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Virgin expects to post $30-60 million underlying profit for full 2015/16 year

Virgin Australia says the airline group is on track for a full year profit despite a forecast second half loss amid weak demand in its key domestic market that has prompted capacity cuts focused on regional routes. The company reported a statutory loss after tax of $58.8 million for the three months to March 31, compared with $28.3 million loss in the prior corresponding period. Virgin said the...

AeroCRS Partners With Travelfusion

We are pleased to announce that Travelfusion and AeroCRS has completed the integration between the two companies and from today customers of AeroCRS will be distributed on Travelfusion platform.   As of today, AeroCRS customers can enjoy now from more distribution on Travelfusion platform, which is the world’s largest direct connect distribution and payment platform, directly linki...

Edinburgh Airport reveals plans for future

With nearly 20 new services added so far this year and more than half-a-dozen on the immediate horizon, the skies over Edinburgh Airport have never been busier. In terms of destinations, routes and passenger numbers, Scotland’s most bustling airport has expanded at a quicker pace during the past three years than in the previous decade. More than 11 million travellers passed through its ga...

Emirates reveals more details about new 777 business seat

Emirates did make the 2-3-2 business class mistake with its new Boeing 777 seats I was worried about a couple of months ago, but at the Arabian Travel Market the airline revealed a few more interesting details about this seat, which “will make its debut on Emirates’ new Boeing 777-300ER aircraft deliveries starting November 2016″. “The design and shape of this seat is in...

Brussels Airport departure hall reopens after deadly attacks

Under extra security, the Brussels Airport reopened its departure hall Sunday for the first time since deadly Islamic extremist attacks in March. The airport had already resumed some flights, but passengers had been using a temporary check-in tent because of extensive damage to the departure hall from the twin suicide bombings that killed 16 people. Passengers on select flights started using...

Ministry of Defence unveils new armed drone that can spy on targets for twice as long to double RAF fleet

Britain will double its fleet of armed surveillance drones with a new upgraded generation of unmanned aircraft able to fly for nearly twice as long, laden with more bombs, missiles and sensors, the MoD has disclosed. The 79ft wingspan, remotely piloted planes will be able to circle over and spy on targets for nearly two days, while sophisticated new flight computers mean they will be able to fl...

Here are the 10 best airports in Europe

With demand for air travel in Europe growing at an impressive rate, the need for world-class airports is at an all-time high. Leading aviation reviewer Skytrax recently released the results of its annual World Airport Awards, which includes a list of the best in Europe. The Skytrax annual rankings are based on the impressions of over 13 million fliers from 106 countries. More than 550 airports...

Where is everyone?

The A380 superjumbo that flew almost empty. I thought the days of chancing a half-empty international flight were grounded for good once computers replaced humans in making sure aeroplane seats were filled. But the gods who look after economy passengers smiled down on us on Wednesday last week when Qantas flight QF93 developed a bit of tummy trouble, putting its 9.30am departure from Melbour...

Helicopter had to return to base twice in days before Norway crash

A helicopter that crashed in Norway, killing 13 people including a Briton, had to return to base twice in the days before the incident owing to a warning light. The Super Puma had to turn back to Bergen airport, Flesland, last Tuesday when the pilot spotted the indication light, the operator CHC Helicopter confirmed on Sunday. An aircraft part was replaced and a test flight was conducted the...

Pair killed in Yorkshire light aircraft crash thought to be RAF pilots

Two men who died when their plane crashed into a remote field were thought to be RAF pilots. The pilot and his passenger were killed as the light aircraft crash-landed in a field off Mains Lane, between Castle Howard and the A64, in North Yorkshire, at about 10.40am on Saturday. Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) investigators continue to examine the cause of the crash. Police have no...

Able Aerospace receives certification from Japan Civil Aviation Bureau

The Textron subsidiary Able Aerospace Services has achieved certification from the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) as an approved maintenance organisation (AMO). The JCAB-AMO certification, which is issued by Japan’s minister of land, infrastructure, transport and tourism, allows the service centre to perform repair or alteration of aircraft components including rotors, transmissions, mec...

Lufthansa Technik gears up with original equipment innovation

Lufthansa Technik might have lost out in the Cabin Systems category at the Crystal Cabin Awards this year in Hamburg, but there’s no lack of passenger experience innovation coming from the company best known for its global MRO operations. “Original equipment innovation is one of the seven product divisions within Lufthansa Technik,” Andrew Muirhead, vice president of that prod...

Piasecki touts winged compound helicopters for Future Vertical Lift

Piasecki Aircraft chief executive John Piasecki sees an enduring place for the company’s winged compound helicopters within the US Army’s Future Vertical Lift strategy despite the robust competition that has emerged between compound coaxial and tiltrotor types currently engaged in a Joint MultiRole technology demonstration effort. The advanced aircraft design company – which h...

Bombardier family digs in its heels on dual-class shares

Bombardier Inc’s founding family is rejecting demands by Canada’s government to loosen its control of the company in exchange for financial assistance. “It’s not our intention to change anything in this regard,” Chairman Pierre Beaudoin said Friday in Montreal. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is said to be pushing for corporate governance change...

Franky Zapata zooms past farthest hoverboard flight record

A couple of weeks go we revealed the Flyboard Air, jet-ski champion Frank Zapata's latest attempt to launch himself skyward. The Air ditches the jet ski, the hose and the tether of the original Flyboard in favor of a jet-powered board that's reportedly capable of a potential top ground speed of 150 km/h (93 mph). And now it has carried Zapata into the record books for the farthest flight b...

‘Security scare’ grounds Qantas plane bound for Perth in Melbourne

A QANTAS plane bound for Perth was grounded in Melbourne on Saturday night for hours after a terror threat email was apparently sent to passengers. Up to 50 passengers disembarked after the security scare. Flight QF481 was due to take off at 6.50pm, but a middle-aged Perth woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said it was delayed after a few passengers received an email threat about the flig...

Gibraltar pushes for airport to be under EU aviation laws

Gibraltar's authorities have joined air-travel industry leaders in calling for the small British territory on Spain's southwestern tip to be included in the European Union's laws governing European aviation. Joseph Garcia, Gibraltar's Civil Aviation Minister, says Saturday that Gibraltar is legally entitled to inclusion "by virtue of our terms of membership of the Europ...

British Airways #BA108 from Dubai to LHR was intercepted by Hungarian Air Force

Two Hungarian Air Force JAS-39C Gripens were scrambled when a British Airways flight from Dubai failed to contact Hungary’s civil air traffic control before entering the airspace. The highest level alert was ordered, the defence ministry said. The Gripens took off at 12.55pm to intercept and identify the aircraft upon entering Hungary’s airspace and secure its safe pa...

Air France-KLM to name Jean-Marc Janaillac as new CEO: source

Air France-KLM's  board is to appoint Jean-Marc Janaillac as the Franco-Dutch airline group's next chief executive on Tuesday to replace Alexandre de Juniac, a source close to the matter said on Saturday. Frederic Gagey would remain as head of Air France, the source said. Sixty-three year old Janaillac, CEO of multi-modal transport company Transdev since 2012, first occupied a s...

PGZ and Airbus Helicopters launch industrial talks for the Tiger HAD in Poland

Radom (Poland), Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ) and Airbus Helicopters are hosting a two-day workshop in Radom on the 28 – 29 April to identify potential areas of cooperation around the Tiger HAD project, in the frame of the Kruk attack helicopter project. The event included the global network of Tiger HAD suppliers who took part in the discussions with a number of Polish companies. T...

Airbus Helicopters hands over first two H145M to Royal Thai Navy

Donauwörth, With successful technical acceptance, Airbus Helicopters has handed over the first two of five lightweight military multi-role H145M helicopters to the Royal Thai Navy. This marks an important milestone in the H145M programme on its way to the final acceptance and entry into service in Thailand at the end of 2016. A delegation from the Royal Thai Navy and Airbus Helicopters G...