The first Airbus A350-1000, the longest variant of the A350 family of widebody aircraft performed its first flight, at Toulouse, France, yesterday. The six person crew took MSN059 into the skies at 09:42 UTC. Test pilots Hugues van der Stichel and Frank Chapman, in cockpit flight test engineer Gerard Maisonneuve, flight test engineers Emanuele Costanzo, Patrick du Che, and Stephane …
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As reported by Bangalore Aviation in mid September, the Kempegowda airport (KIAB) at Bangalore will effectively cease operations during the day for two and a half months, from mid February to end April. As per a NOTAM (NOTice to AirMen) created on September 28, 2016 (received by us today), the sole runway at the airport, 09/27, will close from 10:30 …
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Australian flag carrier Qantas has given its aircraft livery a subtle modernisation. This includes the iconic Kangaroo logo on the tails of its aircraft. It is only the fifth time the iconic red-and-white ‘roo’ has been updated since its introduction in 1944. Continuing a tradition The livery change continues a tradition at Qantas, of changing its livery whenever a new …
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After a few misses, German flag carrier Deutsche Lufthansa will upgrade its Frankfurt Mumbai service to a Boeing 747-8i, the newest variant of the venerable ‘Queen of the skies’. The upgrade will be effective from the Winter 2016 schedule which starts on Sunday October 30, which also happens to be the night of Diwali, the biggest festival in India. The …
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Till October 15th, Dubai based Emirates airline held the record for the world’s longest non-stop flight, flying 14,497 kilometres (km) between Dubai and Auckland. On October 16th, national carrier Air India’s flight AI173 from New Delhi to San Francisco claimed that title flying a distance of 15,112km. To top it off, AI173 flew a longer distance of 1,811km in a …
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European airframer Airbus built five A380’s for the initial flight test program of the world’s largest commercial passenger aircraft. It still retains two aircraft in its test fleet which are used for on-going long term testing and for making improvements on the A380. F-WWOW (MSN 1) is fitted with the Rolls Royce Trent 970 engines, while F-WWDD (MSN 4) is …
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Singapore Airlines, Emirates, British Airways, Qatar Airways and Cathay Pacific are the world’s top airlines as per readers of the Business Traveller magazine. The awards are widely recognised within the airline industry and accepted by frequent travellers as a benchmark for excellence. Star Alliance member Singapore Airlines won five awards. It was recognised as the best airline in the world, …
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During the last week of September I was in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, and I heard from the DFW Spotters that Boeing’s new upcoming 737 MAX8 N8704Q was performing customer familiarisation flights and flight testing at Dallas Lovefield airport, the hub of launch customer Southwest Airlines (SWA). The aircraft performed a variety of flights to various SWA destinations including Austin, …
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Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has completed the first flight if it’s new Light Utility Helicopter (LUH). The flight is reported to have lasted about 15 minutes and marks the commencement of the aircraft’s flight test program. The LUH is powered by Safran’s Ardiden 1U engine and is intended to replace the Indian air force’s aging Chetak and Cheetah fleet. It …
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Yesterday, August 30, 2016, the world lost Joseph F. “Joe” Sutter, the legendary chief engineer and designer of the iconic Boeing 747, at the age of 95. Best known world-wide as the Jumbo jet or as the Queen of the skies, the 747 is probably the most recognisable aircraft in the world. Sutter, born on March 21, 1921 and given …
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Earlier this year, I flew Qatar Airways from Bangalore to Paris which included one leg on the airline’s flagship aircraft, the Airbus A380. Transit at Doha Airport After leaving the lounge, I was running just a little late. I asked the lounge access agent at the bottom of the escalator where gate B3 was, which was luckily just a five …
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Jet Airways reported results on August 12th with a net profit of Rs 103.1 crores on revenues of Rs 5,112 crores for the first quarter of fiscal year 2016-17 (FY17). The results indicate several challenges and highlights are as below: Operational performance The quarter saw an overall capacity increase of 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year, when measured …
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Sports fans are some of the most passionate people on earth, be it soccer around the world, baseball in the United States, or cricket in India. Cities around the world wear a deserted look whenever a match is played. Players are treated as demi-gods. The collective spirits of a nation rise and fall with the success or failure of their …
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[bsu_note note_color=”#affbcd” text_color=”#070707″ radius=”4″]This report was written by a professional analyst for Bangalore Aviation. The analyst remains anonymous as they are not authorised to place their views publicly.[/bsu_note] India’s largest domestic airline IndiGo, reported its first quarter results for the FY2017. With earnings of Rs 591.8 crores, the results yet again failed to meet analysts’ expectations bringing down its stock …
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Today, I had the opportunity to go spotting at Hamburg’s Finkenwerder Airport. The airport houses Airbus’s second largest factory. The plant houses final assembly for the A320 family aircraft, cabin assembly and painting for the A380 and major component assembly for the A380. The plant has a small hill that allows visitors to view flight operations on the airport’s main …
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Indian budget carrier GoAir has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with European airframer Airbus to purchase another 72 A320neo aircraft. This effectively doubles GoAir’s A320neo existing 72 plane order, placed in 2011, to 144. GoAir is the third operator of the new aircraft, globally, after Germany’s Lufthansa, and India’s IndiGo. It has taken delivery of two A320neos as of …
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Bangalore Aviation’s photo editor Vedant, was given a tour of Boeing’s new 737 MAX which is designed to compete with the new A320neo from Airbus. The MAX features new LEAP engines from CFM, a digital flight deck that derives inputs from its big brother the 787 Dreamliner, split wing-tips, and a host of other new features. Indian budget carrier Spicejet …
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The Indian Union cabinet has approved the new civil aviation policy (NCAP). The press release from the Press Information Bureau (PIB) says it all. While the NCAP is definitely a step in the right direction, we will be sharing our analysis in the days to come after we glean the details. For now, Vistara, the joint venture of Tatas and …
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Qatar Airways is an airline that puts a lot of effort into building it’s premium class experience, from the ground to the on board service. At the old Doha airport the airline had a separate premium terminal for it’s premium (business and first class) passengers. At the airline’s new hub, the Hamad International Airport at Doha, the airline has the …
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Jet Airways recently reported numbers for the quarter and the year. For the fourth quarter ending 31 March 2016, the airline reported an impressive net profit of Rs 3,972 million and for the year a net profit of INR 11,733 million. After extensive research into qualitative and quantitative details an analysis is presented below: Strategic shift Jet has moved away …
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