Lufthansa conducts electric taxi trials on A320

FAA proposes to raise Airline Pilot qualification standards

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today proposed to substantially raise the qualification requirements for first officers who fly for U.S. passenger and cargo airlines. Consistent with a mandate in the Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010, the proposed rule would require first officers – also known as co-pilots – to hold an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate, requiring 1,500 hours of pilot flight time. Currently, first officers are required to have only a commercial pilot certificate, which requires 250 hours of flight time. The proposal also would require first officers to have an aircraft type rating, which involves additional training and testing specific to the airplanes they fly.

Other highlights of the proposed rule include:

· A requirement for a pilot to have a minimum of 1,000 flight hours as a pilot in air carrier operations that require an ATP prior to serving as a captain for a U.S. airline.

· Enhanced training requirements for an ATP certificate, including 50 hours of multi-engine flight experience and completion of a new FAA-approved training program.

· An allowance for pilots with fewer than 1,500 hours of flight time, but who have an aviation degree or military pilot experience, to obtain a “restricted privileges” ATP certificate. These pilots could serve only as a first officer, not as a captain. Former military pilots with 750 hours of flight time would be able to apply for an ATP certificate with restricted privileges. Graduates of a four-year baccalaureate aviation degree program would be able to obtain an ATP with 1,000 hours of flight time, only if they also obtained a commercial pilot certificate and instrument rating from a pilot school affiliated with the university or college.

The proposal addresses recommendations from an Aviation Rulemaking Committee, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the FAA’s Call to Action to improve airline safety.

Dragonair to expand its fleet

Dragonair, a unit of Hong Kong's dominant carrier Cathay Pacific Airways, said on Wednesday that it plans to expand its fleet 20 percent this year by adding six aircraft and will hire more staff to meet growing demand in Asia. Strong demand from China, Dragonair's largest market, helped boost the regional carrier's passenger numbers by 7 percent to a record high last year despite deepening global economic uncertainty. Cathay Pacific reported in January that Dragonair alongside it carried a total of 27.58 million passengers in 2011, up 2.9 percent. It did not provide a breakdown for Dragonair.

The global aviation industry is expected to see a tough year ahead with industry body the International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecasting the industry could lose USD$8.3 billion if the European sovereign debt crisis evolves into a full-blown banking crisis and recession.

Kingfisher to return aircrafts

India's Kingfisher Airlines Ltd plans to return some aircraft voluntarily to lessors after defaulting on payments and has seen a fresh exodus of pilots, local media reported. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked the struggling carrier to explain why it has cancelled a large number of flights since Saturday. Kingfisher will return two more Airbus A320s this month to their lessors, as their leases have been terminated because of payment defaults.

Of the 64 planes in its fleet, Kingfisher is using just over a dozen to operate flights currently. The Times of India newspaper said that 35 of Kingfisher's A320 commanders quit the airline on February 14, followed by another over the weekend. In all, about 300-350 pilots have quit the airline in the last six months, it said, without citing any sources. Kingfisher, controlled by liquor baron Vijay Mallya, has cancelled 32 out of the 240 flights that it operates each day, the airlines said on Saturday, adding that it expected to return to full service within days.

Garuda Orders Bombardier CRJ1000 Jets

Garuda Indonesia will go ahead with a plan to boost its fleet size to 154 aircraft from 89 in three years, despite the threat of overcapacity arising from rival Lion Air's large order, its chief executive said. The remarks came after the Indonesian flag carrier signed a USD$1.32 billion deal to purchase 6 Bombardier CRJ1000 aircraft and lease another 12 from Nordic Aviation Capital plus an option to purchase additional 18 aircraft."They have their business model, they have their targets, it is up to them. But we have our own business plan," chief executive Emirsyah Satar told reporters at the Singapore Airshow. On Tuesday, Indonesian low-cost carrier Lion Air firmed up an order for 230 short-haul 737 jets from Boeing, making it the largest-ever commercial order received by the US plane maker. Lion Air's deal is worth about USD$22 billion based on the list price. Garuda said it will receive five aircraft in the fourth quarter of this year and the order was part of Garuda's plan to expand its fleet size over the next three years. The aircraft will be used to serve short and medium-range routes from its domestic hubs.

Lion Air Orders 27 Extra ATR72 Planes for Wings Air

Indonesia's Lion Air placed an order for 27 additional ATR72 turbo prop planes as the low-cost carrier extended a wave of orders at the Singapore Airshow. Lion Air chief executive Rusdi Kirana told on Thursday that the ATR72 aircraft would be used to extend the network of its regional subsidiary Wings Air, which serves some of Indonesia's remote islands.

The order is valued at USD$610 million at list prices. The latest order brings to 60 the total number of the turbo props ordered by Lion Air to date, of which 16 have already been delivered. ATR is jointly owned by Airbus parent EADS and Italy's Finmeccanica. The deal comes after Lion Air finalised the order of 230 Boeing aircraft and also snapped up two Hawker Beechcraft for use in its charter services. Lion Air's purchases have dominated Asia's largest aerospace event and reflect rapid growth in Indonesia's domestic aviation market, which has been adding traffic at the rate of 20 percent each year.

Boeing gears up to deliver its first 747-8 passenger version

Boeing will make first delivery of the passenger version of its upgraded and overdue 747-8 on February 28 to an unidentified VIP customer, the world's second-largest planemaker said on Tuesday. The company said in an email that it will mark the delivery of the airplane dubbed the Intercontinental with an event near Seattle featuring program leaders and test pilots. The first airline set to receive an Intercontinental is Germany's Lufthansa, which has ordered 20.

The freighter version of the 747-8 was first delivered in October, capping a development delay of about two years. Boeing, which competes with Airbus for sales, has 36 orders for the passenger plane on its books with nine attributed to unidentified VIPs. The Intercontinental can seat 467 passengers and lists at more than $330 million.

Air traffic in US hits a ten year low

U.S. airlines in 2011 operated the fewest number of flights since the hijack attacks on New York and Washington depressed air travel and accelerated the industry's worst-ever financial downturn, government figures on Tuesday showed. The Transportation Department said major airlines, their chief low-cost competitors and the biggest regional carriers, recorded 6.08 million departures last year. Takeoffs were not that low since 2002, when they totaled 5.27 million.

Reduced operations and good summer weather, especially in the East, helped airlines post a 79 percent on-time rating in 2011, unchanged from the previous two years.The overall number of flights by U.S. airlines have steadily declined since 2008 when the recession dampened travel demand. Most recently, stubbornly high fuel prices have prompted airlines to further cut capacity to reduce costs and maintain higher fares.

The industry operating figures were released as President Barack Obama signed into law $63 billion legislation authorizing guaranteed funding of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) through 2015. The FAA oversees U.S. air traffic operations at more than 400 airports. The measure approved by Congress last week also includes funding for the next steps in transforming the air traffic network from a radar-based system to one relying on satellites. Proponents say the change will allow for more flights, better routing and fewer delays.

Cathay Pacific cargo down by 19.5% in January

Cathay Pacific Airways said on Monday its January freight traffic fell 19.5 percent as weak demand was exaggerated by the Chinese New Year holiday while passenger traffic was strong. Year-on-year comparisons were distorted by the fact that the Chinese New Year holiday fell in January this year compared to early February in 2011, it added. "Apart from a modest pre-Chinese New Year rush, the cargo markets were generally soft throughout January," said James Woodrow, Cathay's general manager for Pacific cargo sales. “Our key markets remain soft and we have been cutting capacity aggressively to match demand on trunk routes to North America and Europe," he said. Passenger traffic was strong on the Mainland China, Korea and Southeast Asia routes last month; while long-haul routes also performed well due to the timing of the Chinese New Year break, said Cathay's general manager of revenue James Tong. He warned that declining yield in the economy cabin remained an area of concern.

Brace yourselves frequent fliers in India, the aviation industry is about to hit some turbulence

It looks like Indian airlines are not the only ones sweating under the pressure of high operating costs and increasing threats from the competition: even international carriers are feeling the heat and starting to cut capacity to India. That could mean bad news for passengers because ticket prices, at least on some international routes, could rise in the face of reduced competition.

On Monday, Austria’s largest airline, Austrian Airlines, which operates a global route network of around 130 destinations, said it is discontinuing flights in the Mumbai-Vienna sector from March 25 as the route has became unprofitable because of the challenging economic situation and intensifying competition from other airlines.  Unless there is reform in the aviation sector, especially in the matters of jet fuel prices and undercutting of ticket prices by Air India, we’re likely to see more airlines cutting down their operations in India.

Austrian Airline’s CEO, Jaan Albrecht, said in a statement that, “From the summer of 2012 onwards, we shall be sharply increasing flight frequencies to our core markets in Eastern Europe, and building up capacity to the Middle East in a trade-off with the destination of Mumbai.” It’s not the only airline to cite problems with operating in India, which is one of the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world. Local carriers are already floundering massively operating on domestic routes. While passenger traffic has climbed in leaps and bounds in recent years, operating costs, cut-throat price wars and a skewed policy environment mean that more than 80 percent of Indian carriers are losing money. Kingfisher Airlines is a stark case in point.

Not surprisingly, even international airlines are wilting under the same set of pressures. According to a report in the Business Standard, global airline Air France announced that it is reducing its frequency to Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore to six flights a week, ostensibly to adjust with lower demand in summer, although it’s likely that tough operating conditions would also have played a part that decision.  In the past year, more than five foreign airlines have withdrawn flights from the Mumbai and Delhi routes, citing high operating costs, including high airport and fuel charges. These include AirAsia, Air AsiaX, Thai AirAsia, FinnAir and Virgin Atlantic. Just last month, American Airlines announced it would discontinue its Delhi flights, while Lufthansa also halted its flights to Kolkata.

Other leading global airlines like British Airways, Air France-KLM and Lufthansa have also said they would rethink their plans of flying in and out of Delhi if airport charges are increased by a whopping 280 percent, according to the newspaper report.  Unfortunately, it looks like their problems are just about to multiply because flying out of Mumbai could also get more expensive as the airport operator, MIAL, is in the process of acquiring 16 acres of nearby land, according to another Business Standard report. This expansion cost is likely to result in higher airport development fees, which currently stands at Rs 600 for an international passenger and Rs 100 for a domestic passenger.

Of course, we already know about high jet fuel prices: fuel costs account for nearly half the operating cost of domestic carriers. High sales tax on jet fuel is a big culprit here — about 24 percent , one of the highest in the world. There has been talk of allowing foreign carriers to take up to a 49 percent stake in local carriers, which might ease some financial pressure off local carriers.  But what of international ones? Unless there is reform in the aviation sector, especially in the matters of jet fuel prices and undercutting of ticket prices by Air India, we’re likely to see more airlines cutting down their operations in India.

For fliers, that can only mean higher prices from the airlines that stay back.

Lion Air and Boeing make history by finalizing an order of upto 380 B737s

Boeing and Jakarta-based Lion Air have finalized a firm order for 201 737 MAXs and 29 Next-Generation 737-900ERs (extended range). The agreement, first announced last November in Indonesia, also includes purchase rights for an additional 150 airplanes. With orders for 230 airplanes valued at $22.4 billion at list prices, this deal is the largest commercial airplane order ever in Boeing’s history by both dollar value and total number of airplanes. Lion Air will also acquire purchase rights for an additional 150 airplanes. Lion Air will be the first airline in Asia to fly the 737 MAX and is the global launch customer for the 737 MAX.

EU's carbon tax for airliners fuels concern

Global planemaker Airbus joined a chorus of concern that a European scheme to charge airlines for carbon emissions risks triggering a full-blown trade war, with implications for plane deals and even Europe's crippling sovereign debt crisis. The EU's Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), introduced on January 1, has drawn howls of protest from airlines around the world, with China banning its carriers from taking part. The escalating row comes on the eve of a China-EU summit in Beijing, with the EU looking to China to dip into its huge foreign exchange reserves to help the eurozone tackle a debt build-up that threatens its economic stability.

Airbus Chief Executive Tom Enders said he was increasingly concerned at the potential fall-out if tensions are not defused. "I am very worried about the consequences of that. What started out as a solution for the environment has become a source of potential trade conflict and that should be a worry for all of us," he told an aviation conference on Monday ahead of the Singapore Airshow. China is a strategic market for the world's two big planemakers, as it coordinates purchases centrally and regularly places orders with Airbus and Boeing in batches of 100 or more to coincide with high-level political contacts.

Chinese domestic air traffic quadrupled in the last decade and is expected to keep growing at more than 7 percent a year up to 2030, according to Airbus research, and Boeing predicts China will be the second-biggest market for new aircraft behind the United States between 2011 and 2030. China last year delayed the final signing of a deal for 10 A380 superjumbos worth $4 billion for Hong Kong Airlines in a signal of its displeasure over the EU plans, and in the mid-1990s, it refused to buy French products such as wheat and Airbus planes in retaliation for France selling fighters and frigates to Taiwan.

Last week, Beijing banned its airlines from joining the ETS without its permission, and threatened to take unspecified measures to defend itself against the scheme, which levies charges for carbon emissions on flights in and out of Europe. Foreign governments argue Brussels is exceeding its legal jurisdiction by calculating the carbon cost over the whole flight, not just Europe. Non-EU airlines say the levy is discriminatory. Increasingly, governments and the EU's executive European Commission are looking to the U.N.'s International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) to find a global scheme that curbs airline emissions.

Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong said opposition to the scheme was based on the way it is applied. "I was quoting the example of us flying non-stop from Singapore all the way to Europe. We get charged the whole journey, when somebody who could fly passengers to an intermediate point, and from there go to Europe, ends up paying much less," he told the same aviation conference in Singapore. Andrew Herdman, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines, said any European policy that alienates the United States, China, Russia, India and three dozen other countries "is simply not going to work." "The risk for the airlines if this generates into a tit-for-tat trade war, is that airlines will be caught in a cross-fire from both sides," he said.

Dassault Aviation sings MOU with Reliance Industries in defence pact

India's Reliance Industries and France's Dassault Aviation have signed a pact for partnering in the defence and homeland security sector in Asia's third-largest economy, a spokesman for the Indian conglomerate said on Sunday.  The accord comes less than two weeks after Dassault's Rafale warplanes emerged as the preferred bidder in a $15 billion contest to supply India with 126 fighter jets. India is the world's largest arms importer with plans to spend $100 billion on weapons over the next decade.

Reliance Industries, India's most-valuable company, did not give any further detail on the tie-up with the French company. Controlled by Mukesh Ambani, the world's ninth-richest man, Reliance Industries has been looking to diversify as growth in its core oil and gas business slows. The company has expanded into newer sector such as retail and telecom in recent years.