Friday, 17 October 2014

FL Technics wins a tender for the rent of 8400 sq. m. MRO hangar in Indonesia

FL Technics wins a tender for the rent of 8400 sq. m. MRO hangar in IndonesiaFL Technics, a global provider of tailor-made aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul services, is glad to announce that the company has recently won a tender for the rent of 8400 sq. m. aircraft maintenance hangar at Indonesia’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, the busiest airport in the Southern Hemisphere. FL Technics will operate the hangar for at least 5 years and will launch its operation with base maintenance services for AirbusA320 aircraft.
The tender for the hangar rent was conducted by PT Angkasa Pura II, a state enterprise of the Indonesian Department of Transport responsible for the management ofairports and air traffic services in Indonesia. According to the terms and conditions, FL Technics with partners shall operate a total area of 24 500 sq. m., including a 8400 sq. m. hangar as well as the adjacent ramp, aircraft parking stands and additional facilities, via an established Indonesian company. The new FL Technics MRO centre will employ over 150 engineers, technicians, NDT specialists and other qualified personnel, capable of serving up to three narrow-body type aircraft at one time. FL Technics wins a tender for the rent of 8400 sq. m. MRO hangar in Indonesia
In 2013 Soekarno-Hatta International Airport served almost 400 000 domestic and international flights, approx. 59.7 million of passengers and over 342 000 tonnes of cargo. These numbers make it one of the largest airports in Asia Pacific and the busiest in the Southern Hemisphere. Located in the heart of the Indonesian aviation market, new FL Technics MRO centre will support local operators with comprehensive solutions, including A-to-D checks, interior refurbishment services, NDT inspections, composite and structure repairs, spare parts supply, etc. All services will be provided in accordance with both local and EASA requirements.
 FL Technics wins a tender for the rent of 8400 sq. m. MRO hangar in Indonesia
Concerning the market potential, today there are already over 4-5 thousand commercial aircraft flying in the region. Moreover, quite a few Indonesian carriers are on the list of operators with the fastest growing fleets. For instance, the country’s major carriers alone are planning to more than double their fleets in the upcoming 10-15 years. With this in mind, following the successful launch of operations at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, FL Technics is also considering the opportunities for future expansion with the construction of an additional hangar in the country.
“During the last couple of years we have been thoroughly exploring the Asian market. We are now confident that we possess a deep understanding of its trends and issues, which local carriers are facing in the MRO segment. Following the establishment of successful connections with the region’s aviation business community, we have decided to make the step and launch a new modern technical base at one of the main air hubs in Asia-Pacific. In addition to the extensive European experience and technical know-how, we will offer the region our one-stop-shop philosophy, supporting local carriers with base and line maintenance, technicaltraining, spare parts supply, engineering and engine support as well as other MRO solutions,” shares Zilvinas Lapinskas, the CEO of FL Technics. “We would also like to thank the Indonesian authorities for their confidence in our experience and competence as well as for entrusting us with the development of a new MRO centre at Indonesia’s main airport. This is the start of a new promising chapter in the FL Technics development and its cooperation with Asian carriers, MROs and other players in the region.”
Source and image: FL Technics / Avia Solutions Group

Obama authorizes reservists for Ebola fight in West Africa


US President Barack Obama makes a statement for the press after a meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on October 15, 2014. Obama cancelled campaign and fundraising travel for Democrats to attend the meeting about Ebola after a second case of the decease was contracted inside the United States. PHOTO | AFP  

WASHINGTON
President Barack Obama on Thursday authorized the Pentagon to send reservists to take part in a US mission to combat the Ebola epidemic in West Africa.
Obama said reservists could be called up to active duty for humanitarian aid operations "related to the Ebola virus disease outbreak in West Africa," according to an executive order released by the White House.
The US military has said it plans a force of 3,200 troops in Liberia and Senegal to provide logistical and engineering support in the international fight against the deadly virus, but said it has approval to expand the mission to nearly 4,000 if needed.
There are now more than 500 active-duty troops in Liberia and Senegal for the mission.
OBAMA TO WORLD: DO MORE
The reservists  who would be called up due to their particular technical expertise  would be part of that 4,000-strong force, a military official said.
In January 2010, Obama ordered the deployment of reservists to Haiti to take part in humanitarian aid work in the wake of a devastating earthquake that killed more than 250,000 people.
At the height of that operation, more than 20,000 US soldiers were in the Caribbean country.
On Wednesday, Obama once again urged the international community to do more to combat the outbreak of the virus, which has killed nearly 4,500 people, almost all of them in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.
In a videoconference with his British, French, German and Italian counterparts, he called on them to "make a more significant" contribution to the fight.

dubai‬ Marina The Tallest Block on Earth

‎Dubai‬ Fountains

Thursday, 16 October 2014

Al-Shabaab luring jobless Kenyans with Sh44,000 pay offer

Donations from wealthy businessmen and illegal exports of Somalia charcoal earned the militants tens of millions of dollars last year. PHOTO | FILEDonations from wealthy businessmen and illegal exports of Somalia charcoal earned the militants tens of millions of dollars last year

A monthly pay offer of up to $500 (Sh44,000) by Al-Shabaab is luring jobless Kenyan youths to the Islamic militant group’s training camps in Somalia.

A report by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), a Pan African think-tank, says the Al-Qaeda linked terrorist group is offering recruits between $150 (Sh13,350) and $500 per month to join it.
The report, which is based on interviews with 95 former Al-Shabaab fighters, indicates that 52 per cent of them joined the group because of economic and religious reasons, 13 per cent were forced to enrol and one per cent went on an adventure.
The pay is higher than the Sh30,000 paid to an entry level police constable and that of Kenya’s average salary of Sh41,416 for those in formal employment.
The group has made active recruitments in Kenya, especially at the Coast and Nairobi, which contributed to a string of gun and grenade assaults that hit the capital and coastal resorts of Mombasa and Lamu in the recent past.
“It was therefore not surprising that interviewees who defined adverse economic circumstances as a recruitment factor saw Al-Shabaab as a potential employer,” says the ISS report based on interviews done between April 14 and 28.
For a country mired in poverty and where the unemployment rate stands at 40 per cent, the pay has been attractive. It takes less than a month to hire a large number of recruits, the study says.
Donations from wealthy businessmen and illegal exports of Somalia charcoal earned the militants tens of millions of dollars last year, UN investigators said in a recent report.
The UN said the market value of Somalia charcoal exported in 2013 and 2014 was $250 million (Sh22.2 billion). But the group has faced a number of setbacks in recent weeks.
It lost the town of Barawe, a conduit for arms and a source of revenue through charcoal smuggling, to the Western-backed African Union force. It was Al-Shabaab’s last major coastal stronghold.
Its charismatic and ruthless leader, Ahmed Godane, was killed in a US missile strike last month.
The militants have carried out a string of assaults to punish Kenya for sending troops to Somalia in 2011. Al-Shabaab fighters killed at least 67 people in the Westgate raid last year. The raids spurred Britain, the United States, France and Australia to issue travel alerts in May, hitting Kenya’s tourism hard.
Hoteliers have reported occupancy levels of about 20 per cent during the high season which starts in July, compared to normal bed rates of more than 90 per cent.
Hotel owners say they need bed occupancy of between 60 and 70 per cent to break even. This has seen tens of top hotels close doors while the tourism sector slowed economic expansion to 5.8 per cent in the second quarter of this year, compared to 7.2 per cent in a similar period last year.

New airport radar to mitigate impact of wind turbines

New airport radar to mitigate impact of wind turbines A single radar that can provide traditional airport surveillance functions and mitigate against the effects of wind turbines may be a step closer following trials conducted through 2014.
Air navigation services provider, NATS, and the radar manufacturer, TERMA, trialled the use of Terma’s SCANTER system to assess its performance as an extended range wind turbine mitigation system between January and March this year.
Initial results indicated that the system was not only capable of mitigating the effects of wind turbines, but could also detect aircraft through wind farm locations, even at ranges beyond 40nm.
Following this successful initial trial, the radar was evaluated during August by the Civil Aviation Authority as part of its Spectrum Release Programme. The results confirmed that the system is capable of detecting even small targets beyond 40nm and with good low level coverage. Based upon these initial positive results, further testing is expected to be undertaken with the CAA moving forward.
Iain Harris, NATS Director of Engineering, Services, said: “We’re committed to working with a range of developers and radar manufactures to find the best way for airports to mitigate the impact of wind turbines. These latest trials with TERMA represent a breakthrough for airport operations, adding to our progress we have already made in the en-route environment.
Source and image: NATS

Golden toilet gifted by A king to his daughter on her marriage








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