The World of Aviation

Lockheed Martin says it is developing a new lower cost version of its C-130J Super Hercules tactical airlifter. The C-130XJ will include the same Rolls-Royce AE2100 turboprop engines and Honeywell avionics suite as the C-130J but will drop its automated cargo system in favour of a manual system, the UK magazine Flight International reported, citing

Boeing says its 787-8 Dreamliner has set speed and distance records for its weight class during an around-the-world flight this week. The sixth 787, GEnx powered ZA006, departed Boeing Field in Seattle at 11:02 am on December 6 and flew eastbound to Dhaka, Bangladesh, a 19,144 km flight that broke the Airbus A330’s previous distance

The first US built Embraer Phenom 100 business jet has made a successful maiden flight, Embraer said. The aircraft flew to 41,000ft and reached its top speed with no anomalies during the two and a half hour flight, the company said. The Brazilian aircraft maker opened its production facility in Melbourne, Florida, in February and

Jetsar has denied a report that Jetstar Pacific is on the verge of being taken over by Vietnam Airlines, though it says it would support such a takeover. The Ho Chi Minh City based budget carrier has struggled since Jetstar parent Qantas bought a minority stake in the airline in 2008 and rebranded it under

Boeing and Los Angeles based Air Lease Corporation (ALC) have finalised a deal for four 787-9 Dreamliners as ALC also exercised options on four 737-800s. The deal, first announced at the Paris Air show in June, has a total value at list prices of $1.2 billion. The 787-9 is the larger version of Boeing’s new

Virgin today officially relaunched its V Australia and Pacific Blue international carriers under the umbrella Virgin Australia brand. The move to a single brand comes as Virgin Australia transitions away from its roots as a budget carrier. “The Virgin Australia name enables us to tap into the huge power of the Virgin brand around the