Australia’s competition watchdog has given final approval to Qantas’s partnership with American Airlines on trans-Pacific routes. The green light from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) leaves the two oneworld alliance members waiting for the US Department of Transportation (DOT) to hand down its decision on the tie-up. The ACCC said in a statement on Thurs...
Its struggling A380 superjumbo finally got a new customer too. Airbus Group performed a partial U-turn on plans to cut production of its profitable A330 aircraft on Wednesday, easing the delicate transition to a newer model as it posted 2015 profits in line with expectations on Wednesday. The European planemaker said it now planned to build seven A330 wide-body jets per month from 2017, part...
Japan is developing an indigenous stealth fighter jet, the X-2, which completed a ground test Wednesday, according to local reports. The X-2, a tactical fighter aircraft, went through two ground tests, speeding at about 100 kilometers per hour across 500 meters of runway at an airport in Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, NHK reported. The fighter jet is scheduled for a flight test in March. Jap...
After months of denial, Egypt has finally admitted that the Russian airliner downed in the Sinai last year was indeed targeted by terrorists. In a speech on Egyptian television Wednesday, former military general turned President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said the plane was attacked to damage Egypt's tourist sector and harm its relationship with Russia. &qu...
A team of Nevada scientists and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) engineers have successfully flight tested the first-ever autonomous cloud seeding aircraft platform. Cloud seeding flare tests were deployed from Drone America's DAx8 UAS aircraft flown in Reno in early February. As the first phase in a new industry-academic research partnership between the Desert Research Institute (DRI), D...
The UN’s aviation agency has banned passenger aircraft from transporting lithium-ion batteries as cargo, amid fears that they could blow up. Lithium-ion batteries are used in almost every piece of consumer technology. They are rechargeable and power everything from phones to laptops. But despite their wide use, the International Civil Aviation Organization has ruled that the batteries...
Just as the US is continuing todevelop its latest fifth-generation aircraft in the form of the F-35 Lightning II, Russia has likewise been working steadily towards its own version of a next-generation aircraft. Unfortunately for Russia, its PAK FA, also known as the T-50, is having developmental issues that put its entire premise of being a fifth-generation into question. Reporting from the...
The agreement gives corporate travel agencies across Europe continued access to easyJet fares through the Sabre GDS. Around 20 per cent of easyJet’s passengers travel for business. The airline’s agreement with Sabre helps easyJet continue serving this important corporate segment. Peter Duffy, easyJet’s commercial director, said; “easyJet made its inventory availa...
A new chapter in EU-China aviation relations started, with the official launch of the EU-China Aviation Partnership Project (APP). The 5-year, €10 million project, managed by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and partners, will link technical cooperation with policy dialogue between the European and Chinese aviation authorities. It is funded by the Partnership Instrument of the Europ...
Lufthansa’s first Airbus A380, the “Frankfurt am Main” with tailsign D-AIMA, recently completed a major overhaul involving 90,000 working hours and a two-month layover. Encompassing two passenger decks and a total of 509 seats in four classes, D-AIMA underwent its Intermediate Layover or “IL-check” at Lufthansa Technik Philippines. The aircraf...
Airbus has reached another A350 XWB programme milestone with start-up of A350-1000 horizontal tail plane deliveries from the company’s Getafe, Spain facility. The initial A350-1000 horizontal tail plane will be integrated on Airbus’ no. 1 flight test aircraft, which currently is going through its final assembly process in Toulouse, France, as per planning. Commenting on...
Norwegian took delivery of its first 787-9 Dreamliner. “This marks our continued commitment to the company’s global expansion ensuring travellers across that world access to high quality flights at a low fare,” Norwegian’s CEO Bjørn Kjos said. Norwegian already operates eight 787-8s and will use its 787-9s to launch new routes across North America, South...
