U P D A T E
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Week ending June 7, 1998
+++ Boeing rolls-out 757-300 +++ Luftfwaffe chief-of-staff wants no US airlifter +++ Successful Shuttle launch and Mir docking +++ GP7000 engine option for Airbus A3XX +++ Frankfurt Airport grows slowly +++ Boeing announces phase-out of MD-11 +++ Air France Pilots strike hits World Cup +++ International Space Station partners adjust target dates for first launches +++ El Al Releases Financial Results For 1997 +++ News in Brief +++
Boeing 757-300 rolls out
Roll-out der neuen 757-300
On May 31, Boeing introduced its newest airplane, the 757-300, at a rollout
celebration at the company's Renton manufacturing facility. The highlight
of the event was an announcement by Condor Flugdienst, the 757-300 launch
customer, that the airline is ordering another 757-300. "We are so
convinced this airplane will be a money maker for us that we've ordered
another one before we've even seen it fly," Dr. Dietmar Kirchner, managing
director of Condor told an audience that included thousands of Boeing employees,
customers and suppliers. "The 757-300 has the lowest seat-mile operating
costs of any single-aisle airplane on the market - lower than many widebody
airplanes. The 757-300 complements our strategy of providing a high-quality,
high-service product to the charter market," Dr. Kirchner said.
Condor, a leading German holiday-charter airline, announced an order for 12 757-300 jetliners at the Farnborough Air Show in England in 1996. Icelandair announced an order for two 757-300s at the Paris Air Show in 1997. Both carriers selected Rolls-Royce engines. At 178 feet 7 inches (54.5 meters), the 757-300 is the largest single-aisle twinjet Boeing has made. It is 23 feet 4 inches (7.1 meters) longer and holds 20 percent more passengers than the 757-200. It can carry 240 to 289 passengers, depending on configuration, and has nearly 50 percent more cargo volume than the 757-200.
Boeing has set an aggressive goal of seeing the first 757-300 enter service just 27 months after firm configuration, which occurred in November 1996. The first airplane is scheduled for delivery in January 1999, giving the 757-300 the shortest design-to-production and delivery-cycle time of any Boeing derivative airplane program.
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Luftfwaffe chief-of-staff wants no US airlifter
Generalleutnant Portz: Kein US-Transporter für die Luftwaffe
During an information tour visiting various units in eastern and northern
Germany, Generalleutnant Rolf Portz, chief-of-staff of the Luftwaffe, outlined
its position on various topics affecting the German air force in a time
of ever tighter budgets. Among his remarks are:
- The Luftwaffe is not interested in US solutions for its airlifter needs from 2008. The Boeing C-17 is much too big and too expensive, while the C-130J does not fullfill the requirements. Also a mixed fleet would be unconvenient regarding pilot training and scheduling. At the same time, just buying the Antonow An-70 is rejected as well, but other than that Portz carefully avoided to officially express any preference for an An-70-based solution or the Airbus FLA. He just emphasized that the Luftwaffe will not go it alone on any type but that an European solution is essential.
- Purchase of the Eurofighter EF2000 will have an effect on other procurement plans. For example, a Patriot upgrade was slashed from 26 to 13 units. In general the problem will be tackled by buying smaller batches of weapons and systems. It is thus not sure whether all Eurofighters will get a full-up ECM system.
- On the problem of arming the EF2000 with a new beyond-visual range missile, Portz is optimistic that a European solution can be found. This could mean that a phased approach is necessary, with the emphasis on the better kinematic performance first and more sophisticated seekers coming later.
- On the operational side, Portz is aknowledging that the Luftwaffe units will be more and more Ñdifferentiated" both in equipment standards, training hours and readiness to absorb budget squeezes.
Successful Shuttle launch and Mir docking
Space Shuttle dockt erfolgreich an Mir an
On 2 June, Space Shuttle Discovery lifted off for its las flight to the
Russian Mir space station. The official lift-off time for Discovery was
5:06:24 CDT in the afternoon. The flightís main goal is a final docking
with Mir where US astronaut Andy Thomas is waiting for a ride home. Thomas
had been on Mir since 22 January. The docking was accomplished on schedule
at 11:58 a.m. on Thursday. Following a welcoming ceremony and gift exchange
ceremony, the two crews conducted joint safety briefings and began transfer
operations between the two vehicles. Mission STS-91 is scheduled to last
ten days and the Shuttle is supposed to touch-down at Kennedy on June 12
at approximately 12:59 p.m.. During the two-day flight phase prior to the
docking, flight controllers noted a problem with transmissions from Discoveryís
Ku-Band communication system. The system uses a dish-shaped antenna to
provide high-rate communications to the ground. Flight controllers are
continuing to troubleshoot the problem which renders the system unable
to send television from the Shuttle or data from the cargo bay experiments
to the ground. According to Nasa, other operational modes of the Ku-Band
system are working properly.
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GP7000 engine option for Airbus A3XX
A3XX nun mit Option für GP7000-Triebwerk
Airbus Industrie has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with
the Engine Alliance to offer the GP7200 series of engines on its
A3XX family of aircraft. The MOU was signed during the 4th A3XX Program
Progress Review meeting in Cannes, France. The Engine Alliance is a Limited
Liability Company owned 50/50 by General Electric Aircraft Engines
and Pratt & Whitney (a division of United Technologies Corp.),
both of the U.S. Developed to meet the needs of the A3XX family, the GP7200
will cover the 67,000-80,000 lb. thrust range. The A3XX is the first
application for this new engine and for the Engine Alliance as its
supplier. The GP7200 offers higher levels of fuel efficiency and
better noise characteristics than any engine in its class flying
today. The new agreement will provide the A3XX with a choice of engine
suppliers. An MOU was signed in October, 1996 by Airbus Industrie and
Rolls-Royce for use of the Trent 900 engine on the A3XX.
The 4th A3XX Program Progress Review meeting brought together representatives of 14 airlines with members of the A3XX team, including both engine suppliers, in the presence of Airbus Industrie's Managing Director Noel Forgeard. The Program Progress Review meeting demonstrates the continuing support of the world's leading airlines for the A3XX family concept, covering capacities of 480-650 seats, and ranges of 7,650-8,750 naut. mi. (14,200-16,200 km.) as well as short-range, Combi and Freighter variants. Airbus Industrie's A3XX is scheduled for a production launch in 1999, enabling an entry into airline service in the third quarter of 2004.
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Frankfurt Airport grows slowly
Flughafen Frankfurt nicht ganz zufrieden
Flughafen Frankfurt , the largest German airport, has again reported record figures for 1997, but managing director Wilhelm Bender was not totally happy, as growth rates were below market averages in Europe. Main figures were:- turnover of 2,377 billion DM (2,363 in 1996)
- operating result of 245,2 million DM (251,6 million DM)
- profit of 89,5 million DM (84,2 million DM in 1996)
- more than 40 million passengers
- 1,4 million tons of freight
- 392000 movements (385000 in 1996)
- 12739 employees
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Boeing announces phase-out of MD-11
Produktion der Boeing MD-11 wird eingestellt
After months of assessing future sales prospects for the MD-11 jetliner,
Boeing Commercial Airplane Group (BCAG) has determined that there
is not sufficient market demand to warrant continued production beyond
the current order base. Consequently, MD-11 production will be phased
out with the delivery of orders now on hand, with the last delivery
scheduled for February 2000. As of April 30, 1998, there were 22
commitments for MD-11s, including firm orders, options and reserves
"Despite our best marketing efforts, it became clear to us that there simply was not enough customer interest in either the passenger or freighter versions of this airplane to justify keeping the production line open," said BCAG President Ron Woodard. "Since our last MD-11 market forecast in November, demand for new MD-11 passenger and freighter aircraft has declined," Woodard said. The decision to discontinue MD-11 production at the end of the current order base will not result in a separate "special charge." Certain MD-11 program asset and liability valuation adjustments, however, are expected to be included in second-quarter operating earnings. Approximately 3,750 Boeing employees work on the MD-11 program. About 3,000 employees work on the program at Long Beach and 600 employees manufacture MD-11 wings at the facility in Toronto, Ontario. Another 75 employees in Salt Lake City and 75 employees in Melbourne, Ark., also support the program.
The MD-11 was launched in 1986 and completed its first flight on January 10, 1990. The aircraft entered service in December 1990. As of April 30, 1998, 178 MD-11s had been delivered in four versions: passenger; freighter; convertible freighter; and "combi." Prior to that, 446 DC-10s -- the predecessor to the MD-11 -- had been delivered, including 60 to the United States Air Force as KC-10 tanker/cargo aircraft.
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Air France Pilots strike hits World Cup
Streik der Air-France-Piloten könnte Fußball-Weltmeisterschaft beeinträchtigen
As France finalises preparations for the World Cup beginning this
week, Air France and the commuter RER train service threaten to give
the event a cold shoulder through strike action. For the fourth day running,
the airline's striking pilots have forced the company to cancel flights,
placing it in an embarrasing situation as the official carrier for
the Mundial. Transport minister Jean-Claude Gayssot has said the pilots
should not hold the country and the World Cup hostage. "I hope a
compromise can be reached in the interest of all concerned before
the World Cup," he told journalists. Jean Charles Corbet of the SNPL pilots
union, which represents two-thirds of the 3,200 pilots, says the
union will negotiate but will not be carried away. Air France personnel
said the airline cancelled 83 percent of it's long-distance flights and
70 percent medium and short-range flights from Charles de Gaulle
Airport and 67 percent of flights from Orly Airport Wednesday last
week.
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International Space Station partners adjust target dates for first launches
Partner der Internationalen Raumstation einigen sich auf neue Starttermine
According to Nasa, representatives of all nations involved in the International
Space Station have agreed to officially target a November 1998 launch for
the first station component and to revise launch target dates for the remainder
of the 43-flight station assembly plan. The partners agreed to target launch
dates of November 20, 1998, for the Control Module (FGB), which today is
named Zarya (Russian word for sunrise), and December 3, 1998, for Shuttle
mission STS-88 with Unity (Node-I). The partners were led to reschedule
the first assembly launches because there were changes in the construction
schedule for the third station component, the Russian-provided Service
Module. Although the new dates move the launch of the first station component,
Zarya, from June to November, the target dates agreed upon for many major
station milestones during the latter portions of the five-year assembly
plan are little changed.
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El Al Releases Financial Results For 1997
Weiterhin Verluste für El Al
El Al Israel Airlines has announced its financial figures for fiscal
year 1997, reflecting a marked improvement when compared to 1996.
The company reported a loss of $4.2 million for 1997 compared to
$83.1 million in 1996. According to El Al President, Joel Feldschuh, "In
spite of intense competition, El Al has improved its financial standing,
cutting losses by almost 79 million dollars. We are optimistic about
the airline's growth and profitability." El Al's
revenue increased by two percent over 1996 totaling $1.2 billion.
The number of passengers carried reached nearly three million. Overall,
El Al Cargo handled 213,000 tons in 1997, reflecting a growth of
one percent over 1996. The average passenger load factor was 72.5
percent. The number of permanent El Al employees decreased by 2.5
percent in 1997, totaling 3,443 employees.
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NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN
Jagdgeschwader 73 at Laage is introducing two Hungarian MiG-29 pilots in the Ñwestern" tactics of using this fighter. The Luftwaffe unit is also planning tests of mixed fighter force operation, using its F-4F Phantoms and MiG-29s together and thus getting the most out of the different strengths and weaknesses of these two aircraft.+++
With the further concentration of training activities at Holloman AFB in New Mexico, the JaboG 38 at Jever, operating Tornados, will be reduced by 550 to 600 people. The unit will retain its role of ÑEuopeanisation" instruction for new pilots coming from the US.
+++
At the end of May, the Boeing 747-400X, the newest and highest gross-weight version of the 747, achieved firm design configuration this month, according to Boeing Commercial Airplane Group. The 747-400X offers a maximum takeoff weight of 910,000 pounds (409,500 kg) and a range of 8,860 statute miles (14,260 km). This is 35,000 pounds (15,876 kg) and 570 statute miles (917 km) more than the current 747-400. The airplane will allow airlines to fly more payload - at least 15,000 pounds more - on existing 747-400 routes. Or they can use the airplane's increased range to establish new non-stop routes, such as New York to Hong Kong, Los Angeles to Melbourne, or Newark to Taipei. The external physical dimensions of the 747-400X are identical to those of the existing 747-400. The airplane will incorporate the strengthened 747-400 Freighter outboard wing, and it will have strengthened body sections and landing gear to support the additional weight. Modifications also will be made to the existing 747-400 structure, cargo systems and fuel systems to allow installation of the additional fuel tanks.
+++
On June 1, Maersk Air of Birmingham, England has placed a follow-on order with ombardier Aerospace for one Canadair Regional Jet Series 200LR to increase its firm orders for the CRJ to six aircraft. The British Airways franchise carrier retains options on an additional nine CRJ twinjets. Value of the order is approximately $21.3 million U.S. ($31 million Cdn.). The aircraft is scheduled to enter service in August 1999.
+++
The Luftwaffe has lost an F-4F operating from Goose Bay in Canada. While the bakcseater was killed, the pilot could be rescued, though he sustained injuries. An investigation is under way.
+++
Dasa's Defence and Civil Systems Group has received a contract from German procurement agency BWB for the installation of a digital data network for the Luftwaffe. This will be part of the new automated command system, one of the most modern in Europe. It will be up and running in March 1999 at 88 locations throughout the country.
+++
Romanian national carrier Tarom has taken delivery of its first two ATR 42-500s ordered in 1997. A total of seven aircraft should be handed over by the end of 1999. Two ATR 42-300 have already be inservice since December 1996.
+++
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Previous updates are still available:
Die News der letzten Wochen ist nach wie vor abrufbar:
May 31, 1998
May 24, 1998
May 17, 1998
May 10, 1998
May 3, 1998
April 26, 1998
April 19, 1998
April 5, 1998
January to March 1998
January to December 1997
September to December 1996
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Last updated June 5, 1998
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