AVIATION - MSC NewsWire

Kiwi aviation tech developers Spidertracks and Aeronet team to automate maintenance

Spidertracks is using data from its Spider aircraft tracking units to automate maintenance through Aeronet's cloud services.

Tracking aircraft maintenance just got easier through Spidertracks' cloud partnership with Aeronet writes Rob O'Neill in Reseller News. Two New Zealand aviation technology developers have teamed to tackle one of the most complex and time-consuming problems in aviation: tracking and automating aircraft maintenance and flight logging. Spidertracks, based in Auckland's Karangahape Road, already manufactures and sells on-board satellite tracking devices, dubbed "Spiders", though a global network of resellers. Now it has teamed with Cambridge-based cloud fleet management software company Aeronet to automate the tracking process and eliminate reams of paper, ad hoc spreadsheets and manual data entry. The new service,…

Pratt & Whitney Canada will be servicing engines for Air New Zealand and Avianca's regional fleets

Pratt & Whitney Canada has signed an agreement with Air New Zealand for engine servicing. This agreement covers the PW123s and PW127Ms which power Air Nelson's Q300s and Mount Cook's ATR 72-500s and -600s respectively. The two regional subsidiaries have a combined fleet of some fifty aircraft. The Avianca group has signed a similar contract to service the PW127Ns which power its ATR 72-600s. It currently has around fifteen twin-engined turboprop aircraft and is still waiting for ten more. In addition, the two groups have opted to install the FAST (Full flight data Acquisition, Storage and Transmission) solution, a predictive…

Emirates re-routes long haul flight after fuel crisis in New Zealand

Instead of flying direct to Dubai, an Emirates flight from New Zealand will now make a stopover in Melbourne to re-fuel.

Dubai: Emirates has had to change its ultra-long-haul flight from New Zealand to Dubai following a fuel shortage that has impacted a number of airlines flying to and from Auckland Airport. In a statement sent to Gulf News on Tuesday, the UAE-based carrier confirmed that Emirates flight EK449 will now make a stopover in Melbourne to re-fuel, instead of flying direct to Dubai.Route change The route change is in effect between September 18 and September 24. “[The flight] operating from Auckland to Dubai between 18-24 September, will stop in Melbourne for refueling due to the Auckland Airport fuel shortage which…

NZ boosts support for Pacific aviation security

Foreign Minister Gerry Brownlee has announced New Zealand will provide $11.5 million for aviation security in the Pacific, to support trade, tourism and the safety of the travelling public, most of which are New Zealand citizens. "Pacific island countries must meet global aviation safety and security standards, and this funding will provide passenger and baggage screening equipment that will help them to meet those standards," Mr Brownlee says. "The aviation package of equipment and training will benefit nine countries over the next five years, and builds on our existing $2.5 million programme to help Pacific island countries to meet their…

Auckland Airport welcomes direct flights on Manila to Auckland route

Auckland Airport has welcomed the announcement by Philippine Airlines that it will introduce a direct flight on its Manila to Auckland route. From December 2017 Philippine Airlines will be the first airline to fly non-stop from Manila to Auckland using a 254-seat Airbus A340 aircraft. The direct flight will replace the current Manila to Auckland via Cairns service. Scott Tasker, Auckland Airport’s general manager aeronautical commercial, says the new non-stop service will add more than 14,000 seats to the route, increasing seat capacity by 22%, and inject $13.6 million annually into the New Zealand economy. “With more than 7,000 tropical…

Revealed – the average ages of the world’s airline fleets

Which airlines have young, shiny new aircraft – and which have the oldest and creakiest? A Swiss operation that specialises in providing up-to-date airline intelligence has revealed the answer and given specifics. The Swiss firm is Ch-aviation. It shows that in our own region, Virgin Australia has reason to smile, as does Air New Zealand, Air Tahiti Nui and Qantas’ Auckland-based trans-Tasman subsidiary Jetconnect. Taking first place with the youngest fleet in the world is Norwegian UK. The average age of a Norwegian UK plane is just under one year. Hard to beat that! Rounding out the rest of the…

Will Air China take over Cathay to create mega-carrier?

Cathay Pacific needs someone from the Swire family to “come out and lead the company for a while,” according to the airline’s latest big investor, quoted by the South China Morning Post. Circuit-board tycoon Cheung Kwok-wing, who has bought an 8.3% stake in Cathay, expects the airline to return to financial health in six to 12 months, according to the newspaper. The Swire Group, very British, is deeply rooted in China, in Hong Kong and in Cathay Pacific. The Swire Group’s privately owned parent company is John Swire & Sons Limited, founded by John Swire (1793–1847) in 1816. Swire’s roots…

Pratt & Whitney Engine Glitches Spur Compensation

The Connecticut-headquartered engine and aerospace leader will pay compensation to Indian airline IndiGo after not being able to supply enough spare engines that power Airbus A320neo jets. Pratt & Whitney is paying compensation to Indian airline IndiGo as the manufacturer struggles to fix glitches in engines that power Airbus SE’s new A320neo jets. “We continue to have a higher number of engine removals, and sufficient spare engines have not been available,” IndiGo President Aditya Ghosh said on a conference call Monday. “The operational disruptions are quite challenging, and we are not happy with that situation.” The airline, operated by InterGlobe…

Black Hawk helicopters to be refurbished for emergency services and disaster relief use

In a world-first refurbishment program to be undertaken in Brisbane, the agreement will see the purchase of 10 ex-U.S. military Black Hawks, to be imported into Australia early next year. The Black Hawks will be brought up to ‘as new’ condition and repurposed specifically for aerial firebombing operations during future bushfire seasons around Australia and New Zealand and for year-round emergency services and disaster relief work. The aircraft will be refurbished and maintained in Brisbane by Sikorsky. This initiative sees Kaan Air Australia and StarFlight Australia partner to usher in a new era in Australian emergency services and disaster relief…

NZ to deliver air traffic control services for Pacific nations

Airways New Zealand will continue to deliver air traffic control services to Niue, Samoa, the Cook Islands, and the Kingdom of Tonga after the contract was re-signed in Christchurch today, Transport Minister Simon Bridges says. “The Pacific Upper Airspace agreement we have with these four countries is a significant part of Airways New Zealand's involvement with the Pacific region, Airways also provides all New Zealand’s air navigation services,” Mr Bridges says. “Airways is globally renowned and respected for leading innovation and development in the aviation sector, and has provided air traffic control services under the Upper Airspace agreement for the…

Why we need travel agents: Air NZ CEO

Given Air NZ’s CEO Christopher Luxon thinks the airline is the best in the world, it probably doesn’t hurt to listen when he says travel agents are important. Speaking to Travel Weekly at the 2017 TRENZ conference in Auckland recently, Luxon said travel agents are an absolutely essential part of the travel industry. “For us the channels haven’t changed tremendously. Yes, over the last 15 years there’s been a drive to more direct channels through our own direct services or through OTAs, but the reality is, there’s always going to be a need for travel agents,” he said. “And for…

Kuwait Ministry of Defence Appoints Aviation Training Provider

The Kuwait Ministry of Defence has appointed the Australian College of Kuwait and its partners Airways International Ltd (NZ) and 3SDL (UK) as its training providers. The Australian College of Kuwait (ACK) will be responsible for overall training management along with Engineering and Flight Training programmes while Airways will be responsible for Air Traffic Control training and 3SDL Fighter Controller training. The Aviation Department of ACK has established itself a premiere supplier of EASA-based B1/B2 engineering training in the Middle East. The Aviation Department has a long and well established means of compliance with all the regional aviation authorities, including…