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Monday, October 8th, 2018
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LATEST NEWS
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President Donald Trump has signed legislation passed by Congress which will extend FAA policy for a further five years under the FAA Reauthorization Bill.
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There are a number of provisions in the Reauthorization Bill which have drawn attention, in particular the “Seat Egress in Air Travel (SEAT) Act,” which will force the FAA to set specific standards for minimum seat sizes on commercial planes, principally their width and the space between them. The FAA has been given a year in which to come up with the new guidelines, though many fear that the new regulations may end up codifying the tightest seat arrangement that is currently in existence.
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However, while airlines have backed plans for the privatization of the U.S. air traffic control system, lawmakers have abandoned any plans for this to take place. Congressional negotiators have also dropped plans to clamp down on carriers which charge unreasonable fees.
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Subsequent to a number of incidents which involved the removal of passengers once they had boarded aircraft, known as ’involuntary de-boarding’, usually to make room on crowded flights for crew members who will be operating on another aircraft at the flight’s destination, this practise will now be barred. Legislation will also force carriers to be more transparent and efficient with the distribution of information regarding delayed and canceled flights.
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According to Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) “The many reforms in this law will help strengthen American leadership in aviation, create jobs, and improve safety and service for passengers."
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Scoot, the low cost wing of Singapore Airlines, has taken delivery of its first A320neo in Toulouse, France.
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Scoot has placed orders for 39 A320neo aircraft under its fleet renewal programme. The new addition complements the airline’s existing fleet of 27 A320ceo Family aircraft.
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Powered by Pratt and Whitney Pure Power engines, the new aircraft features 186 seats in Scoot’s configuration. Selected for its outstanding operational efficiency, comfort and range, the A320neo will be deployed by Scoot on its services across Asia.
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Featuring the widest single aisle cabin in the sky, the A320neo Family incorporates the very latest technologies including new generation engines and Sharklets, which together deliver at least 15% fuel savings at delivery and 20% by 2020. With more than 6,100 orders received from over 100 customers, the A320neo Family has captured nearly 60% share of the market.
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SAS has released that the total number of passengers increased by 3.3% to 2.9 million in September 2018, while scheduled capacity and traffic increased by 2.4% and 4.8%, respectively. Scheduled passenger load factor increased by 1.8 p.p. to 78.0%.
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Norwegian has reported strong passenger growth as it carried almost 3.5 million passengers in September. The total number of passengers increased by 9% compared to the same month in the previous year.
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The total traffic growth increased by 31% in September, driven by a 32% capacity growth. The load factor was 88.8% down 0.9 points compared to the previous year.
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Lufthansa is further expanding its route network to the USA. From 3 May 2019, the airline will offer its first connections from Frankfurt to Austin (USA). This is Lufthansa's third destination in Texas alongside Dallas/Fort Worth and Houston. Starting in summer 2019, an Airbus A330-300 will be in service five times a week on the route between Frankfurt and Austin.
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Apart from Tuesday and Thursday, LH 468 will leave the Lufthansa hub in Frankfurt in the morning and reach Austin in the afternoon (local time) after a travel time of around ten hours. The return flight departs from Texas in the late afternoon and lands at Frankfurt Airport in the morning of the following day. On board, passengers can expect the usual high level of Lufthansa comfort in 255 seats in Business, Premium Economy and Economy Class. A return flight to Austin can already be booked from 499 euros for the introduction.
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The new Lufthansa connection from Munich to Bangkok, LH792, will take place on 1 June 2019. A new Airbus A350-900 will be used, which will take off daily from Munich to Thailand in the afternoon.
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Héroux-Devtek a leading international manufacturer of aerospace products, has successfully completed the acquisition of Compañia Española de Sistemas Aeronáuticos, S.A. (CESA), a subsidiary of Airbus SE for a purchase price of €137 million (approximately CA$206 million) enterprise value, including CESA’s net outstanding debt of €23 million euros (approximately CA$35 million), subject to customary closing adjustments.
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The transaction was funded through a combination of a CA$50 million seven-year unsecured subordinated term loan provided by Fonds de solidarité FTQ, the Corporation’s revolving credit facility and available cash on hand. In connection with this acquisition, the Corporation’s credit facility was amended, increasing the borrowing limit toUS CA$250 million from CA$200 million.
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Headquartered in Madrid, Spain, CESA is a leading European provider of fluid mechanical and electromechanical systems for the aerospace industry. Its main product lines include actuation and hydraulic systems as well as landing gear products.
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Management is updating its sales guidance for fiscal 2019 to reflect the CESA acquisition. Management now expects sales for fiscal 2019 to be in the range of CA$460 million to CA$470 million, representing an increase of approximately 20% over last year. Capital expenditures are expected to be approximately US$20 million.
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Management is also issuing new long-term sales growth guidance reflecting both the Beaver acquisition completed last July and the CESA acquisition. Management expects fiscal 2022 sales in the range of CA$620 million to CA$650 million.
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The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has announced that Karen Clayton will join IATA as the Association’s Corporate Secretary effective April 2019. Clayton comes to IATA from Air New Zealand where she has held the role of General Counsel and Company Secretary since 2016.
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As Corporate Secretary, Clayton will ensure the integrity of IATA’s governance framework, including management of the Association’s Board of Governors and its various committees. The IATA Board of Governors is elected by the Association’s 290-strong membership and consists of CEOs from 31 airlines and IATA’s Director General and CEO.
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Delta Air Lines’ first A220-100 took off on its first flight from Mirabel airport, Québec. The aircraft was crewed by A220 programme test pilots. During a successful 2 hour and 53 minutes flight, the crew checked the aircraft’s main systems and landed back in Mirabel.
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The flight took place a few days after the aircraft rolled out of the paint shop. Next, the aircraft will continue with pre-delivery testing and assembly, as elements of its state-of-the-art interior come together at the A220 assembly line. Delta’s first A220 is scheduled to begin service in early 2019.
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Delta Air Lines will be the first U.S. airline to operate the A220 – at the same time becoming the fourth A220 operator, after Swiss International Air Lines, airBaltic, and Korean Air. Delta is the largest A220-100 customer, with a firm order for 75 aircraft.
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GE Aviation’s Accelerator opened to provide a place in the D.C., Virginia and Maryland area for hands-on collaboration with federal and defense customers to achieve mission-critical outcomes. The accelerator is an innovation space focused on using data and analytics with idea generation, incubation, and development for products and services.
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GE Aviation Chief Digital Officer John Mansfield officially opened the accelerator with Vice President of Software Research at GE’s Global Research Center Colin Parris and GE Aviation President of Military Systems Tony Mathis. Technology partners participating in the event included Microsoft, Teradata, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Intel, CACI, and VION.
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Avolon owned and managed a fleet of 571 aircraft at the end of the third quarter, with total orders and commitments for 319 new technology aircraft.
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The company executed a total of 39 lease transactions, comprising new aircraft leases, second leases and lease extensions. Avolon delivered a total of 14 aircraft to 8 customers, including 2 transitions and sold 16 aircraft, including the sale of 4 aircraft to Jade Aviation, Avolon’s joint venture with Cinda.
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The fleet utilization for the quarter was 100% and the average owned fleet age was 5.1 years with average lease term remaining of 6.8 years. At the end of the third quarter Avolon had a total customer base of 156 airlines in 64 countries.
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MRO service provider SR Technics and FEAM Maintenance/Engineering, a U.S. based MRO leader in aircraft line maintenance services, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on joint initiatives aimed at adding value for the current and prospective customers of both companies.
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In partnering with FEAM, SR Technics will expand its reach from multiple European locations to the U.S. market, where FEAM has numerous established aircraft maintenance stations. Conversely, FEAM will offer global solutions through its partnership with SR Technics.
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“Partnering with a world-class MRO such as SR Technics will create new opportunities for FEAM and more importantly, for FEAM customers,” said Dan Allawat, Chief Operating Officer at FEAM. “We look forward to exploring areas of cooperation as a means to offer a broad spectrum of services to our collective airline clients.”
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“As part of SR Technics’ growth objectives, this partnership will develop our service offering for our existing and future customers in the U.S.,” said Jakob Straub, Head of Aircraft Services and Line Maintenance at SR Technics. “Together with our strong partner, we will be able to seize on market opportunities to maximize our potential and expand our presence while ensuring reliability and fast turnaround times at attractive prices.”
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Air Georgian reached a tentative deal for a new collective agreement with CUPE Local 4059, the union that represents approximately 83 flight attendants at Air Georgian's Toronto base.
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The agreement will be presented to union members for approval before the end of October. Once ratified the new deal will be effective for three years.
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Air Georgian began flying for Air Canada in 2000, making them the longest serving capacity purchase agreement partner of the Air Canada family. Air Georgian operates over 64,000 regional flights per year on behalf of Air Canada, carrying over 1.5 million passengers a year to 31 domestic and US destinations.
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