Proflight Zambia has achieved silver status under the internationally recognised Basic Aviation Risk Standard (BARS)

Proflight Zambia has achieved silver status under the internationally recognised Basic Aviation Risk Standard (BARS) audit system, which gives it recognition as meeting international standards and paves the way for IOSA standards.

The award comes after the airline passed a series of rigorous international aviation safety audits, conducted over the past four years by BARS.
Proflight is the only Zambian airline to have been awarded the silver Basic Risk Standard by the Flight Safety Foundation, which provides a global industry benchmark for airline safety.
“Safety is the number one priority for Proflight Zambia, and continued recognition of this by international inspectors reinforces our position as Zambia’s leading aviation company,” said Proflight’s Chitalu Kabalika.
“The standard is a measure of how seriously we take safety, and how much we are prepared to invest in order to ensure international safety standards are met. It also demonstrates that safety is part of Proflight’s everyday activities and we do not cut corners,” he added.
Proflight undergoes on average five external safety audits every year, including two audits conducted by the Zambia Civil Aviation Authority and on average three by international safety organisations such as the Flight Safety Foundation.
Proflight has now passed three Flight Safety Foundation audits.
The Basic Risk Standard (BARS) was developed from an industry-identified need to establish a common global aviation safety audit protocol that can be applied to on-shore resource sector aviation support activities. It is a risk-based model framed against the actual threats posed to aviation operations, particularly those found in challenging and remote environments. It directly links these to associated controls, recovery and mitigation measures, as opposed to the outdated prescriptive format previously used within the industry.
BARS is recognised within the aviation industry as the second highest aviation safety tier with the ultimate goal of achieving the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) widely considered as being the highest safety tier.
The latest standard comes two years after the airline was awarded an Air Operators Certificate (AOC) by the then Department of Civil Aviation (DCA). The AOC was issued by the DCA under the oversight of the aviation industry’s international regulator, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), confirming that the airline meets strict international safety, airworthiness and security standards.

Ethiopian voted as The Best Airline to Africa by Premier Traveler Magazine survey

Ethiopian Airlines has announced that it has been recognised as "Best Airline to Africa" by one of the most prominent travel magazines in the United States, Premier Traveler, at a ceremony held on 4 December 2014 in Los Angeles, California.

CEO of Ethiopian Airlines Group, Tewolde Gebremariam, said: "We are honoured that Premier Traveler Magazine’s readers in the U.S. have selected us as the best airline for travel to Africa. I wish to thank them for this vote of confidence, which once again reaffirms the quality of the service and product we offer. We currently offer the best connectivity options for the travelling public between Africa and the US, thanks to our daily flights from Washington D.C. using the ultra-modern B777s and B787s, and our extensive African network covering 49 destinations with daily and more flights.

In June 2015, we will further cement our position as the airline of choice for travel between Africa and the U.S. by adding Los Angeles as our second point in the U.S. Our flights connecting Addis Ababa, Dublin and Los Angeles will be operated with the B787s, which offers unmatched on-board comfort, and will be the only direct service connecting Africa with Ireland and the West Coast of the United States."

Emirates and the Lions, one of South Africa's top rugby teams, has announced a five-year sponsorship agreement

Emirates and the Lions, one of South Africa's top rugby teams, has announced a five-year sponsorship agreement.

The announcement was made at a media conference by Orhan Abbas, Emirates senior vice president, commercial operations for Latin America, Southern and Central Africa, and Rudolf Sraeuli, the CEO of the Golden Lions Rugby Union.

Starting from January 1 2015, the Lions will become known as the Emirates Lions, and the familiar “Fly Emirates” logo will adorn the match and training jerseys of the team for the next five years. Ellis Park, will be named Emirates Airline Park. The agreement also includes in-stadia hospitality as well as a number of other marketing rights and activities.

“Emirates is a strong champion of rugby worldwide and South Africa is one of the top rugby playing nations with very passionate supporters. We are therefore delighted to have the opportunity to sponsor one of the country’s most popular and established teams. It’s the first major sponsorship by Emirates of a South African team, and this will certainly raise the visibility of the Emirates brand not just here, but also in our key markets of New Zealand and Australia where the Super Rugby competition is played, and a number of other markets in which the games are televised,” said Abbas.

“Our new association with the Lions enables us to be part of Ellis Park, which is an historical and famous venue in the country, most notably for hosting the Rugby World Cup final in 1995 which South Africa won. This was the same year in which Emirates first started operations to the country, and today we enable trade and provide connections for South Africans from Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg to Dubai and beyond to our network of more than 140 destinations around the world,” he added.

“At the Golden Lions Rugby Union we pride ourselves on growth and performance. We are thus thrilled to partner with Emirates – a world-leader in its field who is constantly looking to expand and develop. We are tremendously grateful to Emirates for their support and belief. It is wonderful to have financial stability, as a result of the support from this international, iconic brand, over the next five years,” said Straeuli.

“We are looking forward to working closely together in not only developing rugby at grassroots level in both South Africa and the United Arab Emirates, but also expanding the game of rugby across the globe. As 2015 will mark the 20th anniversary of the Springboks’ 1995 Rugby World Cup win at Ellis Park, it is exciting for us to have secured Emirates as a stadium sponsor from next year. We know that we will share many more happy memories, alongside Emirates, at this hallowed ground,” he added.

GE wins vital systems contract on B777X

“This is a critical win for GE to supply the avionics computing system for the Boeing 777X, building on the success of our common core system on the 787,” said Alan Caslavka, president of avionics & digital systems for GE Aviation. “With the 787 and now the 777X, we have made future civil and military programmes more affordable by resetting the avionics cost curve and doing away with escalating software development costs.”
Selecting the GE common core system and enhanced airborne flight recorder enables Boeing to bring the latest generation of proven capabilities from the 787 to the 777X. The 777X has 300 orders and commitments from customers Lufthansa, Etihad, Qatar, Emirates, ANA and Cathay Pacific. 
The latest systems technology for the 777X will touch two major GE Aviation facilities including the common core system and the enhanced airborne flight recorder from Grand Rapids, Michigan and the remote data concentrators from Cheltenham, United Kingdom.
The CCS is often referred to as the “central nervous system and brain” of the airplane and hosts the aircraft’s avionics and utilities functions, eliminating several boxes and reducing hundreds of pounds of wire. GE’s CCS on both the 787 and 777X share common components and technologies and can be scaled up or down depending on customer needs. The CCS open system architecture significantly reduces the cost of modifying software so that the developer may only be required to test and certify functions that have been altered. 
GE’s EAFR for the 777X will record flight crew audio, parametric flight data, and data link communications. This data is stored in non-volatile, crash-survivable memory located within the EAFR and can be retrieved and analyzed for maintenance or in the event of an aircraft issue. GE’s flight recorders are on thousands of military aircraft as well as on the Boeing 787.
Design of the 777X is underway, and production is set to begin in 2017 with first delivery targeted for 2020. The 777X family includes the 777-8X and the 777-9X. The 777X will be the largest and most efficient twin-engine jet in the world, with 12 percent lower fuel consumption and 10 percent lower operating costs than the competition. Engine supplier GE Aviation was the first partner announced on the program. The GE9X engine should be more than five percent more efficient than anything in its class according to the American manufacturer.
 

Airbus lags Boeing but faces tense end to order race

 Europe’s Airbus sold 248 jets in November, but remained behind Boeing as both planemakers accelerated towards what could be a tight finish to their annual order race.

November’s Airbus sales included a total of 120 A320-family aircraft to three unidentified customers.

However CIT Leasing cancelled an order for one of 15 new-generation A350-900 wide-body jets it had bought, as it finalised an order for 15 upgraded versions of the older A330.

In total, Airbus won 1,328 total orders between January and November, company data showed on Friday. After adjusting for cancellations, it had 1,031 net orders. It delivered 554 jets.

On Thursday, Boeing reported 1,380 orders between Jan 1 and Dec 2, including 100 737 MAX confirmed by Ireland’s Ryanair. Net orders stood at 1,274 aircraft.

Boeing delivered 647 aircraft in the first 11 months.

The two planemakers are heading towards a stronger than expected order intake for 2014, as airlines seek the fuel savings offered by efficient models despite lower oil prices.

Airbus, which is already above its net order target for 2014, has a further 500 provisional orders announced but not yet finalised. Some of these typically get booked in December.

Boeing looks set to top 1,300 net orders for a second year running, exceeding an internal target of 1,100 and reaching what had seemed a stretching scenario just a few months ago.

Airbus said its waiting list of jets sold but not yet delivered had risen above 6,000 units for the first time.

Both firms use overbooking to guarantee a taker for each aircraft produced, mimicking the technique used by airlines to fill seats, meaning some unfilled orders will trickle away.

Dec 5 (Reuters) - Europe's Airbus sold 248 jets in November, but remained behind Boeing as both planemakers accelerated towards what could be a tight finish to their annual order race.

November's Airbus sales included a total of 120 A320-family aircraft to three unidentified customers.

However CIT Leasing cancelled an order for one of 15 new-generation A350-900 wide-body jets it had bought, as it finalised an order for 15 upgraded versions of the older A330.

In total, Airbus won 1,328 total orders between January and November, company data showed on Friday. After adjusting for cancellations, it had 1,031 net orders. It delivered 554 jets.

On Thursday, Boeing reported 1,380 orders between Jan 1 and Dec 2, including 100 737 MAX confirmed by Ireland's Ryanair. Net orders stood at 1,274 aircraft.

 

Boeing delivered 647 aircraft in the first 11 months.

The two planemakers are heading towards a stronger than expected order intake for 2014, as airlines seek the fuel savings offered by efficient models despite lower oil prices.

Airbus, which is already above its net order target for 2014, has a further 500 provisional orders announced but not yet finalised. Some of these typically get booked in December.

Boeing looks set to top 1,300 net orders for a second year running, exceeding an internal target of 1,100 and reaching what had seemed a stretching scenario just a few months ago.

Airbus said its waiting list of jets sold but not yet delivered had risen above 6,000 units for the first time.

Both firms use overbooking to guarantee a taker for each aircraft produced, mimicking the technique used by airlines to fill seats, meaning some unfilled orders will trickle away.

In a sign of previous overbooking, industry sources say Airbus has been pushing buyers of the current-generation A320 to upgrade to the newer A320neo so that it can halt production of the older model in 2018, as planned, and contain costs.

Completing the switch on time while ramping up the A350 are both are seen as crucial to its margin goals.

In November, JetBlue converted an order for 10 of the classic version of A321 to the new A321neo.

The tally included the first firm orders for the upgraded A330neo but left unresolved questions over a gap in orders for the current version, which has already seen a production cut.

Airbus has said it is negotiating a potential deal with China, but analysts say assuring smooth cash generation from the A330 remains one of its key challenges in the next two years. (Additional reporting by Dominique Vidalon; editing by Keith Weir)

Embraer and FlightSafety International complete training of first class of pilots for the Legacy 500

Dubai, UAE, December 8, 2014 – Embraer and FlightSafety International completed the training of the first class of pilots for the new Legacy 500 executive jet. These pilots, trained to operate customer jets, benefited from the complete customer support and services structure with advanced training technology. The simulator was qualified as Level C by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) and by Brazil’s ANAC (Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil).

“Well before the entry into service of the Legacy 500, we built out a global support network for our customers,” said Edson Carlos Mallaco, Vice President, Customer Support and Services, Embraer Executive Jets. “Our solid partnership with FlightSafety International resulted in the joint development of a complete high-level training solution.”

Training is being conducted at Flight Safety International, in St. Louis, Missouri in the U.S. FlightSafety International is also Embraer’s training service provider for Legacy and Lineage executive jets, in addition to the E-Jets commercial aircraft.

The Legacy 500 received certification from ANAC in August and from the FAA in October. EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) certification is imminent. The Legacy 500 is now able to operate in Brazil, United States, and in countries that require FAA certification. The first Legacy 500 was delivered to a Brazilian customer last October 10.

VIP Configuration of Sukhoi Superjet 100 Certified

The Aviation Register of the Interstate Aviation Committee confirmed the possibility to equip the Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft with the enhanced comfort passenger cabin interior. This Major Change Approval to the baseline Sukhoi Superjet 100 Type Design, issued by IAC AR In late November 2014, confirms the safe operation of this aircraft type in the VIP configuration submitted for certification.

“Our Company is now engaged in the activities aimed to introduce the Sukhoi Superjet 100 business version. The SSJ100 business jet version will meet not only the highest requirements for comfort but also serve the demand for long non-stop flights which is increasingly evident in the changing business aviation market”, noted Ilia Tarasenko, President of Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company. “The certification achieved on the enhanced comfort interior is another milestone in the planned development of the SSJ100 business version”.

The aircraft, which is based on the baseline RRJ-95B platform certificate, is characterized by the more comfortable passenger cabin achieved by fitting the newly-developed VIP-interior, the provision of higher level of service and the provision of on-board multimedia systems. Together, this makes it possible to both work and relax during flights.

The SSJ100 VIP interior is designed for 19 passengers, hosted in a passenger cabin divided into several sections.

The first and second section, intended for business meetings, are equipped with comfortable furniture, state-of-the-art multimedia systems and rotating-sliding seats.

The main passenger cabin is equipped with a full-scale working station, furniture to relax and a wardrobe. A separate lavatory is provided at the rear of the aircraft, just past the main passenger cabin.

The service section includes two cabin crew seats, a pantry-galley module with the latest equipment, a crew and passenger lavatory, as well as a wardrobe for passengers’ carry-on baggage.

The certified cabin configuration was designed with reference to the requirements of the launch customer, the Russian Government, which has placed a firm order for the new variant. The spacious cabin of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 allows for great flexibility in interior configurations, enabling the aircraft to meet all customer preferences and needs.

As a business jet, the Sukhoi Superjet 100 VIP is firmly placed in the Ultra Large category, characterized by long range and spacious cabins, while also offering very competitive acquisition and ownership costs.