Bell Helicopter Textron is scouting the Indian aviation market for a local partner to facilitate its operations in the country. The company's managing director, Mike Robbins, visited India last month as a member of a delegation of U.S. businessmen. Bell Helicopter has a 50% market share in the global helicopter market, where about 500 helicopters are sold each year.
DOT has asked U.S. certificated carriers to apply by Nov. 29 for U.S.-India code-share service under an agreement that was signed last December and becomes effective April 1, 1997. The U.S. can designate four U.S. airlines to serve India with cooperative agreements with third-country airlines. The routes served may be from the U.S.
Emirates ordered 16 A330-200s and placed options on another seven, Airbus Industrie said yesterday. An engine selection has not yet been made. The aircraft will replace A300-600 and A310 aircraft. The UAE carrier will begin receiving the A330s in January 1999, and all are to be delivered by mid-2002. Emirates next year will begin taking delivery of four more Boeing 777s that will join three in service.
Airline operators of the hundreds of 737s in the U.S. fleet said yesterday they are complying with orders from FAA and a service bulletin from Boeing to check rudder systems to avoid possible loss of control of the aircraft (DAILY, Nov. 4).
FAA has scheduled a public meeting Dec. 3 to discuss its new certification policy on flight control jams. The agency intends to issued standardized methods to show compliance with the requirements for flight control jams in the "normally encountered" position under Part 25.671(c)(3). FAA also is soliciting data on surface deflections normally encountered during all phases of flight. The meeting is planned for 8:30 a.m. Dec. 3 at the Holiday Inn Sea-Tac International Airport.
ValuJet Airlines and its holding company, ValuJet Inc., have shifted their management structure, effective tomorrow, and have hired former Continental and TWA executive Joseph Corr to run the airline. Lewis Jordan will become chairman of the airline and retain his position as president and chief operating officer of the holding company, which was created in October 1995.
American posted a 2.9 percentage-point gain in load factor in October, due solely to a much sharper decline in capacity than revenue passenger miles flown. RPMs fell 1% in October, but capacity dropped 5.2% systemwide. American boarded 0.9% fewer passengers during the month. Systemwide load factor improved to 69% from 66.1%. Domestic RPMs rose 0.5% on 4.8% less capacity. Latin American RPMs were up 1.9% on 2.1% less capacity. Atlantic RPMs dropped 9.1%, on 10.7% less capacity, and Pacific traffic fell 5.8% on 5% less capacity.
South African Airways and American Eagle have begun code sharing on flights between Johannesburg and Boston, Philadelphia and Washington National through New York. The code share service is an extension of the agreement between American and SAA.
Ivex Corp. and Silicon Graphics plan to develop a "high-end" image generator for the flight simulation and training market. The two companies target FAA Level D visual requirements as the initial objective.
Delta Express on Friday, one month after starting operation, added seven daily frequencies to Orlando from six cities. Two of the new flights operate from Columbus, and one each from Hartford/Springfield, Boston, Newark, Philadelphia and West Palm Beach.
A Chinese member of the U.K.-Chinese committee overseeing development of Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok Airport called last week for an assessment of the project aimed at completing it within budget, on schedule and free of problems. The official, Hu Houcheng, told the chairman and members of the airport committee's parent organization, the Sino-British Joint Liaison Group, that a continuing examination of issues concerning the new airport is of great importance to the project. Although administrative and political control of Hong Kong will not pass from the U.K.
"Last Minute Travel Bargains" is the newest offering on the World Wide Web site for American Express. Users will find heavily discounted international and domestic airline flights, cruises, hotel packages and inclusive vacations, the company said. The site is at http://www.americanexpress.com/travel. Access to the list of travel bargains is free. To make reservations, users will be instructed to call a toll-free number for American Express Travel.
Fuel Cost and Consumption U.S. Majors, Nationals and Large Regionals August 1995 - September 1996 Total Total Cost Gallons (Dollars) 1995 October Domestic 1,079,673,756 608,345,453 International 379,539,054 227,746,183 System Total 1,459,212,810 836,091,636
TWA named David Kennedy, former chief executive of Aer Lingus, to its board, filling the last vacancy on the 15-member board. He also is a past president of IATA, and is an aviation consultant to the World Bank.
Conde Nast Traveler readers have voted Sun Valley, Idaho, the premier ski resort among 160 facilities in Canada, Europe and the U.S. The resorts were ranked on terrain, lifts and lines, ski staff, accommodations, food and activities.
Cathay Pacific Airways has ordered three more A340-300s for delivery in 1998 and use on routes between Hong Kong and Europe, North America and selected Asian points. It now has firm orders for nine A340-300s.
Steve Brown has been named chairman of the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee and Robert Robeson will be vice chairman. Brown, senior VP- government affairs of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, succeeds Sarah Macleod, executive director of the Aeronautical Repair Association, in the one-year post. ARAC, comprising representatives of 64 organizations with aviation interests, advises FAA on aviation rulemaking issues.
American is looking at two long-range aircraft types, the Boeing 777 and the Airbus Industrie A340, confirms Robert Baker, executive VP-operations. American still does not want 747s, which are "too big for our purposes," Baker says. Orders still hinge on a new contract with pilots, expected in mid-December.
Terry Stinson, president of Textron Inc.'s Aerospace Systems and Components business unit, will become president and chief executive of Bell Helicopter Textron in January, the company said. He succeeds Lloyd Shoppa, who is retiring but will stay with Bell through August to help in Stinson's transition.
The Visit USA Committees of Germany, Costa Rica and Belgium have been granted recognition as official U.S. National Tourism Organization Visit USA Committees devoted to promoting travel to the U.S. Committees in nine others - Canada, Ecuador, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Peru and the U.K.- already were recognized. USA NTO Interim President Edward Book said the committees give U.S. suppliers a point of contact in the participating country.
Air Transport Association named Steven Ross director-international programs. American Society of Travel Agents appointed Eric Ardolino president of ASTA Marketing Services.
Boeing is putting a model of its proposed 747-500X derivative through 1,000 hours of wind tunnel testing in the U.S. and England to help engineers evaluate the performance of a new, larger wing, which it also is developing for the 747-600X. Low-speed tests are being conducted at the Defense Research Agency in Farnborough, England, and high-speed tests are under way at the Arnold Engineering Development Center in Tullahoma, Tenn. Boeing has shut down its own wind tunnel to replace the main engine.
Passengers on United's domestic flights will have a broader selection of beverages based on customer surveys and suggestions by flight attendants. It has added Snapple lemon iced tea, Snapple kiwi-strawberry cocktail, skim milk, cranberry juice and grapefruit juice. The carrier serves 80 million cups of Starbuck's coffee per year, 40,000 cans of Coke and 26,000 cans of Diet Coke per day. It also serves 35,000 cans of 7-Up and Diet 7-Up per day.
DOT approved and conferred antitrust immunity on the alliance agreement between United and SAS, and on the coordination agreement of the full United-Lufthansa-SAS alliance (Docket OST-96-1411; 96-1646). Various conditions apply, including the alliance's need to obtain DOT approval before acting to operate under a common brand name. A host of issues surround the decision.
Delta Express carried 158,182 passengers in October, its first month of operation, with a 70% load factor and 90.5% on-time arrival rating. The volume is not far below Delta Shuttle's - 193,358 boardings in October, the best in its history. Delta also boarded more passengers than any previous October at its three largest hubs, Atlanta, Salt Lake City and Cincinnati. Volume at Atlanta was 2,066,454 passengers, the sixth time in eight months it baorded more than two million.
