Farnborough 2008 Show News - July 17, 2008 - (Page 10)

FA R N B O R O U G H 2 0 0 8 Southwest Picks GE Aviation for Engine MRO Antonov Does the ‘Coke’ A-OK The structure of the old Soviet system was such that aircraft design bureaus worked for the State, their completed blueprints being assigned by Kremlin edict to factories—perhaps thousands of miles away—for manufacture. Some production rights were even given to allies of the USSR; in that way China came to build Ukrainian Antonov An-24 “Cokes” under the designation Y-7. And Y-7 begat MA60, and MA60 begat MA600—the prototype of which has just been rolled out at Xian and will, with the Western MA700 derivative, says China, claim 40% of the world twin turboprop regional airliner market in the near future. How does today’s Antonov company feel about not getting a single hryvnia in royalties? Dmytro Kiva, Antonov ASTC general designer, is diplomatic: “It is the business of our Chinese partners and friends; we co-operate with China in many directions, both transport and passenger aircraft. As for MA600, it is fully their aircraft.” But is he pleased to know that the An-24 lives on? “Of course. We are very happy about this.” —Paul Jackson Southwest Airlines has signed a 10-year, $2 billion maintenance, repair and overhaul agreement with GE Aviation, covering all of the U.S. carrier’s current and future CFM56-7B engines. Southwest operates more than 660 -7B engines on its Next Generation Boeing 737s and has an additional 200 engines of the type on order. GE Aviation describes the contract as an OnPoint Solution: “A flexible, long-term commitment designed to meet a customer’s unique engine service needs.” Doncasters Expands Aerospace Fasteners Work Precision aerospace component specialist Doncasters Group is expanding its Fasteners Division with the help of three newly acquired U.S.-based subsidiaries. These include Nelson Stud in Elyria, Ohio; Ferry Cap & Set Screw in Lakewood, Ohio; and Progressive Stamping in Royal Oak, Michigan. All joined the Melbourne, UK-based company last year, with its $492 million purchase of Minneapolis, Minn.-based FastenTech from Citigroup Venture Capital. AirAsia X to Install TopSeries in 10 More A330s Thales will install TopSeries inflight entertainment equipment on 10 additional Airbus A330 aircraft being acquired by AirAsia X, the Malaysian-based long-haul, low-cost airline. This will bring the total number of systems purchased by AirAsia X to 25, with the first delivery scheduled for October 2008 and program completion for 2013. The system has auto and video on demand, with 8.9 inch touch-screen displays in every seat. Entertainment provided includes games, an interactive moving map and shopping. AirAsia X has also ordered other Thales avionics equipment and satcom technology. Freudenberg Simrit Offers New Bleed Air Seals Tired of replacing those troublesome perfluoroelastomer (FFKM) seals in your jetliner’s bleed air system? Freudenbern Simrit (Hall 4, Stand CC2) now offers Simriz 498 seals that should “easily be able to last” 10,000 hours, the TBO of most bleed air systems. Simriz 498 is claimed to offer high resistance to chemical reaction, no corrosive effect on stainless steel, Inconel or titanium components and ability to withstand prolonged temperatures in excess of 300°C. Third AIRTEC Slated for November in Frankfurt The third international aerospace supply fair, AIRTEC 2008, taking place in Frankfurt, Germany, from November 11 to 14, already looks like a success. The event has been established as a leading venue for aerospace life-cycle support, including manufacturing, engineering, components and systems. This year AIRTEC will host two supporting events, the “Supply on the Wings” conference and “Composite World” theme park where specialists from the composite sector will participate. Saertex, Scholz Maschinenbau, Aerostruktur Faserverbundtechnik, Fiberforge, CFK Valley Stade and Carbon Composites will represent the leading aerospace composites industries. The Business Aviation World will also take place at the same location, hosting more than 150 exhibitors including Cessna, Beechcraft, Hawker, Lufthansa Private Jet, NetJets, ATA, Argos, Continental Jet Services, and more. The event will also host the 2nd UAV World. API Winglets for VIP Gainjet Athens, Greece-based Gainjet has ordered performance-enhancing Blended Winglets from Seattle, Washington-based Aviation Partners for its recently acquired Boeing 757. The aircraft, which is slated to enter service this September, is the first of several Gainjet plans to operate for VIP charter, Aviation Partners says. South African Contract for SR Technics Under a $165 million Integrated Engine Solutions (IES) agreement announced this week, SR Technics of Zurich, Switzerland, will provide engine maintenance, repair and overhaul services for 51 CFM56-5C engines of South African Airways’ (SAA) Airbus A340 airliners. About 80 shop visits are expected over the contract period. The new exclusive agreement, which starts immediately and will last five years, is the largest contract ever between the two companies. 10 July 17, 2008 www.aviationweek.com/shownews http://www.aviationweek.com/shownews

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