The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) on June 3 tentatively granted antitrust immunity (ATI) for American Airlines and Australian flag carrier Qantas to operate a joint venture (JV) between the U.S. and Australia/New Zealand, paving the way for the pair to expand coordination across planning, pricing, sales and logistics.
Airbus CCO Christian Scherer says he is “not worried about a slowdown” in aircraft demand in spite of lower airline profitability and the risk of trade wars.
Ethiopian Airlines remains a “very strong brand” although the financial impact of the crash of one of its Boeing 737 MAXs and the subsequent global grounding of the MAX fleet is not yet known, the carrier’s chief executive said.
IATA has downgraded its industry profit outlook for 2018, as revenue increases are not expected to keep pace with costs, putting more pressure on margins.
The de Havilland name has returned to aircraft manufacturing with completion of the $300 million sale of the Dash 8 program by Bombardier to Canada’s Longview Aircraft Capital.
Operators of more than 300 newer Boeing 737s—including nearly half of the in-service MAXs—will be ordered to inspect slat tracks and remove parts identified as being from a batch that may not meet Boeing’s production requirements, the FAA and the company said June 2.
The airline industry may have been posting lower profits of late, but the slowdown is still “two to three years into the softest landing I have ever seen in 30 years,” Embraer Commercial Aviation CEO John Slattery said.
Qantas remains on track to place an order by the end of 2019 for an aircraft to launch direct flights from Australia’s east coast to London, as the airline and manufacturers further define aircraft capabilities and product.
Airbus Chief Commercial Officer Christian Scherer says he is “not worried about a slowdown” in aircraft demand in spite of lower airline profitability and the risk of trade wars.
Pratt & Whitney has reduced life limits on PW1500G and PW1900G geared turbofan (GTF) high-pressure compressor (HPC) front hubs after excessive corrosion was discovered during a routine overhaul, and the FAA plans to mandate the change.
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NASA is assessing industry proposals for flight demonstrations of electrified aircraft propulsion with the goal of rapidly maturing the technologies for use in commercial transports that could enter the fleet no later than 2035.
Rolls-Royce is investigating faster ways of replicating in-service conditions on the test bench for the next-generation UltraFan, in the wake of endurance problems with the manufacturer’s Trent 1000 engines.
