Farnborough 2008 Show News - July 15, 2008 - (Page 22) FA R N B O R O U G H 2 0 0 8 Snecma Wins Contract From Bahrain Air Investment Banker Support’s Bob Crandall’s Re-Regulation Idea An investment banker who has been active in the airline and aerospace industries for two decades says that Congress should increase regulation of the U.S. airline industry to stabilize it, in part because carriers have more challenges than just the ramp-up in fuel prices. “Without question, skyrocketing fuel costs have recently become a major contributing Cuellar. factor to the airlines’ problems. But the challenges facing the industry are much deeper, even systemic, ranging from labor relations to lenient bankruptcy laws,” says Hector J. Cuellar, president of RSM EquiCo Capital Markets, the global investment banking arm of RSM McGladrey and H & R Block. “Government action is long overdue, and Congress must act promptly to prevent further industry deterioration,” he adds. Cuellar says that his company supports many of the Crandall. arguments presented recently by former American Airlines chief executive Robert Crandall, who has advocated airline deregulation. He said that, unfortunately, the response from Congress to Crandall’s ideas has been muted. Cuellar says he thinks Congress should create a commission to review airline pricing and establish a floor below which airlines can’t go; amend law to enable disputes to be settled expeditiously; and set more stringent limits under which airlines can enter bankruptcy protection and prevent failing airlines from using low fares to undercut more financially stable carriers. —David Hughes Snecma Services (Hall 4, Stand B12) has announced an exclusive three-year engine maintenance contract with Bahrain Air. The time and material contract covers the maintenance, repair and overhaul of all CFM56-5A engines operated by the new, private low-cost airline. The two companies also signed an ELOS (Engine Line Operation Support) contract for Snecma Services to provide services such as engineering and LRU support. Bahrain Air, founded in 2007, serves countries in the Gulf and the Middle East, as well as India, with a fleet of Airbus A320s. Nighttime RNP Test at Tibet’s Lhasa Airport Air China tested night flight service into 13,136-foot-high Gonggar Airport at Lhasa, Tibet, on June 27 with an Airbus A319 guided by a required navigation performance (RNP) procedure using GPS for position fixing. The RNP procedure was developed for Air China by Naverus of Kent, Wash., which is also developing RNP procedures for Southwest Airlines. New runway lighting at Gonggar Airport will facilitate around-the-clock operations. China’s Xi’an Rolls Out Turboprop Xi’an Aircraft Industry Co. (XAC) has rolled out its MA600 twin turboprop as China bids for a bigger share of the global regional aircraft market. The MA600 is an MA60 with upgrades designed to widen the appeal of the 50/60-seater. These include a Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 integrated flight deck. First flight is expected in September, leading to service entry in late 2009. China hopes to sell 300 MA600s over 10 years, in competition with the ATR 42 and Bombardier Q300. Xi’an is developing the 70-seat MA700 to compete with the ATR 72 and Q400. Telair to Supply Loading Systems for SilkAir Singapore Airlines subsidiary SilkAir has selected Telair’s Sliding Carpet Loading System to be installed on its new Airbus A319 and A320 fleet. Telair said this order is significant because many Asian carriers tend to deploy more manpower if they want to accelerate freight and baggage loading. More than 60 carriers use the Sliding Carpet system, with about 2,600 units deployed worldwide. T elair—a business unit of T eleflex Inc.—claims its systems average better than 99.7% reliability. First GP7200 Is to Enter Revenue Service August 1 The first GP7200-powered Airbus A380 is scheduled to enter service with Emirates Airlines on Aug. 1, on the Dubai-New York route. The aircraft is due to be delivered to Emirates July 28, the first of 58 on order. The GP7200 engine has also been selected to power A380s ordered by Air France, Korean Airlines, and the International Lease Finance Company. Embraer Launches Customer Relations Portal Brazilian airframer Embraer has launched FlyEmbraer (www.flyembraer.com), a new Internet portal that provides after-sales services and customer support. It was developed to offer clients user-oriented tools and online data to support aircraft fleet operation. It makes available to customers a broad range of features designed to improve the operation of Embraer products, including quick access to parts information, e-Commerce, order tracking capabilities, and engineering and technical. The site also offers access to technical publications and specialized tools such as the Aircraft Health Analysis and Diagnosis (AHEAD) system, which continuously monitors the health of the fleet, providing timely maintenance information for programming procedures, and the Support Center, with digital communication and discussion forums. Additional tools will be offered later this year. 22 July 15, 2008 www.aviationweek.com/shownews http://www.flyembraer.com http://www.aviationweek.com/shownews
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