Jet Time to operate regional routes for SAS in Northern Europe flying new ATR 72-600s

By BA Staff

Jet Time has taken delivery of the first of six new ATR 72-600 turboprops. This aircraft has been acquired on lease from the Danish leasing company Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC). All the ATR72-600 aircraft will be assigned to feed the SAS Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) route network, as part of a commercial arrangement between SAS and Jet Time, and they will all be painted in SAS livery.

The delivery ceremony for this very first ATR 72-600 series aircraft to be operated in Europe's Nordic countries took place in Toulouse, France, in the presence of the management teams of Jet Time, NAC, SAS and ATR. Deliveries of the next five ATR 72-600s will be completed by early in 2014.

The introduction of these new 70-seat ATR 72-600s, the most fuel efficient aircraft in their category, will contribute to Jet Time's economic performance in the long run as the airline expands its fleet capacity and widens the scope of its activity. These new generation ATRs are equipped with a new full-glass cockpit and feature a high comfort layout with larger overhead bins.

The Chief Executive Officer of Jet Time, Klaus Ren, declared:

“We have been looking forward to this first delivery. Today, we are thrilled that this modern turboprop airplane becomes the backbone of Jet Time's new activity. With a very good balance of comfort, modern technologies, cost efficiencies and highly regarded environmental qualities, the ATR 72-600 aircraft will also secure an effective and smooth launch of new regional service for Nordic travellers.”

Joakim Landholm, Chief Commercial Officer, SAS:

“I look forward to offering our clients the comfort and pleasure of a brand new aircraft on our North European routes, where Jet Time will operate the ATR 72-600 for SAS. With the smaller aircraft we can adapt our traffic to our customer's needs with many frequencies and destinations. Thus, the partnership gives us the possibility to strengthen our network regionally and at the same time expand on popular leisure destination with our own modern aircraft.”

Martin Møller, Chairman of NAC, declared:

“We are happy to see the first ATR-600 series aircraft to start operations in the Scandinavian skies. When acquiring an aircraft we favor those with the most modern technologies, low operating costs, excellent green credentials and versatility ATR turboprop aircraft and particularly the newest -600s perfectly match these requirements for short-haul operations”.

Filippo Bagnato, Chief Executive Officer of ATR, stated:

“Today's delivery to Jet Time is very significant because this is the first ATR-600 aircraft to go to the Scandinavian region. There has been very positive feedback from passengers who have travelled on the ATR 72-500s in the region, and the enhanced comfort of the new 600 series will contribute to further consolidate the strong reputation of the ATR planes. We are pleased to welcome Jet Time that has been able to introduce the ATR72-600 in SAS network, among our operators.”

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Video highlights of Airbus A350 AWB maiden flight vs. Boeing 787 first flight

In case you missed the first flight of Airbus' newest aircraft the A350 XWB on June 14th, below are the video highlights.



Compare with the first flight video highlights of the Boeing 787 3.5 years earlier, on December 15, 2009. Both flights picture perfect. The US airframer was gallant in congratulating its main competitor for its achievement.

We congratulate @Airbus on today’s first flight achievement.

— Boeing Airplanes (@BoeingAirplanes) June 14, 2013

Have a great week ahead.

Videos courtesy Airbus S.A.S. and Boeing

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She Flies!!!!! Airbus A350 XWB first flight in pictures

Congratulations to the Airbus team. The A350XWB has taken-off on its maiden flight from Toulouse Blagnac airport in France. Till the official pictures come, a few screen shots from the streaming video from Airbus.

Awaiting behind the delivery flight of the Cebu Pacific A330

The Airbus wide-body flight line. Dominated by A330s and an A380. Compare the larger A350 with the smaller A330.

Getting ready to taxi to holding point on the runway. The chase plane, a SN-600 Corvette is on the adjacent exit.

The A350 with the Airbus flight line behind.

The chase plane readies for take-off.

At runway holding point.

All lined up.

Start the take-off roll

Lift-off!!!!!!

In the air. The flaps and landing gear are kept lowered till the basic flight manoeuvres are completed and the crew finds the aircraft configuration "clean".

In the air

Approaching runway 32L to land

Touchdown!!!!

Exiting the runway

Flight test engineer Pascal Verneau waves an Airbus flag to celebrate the completion of a successful first flight. 

Video feed courtesy Airbus

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A new plane flies today - live coverage of Airbus A350 AWB first flight

The old adage is "God willing, weather permitting"........

If all goes well, we shall see the first flight of a brand new aircraft, the Airbus A350 XWB. Airbus indicates the A350 XWB first flight is planned for today, weather conditions permitting.

The A350 will be the first new commercial aircraft model, excluding variants of existing models, from the stables of the two behemoth airframers, Boeing and Airbus, in almost three and a half years.

The Boeing 787 made its first flight in December 2009. The last new aircraft from Airbus was the A380 double-decker super-jumbo which first flew in April 2005, over eight years ago.


The A350 XWB “MSN1” will take off from Toulouse-Blagnac airport at around 10:00 am local time (08:00Z, 13:30 IST). You can view live coverage on the special A350 first flight website starting from 07:00 UTC, 12:30 IST.

The A350 XWB is the all-new mid-size long range product line comprising three versions and seating between 270 and 350 passengers in typical three-class layouts.

In the mean time, three videos for your enjoyment. One an accelerated timeline of MSN1 being assembled, the second, the painting of MSN1, and the third explains the Rolls Royce Trent XWB, the most powerful engine on any Airbus aircraft till date, even more powerful than those on the A380.

You can also see the A350 performing its taxi testing earlier this week prior to the first flight.

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Airbus announces crew for A350 XWB first flight

Airbus S.A.S. has announced the six person crew which will go aboard the first flight of the first A350 XWB to fly, known as MSN1.

Two test pilots and the project test flight engineer will be seated in the cockpit:

• Peter Chandler, an Experimental Flight Test Pilot with Airbus since 2000 and Chief Test Pilot since 2011;
• Guy Magrin, an Experimental Flight Test Pilot with Airbus since 2003 and Project Pilot for the A350 XWB;
• Pascal Verneau, who has held various positions in Airbus’ flight test division since 1999 and is the A350 XWB Project Test Flight Engineer.

The three remaining first flight test crew members, all of them Experimental Flight Test Engineers, will be working at dedicated flight test stations and managing the progress of the flight profile in the main body of the aircraft:

• Fernando Alonso, Flight Test Engineer with Airbus since 1982 and Head of Airbus Flight & Integration Test Centre since 2007;
• Patrick du Ché, Flight Test Engineer with Airbus since 2001 and currently Head of Development Flight Tests since 2012;
• Emanuele Constanzo, Flight Test Engineer with Airbus since 2004 and lead Flight Test Engineer for the Trent XWB engine.

Airbus has also released the first edition of the new online Airbus A350 XWB Magazine.

Image courtesy and copyright Airbus S.A.S.

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Video: Vintage collection of Concorde first flights and construction

by Devesh Agarwal

Over the weekend, 2nd March to be specific, was the 44th Anniversary of the maiden flight of Aérospatiale-BAC Concorde 001 back in 1969.

Concorde entered service in 1976, and flew the elite of the world, till British Airways and Air France, ceased service on October 24, 2003. Construction of the first prototype began in February 1965. Built by Aerospatiale at Toulouse, Concorde 001 F-WTSS made its first test flight from Toulouse on 2 March 1969, piloted by André Turcat. The second prototype was built in Filton, Bristol in April. The two prototypes were presented to the public for the first time at the Paris Airshow, on 7 and 8 June 1969.

Five years ago, I bemoaned the loss of Concorde, and wrote my eulogy to this magnificent flying machine.

Even today, "the giant leap backwards" continues. Ten years after its retirement, there is no plane, even planned, as a replacement for this magnificent flying machine.

Here is are some videos of those first flights.



For more videos of the first and last flights of Concorde, and some in between, read here.

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Images: Airbus moves complete first to fly A350XWB to next stage of ground testing

European airframer Airbus S.A.S. has released pictures of the first A350XWB – A350-900 MSN001 being moved from Roger Béteille A350 XWB final assembly line (FAL) “Station 30” to the Clément Ader area “Station 18” in Toulouse. These are the first pictures of the structurally complete flying prototype aircraft with its wings which include the new curved winglets. The belly fairing panels and the main landing gear doors are also seen.

Airbus A350-900 MSN001 emerges from the A350 XWB final assembly line. More pictures below the fold.

The aircraft has recently successfully completed a series of indoor ground tests including stability tests on ‘movable’ elements such as rudder, elevators, ailerons and wing spoilers and landing gears extraction and retraction.

The next steps which will take place outdoors at the Clément Ader area Station 18, will include three planned families of tests: Fuel tanks testing – including levels, flows, sealing and internal fuel transfer functions; pressure testing of the fuselage; and radio equipment testing.

Airbus is targeting the first flight of MSN001 by the middle of this year. The two Rolls Royce Trent XWB engines for the prototype have already been delivered to Toulouse and will be podded and installed on to the airframe later.

Earlier this month, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) awarded the Engine Type Certification to the Rolls-Royce Trent XWB turbofan engines which will power the A350-800 and A350-900 variants. The higher thrust version of the Trent XWB for the A350-1000 is currently under development.

Rolls Royce Trent AWB engine on A380 FTB

The Trent XWB engine has been extensive tested on an Airbus’ A380 'Flying Test Bed' (FTB) aircraft since February 2012.

The A350 XWB is the all-new mid-size long range product line from Airbus, with advanced and composite technologies similar the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The A350-800, -900 and -1000 variants will seat between 270 and 350 passengers in typical three-class layouts, thus competing against the Boeing 787-9 and the venerable 777 models.

Airbus still has the A350 scheduled for entry-into-service (EIS) in 2014, though realistically one can expect some delays.

The new curved winglets can be seen on A350-900 MSN001. All images courtesy Airbus S.A.S.

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Thai Airways takes delivery of its first Airbus A380; becomes ninth operator of the superjumbo

National carrier Thai Airways International (Thai) has taken delivery of the first of its ordered six Airbus A380 super jumbo, becoming the ninth airline to operate the world’s largest airliner. The aircraft, tail number HS-TUA, was handed over to Captain Montree Jumrieng, Executive Vice President Technical, Thai, by Kiran Rao, Executive Vice President Sales and Marketing, Airbus, at a special ceremony in Toulouse today.

The Thai A380's are powered by the Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines. The aircraft is configured with 507 seats in a three class configuration. All classes feature new cabin designs, with 12 private suites in First Class, 60 fully flat sleeper seats in Royal Silk Class and 435 seats in Economy. All seats are equipped with the latest on-demand in-flight entertainment systems, communication outlets and individual power supply.

Thai will inaugurate commercial service of its A380 on the Bangkok Hong Kong and Bangkok Singapore routes. Shorter flights will allow for quicker training of flight, cabin, and ground crews. As more aircraft are delivered, the airline will begin service to Frankfurt at the end of the year, followed by Tokyo and Paris in early 2013. It is surprising though, Thai has no immediate plans of operating its A380 to London Heathrow, the airport which receives the A380s of the maximum number of airlines.

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Photos: First wing for Airbus A350 XWB arrives at Toulouse assembly line

The first wing for the Airbus A350 XWB has arrived at the European airframer's final assembly line in Toulouse, France.

The A350 XWB wings are about 32 metres long and six metres wide, making them the biggest single civil aviation part made from carbon-fibre composite material. This wing, will not fly, but will be assembled on the A350 XWB airframe, which will be used for the ground static structural tests that all new aircraft undergo as part of their certification process.

All Airbus wings, including this one, are manufactured at the consortium's site in Broughton, United Kingdom.

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A380 production updates: MSN027 & MSN029 for Qantas, MSN023 & MSN017 for Emirates

Some updates on the production progress of the Airbus A380 superjumbo, courtesy of the A380 production forum.

MSN027 (F-WWSY) the fifth for Qantas (VH-OQE Lawrence Hargrave) came out of the Final Assembly Line (FAL) hangers and made its taxi tests.


MSN029 (F-WWSA) the sixth for Qantas (VH-OQF Charles Kingsford Smith) has been outside since it came out of the FAL in mid February. While inside the FAL, MSN027 and MSN029 had their tails switched. MSN027's tail going on MSN029 and vice versa. During a hail storm last year there was damage to MSN027's tail. To keep the production schedule, the tails were switched and repairs carried out. You will observe the tail on MSN029 (originally MSN027 tail) has been marked in black in some areas.


MSN023 (F-WWST) sixth for Emirates A6-EDF has left the FAL and is now on the flight line. It will make its first engine and taxi runs in early to mid April and also expected to fly in April as well.


MSN017 for Emirates (A6-EDE) will be delivered on 24th April.

Photos 1, 3, 5 courtesy Flickr user A380spotter. Photo 2 courtesy Flickr user Christope Ramos. Photo 4 courtest PictAero user David Barrie. All copyrights rest with them.

Visit the Bangalore Aviation Flickr photo gallery.

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Undelivered planes of Air Deccan and Kingfisher languish in France

I came across some interesting photos by fellow Flickr user A380spotter.

ATR42-500 MSN503 VT-ADI in the old Air Deccan livery, still sporting the common man by R.K. Laxman.


ATR72-212A MSN785 F-WWED supposed to be VT-DKL. This aircraft is painted in the Kingfisher livery, but obviously delivery has not been taken. The aircraft has been stored at Toulouse since early 2008 and signs of extended storage are showing.

My thanks to A380spotter.

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