MTU Maintenance, one of the world’s leading engine maintenance providers, has signed an exclusive 5-year contract with the Mexican low cost carrier VivaAerobus for the maintenance, repair and overhaul of the airline’s seven leased V2500-A5-powered aircraft. The German-based service provider for commercial aero engines has already performed more than 4,000 shop visits for the V2500 e...
Qantas’s shares have tumbled sharply after the airline group announced putting a brake on domestic growth in response to weaker-than-expected demand. On the domestic front, Qantas said it would cut capacity in the three months to June 30 2016, compared with the prior corresponding period, in response to the airline posting negative revenue per available seat kilometre (RASK – an ind...
The FAA wants people to stop shooting drones. At least 12 drones have been shot out of the sky in five U.S. states and the Federal Aviation Authority says it’s a federal crime, according to a report in Forbes. Even if they’re over your house. Even if they’re carrying running chainsaws. The FAA says you can’t shoot them down and you can’t disturb or interfere with s...
An Air France passenger plane landed in Tehran international airport Sunday, marking the resumption of Paris-Tehran flights. The Sunday flight is the first Air France jet to land in Iran in eight years, following a landmark nuclear deal reached with world powers that went into effect in January. The resumption of international flights to Tehran's Imam Khomenei International Airport i...
A helicopter crashed on rail tracks near Baltimore/Washington International Airport on Saturday, sparking a brush fire and delaying Amtrak train service along a major passenger route, officials said. The crash, which injured three on board, resulted in delays to Amtrak service between Baltimore and Washington, D.C., according to the railroad's statements and social media posts. An Amtrak...
Airbus Group has not expressed an intention to take a stake in Russian Helicopters, an Airbus spokesman said on Sunday. Russian economy minister Alexei Ulyukayev said on Friday that the European aerospace company was interested in the privatization of the state-owned Russian Helicopters for which Russia is looking for a strategic partner. "Airbus Group naturally follows potential change...
Police are investigating a pilot’s claim that his plane was struck by a drone as it approached Heathrow airport. The Metropolitan police said they were contacted on Sunday afternoon by the pilot, who landed the plane safely at Terminal 5. No one has been arrested, officers said. The flight, BA727, was coming in to London from Geneva, carrying 132 passengers and five crew. British Ai...
Ryanair Holdings Plc, Europe’s biggest discount airline, is pushing further into Eastern Europe than it previously planned, heightening competition with Wizz Air Holdings Plc, the area’s leading low-cost operator. Since January, Ryanair has announced new bases in Sofia in Bulgaria, Vilnius in Lithuania, Bucharest and Timisoara in Romania and — last week — the Czech...
Ka-band satellite communications are latest air-to-ground link. Airbus Corporate Jets has won its first contracts to retrofit ACJ aircraft with Ka-band satellite communications – from Comlux and an undisclosed customer – paving the way for ACJ operators to have a faster and more capable internet access, via the latest technology. Both deals are for widebody aircraft. Ka-band&rsqu...
All big projects have their crunch moments, and these pinch points will very often define the people involved. For the Solar Impulse team it came over the northern Pacific Ocean in mid-summer last year. Their pilot Andre Borschberg was in the midst of trying to make a crossing from Japan to Hawaii - the longest non-stop solo aeroplane flight in aviation history. Although a routine journey...
Thai Airways first Airbus A350 moves closer to the flight line as the first plane left the Airbus paint shop in Toulouse. Thai Airways have four Airbus A350-900 planes on order – this being the first of them. The A350s will replace some of the existing Boeing 777-200 fleet. And Thai Airways purple tail fin looks especially pretty on the Airbus A350 (but then, I’m a su...
Most of you probably remember the Asiana Airlines flight between Seoul Incheon and San Francisco which crashed back in mid-2013. The plane stalled on final approach, and ended up crash landing on the runway. Three people died, including one person who actually survived the crash but was hit by a rescue truck. The cause of the crash was ultimately determined to be pilot error. While the crash ha...