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France aviation news

Airbus Corporate Jets wins 1st Ka-band retrofit deals

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...

Thai Airways first A350 leaves the paint shop

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...

Airbus said poised to win Delta deal for at least 30 A321 jets

Airbus Group SE is poised to win an order for at least 30 A321 single-aisle jetliners from Delta Air Lines Inc valued at $3.5 billion or more at list prices as part of a wider fleet overhaul at the US carrier, according to people familiar with the plan. Details of the transaction are still being worked out and Atlanta-based Delta needs board approval for the purchase, according to the people, w...

Safran says output on target as Airbus gets LEAP engine

CFM International, a joint-venture between France's Safran and General Electric of the United States, has delivered the first LEAP-1A engine to be used in the Airbus A320neo jetliner, Safran said on Friday. The delivery is a key milestone for 42-year-old CFM, an unusual French-American venture which has survived decades of trade tensions between the two countries but which now fac...

Airbus Gets First CFM Engines Competing With Ailing Pratt Model

Airbus Group SE formally accepted the first series-production engines built by CFM International for its A320neo narrow-body jet -- a model that entered service this year using rival powerplants from Pratt & Whitney. The Leap-1A engines were handed over by CFM ahead of schedule and will be fitted to an aircraft that should reach its buyer by the middle of this year, the joint venture of&nbs...

Legacy 450 approved to operate from La Mole Airport in St. Tropez

The Embraer Legacy 450 has received approval to operate from La Mole Airport becoming the largest business jet capable of operating into and out of St. Tropez, France. The aircraft met strict performance requirements to operate on the airport’s short runway. The evaluation flights were operated by Air Service Liege of Brussels, Belgium and the results were validated by the French Civil Av...

Parliament backs EU directive on use of Passenger Name Records (PNR)

The new directive regulating the use of Passenger Name Record (PNR) data in the EU for the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of terrorist offences and serious crime was approved by Parliament on Thursday. It will oblige airlines to hand national authorities passengers’ data for all flights from third countries to the EU and vice versa. “We have adopted an importan...

CFM delivers first production LEAP-1A engines to Airbus

CFM International delivered the first two production engines (a shipset) for Airbus on April 2, two days ahead of schedule. This delivery paves the way for installation on the first customer aircraft and for entry into service by mid-year. The name of the initial LEAP/A320neo delivery customer will be disclosed at a later date. The engines completed final assembly at the Snecma (Safra...

Airbus Helicopters offers 240 new apprenticeship positions in France

Airbus Helicopters is launching a drive to offer 240 new apprenticeship positions at its headquarters in Marignane, France as well as other regional offices. The positions are in various fields and for all educational levels. The chosen apprentices will study the production lines at close quarters and the initiative will include courses from of between one and three years. The apprenticesh...

Air France makes new cost-cut proposals to pilots

Air France has made fresh cost-cutting proposals to pilots' unions that would see a rise in the number of flying hours and more flexibility in return for a share of the resulting productivity gains, the French carrier's head said on Monday. The plans by Air France, which were sent to unions on Sunday, with a May 2 deadline to respond, would also see it hire more than the 600 new pilots...

Airbus ACJneo Family wins first Asian customer

An Asian customer has become the first in the region to place a firm order for an Airbus ACJ319neo , delivery of which is planned for the second quarter of 2019. The client, which is upgrading from a large, traditional, business jet, is also the first new  customer for the ACJneo Family. Engines and cabin outfitter have yet to be announced. Airbus has now won firm orders for six ACJneo...

France's La Compagnie mulls A320neo, B737 MAX for TATL ops

La Compagnie (B0, Paris Le Bourget) is in advanced talks with Airbus Industrie (AIB, Toulouse Blagnac) and Boeing (BOE, Chicago O'Hare) over the planned acquisition of new transatlantic-capable aircraft due for delivery in either 2018 or 2019. “We’re thinking about the A320neo and the B737 MAX 9 and exploring all the best finance options for that purpose right now,” CEO Fr...