Flight Safety Information - July 12, 2023 No. 133 In This Issue : Accident: Halla E120 at Mogadishu on Jul 11th 2023, gear collapse and runway excursion : Incident: Emirates A388 at London on Jul 11th 2023, hydraulic failure : Incident: Swiss A333 enroute on Jul 11th 2023, unusual odour in cockpit and cabin : Mount Everest helicopter crash kills 5 tourists and their pilot : The Crosscheck: Doing Something About Illegal Charter Operations : CALFIRE SECURES 24 ADDITIONAL FIREFIGHTING AIRCRAFT FOR THE STATE : NTSB: Broken piece forces flight to land at CLT Airport without nose gear : Northern Pacific Airways Receives FAA Approval, Scheduled Flights Will Take Off : FAA Addresses Wait Times for SP-Part 135 Approvals : Australia Tackles 5G Interference Issues : 5 takeaways from POLITICO’s FAA reauthorization event : Airbus soars past Boeing with June jet order surge and strong deliveries : Aviation Body DGCA Puts SpiceJet Under Enhanced Surveillance : Vietnam Airlines To Auction Three Aircraft Accident: Halla E120 at Mogadishu on Jul 11th 2023, gear collapse and runway excursion A Halla Airline Embraer EMB-120, registration 6O-AAD performing a flight from Garowe (Puntland) to Mogadishu (Somalia) with 30 passengers and 4 crew, landed on Mogadishu's runway 05 at 12:23L (09:23Z), however, the left main gear collapsed causing the aircraft to veer left off the runway, spin around and collide with the airport fence. The aircraft sustained substantial damage with the cockpit partially separated from the aircraft, there was one minor injury reported. Somalia's CAA confirmed a Halla Airlines Embraer EMB-120 veered off the runway on landing resulting in minor injuries only. An investigation has been opened. There had been no report of an anomaly by the crew prior to touch down. https://avherald.com/h?article=50ba4c2d&opt=0 Incident: Emirates A388 at London on Jul 11th 2023, hydraulic failure An Emirates Airbus A380-800, registration A6-EUN performing flight EK-9 from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to London Gatwick,EN (UK), was on approach to Gatwick's runway 26L when the crew initiated a go around reporting a hydraulic failure. The aircraft climbed back to 4000 feet, positioned for another approach and landed safely on runway 26L about 23 minutes after the go around. The aircraft was unable to vacate the runway and was towed off the runway. The airport reported the main runway was closed for a short time this evening after an Emirates A380 made an emergency landing. https://avherald.com/h?article=50ba4e8e&opt=0 Incident: Swiss A333 enroute on Jul 11th 2023, unusual odour in cockpit and cabin A Swiss International Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration HB-JHL performing flight LX-18 from Zurich (Switzerland) to Newark,NJ (USA), was enroute at FL340 about 70nm southeast of London Heathrow,EN (UK) when the crew decided descend the aircraft to FL100 and turn around due to unusual odour in cockpit and cabin. The aircraft levelled off at FL100 about 15 minutes later and subsequently diverted to Paris Charles de Gaulle, where the aircraft landed without further incident about 50 minutes after leaving FL340. The airline reported the aircraft diverted due to an unusual odour in cockpit and cabin. The aircraft is currently still on the ground in Paris about 3 hours after landing. https://avherald.com/h?article=50ba53c5&opt=0 Mount Everest helicopter crash kills 5 tourists and their pilot A helicopter crash near Mount Everest reportedly killed five Mexican tourists and their Nepalese pilot after the chopper lost contact with a ground crew Tuesday morning. The sightseeing aircraft went down in the Lamjura Pass after visiting the world’s highest peak, according to the Associated Press. As of this time, it’s unclear what caused the crash. ABC News said the pilot lost contact with ground crews shortly after departing Surke, Nepal around 10:13 a.m. While a spokesperson for Manang Air, which operated the chopper flown by 55-year-old Capt. Chet B. Gurung, told Reuters “the weather was not bad” when the helicopter took flight, its original route was altered on account of uncooperative weather. That isn’t uncommon during monsoon season, which began last month. Recovery efforts were initially hampered by “adverse weather” that prohibited a search-and-rescue helicopter to reach the crash site, according to ABC News. Once the victims were reached, authorities said rescue workers decided “to carry the dead bodies by ground transportation to the helicopter landing area” so they could be moved to Kathmandu. A pair of rescue helicopters were then used to transport the victims to Nepal’s capital. Doctors are expected to perform an autopsy on the victims. A regional authority said “the bodies were broken into pieces.” The Himalayan Times reports the tourists were two nonagenarian men and three women ranging in age from 52 to 72. The publication said the helicopter crashed at nearly 11,500 feet above sea level. Authorities reportedly used GPS coordinates to find the wreckage. Mount Everest’s highest peak is more than 29,000 feet above sea level, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Nepal’s worst airline disaster in 30 years happened in January when 72 people died as a plane coming from Katmandu prepared to land in the nearby tourist city of Pokhara. The Associated Press reported that, while flying over mountainous Nepal presents challenges, weather conditions were favorable when Yeti Airlines flight 691 crashed in a gorge that was a mile deep. U.S. citizens were among the fatalities. Eight of the world’s 14 highest mountains are in Nepal, where 42 fatal plane crashes have occurred since 1946, according to India’s Safety Matters Foundation. NBC News reports roughly 350 people have been killed in plane and helicopter crashes in Nepal since 2000. https://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/ny-mount-everest-helicopter-crash-pilot-20230711-v6pine5vqbh4lmosvvnsvhck3u-story.html The Crosscheck: Doing Something About Illegal Charter Operations In the second quarter of 2018, former National Air Transportation Association (NATA) president and CEO Timothy Obitts wrote in the association’s Aviation Business Journal that “illegal charter is rampant and something needs to be done.” Illegal air charter operators conduct commuter and on-demand operations without meeting the requirements of 14 CFR Part 135. NATA joined with the Air Charter Safety Foundation and the FAA to launch a campaign to stop or reduce illegal charters. There is a hotline now for people to report these flights and the FAA has stepped up enforcement. What we don’t know is how effective these actions have been overall. Has illegal charter stopped happening or is it still pervasive? The U.S. Congress wanted to know that in 2018 and probably still does. When the current FAA reauthorization bill passed in October 2018, Congress included a provision on illegal charter flights. Section 540 of the legislation required the Secretary of Transportation to analyze the facts of illegal charter and make a report to the appropriate committees of Congress within 180 days of the bill’s enactment. Two and a half years later, the Department of Transportation responded. The report, written by the FAA’s Office of Aviation Safety, complained about the difficulties it had in identifying and investigating illegal charter operations. The FAA said it needed a better way to collect and manage all of the illegal charter reports that came in, and it hoped to integrate the reports with the Flight Standards Safety Assurance System. That integration had not yet been done in 2021. That is not to say that the FAA did nothing. It took steps to educate the inspector workforce and FAA legal counsel, created a web page on the subject, and delivered a significant amount of educational material through media outlets. But the agency still does not have a working database it can use to quantify the problem. Short of a massive IT project that seems to continually recede into the future, there are practical measures the FAA can take to make illegal charters unattractive to potential operators. Way back in 2009, the NTSB sent the agency six recommendations to do just that. NTSB Recommendations The NTSB safety recommendations, A-09-76 through A-09-81, were the byproduct of an investigation into the March 4, 2008 crash of a Cessna 500 Citation. The cause of the crash was a collision with a flock of American white pelicans. The two pilots and three passengers were killed. The safety board discovered “noncompliant” charter arrangements in the course of the investigation. The NTSB took a multi-pronged approach to its recommendations. This was because there are multiple parties who must cooperate or collude in order for a charter to take place outside the rules. There’s the pilot, the airplane owner and the client who must agree. Usually there’s also an operator, distinct from the pilot, who makes the calls to organize the flight. The FAA also has an interest, since it has to observe and document any rules infractions. One recommendation addressed the pilot. It would have required he or she to enter on the flight plan the name of the flight’s operator and the operating rules (Part 135 or Part 91) the flight would be conducted under. If the pilot entered 135 when the flight did not meet those requirements, it would be a clear admission of an infraction. If the pilot entered Part 91 when passengers were paying a fee or fare, that would be another rule violation. Few pilots would want to give the FAA that kind of documentation of an infraction. Few owners would want the tail number of their airplane shown on a Part 135 flight plan if the airplane was not part of a certificated charter operation. Another recommendation addressed the operator. That person would have to provide the customers a written document describing the terms of carriage, i.e., Part 135 charter. The document could be almost anything—a ticket, a form letter, even an email. This document would eliminate any passenger uncertainty about the flight’s legality, and if untrue, would be a clear way to document another infraction. To address the client, there was a recommendation for the FAA to keep current and reliable information on its website about the certification status of all charter operators to make it easy for potential passengers to check. For the FAA itself, there was a recommendation to improve on-site inspector surveillance activities at airports and another to assess why the FAA was unable to identify the improper actions of the operator in the Citation accident. Finally, there was a recommendation to eliminate the maximum gross weight floor of 12,500 lb. in 14 CFR 91.23, “Truth in Leasing” clause requirement. That rule requires charter operators to notify the FAA of their intent to operate the charter flight before it departs, but it only applies to larger airplanes above the 12,500 lb. limit. The Citation accident aircraft, like many very light jets, was below the weight limit, and having that loophole gives illegal charter operators an incentive to use those very light or personal jets. The FAA rejected every one of the NTSB recommendations except the one about placing operator certificate information on its website. The rejections were, to me, self-defeating, since they would have eased the task of FAA inspectors, particularly those on the Special Emphasis Investigations Team who pursue illegal charters. I wonder if someone in the FAA just didn’t want a safety agency telling it how to go about its job of enforcing the regulations. I think there’s a place for relatively simple, pragmatic solutions to safety issues. It isn’t always necessary to wait for the creation of a giant automated program that never seems quite able to do what it was intended to do. https://aviationweek.com/business-aviation/safety-ops-regulation/crosscheck-doing-something-about-illegal-charter-operations CALFIRE SECURES 24 ADDITIONAL FIREFIGHTING AIRCRAFT FOR THE STATE By the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) CAL FIRE is bolstering its firefighting aircraft fleet across California for the second year in a row as a result of over $72 million in funding provided by the administration of Governor Gavin Newsom. The investment has allowed CAL FIRE to secure 24 additional firefighting aircraft (19 helicopters and 5 airplanes for a contractual period of 90-120 days) to enhance their statewide response efforts against wildfires in California. The additional fixed-wing aircraft include 3 large airtankers specifically designed to carry up to 4,000 gallons of retardant. These aircraft have been strategically located in communities across California and will be pre-positioned to meet the needs of potential fire activity throughout the state. "The deployment of more aircraft dedicated to the people of California marks a historic milestone, with the highest number of firefighting aircraft ever available for initial attack in the state for the second consecutive year," stated Director and Fire Chief Joe Tyler. Chief Tyler further explained that "the significant rainfall California experienced this winter has led to a substantial increase of highly flammable fuels, which contribute to the rapid escalation of fires." Last week alone, CAL FIRE responded to over 300 wildfires as temperatures continued to increase across the state. Aircraft are initially prepositioned in the following Counties: Butte, Tuolumne, San Diego, Tulare, Humboldt, Mariposa, Nevada, Siskiyou, Sacramento, Fresno, Shasta, San Luis Obispo, Napa, Placer, Lassen, Riverside, and Sonoma Counties. Established in 1970, CAL FIRE's aviation program has grown to over 60 fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft, making it the largest civil aerial firefighting fleet worldwide. This renowned aviation program responds to thousands of wildfires dropping water and fire retardant in California each year. In light of these efforts, CAL FIRE urges the public to refrain from operating drones over areas with fire activity. It is important to note that flying drones in these areas is strictly prohibited by law. Drone operation hampers aerial firefighting capabilities and poses significant risks to lives, property, and natural resources. CAL FIRE remains dedicated to the protection of California's communities and natural landscapes, and these additional firefighting aircraft represent a significant step towards enhancing the state's wildfire response capabilities. https://www.edhat.com/news/calfire-secures-24-additional-firefighting-aircraft-for-the-state NTSB: Broken piece forces flight to land at CLT Airport without nose gear The crew tried to manually extend the gear but that didn’t work. Delta Airlines’ Atlanta flight control was notified, and an emergency was declared with air traffic control, the report stated. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) – A fractured lock link prevented the nose gear of a Delta plane to extend, leading to an emergency landing last month at Charlotte Douglas International Airport. That’s according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board after Delta Flight 1092 landed without its front landing gear down on June 28. The 104 passengers and crew were not injured. The flight crew reported the problem when the plane was at about 2,000 feet, according to the NTSB. The first officer lowered the landing gear handle and saw the nose wheel unsafe condition light illuminate, the report stated. The crew tried to manually extend the gear but that didn’t work. Delta Airlines’ Atlanta flight control was notified, and an emergency was declared with air traffic control, the report stated. When the plane was at 300 feet, air traffic control notified the flight crew that the nose wheel was not visible, according to the NTSB. After several normal and manual landing gear extension attempts were made to no avail, the decision was made to proceed with the landing, investigators said. The preliminary report shows the landing gear system had a fractured upper lock link, which allowed the lower lock link to swing down and restrict the nose landing gear assembly’s movement. That broken part was sent to an NTSB lab to see if they can figure out why it broke. https://www.wbtv.com/2023/07/11/ntsb-broken-piece-forces-flight-land-clt-airport-without-nose-gear/ Northern Pacific Airways Receives FAA Approval, Scheduled Flights Will Take Off Northern Pacific Airways has obtained its air carrier certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration. This marks a significant milestone for the airline, as it prepares to commence scheduled passenger flights later this week. CEO Rob McKinney announced the news on Twitter, stating that this new airline had successfully passed all required tests. Northern Pacific planned to launch its services last month, connecting Ontario International Airport in the Greater Los Angeles Area with the Las Vegas Strip. However, due to the absence of necessary FAA approvals, the flights were delayed. With the recent certification in hand, the airline has confirmed July 14 as the new takeoff date for these flights. Northern Pacific Airways aims to establish itself as a key player in the Los Angeles to Las Vegas route. Presently, only budget carriers Southwest Airlines and Frontier Airlines operate flights between the two airports. The airline’s schedule caters to customers from the Los Angeles metropolitan area seeking a weekend getaway in Las Vegas. Inaugural Flight The inaugural flight, which is fully booked according to McKinney, will depart from Ontario at 2 p.m. local time every Friday. The return flight will take off from Las Vegas at 2 p.m. every Sunday. The airline operates a fleet of four Boeing 757-200 aircrafts with one in active service and the remaining three in storage. Northern Pacific’s journey towards launch has encountered several hurdles and setbacks since its initial planned start date in 2022. However, the acquisition of bankrupt regional carrier Ravn Alaska by Float Alaska in 2021 provided the necessary assets and resources for the airline to solidify its position. McKinney envisions Northern Pacific Airways as the Pacific equivalent of Icelandair. Icelandair uses its hub in Reykjavik to offer low-cost, multi-stop service between North America and Europe. Building on this model, Northern Pacific Airways aims to connect Anchorage with South Korea and Japan. The airline also intends to explore opportunities in other countries, such as Canada and Mexico. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/northern-pacific-airways-receives-faa-153000170.html FAA Addresses Wait Times for SP-Part 135 Approvals The FAA has issued new safety guidelines for single pilot Part 135 compliance. The FAA has published updated guidance for agency safety inspectors to address policy revisions concerning the initial certification process for certain Part 135 single-pilot applicants. According to the agency, the aim of the revisions are to “reduce overall wait times for initial certification applicants whose proposed operations are of limited scope and complexity.” Because such operators are not required to have a procedures manual or an approved pilot training program, the FAA said it has determined that for these Part 135 initial certification applicants that the safety assurance system (SAS) and element design (ED) documentation requirements can be reduced without negatively impacting safety. “This will align the level of documentation required by SAS during the design assessment (DA) phase of initial certification projects with the level of documentation required by the regulations,” said the notice. “The FAA believes that reducing the documentation during the DA phase and placing additional focus during the Performance Assessment phase is more effective to ensure repeatable safety performance for single-pilot operators.” Once the certificate has been issued, the responsible FSDO will continue to use SAS and other system safety principles to “validate and document ongoing oversight of Part 135 single-pilot operators.” Post-certification, principal inspectors will adjust the certificate holder assessment tool and comprehensive assessment plan to reflect the operator’s state and risk factors. Under the guidance, Part 135 single-pilot approval projects already underway have two options to complete the certification process. https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2023-07-11/faa-addresses-wait-times-sp-part-135-approvals Australia Tackles 5G Interference Issues Australia's government is working to mitigate any possible avionics interference as the country's adoption of 5G cell phone service grows. As 5G mobile phone services expand in Australia, the country’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) says it is “working closely with the Australian Communications and Media Authority [ACMA] to ensure things run smoothly,” regarding efforts to prevent interference with radio altimeters. “CASA is coordinating with ACMA so that the rollout of wireless broadband services, including 5G in the 3.7–4.0 GHz band can be done in a way that ensures the safety of aircraft in Australia.” Radio altimeters operate in the 4.2–4.4 GHz range and mid-band 5G transmissions have been introduced without issue in several jurisdictions. However, U.S. concerns about possible interference with radio altimeters, particularly during take-off and landings, have resulted in directives limiting certain operations and equipment upgrade requirements on U.S. airliners. "A range of mitigations will be in place on 5G deployments above 3.7 GHz until March 31, 2026,” the agency said. “The mitigations will restrict wireless broadband deployments in the 3.7–4.0 GHz band near runways and approaches at 21 airports nationally where landings using radio altimeters are permitted. There will also be limits on power and unwanted emissions." According to CASA, “We do not expect to impose operational limits on operators during this interim period. However, operators will need to upgrade [radio altimeters] that do not meet minimum performance levels before the interim period ends on March 31, 2026. We will liaise with industry about the applicable performance standards for [radio altimeters] and available options for upgrading.“ Ongoing mitigations after March 31, 2026, will include a 200 MHz buffer between wireless broadband and radio altimeter frequencies as well as limits on power and unwanted emissions. Meanwhile, CASA is monitoring developments internationally as 5G is rolled out and says, “We are confident the interim measures put in place by ACMA will ensure continued safe aviation operations.” https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2023-07-11/australia-tackles-5g-interference-issues 5 takeaways from POLITICO’s FAA reauthorization event Weather is by far the largest source of delayed and cancelled flights, and will continue to cause headaches for flights as the planet warms. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton Norton (D-D.C.) and other Washington-area lawmakers oppose allowing more flights out of Reagan National because the FAA said the airport is already prone to delays and only has one runway suitable for commercial planes. | Francis Chung/POLITICO Top airline industry officials and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton said Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration faces staffing and funding challenges as travel surges and Congress begins work in earnest on another bill to reauthorize the agency — and that climate change will ultimately play a critical role in the future of air travel. Here are POLITICO’s top takeaways from Tuesday’s summit. Bad weather delays and cancellations will climb as the planet warms. Weather is by far the largest source of delayed and cancelled flights, and United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said to expect the increasing frequency and intensity of storms to continue to cause headaches for flights. “More heat in the atmosphere, thermodynamics 101 — we’re going to have more thunderstorms,” Kirby said. United CEO warns of more weather delays due to climate change While individual airlines bear the brunt of irate passengers, and United in particular struggled ahead of the July 4th holiday, the FAA’s staffing levels also can play a role in how quickly airlines are able to recover when storms ground flights. In the New York City area, the FAA’s air traffic control facility is staffed at 54 percent of its ideal level. A wave of vacations or sick controllers can contribute to slowdowns at airports because planes are required to leave more space for takeoff and landings when there are fewer controllers on hand. “Having [air traffic controllers] in the place that they need to be is a big challenge,” said Tori Emerson Barnes, the U.S. Travel Association’s executive vice president for public affairs and policy. “Even the DOT’s IG said their own staffing models were confusing and inadequate.” Do consumer protections stifle innovation? Airlines and consumer protection groups are generally at odds with how far the FAA and DOT should go to compensate passengers whose flights are disrupted, though the Biden administration is pushing the airlines to do more. John Breyault, vice president of public policy and telecommunications and fraud at the National Consumers League, said his organization wants the final bill to contain language requiring DOT to ensure that airlines compensate passengers whose flights are delayed — not just canceled. “Consumers’ time is valuable and when it gets wasted through no fault of their own they deserve to be compensated,” Breyault said. “That’s already something consumers get when they’re flying out of Canada or out of Europe. I think if there was this incentive in place you’d see a lot more focus on hiring to make sure those schedules are resilient when weather happens.” Sterling Wiggins, the Chamber of Commerce’s senior director for transportation, infrastructure and supply chain policy, said requiring airlines to hand out more cash for flight issues would discourage airlines from innovating — for example, allowing mobile boarding passes — because they will be on a financial hook for delays. “We believe that this would have adverse impact on the consumer as well as added a layer of bureaucracy that’s not necessary and could actually result in consumers taking longer to get refunds,” Wiggins said. Do you work for an airline or the FAA? We are examining what’s behind perpetual airline staffing shortages, flight delays and cancellations. Help us investigate. A proposal to expand long-haul flights at Congress’ closest airport continues to be a big problem. Whether or not to increase the number of long-haul fights out of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport has split lawmakers in both parties and aspects of the airline industry. Where a lawmaker or interest lands on the issue depends more on geography — and presence already at the airport — than politics. Norton (D-D.C.) and other Washington-area lawmakers oppose allowing more flights out of Reagan National because the FAA said the airport is already prone to delays and only has one runway suitable for commercial planes. Rather, flights would have to be swapped, meaning a flight to Seattle might replace a flight to Cleveland. And Norton knocked lawmakers from both parties who want changes, arguing their motivations are driven by self-interest. “Members of Congress want to be able to fly from their home district to Reagan National Airport,” Norton said. Kirby and United, who has a larger presence at nearby Dulles International Airport, are also opposed to changes. Delta Air Lines and lawmakers from both parties are pushing for more long haul flights, arguing it would decrease ticket prices at Reagan National and increase access outside of the airport’s 1,250 mile perimeter. The FAA needs more — and more reliable — funding. Every panelist on Tuesday agreed that the FAA needs more money to invest in infrastructure upgrades, ease staffing challenges and upgrade technology. It’s also an area that most members of Congress agree deserves attention, particularly after the nation’s air traffic system was ground to a halt earlier this year when a system notifying pilots of potential hazards went down after a contractor snafu. “We’re seeing a failure across the government, not just as it relates to appropriate staffing for air traffic controllers,” Barnes said. “It’s investments in workforce, investments in technology… across the government we’re seeing a challenge that’s hurting the seamless, secure travel experience.” The House bill, H.R. 3935 (118), would authorize approximately $103 billion for the FAA for the next five fiscal years. The bill includes $20 billion for Airport Improvement Program grants, about $17 billion for facilities and equipment and $66.5 billion for operations split over fiscal year 2024 through fiscal year 2028. The Senate bill, S. 1939 (118), would authorize approximately $107 billion for the FAA for the next five years. The bill includes $20 billion for Airport Improvement Program grants, about $18 billion for facilities and equipment and $67.5 billion for operations split over fiscal year 2024 through fiscal year 2028. Additionally, the Senate bill also includes close to $2 billion for research, engineering and development over five years. Whether to change the rules on pilot training remains contentious. Another contentious issue in the two bills are proposals to change commercial pilot training and retirement rules. The House bill currently raises the pilot retirement age from 65 to 67 and includes a change that allows an additional 150 hours of high-gravity simulator time to count toward the existing 1,500 flight hours prospective pilots must accrue. Pilot unions oppose both of those proposals while regional airlines are pushing for the changes, saying they will help get more pilots in the air. Norton said both proposals are “among the most controversial provisions” though she ultimately voted in favor of the House bill in committee as part of an unanimous vote. The Senate Commerce Committee is still awaiting a markup of their bill after the pilot training issue torpedoed a scheduled markup last month. Kirby, meanwhile urged lawmakers to keep pilot training changes out of a final bill to keep things moving ahead of the Sept. 30 reauthorization deadline. “Let’s get those things done that we all agree with and talk about those other things in a separate forum,” Kirby said, referring to pilot training changes and the slot fight. https://www.politico.com/news/2023/07/11/takeaways-politicos-faa-reauthorization-00105661 Airbus soars past Boeing with June jet order surge and strong deliveries Thanks to a single mammoth order at last month’s Paris Air Show, Airbus flew far past Boeing in sales at the half-year mark. While Boeing added 288 net orders in June, Airbus raked in 902 net orders for the month, including the record-breaking order for 500 of its single-aisle A320 jet family aircraft from Indian low-cost carrier Indigo. Though both manufacturers logged stronger jet delivery totals in June than in recent months, by that measure too Airbus still remains firmly ahead of its U.S. rival. Airbus delivered 72 airplanes in June. Boeing, still slogging through rework necessitated by a continuing series of production glitches, delivered 60. Halfway through the year, Airbus has delivered 316 commercial jets and won 1,044 net orders. Boeing has delivered 266 commercial jets and has won 415 net orders. One production glitch after another Working to regain momentum in jet deliveries and production, Boeing has struggled this year with a series of setbacks. The latest, a railway bridge collapse in Montana just over two weeks ago, has interfered with the flow of 737 MAX fuselage deliveries from Spirit AeroSystems in Wichita, Kan., that arrive by train at Boeing’s Renton assembly plant. Boeing has had to offload the MAX fuselages from the railcars onto trucks, drive them for 6 miles on Interstate 90 around the break in the rail line, then load them onto another train. It is expected to take weeks to repair the bridge and restore the rail connection. But with the trucking workaround, Boeing is pressing on. “We are working closely with officials to minimize local disruption caused by the bridge collapse,” Boeing said in a statement. “Production and deliveries continue, and we don’t expect that this issue will change our full-year guidance.” Earlier setbacks were self-inflicted quality lapses either at Boeing or in its supply chain. MAX deliveries were held up in April when out-of-tolerance gaps were discovered in metal fittings that attach the jet’s vertical tail fin to the fuselage. In June, Boeing delivered 48 MAXs, up from 17 in April and 35 in May. About 220 of the jets remain in inventory. Having delivered 211 MAXs in the first half of the year, Boeing is sticking to its guidance that it will deliver 400 to 450 MAXs by year end. Airbus in June delivered 57 of the rival A320 jet family, plus six smaller single-aisle A220s. In early June, Boeing found a nonconformance in a fitting in the horizontal tail of its 787 Dreamliner widebody jet that has to be reworked. That’s on top of all the rework needed on stored 787s due to unacceptable gaps at multiple fuselage joins. More than 80 undelivered 787s remain to be reworked. The work progresses steadily but slowly. In June, Boeing delivered six Dreamliners. Boeing is maintaining its delivery target for the year of 70 to 80 Dreamliners. It delivered 31 in the first half of the year. And 767 deliveries have been held up all year by discovery of a potential contamination problem in the center fuel tank due to a poor manufacturing process. Boeing said Monday it has now completed rework on all the affected 767-based KC-46 tankers it’s building for the Air Force. In June, Boeing finally handed off its first KC-46 tanker this year to its defense division, which will install its military systems before delivering the plane to the Air Force. Since Paris, Airbus has announced a couple more orders. This month, Icelandair placed a firm order for 13 of the upcoming ultra-long-range A321XLR model, as the airline moves to replace the Boeing 757s it flies transatlantic. Mexican ultra-low-cost airline Viva Aerobus signed a memorandum of understanding for 90 A321neos. https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/airbus-soars-past-boeing-with-june-jet-order-surge-and-strong-deliveries/ Aviation Body DGCA Puts SpiceJet Under Enhanced Surveillance According to the regulatory official, the enhanced surveillance includes increased night surveillance and spot checks. The enhanced surveillance is also to check whether safety obligations are being met or not New Delhi: Aviation watchdog DGCA has put SpiceJet under "enhanced surveillance" amid the budget airline facing multiple financial headwinds in recent months, a senior official said on Tuesday, but the carrier refuted any such development. It also comes against the backdrop of various lessors seeking repossession of aircraft leased to SpiceJet and some of the cases have been settled by the airline. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has put SpiceJet under enhanced surveillance for more than three weeks now and it is an ongoing process, the official told PTI. According to the regulatory official, the enhanced surveillance includes increased night surveillance and spot checks. The focus is to ensure that due to financial issues, there are no potential adverse impact on the flight operations and that there is no "cutting corners" on safety, the official said on the condition of anonymity. The enhanced surveillance is also to check whether safety obligations are being met or not, the official added. When contacted, a SpiceJet spokesperson said, "The information is absolutely incorrect and is strongly denied". No such communication has been received by the airline from the DGCA, the spokesperson said in a statement. SpiceJet, which has been facing various headwinds, has settled the issues with certain aircraft lessors. On June 21, the airline said it has entered into a settlement agreement with Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC), a lessor for its Q400 planes. https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/aviation-body-dgca-puts-spicejet-under-enhanced-surveillance-4197746 Vietnam Airlines To Auction Three Aircraft The airline is hoping to raise more than $15 million through the auction of the three aging Airbus A321s. In a bid to boost revenue, Vietnam Airlines has decided to put three of its Airbus A321s up for auction. The aircraft will be sold to the highest bidder, and come with a starting price of $5 million each. According to data from ch-aviation, Vietnam Airlines has 48 A321s in its fleet, in addition to 20 A321neos. The 48 aircraft have an average age of 11.8 years old, each carrying a total of 178 to 203 passengers in a two-class configuration, depending on the seat layout. Vietnam Airlines puts its A321s to use on a wide variety of domestic and regional routes, with longer flights operated by the carrier's widebody A350 and Boeing 787 aircraft. The three A321s to be auctioned are registered as VN-A350, VN-A351, and VN-A352. All three aircraft were delivered new to Vietnam Airlines in early 2007, making them over 16 years old. They currently feature the carrier's highest density A321 configuration of just eight seats in business class and 195 in economy class, offering a seat pitch of 45 inches and 32 inches, respectively. VN-A350 has been with Vietnam Airlines its entire life, while VN-A351 operated for Cambodia Angkor Air for a brief period from 2009 through 2012. VN-A352 flew for Jetstar for one year just prior to the pandemic, before being returned to Vietnam Airlines. Previous aircraft auctions This is not the first time that Vietnam Airlines has taken to auctioning aircraft to generate revenue. Back in 2020, the airline sold five Airbus A321s for an average of $7.4 million each in a bid to boost its income and restructure its fleet at the height of the pandemic. One year later, the carrier then sold a further 11 A321s in this way. Last year, Thai Airways chose to auction parts of its grounded Boeing 747 fleet in order to keep some money coming in when passenger numbers were down. In the auctions, which took place on Facebook Live, pairs of seats from the aircraft were sold for up to $1,000. Getting back on track Vietnam Airlines has experienced a strong recovery from the pandemic, aided in part by a particularly buoyant domestic market. In the first six months of this year, the airline has carried over 10 million passengers, up 23.6% on the same period last year. Things are looking up in terms of revenue too, with Vietnam Airlines almost reaching pre-pandemic levels in the first half of this year, taking over $1.91 billion. With travel restrictions now a distant memory, the carrier restarted daily flights to London Heathrow (LHR) earlier this year, and in the face of increased competition from low-cost carrier Vietjet, also boosted its presence in Australia. https://simpleflying.com/vietnam-airlines-auction-three-aircraft/ Curt Lewis