Paris Air Show Recap Day 3

Paris Air Show Recap Day 3

American Airlines agrees to order 50 Airbus A321XLRs

American Airlines said it will acquire 50 Airbus A321XLR aircraft, the new longer-range version of Airbus’ A321neo. The purchase agreement includes the conversion of 30 of American’s existing A321neo slots to A321XLRs and incremental orders for an additional 20 A321XLRs. American, based in Fort Worth, Texas, is the largest Airbus operator in the world with 422 Airbus aircraft. Including the most recent announcement, American has outstanding orders for 115 A321neos and A321XLRs from Airbus.

GE Aviation says US$55 billion orders set record at Paris

GE Aviation and its joint venture company CFM International, a 50/50 joint company between GE and Safran Aircraft Engines, announced what they said was a record-setting US$55 billion in jet engines, services, avionics and digital offerings at the Paris Air Show.

Orders included:

• AirAsia ordered 200 LEAP-1A engines and signed an expanded Rate Per Flight Hour service agreement.
• IndiGo ordered 560 LEAP-1A engines.
• Avolon Leasing ordered 140 LEAP-1A engines.
• CDB Leasing ordered 90 LEAP-1A engines.
• Korean Air and Air Lease Corporation ordered a combined total of 30 GEnx-powered Boeing 787 Dreamliners.
• Envoy Air Inc. expanded its TrueChoiceTM service agreement to cover its entire fleet of CF34-8E engines.
• Lufthansa Technik will be an authorized service provider for the backup generator/converter and certain Electrical Load Management Systems components on the Boeing 777X.
• ALAFCO ordered 60 LEAP-1A engines.
• Zhejiang Loong Air signed a LEAP-1A Rate Per Flight Hour services agreement.
• Avation PLC signed an agreement for the AirVault Asset Transfer System for the lessor’s aircraft fleet.
• Color Guizhou Airlines signed a LEAP-1A Rate Per Flight Hour services agreement
• Macquarie Finance ordered 40 LEAP-1A engines.
• Peach Aviation ordered 20 LEAP-1A engines.
• Boeing awarded GE Aviation a contract to supply a stores management solution for the MQ-25 unmanned aerial refuelling program.
• GE Aviation and Swiss International Airlines (SWISS) partner in an EFB flight safety project implementing Flight Pulse among their pilot community.
• Qantas and GE Aviation will develop a new module for FlightPulse to improve safety and operational decision making for airline pilots.
• SMBC Capital ordered 40 LEAP-1A engine.
• S7 Airlines signed a seven-year TrueChoice Flight Hour service agreement for its CF34-8E engines.
• United Airlines order 20 firm CF34-8E-powered ERJ175 aircraft, with the option to purchase 19 additional aircraft.
• Qatar Airways announced a commitment to purchase five additional GE90-powered 777 Freighters.
• Avionica, part of GE Aviation, received Validation of Supplemental Type Certificate from EASA for its miniQAR MkIII Quick Access Recorder (QAR), avRDC Remote Data Concentrator and avCM 4G Cell Module.
• Avionica will develop a cost-effective, lightweight terminal for Inmarsat’s award-winning SB-S aircraft operations and safety platform.
• GE Aviation and Leonardo signed a partnership Memorandum of Understanding to continue developing and implementing digital transformation across Leonardo’s UK operations.
• Avionica’s integrated Onboard Network Server has been granted FAA approval for Cyber-Secure Connectivity and Application Hosting.
• Kenya Airways selects GE Aviation’s Digital Flight Operations.
• Azorra Aviation signed a Set Maintenance Offer (SMO) agreement for its CF34-10E engine fleet to help significantly reduce the engine’s cost of ownership.
• Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC) and GE Aviation finalised a TrueChoiceTM Flight Hour agreement for its CF34-10E engines fleet.
• Volga-Dnepr Group and GE Aviation renew their strategic partnership to develop collaborative solutions to benefit each company and their customers.

Environmental

Twenty-three aeronautics industry leaders, research organisations and university associations across Europe signed a “Joint Declaration of European Aviation Research Stakeholders Related to Clean Aviation in Horizon Europe”, to express their strong commitment to a future European partnership that can lead the way towards a deep decarbonisation of aviation by 2050. The partnership should build on the progress made under the Clean Sky programmes, and develop further-reaching innovations and concrete roadmaps for their implementation in a new breed of aircraft from 2030 and beyond.

Signatory parties included Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury, Safran CEO Philippe Petitcolin, Rolls-Royce CEO Warren East and Leonardo CEO Alessandro Profumo.

The Joint Declaration signed today acknowledges that the Paris Agreement goals with respect to limiting climate change will require a strong and urgent response from the aviation sector in terms of a reduction of its emissions contributing to global warming, in particular CO².

The signatory organisations commit to:

• Develop and foster a shared vision for the Partnership that recognises the scale and the urgency of the challenge of a deep decarbonisation of aviation, as well as of all emissions type significant reduction by 2050, while ensuring the safety, security, European leadership and competitiveness of the European aviation sector and the sustained societal value it provides;
• Commonly and collectively, together with the European Commission, work on the programming for the Partnership and to complete a technical roadmap by the end of 2019, building on technologies developed and matured under the previous Clean Sky partnership activities and other research initiatives to date, and expanding into new technology frontiers where needed;
• Support a Clean Aviation partnership with the most competent and committed partners within the current Clean Sky community and beyond in an open and competitive scheme on the basis of excellence; enabling the boundaries of technology to be expanded;
• Allocate the required efforts, in a balanced way, to achieve the goals to be set for the Partnership;
• Support the coordination with National and Regional Innovation programmes and other EU instruments to achieve important synergies and maximum efficiencies.
• The Joint Declaration was handed over to Jean-Eric Paquet, Director-General for Research and Innovation, European Commission, at the event today.
• The Signatory Organisations call upon the European Commission, European Parliament and Council of the EU to (1) ensure a timely finalisation and adoption of the regulatory framework for the Partnership with suitable lean and efficient operating principles, and (2) to allocate and sustain ambitious funding in order to be able to develop, mature and demonstrate the required technologies needed to meet the challenges to be set, including adequate and suitable funding and mechanisms for exploratory upstream research.

Airbus opens Skywise to global IT services companies

Accenture, Capgemini, FPT Software, IBM, and Sopra Steria have signed agreements with Airbus to become early adopters of the Skywise Partner Programme. As part of the programme, these companies will benefit from dedicated training and certification so they develop more applications within Skywise on behalf of an airline. Certified partners will have access to their own working space on Skywise and to additional platform features.

Launched in 2017, Skywise is used by aviation players to improve operational performance, ensuring complete data continuity with benefits across the entire value chain. Today over 80 airlines around the world have connected their Airbus and non-Airbus fleet to Skywise. The community of latest airlines having joined the platform include: Cathay Pacific; Philippine Airlines; PAL Express; Citilink; Garuda Indonesia; Malaysia Airlines; Loong Air; Azul; Hawaiian Airlines; Frontier Airlines; Jazeera Airways; Flynas; Air Arabia; Air Seychelles; Pegasus; Aegean Airlines, VivaAerobús and Viva Air.

GE Aviation, Lufthansa Technik expand collaboration

GE Aviation and Lufthansa Technik said they have signed a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) agreement under which Lufthansa Technik will be GE’s authorised service provider for the backup generator/converter (BUG and BUC) and for certain Electrical Load Management Systems (ELMS) components on the new Boeing 777X aircraft. This long-term cooperation will cover the maintenance service offerings, warranty support and 24/7 asset exchange/loan services to worldwide 777X operators. Lufthansa is currently one of the launch customers for the new Boeing 777X aircraft with 20 total aircraft ordered. Boeing offers the 777X in several passenger aircraft configurations all powered by the GE9X engine.

Airbus Helicopters and Pawan Hans sign MoU

Airbus Helicopters and India’s Pawan Hans Limited (PHL) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on the future introduction of two new categories of rotorcraft in the PHL fleet as well as for the repair, maintenance and overhaul of its existing AS365N Dauphin helicopters. The MOU also includes customised training and an on-site Safety Management System (SMS) for PHL pilots. The MoU stipulates that Airbus Helicopters will support PHL in growing its onshore, offshore and inland travel markets by introducing the best-in-class H145 and H225 rotorcrafts into their fleet. Airbus Helicopters will also provide predictive and scheduled maintenance, repair and overhaul services for PHL’s existing Airbus AS365N Dauphin helicopters, the MOU said. PHL is the largest customer in the world for Airbus Dauphin helicopters. It currently has 37 units deployed for offshore Oil & Gas operations, VIP transportation and other utility duties.

Airbus Helicopters, Safran Helicopter Engines team up for greener vertical flight

Airbus Helicopters and Safran Helicopter Engines are joining the environmental bandwagon to develop “cleaner, quieter and more efficient vertical flight” modes ahead of the upcoming Horizon Europe research programme that should be carried out during the next decade, the two said in a statement at the Paris Air Show.

A letter of intent (LoI) was signed at the show between the two companies that formalised their willingness to jointly demonstrate future technologies that will contribute to the reduction of CO² emissions and sound levels for future vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) platforms. A number of technological streams will be investigated, including various levels of electrification, higher-efficiency gas turbines or alternative fuels, as well as advanced engine architectures to further reduce the acoustic footprint of turbines.

Parker Aerospace, Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance sign deal

Parker Aerospace, a business group of Parker Hannifin, and Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance (AFI KLM E&M) announced an agreement for long-term collaboration on Boeing 787 component maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services. The agreement covers the vast majority of repairable and test-only components for the Parker-designed 787 hydraulic system. The agreement between AFI KLM E&M and Parker Aerospace will also encompass the joint development of repair procedures to increase component and system reliability and reduce related maintenance costs for airline customers worldwide.

Turkmenistan Airlines to order 1 Boeing 777-200LR

Boeing and Turkmenistan Airlines, the national carrier of Turkmenistan, announced the airline’s plan to extend its long-haul operations by adding a fourth 777-200LR (Long Range) airplane to its fleet. The commitment is valued at US$346.9 million at list prices.

Boeing, Qatar Airways announce deal for 5 777 freighters

Qatar Airways and Boeing announced a commitment at the Paris Air Show for the airline to purchase five additional 777 freighters. The deal is valued at US$1.8 billion at list prices. Qatar Airways has rapidly grown its air cargo operations to serve more than 60 global destinations. The latest freighter deal builds on the airline’s 777 freighter order book as the airplane has become the backbone of Qatar Airways freighter fleet. It currently operates 23 freighters, including 16 Boeing 777 Freighters. Customers from around the world have ordered 217 777 Freighters since the programme began in 2005, including a record 45 units in 2018.

ATR announces 75 new orders at Paris Air Show worth US$1.7 billion

Turboprop maker ATR said at the Paris Air Show it has signed a total of 75 “order commitments”, including 35 firm orders from NAC disclosed on 18 June. The total value of the deals is US$1.7 billion, which ATR says shows the company is “well on track to achieve its order targets for 2019”. The commitments include 17 orders for the new ATR 42-600S – the Short Take Off and Landing (STOL) variant of the ATR 42. ATR has announced three launch customers for this new version, including Air Tahiti, Elix Aviation and one undisclosed customer. ATR is currently finalising the process for the official launch of this 42-600 variant and received authorisation to take in orders for the aircraft, subject to the final confirmation for launch from the company’s board of directors, expected before year end.

Stefano Bortoli, CEO of ATR commented: “This is a remarkable proof of confidence for ATR, and excellent news for the communities who will benefit from improved connectivity. It shows how the purpose of ATR to connect communities in a sustainable manner is delivering value to our customers. No matter the profile or operating environment of our customers, our aircraft prove their superiority for regional operations, thanks to unbeatable economics, environmental performance and versatility. With continuous product improvement such as our freighter 72-600F and the new 42-600 STOL version, we aim to keep ATR at the forefront of regional aviation.”

Qantas signs deal for 36 A321XLR aircraft

Australia’s Qantas Airways has signed a deal for 36 of Airbus’ new extended range A321XLR aircraft. This includes the conversion of 26 existing A320neo orders plus a new firm order for 10 A321XLRs. “The aircraft will allow the Qantas Group, which includes low-cost carrier Jetstar, to improve its network and fleet flexibility to better serve point-to-point markets in Australia, Asia and the South Pacific,” Airbus said in announcing the sale.

Rotortrade signs pact with Leonardo for 6 pre-owned helicopters

Rotortrade Services announced the purchase and sale of a further batch of six pre-owned helicopters leveraging its global distributorship agreement with Leonardo. Rotortrade has been the sole worldwide pre-owned helicopters distributor for Leonardo since 2014. Since then over 27 Leonardo aircraft have been sold to end-users worldwide. Founded in 2012 in Singapore, Rotortrade Services is a helicopter distributor and sole global distributor of Leonardo’s pre-owned helicopters with offices in Kuala Lumpur, Los Angeles, Montreal, Paris and Singapore.

Gardner Aerospace signs deals with Airbus and GKN

Gardner Aerospace said it has signed deals with Airbus and with GKN. The new deal with Airbus is for US$70 million and covers work packages resulting from Airbus’s D2P (detailed parts partner) commodity-based consolidation programme and are for both machined and sheet metal products. Gardner said it has also signed deals with GKN to provide engine pylon secondary structure sub-assemblies, shroud box sub-assemblies and wingtip and winglet navigation light housings.

Mitsubishi Aircraft signs MOU with unnamed customer

Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation and a prospective North American customer have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to commence formal negotiations for 15 Mitsubishi SpaceJet M100 aircraft, with deliveries beginning in 2024. “We are pleased to welcome a new airline to the SpaceJet program,” said Hisakazu Mizutani, president of Mitsubishi Aircraft. “We have received strong interest in this product from many airlines. They recognise that this family of aircraft will provide them with the ability to give their passengers an excellent experience while also delivering unmatched performance, creating new profit potential.” Mitsubishi SpaceJet is the commercial name for the product family that includes the SpaceJet M90 (previously known by the developmental designation of MRJ90) and a new member, the SpaceJet M100.

CFM announces LEAP deals at Paris

CFM announced two LEAP-1A deals at the show. Aviation Lease and Finance Company (ALAFCO), the Kuwait-based international aircraft leasing company, has selected CFM International’s advanced LEAP-1A engines to power 30 firm and 20 options new Airbus A320neo aircraft. ALAFCO was formed in 1992 and is a long-time CFM customer. The most recent order expands its total LEAP fleet to than 120 engines.

CFM also announced that CDB Aviation, a wholly owned Irish subsidiary of China Development Bank Financial Leasing (CDB Leasing), had ordered LEAP-1A engines to power 45 Airbus A320neo aircraft. The engine order is valued at more than US$1.3 billion U.S. dollars at list prices. This is the CDB Aviation’s second LEAP-1A engine order. In November 2016, the company selected LEAP-1A engines to power 100 percent of its first batch of A320neo aircraft. The latest order takes its LEAP-1A/A320neo fleet to 90 aircraft.

China Airlines splits orders between Boeing and Airbus

Taiwan’s China Airlines split the baby between Boeing and Airbus at the Paris Air Show by ordering Airbus A321neos for its future single-aisle fleet and ordering Boeing 777s to modernise the airline’s freighter fleet. Airbus said the airline had signed an MOU for 11 A321neo aircraft and will acquire another 14 aircraft of the type on lease. These 25 aircraft will join the Airbus fleet at the airline currently comprising 23 A330s and 14 A350 XWBs. Boeing said China Airlines intended to take up to six 777 freighters as it launches operations from Taipei to North America and Europe, two key markets that provide higher yields for the carrier.

Indigo Partners to add 50 A321XLRs to its airline fleets

Indigo Partners and three of its airlines will acquire 50 of the new Airbus A321XLR long-range, single-aisle jetliners. The memorandum of understanding includes new orders for 32 A321XLRs and the conversion of 18 existing A320neo family orders. Indigo Partners, based in Phoenix, is a private equity fund focused on worldwide investments in air transportation. Indigo has major ownership stakes in four low-cost airlines, including Frontier Airlines (USA), JetSMART (Chile), Volaris (Mexico) and Wizz Air (Hungary). The four carriers now operate a combined 295 Airbus planes and, with the new commitments, have 636 on order. Twenty of the A321XLRs will be allocated to Wizz Air, 18 to Frontier, and 12 to JetSMART.

Nordic Aviation Capital, GE Aviation in service deal

Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC) and GE Aviation finalised a TrueChoice Flight Hour agreement for its CF34-10E engines fleet. Under the agreement, NAC will offer GE Aviation-provided maintenance, repair and overhaul services to its CF34-10E lessees. “We are delighted to have collaborated with GE Aviation on this first of its kind TrueChoice Flight Hour agreement for a lessor, which provides operational cost certainty for our CF34-10E lessees, irrespective of fleet size,” says Tom Turley, CEO of NAC. “We truly believe this innovative programme will significantly change the landscape for our operators of the CF34-10E engine.”

ASL, Boeing announce agreement for 20 converted freighters

ASL Aviation (ASL) and Boeing signed a memorandum of understanding for 20 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighters (BCF), bringing the world’s first Next-Generation 737-800 freighter conversion to 120 orders and commitments from eight customers. The agreement includes 10 firm orders and 10 purchase rights. Operating on six continents, ASL provides network solutions to express freight integrators, transporting more than 357,000 metric tonnes of cargo in 2018. Boeing recently inaugurated new conversion lines at Boeing Shanghai Aviation Services (BSAS) and Taikoo (Shandong) Aircraft Engineering Company (STAECO), while looking to expand further. The programme is committed to more than double 737-800BCF output this year, going from eight conversions in 2018 to 17 in 2019. Boeing predicts that 2,650 freighters will be delivered between 2018-2037, with more than 60 percent of these deliveries comprised of passenger-to-freighter conversions.

Boeing says AnalytX Digital Solutions proving popular

Boeing announced new orders and agreements for “digital solutions that harness the power of big data to significantly expand fleet capability and cost savings for commercial and government customers” at the Paris Air Show. Boeing’s digital solutions are powered by Boeing AnalytX, a collection of software and consulting services that transform raw data into efficiency, resource and cost savings in every phase of flight.

New digital solutions orders and agreements from commercial airlines, regional airlines, leasing companies, private business jet operators and defence aircraft programs include:

• Air Peace and EnterAir join a global roster of 105 Airplane Health Management (AHM) customers. Boeing AnalytX powers AHM to provide customers the real-time maintenance and engineering support necessary to make operations decisions for their Boeing aircraft.

• Amber, Go2Sky, Landry’s, and Metrojet join a total of 336 customers using Boeing Maintenance Performance Toolbox to digitally access their fleet’s real-time maintenance data and essential engineering and certification information.

• Cathay Pacific Group has signed a ten-year agreement for Jeppesen Crew Rostering and the Jeppesen Fatigue Risk Management System. These Boeing AnalytX-powered crew solutions will help optimize Cathay Pacific’s crew management strategy.

• Delta Air Lines has signed a multiyear agreement for Jeppesen FliteDeck Pro navigation services. Jeppesen FliteDeck Pro electronic flight bag tools will continue to enhance pilot decision making through a renewed agreement that includes digital charting and navigation information, Airport Moving Map capabilities on both iPad and front-panel avionics that increase situational awareness on the ground, and Tailored Map services that provide en route chart capabilities enhanced with Delta specific data.

• Interglobe Aviation (IndiGo) entered a five-year agreement for Jeppesen Crew Pairing, Jeppesen Crew Rostering, and the Boeing Alertness Model. These Boeing AnalytX-powered solutions harness Boeing’s global data management capabilities to optimise cockpit solutions.

• Japan Airlines has signed with Boeing for Jeppesen FliteDeck Pro electronic flight bag (EFB) and digital navigation chart services, to increase operational efficiency. The agreements extend a long-term relationship between the airline and Boeing for Jeppesen navigation services, which Japan Airlines has used since the beginning of its flight operations.

• JetBlue Airways has signed for multiple digital solutions to increase operational efficiency, including renewal agreements for digital navigation charting and Jeppesen FliteDeck Pro electronic flight bag services and optimized crew planning operations through use of Jeppesen Crew Pairing tools. The airline also signed for new Airport Moving Map services to increase situational awareness in the airport environment and the Ground Controls solution to manage data and navigation chart updates for fleet-wide aircraft.

• SkyCo International Financial Leasing Co., LTD. has signed an agreement to use Boeing’s Corporate Management System (CMS) aircraft lease and asset management software. This secure hosted solution integrates with financial software systems and provides support for key business processes associated with aircraft leasing, including tracking of aircraft, engines and spare parts assets, maintenance history tracking, and forecasting and marketing analysis reports. SkyCo Leasing is a rapidly growing Chinese start-up lessor based in Guangzhou, the centre of the Greater Bay Area in south China.

• United Airlines has signed for Jeppesen Calibration services to optimize crew planning operations across their global fleet. Powered by Boeing AnalytX, Calibration analyses historical flight performance data, over long periods of time, to identify patterns and gain insights into where adjustments can be made to future crew plans that increase on-time departures and decrease crew-related delays.

• Uzbekistan Airways has signed a five-year agreement to enhance operational efficiency through integration of multiple Boeing digital solutions. These include renewal services for navigation charting and Jeppesen FliteDeck Pro electronic flight bag tools for Windows and the front panel display of their Boeing 787 fleet. New services for the airline include Airport Moving Map capabilities to enhance situational awareness in the airport environment, Ground Controls to enhance data loading capabilities in the pre-flight environment and FliteDeck Pro on iPad, providing access to essential flight information anywhere pilots need it.

Additional digital solutions announcements include:

• Boeing continues to expand its digital capabilities through strategic partnerships and has recently teamed with Anderson Engineering and Design (AED) to provide Jeppesen navigation chart coverage for military and commercial operators. The working agreement provides customers with global high definition visual flight rules charts and integrated Jeppesen instrument flight rules charts in real-time. For the first time, customers can integrate selected Jeppesen approach charts with an aircraft’s moving map display, further enhancing in-flight situational awareness.

• Boeing’s industry-leading electronic flight bag solution, Jeppesen FliteDeck Pro X, is now available on iOS via Apple’s app store. Jeppesen FliteDeck Pro X provides airline pilots with all navigational charts, manuals and documents needed for paperless flying. Enhancements include weather data from The Weather Company to enable better pilot decision-making based on meteorological information, background app updates which reduce data transfer costs by 80 percent and in-app notice to airman (NOTAM) updates for a selected terminal chart or map provided directly.

Accipiter Holdings purchases 20 A320neo aircraft

Dublin-based leasing company Accipiter Holdings has signed a purchase agreement with Airbus to acquire 20 A320neo aircraft. The order had been completed in March 2019 and was listed in the order books as undisclosed. The new single-aisle aircraft will expand the portfolio of Accipiter Holdings, which aims to be a leading player in the global leasing market and is wholly owned by Hong Kong’s CK Asset Holdings. Together with Vermillion, its joint venture with Mitsubishi Corporation subsidiary MC Aviation Partners (MCAP), Accipiter manages a total portfolio of just under 150 owned and committed aircraft. Engine selection will be made at a later date.