One of my Flickr friends spotted some unusual tail design at Toulouse Blagnac. An Airbus A330-200, to be the first A330-200 for US Airways (N279AY), is sitting there at the ramp, wearing a never seen color scheme on its tail.
Could this be part of a new US Airways livery? Or is it just a one-time special livery to celebrate their new A332?
Photo by a380spotter
Currently these pictures of a damaged CRJ-200 are making the rounds on the Internet. Unlike said in many forums and blogs, this damage was NOT caused by a lightning strike! Instead it was simply caused by a cockpit fire, probably due to an overheated electrical power relay.
Preliminary NTSB report:
ASA Airlines flight 5533, a Bombardier CRJ-200 – registration: N830AS, experienced a cockpit fire on the ground shortly after external power was applied to the airplane in preparation for flight. The captain and one flight attendant evacuated the airplane via an airstair without injuries. They were the only individuals on the airplane at the time. The fire department extinguished the fire after it had burned an approximate 18 inch hole through the left upper cockpit crown skin. The flight was to be flown from Tallahassee Regional Airport (TLH), Tallahassee, Florida, to Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), Atlanta, Georgia.
Photos: Unknown
Boeing and Air France celebrated significant milestones yesterday with the delivery of the 777th Boeing 777 airplane. The new Boeing 777-300ER (F-GZND) also will be the first to bear a new Air France livery and company brand identity.
Video:
Air France operates one of the largest fleets of 777s in the world and was the launch customer for both the 777-300ER and the 777 Freighter.
The relationship between Air France and Boeing goes back to the early days of the airline, which celebrated its 75th anniversary last year. Air France’s early fleet of DC-3s sported the distinctive silver and royal blue livery that was used to launch the airline.
Three generations of Boeing airplanes have carried three Air France liveries. The first was with the arrival of the jet age and the Boeing 707. The second opened up long-haul international travel, epitomized by the Boeing 747 and finally, today with the unveiling of the Boeing 777-300ER. The latest incarnation of the distinctive Air France livery continues the all-white theme but is intended to position the company in the 21st century as a truly international carrier that has more than half of its passengers based outside France.
Photo: Boeing
Source: Boeing
The European Commission for Transport today adopted the update of the blacklist of airlines that are banned from flying into the European Union due to safety concerns. The Commission has imposed a ban on six airlines from Kazakhstan, one airline certified in Thailand, one additional Ukrainian air carrier and on operations of all carriers certified in Benin.
Following the opinion of the Air Safety Committee, the Commission decided to expand the list and impose an operating ban for safety reasons on the following air carriers:
The Commission noted good progress in relation to the measures taken by Angola in order to improve the safety situation. In particular, it took note of the progress report drawn up by the aviation authorities of Angola on the implementation of corrective actions following the visit of a team of European experts in February 2008 and the publication of the ICAO safety audit report in October 2008.
A report of the visit of a European team of experts to Indonesia in February 2009 showed considerable improvements.
Hence from today the EU blacklist imposes a ban on:
Download EU Blacklist (PDF): http://ec.europa.eu/transport/air-ban/pdf/list_en.pdf
Source: European Commission for Transport
AP recently posted this nice insight video on the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker.
Airbus deliveries for the first quarter of 2009.
| Model | Number of Deliveries | By Customer |
| A318 | 1 | 1 – Comlux |
| A319 | 31 |
10 – easyJet 2 – CIT Leasing (Tiger Airways) 2 – Hainan 3 – Lan Airlines 1 – ILFC (Bangkok Airways) 1 – BOC Aviation (Aeroflot) 1 – ILFC (Mexicana) 2 – AERVENTURE (Royal Jordanian Airlines) 1 – Hamburg International 1 – Indian Airlines (NACIL) 1 – China Southern Airlines 2 – Germanwings 1 – ILFC (Armavia) 1 – GECAS (Aeroflot) 1 – ILFC (Chongqing Airlines) 1 – Private Customer |
| A320 | 51 |
1 – Tiger Airways 4 – Aegean Airlines 1 – AERVENTURE (Spring Airlines) 1 – ALAFCO (Wataniya Airways) [Link] 2 – ILFC (Jetstar Airways) 1 – Middle East Airlines 1 – Shenzhen Airlines 1 – AERVENTURE (Aegean Airlines) 2 – GECAS (Cebu Pacific) 3 – jetBlue Airways 1 – GECAS (Bulgaria Air) 1 – Air France 3 – AirAsia 1 – RBS Aerospace (TAM – Linhas Aereas) 2 – Wizz Air 1 – AERVENTURE (TAP- Portugal) 3 – GECAS (Aeroflot) 2 – AERVENTURE (Aeroflot) 2 – RBS Aerospace (Aer Lingus) 1 – easyJet 1 – China Eastern Airlines 2 – CIT Leasing (National Air Services) 1 – Aerdragon Aviation Partners (Air France) 1 – Alafco (Wataniya Airways) 2 – Go Air 1 – indiGo 1 – ILFC (Air Arabia) 1 – CIT Leasing (Iberworld) 1 – Silkair 1 – Aircraft Purchase Fleet (Alitalia) 1 – Middle East Airlines 1 – Air Berlin 1 – AERVENTURE (Air France) 1 – Spring Airlines 1 – ILFC (Air Arabia Maroc) |
| A321 | 18 |
2 – Indian Airlines (NACIL) 2 – Air China 3 – China Southern Airlines 1 – TAM – Linhas Aereas 4 – Turkish Airlines 2 – US Airways 1 – TAM – Linhas Aereas 1 – Air France [Link] 1 – ILFC (Aegean Airlines) 1 – NIKI |
| A330 | 13 |
2 – CIT Leasing (Etihad Airways) 3 – AWAS (Singapore Airlines) [Link] 1 – Grupo Marsans (Air Comet) 2 – Middle East Airlines 1 – ILFC (Hainan) 1 – Lufthansa 1 – Aer Lingus 1 – Finnair [Link] 1 – Lease Corporation Int’l (Singapore Airlines) |
| A340 | 2 | 2 – Lufthansa |
Boeing deliveries across its commercial and defense products for the first quarter of 2009.
| Model | Number of Deliveries | By Customer |
| 737 Next Generation | 91 |
4 – Air Berlin 2 – Air China 1 – Air India 6 – Alaska Airlines 1 – All Nippon Airways 2 – American Airlines 2 – Business Jet / VIP Customer(s) 1 – China Eastern Airlines 4 – Continental Airlines 1 – COPA Airlines 2 – Delta Air Lines 2 – Egyptair 9 – GECAS 2 – GOL Airlines 4 – Hainan Airlines 7 – ILFC 1 – Integrated Defense Systems 2 – JAL International 1 – KLM – Royal Dutch Airlines 3 – Lion Air 1 – Pegasus Airlines 22 – Ryanair 1 – Shandong Airlines 1 – Shenzhen Airlines 3 – Southwest Airlines 2 – SpiceJet 4 – TUI |
| 747 | 4 | 3 – Cathay Pacific Airways 1 – UPS |
| 767 | 3 |
1 – Business Jet / VIP Customer(s) 2 – JAL International |
| 777 | 23 |
1 – Air Canada 2 – Air France [Link] 1 – British Airways 3 – Delta Air Lines 1 – Dubai Aerospace Enterprise 2 – Emirates [Link] 1 – EVA Air 4 – GECAS 1 – ILFC 3 – Qatar Airways 1 – Singapore Airlines 2 – V Australia [Link] |
| Apache (New Builds) | 5 | Unknown – Probably US Army |
| C-17 | 3 | 1 – US Air Force (437th Airlift Wing at Charleston Air Force Base) 2 – Unknown – Probably US Air Force |
| F-15 | 4 | Unknown |
| F/A-18E/F and EA-18G | 10 | Unknown |
| T-45TS | 2 | 2 – US Navy |
| KC-767 Tanker | 1 | 1 – Japan Ministry of Defense |
Embraer now has another member of its E-Jets family, the EMBRAER 190, formally beginning its steep approach campaign to enable operations at London’s business airport, London City (LCY). This certification is expected to be earned by the end of 2009.
In December 2008, Embraer and British Airways signed a contract for 11 E-Jets, composed of six EMBRAER 170s and five EMBRAER 190s, to be operated by BA CityFlyer. The first EMBRAER 170, already certified for steep approach operations, will be delivered in the second half of 2009.
The EMBRAER 190 will perform the steep approach with the use of a software solution developed on the existing fly-by-wire system, which means better flight qualities and control, reduced pilot workload, and less aircraft weight and maintenance costs. When departing from LCY, the EMBRAER 190 range will reach more than 800 nautical miles (1,500 km), covering all current routes operated from this airport and bringing additional flexibility for airlines to add more important European business destinations. The steep approach capability will also enable operations at other airports that require equivalent procedures.
Source: Embraer
Photos: Embraer
After the Retro Uniform Week has gone by, Delta recently published photos of Northwest flight attendants wearing their new Delta uniforms for the first time. The new uniforms were designed by fashion designer Richard Tyler.
Photos [ More photos at Flickr ]
More at blog.delta.com
This summer the world’s first flying hotel will take off! The aircraft called “Hotelicopter” – a custom-built helicopter, actually the largest helicopter ever produced, will feature 18 luxuriously-appointed rooms for adrenaline junkies seeking a truly unique and memorable travel experience. On June 26th, 2009 the Hotelicopter will start to its 14 day Inaugural Summer Tour to/from New York – via Charleston, Freeport/Bahamas, Montego Bay/Jamaica, Santo Domingo/Dominican Republic, Nassau/Bahamas, Miami.
A California Tour and European Tour will follow in July.
Each soundproofed room is equipped with a queen-sized bed, fine linens, a mini-bar, coffee machine, wireless internet access, and all the luxurious appointments you’d expect from a flying five star hotel. Room service is available as well.
Video
More on http://www.hotelicopter.com
Happy April Fools’ Day! 😀
