Daniele romitiAgustaWestland CEO Age: 55 Birthplace: Genoa, Italy Education: Ph.D. in aeronautical engineering from Turin Polytechnic University

Cockpit- and flight-data recording comes to commercial fleets

Air Costa's big order for Embraer jets could signal that India's air transport sector is turning to secondary markets for growth

Nav Canada is close to completing the nationwide rollout of a controller-pilot data link communications (CPDLC) system that is among the most advanced uses of this technology in any domestic airspace. After deploying CPDLC to six out of seven of its domestic flight information regions (FIR) under a phased introduction, Nav Canada is progressively broadening the message sets to cover a greater range of operational needs. At the same time, the company is seeing a steady increase in airline usage and CPDLC equipage rates as carriers recognize its benefits.

Assad Kotaite, a Lebanese diplomat who served in key positions at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) for more than three decades, died Feb. 27 of cancer in Montreal. He was 89.

When Star Alliance CEO Mark Schwab announced last December that Air India had been accepted as a future member of the group, some in the country thought this could signal the turning point that the beleaguered airline had been waiting for. However, the U.S. downgrade of India's aviation safety rating in January underscored just how bumpy the road to normalcy remains.

Budget for FAA reflects the focus on near-term NextGen benefits

Qantas's urgent need to slash costs to mitigate spiraling losses has sparked one of the largest shakeups in the airline's history. While Qantas is hoping it can cut its way back to profitability, potential political and structural changes could play key roles in assisting the carrier's turnarounds.