Bahrain Air becomes latest MENA member of IATA

The MENA region has a new IATA member. Bahrain Air, the second national carrier of Bahrain, has been accepted as a full member of the International Air Transport Association.

Bahrain Air CEO, Richard Nuttall, said the airline has fulfilled all the required operational and safety standards necessary to qualify for the IATA certificate and has successfully renewed its IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA).

He said: “This is a historical moment for a young airline like Bahrain Air. The path to qualify for IATA membership is highly demanding and requires dedication and discipline. But our team has worked very hard to see this day.

“Going forward, membership of IATA will allow us to build on our distribution and to work with other IATA carriers to provide better connectivity to, from and over Bahrain. At the same time we will have better access to all the services of IATA as we continue to take Bahrain Air to new levels in the future.”

With the well-publicised challenges facing Bahrain’s legacy carrier Gulf Air and its relationship with the government-owner, there has been speculation that Bahrain Air could be playing a greater part in the country’s airline activities either as a part owner or subsidised competitor to the national airline.

The move to be part of IATA adds to the credibility of the value airline.

 Dr Majdi Sabri, IATA's regional vice president for MENA said: “We are pleased to welcome Bahrain Air to the IATA family. It is a growing airline in possibly the most dynamic aviation region of the world. Being an IATA member not only confirms that Bahrain Air conforms to the highest safety standards; it also gives the airline the opportunity, through IATA's activities, to benefit from the latest industry best practices. We look forward to a long and fruitful relationship with the Bahrain Air," he said.

Article Source : Arabian Aerospace

Bahrain in urgent talks with India over Kerala flights fiasco

Bahrain Air and representatives of the country's transport ministry are heading to India in an attempt to resolve a dispute over flights to Kerala

A sudden cancellation of Bahrain Air's newly-launched flight to Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday night left 140 passengers stranded for more than 24 hours, according to Bahrain's Gulf Daily News.

The airline chartered a Jet Airways aircraft to transfer the passengers to Manama and is beleived to be doing the same again today in order to meet its commitment to passengers

In an official statement the airline  has announced its regret and said that the Indian authorities had not yet approved the continuation of its flights to Thiruvananthapuram for the summer season, which started on March 25.

This was supported by reports from India which said the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had not given the mandatory approval for the continuation of the flights from Bahrain to Thiruvananthapuram airport for the summer schedule that commenced on Sunday.

The flights of the airline to Karipur, Nedumbaserry and Mumbai, the three other destinations, are operating as per schedule, airport sources said. Bahrain Air launched its flights to Thiruvananthapuram as part of a bilateral agreement between the two countries and after a two-year wait.

"The airline and the Indian Civil Aviation Ministry knew that the contract would expire on March 24, but they just left the issue ride without negotiating a new deal," a spokesperson at the Indian Embassy in Bahrain said.

It was barely a week ago that Bahrain Air announced it had secured four  additional flights to Thiruvananthapuram which would allow it to increase to seven flights per week by summer. The Bahrain Air website has no mention of the dispute but just shows flighs as unavailable.

Article Source : Arabian Aerospace

Hawker Beechcraft facing troubled times

Hawker Beechcraft (HBC) could be on the verge of filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy according to reports from Wall Street and in the American aviation press.

The rumours began after the Wichita-based business aircraft manufacturer announced an agreement with lenders that provides a short-term reprieve from upcoming interest payments. The agreement also includes approximately $120 million of additional liquidity that will fund ongoing operations while Hawker Beechcraft works with lenders on long-term financing.

According to Aviation Week magazine Hawker Beechcraft views this loan as a demonstration of lenders’ confidence in the long-term value of the company but Standard & Poor’s (S&P) lowered its corporate credit rating to “CCC” and says that could further change to selective default (SD) or default if the company doesn’t meet its next obligations. “The outlook remains negative,” S&P said.

HBC is due to announce its 2011 results today but according to S&P cash generation has been poor and there is a $28 million in interest payment due April 1.  

Wall Street heavyweights such as J.P.Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Reuters have been predicting the Chapter 11 filing.

Aviation Week quotes an analyst from Morgan Stanley as saying: “Our discussions with our industry sources in the past have indicated increasing reluctance by business jet buyers to order jets from an OEM in serious financial straits,” the analyst said, adding, “Many jet purchases include service guarantees that in part hinges on the OEM’s financial wherewithal to maintain a service network to honour these contracts.”

Despite this HBC announced a deal valued at $50 million for the sale of 10 King Air 350i and C90GTx aircraft to Chinese aviation company.

China or Middle Eastern buyers could be interested in the large support network or aircraft heritage including aircraft such as the Hawker 4000 and the King Air.

Article Source : Arabian Aerospace

Qantas CEO: Stranded A380 to return to service in May

The Qantas (QF) Airbus A380 that has been stranded in Singapore since the uncontained engine failure Nov. 4, 2010 will return to service in May.

QF CEO Alan Joyce told in Berlin last week that repair costs will be around AUD150 million ($156.9 million). “It is probably the biggest repair [that has been] done on an aircraft, as well asthe biggest insurance claim on an aircraft,” Joyce said.

In response to an question, Joyce said the incident did not taint the image of the aircraft or QF. In fact, Joyce said QF reconfigured the Boeing 747 interior “with the same product we have on the A380s, because the reaction [on the A380 product] is still superb,” he said.

Joyce said the load factor on the A380 grew 3% and yield is 3% higher compared to a 747 flying on a different day. He said that QF has the lowest seat count of the A380 compared to every airline. “We have 450 seats; if we go to 485 seats, that gives us several tens of millions of dollars extra next year,” Joyce said.

Separately, a Singapore Airlines (SIA) A380 en route from Singapore to Frankfurt March 27, turned back to SIN after reportedly encountering an engine problem 3 hrs. into the flight (SQ26). According to Reuters, SIA said the crew reported “a surge in one of the A380's four Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines and it would be inspected in consultation with the British engine maker.”

The A380 landed without incident and passengers were put on a replacement flight, an SIA spokeswoman told Reuters.

Article Source : ATW Daily News

IAG gets EC green light to buy bmi

The European Commission (EC) has given the go-ahead for British Airways (BA) owner International Airlines Group (IAG) to acquire British Midland International (bmi), saying any competition concerns were addressed by conditions that were proposed as part of the deal.

The decision, announced Friday, requires IAG to give up 14 daily slot pairs at London Heathrow and to commit to carry connecting passengers to feed long-haul flights of competing airlines out of Heathrow.

“In light of these commitments, the Commission concluded that the transaction would not raise competition concerns,” Brussels said in a statement.

In its proposal to regulators, IAG offered to release 12 daily slot pairs at Heathrow, which could be used on the specific routes of concern, including the UK domestic routes, as well as on other European routes. In addition, it proposed leasing two Heathrow daily slot pairs to Transaero for use on flights to Moscow. IAG also said it would form special agreements with competing airlines that operate long-haul flights out of Heathrow to provide those airlines with connecting passengers.

"The commitments package includes an appropriate number of very sought-after slots at London Heathrow as well as far-reaching feeder arrangements as regards connecting passengers. We are therefore satisfied that the competitive dynamics will be maintained so as to ensure choice and quality of air services for passengers," Commission VP-Competition Joaquín Almunia said.

IAG CEO Willie Walsh told earlier this week that if approval was granted, the company would move “as fast as possible” to integrate bmi into BA and that bmi’s fleet would be repainted in BA colors.

IAG reached a deal worth €207 million ($271 million) in December 2011 to buy loss-making UK carrier bmi from Lufthansa Group.

Virgin Atlantic Airways, which also tried to buy bmi, had asked antitrust officials to block the deal, arguing it would harm competition.

Article Source : ATW Daily News

Ryanair: EU Commission discriminates against LCCs

Ryanair (FR) has condemned the “European Commission’s bias against low fares airlines” and called for an end to its travel policy prohibiting to book flights on LCCs.

At a press conference in Brussels Thursday, FR released copies of emails received from the European Commission’s (EC) travel agency, Amex, stating it is not allowed to book low-cost flights or reimburse travel expenses to and from Brussels Charleroi airport, where FR has a large base.  Ryanair also released a letter from the EC’s director for administration and payment, which said it is “true that the terms of this contract do prevent Amex from booking tickets with ‘low-cost’ airlines.”

The Amex emails and the EC’s letters “unequivocally admit that the EU Commission “prevents” its travel agency from making bookings on low-fare airlines, which would save the hard-pressed EU taxpayer millions of euros each year,” FR CEO Michael O'Leary said. “This prohibition is a blatant subsidy to EU flag carriers and discriminates yet again against Europe’s low fares airlines which have now overtaken Europe’s flag carriers in terms of passenger popularity.”

Ryanair filed a formal complaint with the European Court of Auditors earlier this month, asking it to assess “the legality, regularity and financial soundness” of the travel policy.

Europe’s largest LCC described the EC’s travel policy as the latest example of its bias against low-fare airlines in general, and Ryanair in particular, and criticized the EC’s “rubber stamping” of mergers between flag carriers while blocking a merger between Ryanair and Aer Lingus in 2006.

The EC in past years cleared the merger between Air France and KLM, Lufthansa’s acquisition of Austrian Airlines, Swiss, Brussels Airlines and British Midlands International, and the merger of British Airways and Iberia.

Article Source : ATW Daily News

Qantas, SkyNRG to operate Australia’s first biofuel flight in April

Qantas (QF) and SkyNRG will operate Australia’s first commercial biofuel flight April 13 between Sydney and Adelaide. The flight, using an Airbus A330, will operate using a 50:50 blend of biofuel derived from used cooking oil and conventional jet fuel, QF said in a statement.

The fuel, supplied by SkyNRG, has been fully certified for use in commercial aviation. Its life cycle carbon footprint is around 60% smaller than that of conventional jet fuel.

“With high fuel costs and carbon pricing affecting airlines around the world, the Qantas Group is taking the lead in advocating the development of a sustainable aviation fuel industry in Australia” QF said in a statement.

QF1121 will depart Sydney at 10:20 a.m. on April 13, arriving in Adelaide at 12:05 p.m. The return flight, QF1120, will depart Adelaide at 1:35 p.m., arriving in Sydney at 4 p.m.

QF Head of Environment John Valastro said the goal of the flights is to raise awareness about the potential for sustainable aviation fuel in Australia. “We know that sustainable aviation fuel can be used in commercial aviation just like conventional jet fuel,” he said, “but until it is produced at a commercial scale, at a competitive price, the industry will not be able to realize its true benefits. No single player can make this happen: it needs support from government, private sector investment, access to infrastructure and market demand.”

Valastro said that QF has been in discussions with government and industry partners about “producing a clear blueprint for the establishment of an Australian sustainable aviation fuel industry. This needs to focus not on speculative technologies but on biofuels that are operationally feasible now, production of which could commence within the next few years—given the right conditions. We hope to accelerate the process in the coming weeks as we build towards this Australian-first flight,” Valastro said.

Article Source : ATW Daily News

Lufthansa CEO calls for 'sidelining' EU ETS

The chief executive of Europe's largest airline urged European Union officials to back down from their steadfast insistence on including airlines its Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), warning that time is running short to avoid a damaging geopolitical standoff over the issue.

International aviation became part of the EU ETS at the start of this year, and carriers will have to make their first payments under the scheme in about a year. Lufthansa (LH) CEO Christoph Franz, speaking Thursday to an International Aviation Club luncheon in Washington, said the timeline for solving the ETS issue "is very urgent since the system is legally in place" and carriers such as LH are already spending "millions" to comply with it.

"It is imperative to avoid a trade war," he said. "We are already in the middle of the mess [caused by the ETS]. In order to avoid a trade conflict, for the time being we should sideline the EU ETS and get a commitment [from nations throughout the world] to negotiate through ICAO … The speed to move ahead and come to a conclusion [on airline carbon dioxide emissions at ICAO] has not been sufficient."

Asked to clarify further, he said, "Sidelining [the EU ETS] means we do not apply this legislation for the time being while we negotiate at the ICAO level".

Franz emphasized that LH is not opposed to an emissions trading scheme in general, but believes the EU ETS is causing "conflict and dissatisfaction" and will potentially lead to a damaging trade war with a range of countries opposing airlines' inclusion in the scheme. "We need to deal with climate change, there is no doubt about it," he said. "Lufthansa has always committed to participating in these kinds of cap-and-trade schemes … [but] we have to find a global solution for a global problem." 

Article Source : Arabian Aerospace

Kingfisher revises timetable, drops four major Indian cities

Beleaguered Indian carrier Kingfisher Airlines has issued a revised summer timetable that sees its services to a number of major Indian cities - including Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Lucknow - "temporarily suspended".

It will now run around 120 daily flights with 20 dedicated aircraft, the company says in a statement.

Data from Innovata shows the carrier - including its low-cost subsidiary Kingfisher Red - previously operated 1,249 flights per week. This included 54 flights to Hyderabad, 26 to Lucknow, 20 to Ahmedabad and 14 to Kolkata.

Kingfisher describes the latest revision to its timetable as a "holding plan" pending recapitalisation of the company and a "return to full utilisation of the aircraft fleet".

The carrier restates its intention to "bounce back as a major player in civil aviation" providing it can secure future funding.

Intriguingly, despite previously having suspended international flights, the new timetable indicates that Kingfisher will run a daily service between London Heathrow and New Delhi for a period of 17 days beginning 25 March.

Although dismissing the immediate threat of mass layoffs, Kingfisher does not entirely rule this prospect out.

It says: "To clarify, we are in a 'holding' pattern right now and are waiting for various decisions from the government and our consortium of bankers...All of these will have a major impact on the staffing decisions we will have to make."

It goes on to praise its staff, who it says have "remained incredibly dedicated and loyal" under difficult circumstances. "Our immediate priority is to access our funds to pay outstanding staff salaries." However, most staff at airports where services have been suspended have been asked to stay at home.

Meanwhile, India's ICICI Bank has asked the airline to increase its loan security or pay back some of the capital. The bank has lent around Rs4.3 billion ($85 million) to the carrier.

Article Source : FlightGlobal

UAE company connected to Iran Air triple Boeing 747 deal

A UAE-based company is allegedly connected to an aircraft deal that has seen three Boeing 747-300 passenger jets set for service in Iran.

According to the UK’s flightglobal online news service, Iran Air has acquired the first of three Boeing 747-300s from Al Sayegh Airlines, the Kyrghyzstan operator owned by

The 1986-vintage aircraft which is still in storage, has been registered in Gambia since last month according to flightglobal.

UAE-based Sayegh Group, founded by Saleem Al Sayegh, the chief executive of UAE-based National Paints, owns Kyrgyzstan-based Al Sayegh Airlines which was created with the aim of operating five cargo aircraft and three passenger aircraft, according to reports at the time.

Flightglobal quotes the company as saying: "Please note that Sayegh Group sold the three 747-300s to an aviation company, but not to Iran."

The aircraft are believe to have been sold to an unnamed Gambian company. "It looks like the Gambian entity has fronted the deal," a source told flightglobal which said Al Sayegh Airlines has two further 747-300s in its fleet that are also both in storage and scheduled to be sold to Iran Air in May this year. Both aircraft are currently registered in Burkina Faso as XT-DMA and XT-SAG, respectively, having been operated until late 2010 by Centrafrique Air Express.

According to Flightglobal, the three 747-300s were formerly operated by Qantas, and were only delivered to Al Sayegh Airlines in 2010. According to US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) documents, the aircraft were acquired by Sayegh Group Aviation, also under the National Paints umbrella.

Article Source : Arabian Aerospace

Northrop Grumman to supply additional ATM equipment to Kandahar

Northrop Grumman Corporation's Europe-based air traffic management systems subsidiary, Northrop Grumman Park Air Systems, has been awarded a contract by the NATO Consultation, Command and Control (NATO C3) Agency to provide a second air traffic control receiver site for Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan.

Kandahar Airfield has been maintained by NATO since 2006 and is a key logistics hub used by NATO forces in Afghanistan. It is now one of the busiest single-use runways in the world.  

"This contract builds on our relationship with NATO and expands the use of the Park Air T6 radio series in the Afghan military environment," said Charles Houseago, managing director of Park Air Systems U.K. "Our technology will provide an essential service to all flights using the Kandahar Air Base."

The receiver site will house 16 VHF/UHF radios for the air base. Due to the urgent NATO operational requirement, the radios have been supplied and installed in a matter of weeks. The equipment has successfully been installed onsite and is now fully operational, accomplished well within the expected schedule.

This contract follows on from the previous installation of the complete air traffic communications solution for the Kandahar Air Base in 2010. Park Air Systems has worked with NATO for more than 20 years to provide communication solutions.

Article Source : Arabian Aerospace