New details, but no cause on 787 woes
A document dump by the US NTSB this week revealed extensive details on the safety regulator’s investigation into the battery fires that have grounded Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner. But the report also showed that investigators remain far from determining what caused the batteries to catch fire. According to a 39-page interim factual report, released this week
Air NZ names new head of customer service
Air New Zealand has named a former Etihad Airways executive as its new general manager for customer experience. Calum Laming joins Air NZ from Abu Dhabi, where he served as Etihad’s head of guest experience. He previously held senior customer service and marketing roles at Virgin Atlantic and Procter and Gamble. Laming also held in-flight
Reversing a decade long trend toward ever-tighter security regulations, the US FAA will again allow passengers to carry small knives and an assortment of clubs and bats onto flights. The policy change will bring US security standards into line with those overseas and allow the Transportation Security Administration to focus on more serious threats, the
App promises cheaper aviation fuel
A US company has launched a free app designed to help jet fuel customers find the lowest prices at airports around the world. Delaware based Fuel Bidder LLC says its Fuelbidder.com app will help air charter or executive jet flight departments save time and money by leveraging competition between fuel providers. “Many aircraft operators are
The first production version of Airbus Military’s A400M airlifter has completed its maiden flight, with the company saying the aircraft is on schedule for delivery to the French Air Force by June. ‘On schedule’ is, of course, a relative term. France was initially supposed to receive its first A400M roughly three years ago. But after
Qantas mulls 747 Freighter buy – report
Qantas is said to be in negotiations to purchase up to four used Boeing 747-400 Freighters to replace cargo jets it currently leases from US-based Atlas Air. Qantas’s wet lease for two crewed 747s is set to expire early next with the lease on a third aircraft up in 2015. The Age newspaper reported that
