Kenya Airways plans new economy plus class

Kenya Airways is planning to target high-level premium customers, as part of restructuring efforts aimed at returning the airline to operational profitability, new reports.

Chief executive officer of the airline, Sebastian Mikosz, said the airline is planning to roll out a new economy plus class by the end of the year.

Mikosz said the new class is targeted at business travellers, including American tourists and business executives on its new Nairobi-New York service.

SITAONAIR and DTN launches weather alerting to AIRCOM FlightTracker

Airline dispatchers using AIRCOM FlightTracker will now be equipped to help aircraft avoid inclement weather –including aircraft-specific turbulence, icing, and thunderstorm forecasts – supporting the smoothest and safest possible flight experience for those onboard, and maximizing fuel efficiency. 

Already adopted by airlines operating more than 250,000 flights every month, the FlightTracker is a ground-based software system delivering vital global real-time aircraft position alerting to airline operations teams. 

Paul Rainford, Senior Product Manager, FlightTracker, at SITAONAIR, said: "The responsibility of tracking aircraft is reliant on intensive manpower from an airline's operations and dispatch teams. But armed with FlightTracker's aircraft tracking alerting, and new, weather-based Flight Route Alerting capabilities, operations and dispatchers can focus their attentions on those flights that call for more detailed consideration. This in turn provides improved support to the pilots in the air, contributing to a better passenger experience."

Jon Reifschneider, senior vice president of weather at DTN, added: "We are excited to partner with SITAONAIR to provide additional layers of safety to all flights. The system allows you to take charge of your flight plan, planning routes up to 36 hours in advance, giving operators the confidence to schedule flights that keep passengers and crew safe, avoid turbulence, and use less fuel. DTN's insights also shed light on weather events that exceed the parameters for any planned routes, enabling flight planners to select the route that offers the best cost and the least chance of weather-related disruptions."

Kenya: JKIA Named Best Improved Airport in Africa

Nairobi — The Jomo Kenyatta International Airport has been awarded the best-improved airport in Africa by the Airports Council International (ACI).

The world Airports body has singled out JKIA's improved customer service based on the responses from passengers captured by the Airport Service Quality (ASQ) survey.

Kenya Airports Authority's Managing Director, Jonny Andersen says JKIA is currently undergoing major reorganisation and modernisation works set to stamp its position as a regional hub.

"Today's recognition shows that the measures we have put in place to improve services are beginning to bear fruit. The benefits of all agencies working as a team are clear to see. We still have a lot to do but I believe that we are on the right track." Mr. Andersen added.

JKIA recognition comes four weeks after the airport rolled out a service charter signed by all Government agencies committing to provide consistent and high-quality service.

Casablanca Airport was named the best airport in Africa with over 2 million passengers per year, followed by Mauritius and Durban.

In the Asia-pacific region, Mumbai scooped first place serving over 40 million passengers a year. In North America, this top spot goes to Toronto Pearson and in Europe to Rome Fiumicino.

Five dead as Helicopter crashes in New York river

A helicopter carrying six people crashed in New York City’s East River on Sunday, killing all passengers, while the pilot escaped, police said.

Two of the five passengers died at the scene and three were taken to two area hospitals where they later died, a spokesman for the New York City Police spokesman confirmed early Monday.

The pilot freed himself and was treated and released in good condition from a hospital, police said.

The Federal Aviation Administration said the Eurocopter AS350 went down near the northern end of Roosevelt Island at about 7 p.m. and was investigating. The National Transportation Safety Board said its investigative team would arrive on Monday.

“It’s a great tragedy,” said New York Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro at a press conference late Sunday. “It took a while for the divers to get these people out.”

Nigro said when the divers reached the helicopter it was inverted and in 50 feet of water with below 40-degree Fahrenheit water temperatures and four-mile-an hour currents.

the passengers were tightly harnessed and the harnesses had to be cut and removed to free the passengers in the helicopter, he added.

A Reuters photographer witnessed three people recovered by rescue divers being wheeled on stretchers onto a midtown pier shortly before 9 p.m.

New York City Police Commissioner James O’Neill said the aircraft was registered to Liberty Helicopters, a sightseeing and charter service in New York, and was on a private charter “photo shoot.”

The U.S. Coast Guard launched three boats to aid in the response, joining New York City emergency responders.
“It kind of hit sideways and just flipped over,” Brianna Jesme, 22, an Upper East Side resident who witnessed the crash, told Reuters TV.

Video of the incident filmed by an onlooker and posted on Twitter showed a red helicopter descending toward the water at dusk, then landing with a large splash before tipping onto its right side, its tail lights still flashing.

Reuters could not immediately verify the authenticity of the footage.

The NYC Ferry said late Sunday on Twitter that service on the Astoria and East River routes was currently suspended until further notice because of the helicopter crash.

Boeing 737 MAX 9 awarded FAA certification

Boeing has announced that the 737 MAX 9 has received an amended type certificate (ATC) from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), officially certifying the aircraft for commercial service.

The certification marks the culmination of a successful flight test programme  that began in March 2017 with two Boeing flight test aircraft. The FAA certification affirms that the airplane's handling, systems and overall performance all comply with required aviation regulations.

"Our teams built superior capabilities into the MAX 9 and proved them all the way through flight test. We're looking forward to bringing this airplane to market for our valued customers," said Keith Leverkuhn, vice president and general manager of the 737 MAX program, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "I am proud of the entire team for helping us reach another important development milestone."

Boeing is now in the final stages of preparing the MAX 9 for its first delivery to launch customer Lion Air Group.

The 737 MAX 9 is designed for a capacity of up to 220 passengers and a maximum range of 3,550 nautical miles. With three additional seat rows compared to the 737 MAX 8, this airplane provides operators added capacity while maximizing profitability within their network.

The 737 MAX incorporates the latest CFM International LEAP-1B engines, Advanced Technology winglets, Boeing Sky Interior, large flight deck displays and other features to deliver the highest efficiency, reliability and passenger comfort in the single-aisle market

Garmin introduces the GFC 600H helicopter flight control system

Garmin has launched the GFCTM 600H flight control system for helicopter owners and operators – a breakthrough in cost-effective technology that reduces pilot workload and improves mission effectiveness.

This attitude-based (AHRS-derived) flight control system has a number of helicopter- tailored safety features, including stability augmentation system (SAS), Garmin Helicopter Electronic Stability and Protection (H-ESPTM), dedicated return-to-level (LVL) mode, hover assist, as well as overspeed and low speed protection. The GFC 600H can operate as a full-featured standalone flight control system, but also offers integration with compatible flight displays, including the Garmin G500H and G500H TXi flight displays, instruments and navigation sources.

“Garmin designed the GFC 600H to significantly reduce inflight workload, fatigue and stress levels for helicopter pilots who are often faced with complicated missions in adverse weather conditions or degraded visual environments,” said Carl Wolf, Garmin vice president of aviation sales and marketing. “The GFC 600H combines our industry-leading flight control capabilities with our helicopter experience and aviation safety technology expertise to deliver a system that ultimately allows pilots to focus more attention on accomplishing the multitude of missions they face while trusting their helicopter flight to us.”

With its advanced AHRS technology and redundant, cross-checking sensors, the GFC 600H was designed for smooth handling. The GFC 600H includes SAS that provides inputs to help stabilise the helicopter while hand-flying. The corrections provided by SAS serve to improve the helicopter’s basic handling characteristics by maintaining a commanded attitude. Designed with the pilot in mind, its cyclic-mounted trim controls allows for seamless interactions without taking a hand off of the helicopter flight controls during basic operations, including system initialization of the SAS in attitude mode, adjustments of the pitch and roll trim, and much more. While flying with SAS, pilots can easily “fly through” the flight control inputs for smooth maneuvers beyond the preset trim condition.

Thanks to the hover assist mode, the system will also automatically detect a hover condition and provide flight control inputs to help maintain position over the ground. When equipped with the optional yaw axis control, the GFC 600H will also hold heading in hover.

As a standard feature, Garmin H-ESP helps the pilot remain within a safe envelope when hand-flying the helicopter. Should the pilot exceed pre-determined pitch, roll or airspeed limitations, H-ESP provides a corrective force on the flight controls proportionate to the exceedance. H-ESP works in all modes – even when the pilot is hand-flying the aircraft with the system not engaged – and can be manually disabled to allow for maneuvering flight as needed. In potentially disorienting situations, the GFC 600H features a dedicated LVL mode that can be engaged by the pilot to automatically initiate recovery from unusual attitudes and return the aircraft to straight-and-level flight, helping to avoid a potential loss-of-control scenario.

The flight director can be displayed on an optional G500H or G500H TXi flight display to help guide the pilot’s hand-flown inputs toward the desired flight path, including heading, altitude, vertical speed, and airspeed modes. For enroute and approach navigation, the system uses guidance from a compatible Garmin navigator, such as the GTNTM 750/650 series, to automatically fly approaches and search and rescue patterns.

Additional vertical and lateral modes include altitude hold, altitude select, vertical speed, indicated airspeed and heading select.

The GFC 600H features a stack-width mode controller with push-button controls and a night vision goggle (NVG) compatible display. Its robust architecture allows for both 2-axis and 3-axis configurations to provide the features and handling characteristics needed for a helicopter. Integrated “smart” servos provide pitch and roll inputs as commanded by the system, and the available third servo and collective sensor provide yaw axis control capability and smooth flight control adjustments when the pilot moves the collective. Digitally controlled, high-torque servos allow for faster, crisper, more powerful response, which enables the GFC 600H to perform with smooth efficiency and advanced capability.

Ethiopian becomes Africa’s first A350 full-flight simulator operator

Ethiopian Airlines has achieved yet another milestone, becoming the first A350 XWB Simulator Operator in Africa and among the few in the world.

The machine is fitted with a full electrical motion system which delivers improved performance while providing energy savings and environmental benefits.

Tewolde GebreMariam, Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, said: “The introduction of the A350 XWB Full-Flight Simulator is a continuation of our pioneering role in African aviation Technology. It is part of our Vision 2025 strategic roadmap to be fully self-sufficient in the provision of pilot training in all the aircraft type we operate. It complements the other full-flight simulators we are already operating such as the B787, B-777, B737, B757, B767 and Q400.

“All in all, we have invested over 125 million $ in the last 7 years to expand and upgrade all the facets of our training capabilities. These investments are meant to bridge the aviation skill gap in Africa and to avail well trained and qualified aviation professionals in the continent. Education is the biggest Equaliser of our time and our aim is to make Africa self-sufficient in aviation professionals.”

The Pilot Training School of the airline has trained pilots from over 52 countries in Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe for close to 50 years.