Ahead of his being named as Delta Air Lines' CEO-elect, Ed Bastian – a key architect in the carrier's success – spoke to LEK Consulting's John Thomas and Spencer Stuart's Michael Bell, who have been conducting a series of behind-the-curtain analyses for Airline Business to understand how the industry's top players excel Over the last five years, Delta A...
The UK Ministry of Defence is close to signing a contract with Airbus Defence & Space for the manufacture and testing of two Zephyr 8 high-altitude pseudo satellites (HAPS). A £10.6 million ($15.5 million) deal is expected to be firmed in the coming weeks which will see the unmanned air vehicle assessed through an operational concept demonstrator (OCD) programme to determine if the ca...
Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. today announced the Gulfstream G500 has completed flutter testing, achieving another milestone in the new aircraft's flight-test program. The first G500 test aircraft, T1, performed the tests over the course of more than 50 flights. "The G500 has accomplished a great deal since we launched the flight-test program in May 2015," said Da...
West Star Aviation has reconfigured a Falcon 2000 to create a 13-passenger interior in what is typically an eight- to 10-passenger jet. The project, performed at the company’s Alton, Ill. facility, required fabricating a smaller galley and auxiliary galley/entertainment center, shifting the cabin bulkhead/door forward, and extending all the side ledges and window panels. Rearward, th...
A London-based journalist had a tough job of compiling a profile of the Tupolev 104 for Aviation Week in 1956, based entirely on observations of its landing at London Airport, photographs, and experts such as engineers knowledgeable in typical Russian aircraft design. The result is a comprehensive look at the civil aircraft painted in the livery of Aeroflot, Russia’s state-run...
Travellers worried about the implications of flying to Latin America amid growing concerns about the Zika virus should be able to amend their travel plans without expense – as airlines and holiday firms acknowledge the threat from the mosquito-borne infection. The World Health Organization (WHO) this week declared a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern” regarding...
Donald Trump's plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday because of engine trouble. The Boeing 757 was on its way from Mr Trump's home base of New York to Little Rock, Arkansas, where the property mogul and Republican presidential candidate was due to address a rally. The private jet landed safely at 4:40 pm after reporting engine problems, a...
Lufthansa Technik AG has developed another smart solution to avoid unscheduled maintenance actions. It’s called the Logo Light Protector. The light protector avoids damage that can occur while removing a logo light located in the horizontal stabilizer of the Boeing 777. Until now, there has been an inherent risk of damage to the GFRP surface layer of the st...
A newly-announced wing development and test centre will expand Airbus’ “footprint” in the UK, while providing functional space for the company and its partners to develop new ideas for a broad range of applications. This facility – which is to open its doors in 2017, located on Airbus’ existing Filton site – will be an advanced development and testing centre...
Canadian plane and train maker Bombardier Inc, whose stock has hit its lowest level in 25 years, will soon announce plans for a reverse stock split, two sources familiar with the matter said, in order to remain a part of Canada's benchmark stock index. The sources, who are not authorized to publicly discuss the plans, said Bombardier's board of directors had already approved the plan be...
Richard Anderson will retire as CEO of Delta Arlines effective May 2, as part of a succession plan that has been several years in the making, the company said Wednesday. "Under Richard's leadership, Delta has become the most profitable and best run airline that consistently delivers excellent customer service," said Dan Carp, chairman of the board. "The entire Board of D...
More than a thousand aircraft and helicopters have less than a year to comply with the Australian government’s ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast) mandate. The current mandates require all flights operating under instrument flight rules (IFR) to have ADS-B, which is a satellite-based technology enabling aircraft to be accurately tracked by air traffic controllers an...
Virgin Australia says improving yield and revenue growth in the key domestic market has led to a strong rise in second quarter profit. The company said on Thursday statutory net profit for the three months to December 31 2015 came in at $60.8 million, a significant increase from $11.3 million in the prior corresponding period. The result was Virgin’s second consecutive quarterly profit...
Avinco closed 2015 with a record 31 helicopter transactions worldwide, moving over 38 million Euros worth of assets. 8 of these sales came from Avinco’s own portfolio, and 3 with Avinco financing attached. Avinco, a fully independent, privately owned firm, offers aircraft from all leading manufacturers such as Finmeccanica Helicopters (AgustaWestland), Airbus Helicopters, Bell and Sikorsk...
French-based landing gear MRO specialist Revima has made the journey to Dubai to launch its dedicated “On Wing Services” team to the Middle East. Speaking at the MRO Middle East show which opened in Dubai this morning, Revima’s vie president for landing gear centres of excellence, Cyrille Pillet said: “As a world class service provider, it is paramount that we continuously...
Deutsche Lufthansa AG has shaken up its management as part of a push to save 500 million euros ($543 million) by consolidating operations under two airline divisions. Sadiq Gillani, former head of strategy across the group, will move to the Eurowings discount arm with responsibility for developing its network and fleet. He’ll be succeeded in his old role by William Willms, who previo...
EasyJet Plc, Europe’s second-biggest discount carrier, said weaknesses at network rivals Air France- KLM Group and Deutsche Lufthansa AG will allow it to carry on grabbing customers in key countries after suffering a series of setbacks while seeking to attack new markets. Chief Executive Carolyn McCall says she’s unperturbed at having to rein in operations to Moscow as a result of t...
Russia’s Industry and Trade Ministry is in negotiations with Egypt’s EgyptAir airline on the supply of 40 SSJ-100 (Sukhoi Superjet-100) planes, Russian Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov said on the Rossiya 24 TV channel on Wednesday. "We are currently negotiating (with EgyptAir) the possibility of supplying up to 40 SSJ-100 aircraft. This is a big ambitious project, wh...
US membership-based operator Rise is evaluating the European market, with a view to launching a modified version of its scheduled business aircraft service on the continent. Speaking on the sidelines of the Corporate Jet Investor conference in London on 1 February, Rise co-founder and chief operating officer Dan Caine said Europe could be the next step in its strategy to expand the programme gl...
The first public flight of the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Heron TP unmanned air vehicle (UAV) happened almost nine years years ago. The maiden flight of the Elbit Systems Hermes 900 occurred nearly seven years ago. Yet, since 2009, neither of Israel’s largest UAV makers have released a new design for a large clean-sheet UAV on the export market, appearing to end a two decade stre...
Airbus Helicopters plans to deliver the first upgraded H225 heavy twin (formerly known as the EC225e) at the end of this year. In the cockpit, the optional Rig’N Fly GPS-navigation-assisted software program aims to make oil rig approaches safer, thanks to a reduction in pilot workload. The system, which is retrofittable, has just beenEASA certified. The helicopter...
