AVIONEWS - World Aeronautical Press Agency
101,286 news found

SecurityAircraft and safety. IATA launches "Lithium Battery Risk Mitigation Guidance for Airline Operators" ("Specials" by AVIONEWS)
Montreal, Canada - In addition to being available free of charge, it is copyright-free, allowing download and onward distribution to interested users
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced the publication of the first edition of the Lithium Battery Risk Mitigation Guidance for Operators. This free on-line guidance material provides... more

HelicoptersMistral helicopter carriers. Hollande meets Putin in Moscow
Paris, France - But the Russian president denies discussing the matter
Coming back from an unscheduled visit to Moscow, the French president François Hollande said to the French media that Mistral helicopter carriers supply is connected with the implementation of Minsk agreement.... more

AccidentsUSA, aircraft crashes on house: six dead and two buildings destroyed (VIDEO)
Washington, USA - The Embraer Phenom 100 business jet caught fire after the collision because of a fuel leak
An Embraer EMB-500 Phenom 100 business airplane crashed on a house in Maryland on Monday December 8, 1.6 km from its destination, the Montgomery County Airpark in a Washington suburb. Six people died in... more

IndustryFinmeccanica: Moretti ready for dismissions
Rome, Italy - Participations in Mbda, Drs and Sukhoi to be put on sale, the Italian holding bets on Alenia, ATR and AgustaWestland
Finmeccanica’s business plan will be presented in January, but it is already possible to sketch the main lines of the Italian aerospace group’s future. Mauro Moretti, appointed CEO in May by Renzi’s gover... more

Military aviationNigeria releases Antonov aircraft detained on Saturday
Kano, Nigeria - The Russian airplane transported two French helicopters
Nigeria released yesterday an Antonov 124 cargo airplane carrying two French military helicopters Gazelle, impounded at Kano airport, in the north of the country, on Saturday. The aircraft took off from... more

Tilt-rotorsNew weapons for Osprey V-22 tiltrotor
Fort Worth, USA - Dependence on attack helicopters will thus be reduced
The V-22 Osprey will be equipped with forward-firing capability. The news was given yesterday by Bell Boeing, the tiltrotor producer, after doing successful demonstration at the United States Army Proving... more

Fair and shows"AERO Friedrichshafen 2015", entire spectrum of general aviation represented: planes, gliders, ULM, helicopters, UAV
Friedrichshafen, Germany - Four special areas: Avionics, Engine Area, e-flight-expo and RPAS Expo
With an expanded concept and more than 630 exhibitors, the "AERO 2015" is set to maintain its position as the largest trade show for general aviation in Europe. Not only will the e-flight-expo, Avionics... more

IndustryPiaggio Aerospace: aereo Avanti Evo ottiene certificazione Easa
Dubai, Emirati Arabi Uniti - I primi due velivoli sono destinati a clienti privati indiani
Piaggio Aerospace, l’azienda attiva nella progettazione, costruzione sviluppo e manutenzione di aerei e motori aeronautici, ha annunciato oggi durante il "Meba", la fiera della business aviation in c... more

DefenseItalian Navy: Italy and Tunisia at the "OASIS" drill. The Italian participation with ships, a SH-212 helicopter and team
Rome, Italy - The 12th edition takes place from today to next Sunday, December 14
The Italian-Tunisian bilateral drill, "OASIS", takes place from today to December 14 in the Eastern of Sicily. The exercise, at its 12th edition, is in the context of a series of cooperation activities... more

Weather forecastsAirplanes and forecast. Bad weather in Italy: snow alert, thunderstorms and strong winds
Rome, Italy - A yellow criticality predicted for today
The Italian Civil Defense Department, on the basis of the available forecast, issued a bulletin for adverse weather conditions. Rains with downpour or storm aspect predicted from the morning of today... more

IndustryAirbus: LAN took delivery of A-321 airplane
Toulouse, France - It is the first of 48 ordered by the airline
LAN Airlines, part of LATAM Airlines Group celebrated the arrival of its first A-321 aircraft at Santiago’s "Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport". This marks a significant milestone as... more

MiscellaneousAVIONEWS wishes a Happy Immaculate Conception's long week-end to everybody
Rome, Italy - The agency, after a three-day week-end, will regularly open next Tuesday, December 9
AVIONEWS communicates to its subscribers, readers, reporters and social network fans, that it will be closed next Monday, December 8, in the occasion of the Immaculate Conception festivity. The Agency... more

HelicoptersAirbus Helicopters delivers three TH-135 training aircraft to JMSDF
Tokyo, Japan - It is a variant of the EC-135T2+
Airbus Helicopters Japan has successfully handed over three TH-135 training helicopters to the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF). The three aircraft delivered between October and December are the... more

HelicoptersFrench Defence Minister: we might not deliver Mistral ships to Russia
Paris, France - Paris will check if ceasefire and the inviolability of Ukrainian borders are respected
After the suspension of Mistral helicopter carrier ships delivery to Russia decreed by French president François Hollande (for details see AVIONEWS) the Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian declared today... more

HelicoptersSikorsky to provide 16 Seahawk helicopters to Indian Navy
New Delhi, India - A company participated by AgustaWestland was excluded because of the alleged Finmeccanica’s bribe to Indian officials
The Indian Navy selected Sikorsky S-70B Seahawk for its shipboard multi-role helicopter (MRH) requirement yesterday. New Delhi launched a tender for 16 helicopters with an option for another eight in 2008.... more

AerospaceOrion: first launch cancelled yesterday, the capsule took off today around 7:00
Cape Canaveral, USA - The mission had been postponed four times and then deferred 24 hours
Orion space capsule launch, postponed four times yesterday and finally cancelled yesterday December 4, was eventually successfully done today, few minutes after 7:00 local time from Cape Canaveral NASA... more

DefenseAircraft and defense: Italy is member of the EATC
Rome, Italy - The Country will transfer the authority to the EATC of all KC-767A, seven Alenia C-27J Spartan as well as the whole Lockheed C-130J Hercules fleet
Yesterday, on December 4th, the leading Italian General in his function of the Italian Air Force, General Pasquale Preziosa signed the respective Note of Participation (NoP), making Italy immediately a... more

AirlinesAlitalia gets second instalment of “Bridge-loan”
Rome, Italy - Poste italiane and CAI investors have contributed with 180 million Euros so far
Alitalia-CAI partners paid these days the second instalment of the “Bridge-loan” meant to ensure the carrier’s current assets until the final agreement with Etihad is signed, which is expected to happe... more

ReportAir India urges a decision on VVIP aircraft
New Delhi, India - New Delhi has to replace its Boeing 747 fleet
An inter-ministerial workgroup in New Delhi is evaluating which airplane to adopt as a replacement for Boeing 747 (also called Jumbo Jet), a four-engine aircraft used by the Indian Air Force (IAF) to fly... more

IndustryAnsaldoBreda sale: the Chinese to present offer within days
Rome, Italy - Reopening of the tender for the purchase of Finmeccanica’s rail companies seems to be sure
Rumours on the reopening of the tender for the purchase of AnsaldoBreda and Ansaldo Sts, Finmeccanica’s rail sector subsidiaries, are getting more concrete every day. New reports from sources close to t... more

PeopleAirplanes and airlines. Alitalia appoints new management team, effective from next January 1st
Rome, Italy - Under the leadership of its recently appointed CEO Silvano Cassano
Alitalia, Italy’s leading airline, today announced a new management team, who will implement a major turnaround strategy to develop the carrier into a competitive, sustainably profitable business, under t... more

Weather forecastsAirplanes and forecast. Bad weather in Italy: thunderstorm alert on the South and strong winds in Sardinia
Rome, Italy - An orange criticality on Sardinia, Sicily, Calabria, Basilicata, Campania and eastern Po valley
The Italian Civil Defence Department, on the basis of the available forecasts, issued a further bulletin for adverse weather conditions. It integrates and extends those already diffused in the last days. Gale... more

PeopleIBAR: Umberto Solimeno unanimously elected as President again
Rome, Italy - Great satisfaction for him, after a first two year period marked by successes at the leadership
The General assembly of IBAR ((Italian Board Airline Representatives) voted and unanimously elected the outgoing President, Umberto Solimeno (Air Canada). Great satisfaction for him, after a first two... more

Civil aviationAirplanes and transport. IATA: passenger traffic maintains strong growth in October
Geneva, Switzerland - Capacity increased by 5.5%, causing load factor to rise 0.1 percentage points to 79.1%
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced global passenger traffic results for October showing a strengthening in demand growth compared to September 2014 and to the year-ago period.... more

HelicoptersMistral helicopter carrier. Rogozin: we will no longer buy military technology abroad
Moscow, Russia - The Russian Deputy Prime Minister says France was not able to make “Sovereign decisions”
“We will no longer buy ready-made military equipment abroad and the Mistrals serve as a good example confirming that we are right” said today Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin to the press com... more

HelicoptersRobinson: FAA certifies floats for R-66 helicopter
Torrance, Usa - The option adds approximately 65 pounts to the aircraft's empty weight
Robinson Helicopter Company’s float option for its 5-place R-66 was FAA approved on November 15, 2014. Designated the Turbine Marine, the R-66 pop-out float option is similar to the R-44 Clipper pop-out f... more

IndustryFinmeccanica-AnsaldoBreda: contract for the maintenance of the new "Frecciarossa 1000" trains
Rome, Italy - The agreeement, EUR 250 million, will last ten years
Finmeccanica-AnsaldoBreda signed a 250 million euro contract with Trenitalia (FS Italiane Group) for the global maintenance service of the new "Frecciarossa 1000" fleet, the super trains manufactured in... more

Civil aviationAirplanes and rules. Single European Sky: Spain says no to Gibraltar
Brussels, Belgium - The new regulation was approved thanks to the mediation of Italian presidency between Madrid and London
Spain has obtained the exclusion of Gibraltar from the new rules for the “Single European Sky” called SES, voted yesterday by the European Council of transport ministers. The Spanish minister of Public Wor... more

Civil aviationCALC will realize a 2 billion dollars aircraft disassembly operation
Beijing, China - The Chinese leasing firm has also closed a deal with Airbus announced in November
China Aircraft Leasing Group (CALC) has been working on two important deals between Tuesday and today. The first provides for the purchase of 100 aircraft from Airbus Group, the second is a vast airplane... more

AirlinesAirplane pilots call another strike as Lufthansa goes ahead with low-cost flights
Berlin, Germany - The Eurowings development project, approved yesterday by the airline, aims at reducing costs by circumventing the collective labour agreement
Luthansa’s supervisory board approved yesterday its subsidiary Eurowings development plan on short and long haul routes, with which it intends to face low-cost and Middle East carriers competition (for d... more

AirlinesLufthansa: supervisory board approved key focuses and action for the Group's continued success
Milan, Italy - Fleet renewals and the completion of a number of major refurbishment projects
2015 should bring increasingly good news for customers and passengers of the Lufthansa Group, according to the plans of the Deutsche Lufthansa AG Executive Board. For the Group’s member airlines, fleet r... more

AerospaceFirst test launch for Orion, the space capsule that will take man to Mars
Cape Canaveral, USA - Today’s mission will test atmospheric entry systems
Today at 1:05 pm Italian time (7:05 am local time) NASA will perform the first test flight of Orion space capsule, that one day might take men on Mars. The launch will depart from Cape Canaveral base in... more

IndustryAirbus: CIT firms up order for 15 and five aircraft
Toulouse, France - For A-330/900neo and A-321ceo, respectively
CIT Group Inc., a global company in transportation finance, has firmed up its order for 15 A-330/900neo and five A-321ceo aircraft. It became one of the launch customers of the A-330neo after signing its... more

Weather forecastsAirplanes and forecast. Bad weather in Italy: still storms on the central regions and rains on Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Rome, Italy - An orange criticality on Lazio, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna
The Italian Civil Defense Department, on the basis of the available forecasts, issued an additional bulletin for adverse weather conditions. It integrates and extends those diffused in the last days. Sparse... more

CargoAircraft and transport. IATA: air freight strong performance continues
Geneva, Switzerland - The good results reflect the improvements in world trade and business activity which have been evident since the summer
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released October data for global air freight markets showing that the strong performance of air cargo in recent months is continuing. Demand, measured... more

PeopleAirbus Helicopters appoints Yves Barillé as VP of Corporate Communications
Marignane, France - He succeeds Cécile Vion-Lanctuit, who is pursuing another professional opportunity
Yves Barillé has been appointed as Airbus Helicopters' Vice-President of Corporate Communications. As of March 2015, he will report to CEO Guillaume Faury and manage all internal and external communication... more

Industry200th Airbus aircraft assembled in Tianjin
Tianjin, China - Important milestone highlights successful partnership between the industry and China
A ceremony was held today at the Airbus (Tianjin) site to celebrate the 200th A-320 Family aircraft assembled by its Tianjin Final Assembly Line (FALC). Daniel Baubil, Airbus Executive Vice-President and... more

Press release"Single European Sky": Council agrees its position
Brussels, Belgium - The adoption of the two regulations requires the approval of both the Council and the European Parliament.
The Council reached a general approach on two proposals to make the European air transport system more efficient and to update the Single European Sky (SES) initiative. Both draft regulations are part... more

AirlinesAirplanes and airlines. Air France: pilots say yes to Transavia agreement
Paris, France - The French carrier can now begin the development plan of its low-cost subsidiary
The agreement between Air France and unions on Transavia’s development plan has been approved with 53% of the votes in the pilots’ referendum. 81% of potential voters participated at the poll. Until a f... more

AerospaceAirbus and Safran officially launch their aerospace joint-venture
Paris, France - The announcement arrived one day after the European conference on the development of a new generation of launchers
In the wake of Ministers of European Space Agency Member States council that agreed on the development of a family of new launchers -Ariane 6 e Vega C-, Airbus Group and Safran gave official announcement... more

IndustryAirbus: Finnair orders eight additional A-350XWB airplanes
Toulouse, France - The airline has signed an agreement
Finnair, a launch customer for the A-350 XWB, has signed an agreement, firming up the order for eight additional A-350/900s. Finnair was the first airline to select the A-350 XWB and will be the first... more

Civil aviationAirplanes and international treaties. Contrasts between USA and EU over the open-skies deal
Brussels, Belgium - Europe accuses the United States to thwart the opening of transoceanic routes by Norwegian Air
The European Union accuses the United States to violate the open skies treaty signed by the two counterparts in 2007. The debate is focused on a European airline’s application to establish new transoceanic r... more

ReportAirplanes and conflicts. A car exploded at the entrance of Mogadishu airport
Mogadishu, Somalia - At least four dead in a terrorist attack probably made by al-Shabaab, an organization affiliated with al-Qaeda
A United Nations armoured vehicle convoy was hit by a terrorist attack close to the entrance of Mogadishu airport today December 3. The suicide bomber rammed a car packed with explosives against the cars.... more

AirportsAutogrill grows in Germany and signs a new contract at the Frankfurt hub
Milan, Italy - Total revenues estimated at about 150 million euros over the ten-year contract term
Autogrill Group has signed a new contract with Frankfurt Airport to open three new points of sale and renew seven others in which it already operates. The contract will run for ten years, from 2015 to... more

Military aviationIranian airplanes attack Isis in Iraq
Washington, USA - Even though it is not part of the international coalition, Shia-ruled Iran sees Sunni caliphate militias as an enemy
The Pentagon announced that Iran conducted its first airplane strikes against Isis in Iraq in the past days. Although there is no formal partnership between Washington and Tehran, both governments see... more

AerospaceESA Council approves new generation of space launchers (VIDEO)
Luxembourg, Luxembourg - The decision marks a historical phase
ESA (European Space Agency) yesterday concluded a productive one-day Council meeting at ministerial level in Luxembourg. Ministers of ESA Member States agreed the further development of a family of... more

AerospaceJapan launches space probe to look for the origins of life (VIDEO)
Tokyo, Japan - Hayabusa 2 will bring samples of the asteroid 1999 JU3 back to Earth in 2020
Less than a month after the European lander Philae’s touch down on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (for details see AVIONEWS), on December 3 at 1:22 pm local time Japan launched the probe Hayabusa 2, o... more

UAS-DronesMoscow forms drone base in the Arctic
Moscow, Russia - It will be equipped with Orlan-10 UAVs
Russia completed the formation of a military unit for the operation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) at the Ugolny base in the Čukotka region, in the north-eastern extremity oif the country. The news... more

Weather forecastsAirplanes and forecast (2). Bad weather in Italy: alert for thunderstorms on Lazio and Campania
Rome, Italy - An orange criticality on Sardinia and part of Lazio
The Italian Civil Defense Department, on the basis of the available forecast, issued an additional bulletin for unfavourable weather conditions. It integrates and extends those diffused in the last days... more

Finance and economyAirplanes and finance. TCI founders divorce: shareholders’ core in danger
Madrid, Spain - The judge ordered one of the fund’s owners to pay 425 million Euros to his wife; shall he sell part of its shares?
Can a divorce be a danger for a giant company managing around sixty airports all over the world? It looks likely in the case of Aena. After the presentation to institutional investors was postponed, personal... more