Emirates has announced further service reductions during maintenance to Dubai airport.While the reductions will not take place until runway maintenance begins next year, the airline has decided to halve the number of flights it operates to cities including Amman, Amsterdam, Beirut, Cairo, Cape Town, Lagos, Moscow, Muscat, and Nairobi.
Between May 1 and July 20, 2014, the airline will only service the cities once a day instead of twice.
Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Milan and Tehran will all have their current three daily services cut to two daily.
Dubai airport will be undergoing runway maintenance over an 80-day period, during which time other routes will also be given a reduced service.
The reduced services will include Bahrain, from 21 to 13 weekly; Bangkok, from six to four daily; Colombo, from 17 to seven weekly; Delhi, from four to three daily; Doha from 42 to 20 weekly; Karachi, from five to four daily; Kuala Lumpur, from four to three daily; Kuwait City, from 35 to 27 weekly; Mumbai, from five to four daily; Riyadh, from four to two daily; Seychelles, from 12 to seven weekly; Tehran from three to two daily; and Vienna, from 13 to six weekly.
http://www.bignewsnetwork.com/index.php/sid/216610780/scat/a7a3ee6374c196a8
In the pre-dawn hours at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport airport, the nose gear of a United Boeing 767-300 apparently failed, dropping the nose of the aircraft into the ground. The aircraft, which was reportedly at gate E4, can be seen with its nose touching the ground, and tail section in an elevated position.
We have reached out to United for comment, and they are working on obtaining more information for us. We have not yet received word about damage to the aircraft, or a potential cause, but will update this story once more information is obtained.
UPDATE: United has confirmed that no passengers where on board at the time of the collapse, and there were no injuries.
UPDATE 2: United has issued the following statement: “During routine overnight maintenance, the nose gear of a 767 collapsed while parked at a gate. No passengers were on board at the time, and there were no injuries. The aircraft has been removed from service while we perform a full review.”
http://tragichope.page.tl/
http://www.nycaviation.com/2013/08/pictures-nose-gear-of-united-boeing-767-300-collapsed-at-gate-at-iah/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+nycaviation+%28NYCAviation.com+%7C+Planespotting+and+Aviation+Photography%2C+Breaking+Airline+News%2C+Aviation+Discussion%29#.Ug7Y8NI3CSo
Glasgow Airport enjoyed its busiest July in five years after more than 832,000 travelled through its doors during the month, representing an increase of 5.4% compared to the same period last year.
A strong demand from holidaymakers and the solid performance of a number of Glasgow’s long haul routes including Emirates’ double daily Dubai service and United and US Airways’ direct flights to America, contributed to a 3.7% increase in international traffic.
Domestic traffic, which grew by 8%, benefited from the performance of British Airways’ London routes and Flybe’s UK regional services, whilst Celtic’s Champions League qualifiers against Belfast side Cliftonville also provided a welcome boost.
Amanda McMillan, managing director of Glasgow Airport, said: “The summer season is always a busy time for the airport but there has been a marked increase in the number of people choosing to fly from Glasgow over the course of the past two months.
“We have enjoyed consistent passenger growth since January 2011 which underlines the progress we are making in terms of securing new routes and services. It is particularly pleasing to see our domestic traffic perform so well and with Glasgow hosting events such as the World Pipe Band Championships and UDO World Street Dancing Championship, we are looking forward to a busy August.”
http://www.breakingtravelnews.com/news/article/glasgow-airport-enjoys-busiest-july-in-five-years/
The 10th edition of the Latin American Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (LABACE) opens tomorrow at Congonhas Airport in São Paulo. Brazil’s civil aviation minister, Moreira Franco, and the commandant of the Brazilian air force, Air Brigadier Saito, are expected to be the guests of honor at the opening ceremony and ribbon cutting.
Organized by the Associação Brasileira de Aviação Geral (ABAG), Brazil’s business and general aviation association, the LABACE event is gearing up for 16,000 visitors over the three days, with approximately 100 exhibitors in one main hangar and around a static park replete with some 70 aircraft, from light piston singles to ultra-long-range business jets. The show is about the same size as last year’s event. ABAG chairman Eduardo Marson, who is also CEO of Eurocopter subsidiary Helibras, said that although there are fewer exhibitors this year, the ones that have booked have taken more space.
Speaking yesterday afternoon at a pre-show press conference, Marson ran through some of the recent developments in Brazil’s business aviation industry, including challenges faced in protecting and promoting its access to airports and having a role in planning new infrastructure.
http://ainonline.com/aviation-news/ainalerts/2013-08-13/labace-set-open-sao-paulo-congonhas-airport
More airlines decided to cancel flights in and out of Hawaii Monday evening and Tuesday morning in the face of tropical storm Flossie, but Hawaiian Airlines is continuing to operate a normal schedule.
Alaska Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines were all reporting cancellations as of mid-Monday afternoon.
“I think unfortunately some carriers are being very cautious and people will be inconvenienced, but I think overall the precautions taken are going to be appreciated in the longrun,” said David Uchiyama, vice president of brand management for the Hawaii Tourism Authority. He said the cancellations will balance out, with some visitors extending their stays and others that will be starting their vacations later than expected.
“I think in the long run, it’ll have very little impact on us,” Uchiyama said. “Unfortunately it came at a busy time of year where all islands are doing quite well, but we think it’ll be a little glitch in the radar here.”
Seattle-based Alaska Airlines (NYSE: ALK) canceled 15 flights scheduled to arrive in Hawaii Monday, and canceled 11 flights scheduled to depart the Islands.
The airline plans to resume operations with flights departing from the Mainland and arriving in Hawaii after 8 p.m. HST on Maui, in Kona on the Big Island and in Honolulu. Alaska Airlines added 10 flights Monday evening to help make up for the day’s earlier cancellations. The airline is unable to operate any flights to Lihue Airport on Kauai until Tuesday due to a lack of airport staff.
“We are ground handled by United [Airlines] and couldn’t get any staffing to handle our flights if we came in late tonight [to Lihue],” said Alaska Airlines Media Relations Manager Bobbie Egan.
http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2013/07/29/airlines-serving-hawaii-take-different.html?ana=RSS&s=article_search&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A
Aeroflot (SU, Moscow Sheremetyevo) is still in the planning stages of setting up its new Low Cost Carrier, which, if all details are ironed out, could take to the skies in 2014 using a fleet of either B737NGs or A320s, sourced from Aeroflot. According to Russia's Kommersant, "Loukostera" will be a separate entity to Aeroflot and will offer tickets that are "20-40% cheaper than traditional airlines, and be based at either Moscow Sheremetyevo or Moscow Vnukovo." Interestingly enough, initial focus will be on developing "the most profitable routes across Europe" with local and regional destinations to be added later on. In preparation for its début, various changes to Russia's Air Code and aviation legislation covering non-refundable ticketing and inflight catering have already been approved by the Russian Minister of Transport, Maxim Sokolov.
http://www.ch-aviation.ch/portal/news/20738-aeroflots-planned-lcc-loukostera-eyes-international-ops-in-2014
AirAsia Japan (JW, Tokyo Narita) will suspend 14 daily flights from September 1 through to October 26, before winding up operations completely come October 31. In a statement, the carrier said the cancellations, which would affect 14,000 passengers, "reflected a lack of planes to service all its routes". The airline will close its Nagoya Chu-bu base from September 1 affecting the following flights to: Fukuoka, Sapporo Chitose and Seoul Incheon while from October 1, the following routes out of Tokyo Narita will be affected: Okinawa Naha (1 daily service cancelled), Sapporo Chitose (reduced from 3x to 1x daily). From October 1 until its termination, AirAsia Japan will see a reduced service which includes: Tokyo Narita to Busan (1 daily), Fukuoka (2 daily), Sapporo (1 daily), Seoul Incheon (2 daily) and Taipei Taoyuan (1 daily). Announcing the dissolution of AirAsia Japan in June, the airline's 49% shareholder, Malaysia's AirAsia (AK, Kuala Lumpur Int'l) cited a "fundamental difference of opinion between its shareholders on how the business should be managed, from cost management to where the domestic business operations should be based". Majority shareholder, ANA - All Nippon Airways (NH, Tokyo Haneda), however, said the venture dissolved because "it was not well known in Japan and could not register profits" and now plans to launch a new budget brand in November.
http://www.ch-aviation.ch/portal/news/20739-airasia-japan-to-begin-winding-down-operations-from-september
Boeing Defence Australia (BDA), a local subsidiary of The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA], has taken over prime responsibility for supporting the Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) fleet from Boeing in the U.S. The move ensures a continued high level of readiness for the nation’s command and control aircraft fleet.
Through a contract modification signed by the company and the Commonwealth of Australia, BDA will now execute the E-7A Wedgetail In-Service Support Performance-Based Logistics contract, with other Boeing organizations acting as subcontractor.
“This change effectively combines Boeing’s knowledge as the original equipment manufacturer with a talented Australian team dedicated to providing the Royal Australian Air Force with low-risk, cost-efficient support for the E-7A Wedgetail,” said Shelley Lavender, vice president and general manager of Boeing Integrated Logistics.
“This is a significant step in the maturing of local industry to support this important strategic capability,” said Air Vice-Marshal Colin Thorne, Head Aerospace Systems Division in the Defence Materiel Organisation.
Based on the Boeing Next-Generation 737-700 commercial airplane, the E-7A Wedgetail AEW&C provides airborne battle management capability with an advanced multirole electronically scanned radar and the ability to track airborne and maritime targets simultaneously. The crew can direct offensive and defensive forces while maintaining continuous surveillance of the operational area.
The Australian government declared Initial Operating Capability of its six E-7A Wedgetail aircraft in 2012. It is now focused on activities to support declaration of Final Operational Capability.
Boeing Defence Australia is a leading Australian aerospace enterprise. With a world-class team of more than 1,300 employees at 15 locations throughout Australia and two international sites, Boeing Defence Australia supports some of the largest and most complex defense projects in Australia.
A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world's largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $33 billion business with 59,000 employees worldwide.
http://boeing.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=2750
Boeing and rival Airbus said Monday they would check distress beacons made by Honeywell on their planes, after the device was identified as the likely cause of a fire on a Boeing Dreamliner.
Boeing and rival Airbus said Monday they would check distress beacons made by Honeywell on their planes, after the device was identified as the likely cause of a fire on a Boeing Dreamliner.
Some 6,000 so-called emergency locator transmitters (ELT), designed to help localise the plane if it crashes, have been installed on Boeings like the 787 Dreamliner as well as Airbus aircraft, though none have been involved in a blaze before.
British authorities have recommended that the beacons on Dreamliners be disabled, after identifying the devices as the likely cause of the fire that took place on an empty Ethiopian Airlines plane in London's Heathrow on July 12. No one was injured.
But the US firm has decided to broaden the checks to all its planes, and its European rival Airbus will also inspect the beacons on its aircraft.
"Boeing is asking some companies operating 717, 737 NG, 747-400, 767 and 777 (models) to inspect their planes that are equipped with emergency locator transmitters made by Honeywell," the US giant said in a statement.
A spokeswoman for Airbus, meanwhile, said the group's records "do not show any incidents of this nature."
"However, as a precautionary measure, we will do an additional review of the integration of the device in order to determine whether there is a need to apply any lessons from the AAIB (British Air Accidents Investigation Branch) findings."
Investigators are seeking to determine whether the beacon itself caused the fire on the plane, which was parked and stationary when it happened, or whether its surroundings triggered the incident.
The blaze is a further blow to Boeing, which withdrew from service its entire fleet of Dreamliners for several months earlier this year due to separate concerns that lithium-ion batteries on board could cause fires.
In a preliminary report on the blaze, the AAIB said that detailed analysis of the beacon on the new generation plane had shown "some indications of disruption to the battery cells".
Both US and European aviation regulators have ordered airlines to remove or inspect the Honeywell-made beacons on all their 787 planes.
So far, Japan's All Nippon Airways and US firm United Airlines have found damage to the battery wirings on several 787 emergency beacons.
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/boeing-rival-airbus-to/759954.html
