BAA Training, Transavia sign training deal: BAA Training, a part of Avia Solutions Group, and Transavia Airlines, a part of Air France-KLM Group, have signed a term sheet contract that sets out the conditions based on which BAA Training will open a new training centre dedicated to Transavia’s pilot training needs. The new aviation training centre situated near Paris Orly Airport (ORY) in France and containing 6 simulator bays will be operated by BAA Training itself as enforced by an exclusive partnership agreement the parties will conclude shortly. Egle Vaitkeviciute, CEO at BAA Training, said, “The fact that BAA Training has reached an agreement with Transavia France in regard to establishing a new training centre in France and entering a long-term partnership is yet another evidence we have the necessary know-how to work in tandem with world-class airlines. Today, we begin a new BAA Training France story as we become a reliable long-term partner ready to work hard and adapt to fit Transavia France’s varied needs.” The new training centre BAA Training France accommodating six simulator bays will be ready to accept the first state-of-the-art simulator in Q4 2022. The brand-new training facility will incorporate four simulators dedicated to Transavia France’s purposes. It is planned to install the following types of full flight simulators: Boeing 737NG, Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A320neo. Additionally, a Door and Overwing exit trainer, 2 FTD Level 2 devices and other training equipment are being considered.
EirTrade gets AFRA accreditation: EirTrade Aviation, the aviation technical asset services and trading company with a specialist aircraft disassembly facility at Knock, Ireland West Airport, has been awarded an AFRA (Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association) accreditation. The accreditation will see the company taking on the disassembly market as the first, and only, AFRA accredited facility in Ireland. EirTrade provides disassembly services for all Airbus, Boeing, Embraer, Bombardier and ATR types. To date EirTrade has disassembled regional and commercial aircraft of all sizes from ATR72 to A380 aircraft. The AFRA Best Management Practices (BMP) Guide for Disassembly is the leading standard for dismantling aircraft in a safe, efficient and environmentally friendly manner. Established in 2006, AFRA is a membership-based global collaboration to elevate industry performance and increase commercial value for end-of-service aircraft. AFRA represents companies from across the globe and throughout the supply-chain – from manufacturers to material recyclers. Through the collective experience of its members, AFRA’s BMP Guide has significantly improved the management of end-of-life aircraft in terms of environmental and sustainable performance.
British Airways extends Lufthansa Technik Airbus A380 MRO deal: British Airways has extended its contract with Lufthansa Technik for Base Maintenance Services for its Airbus A380 aircraft. The contract will run from August 2022 for more than five years and includes services for the airline’s 12 A380s to be performed at the Lufthansa Technik Philippines facility in Manila. During the past five years, British Airways and Lufthansa Technik have worked closely together on the A380 Base Maintenance services and with both parties aligned to the same high standards of safety and professionalism. The organisational skills, experience, technical knowledge and flexibility of both companies have led to the extension of this contract, which includes 12 year-checks for A380 aircraft. Dave Exon, Technical Director of British Airways, says: “Safety is at the heart of everything we do and we’re delighted to extend our existing A380 base maintenance contract with Lufthansa Technik as a result of the continued excellent standard of service provided by Lufthansa Technik Philippines. This agreement ensures that our A380 aircraft have secured slots for the foreseeable future.”
APOC expands capacity in Europe: Just two years after APOC moved into its new facility in Berkel en Rodenrijs, the leasing, trading, and aircraft part-out specialist is pushing ahead with major expansion plans. The company is finishing construction of an additional 2,500m² of warehouse and technical inspections base that adjoins its existing premises and will treble storage capacity. APOC specialises in narrowbody components and currently has four Boeing 737 airframes undergoing teardown which will balance its Airbus A320 family stock. Imminent arrival of these parts alongside the extensive investment in other aircraft assets, including landing gear and engines, over the past 12-18 months has brought forward APOC’s expansion plans and stimulated further new stock hubs in Singapore and Miami.
AMETEK Antavia, Viking collaborate on aerial firefighting: Antavia AMETEK MRO and Viking Air of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, have renewed their comprehensive landing gear maintenance support for an additional three years. This agreement, originally initiated in 2018, confirms Antavia as a Factory Endorsed Component Centre (FECC) and official repair station to support Viking’s Canadair’s fleet of CL215/CL215T/415/415EAF with landing gear. With 20 years of experience and expertise, Antavia thus reaffirms its position as Canadair’s landing gear maintenance leader, covering more than 60 percent of the worldwide fleet. Viking continues to select Antavia as the preferred vendor to provide landing gear maintenance under the Maintenance Plus (M+) program, a maintenance programme specifically developed by Viking to meet operators’ requirements.
Riga Airport traffic down: Preliminary data on airport performance in the first seven months of this year show that in July, Riga Airport handled half as many passengers as a month before. In July, the airport served 297,200 passengers, which is almost 140,000 more than a month before. Consequently, the number of passengers in July has reached 36 percent of the 2019 indicators. Almost 703,000 passengers were handled at Riga Airport in the first seven months of 2021, and the number of passengers is still 84 percent lower than in the pre-COVID-19 crisis period. The flow of transit passengers at Riga Airport is also gradually recovering. In July, the share of travellers who chose Riga as their transfer point for further trips was 26 percent. In total, 162,500 transit passengers were served at Riga Airport this year, accounting for 23 percent of the total number of passengers. Of the total number of passengers, 60.5 percent were carried by the national airline airBaltic, 18.2 percent – by the Irish low-cost airline Ryanair, and 6 percent – by the Hungarian low-cost airline WizzAir. A total of 12 passenger carriers currently offer flights from Riga Airport.
RED aircraft showcases RED A03-powered YAK-18T: RED aircraft has successfully test flown a YAK-18T fitted with its RED A03 engine. The flight represents a milestone for the company as it has exceeded expectations concerning performance and efficiency. The Yak-18T was developed in the 1960s as a basic trainer, used to train Aeroflot pilots. It also saw sporadic use in the Soviet military as communication and reconnaissance aircraft. In more modern times, it was adopted as a reliable and affordable touring aircraft. With up to five seats, it provides plenty of room. The airframe is heavier than other aircraft of equal size, so it provided RED Aircraft with the ideal opportunity to demonstrate how effectively a high-powered engine can be utilized and retrofitted to something that would benefit most effectively. The aircraft is now equipped with modern instrumentation allowing for a precise control and monitoring of its engine systems. The YAK -18T- RED A03 is set for a brighter future with its powerful and more efficient power plant the RED A03.
GE Aviation’s CF6 engine family reaches 50 years of revenue service: Fifty years ago, the CF6 engine thrust GE Aviation into the commercial aviation business when it entered service installed on the McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10. Today, GE Aviation is celebrating five decades of revenue service for what has become GE’s most successful widebody commercial aircraft engine program with more than 8,500 CF6 engines delivered to date. By basing the design of the CF6 on the TF39, GE Aviation’s first high bypass turbofan, it brought to the civil aviation market a higher thrust engine option with lower fuel consumption than other existing available powerplants at the time. This helped expand affordable air travel to more people, and to more destinations than before, helping redefine commercial aviation since the CF6 first entered service. Over the years, the CF6 engine family grew to include five models—the CF6-6, the original variant, CF6-50, CF6-80A, CF6-80C2 and CF6-80E1. Powering 10 unique aircraft applications including the Boeing 767 and 747, the Airbus A330 and the Lockheed Martin C-5M Super Galaxy, among others, the CF6 engine family has accumulated more than 460 million engine flight hours since 1971. Today, the CF6 engine continues to be a workhorse for the commercial aviation sector, including powering air cargo operations on passenger aircraft converted to freighters, as well as dedicated freighter airplanes. Various CF6 engine types power more than 65 percent of the world’s widebody planes dedicated to hauling cargo.
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