expected to convert some of its own 747’s or acquire new freighters once the agreement with Southern expires in 2012.

UAE's Emirates Airline urges for new Boeing 777

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 16:25:00 +0000

ABU DHABI, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Emirates Airline, a Dubai-based airline company of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), urged Boeing to meet its demand of improving extended range for the 777 passenger plane or providing a new version of 777, local newspaper The National reported Monday.

The airline aims to maximize revenues on its ultra long-haul flights from Dubai to the U.S. west coast.

"We've been in dialogue with Boeing for almost four years about this, but recently we felt that the impetus from Boeing to improve the 777 extended range has slowed," Chief Executive of Emirates Airline Tim Clark was quoted as saying.

"We continue to remind them that we want an improvement to the extended range...or a new aeroplane," he added.

Clark said the airline do not consider the 747-8 Intercontinental any more, which is Boeing's new stretch version of the 747.

Emirates Airline had announced before that it needed a much larger aircraft to carry more passengers, like the 500-seat AirbusA380 or Boeing's new 747-8 Intercontinental, to replace the 266-seat Boeing 777-200 Extended Range version it now operates with direct services from Dubai to San Francisco and Los Angeles.

With a maximum range of more than 15,000 km, the 747-8 Intercontinental, or 747-8I, is capable of carrying up to 467 passengers. While cargo airlines have signed contracts for the freight variant of the 747-8, dubbed 747-8 Freighter or 747-8F, only German's Lufthansa has logged orders for the passenger version, The National said.

Earlier this year, Clark said he was only mildly interested in a proposal by Boeing to add a larger wing on the 777 and other modifications, saying he instead preferred a new design.

Emirates Airline, a major airline company in the Middle East, operates four of the world's longest nonstop commercial flights from Dubai to Los Angeles, Houston, San Francisco and the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo.

Jet may lease out two Boeing 777 aircraft

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 13:28:00 +0000

Close on the heels of Air India inviting global expressions of interest to lease out seven aircraft, the airline’s private counterpart Jet Airways has initiated discussions with foreign carriers to lease out two of its wide-body airplanes.

“We are in discussions with Oman Air and Etihad for leasing out two of our Boeing 777 aircraft,” airline sources told PTI here.

Jet is looking for wet leasing of the planes for at least six months and a decision is likely to be taken very soon, sources added.

When contacted, a Jet Airways spokesperson confirmed that the airline is in talks with some overseas air carriers to lease out the two aircraft but declined to divulge details.

“We are exploring all options but have not yet taken a final decision,” the spokesperson said.

Wet lease is an arrangement in which an airline or a lessor company provides aircraft along with its complete crew, maintenance and insurance to another of its counterpart, which pays for the number of hours the plane is operated.

Oman Air is already operating two of Jet Airways’ A-330-200 aircraft since May this year under a wet lease agreement for six months.

The premier Indian private carrier earns around $2.2 million a month by leasing out a Boeing aircraft and $2 million from its Airbus plane.

In February, Gulf Air had signed an agreement with Jet Airways to take on lease four aircraft on a wet-lease basis for six months with an option for a three-year dry lease.

Dry lease is leasing of an aircraft without crew and other obligations like maintenance and insurance.

However, later citing “market and other business conditions”, Gulf Air dropped its plans to convert wet lease into dry lease.

In an attempt to raise funds, cash-strapped Air India has invited EOIs to lease out three of its brand new Boeing 777-200 (long range) and four Airbus 310-304 freighters.

The bids for leasing out airplanes will be accepted till October 23. The dry-lease of Airbus aircraft is intended to be for a minimum of 18 months. These Airbus jets were recently converted to freighter by EADS (European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company).

Airlines in the country are increasingly leasing out planes as the industry is faced with overcapacity, leading to lower realisation of revenue on a per seat basis.

The national carrier has accumulated losses of Rs 7,200 crore til March 31, 2009.

Incident: ANA B773 at Fukuoka on Sep 25th 2009, brakes problems

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:45:00 +0000

By Simon Hradecky, created Monday, Sep 28th 2009 15:14Z, last updated Monday, Sep 28th 2009 15:14ZAn ANA All Nippon Airways Boeing 777-300, registration JA756A performing flight NH-247 from Tokyo Haneda to Fukuoka (Japan) with 396 passengers and 13 crew, had just touched down on Fukuoka's runway, when the tower controller alerted the crew of smoke coming off the left hand gear. Emergency services responded. The airplane stopped safely. Emergency services recommended to not evacuate and during further examination spotted a hydraulics leak at the left hand gear. The aircraft was subsequently towed to the apron about 20 minutes after the landing.

The runway and thus the airport was temporarily closed to clean up the fluid spill causing some diversions. The airplane received damage to the left hand main gear tyres.

Incident: American B772 over Pacific on Sep 26th 2009, unruly passenger

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 16:00:00 +0000

By Simon Hradecky, created Sunday, Sep 27th 2009 05:40Z, last updated Sunday, Sep 27th 2009 05:40ZAn American Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration N785AN performing flight AA-61 from Dallas Ft. Worth,TX (USA) to Tokyo Narita (Japan), was already 40 minutes into the Pacific crossing, when a passenger - travelling within a party of three - assaulted a flight attendant. The flight crew decided to turn around and divert to San Francisco, where the airplane landed safely 80 minutes later. Police took the unruly passenger into custody.

The airplane was refueled and took off again 90 minutes after arriving into SFO.

The airport reported, police removed all three, two males and one woman, from the aircraft for questioning.

American Airlines said, only one passenger was removed from the aircraft.

http://flightaware.com/live/flight/AAL61/history/20090926/1722Z/KDFW/RJAA

American Airlines dropping its standard retiree health plan for nonunion workers

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:30:00 +0000

American Airlines dropping a retiree health plan

DALLAS — American Airlines is dropping its long-standing health insurance plan for retired executives and support staff over 65 as the company battles rising medical costs and a decline in revenue.

American officials said Tuesday that letters went out to 5,500 retirees last week. The insurance plan will end Dec. 31, leaving retirees with the option of paying the full cost of their own coverage to supplement Medicare.

Nonunion retirees under 65 will continue to receive company-subsidized health insurance until they turn 65 and become eligible for Medicare, American said.

The changes do not affect American’s union employees, including pilots, flight attendants and mechanics. But American has made a similar proposal in contract talks with the airline’s three unions.

American officials said that among the other major U.S. airlines, only United also offers retiree health benefits to those over 65.

“This is just another measure to get us in line with our other competitors,” said Missy Latham, a spokeswoman for American. “It’s clearly the direction we’re going.”

An American Airlines personnel executive, David Levine, made the same point in letters to retirees.

Levine wrote that the company had aggressively cut costs in many areas.

“Unfortunately, we still need to do more,” he wrote. “Our retiree medical costs continue to greatly exceed those of our competitors.”

The change will affect retirees differently depending on their age, when they retired and whether they contributed as workers to their retiree health benefits.

Latham said employees who retired after April 2003 have been paying about 25 percent of their health insurance costs with the company picking up the rest. Those who retired before 1990 contributed nothing to their coverage, she said.

American is locked in drawn-out contract negotiations with its three unions, which want to keep health insurance benefits for their thousands of retirees and future retirees.

“It’s an important issue,” said Gregg Overman, spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association. “We have workers who had long careers and were loyal to the airline. They expected this would be there for them when they retired.”

American’s parent, Fort Worth-based AMR Corp., lost $765 million in the first half of this year as traffic slumped, with an especially sharp decline in high-fare business travelers.

This summer, analysts began sounding alarms that AMR could run short of cash by winter and be forced to file for bankruptcy protection.

AMR has moved quickly to squelch the bankruptcy talk. It raised $2.9 billion cash last week by selling aircraft, which it will lease back, and miles in its frequent-flier program. On Monday, it announced plans to issue new stock and debt, a move that could raise more than $500 million as AMR heads into the slower fall and winter travel season.

To compete better for travelers, American is shifting more flying into key hubs such as Chicago, Miami and Dallas while reducing flights in other places, notably St. Louis.

AMR’s shares fell 59 cents, or 6.5 percent, to $8.44 on Tuesday.

Frequent Flyer Friday #5

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 22:30:00 +0000

Celebrating Friday with a short interview with a frequent flyer.

Darren - Travel Rants

Darren loves travelling and enjoys helping out travel consumers. His Travel Rants blog has been attracting attention for years and he recently started My Life in Leeds (a good excuse for socialising in the name of research!).

First, some questions to see what kind of frequent flyer Darren is.

What is your home airport?
Darren - Leeds & Bradford International Airport.

What is the airline you usually fly?
Darren - Primarily European low cost airlines, i.e. EasyJet, Jet2.

Which of the following best describes your flying pattern?
× infrequent (eg annual) leisure trip
- jetsetting for pleasure
- frequent (eg monthly) business travel
- road warrior
- mileage runner
- I live on planes
Darren - Infrequent, usually 2 or 3 times a year.

How do you mostly earn your frequent flyer miles?
- promos
- credit card spend
- business and leisure travel
- taking extra flights on trips I need to take
- mileage running
Darren - I don’t generate frequent flyer miles because I fly on low-cost airlines.

Please describe how you travel in 4 words
Darren - Low cost, on budget.

Now for some travel advice from Darren.

What is inside your carry-on bag right now?
Darren - Guide book, iPod, mobile phone. Cannot travel without these items.

Please give a tip on travel.
Darren - Check and double check the passenger details before purchasing your flight ticket online. So many passengers enter the incorrect details and are they stung with name change admin charges.

What is your least preferred airline, and why?
Darren - Ryanair, simply because of how they treat their customers.

Are there any other airlines you try to avoid flying? Why?
Darren - Onur Air, a Turkish airline. Unhelpful flight crew and awful food and lack of in-flight entertainment.

What is your preferred airline for regular travel, and why?
Darren - EasyJet, low cost, have always been on time, and polite/helpful staff.

What is your preferred airline for a special trip, and why?
Darren - I loved flying with Malaysian airlines; great in-flight entertainment, nice food, and incredibly friendly air-crew.

Thanks Darren for your advice and information about flying on European low cost airlines. Have a great weekend.

For other frequent flyer friday posts please check out the index. If you have any questions you'd like answered, or wish to nominate someone for an interview, please drop me a line using the please use the contact me link. For all sorts of reasons I can't make any guarantees, but if you're interested chances are others are too and so we'll get some good interviews.

Airline flies empty planes across Atlantic

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:34:00 +0000

Environmental campaigners attack Delta Air Lines over ‘ghost’ flights to meet Australian quarantine regulations

A major US airline has been attacked by environmental campaigners for flying empty planes across the Atlantic to be disinfected.

Delta Air Lines has admitted running “ghost” flights from the US to Heathrow to meet Australian quarantine regulations. Authorities in Australia require inbound aeroplanes to be sprayed with insecticide to ward off malaria and dengue fever. Delta is not allowed to carry out the treatment in the US and the nearest airport with facilities sanctioned by the Australian quarantine and inspection service (AQIS) is Heathrow, requiring the carrier to make a number of trips to the airport over the past two months.

A Delta spokeswoman said: “Materials used for this process are approved and available for use in the United States; however, according to US regulations, these treatments must be carried out at designated AQIS locations outside the United States.”

The Campaign for Better Transport, an environmental group, said the round-trip taken by Delta’s Boeing 777 jets operating the Los Angeles to Sydney route summed up the “wanton” attitude of airlines towards global warming.

“It symbolises their cavalier approach to the environment,” said Richard George, a campaigner at CBT.

Delta is planning to stop its disinfection trips to Heathrow at the end of the month, but is expected to switch to a Chinese airport.

Aviation is under pressure as a prominent producer of greenhouse gases and the industry has been the subject of a number of “ghost flight” stories. BMI, Heathrow’s second largest carrier, admitted flying empty planes from Heathrow to Cardiff to retain its lucrative takeoff and landing slots under “use it or lose it” guidelines. Flybe, the Exeter-based regional airline, admitted advertising for actors last year to boost passenger numbers and ensure it met an airport quota.

China Southern Boeing 777-21B(ER) B-2057 CDG 12-09-09

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:33:00 +0000

China Southern Boeing 777-21B(ER) B-2057 CDG 12-09-09

Delta flies planes empty to meet Australian requirements

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 12:13:00 +0000

Delta Air Lines’ new flights to Australia, launched in July, have forced the airline to send some of its planes to Europe -- sans passengers -- to get required pesticide treatments.

Australia requires airlines flying into or out of the country to be treated periodically with an insecticide, permethrin, that’s not yet approved in the United States for use on aircraft.

So several times this summer Delta flew one of the Boeing 777-200LRs it uses on the Sydney route from Atlanta to London for treatments. The planes then flew back to Atlanta and on to Los Angeles for use on the Sydney run.

The practice of flying nearly empty planes across the Atlantic has drawn criticism from environmentalists across the pond, with coverage in Britain’s Guardian newspaper. Delta says it didn’t sell seats on the Atlanta-London ferry flights because they were not part of its regular flight schedule.

Delta is “working to limit the practice of ferrying aircraft,” which can be costly for the airline, and has turned some into revenue-generating flights, said Delta spokeswoman Susan Elliott. She said Delta has recently rearranged its use of 777LRs so that they fly only from Paris to London for the treatments.

By the end of October, Elliott said, Delta will have the treatments done in Asia in conjunction with regularly scheduled 777LR flights. That will enable the airline to integrate the treatment into normal operations and end London ferry flights for that purpose, she said.

TAM is Awarded United States Federal Aviation Administration Certification

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:32:00 +0000

SAO PAULO -

- The document issued by the American aeronautical authority enables maintenance operations on aircraft registered in the USA

TAM’s (NYSE: TAM, BOVESPA: TAMM4) Technological Center, the MRO business unit (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul), has just been certified by the American aviation authority, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), to be able to perform maintenance operations on aircraft registered in the United States. With this seal of quality issued by the U.S. aviation authority, we amplify our array of MRO services offered and become the only Brazilian aviation company certified by the FAA, by the EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) and by the ANAC (Agencia Nacional de Aviacao Civil - Brazilian Civil Aviation Agency).

“Now we are certified by the world’s foremost aeronautical authorities. This is a recognition of the quality of our service. With these approvals, we can strengthen our service offering MRO to third parties and meet the major airlines in the market,” states Ruy Amparo, Vice President of MRO.

The FAR 145 certification obtained authorizes us to perform all the major programmed maintenance operations (C and D checks), in addition to the revision of different aeronautic components. The process of obtaining this certification took 14 months and was preceded by extensive audits, in which all the technical and quality procedures of our Technological Center were thoroughly checked over and verified by the U.S. aviation authority.

Expansion of services

This last August, we were certified by the DGAC (Direccion General de Aeronautica Civil), the organization from the Chilean government, to service Airbus A318 aircraft and their components for aircraft registered in Chile. The certification was achieved after we were approved by the ANAC to perform maintenance on the Airbus A318 aircraft. It is the unit’s first approval for an aircraft model that is not a part of our fleet. We are also certified in Chile to perform maintenance operations on A319, A320 and A321 aircraft.

Our Technological Center has also been approved by the ANAC and by the EASA to carry out all the major programmed maintenance operations on Airbus A318/A319/A320/A321 and A330 aircraft, both in our fleet and on third party aircraft, in addition to Fokker-100 aircraft. In addition, we are certified for the maintenance of components of the Boeing aircraft that are being incorporated into our fleet and we are in the final process of certification for Boeing 767 aircraft.

Since January of 2007, we have had the IOSA (IATA Operational Safety Audit) certification, the most complete and accepted international acknowledgement in operational safety. The IOSA audit involves more than 950 requirements in 8 operational areas of a single airline company, including engineering and maintenance of aircraft, and others.

Our Technological Center is located in the city of Sao Carlos, in the interior of Sao Paulo State, and covers an area of 4.6 million square meters. In addition to maintenance hangars, the facility houses workshops for examining more than 3,000 aeronautic components.

Jet Airways To Launch Services To Riyadh, Effective August 6, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 23:26:00 +0000

Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline, will launch services to Riyadh, the capital and largest city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from Mumbai

Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline, will launch services to Riyadh, the capital and largest city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from Mumbai, effective August 6, 2009.

This will be the airline’s second service to Saudi Arabia, complementing the airline’s existing daily Mumbai-Jeddah service.

The airline will launch four services a week on the Mumbai-Riyadh sector, on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays respectively, aboard a state-of-the-art Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

On Mondays, flight 9W 524 will depart Mumbai at 1725 hrs, and will arrive in Riyadh at 1900 hrs. Flight 9W 523 will depart Riyadh at 2000 hrs, and will arrive in Mumbai at 0225 hrs.

On Tuesdays, flight 9W 524 will depart Mumbai at 2230 hrs, and will arrive in Riyadh at 0001 hrs. Flight 9W 523 will depart Riyadh at 0100 hrs, and will arrive in Mumbai at 0725 hrs.

On Thursdays and Saturdays, flight 9W 524 will depart Mumbai at 1930 hrs, and will arrive in Riyadh at 2105 hrs. Flight 9W 523 will depart Riyadh at 2205 hrs, and will arrive in Mumbai at 0430 hrs.

With the introduction of this new flight, Jet Airways will fly to 8 cities in the Gulf, including Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Jeddah and Riyadh.

According to Mr. Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, CEO, Jet Airways, “Saudi Arabia is a very important market for Jet Airways on account of the large volume of traffic to the Gulf Kingdom, to and from India, and an important addition to the airline’s growing Gulf network. With the launch of our second daily service to Saudi Arabia, we are confident of further reinforcing our position as among the leading carriers on the Indo-Gulf sector.”

Jet Airways will also launch a new, daily service to Dubai from Hyderabad, its fifth daily service to the Gulf emirate and second from Southern India; as well as its second daily service to Bangkok from Mumbai, effective August 16, 2009; in addition to a new Kochi-Sharjah service, effective September 1, 2009.*

For more information, please log on to jetairways.com.

*Subject to requisite Government Approvals

Jet Airways

Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 83 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 12 Airbus A330-200 aircraft, 47 next generation Boeing 737-700/800/900 aircraft and 14 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.57 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleet in the world.

Flights to 64 destinations span the length and breadth of India and beyond, including New York (both JFK and Newark), Toronto, Brussels, London (Heathrow), Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Colombo, Bangkok, Kathmandu, Dhaka, Kuwait, Bahrain, Muscat, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Jeddah.

Jet Airways and its no-frills Economy Class service Jet Airways Konnect together operate over 365 flights daily.

About Jet Airways Konnect

Jet Airways Konnect is Jet Airways’ no-frills Economy Class service on key domestic routes, designed to meet the needs of the low fare segment.

Jet Airways Konnect links five major metros- Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru and Kolkata - with several destinations across India.

Jet Airways Konnect service is available from Mumbai to Bhopal/ Udaipur/ Ahmedabad/ Bhavnagar/ Jodhpur/ Chennai/ Kochi/ Vadodara and Jaipur, Delhi to Chennai/ Bengaluru/ Amritsar and Vadodara, Chennai to Madurai/ Kochi/ Coimbatore/ Hyderabad/ Thiruvananthapuram and Bengaluru. The service also links Bengaluru to Mumbai / Mangalore/ Pune/ Hyderabad/ Thiruvananthapuram and Kolkata and Kolkata to Jorhat/ Agartala/ Guwahati.

Besides these sectors, Jet Airways Konnect also connects Hyderabad to Goa / Ahemdabad / Indore / Bhopal and Raipur.

Jet Airways Konnect currently operates over 130 flights daily

About JetLite:

JetLite is a wholly owned subsidiary of Jet Airways India Ltd. and was acquired by Jet Airways in April 2007. Positioned as an all-economy airline, JetLite promises to offer value for money fares. JetLite currently operates a fleet of 23 aircraft, which includes 16 Boeing 737 series and 7 Canadian Regional Jets 200 Series. The airline flies to 28 domestic destinations and 2 international destinations (Kathmandu and Colombo), currently operating 115 flights a day, on average.

Jet Airways, with the acquisition of JetLite, and along with its Economy Class Jet Airways Konnect service, today has a combined fleet strength of 109 aircraft and operates over 449 flights daily.

The world's biggest passenger jet returning to NYC

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:25:00 +0000

New York City could have two routes flown on the A380 superjumbo jet by this time next year. That would mark a reversal that comes just a few months after the city lost its service on the A380 -- the world's largest commercial passenger jet -- when Emirates pulled its superjumbo out of the market in response to slumping demand.
Air France says its Paris-New York A380 service will begin in November. And the number of A380 routes to New York could rise to two by mid-2010, according to Emirates airline CEO Tim Clark. He tells The Associated Press he thinks travel demand will have picked up enough to justify returning the A380 superjumbo jet to New York service sometime during the first six months of next year.
North America's first regularly scheduled passenger flight on the A380 came amid great fanfare last August when Emirates put one of the superjumbo jets on its Dubai-New York route. The first A380 to fly that route touched down in New York to a crowd planespotters and a large media contingent at JFK Airport. But Emirates "pulled (the A380 a few) months later and replaced it with the smaller Boeing 777" on its New York flights, AP writes.
Emirates made the adjustments -- putting a A380 a route to Toronto instead -- as demand dropped across the world and, particularly, in the USA. When Emirates ended its A380 flights to New York, Los Angeles was left as the only U.S. city to have regularly scheduled passenger service on the jet (via Qantas).
Still, despite the possible return of the A380 to New York, Emirates' Clark was quick to cool talk about further growth in the USA. He tells AP that Emirates is interested in U.S. destinations such as Washington, Seattle, Boston and Chicago. "But," AP adds, "Clark doesn't expect the airline will add new U.S. destinations anytime soon."

KLM receives fourth Boeing 777

noreply@blogger.com (Jemaah Rockerz) — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 00:17:00 +0000

KLM has this week received its fourth Boeing 777-300 long-range aircraft, although the new addition is unlike most other planes in the carrier's fleet.

The new Boeing is painted in the silver and dark blue colour scheme of the SkyTeam airline alliance, of which KLM is a member.

All SkyTeam carriers have agreed to paint 1% of their aircraft in the livery to mark the tenth anniversary of the group in 2010.

The new aircraft is also the first to leave the Boeing plant using a new environmentally friendly paint that does not include chromate.

Ype de Haan, KLM's executive vice-president of operations, said: 'Developments such as these in the airline industry fit perfectly into KLM's policy.

'We aim to be the innovative market leader in environmental and climate care.'

KLM has ordered a total of seven Boeing 777-300 long-range planes. The first will operate its first commercial service on 28 August, a flight to Nairobi in Kenya.