UAE government-owned carrier Etihad Airways inaugurated its fourth destination in North America on April 1, starting daily flights between Abu Dhabi and Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. Etihad last opened a new route to North America more than three years ago by starting service to Chicago, adding to its previous launches in New York and Toronto. Emirates, the largest Middle East carrier, started service between Washington Dulles and Dubai last September.
Air Transport and Cargo
News and issues relating to international air transport and cargo carriers, national airlines and regional airlines, including aircraft, engines, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security and training.
April 8, 2013 - 11:00am
Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank, took what executives describe as an historic first step into aircraft leasing last week as it ordered 12 Boeing 737-800s. Expected to spur further financing and leasing of imported aircraft in Russia, the transaction calls for the bank’s Sberbank Leasing subsidiary to place the airplanes with Moscow-based Transaero Airlines.
April 5, 2013 - 3:33pm
Boeing took a significant step toward returning the 787 to service on Friday, when it flew Dreamliner Line Number 86 on a one-hour, 49-minute mission to demonstrate conformity of its battery system modification to U.S. certification authorities.
April 4, 2013 - 2:35pm
International Airlines Group (IAG) confirmed on Thursday that it has reached an agreement with Boeing that calls for the conversion of options on eighteen 787s to a firm order.
April 3, 2013 - 1:05am
Bombardier relies heavily on a new factory in Belfast, Northern Ireland, run by its Short Brothers subsidiary for CSeries wing production. Built with the help of £60 million ($90 million) from the UK government, the 600,000-sq-ft plant on the northwest side of Belfast City Airport’s runway specializes in new resin transfer infusion (RTI) fabrication techniques refined at other Bombardier plants in the region, in Dunmurry and Newtownabbey.
April 2, 2013 - 4:10am
The success enjoyed by outside players in providing capacity to Africa has meant regional and domestic business has assumed ever-increasing importance not just for Africa’s indigenous airlines but for the continent’s economic growth as well. The tremendous distances between population centers and the lack of convenient and reliable roads also make Africa a bumper opportunity for suppliers of regional jets with seating capacities of around 100.
April 2, 2013 - 12:20am
Hawaii’s Island Air closed the sale of the airline in late February to a newly formed holding company owned by the billionaire co-founder and CEO of Oracle, Larry Ellison. Island Air said it plans no staff changes and will continue its operations as usual while it maps out routes, airplane acquisitions and services.
April 1, 2013 - 6:00pm
Small airlines face the prospect of fines for failing to meet the European Union’s April 30 deadline for submitting carbon credits under the emissions trading scheme (ETS), according to carbon trading specialist CF Partners. Although the European Commission agreed last November to suspend the application of ETS for flights to and from points outside the EU, the cap-and-trade scheme still applies to flights between EU airports.
April 1, 2013 - 6:00pm
A plainly visible sign of progress on the Airbus A350 program emerged last week with the installation of the first pair of Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines and the new Honeywell HGT1700 auxiliary power unit at the airframer’s production facilities in Toulouse, France.
April 1, 2013 - 4:39pm
Boeing 787 Line Number 86 took off from Paine Field in Everett, Wash., at 11:19 am local time today for a “routine” test flight to address ongoing systems upgrades separate from those related to the airplane’s battery.
