José Ramon Valero
terça-feira, 31 de agosto de 2021
A330-234MRTT T-058 (c/n 1960 ex EC-335(3)/MRTT058) departing Getafe as MMF70 on delivery flight to Eindhoven with own crew. The aceptance flight was 12aug11 LEGT-LEGT as CASA358 Fifth Phénix to France was surely delivered today too, as it departed as AED345 from Getafe to Istres, but still wearing registration MRTT045 with Airbus DS crew. (c/n 1965 ex EC-332)
José Ramon Valero
Greater Bay Airlines details launch network
The startup’s maiden routes will connect Hong Kong with points in Thailand and Singapore.
By David Casey / Routes Online
Hong Kong-based startup Greater Bay Airlines intends to operate a launch network of three routes across the Asia-Pacific region once it commences commercial operations.
The carrier plans to connect Hong Kong (HKG) with Bangkok Suvarnabhumi (BKK) and Phuket (HKT) in Thailand, alongside service to Singapore Changi (SIN).
Although the full schedules and start dates are yet to be confirmed, the airline expects to begin flying to each destination during the fourth quarter of the year once government approval and traffic rights are in place.
Founded by Chinese property tycoon Bill Wong Cho-bau, who also owns Shenzhen-based Donghai Airlines, Greater Bay Airlines hopes to secure its operating licence and air operating certificate on Sept. 17 from the Hong Kong Air Transport Licensing Authority.
Once the permits have been received, the carrier will reportedly operate its first flight on Oct. 1, a charter flight from the city territory to Beijing. The date was picked to celebrate China’s national day.
As reported by Routes in January, Greater Bay Airlines has requested the rights to fly 104 scheduled routes from Hong Kong using Boeing 737-800 aircraft.
Of these, 48 routes are to destinations in mainland China including major cities such as Beijing, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Shanghai. A further 13 are to Japan and six are to Thailand, with Tokyo, Osaka and Bangkok among the intended routes listed.
The rights to the routes were made available after being relinquished by axed regional carrier Cathay Dragon, which closed in October 2020 as part of a wider restructure at Cathay Pacific that included more than 5,000 job losses. Before the pandemic, Cathay Dragon's network spanned more than 50 destinations in 15 countries and in excess of 1,100 weekly flights.
Should Greater Bay Airlines launch its network as planned, the carrier will face strong competition on all three routes.
In the Hong Kong-Bangkok market, the airline will rival Cathay Pacific, Emirates, KLM and Thai Airways International. The carriers collectively provide 32X-weekly flights and 21,200 two-way weekly seats during the week commencing Aug. 16. This compares with about 100,000 during the same week two years ago.
Cathay Pacific, Scoot and Singapore Airlines will offer competition between Hong Kong and Singapore, collectively providing 17X-weekly flights and about 10,000 two-way seats. Cathay Pacific also operates 1X-weekly service to Phuket.
Non-essential travel between Hong Kong and Singapore is currently prohibited and talks to open a travel bubble were dropped earlier this week. Vaccinated passengers are allowed to visit Phuket under the country’s "sandbox" scheme, but international arrivals to Bangkok must quarantine for 14 days.
Photo credit: Greater Bay Airlines
sexta-feira, 27 de agosto de 2021
Airbus celebrates the 1,000th aircraft covered by Flight Hour Services with flyadeal
flyadeal signed long-term Flight Hour Services (FHS) agreement with Airbus
● The agreement covers all of flyadeal’s A320 fleet including the 1,000th Airbus aircraft under FHS
● Airbus FHS provides fully integrated material services and helps enhance operational reliability
Toulouse – France, 17 August 2021 – flyadeal, the low-cost Jeddah-based airline owned by Saudi Arabian Airlines, signed a long-term Flight Hour Services (FHS) agreement to support its A320 fleet.
The agreement includes the 1,000th aircraft supported by Airbus Flight Hour Services. The carrier will benefit from integrated material services including spare pool access, on-site-stock at the main base and components engineering and repairs. Through the FHS contract, Airbus will guarantee spare parts availability, contributing to securing aircraft technical performance.
Mikail Houari, President of Airbus Africa & Middle East, said: “Signing this agreement with flyadeal is an important milestone; it is the 1st FHS contract in Saudi Arabia and the biggest Airbus aircraft fleet to be covered by FHS”.
“We are proud of our partnership with flyadeal and look forward to continuing working together. This agreement reaffirms our commitment to supporting Saudi Arabia’s aviation sector”, Houari added.
Airbus has finalised 11 Flight Hour Services contracts with operators worldwide over the last six months. The latest contract agreements demonstrate the continued interest in Airbus’s integrated maintenance service, proving more relevant than ever in post-crisis times when airlines need to carefully monitor their costs and contain investments.
quinta-feira, 26 de agosto de 2021
Kargo Xpress to expand with B737-800BCF
Indonesian cargo airline Kargo Xpress has signed a lease-agreement with GECAS for two B737-800BCFs. The duo will be delivered to the carrier in October and December 2021.
The two B737-800BCFs will join the airline's single B737-400SF which was delivered in April 2021 and in commercial use since June. Kargo Xpress is a subsidiary of Mjet and will use the additional capacity to expand its operations with international destinations in Northern China and Western India.
Scramble
Illustration by GECAS.
IAI, Etihad to open B777 P2F conversion site in Abu Dhabi
Israel Aerospace Industries (Tel Aviv Ben Gurion) has partnered with Etihad Engineering, the maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) wing of Etihad Aviation Group, to open a B777-300(ER) conversion facility at Abu Dhabi Int'l airport.
"The Boeing B777-300(ER)(SF) is not only extremely attractive to customers but a technological breakthrough, given that it’s the first in its size category to offer extensive cargo solutions. Not only do we see the demand, but we view it as a greener, more profitable, highly innovative solution for our airline customers, and an excellent way to drive value for our business," the Chief Executive of Etihad Aviation Group, Tony Douglas, said.
The companies underscored that the Abraham Accords enabled the partnership, a breakthrough political agreement signed in August 2020 wherein the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain (later joined by Sudan and Morocco) normalised diplomatic ties with Israel.
Besides conversion activities, the new facility in Abu Dhabi will also function as an MRO centre for the type.
IAI is currently the world's only company that converts B777-300(ER)s into freighters. The programme, co-funded by the Israeli firm and lessor GECAS, is located at IAI's main facility at Tel Aviv Ben Gurion airport. The first B777-300(ER)(SF), N557CC (msn 32789), entered into conversion in June 2020 and is currently undergoing certification flights split between Tel Aviv and San Bernardino. It has yet to receive a supplemental type certificate ahead of its entry into service planned for 2022. While many carriers have expressed tentative interest in the type, the only confirmed customer so far is Kalitta Air (K4, Detroit Willow Run), which signed up for five B777-300(ER)(SF)s in total. The Israeli firm is authorised to convert B737-700, B737-800, B767-200, and B767-300 types. Besides Tel Aviv, it has conversion sites at México City Int'l, Yichang, Tianjin, and Naples Capodichino airports. It plans to open another B777-300(ER) conversion site at Seoul Incheon airport in 2024, a B737 conversion facility at Siauliai airport in 2022, and a B767 site at Addis Ababa airport shortly.
For its part, Etihad Airways used to operate up to twenty-five B777-300(ER)s at one time but plans to retire all remaining 19 aircraft by the end of 2021. The carrier's cargo fleet comprises five B777-200Fs, the ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows.
ch aviation
terça-feira, 24 de agosto de 2021
Bluebird Nordic plans to increase its Boeing B737-800 fleet to 25 units by 2024
As part of an unprecedented and hugely ambitious expansion plan, Icelandic cargo airline Bluebird Nordic, a member of the Avia Solutions Group, a leading global aerospace services group, has declared its intentions to add 25 x B737-800 aircraft to the company's existing fleet by the end of 2024.
Siggi Agustsson, Bluebird Nordic's CEO and Managing Director, cited the growing demand for cargo transport during the present pandemic as one of the main reasons behind this exciting new development in the company's growth plan.
Currently operating a fleet of 1 x B737-300 and 7 x B737-400 full freighter aircraft, the new acquisition will see the fleet size grow to thirty-three aircraft, more than tripling its capacity in the process. The 25 new B737-800 aircraft will be a welcome addition to the existing fleet and will offer enormously increased capacity and overall efficiency in servicing its clients' demands.
The B737-800 model can carry an additional 4 tons more than the current in-service B737-400, while also offering increased cargo volume with 1 extra pallet position on the aircraft's main deck. Additionally, the aircraft's advanced fuel-burn ratio and better technical reliability will position the new aircraft as a more sustainable and environmentally sensitive option for the company's cargo customers.
This exciting and game-changing move – as part of the airline's existing expansion plan – will place the company ahead of the curve as a leading, highly competitive cargo operator across the entire freight transport sector. As part of the expansion plan, Bluebird Nordic is confident that the B737-800 will forge its place as a mainstay of the cargo operator's growing fleet of modern aircraft.
The first B737-800, which will be delivered by Avia Solutions Group sister company, AviaAM leasing – a global provider of tailored aircraft leasing and trading services – will join the fleet in September 2021, followed by a second in October 2021.
In the interim period while Bluebird Nordic await aircraft conversion and delivery, and as evidence of the existing synergy between companies, the aircraft will be utilised by Avion Express – the leading narrow-body ACMI charter operator and an integral part of the Avia Solutions Group of companies – for passenger flights during the busy summer season, offering extra capacity and highly competitive prices.
Bluebird Nordic's CEO, Siggi Agustsson, said, "The arrival of 25 new B737-800s to our fleet will firmly position Nordic Bluebird at the forefront of the cargo charter market and comes as part of our existing and comprehensive expansion plan. With the growth in demand for cargo transport we are proactively responding to our customer's increased freighter needs, and ensures that we are ready and able to meet all of their global cargo demands. Additionally, following this major expansion, Bluebird Nordic plans to develop back-offices in Lithuania and Bulgaria."
Aviator
Wolfgang Kronfuss - VIE / LOWW
Tus Airways gears up for restart with first A320
TUS Airways has taken delivery of its first A320-200 as it looks to restart operations albeit under a new business model and with a revised fleet.
5B-DDK (msn 2291) is a 16.5-year-old ex-Air Malta aircraft owned by Peregrine Aviation and managed by AerCap, according to the ch-aviation fleets ownership module. It was retired by its previous operator in early September 2020 and following a period of storage at Malta Int'l airport, ferried to Larnaca on February 5, 2021, still as 9H-AEK at that time, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows. It has since been seen sporting its full Tus Airways livery and new Cypriot registration.
ch aviation
Wolfgang Kronfuss - VIE / LOWW
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