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ICG Offering Iridium Conversion for Magnastar Customers
The International Communications Group (ICG) is offering an Iridium satellite conversion program for customers being affected by the pending shutdown of the Verizon Airfone air-to-ground telephone service in North America.

Delta Using Arrival Management System to Conserve Fuel
Delta Air Lines is using a new decision support tool to better manage landings into Atlanta during congested periods, which it says results in less fuel consumption.

WSI Becomes IATA Strategic Partner
WSI (Weather Services International) has joined a group of IATA-affiliated suppliers and service providers that develop industry solutions in concert with the association and its member airlines.

AD Aerospace Adds IP Connectivity Options for Security Cameras
AD Aerospace has added new IP (Internet protocol) cameras to its offerings of safety and security video systems to give airline customers more flexibility and connectivity options.

Rockwell Collins to Offer New Satellite Television for Business Jets
Rockwell Collins has unveiled a new satellite television system designed for super mid-size and larger business jets that operate primarily within the contiguous United States.   It expects to deliver the first system in mid-2007.

Qantas to Evaluate Onboard Passenger Communications Technology
Qantas will evaluate new passenger communications technologies over a three-month period on a B-767, flying domestically, to help it make a decision on what it will install on its fleet beginning in early 2007.

ABX Air and IS&S Team on B-767/B-757 Display Retrofit
ABX Air and Innovative Solutions & Support (IS&S) say they will install a new flat panel display system (FPDS) and make other changes on a B-767-200ER aircraft managed by one of their customers.

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Horizon Air Approved to Fly RNP SAAAR Approaches into Portland

The FAA approved Horizon Air to fly RNP (required navigation performance) approaches in revenue service using SAAAR (special aircraft and aircrew authorization required) procedures into Portland, Oregon.

This approval relies on the use of a DME/DME/DME/IRU (distance measuring equipment/inertial reference unit) to backup the aircraft's GPS that provides for RNP 0.3.  Horizon is the second U.S. airline, after Alaska, its sister carrier, to achieve RNP approach approval, and the first U.S. operator to achieve RNP approval in this manner, according to Universal Avionics that supplies the dual UNS-1E FMS (flight management systems) used on Horizon's 28 Bombardier Q200s and 20 Q400s.

The new Portland RNP approaches have been flown by Alaska Airlines since May, and have reportedly demonstrated reduced fuel consumption and other benefits from shorter routing.

Horizon Air also operates 20 Bombardier CRJ-700s equipped with dual Collins FMS.  08-27-2006.  (Top)

ICG Offering Iridium Conversion for Magnastar Customers

The International Communications Group (ICG) is offering an Iridium satellite conversion program for customers being affected by the pending shutdown of the Verizon Airfone air-to-ground telephone service in North America.

ICG says it has a wide range of options to upgrade existing MagnaStar systems, ranging from a single-channel Iridium voice/data terminal for smaller aircraft, to advanced multi-channel satellite and PBX (private branch exchange) systems for larger aircraft.

ICG says its systems also can support ACARS (aircraft communications and reporting system) over Iridium via a standard ARINC-429 high- and low-speed digital interface, and are approved for secure voice communication for both Type-I secure and commercial encryption via a secure wire line terminal. Additional features include internal fax options and credit-card calling capabilities via the Iridium network.  08-28-2006.  (Top)

Delta Using Arrival Management System to Conserve Fuel

Delta Air Lines is using a new decision support tool to better manage landings into Atlanta during congested periods, which it says results in less fuel consumption.

The program, called Attila, sends an ACARS (aircraft communications addressing and reporting system) message from Delta's Operations Control Center (OCC) to its arriving aircraft to provide pilots with a coordinated RTA (required time of arrival) speed adjustment, which eliminates some terminal queuing that forces extended downwind legs and other undesirable maneuvering.  The airline expects this program alone to save as much as $6 million in fuel savings this year.

Attila, which was originally developed by the Advanced Engineering and Sciences Division of ITT Industries and ATH Group, optimizes aircraft arrivals in real-time by analyzing factors affecting an airport's inbound flow to calculate the best arrival time for each aircraft.

The system uses an architecture that requires little change to the ATC system, and can be easily integrated into current ATC and airline operational control systems and procedures, according to ITT and ATH.

All of Delta's B-777s, B-737-800s, B-767-400s, and other B-767s as well as B-757s that are equipped with Honeywell Pegasus FMS (flight management systems) can use the computer's RTA feature to automatically meet the necessary fix times.  The airline has procedures to accommodate changing circumstances where the RTA becomes infeasible.

Attila will typically generate one message per selected flight.  The RTA will not require a speed change greater than 5% or 10 knots, eliminating the need to notify ATC, and since the system monitors FAA radar data to verify aircraft acceptance of its request, it doesn't require an ACARS reply.

"The Attila program allows us to maximize our airspace efficiency, which is a technical way of saying our customers will experience fewer take-off delays from their origination city and less time sitting in a holding pattern upon arrival into Atlanta," said Joe Kolshak, Delta's executive vice-president of operations.  08-26-2006.  (Top)

WSI Becomes IATA Strategic Partner

WSI (Weather Services International) has joined a group of IATA-affiliated suppliers and service providers that develop industry solutions in concert with the association and its member airlines.

IATA Strategic Partners are active in IATA committees and working groups, as well as in various IATA initiatives, with the aim of developing synergies that helps both airlines and their suppliers.

WSI says it will bring its experience in developing weather-driven business products for flight operations to this mix.  08-23-2006.  (Top)

AD Aerospace Adds IP Connectivity Options for Security Cameras

AD Aerospace has added new IP (Internet protocol) cameras to its offerings of safety and security video systems to give airline customers more flexibility and connectivity options.

By using IP, each of AD Aerospace's FlightVu cameras operates separately, and their images are digitized and recorded at their source site, which increases the overall system's reliability and expandability.

Each camera can independently record up to 27 hours of footage onto an integral 8 GB (gigabyte) flash drive.  This recording can be either continuous or activated by an alarm with a configurable buffer so that it can show what happened before the alarm was activated.

AD Aerospace says the cameras are directly compatible with today's EFBs (electronic flight bags) and connect to them through an existing Ethernet network (present on the latest generation of airliners) or though an Ethernet hub.  They can also link to a data transmission system for viewing on the ground or on hand held devices by security personnel on the aircraft.  The company adds that these systems are immune to electro magnetic interference and so won't interfere with any existing aircraft systems.  08-27-2006.  (Top)

Rockwell Collins to Offer New Satellite Television for Business Jets

Rockwell Collins has unveiled a new satellite television system designed for super mid-size and larger business jets that operate primarily within the contiguous United States.   It expects to deliver the first system in mid-2007.

Rockwell is teaming with DIRECTV on the Tailwind 300 offering that will feature content from CNN, Fox, Bloomberg, ESPN, The Weather Channel, A&E, Discovery, as well as local networks, independent programming, pay-per-view movies, sports subscriptions and other channels.  08-28-2006.  (Top)

Qantas to Evaluate Onboard Passenger Communications Technology

Qantas will evaluate new passenger communications technologies over a three-month period on a B-767, flying domestically, to help it make a decision on what it will install on its fleet beginning in early 2007.

The Australian airline says it intends to introduce new onboard technology to enable its customers to send and receive emails, SMS (short message service) communications and calls via their own mobile phone or PDAs (personal electronic devices).

Lesley Grant, Qantas group general manager of customer product and services, said her airline's research indicated that customers were increasingly demanding the same range of services in the air as those available on the ground.

"We have asked our business travelers about the concept, the overwhelming majority felt the service was a good idea, particularly email access.  Most feel it will allow them to use their time more effectively in-flight, as a flight for many has become an integral part of their business day," Ms Grant said.

Ms Grant said Qantas will be actively seeking customer feedback to further refine the airline's policy, which would include input on the protocols concerning use of mobile phones in-flight.

Qantas has teamed with Telstra, Panasonic Avionics Corporation and AeroMobile in the evaluation, which is meant to allow appropriate communication devices to be used inflight safely without interfering with ground networks.

Qantas and its partners are working with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) and other agencies to ensure the system operates in accordance with Australian regulatory and legal requirements, Ms Grant said.  08-28-2006.  (Top)

China Airlines First to Jointly Use Two Boeing Maintenance Applications

China Airlines will jointly use Boeing's Maintenance Performance Toolbox and its Maintenance and Engineering Management (MEM) tool suite to leverage their benefits.  Boeing says CAL is the first airline to take this step.

The Taipei-based airline adopted MEM (formally called Enterprise One) in 2005 to coordinate and standardize maintenance activities across its entire fleet of airplanes.  MEM automates workflows; optimizes the scheduling of people, parts, and tools; and streamlines the processes of regulatory compliance.

By initially conjoining three Toolbox modules with MEM - Tasks, Authoring and Library - the airline believes it can enhance the benefits of MEM's multiple maintenance software applications.

The Tasks module will make it easier for CAL's maintenance managers to create task cards, and supply MEM with data on the supplies, manpower and tools required, which in turn "informs" MEM's scheduling and logistical configurations, to facilitate the imputing of manufacturer data into MEM for its planning and execution functions.

One of the great advantages of Toolbox is that it allows airlines to trace and confirm that proper maintenance and repair procedures have been followed, according to Boeing, which positively affects both safety and regulatory compliance.  08-26-2006.  (Top)

JAL Selects Flightscape's Analytical and Animation Tools

Japan Airlines will use Flightscape's tool suite to analyze and replay flight data from selected events and irregularities.

The Flightscape tools JAL will use include Insight Analysis, Animation and ProView:  The analysis tool will allow JAL personnel to edit and configure aircraft parameter databases, perform mathematical and performance functions on the data, and do comprehensive plotting and curve fitting.  The animation tool automatically creates flight animations tailored to specific cockpit displays and configurations, as well as pertinent runways and terrain, without programming.  ProView is a fully interactive viewer which allows users to manipulate the animations for training and debriefing purposes.  08-24-2006.  (Top)

ABX Air and IS&S Team on B-767/B-757 Display Retrofit

ABX Air and Innovative Solutions & Support (IS&S) say they will install a new flat panel display system (FPDS) and make other changes on a B-767-200ER aircraft managed by one of their customers.

The two companies have agreed on a partnership arrangement under which installation of the systems will be performed by ABX Air, while the flat panel displays and STC (supplemental type certificate) will be supplied by IS&S.  The companies will complete delivery and installation of the system in the first quarter of 2007.

The system includes primary flight/navigation displays that can be retrofit in less than four days by ABX Air, according to Bill Brown, the company's director of technical sales. "Our customer will begin with the implementation of the IS&S STC and add other features, including electronic flight bag, a dedicated standby flight instrument, and an engine indicating crew alert, as they become available."

B-767/B-757 FPDS Cockpit

Source: ABX Air

"The IS&S Cockpit/IP[information portal] consists of a pilot and copilot suite of high-resolution, multi-color flat-panel displays using active-matrix liquid-crystal technology that offer logistics savings, improved dispatch reliability, minimal retraining, weight and heat reduction, and adaptability to future requirements," according to Roman Ptakowski, IS&S's president.

This is ABX Air's first third-party B-767 flat panel customer.  The cargo airline, based in Wilmington, Ohio, is also currently installing the FPDS on its own B-767 fleet.  08-28-2008.  (Top)

NGATS Concepts Will Be Tested at Three Ohio Airports

The U.S Joint Planning & Development Office (JPDO) Website reports that a CNS (communications, navigation and surveillance) “test bed” is being implemented at Cleveland Hopkins and two other Ohio airports this month to assess future airport departure concepts.

The JPDO is using the test bed as a way to validate NGATS concepts, technologies, policies and procedures in a real-world operational environment, quantify its benefits, and continue the airport wireless network research efforts that were initiated under NASA's ACAST (advanced CNS architecture system and technologies) program.

This particular testing, which is being carried out by the Sensis Corp. over the next two years, will initially focus on five areas: (1) precise 4D - meaning time is included - departure trajectories from an airport gate to cruise flight, (2) the integration of ADS-B (automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast), (3) information sharing and security technologies as envisioned by the FAA's SWIM (system-wide information management concept), (4) the operational viability of a "virtual" tower that might remotely control several airports, and (5) the transmission of safety alerts - such things as a possible impending ground collision - to cockpits.

Besides Hopkins, Cleveland's Burke Lakefront and Lorain County will be involved in the program as representatives of similar-sized airports around the country.  And in addition to Sensis, NASA Glenn, Rockwell Collins, Honeywell, Smiths Industries and others will participate.  08-27-2006.  (Top)

GeoEye to Use BAE Systems Software on Airport Mapping Project

GeoEye will use BAE Systems' software for its U.S.-sponsored project to create three-dimensional airport maps that will be used to develop more efficient and safe arrival and departure flight paths around obstacles such as terrain.

The U.S. National Geospatial intelligence Agency (NGA) awarded GeoEye a contract in June to complete the 3D mapping project, which involves the creation of airport mapping databases for 365 airports by June 2007, using specifications defined by NGA and other international standards organizations.

GeoEye will combine the 3D capability of its IKONOS and OrbView-3 stereo satellite imagery with BAE Systems' SOCET SET and ClearFlite software to create the detailed maps.

BAE Systems' SOCET SET geospatial analysis software is used to create digital elevation models, while ClearFlite, a SOCET SET module, extracts the information from stereo images required to build the mapping databases. "ClearFlite creates the 3D obstruction identification surface model automatically, conserving time and allowing analysts to operate in real-time stereo mode to identify obstructions with a high degree of accuracy," said Curt Lima, BAE Systems program manager for ClearFlite.

GeoEye officials see information from a geospatial-based airport mapping database being used by procedure developers when designing new approaches and departures for airports, and for training organizations when familiarizing pilots with hazards at airports with challenging terrain.  Dejan Damjanovic, who manages the program for GeoEye, says ClearFlite supports these needs by providing precise measurements derived from photographs, rather than data collected from manual surveys.

The current project is the largest of three airport mapping database awards GeoEye has received from the NGA since 1999 for large-scale mapping projects using IKONOS stereo imagery in parallel with SOCET SET and ClearFlite software.  08-25-2006.  (Top)

Sensis ASDE-X Operational at Connecticut's Bradley International

Sensis Corporation says its ASDE-X (airport surface detection equipment, model x), with an improved radar, is operational at Connecticut's Windsor Locks Bradley International Airport.  ASDE-X shows controllers the location and identity of aircraft and vehicles on the airport's surface.

Bradley's ASDE-X system is the first to include X-band surface-movement radar (SMRi) which provides better performance and accuracy in poor weather.  Earlier this year, Sensis announced that the FAA is deploying SMRi as part of the ASDE-X program after ordering 12 of the systems.

ASDE-X uses multiple surveillance sources that provide a comprehensive surveillance picture of the airport surface on an integrated controller display.

In addition to Bradley, the system is now deployed at ten other U.S. airports and is operational at eight, Sensis says.  The FAA is in the process of deploying ASDE-X at 35 American airports.

Internationally, Sensis is providing its A-SMGCS (advanced - surface movement guidance and control system) to airports in New Delhi, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.  08-24-2006.  (Top)

SAS Scandinavian Airlines took delivery of the first of four A319s. 08-28-2006.

Charter operator Key Air added a Gulfstream III to its fleet, along with two Hawker 800s and a Hawker 800XP.  08-26-2006.

Maine Aviation, a Part 135 operator based in Portland, Maine, added a G-200 to its fleet.  08-26-2006.

China Southern will purchase the GEnx engine to power its 10 B-787s that it should begin receiving in 2008.  08-26-2006.

Shanghai Airlines will use the GEnx engine to power the nine B-787s it has on order.  The first aircraft delivery scheduled for June 2008.  08-26-2006.

A GP7200-powered A380 completed its first flight, beginning the ten-month flight-testing program that will lead to certification of the aircraft-engine combination by the European and U.S. airworthiness authorities in 2007.  The GP7200 is derived from the GE90 and the PW4000. The engine is certified at 76,500 pounds of thrust, and is capable of producing more than 81,500 pounds) of thrust.  The GP7200 engine has been selected for 82 of the 140 A380 aircraft ordered where engines have been specified.  Air France, Emirates, FedEx, International Lease Finance Corporation, Korean Air and UPS have selected the GP7200 engine for their A380s.  08-26-2006.

Turkey's THY Airlines took delivery of its 40^th B-737-800.  08-26-2006.

AMC Airlines, a Cairo-based charter airline took delivery, through GECAS, of its second B-737-800 with blended winglets.  08-26-2006.

Delta Air Lines issued an RFP (request for proposals) for 143 regional jets that are currently operated by its Delta Connection partners Comair, Chautauqua Airlines, Shuttle America and Freedom Airlines.  The request is part of the airlines' restructuring under bankruptcy proceedings.  Comair is a wholly owned Delta subsidiary, Chautauqua and Shuttle America are subsidiaries of Republic Airways and Freedom is a subsidiary of Mesa Air Group. Flying done by SkyWest subsidiary Atlantic Southeast Airlines is not included in the bid.  08-26-2006.

Korean Air's 747-400 Boeing Converted Freighter has been completed and certified, becoming the fourth such aircraft to be redelivered through Boeing to cargo operators.  Korean Air has six firm freighter kits remaining on order with options for 13 more kits.  08-26-2006. 

Lufthansa CityLine took delivery of the first of twelve CRJ900s that will join its fleet this year to replace its 50-seat CRJs.  08-26-2006.

TAM S.A. took delivery of its eighth A320.  08-26-2006.

Ad Hoc Inc., doing business as On Demand, signed a one-year lease agreement with Custom Air Transport for an Advanced Boeing 727-200.  08-26-2006.  (Top)

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