Air Transport World articles from August 2006

Air Transport World archives from August 2006

Information is power.(Boeing Co. develops an airplance using avionics and display screens for pilots for taking information)
August 1, 2006... TWO WELL-KNOWN SAYINGS immediately spring to mind when summing up the 787 cockpit and its avionics systems: "A picture is worth a thousand words," and "information is power." While Boeing's newest airplane will bristle with all the latest...

Maintaining a mammoth.(MRO)(Airbus' Technical Aircraft on ground Center tracks A380 planes)
August 1, 2006... ELEVEN WORKSTATIONS, each comprising three computer monitors and manned by engineers, face a large display wall featuring an electronic world map and a giant e-mail inbox. The images are refreshed every 5 sec.; an onsite generator is set to...

When to tie the knot.(strategic business alliance in airline industry)
August 1, 2006... WHEN IT COMES TO BUILDING AN AIRLINE alliance, is a close technological marriage better than a series of looser links? The three major global alliances--Star, oneworld and SkyTeam--are taking different approaches to the task of getting their...

BA back in action.(British Airways PLC's finances, sales, profit and management)(Company overview)
August 1, 2006... BY MOST FINANCIAL MEASUREMENTS, BRITISH Airways stands at or near the top of the airline industry. Its operating profit of 705 million [pounds sterling] for the financial year ended March 31 was in absolute terms the highest of any passenger...

Coming events.
August 1, 2006... Sept. 6-7 18th FAA/ATA Int'l Symposium on Human Factors in Maintenance & Ramp Operations, Orlando, FL. Contact Ric Anderson at +1 202-626-4134; www.airlines.org. Sept. 6-8 Inter Airport China, China Int'l Exhibition Centre, Beijing. Phone...

Aerospace Industries Assn.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Aerospace Industries Assn. named Cord Sterling VP-legislative affairs.

AeroTurbine.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... AeroTurbine welcomed Michael King as senior VP-material sales.

Air Astana.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Air Astana chose Richard Ledger as regional GM-EU, USA & Canada.

Air France.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Air France tapped Florence Parly as dir.- strategy & investments.

Air Wisconsin.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Air Wisconsin introduced James P. Rankin as president & CEO.

Alaska Airlines.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Alaska Airlines elected Chris Glaeser VPsafety.

Aviation Partners Boeing.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Aviation Partners Boeing appointed Jerome David CFO.

AWAS.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... AWAS announced the departure of Crispin Maunder as head of strategic planning.

Boeing.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Boeing tapped Jim Jamieson as senior VPengineering, operations & technology, Henryka Bochniarz as president-Boeing Central & Eastern Europe and Jim Schlueter as VP-communications-Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

CSA Czech Airlines.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... CSA Czech Airlines named Jan Janik VPflight operations succeeding Peter Jusko, who becomes VP-ground operations.

EasyJet.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... EasyJet selected Tim Newing as IT dir.

Embraer.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Embraer chose Pedro Ferraz as corporate communications dir.-North America.

Eos.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Eos appointed David Spurlock chief strategic officer, David Pottruck CEO and Evans Gebhardt executive VP & GM.

European Low Fares Airline Assn.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... European Low Fares Airline Assn. named John Hanlon secretary general.

FKI Logistex.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... FKI Logistex selected Jerry Woodhouse as MD-European operations.

Gulf Air.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Gulf Air announced that President & CEO James Hogan will leave the carrier later this year, and also appointed Pauric Doyle VP-IT.

Hawaiian Airlines.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Hawaiian Airlines welcomed Janis Bumgarner as senior dir.-labor relations.

Hill & Knowlton.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Hill & Knowlton named former Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta vice chairman.

Integro.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Integro tapped Terry Rolfe as a principal to head the New York aviation practice.

JetWorks Leasing.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... JetWorks Leasing chose Glenn L. Hickerson as chairman and David F. Thompson as executive VP.

Phoenix Sky Harbor.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Phoenix Sky Harbor named Danny Murphy acting aviation dir.

Republic Airways Holdings.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... Republic Airways Holdings promoted Timothy P. Dooley to VP-financial planning & analysis.

SkyWest Airlines.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... SkyWest Airlines welcomed Amber Hunter as dir.-human resources & recruitment.

SkyWorks Capital.(PEOPLE)
August 1, 2006... SkyWorks Capital appointed Udai Dhawan VP-international corporate finance & merger/acquisition advisory business.

Swissport International.(promotions and appointments)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... Swissport International elevated Urs Sieber to head ground handling worldwide, Juan Jose Andres Alvez to senior VP-Europe, Adrian Melliger to senior VP-Switzerland, Marc-Antoine Chariatte to senior VP-Asia and Jeroen de Clercq to senior...

An exit and an opportunity.(Norman Mineta resigns from United States. Department of Transportation)(Editorial)
August 1, 2006... The recent departure of Norman Mineta, who resigned as US Secretary of Transportation in July after a six-year tenure, provides a much-needed opportunity for the Bush Administration to take a fresh look at how it is managing issues affecting...

Facts & figures.(air transportation traffic, sales, and rankings of airlines)(Statistical table)
August 1, 2006... [GRAPHICS OMITTED] Aircraft Data MD-90 MD-87 MD-83 MTOW, 000#s 157.0 - 168.0 140.0 - 149.0 160.0 Engine Types V2525-D5 57; JT8D-217 33; JT8D-217 13; ...

Indian MRO spools up.(MRO)(Company overview)
August 1, 2006... TRAVEL ALMOST ANYWHERE IN the Asia/Pacific region and you will see Indian aircraft engineers and technicians at work at airlines and maintenance outfits. Middle Eastern carriers such as Emirates, Qatar Airways and Gulf Air also employ a large...

2006 heavy maintenance directory.(Directory)
August 1, 2006... AMERICAS AAR Aircraft Services-Oklahoma 6611 South Meridian, Will Rogers World Airport, Oklahoma City, OK 73159 USA Phone: +1 405-218-3033 Fax: +1 405-218-3614 Web address: www.aarcorp.com E-mail:...

Airbus hopes to halt slide with change at the top.(Airbus S.A.S.'s A380 production management, new cheif executive Christian Streiff's strategies and management)
August 1, 2006... New Airbus President and CEO Christian Streiff will not have the luxury of a long learning curve if he hopes to halt the aircraft maker's current descent. Streiff, a newcomer to commercial aviation who took over the cockpit last month following...

Recovery without delay.
August 1, 2006... New Airbus President and CEO Christian Streiff's first task will be getting the A380 program back on track.

UK to look at airports market.(United Kingdom Office of Fair Trading plans market study of airports)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... The UK Office of Fair Trading confirmed at the end of June that it is initiating a study into whether or not the UK airports market in its current form works well for consumers. OFT announced in late May that it was considering a market study...

Boeing mulls sale, shutdown of Connexion.(Connexion by Boeing)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... Boeing is considering selling part or all of its Connexion by Boeing onboard Internet venture or pulling the plug on it because Connexion shows no sign of becoming profitable six years after launch. In the meantime, it intends "to limit further...

BA targeted in pricing-fixing probe.(British Airways PLC)(United States Department of Justice and United Kingdom's Office of Fair Trading investigates price fixing by airlines)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... British Airways is among the targets of a joint investigation by UK and US authorities into "alleged cartel activity," the airline said in a statement issued June 22. The probe involves BA and "other airlines" and relates to the "pricing of...

Iberia pilots.(Iberia Lineas Aereas de Espana S.A.'s pilots ends strike)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Iberia pilots conducted a three-day strike last month in protest of Iberia's previously announced plans to participate in the launch of a low-fare airline to be called Catair. The strike, which resulted in approximately 600 flight...

Quoted briefly.(Airbus S.A.S.'s Gustav Humbert's opinions)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... As president and CEO of Airbus, I must take responsibility for this setback and feel the right course of action is to offer my resignation to our shareholders." --Former Airbus President and CEO Gustav Humbert

Virgin Atlantic.(EUROPE Report)
August 1, 2006... >> Virgin Atlantic reported a pretax profit of 41.6 million [pounds sterling] ($75.6 million) for the fiscal year ended Feb. 28, more than double the 20.1 million [pounds sterling] earned in the prior year, a jump it attributed to a "large...

SkyTeam members.(the alliance receives statement of objections from the European Commission)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> SkyTeam members except Aeroflot on June 19 received Statement of Objections from the European Commission that the alliance said is a "normal step in a Commission competition investigation." The EC, which has been reviewing the alliance since...

European airline traffic June 2006.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... European Airline Traffic June 2006 % RPKs change ASKs Airline (billions) 2005 (billions) AF-KLM 16.92 7.1 20.53 BA Group ...

Assn. of European Airlines.(association opposes European Parliament's fuel taxes legislation)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Assn. of European Airlines blasted last month's resounding European Parliament endorsement of fuel taxes on domestic and intra-EU flights and other measures aimed at reducing aircraft emissions. AEA Secretary General Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus...

Aer Lingus.(government to privatize Aer Lingus Group PLC by selling shares)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Aer Lingus will be partly privatized by the end of September, Irish Transport Minister Martin Cullen told parliament last month. The share sale will include both an offering to "domestic and international institutions" and an IPO, with the...

EasyJet.(easyJet Airline Company Ltd.'s sales and earnings)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> EasyJet issued new full-year profit guidance early last month, forecasting that its pretax earnings will increase 40%-50% rather than the 10%-15% originally predicted. It reported a net profit of 59 million [pounds sterling] ($108.3 million)...

S7 Airlines.(Sibir Airlines aircarft crashed, killing 119 passengers and five crew )(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> S7 Airlines A310-300 over-ran a wet runway after landing at Irkutsk at approximately 7:50 a.m. local time July 9 and crashed through a concrete barrier and into a series of one-story garages. At least 119 passengers and five crew were killed...

Tourism giant TUI.(Hapag-Lloyd Express and Hapagfly's pilots signs new contract)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Tourism giant TUI said pilots at its Germany-based airlines Hapagfly and Hapag-Lloyd Express approved a new contract that increases pay and sets a salary structure through the end of 2008. TUI said the contract centers on a uniform salary...

Air Luxor.(Mirpuri Group sells the airline to Longstock Financial Group)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Air Luxor of Portugal was sold by its parent Mirpuri Group to Longstock Financial Group. Value of the sale was not announced. Air Luxor and its associated companies had revenues of 150 million [euro] ($192 million) in 2005. It operates two...

Loftleidir Icelandic.(charter airlines acquires holding stakes in Latcharter Airlines )(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Loftleidir Icelandic, the charter and ACMI-marketing subsidiary of Icelandair Group, acquired a 55% holding in Latvian charter operator Latcharter Airlines and committed to acquire the remaining shares in the future. Latcharter was...

SITA.(Voice Exchange launched to offer Voice over Internet Protocol phone services )(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> SITA launched what it called the air transport industry's first Voice Exchange, offering much cheaper Voice over Internet Protocol phone services as a "secure, efficient and flexible alternative to the legacy Public Switched Telephone...

Lufthansa Technik.(EUROPE Report)
August 1, 2006... >> Lufthansa Technik joined the Airbus MRO Network, which was launched in March 2005 and now includes 14 members.

Iberia Maintenance.(aircraft maintenance contract with British Airways PLC and Swiftair )(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Iberia Maintenance won a five-year contract from British Airways for maintenance of 29 RB211-535E4s used on BA's 757 fleet. Iberia will perform all repairs, modifications, maintenance and inspection of engines, subassemblies, components and...

TAT Group.(EUROPE Report)
August 1, 2006... >> TAT Group will adopt Sabena Technics as the single brand for its civil and military aviation maintenance activities.

SAS Component.(plans to close Stavangar operations)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> SAS Component will close its operations in Stavangar following the decision of SAS Technical Services to shutter its operation there and rationalize Norwegian MRO capacity at Oslo. SAS Component, which is 67% owned by Singapore Technologies...

Sabre Airline Solutions.(contract with Austrian Airlines to supply Rocade Crew Management System)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Sabre Airline Solutions said Austrian Airlines chose its Rocade Crew Management System to plan and track crew scheduling across its operation. Sabre also will provide professional services and ongoing support during the implementation and...

Unisys Corp.(contract with Hahn Air Systems)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Unisys Corp.'s German subsidiary signed a contract with Hahn Air Systems, the IT subsidiary of Hahn Air, for implementation of Unisys Airline Core Systems Solutions. Hahn, an IATA member that handles worldwide sales and distribution of...

Dutch legislators.(government to privatize Schiphol Group, plans to sell stakes)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Dutch legislators, after more than a decade of debate, decided at the end of June that Schiphol Group can be partly privatized. Schiphol's shares are fully owned by the state sector, with the Dutch government holding 75.8%, the city of...

Berlin Airports.(contract with Commerzbank)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Berlin Airports, which manages the city's three airports, finalized a 350 million [euro] ($439.7 million) bridge loan with an international consortium of banks headed by Commerzbank in another step toward transforming Berlin Schoenefeld into...

Ferrovial Group.(plans to construct second runway at Stansted International Airport)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Ferrovial Group, the new owner of BAA, said it remains committed to constructing a second runway at London Stansted but will reevaluate the project's estimated 4 billion [pounds sterling] ($7.4 billion) price tag to ensure "it delivers value...

Dreamliner Lease.(EUROPE Report)
August 1, 2006... International Lease Finance Corp., which has ordered 20 787s, will lease three of them to AeroMexico with deliveries beginning in early 2010.

Lufthansa.(Deutsche Lufthansa AG contracts SAS Ground Services Finland Oy)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Lufthansa chose SAS Ground Services Finland Oy for its ground handling services at Helsinki Vantaa. The three-year agreement goes into effect Aug. 15. LH operates eight flights per day from the airport.

Virgin Atlantic.(Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. to adapt a technology that monitors passengers health and report to medical professionals at MedAire Center )(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Virgin Atlantic said its entire fleet will be equipped by 2009 with Tempus, a telemedicine device that uses satellite technology to transmit information regarding ill or injured passengers to medical professionals at the MedAire Center in...

Aeromedic Innovations.(contract with British Airways PLC)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Aeromedic Innovations signed a three-year agreement with British Airways for the provision and servicing of onboard first aid kits as well as medical supplies for BA's Occupational Health Units.

US Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta.(resignation)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> US Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta resigned his position effective July 7. Mineta, 74, cited a desire "to move on to other challenges." Shortly after departing, he was named vice chairman of public relations powerhouse Hill &...

Delta Air Lines.(NORTH AMERICA Report)
August 1, 2006... >> Delta Air Lines reported a $16 million net loss in May but said it earned $8 million excluding reorganization items compared to a $140 million loss in the year-ago month. Consolidated unit revenue rose 18.5% year-over-year to 10.77 cents....

Northwest Airlines.(agreement with Association of Professional Flight Attendants)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Northwest Airlines reached a new tentative agreement on wage and benefit cuts with its 9,300 flight attendants on July 17, striking an accord on $195 million in annual cuts that averted a potential work action and seemingly paves the way for...

Southwest Airlines.(planning)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Southwest Airlines, after 35 years of first-come, first-served seating, announced in late June that it would experiment with assigned seating on about 200 select departures from San Diego beginning last month. It will not be evaluating...

Galileo International.(NORTH AMERICA Report)
August 1, 2006... >> Galileo International signed a five-year, full-content agreement with American Airlines.

US Dept. of Transportation.(NORTH AMERICA Report)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> US Dept. of Transportation last month proposed to revoke antitrust immunity from tariff-coordination meetings organized by IATA for flights from the US to Europe and Australia. In a show-cause order, DOT "tentatively concluded that changes...

Las Vegas-based Primaris Airlines.(plans to purchase aircrafts postponed)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Las Vegas-based Primaris Airlines postponed plans to order 20 787-8s and 20 737-800s. The original commitment was announced in October 2004 at a time when Boeing had booked few 787 orders, but as sales picked up and early delivery positions...

US Majors Traffic June 2006 *.(airlines traffic)(Statistical table)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... US Majors Traffic June 2006 * RPMs % chg. ASMs Airline (bil.) 2005 (bil.) AirTran 1.30 25.6 1.62 Alaska 1.64 6.5 2.01 American 12.66 -0.1 14.82...

Boeing.(commercial aircrafts sales statistics)(Jim Schlueter appointed)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Boeing delivered 97 commercial aircraft in the second quarter, comprising 70 737NGs, three 717s, four 747s, three 767s and 17 777s. In the year-ago period it delivered 85 commercial aircraft comprising three 717s, 59 737NGs, four 747s, one...

Pratt & Whitney.(NORTH AMERICA Report)
August 1, 2006... >> Pratt & Whitney chose United Technologies Corp. VP-Corporate Strategy and Development Todd Kallman president of its Commercial Engines division. Kallman, 50, succeeded Steve Heath, who retired.

Teledyne Controls.(NORTH AMERICA Report)
August 1, 2006... >> Teledyne Controls announced that Jade Cargo International ordered its integrated Data Management Unit for aircraft condition monitoring and data recording on its new 747-400ERF fleet.

Lufthansa Technik.(contract with ATA Airlines Inc. )(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Lufthansa Technik will provide Total Component Maintenance and Total Engine Support packages under 10-year agreements with ATA Airlines. Value of the deals was put at more than $100 million. The TCM agreement covers more than 3,200 part...

AAR.(NORTH AMERICA Report)
August 1, 2006... >> AAR's Landing Gear Services operating unit successfully completed its first overhaul of a 717 landing gear shipset on behalf of Hawaiian Airlines.

Delta Air Lines.(NORTH AMERICA Report)
August 1, 2006... >> Delta Air Lines signed a $15 million, five-year agreement Delta TechOps to provide maintenance work on Icelandair's 767-300 components and furnish inventory exchange services.

EmpowerMX.(NORTH AMERICA Report)
August 1, 2006... >> EmpowerMX announced the latest release of its FleetCycle Production Manager software application for heavy maintenance.

Flight Safety Foundation.(William Voss appointed, Stuart Matthews retires)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Flight Safety Foundation announced that former ICAO Director-Air Navigation William Voss will replace Stuart Matthews as president and CEO following Matthews' retirement on Oct. 1 after 13 years of leading the organization.

Penauille Servisair.(contract with WestJet Airlines Ltd.)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Penauille Servisair signed with WestJet to open airport lounges in Calgary, Vancouver and other cities to be announced. Lounges already are open in Ottawa and Winnipeg. Separately, Penauille signed an agreement with Air France for...

Jet Airways and Air Sahara.(battle over merger)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> Jet Airways and Air Sahara continued to battle at press time over possession of a INR5 billion ($108.5 million) escrow account tied to Jet's aborted acquisition of its much smaller rival. The merger, which was announced in January, fell...

SriLankan Airlines Group.(sales and earnings)(Brief article)
August 1, 2006... >> SriLankan Airlines Group reported a net profit of LKR2.04 billion ($19.6 million) for the fiscal year ended March 31, a 48.3% improvement from the prior year's profit of LKR1.38 billion but still far short of the LKR5.64 billion it earned in...