Hong Kong’s magnate to form leasing JV with Mitsubishi for $2b worth aircraft

Mitsubishi Corporation ("MC") has entered into an agreement with Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited ("CK"), leading Hong Kong’s  holding controlled by Li Ka-shing, Asia’s richest man, to newly establish a joint venture dedicated to aircraft leasing.

CK will own 60% and MC 40% of the JV. Based on the agreement, MC will transfer to the JV a seed portfolio of 15 aircraft, out of the approximately 100 aircraft that it owns or manages. CK to acquire a total of twenty-one aircraft from GECAS, a total of up to ten aircraft from BOC Aviation and up to fourteen aircraft from JSA. The JV will open offices in Hong Kong and Ireland, two key hub stations in aircraft lease and financing.

The chairman of CK, Li Ka-shing, is focusing on the rapid development in the Chinese aviation market. According to IATA, China will overtake the U.S. as the world’s biggest air travel market by 2030. However, due to interest growth in the aircraft leasing sector, China may surpass U.S. even earlier. 

Source and image: Cheung Kong

Ryanair, 32% profit increase in H1, 2014

Ryanair, 32% profit increase in H1, 2014

 Ryanair today announced that H1 Net Profit rose by 32% to €795m. Traffic grew 4% to 51.3m customers, ave. fares increased 5%, and total revenues rose by 9% to €3,537m. Unit costs fell by 2% (excluding fuel they rose by 3%).

H1 load factors jumped by 4% points to 89%, due to a stronger Easter period and the success of Ryanair’s “Always Getting Better” customer experience improvements.

- 4 new bases and 57 new routes opened.

- Improved website and mobile app rolled out.

- “Always Getting Better” customer experience improving.

- “Family Extra” and “Business Plus” products launched.

- €850m 7yr Euro bond issued @ 1.875%.

- €520m special dividend in Feb 2015 approved.

- Launch order for 200 Boeing 737-MAX “Gamechanger” aircraft (sub. to EGM approval).

- Revised growth plan to double to 150m p.a. customers by 2024.

In September, Ryanair celebrated 2 milestone events with Boeing. We took delivery of the 1st of 180 new Boeing 737-800 NG aircraft in Seattle. These new aircraft will enable Ryanair to deliver strong traffic and profit growth over the coming 5 years as we grow to over 114m passenger’s p.a. These new aircraft will allow us exploit the unfolding opportunities at many primary and secondary airports across Europe who are encouraging Ryanair to grow quickly at their airports as their incumbent carriers cut capacity.

Ryanair's September AGM approved the Board’s proposal to return another €520m via a special dividend (€0.375 per ordinary share). This will be paid at the end of February 2015, at a time when our cash balances are rising. This will bring to over €2.5bn the returns made by Ryanair to shareholders since 2008. Ryanair’s balance sheet remains one of the strongest in the industry. Despite €293m of Capex and debt repayments of €199m during H1, our Net Cash position has improved from €158m to €618m reflecting our profitable H1 trading. 

Based on these solid H1 results, underpinned by strong forward bookings and rising load factors, we have significantly raised our winter capacity and traffic growth objectives. Traffic will grow by 12% in Q3 and by 20% in Q4, which are very ambitious targets during the weaker half of the year. However, we believe it is time to capitalise upon the many opportunities available to us at both primary and secondary airports, to grow our route network and increase frequencies, in order to attract business traffic which tends to travel more during the winter period.

As a result of these 2.2m additional H2 passengers and falling unit costs, our full year net profit will significantly exceed our previous guidance (of €650m) to a new range of between €750m to €770m. However, we caution that this raised guidance remains heavily reliant on the strength of close in bookings for the remainder of Q3, and in particular Q4 where we presently have very little visibility.

Source and image: Ryanair

 

First A350 XWB for Vietnam Airlines rolls out of assembly hall

The first A350 XWB for Vietnam Airlines, to be leased from AerCap, has just moved to station 30 at the Roger Béteille Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Toulouse, France.

This new milestone marks the completion of some of the major airframe assembly as well as the successful first electrical power-on. In station 30, the aircraft will now undergo ground tests, while the cabin installation initiated in the previous station (station 40) will be continued. 

Scheduled for delivery in mid-2015, the aircraft will see Vietnam Airlines become the first Asian airline to fly the A350 XWB and the second operator in the world of the all-new, fuel-efficient widebody.

Source and image: Airbus

Crew Selfies: To Take or Not to Take?

Crew Selfies: To Take or Not to Take?

Details

Published on Wednesday, 29 October 2014 13:36

0inShare

Share

Today there are millions of photos posted on various social networks every second. For instance, on Facebook alone we upload 300 million photos daily. Meanwhile, if one was to print all of the pictures currently posted on Instagram, it would reach 6 351 kilometres from the Earth. When it comes to the themes of these photos, the most popular trend is a selfie! It has spread so widely, that only the most entertaining/shocking pics receive significant public attention or cause any controversy. However, prior to taking a seemingly innocent selfie, certain professionals should think twice, and airline crew members are amongst the ones on the list of employees that should maintain a clean reputation at all times.

The fact that back in 2013 the Oxford Dictionary named “selfie” the word of the year raised few eyebrows amongst social networkers. After all, more than 88 million photos were hash-tagged #selfie that year. Industry wise the statistics were no less impressive with over 1,000 airline crew members from all over the world introducing their own hashtags for images labeled #crewlife, #milehighselfie, #flywithme, #airhostess, #flightattendant, etc.

Most airlines encourage the spread of such photos (especially when these pics are captured/posted by clients), as they consider the practice to be a cheap yet very effective supplement to the more traditional means of marketing. For instance, in 2013 Turkish Airlines reached about 100 million traveller prospects with selfies. It largely contributed to the tripled YouTube brand searches and helped to secure a 16% increase in Google global brand searches. Inspired by the success story, a Russian-based carrier S7 Airlines has recently launched a campaign called the Right to do a Selfie, stating that from now on no airline passenger shall be refused the right to take a self-portrait at any time during the flight. However, far from many airlines are univocal about the aforementioned right when it comes to their own employees.

“When on duty and in their official attire crew members not only provide the air carrier‘s customers with services, but are also directly and indirectly responsible for its public representation. And airlines take their reputation very seriously, meaning that they track every step of their employees’ online activities. For instance, last year a flight attendant of Aeroflot was fired after posting a photo of giving the middle finger on one of her social media accounts. The same thing happened to one other Aeroflot flight attendant. In May 2012 a Russian Superjet slammed into the side of a volcanic mountain while on a demonstration tour near Jakarta. The flight attendant was fired after joking about the crash on her social media profile,” shares Skaiste Knyzaite, the CEO of AviationCV.com.

While an ordinary user might be amused by such bad boy attitude of certain airline employees, most carriers are not thrilled about their provocative photos receiving hundreds of likes on Facebook. The limits do vary, however. For instance, while Delta Airlines does allow its employees to take (and share) selfies freely, their flight attendants are prohibited from posting any photographs with celebrities. What is ridiculous is that despite knowing the rule well, crew members are still breaking it aboard. For instance, not so long ago the crew members of Vietnam Airlines were in breach of the official regulations twice. They posed for a photo with a celebrity in the cockpit during the flight and then posted it on internet. This comes to show that 15 minutes of fame is sometimes just too strong.

“When posting a selfie not every employee can assess its potential impact on the company’s reputation, which is why all crew members should maintain a serious approach to the difference between the daily and work functions. While some of the shots may be funny, the crew members posting them may not be the ones having the last laugh” says Skaiste Knyzaite, the CEO of AviationCV.com. “However, it must be stressed that despite all the pitfalls, social media remains a powerful and useful source of new career opportunities. Taking into account a wide range of advantages many HR-resourcing platforms hold for flight attendants and other industry representatives, the importance of online tools in the contemporary labour market is hard to overestimate."

Source and image: Aviation.CV

Boeing delivers 100th 777-300ER to Emirates

Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren In White Gold

Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren In White Gold







 

New A320 full-flight simulator at Airbus Training Center, Miami

New A320 full-flight simulator at Airbus Training Center, Miami

Details

Published on Thursday, 30 October 2014 10:26

0inShare

Share

Airbus Training Center (ATC) in Miami has integrated a new A320 full-flight simulator. Produced by FlightSafety International, provider of aviation training, simulation equipment and software, the A320 simulator received Level D qualification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and is ready to provide training on CFM and IAE engines as well as the Honeywell Flight Management Guidance Computer (FMGC).

This is the Miami Training Center’s first FlightSafety simulator and complements two A330/A340 and three A320 full-flight simulators.

To enhance its single-aisle flight training offering in Miami, the new full-flight A320 simulator is equipped with a 60-inch electric motion and electric control loading and FlightSafety’s VITAL 1100 Visual System and provides 60 x 200 degree Field of View and continuous high-resolution global satellite imagery capable of distinguishing environmental conditions experienced during all phases of flight, from taxi and takeoff to landing.

“With the A320 Family being the world’s best-selling single-aisle product line, it is no surprise that demand for single-aisle full-flight simulator training is expected to reach nearly 700,000 hours by 2017,” said Joe Houghton, Airbus Vice President of Training & Flight Operations Support. “FlightSafety’s new A320 simulator will help Airbus continue to deliver innovative training services to meet the growing demands for quality flight and maintenance training.”

Source and image: Airbus

Virgin Galactic crash: SpaceShipTwo probe 'may take year'

The investigation into the Virgin Galactic spacecraft crash in California's Mojave Desert could take about a year, the head of the US transport safety agency has said.

Christopher Hart said Virgin Galactic would be able conduct further test flights while the investigation took place.
SpaceShipTwo broke up in mid-air during a test flight on Friday.
One of the pilots was killed and the other injured.
Virgin chief Sir Richard Branson says he is "determined to find out what went wrong" and learn from the tragedy.
The US National Transportation Safety Board team had completed its first full day of investigation, Mr Hart said, and would be examining evidence at the scene for four to seven days.
He said the craft's debris was spread over an area measuring five miles from end to end.
He told a news conference the test flight had been "heavily documented" and his team would have to trawl through "extensive data", which was why the full investigation could take "about 12 months or so".
He said there were six cameras on the craft itself, with another three on its launcher, an aircraft called WhiteKnightTwo, although it was unclear whether SpaceShipTwo's cameras had been found.



The pilot who died was named as Mike Alsbury

Police secured the crash site in the Mojave Desert amid fears that some of the debris could be explosive

The co-pilot who died when SpaceShipTwo disintegrated shortly after take-off was named as 39-year-old Michael Alsbury.
The pilot who survived was identified as Peter Siebold. Scaled Composites, the company both pilots worked for, said Mr Siebold, 43, was "alert and talking with his family and doctors".
Mr Hart said his team were waiting for doctors to allow them to interview Mr Siebold.

The pilots

Peter Siebold, left, survived the incident but his co-pilot, Michael Alsbury, died

Michael Alsbury

• Aged 39
• Married with two children
• 15 years of flying experience
• First flew in SpaceShipTwo in 2010
• Flew craft's first rocket-powered run in April 2013

Peter Siebold

• Aged 43
• Married with two children
• Received pilot's licence when just 16
• Started working for Scaled Composites in 1996
• Had spent 2,000 hours in 35 different fixed-wing aircraft

Will crash set back space tourism?

'A massive setback'
Speaking earlier at the at the Mojave Air and Space Port, where the craft was being developed, Sir Richard said "nobody underestimates the risks involved in space travel".
Virgin Galactic had hoped to launch commercially in 2015. It has already taken more than 700 flight bookings at $250,000 (£156,000) each, with Sir Richard pledging to travel on the first flight.
"It's a horrible day for Virgin Galactic and for commercial space travel. It's a massive setback," Sir Richard told the BBC.
He said the company had to pick itself up, find out what went wrong and see whether they can fix it.
"I'm hopeful we'll be able to overcome the problems," he added.

Download Flash Player now

You need to install Flash Player to play this content.

Sir Richard Branson: "It's a massive setback"

The spacecraft was flying its first test flight for nine months when it crashed near the town of Bakersfield.
Virgin Galactic said SpaceShipTwo had experienced "a serious anomaly" after it separated from WhiteKnightTwo.
The space craft was using a new type of rocket fuel never before used in flight, although officials said it had undergone extensive ground testing.

IAG Cargo, €236m revenue in 3Q, 2014

IAG Cargo today announces its Q3 results from July 1 to October 31, 2014, reporting commercial revenue (flown revenue plus fuel surcharges) of €236m versus €256m for the same period last year. On a like for like basis, adjusting the prior year’s figures to reflect a directly comparable freighter operation, commercial revenue increased 7.6 per cent versus last year.

Volumes of 1,331 million cargo tonne kilometres (CTKs) on a like for like basis for the quarter represent an increase of 12.0 per cent compared to Q3 2013, while capacity increased by 4.1 per cent. Overall yield (commercial revenue per CTK) for the quarter was down 3.0 per cent at constant exchange rates.

Steve Gunning, CEO at IAG Cargo, commented: “While we have seen a decrease in yield, this is primarily due to flying increased sector lengths. More generally, while trading is good, there are still fundamental issues with the market in terms of excess capacity.”

Source and image: IAG Cargo

King Air crashes at FlighSafety building, 4 dead

Wichita public safety officials have confirmed four people are dead after a Beechcraft King Air 200 crashed into the top of the Flight Safety Building at Wichita Mid-Continent Airport just before 10 am on Thursday, Oct.30. City of Wichita officials have confirmed four victims. Five people have been transported to local hospitals with serious injuries. Officials are still trying to locate four of the approximately 100 people who were reportedly in the building at the time of the crash.

A Beechcraft King Air 200 struck the top of the building but the cause of the crash is unknown at this time. The names and ages of the victims have not been released

The victims have not been removed due to structural concerns with the building. Earlier today, a structural engineer arrived at the scene to help assess the structural integrity of the building and to provide guidance to emergency responders. Additional equipment will arrive by Friday to help remove portions of the building. The cause of the crash is still unknown.

Responding agencies included the Wichita Fire Department, Wichita Police Department, Mid-Continent Public Safety Department, Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas Highway Patrol and the FBI. Fire officials report the crash resulted in a two-alarm fire that is ongoing. Firefighters have been evacuated from the building which has been declared unstable.

Source and image: Wichita Mid-Continent Airport

FL Technics Jets becomes an Authorized Rockwell Collins Dealer

FL Technics Jets, a global provider of tailor-made maintenance, repair and overhaul services for business aviation, is delighted to announce the start of a new relationship with Rockwell Collins under which the company is being appointed as an Authorized Business and Regional Systems (BRS) Dealer.

FL Technics Jets is to provide Rockwell Collins avionics sales and support solutions for various business and regional aircraft operators and MROs worldwide.

According to the terms of the 4 year-long agreement, Rockwell Collins BRS has authorized FL Technics Jets to promote and sell a wide range of its products, including Pro Line 21™, Pro Line 4™, Venue™ and other avionics system solutions, in target regions. The extensive inventory range of the U.S. manufacturer covers avionics equipment for almost every type of currently operated business and regional jets, including Hawker Beechcraft, Bombardier CRJ, Bombardier Challenger and other.

„We are very delighted at the prospect of cooperating with one of the industry’s leaders in the area of innovative communication and aviation electronic solutions. We hope that our long-standing experience and deep understanding of business specifics in the region will help Rockwell Collins to efficiently expand the geography of their products, particularly in Eastern Europe and the CIS. We are confident that the partnership will be beneficial for both companies,’ commented the CEO of FL Technics Jets Darius Saluga.

Source and image: FL Technics Jets

AFI KLM loses 416m euros in revenues due to pilot strikes

Third Quarter 2014 for AFI KLM was strongly affected by 14 days of strike by Air France pilots, which had an estimated negative impact of 330 million euros on the operating result. Total revenues were reduced by an estimated 416 million euros, partly offset by 86 million euros of net savings on costs. The strike led to the cancellation of an estimated 4,249 million ASKs (18% of September ASKs) and 213 million ATKs (16% of September ATKs) resulting in an equivalent cancellation of 4.75 billion EASKs (Equivalent Available Seat Kilometer).

Total revenues amounted to 6,695 million euros versus 7,175 million euros in 2013, down 6.7%, but up +0.2% on a constant currency basis and adjusted for the Air France pilot strike (“like-for-like”). Currencies had a negative 78 million euro impact on revenues.

Operating costs were 1.3% lower year-on-year and 0.7% lower on a constant currency basis. Ex-fuel, they increased by 0.7% and by 0.8% on a like-for-like basis. Unit cost per EASK1 was reduced by 1.2%, on a constant currency, fuel price, pension expense and strike adjusted basis, against capacity measured in EASK up by 2.0%, corrected for the strike. The fuel bill amounted to 1,737 million euros, down 6.4%, but slightly up (+0.4%) on a constant currency and strike adjusted basis. Total employee costs including temporary staff were down 1.6% to 1,871 million euros, and by 1.7% on a constant currency basis. On a constant pension expense and adjusted for the strike, they declined by9 million euros.

The net result, group share stood at 100 million euros against 148 million euros a year ago. It includes the non current result of the Amadeus transaction (187 million euros), mainly offset by the change in value of the fuel hedging portfolio (-172 million euros). On an adjusted basis4, the net result, group share stood at 111 million euros against 372 million euros in Q3 2013, a 261 million euro decrease.

In the first Nine Months of 2014, total revenues stood at 18,7 billion euros versus 19,4 billion euros in 2013, down 3.6%, but up +0.4% on a like-for-like basis. Currencies had a negative 365 million euro impact on revenues.

The net result, group share stood at -514 million euros against -651 million euros a year ago. It includes the non-current result of the Amadeus transaction (187 million euros), the change in value of the fuel hedging portfolio (-146 million euros), foreign exchange losses (including the adjustment in the value of the cash held by the Group in Venezuela), and the impairment charges related to the Cargo business. On an adjusted basis, the net result, group share stood at -231 million euros against-314 million in the first nine months of 2013, an 83 million euro improvement.

Source and image: AFI KLM

Recycling voodoo: your TV was an aircraft

Voodoo practices are based on the belief that there is a great transition from one life to another. Just like with voodoo, a perished plane may find a chance for second life and reincarnate not only as parts of other planes, but also within your Blackberry, Samsung or iPhone. Smartphone’s are made from at least 50% recycled content, including the aircraft that was in the air just 10 years ago.

As the aviation becomes more eco-friendly, it is not only sustainability that leads to the dismantling of an aircraft, but also the cost of materials. For instance, companies recover aluminium, fibber composites, steel and textiles from recycling old aircraft. AFRA (Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association) estimates that over the next 20 years, 12,000 airplanes worth $1.3 trillion will be at the end of service life. The voodoo process for many aircraft begins in the boneyard, where retired airplanes are parked.

Reincarnation process

The process of reincarnation takes time. The recycling of composites is normally a two-step procedure: first, a mechanical process, during which composites are separated from other aircraft materials; the second process recovers materials of sufficient quality, allowing them to be reintroduced to industry.

Massive machines are used to demolish the airplane. Afterwards, dismantled parts travel to a processing plant, where a powerful magnet separates components used as raw materials to produce circuit boards for phones, computers and TVs. AFRA member companies each year scrap and disassemble a third of approximately 400 to 450 globally retired aircraft, producing up to 30,000 tons of aluminium and 1,800 tons of other specialty alloy metals.

Aircraft zombies

Haitian folklore believes that voodoo helps a soul to come back to the body; in cases, when the soul cannot meet the new body, the raised corpse is literally called zombie in Haitian French. One of this “zombies” is serving as a hotel in Costa Rica. Stunning views of the Pacific Ocean can be seen from the windows of Costa Verde, while the wild life of monkeys can be observed from the wing of the airplane. The Boeing 727 had its airframe salvaged from its airport-resting place in San Jose.

Another aircraft voodoo “practitioner”, Bruce Campbell, the creator of AirplaneHome.com, has converted a Boeing 727-200 aircraft and resurrected the fuselage as his new home. Bruce has adapted his daily life to live onboard an airplane. 64-years-old engineer bought an old Boeing for around $100,000 and spent decade transforming it. Bruce Campbell’s ideas do not stop with simple housing, as he plans to re-transform planes into crucial tsunami lifeboats for the local community in Japan. According to Campbell, fuel tanks (primarily the wings) are especially well sealed and highly durable floating canisters. With proper tethering which allows not only substantial horizontal drift, but also a vertical rise and flexibility, they make a reliable and superb lifeboat. Furthermore, this can be accomplished on budget, using a readily available resources discarded as garbage.

Invading the body

There is one god in voodoo, yet many spirits, which are eager to invade the body. The Voodoo doll is used to represent the spirit’s transformation to a specific object. Similarly, an aircraft wingtip can become a table. MotoArt is a California-based company, creating furniture from salvaged aircraft parts: Jacobs Radial engine coffee table, 747 Jet Liner bed, 707 cowling mirrors. Many other plane parts are represented as pieces of furniture in this futuristic and modern affair.

So be careful not to crack your new coffee table, as somewhere an aircraft or an electronic device may have an unusual reaction to it...