Aviation News in Brief 26 October 2020

Air Partner company Redline wins 3-year contract with Guernsey Airport: Redline, an Air Partner company and provider of global security solutions, was recently awarded a new three-year contract with Guernsey Airport to carry out cabin baggage screening x-ray threat image recognition training (TIRT) among a number of its staff. Contract renewals have also been secured with existing airport customers in a demonstration of continued trust in Redline’s services. Birmingham Airport has extended its TIRT contract while Belfast International Airport has renewed its contract for Redline’s security management system (SeMS), having seen the benefits the system offers when it was used during a prior Quality Assurance project at the airport. These business wins have contributed to Redline’s strong start in the second half of Air Partner’s financial year, alongside good sales for its Department for Transport (DfT) training courses and another TIRT contract renewal with World Courier, a specialist medical logistics company. In total, Redline has now secured 17 contract wins and 19 renewals since joining the Air Partner group in December 2019. Cool Chain Association, IATA sign MOU: The Cool Chain Association (CCA) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) supporting the drive for the safe, sustainable transport of perishables and pharmaceuticals. CCA and IATA have joined forces as part of a common goal to improve the quality of the temperature-controlled supply chain by sharing feedback, experiences, knowledge, and best practice. They also plan to develop common work programs, including temporary task forces and round tables, for specific initiatives such as the transport of vaccines and life science products. The initiative will see representatives of both organisations attending each other’s industry meetings as observers, to present best practice and communicate the results of ongoing projects such as the CCA’s data sharing trials. As a first step, CCA took part in IATA’s webinar on the industry’s readiness for the transportation of vaccines and life science products lead by Andrea Gruber, IATA Head of Special Cargo. CCA members are planning a new series of data sharing tests, under a project called the LAX Initiative, to monitor perishable shipments on global trade lanes in a bid to improve supply chain management and reduce food loss. Pegasus Launches new direct Antalya – Moscow route: Pegasus is adding a new route to its growing number of direct flights from Antalya, Turkey, with the launch of its direct flights to Moscow. The inaugural flight from Antalya to Moscow will take off on 10 November 2020.  Pegasus Airlines flights will depart at 10:00 local time from Antalya Airport to Moscow Domodedovo Airport every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday; whilst flights will depart from Moscow Domodedovo Airport at 14:15 local time to Antalya Airport on the same days.  Flights are on sale now from £64.99 one-way from Antalya to Moscow; and from £74.99 GBP from Moscow to Antalya. Pegasus will fly directly from Antalya to five domestic destinations in Turkey: Adana, Kayseri, Trabzon, Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen and Ankara; whilst seven international routes are now available from Antalya: to Tel Aviv, London, Bishkek, Moscow, Krasnodar, Amman and Almaty. Textron Aviation to expand service offerings: Textron Aviation is expanding service offerings to provide customers with a new standard repair process for Cessna Citation CJ series aircraft main landing gear (MLG). This innovative solution, which is in the final stages of certification, will allow engineers to repair the MLG without having to replace it, improving cost-effectiveness of operation for customers. Textron Aviation is leading this project with Able Aerospace Services, which the company acquired in 2016. With initial testing taking place on the Cessna Citation CJ3 aircraft, the company plans to subsequently apply the repairability solution across all CJ series aircraft starting in 2021. The company continues to evaluate additional Citation models which could benefit from such a program. And, recognizing the importance of long-term operating costs, Textron Aviation is taking the opportunity to address future repairability for its Cessna SkyCourier and Cessna Denali turboprops in development. Textron Aviation has successfully completed static and cyclic testing of the Citation CJ3 MLG with up to five lifetimes (75,000 landings) of the gear’s life limit to substantiate the repair safe-life. Airbus delivers its first US-assembled A220 from Mobile: Airbus has delivered its first US-assembled A220 aircraft from Mobile, Alabama, underlining the aircraft manufacturer’s role as a global aircraft producer and heralding the arrival of a new era in Airbus aircraft production in the United States. The aircraft was delivered to Delta Air Lines. “The delivery of the first U.S.-built A220-300 is a historic moment that highlights Airbus’ growing industrial footprint in North America and makes us all extremely proud,” said C. Jeffrey Knittel, chairman and CEO Airbus Americas. “We look forward to seeing passengers delighted by the experience of travelling on board this brand new A220-300 proudly built in Mobile, Alabama.” To date, approximately 400 US employees have been trained on A220 production – some in Mirabel, Quebec, Canada, where the A220 programme and primary final assembly line are located. A year ago, the first US based A220 production team, comprised of experienced and new team members, began assembling A220s in Mobile. Vision-Box and AirAsia announce partnership: Vision-Box announced a regional strategic partnership with AirAsia Group to implement industry leading, identity management technology across its network of 152 airports. To continue their innovative trend, AirAsia engaged Vision-Box to help them realise the next step in providing a seamless touchless identification and contactless clearance traveller experience. Further enhancing their digital identity management strategy across AirAsia Group will dramatically improve the customer experience with a single enrolment for services at key customer process points. The Vision-Box’s Orchestra Identity Management Platform, a collaborative digital platform of real time data administration and end-to-end customer-centric service management tools, will  provide instant analysis, monitoring, reporting and configuration ability for a more convenient and  seamless travel experience. Orchestra will interconnect with AirAsia’s network to regulate all virtual and physical security and data infrastructure in real-time, bridging and managing the information flow between traveller processing points, multi-source data streams, and relevant stakeholders. Emirates preps for vaccine deliveries: Emirates SkyCargo is stepping up its readiness to handle the logistical complexities of distributing a potential COVID-19 vaccine globally by creating a dedicated airside cargo hub for the vaccine in Dubai. The air cargo carrier is taking a global leadership position by announcing that it will be re-opening its Emirates SkyCentral DWC cargo terminal in Dubai South to serve as a dedicated anchor hub for cold chain storage and distribution of the vaccine. The freight division of Emirates has also set up a dedicated rapid response team to coordinate requests from the various partners involved in the international vaccine distribution ecosystem and to streamline the carrier’s response to vaccine transportation requests. Emirates SkyCargo’s vaccine hub in Dubai South will be the largest dedicated airside facility in the world for COVID-19 vaccines. The Dubai hub will allow the air cargo carrier to fly in vaccines from manufacturing sites globally, store and prepare shipments for regional and global distribution. Honeywell works with Pipistrel on UAS cargo: Pipistrel has selected Honeywell’s Compact Fly-By-Wire system for the Nuuva V300 cargo unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), choosing a modern, lightweight, highly capable system with a proven architecture ideally suited for their autonomous cargo UAV. Fly-by-wire computers act as the “brains” of an aircraft’s flight controls by operating them electronically and can be found inside nearly all large fixed-wing aircraft today. The compact version from Honeywell has features derived from decades of expertise in fly-by-wire systems for airliners, but it’s much smaller — roughly the size of a paperback book. This product is intended for smaller autonomous cargo and urban air mobility (UAM) vehicles and adds stability and performance by driving flight controls electrically, without heavy hydraulics, control cables or push rods. Pipistrel’s Nuuva V300 is a long-range, large-capacity, autonomous UAV. It will take off and land vertically with battery power, meaning it does not require a runway, and has significantly lower operating costs than helicopters. It can carry loads up to 300 kilograms (around 660 pounds) for more than 300 kilometres (around 186 miles), making it an ideal solution for deliveries to areas traditionally accessible only by helicopter. Convertible ALSIM AL40/42 simulator now available: ALSIM, the global flight simulator manufacturer headquartered in France, announced the launch of the convertible simulator AL40/42. It combines two popular Diamond aircrafts, DA40 & DA42, in one device, bringing flexibility to flight schools. The device reproduces the Diamond specific interior cockpits and flight decks. Changing from the DA42 to the DA40 configuration is fast and easy and is performed by swapping only the dashboard and the middle console. The conversion kit provides two cockpit and central panels, including all a/c system switches, Garmin avionics, as well as the specific power levers, fuel selection and yaw trim panels. The switch of the central panel can be optional as the DA40 configuration will be compatible with the DA42’s one. The simulator includes real Garmin G1000 NXI and GFC 700 Autopilot / Flight Director, the latest VFR-VS image generator and visual system with 210° screen and the instructor station designed for instructor’s comfort. This simulator is specifically designed for PPL, IR and CPL training needs and is compliant with the latest aviation standards from EASA (FNPT II) and the FAA (AATD & FTD 5) to TC (FTD2) and CAAC (FTD5). 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