50 SKY SHADES - World aviation news

World aircraft news

aircraft related aviation news

In 2001, Two JAL planes carrying 677 in total narrowly avoids disaster

15 years ago, two Japan Airlines jetliners narrowly avoided a mid-air collision near Yaizu, Shizuoka, Japan.   Japan Airlines Flight 907, a Boeing 747-446D (JA8904)  was en-route from Haneda International Airport to Naha International Airport with 411 passengers & 16 crew members on board.   Japan Airlines Flight 958, a McDonnell-Douglas DC-10-40 (JA8546) was...

Aviation on Mars? Airbus Perlan 2 Glider To Help Test Its Limits

By pushing the atmospheric envelope at the edge of Earth’s stratosphere, the Airbus Perlan 2 glider’s next tests should pave the way for both future aviation on Mars and Earth-based commercial hypersonic aircraft, Allan McArtor, the Chairman and CEO of Airbus Group, Inc.. told me. The Perlan 2 sailplane/glider, which had its first test flight last September in Oregon, will attempt t...

The Wackiest Airplane Themes from Star Wars to Pandas

Scrolling through the grievances of the 708 million passengers the TSA screened in airports last year is enough to make you wish teleportation was possible so you could bypass the entire hassle of being in an airport. From baggage fees, to change fees, to getting charged $8 for a blanket, the fun seems to have gone out of travel like the perfect container of Talenti Gelato melting unloved and unea...

Reports of 'unruly passengers' on planes drop; social media might be the reason

The number of airline passengers who are reported for disrupting commercial flights has been dropping for several years. But the decline may have more to do with social media than any improvement in fliers’ manners. In 2015, the incidents of “unruly passengers” reported to the Federal Aviation Administration fell to 82, from 145 in 2014, a 43% drop. Federal law says passeng...

Qantas frequent flyer expands points-earning options for its members

Qantas has further expanded the range of points-earning opportunities for its ever-growing frequent flyer membership base through a new partnership with Vodafone. The tie-up allows Qantas’s frequent flyer members to earn points on eligible Vodafone mobile plans, while Vodafone will sell prepaid products on board some of the Flying Kangaroo’s international flights. The Vodafone in...

ANA, Iran Air end A380 order drought

Airbus’s flagship A380 has ended a three-year drought for new orders with confirmation Japan’s ANA and Iran Air will be new operators of the world’s largest airliner. On Friday, ANA Holdings (ANA HD) confirmed it would take three A380s that were earmarked for Skymark Airlines, with first delivery is due in 2019. ANA said the A380, which will be powered with Rolls-Royce Tren...

Tigerair counts down to new Bali service

Tigerair Australia chief executive Rob Sharp says events such as the volcanic ash cloud and Jakarta terrorist attacks have not dampened demand for the low-cost carrier’s proposed Bali flights due to kick off in March.   The Virgin Australia-owned airline has completed the reconfiguration and repainting of the first of three Boeing 737-800s, VH-VUB, that will be used to operate Ade...

Ryanair Reports Q3 Profit Of €103M, Up €54M

Ryanair, Europe’s favourite airline, today (Feb 1) announced Q3 profits of €103m, a 110% increase on prior year. Traffic grew 20% to 25m as ave. fares fell 1% to €40 (load factors rose 5% points to 93%) while unit costs fell by 5% (ex-fuel down 1%). Ryanair’s CEO, Michael O’Leary, said: “We are pleased to report that our low fares policy delivered stron...

Toxic cabin air campaigners call for detectors in planes

An unexplained incident that forced a plane to land after six people fell ill has led campaigners to call for toxic air detectors to be installed in cabins. The captain of an American Airlines flight to Los Angeles returned to land at Heathrow after two passengers and some flight attendants complained of light headedness. American Airlines said a subsequent investigation found no evidence of...

Iran to buy 40 ATR planes: vice minister

Iran expects to finalise within days a deal to buy up to 40 planes from ATR, the European manufacturer of turboprop aircraft, a deputy transport minister said Saturday. “We discussed the deals in Italy and France and ATR officials are expected in Tehran in the coming days to complete the agreement,” Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan said. “There will be 20 firm and 20 optional orders,...

Diehl partners with Regent on aircraft cabin retrofit and refurbishments

Diehl Aerosystems, a first-tier supplier and partner for avionics and cabin integration to the big aircraft manufacturers and a retrofitting specialist for aircraft operators, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for establishing a partnership with Regent Aerospace, Valencia/USA. The partnership aims at joining forces for the aircraft cabin retrofit and refurbishment markets in order to...

American Airlines Claims It Earned More in 2015 Than Any Carrier in History

American Airlines reported a record profit for the fourth quarter and all of 2015 as a sharp drop in fuel prices more than offset lower revenue. The world’s biggest airline said Friday that its earnings were the highest ever for any carrier. American Airlines Group Inc. posted net income of $3.28 billion in the fourth quarter, but the results were inflated by a huge accounting gain fro...