Lufthansa snaps up 2 new Airbus superjumbos

Germany's largest airline, Lufthansa, will be flying two more Airbus A380 superjumbos on long-haul routes sooner than expected after snapping them up as part of an order worth about 1 billion euros at list prices.The airline, already Europe's largest customer for the 526-seater A380, was offered the additional planes at short notice.

The order includes one Airbus A330-300, which will be used on long-haul routes, four Airbus A320s and five smaller Embraer 195s for its regional fleet, with the planes to be delivered in stages from 2012.

The group will fund the planes through its own cash and external sources, such as leasing or a sale and leaseback.

"It is the latest step in our ongoing strategy of deploying a modern fleet in terms of fuel efficiency, operating costs, noise and emissions," Lufthansa said in Thursday's statement.

Also GE in the Cargolux Boeing Qatar saga for the boeing 747-8?

Industry speculation that Cargolux's 747-8F contractual wrangle with Boeing is linked to a lingering dispute between 35% shareholder Qatar Airways and the US airframer about 787 compensation is unfounded.

Sources said the dispute is more likely centred on how General Electric is handling the engine upgrades required to address performance deficits in the 747-8's GEnx-2B engines. 

Cargolux said the decision to reject the delivery of its first two 747-8s was made at a board of directors meeting on 16 September.

Speculation among some industry observers linked the move to influence from newly installed shareholder Qatar Airways and its desire to use the Cargolux delivery as a way to bring Boeing to bear regarding compensation for its 787 delivery delays. However, sources indicate that there is no dispute between Qatar Airways and Boeing in respect of 787 delay compensation. Sources point to a more likely influence being Qatar Airways' knowledge of the 747-8 performance shortfall and related compensation terms as a result of managing the purchase of two 747-8I VIP aircraft for the Qatar government. 

GE and Boeing are developing a performance improvement package (PIP) to address just over half of the 2.7% fuel burn shortfall suffered by the 747-8's GEnx-2B67. However, service-entry of the PIP is believed to be at least two years away, and there is the prospect of an additional charge with the customer being made for this PIP.

Boeing and Cargolux declined to comment on the status of the negotiations, beyond saying that they were "continuing to work" on the deliveries and were in "constructive dialogue". Qatar Airways declined to comment about the speculation regarding its influence on the talks.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) warned of tough times ahead for the airline industry and the head of Thai Airways said on Tuesday financial market turmoil as the European and U.S. economies slow down was "frightening."

IATA Director General and Chief Executive Tony Tyler also said the European Union's carbon emission trading system would add to the financial pressures on airlines despite an offer of free permits, which he criticized as "linguistic gymnastics."

IATA has already warned that a weak global economy would prompt a 29-percent fall in airline profits in 2012 and cut the industry's profit margins to a wafer thin 0.8 percent from 1.2 percent this year.

There is so much uncertainty over the world economy, obviously in Europe and United States," Tyler said at a media briefing.

IATA, whose 230 members carry more than 93 percent of scheduled international air traffic, forecast global economic growth of 2.4 percent in 2012, lower than the International Monetary Fund's projection of 4.0 percent "We are not seeing a recession," said Tyler. Still, global growth is closely tied to the financial performance of airlines. Whenever growth slipped below 2 percent, the airline industry has lost money, IATA says. IATA forecasts industry profits in 2012 will fall 29 percent to $4.9 billion from $6.9 billion this year. Volatility in financial markets in the past week has put more pressure on the aviation industry.

"The recent market meltdown is really frightening," said Thai Airways International President Piyasvasti Amranand. "Economies in Europe and the United States are really slowing down," he said.

"Obviously this has an impact on all airlines flying to Europe. Unfortunately Europe accounts for 37 percent of our passengers per kilometer. We rely very heavily on Europe." Stagnating cargo flows in recent months also pointed to weaker markets going forward into next year, IATA said.

"Generally speaking, cargo performance has often been a leading indicator of the passenger side of things so there are good reasons to be cautious about the outlook for passenger traffic over the next few months," Tyler added.

Some airlines have warned that profits will be affected by carbon permit costs as the aviation sector is scheduled to join the European Union's emissions trading scheme (ETS) from January next year.

"Europe's plans contravene international law with extra-territorial application of taxes," Tyler said. He described the European Union's announcement on Monday to give airlines 85 percent of their required carbon emission permits for free in 2012, the first year the sector is included in its emission trading system (ETS), as an example of linguistic gymnastics. "The fact is they add the cost in the industry in a way that is unhelpful, unproductive," he said.

The European Union will require all airlines flying into or out of the 27-nation bloc to be include in the scheme that forces polluters to buy permits for each tonne of carbon dioxide they emit above a certain cap.

(Via REUTERS)

Russian carrier UTair Aviation has signed an order for 40 Boeing Next-Generation 737s.

The order is comprised of seven Boeing 737-900ERs and 33 Boeing 737-800s. UTair Aviation announced  at the 2011 Paris Air Show that it would order the 40 Boeing 737NGs. Boeing values the order at $3.8 billion at list prices.

Women in the sky.

Women have been impacting the history of aviation since the first hot air balloon crested the horizon, yet their accomplishments have gained little recognition in the memories of people worldwide. 

Throughout history, women have routinely faced obstacles along the road to aviation success. Since the first woman tried to go up in the first aircraft built, women aviators have been looked upon as a novelty at best, inferior at worst. Nevertheless, women viewed this male-dominated field with a sense of  adventure and a willingness to rise to the challenge. The generalized lack of familiarity of aviation career opportunities remains the single most prominent barrier to diversifying the aviation workforce today. But that¹s not to say women haven't faced other problems throughout their struggle to be seen as successful aviators.

The opinion that great muscular strength was a necessity to fly an airplane has long since been dispelled. Women during World War II met this challenge with ingenuity, and it was later found that during emergency situations, the burst of adrenaline women experienced allowed them to do whatever was necessary, regardless of strength or size.

Another problem women faced was a lack of money. In 1940, women¹s incomes averaged $850 a year and it cost $750 for a pilot¹s license. In general, for a wife taking flying lessons in 1940, the husband would have had to relinquish half of his annual salary. The economic factor continues to be an obstacle - the cost of tools and lessons has discouraged many women from attempting to pursue their dreams. Nevertheless, despite these obstacles, women have challenged the field of aviation to accept them and watch them succeed. Succeed they have, and succeed they will continue to do!

Today, women pilots fly for the airlines, fly in the military and in space, fly air races, command helicopter mercy flights, haul freight, stock high mountain lakes with fish, seed clouds, patrol pipelines, teach students to fly, maintain jet engines, and transport corporate officers.

Amelia Earhart

If we think who is the most important woman pilot we think of Amelia Earhart, but not everyone knows that Women have made a significant contribution to aviation since the Wright Brothers' first 12-second flight in 1903. Blanche Scott was the first women pilot, in 1910, when the plane that she was allowed to taxi mysteriously became airborne. In 1911, Harriet Quimby became the first licensed woman pilot. And later in 1912, Harriet became the first women to fly across the English Channel.

Bessie Coleman became the first African-American woman pilot in 1921. Because of the discrimination in the United States towards women as pilots, Bessie moved to France and learned to fly at the most famous flight school in France, the Ecole d'Aviation de Freres Caudron. Bessie returned to the United States and pursed a barnstorming career until 1926.

Blanche Scott

Katherine Chngeu, in 1931 in Los Angeles, CA was the first woman of Chinese ancestry to earn a license. Anne Morrow Lindbergh, wife of Charles Lindbergh, was the first U.S. woman glider pilot and first woman recipient of the National Geographic Society's Hubbad Award. And, Phoebe Fairgrave Omelie was the first woman transport pilot. Phoebe, considered to be one of America's top women pilots in the 1920s and 1930s, developed a program for training women flight instructors and was appointed as Special Assistant for Air Intelligence of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (the forerunner of the NASA), and was active in the National Air Marking and Mapping program to paint airport identification symbols on airports or nearby buildings.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Willa Brown was the first African-American commercial pilot and first African-American woman officer in the Civil Air Patrol. In her hometown of Chicago, IL, she taught aviation courses in high schools and founded a flight school at Harlem Airport. In 1939, Willa helped form the National Airmen's Association of America whose purpose was to get African-Americans into the U.S. Armed Forces as aviation cadets. Willa also was the coordinator of war-training service for the Civil Aeronautics Authority (CAA), and more importantly, was the director of the Coffey School of Aeronautics. The school was selected by the Army and CAA to "conduct the experiments" that resulted in the admission of African-Americans into the Army Air Forces. Later, Coffey became a feeder school for the Army Air Forces' program for African-American aviators at Tuskegee Institute.

Most women who learned to fly during World War II, got instruction through the CAA's Civil Pilot Training Program. More than 935 women gained their licenses by in 1941 with 43 serving as CAA-qualified instructors. Mills College in Oakland, CA was one of the participating training colleges for women.

As World War II progressed, women were able to break into many aspects of the aviation world. They served as ferry and test pilots, mechanics, flight controllers, instructors, and aircraft production line workers. At the beginning of 1943, 31.3 percent of the aviation work force were women. World War II was very beneficial to the movement of women into aviation fields. The history of aviation during these years is immense.

 Nancy Harkness Love

The Women's Auxiliary Ferry Squadron (WAFS), founded by Nancy Harkness Love, and the Women's Flying Training Detachment (WFTD), founded by Jacqueline Cochran, were fused together by President Roosevelt to become the Women's Airforce Service Pilots (WASP). The new organization was a vital part of the history of women in military aviation. Although these women were civilians and outnumbered by women in the regular military service of World War II, their experiences present a paradigm for the service of WWII military women. 

The years since World War II have brought down many more barriers for women pilots and records continue to be broken. Jackie Cochran went on to be the first woman pilot to break the sound barrier, with Chuck Yeager acting as her chase pilot, on May 20, 1953.

Geraldine Cobb

Women got their first step closer to space in 1959, when Geraldine Cobb, a talented young pilot, became the first woman to undergo the Mercury astronaut physiological tests. "Jerrie" was 28 years old, had 7,000 hours of flight time, and held three world records. Cobb successfully completed all three stages of the physical and psychological tests that were used to select the original seven Mercury astronauts. Although thirteen women finished this first round of testing, NASA refused to authorize the completion of the tests for fear that such action might be taken as approval of female astronauts.

Valentina Tereshkova

Not even the Soviet Union's launch of Valentina Tereshkova into space in 1963, nor the 1964 Civil Rights Act broke ground for women in space. It was not until June 17, 1983, that Dr. Sally Kristen Ride, NASA astronaut and a South Central Section 99, made history as the first U.S. woman in space, serving as a specialist for STS-7 on the six-day flight of the orbiter Challenger. In 1995, the first woman pilot in the U.S. Space Shuttle program was Lt. Col. Eileen Marie Collins.

 Lt. Col. Eileen Marie Collins

there have been other women pilot less known but that have achieved a lot of important succes for their career, and their life.

People become pilots for the same reasons. First, they love flying, and they love using their talents and being respected for them. And mostly, they love the feeling of belonging to this strong family called aviation, and women have earned the right to belong to this family.

New battleground for Boeing and Airbus to sell narrowbody airplanes. United Airlines as the world's biggest airline mulls an order could reach 200 planes.

Bagging the entire order from United Airlines, a unit of the newly merged United Continental Holdings Inc, would be a major coup for the victor. An order for 200 single-aisle planes is potentially worth about $18 billion at Boeing and Airbus list prices.Discussions are still at the early stages. But industry sources familiar with preliminary soundings expect United to place an order to refresh its fleet late this year or early next year."They (United Continental) are looking at it," said one of the sources. "Airbus and Boeing are getting ready. (United) sees the timing as good, just like the other guys."Another top industry source said United's order could be "something like 100 or 200 (planes), but less than American," referring to a recent order for 460 single-aisle planes worth up to $40 billion from AMR Corp's American Airlines.Some U.S. airlines, newly stabilized after a years-long industry downturn, are updating their narrowbody fleets, mostly comprising Boeing 737s and Airbus A320s, with newer planes to help blunt the impact of soaring fuel costs."United has the newest and most fuel-efficient fleet among the network carriers, and we have regular, ongoing communications with manufacturers," said United Continental spokesman Mike Trevino. He declined to comment on prospects for an order in the near future.Boeing and Airbus also declined to comment on talks with United Continental. 

So far this year, the world's dominant plane-makers have slugged it out for sales to American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, which ordered 100 Boeing Next-Generation 737-900ER airplanes valued at $8.5 billion last month.U.S.-based Boeing and the European Airbus now offer versions of their best-selling narrowbodies with new fuel-efficient engines. The newer models, which are still in development, are dubbed the 737 MAX and the A320neo and will not be ready for commercial service for several years.Boeing decided in July to outfit its 737s with newer, more fuel-efficient engines in order to capture part of the huge order from American Airlines, which formerly was an all-Boeing customer. The airline ordered 260 Airbus planes and 200 Boeing planes.The move was seen as a victory for Airbus, a unit of Europe's EADS, as it attempts to poach more of Boeing's narrowbody customers in its home country.Boeing had previously said it was leaning toward a full redesign of its best-selling 737. Redesigning the plane would have taken longer but could have provided greater fuel savings than the re-engined version.United Continental Chief Executive Jeff Smisek told Reuters in May he was willing to wait for a redesigned narrowbody.It was unknown if United is likely to order re-engined planes. The carrier could award the dealentirely to one plane maker or split the order between the two.Founded four decades ago, France-based Airbus pulled off one of its earliest and most unexpected market coups by selling 100 jets to United Airlines in 1992. Now the airline is set to be the focus of the $80 billion-a-year aircraft industry once again.United Continental, which has a narrowbody fleet of about 550 Boeing and Airbus planes, formed last year from a $3.17 billion merger of United Airlines and Continental Airlines. The carriers still operate separately while they complete their integration.The company has 125 firm commitments to purchase new aircraft: 50 Boeing 737s, 50 Boeing 787s and 25 Airbus A350s. United Continental also has purchase options for 42 Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft.United and Boeing have a shared history, both being founded by William Boeing. United Air Lines and Boeing Airplane Company were both subsidiaries of United Aircraft and Transport Company before it was broken up in 1934. Airbus overtook Boeing as the world's largest jetliner-maker in 2003.

First 787 for ANA rolls out

Go inside the 1st ANA Boeing 787 that will enter commercial service

New seats on ANA's 787 Economy class

Economy class passengers rarely think of having much “personal space,” but the seating that All Nippon Airways is introducing on its 787-8s may change their mind. At least a little bit. ANA selected a seat from Sicma Aerospace that does not recline. Rather than the seat back tilting back when a passenger pushes the recline button, the bottom slides forward a maximum 3 inches. The advantage of this configuration, says Boeing Services & Support Vice President Mike Fleming, is “that only you control your personal space.”

This means a passenger in front of you cannot snap your laptop or upset your meal tray if you because he suddenly reclines his seat. The downside for tall passengers is that when they recline forward, rather than gaining space going backwards they gain it by shoving their knees toward the seat in front of them. “Ouch” for the very tall. But in ANA’s defense, it is offering a generous 34-in. pitch between the seats, so even with the 3-in. slide the distance to the next seat will not be more than the 31-in. pitch that is common in economy for many carriers.

Another feature of the economy class seats: When the seat is inclined forward, a tiny bar indicator on the side of the seat that is visible from the aisle turns red. The indicator is so discrete that many passengers may not notice it. But flight attendants will. They can tell at a glance whose seat has not been placed upright for takeoff or landing.When the seat is properly upright, the bar is green.

Boeing says the 787-8 is wide enough for nine-abreast seating, which most carriers configure in a 3-3-3 arrangement. ANA seats eight abreast in a 2-4-2 configuration. For its domestic routes, ANA is flying just 12 passengers in business. There are 252 seats in coach. At 264 total seats, the ANA 787-8 is slightly above the 250-seat top end of Boeing’s nominal seating range.

For long haul flights, there will be 46 business class seats and 112 in economy. The short-haul business class seating is in a standard six-across configuration. But for long-haul flights, the seats are staggered and can recline to a flat bed.

The cockpit of the 787 offers pilots the Electronic Flight Bag so they don't have to lug heavy flight charts around. Now, ANA says it will use iPADS in the same way for training its flight attendants. It has ordered 6,000 of them. Imagine the delight of the Apple store clerk who took that order! ANA says a single iPad, which weighs 0.7 kilograms (1.5 lb.), can store the equivalent of three training manuals weight 2.2 kilograms (nearly 5 lb.). 

Flight training manuals may be updated as often as three times a year. Using iPADS means the upgrades do not have to be printed off and distributed; they can simply be electronically transmitted to the iPAD.

Celebrating 80 years of KLM flying to Rome

From September 24 to 26 we celebrated 80 years of KLM flying to Rome with special flights in a vintage Dakota DC-3 aircraft. . To honour this momentous occasion, KLM is giving you the chance to re-live history by following the journey of an original Dakota DC-3 aircraft.

Revive the golden days and travel in the same style and luxury as passengers in the pioneering age of aviation. KLM led the way in modern European aviation, offering customers comfort on board and reliable flights in Europe, the Far East and beyond.

The Royal KLM Dakota PH-PBA, livery of the Fifties, was built in 1944. She was in service with the 8th Air Force during the Second World War and was flown in Operation Market Garden. After the war the aircraft was acquired by his Royal Highness Prince Bernhard, Prince of the Netherlands and later became the first official aircraft of the Dutch government. After retirement in 1975 the aircraft became part of the collection of the Aviodrome museum. It was put back in service in 1998 and it has been flying ever since. In 2010 she received her current historic KLM colour scheme and was christened ‘Princes Amalia’, after Prince Bernhard’s great grandchild, the second in line of succession to the Dutch throne.

Facts and figures

• DC3 Dakota PH-PBA Princes Amalia
• Cabin configuration 18 Royal class seats (alternatively DDA’s other Dakota seats 25 passengers)
• Operation within Europe
• Cruising speed 130 knots
• Cruising altitude between 1500-10000ft (500meter-3500m)

Still problems for Boeing 
Atlas Air cancels three 747-8Fs

Boeing's 747-8 freighter program was dealt another blow Thursday when Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings canceled three of the 12 -8Fs it had on order, citing "lengthy delays and performance considerations."

Coming on the heels of Cargolux's  surprising decision to decline delivery of the first two 747-8Fs. Atlas, move raises more questions about the aircraft's operating performance. A Cargolux executive said the -8F had an "overall performance shortfall," but there has been wide speculation that Qatar Airways, which holds a 35% stake in Cargolux, played a strong role in the delivery deferral, in part to express its dissatisfaction with Boeing over 787 delays.

Atlas Air said it now expects to receive three 747-8Fs in 2011, four in 2012 and two in 2013. The first five already have been placed under long-term ACMI contracts with British Airways (three) and Panalpina (two).

Atlas Air  President stated, "As prudent asset managers, terminating the first three aircraft was the right decision for our fleet, our customers and our stockholders. We expect the remaining 747-8Fs in our order to be better-performing aircraft than those we have terminated."

By the end of 2013,Atlas Air cargo fleet is expected to comprise nine 747-8Fs and 24 747-400Fs. It plans to retire its last five 747-200Fs by mid-2012.

US Airways remains leader in NextGen

US Airways remains committed to being a leader in NextGen, the US effort to establish a new-technology air traffic management system.

US Airways flight technical operations captain Brian Townsend told attendees at the Avionics for NextGen Conference Sept. 13 that the carrier "remains focused as a NextGen leader.”

The airline has been performing trials using Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) technology in 20 Airbus A330s and two simulators, at its hub at Philadelphia International Airport, under a five-year FAA/ACSS memorandum of agreement.

"One of the advantages for selecting A330s is that we are able to train all the pilots on the ADS-B applications. It is now capturing the numbers on performance based navigation and the company is pleased with what they're seeing", Townsend said.

Townsend said the next steps will be to make certain that standards and requirements are well thought out and established, to find a viable mechanism or path that permits early equipage, and be willing to take incremental steps."It's not a revolution, it's an evolution," he said.

Some of the "low-hanging fruit" which may be easier to "pick" at first, he said may be CDTI Assisted Visual Separation/CDTI-Enhanced Delegated Separation (CAVS/CEDS), as there would be little or no change to current visual operations and phraseology. "CAVS/CEDS has the potential to provide early benefits and establish a foundation for ADS-B."

Bombardier to lower CRJ production

Bombardier said "current market demand" drove its decision to cut CRJ production rates starting in January, an acknowledgement of slowing regional jet sales.

The Canadian manufacturer said it is still on track to deliver 90 commercial aircraft (a mix of CRJs and Q400s) this year and emphasized that the production cut will not necessitate any layoffs, only transfers of personnel. Bombardier delivered 97 commercial aircraft, including the first nine CRJ1000s, during its fiscal year ended Jan. 31. That represented a 19.8% decrease from 121 commercial units delivered in the prior fiscal year.

Regarding the CRJ production cut, Bombardier Aerospace president and COO Guy Hachey said in a statement, "Although several sales campaigns for our CRJ aircraft are making progress and the long-term prospects for the CRJ program remain positive, the reduced pace of orders has made a review of our production plans necessary. For these reasons and after careful consideration, a CRJ aircraft production decrease is warranted in the short term."

EUROPEAN LOW-COST

ELFAA, the European Low Fare Airline Association, has commissioned a research to York Aviation, a consulting agency, which purports to prove that low-cost companies will overtake legacy airlines by 2020.

Considering all flights within Europe, the share of low-cost passenger will grow from the current 38% to 55% in 2020. 

but considering just point-to-point flights, and not feeder flights to a hub, a segment in which low-cost don't compete, their share will grow from 43% to 60%.

This study considered both the nine companies member of ELFAA and also seven others one. The trend of growth was considered conservatively, as many companies are now consolidating their business model.

In the period 2005 to 2010, the average growth was 14% per year, while in the same period, legacy companies increased their offer of seats by 0.6%.

In that same time, the share of ELFAA members grew from 16% to 28%. In regard to the actual number of passengers, thanks to the higher load factor of low-cost, this grew from 24% to 38%.

The predictions of this research are based on the Global Market 

outlook by Airbus, with limitations considering the current maturity of carries such as Ryanair and Easyjet. This is the basic scenario prediction, according to which ELFAA companies will increase their offer of seats by 72% in the coming ten years, the others low-cost by 68% and legacy airlines by just 27%.

In the scenario if higher growth, the ELFAA companies will increase their capacity by 108%, against 84% of the other low-cost and 10% of traditional companies, their share of the market would grow from 45 to 49%.

The same two scenarios, considering the actual number of passengers, predict, in the basic scenario, low-cost increasing their passengers share from 38% to 45% in 2020, in the higher scenario, from 38% to 53% and possibly forcing the data, this research affirms that in point-to-point flights low-cost companies will attain either 50% or 60% of the market.

Supersonic jets: return to the past? 

The EADS prototype reached a speed of 5,000 km per hour and linking Paris and Tokyo in 2 hours and a half

European aircraft consortium EADS owner of the aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of Airbus,  present at the last  Le Bourget Air Show, announced the project a supersonic aircraft capable of linking Paris and Tokyo in two hours, compared to eleven today.

For now, only the manufacturer will unveil the model of future aircraft , which aims to fly in 2050 and will be capable of reaching 5,000 kilometers hour , more than four times the speed of sound, with low exhaust emissions pollutants through the use of biofuels. 

EADS says the new supersonic model of which will be presented eight years after he left to fly the Concorde, the latest draft of commercial apparatus capable of breaking the sound barrier , you can transport 60 to a hundred passengers, compared to 120 in its predecessor. Dubbed  ZEHST (Zero Emisssion Hypersonic Transportation),

Along with his extraordinary performance of Speeddouble the Concorde , responsible for the project include low emission levels, thanks to the use of biofuels, hydrogen and oxygen. In addition, ensure that  , about 32 kilometers , compared with 11 miles of today’s commercial flights or 18 of the previous supersonic. 

The aircraft will take off in a conventional manner by two turbojet fed biofuel made from marine algae. Once reached the 5 km altitude, three engines powered by a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen will take over, aided by a third reactor designed from the technology used in the Ariane rockets. The plane then achieved a speed 2.5 times that of sound, most of which achieved the Concorde.

But when the unit reaches 23 miles high, five miles more than achieved the legendary supersonic jets coming online that will reach 5,000 kilometers per hour, the cruising speed of the device. Landing powered by turbojets. Funding for the project will require European support within a community program to reduce pollution.

hour and a half

EADS considers that the plane will target businessmen and the ticket prices will be about 6,000 U  8,000 euros for a journey between Paris and  , which made hour and a half , compared to nearly eight current or the three required by the Concorde.

KLM launches commercial flights Amsterdam – Paris on biofuel

737/900 engine powered by biofuel

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has taken another important step in aviation sustainability. In September KLM will launch more than 200 flights being operated on biokerosene between Amsterdam and Paris. “KLM has once again shown it is stimulating the development of biokerosene”, according to managing director Camiel Eurlings. “In November 2009 we demonstrated that it was technically possible to fly on biokerosene. Now, a year and a half after our first demonstration flight on Camelina, a new phase has been entered around the world, that of certification. Authorisation will soon be granted to operate commercial flights on biofuel. I am especially proud to announce that KLM will take this substantial step in September”.

The fuel is produced by Dynamic Fuels and supplied by SkyNRG, the consortium launched by KLM and North Sea Group and Spring Associates in 2009. SkyNRG is actively developing a sustainable production chain for aviation biofuels.

KLM has been committed to developing sustainable biofuel since 2007. Air France KLM is also an industry leader in the field of fuel efficiency. Air France KLM has been sector leader of de Dow Jones Sustainability Index for six successive years.

Continues the expansion of Delta Air Lines  terminal T4 at JFK

”Delta’s expanded and enhanced Terminal 4 at JFK will provide a modern international gateway for millions of travelers and accommodate future growth for Delta in New York,” said Gail Grimmett, Delta’s senior vice president for New York. 

Delta's Terminal T4 at JFK. Future drop-off

The Concourse B extension will include one of the largest Sky Clubs in the Delta system, as well as nine new international gates, for a total of 16 the airline will occupy. The project will improve passenger flow by adding more capacity at check-in areas and 

security checkpoints.

Delta's Terminal T4 at JFK. Future International Gate

The state-of-the-art facilities also will feature a new automated baggage handling system and larger shopping and dining areas post-security. The project expands baggage claim and Customs and Border Protection areas to speed fliers through the airport. Delta jets will see faster taxi times with the addition of dual taxiways, improving on-time performance.

Delta is the largest airline in the state of New York serving 11 communities with 439 daily departures. The carrier employs more than 7,000 people in the State of New York.

Today, Delta’s domestic flights use Terminal 2 while international flights use Terminal 3. The expansion of Terminal 4 will replace the more than 

Delta's Terminal T4 at JFK. Future Lobby

50-year-old Terminal 3, improving the customer experience for 11 million passengers Delta carries to and from JFK annually.

Delta has added more than 30 international routes from JFK since 2006, and the expanded terminal will allow for future growth. Today, Delta’s JFK hub has more than 192 peak-day departures from 43 gates to 94 destinations, including 47 international cities. Delta also is the only airline to serve five continents nonstop from New York (North America, South America, Asia, Europe and Africa).

Delta already has invested more than $70 million in its JFK hub over the last few years.

Boeing will be able to convince quatar airways in order to release the sale of its 787-8 to cargolux?

The dispute will further push back the debut of the Boeing 747-8 freighter jet, which has seen a two-year, $20.4bn delay

The carrier, which is 35 percent owned by Qatar Airways, was scheduled to fly its first load of freight on the new plane out of Seattle that same day.

The clash mars the arrival of the newest and biggest version of the jumbo jet that, with its iconic hump, has been Boeing’s marquis model since its inception in the 1960s. It also comes after numerous struggles at the company, including a three-year setback to its 787 Dreamliner, inroads into its customer base by Airbus SAS and a shift in its new-jet strategy.

“It’s horrendous,” said Ken Herbert, an analyst with Wedbush Securities in San Francisco, in an interview. “Just when you finally thought they were going to turn the corner, this happens.”

The 747-8 freighter won certification last month from the US Federal Aviation Administration to enter commercial service, capping a two-year, $2.04bn delay for Boeing’s biggest plane ever. Luxembourg-based Cargolux was to be the first to receive the jumbo jets, which feature new engines and a stretched upper deck and wings.

 “We continue to work with Cargolux and look forward to delivering its airplanes,” Boeing’s Proulx said yesterday from Everett, Washington, where the planes are built.

Martine Scheuren, a spokeswoman for Cargolux, declined to comment.

Trials continue on the 747-8 Intercontinental passenger model as crews test different systems than on the freighter, including climate control and airflow balancing. The first version of that plane is due to be delivered by the end of this year, and the model is scheduled to begin commercial service in early 2012 with Deutsche Lufthansa AG. (LHA)

The 467-seat, $317.5m 747-8 Intercontinental competes with Airbus’s 525-seat A380, which entered service in 2007, while the $319.3m freighter has no commercial rival. Boeing has 114 orders for the plane.

In July, Boeing abandoned its preference to develop an all- new, narrow body jet and said it would instead offer new engines on the current 737. That mirrored a similar move by Airbus the year before that had helped the European planemaker rack up more than 1,000 orders for its upgraded A320neo in seven months.

The decision came as Airbus broke an exclusive arrangement between Boeing and American Airlines dating back to 1987 by selling A320neo’s to American. Boeing announced the following month that it was replacing its top salesman.

“Clearly, there’s leadership issues all across the board,” Herbert said. “It’s been a very difficult couple of years. There’s so much capital on the sidelines waiting to get into the stock, and they just need to deliver these airplanes, but it’s always ‘next month, next month.’”

Update: Cargolux 747-8F dispute linked to late Qatar 787 deliveries
Compensation Issues between Qatar Airways (35% of the shareholders of cargo carriers)and Boeing are the basis of Cargolux's Refusal to accept delivery first Boeing 747-8F

Delivery delayed first  Cargolux 747-8 freighter.

Cargolux has informed Boeing it will not take delivery of its first 747-8 freighter on Monday as planned, due to a contractual tussle, the airframer confirms.

The official statement from Boeing:

Due to unresolved issues with Cargolux, delivery of the first Boeing 747-8 Freighter will not take place on Monday, Sept. 19. We continue to work with Cargolux and look forward to delivering its airplanes.

Vice president of Boeing Commercial Airplanes Marketing, Randy Tinseth, posted on his company blog about the delay:

We still need to work through some contractual issues with our customer Cargolux, so first delivery won't take place as scheduled on Monday. Employee and media events for next week have also been postponed.