from Airwise.com:
FAA Issues Landing Gear Alert - ReportApril 1, 2008
(Reuters) The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a Miami maintenance firm it says shipped out substandard landing gear parts used on hundreds of Boeing's wide-body jets, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
The Journal said the FAA's notice details more than 300 instances when an AAR unit shipped "unapproved" parts for use on Boeing aircraft in recent years.
The FAA also said the landing gear parts didn't comply with maintenance manuals and one of its mandatory safety directives from 2001, the newspaper reported.
No accidents have been caused by the affected parts, but US Airways -- an AAR customer -- said it voluntarily removed several parts after one of its Boeing 757s suffered partial landing gear failure in October, according to the Journal. .....(more)
The complete piece is at:
http://news.airwise.com/story/view/1207057070.html............
More Delays Expected On Boeing 787March 21, 2008
(Reuters)Industry insiders and Wall Street analysts are expecting further delays on Boeing's new 787, as the US plane maker grapples with last-minute design changes and production problems.
Most now point to the second half of 2009 as the likely start of deliveries of the lightweight plane, at least six months later than Boeing's current target and about 15 months beyond the original schedule.
The latest problem involves redesigning the plane's crucial center wing box, according to Steven Udvar-Hazy, chief executive of International Lease Finance, which is the biggest customer for the 787.
Speaking at a JPMorgan investor conference this week, Udvar-Hazy said he now expected first delivery around September 2009, after Boeing fixes the problem and gets the plane through testing and certification.
The first 787 was originally set for delivery in May 2008, and is now officially scheduled for sometime in early 2009.
Udvar-Hazy, who runs the world's largest and most influential plane lessor, called the state of the 787 program "not pretty," according to JPMorgan analyst Joseph Nadol. ......(more)
The complete piece is at:
http://news.airwise.com/story/view/1206059527.html.............
IATA Cuts Air Industry Profit Forecast AgainApril 1, 2008
(Reuters) The International Air Transport Association (IATA) on Tuesday cut its profit forecast for the airline industry for the second time in four months due to rising oil prices and deepening global economic gloom.
"We still expect a positive bottom line of USD$4.5 billion, but it's turning out to be a very tough year," IATA Director General Giovanni Bisignani said in a statement.
High fuel costs and economic disquiet from the credit crunch have softened demand and hurt "an industry that is constantly on the verge of intensive care", Bisignani said.
In December, IATA lowered its 2008 profit forecast to USD$5 billion. The Geneva-based industry body had initially predicted USD$7.8 billion profits for this year.
The latest outlook was based on an average annual price of USD$86 per barrel of Brent crude oil, which traded above USD$100/bbl on London markets on Tuesday.
At USD$86/bbl fuel accounts for 32 percent of airlines' operating costs and a total bill of USD$156 billion for the industry, according to IATA. .....(more)
The complete piece is at:
http://news.airwise.com/story/view/1207057867.html
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