Airbus
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Spirit Airlines Commits for 75 Airbus A320
Spirit Airlines and Airbus signed today at the Dubai Airshow a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for 75 single-aisle aircraft, comprising 45 A320neo and 30 A320s. The engine selection will be announced later. The new aircraft will be used on Spirit’s targeted growth markets in the U.S., Caribbean and Latin America. The A320neo has over 95…
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End of Airbus A340 Production
Twenty years after its maiden flight, Airbus announced the final end of A340 production! While new A340 aircraft are no longer to be built, Airbus will continue to fully support the current global fleet of A340s, as long as they are in operation. Four versions of the A340 were produced by Airbus: the A340-200, A340-300,…
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Photo – Thai Airbus A380 Vertical Fin
The vertical tail section for the first Thai Airways International (THAI) Airbus A380 has been painted with the airline’s orchid logo at Airbus facilities in Hamburg, Germany. The painting was completed last week, and the section is now being shipped to Toulouse, France. Assembly of the aircraft is set to begin later this month. THAI…
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Peach Aviation Receives First A320
Peach Aviation, Japan’s first low-cost carrier, has taken delivery of its first A320 through a leasing contract with GECAS. The Japanese carrier will lease 10 A320s. Peach Aviation’s A320 aircraft seats 180 passengers in a single-class layout and is powered by CFM International engines. Peach Aviation was established by All Nippon Airways (ANA), First Eastern…
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EVA A330 Hello Kitty Logo Jets
Taiwan-based carrier EVA Air has unveiled a second generation of Hello Kitty jets. The brand-new Airbus A330-300 jetliner wears a special livery featuring legendary Japanese cartoon character and pop culture icon Hello Kitty. The unveiling was celebrated on Oct. 27 at a Happy Magic Party in a specially decorated Evergreen Aviation Technologies hangar adjacent to…
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Transaero Airlines to Order A380s
Transaero Airlines, Russia’s second largest airline, last week signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Airbus for four A380 aircraft. Transaero will become the launch customer for the A380 in Russia, the CIS and Eastern Europe. The Russian carrier plans to start operations with the A380 on its long-range network of high density routes from…
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Photo – Airbus Military A400M Water Ingestion Tests
Airbus Military has successfully completed testing to demonstrate the A400M airlifter’s ability to operate on wet runways and taxiways without ingesting water into the engines. During tests at Istres, France, the aircraft travelled through troughs containing 2-6 cm of water at speeds of up to 90kt in take-off and landing configurations, including operations with reverse…
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First Photos – A350XWB Engines on A380 Testbed
Airbus has completed installation of the first A350XWB Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine on the A380 “flying-testbed” aircraft (MSN 001). The aircraft and engine will be prepared for flight-tests commencing in the coming weeks. The Airbus A380 test plane also wears a dedicated painting “…flying the A350 XWB engine”. The Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engine is the…
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Video – Highlights of China Southern A380 Delivery
As you know from my previous post, the first Airbus A380 for China Southern Airlines has been delivered yesterday (MSN0031). The following video features the highlights of this very special delivery ceremony in Toulouse, France. China Southern Airlines has ordered a total of 5 A380 so far but Airbus sees a potential of probably up…
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Webcast – Delivery of First China Southern Airbus A380
Tomorrow, 14 October, China Southern Airlines will become the first Chinese airline to receive the Airbus A380 (MSN0031). Later this month the aircraft will be deployed on domestic services in China, with the commercial flights to begin on 17 October between Beijing and Guangzhou. You can watch the A380 handover on a live webcast, beginning…
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First Photo – Airbus A350XWB Nose Section
The very first Airbus A350 XWB nose section has been transported to Airbus site St Nazaire (France). The A350 XWB nose section comprises three main sub-assemblies: the cockpit plus upper and lower forward fuselage parts, which incorporate door one and the nose landing gear bay. The nose section will be joined to the forward fuselage,…
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Photos – First A350 XWB Upper Wing Cover
The biggest single civil aviation parts made from carbon fibre ever was loaded on to the Beluga Super Transporter at Airbus’ Hamburg site, today. The part is the first flyable Airbus A350 XWB upper wing cover manufactured at Stade (Germany). It measures 32 metres by six metres. This huge part for the all-new A350 XWB…
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Video – Afriqiyah Airways Airbus A300 Destroyed in Tripoli
According to ASN an Afriqiyah Airways Airbus A300B4-620 (5A-IAY) was destroyed at Tripoli International Airport, Libya during battle between rebels and Libyan troops. The Airbus burned out completely. 5A-IAY conducted its first flight in 1984 and also was in service with Abu Dhabi Amiri Flight and Fly International Airways. Video by Reuters
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Photo of the Week – LAN Airlines Airbus A340-313X
This nicely photographed LAN Airlines Airbus A340-313X (CC-CQF) sitting at Frankfurt/Main Airport (FRA / EDDF), Germany, is the new winner of our Flickr Photo of the Week contest. LAN Airlines and its affiliates LAN Peru, LAN Ecuador, and LAN Argentina are the leading international airline alliance in South America providing nonstop and connecting flights to…
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Qantas Expands Fleet with A320neo
Airbus announced that Qantas has selected Airbus A320 aircraft for its new premium airline to service routes to/from Australia and the Asian region. In addition, Jetstar Airways – a subsidiary of Qantas – has selected the Airbus A320 to continue its growth in Australia and Asia. The commitment to order consists of 110 A320 Family…
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Photos – Airbus A350 XWB First Components Delivered to Saint-Nazaire Site
This week first major components of the all new Airbus A350 XWB have been delivered to Airbus Saint-Nazaire manufacturing site. Today Airbus Nantes has delivered the keel beam. The exceptional convoy, over 25 metres long, left the Nantes site for the Loire, to be loaded onto the barge that transported it to the Airbus Saint-Nazaire…
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Thai Airways Orders A350XWB and A320
Thai Airways International (THAI) has signed a contract with Airbus covering the firm order of four A350-900s and five A320 aircraft, becoming a new customer for both aircraft types. The Airbus A350 XWB is set to operate on long haul services to Europe and the A320s on domestic and regional routes. In addition to the…
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Safety Report – 08/01/2011
Date: 07/30/2011 1:35am Location: Georgetown, Guyana Aircraft Type: Boeing 737-8BK(WL) Registration: 9Y-PBM Operator: Caribbean Airlines Flight: BW523 Phase: Landing Level of Damage: Written off Injuries & Fatalities: No fatalities, some unknown injuries Caribbean Airlines flight on landing overshot the runway and broke in half Date: 07/29/2011 Location: San Francisco, CA Aircraft Type: Boeing 747-422 Registration:…
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Report: Air France AF447 Crash Caused by Pilot Error
French investigation board BEA today released a third report about Air France flight AF447. The Airbus A330-203 registered F-GZCP crashed into the Atlantic Ocean on 31 May 2009. This report current interim report has been made possible by the complete readout of the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), which were…
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Lufthansa Orders A320neo
Airbus announced that Lufthansa has placed a firm order for 30 Airbus A320neo Family aircraft. The order comprises 25 A320neo and five A321neo aircraft. These will be powered by new-generation Pratt & Whitney PW1100G turbofan engines. The A320neo Family incorporates large “Sharklet” wing tip devices, which together with the new more efficient engines, will deliver…
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American Airlines Orders up to 560 Narrowbody Airplanes
American Airlines today announced two new large aircraft orders. The airline signed a firm contract with Airbus to acquire 260 Airbus A320 Family aircraft. The contract calls for flexibility for the airline to take delivery of A319s, A320s and A321s, with 130 featuring Airbus’ New Engine Option (neo). All 260 aircraft will feature large, fuel-saving…