De Havilland name returns
Early June saw Bombardier complete the sale of the Dash 8 programme to Longview Aviation Capital. Longview now manages production of the Dash 8 Q400 programme and support activities for the in-service fleet of legacy Dash 8 family aircraft through a newly established subsidiary called De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd. The sale to Longview, announced earlier this year, is part of Bombardier Inc’s wider divestment of commercial aircraft activities. The company previously sold its fire-fighting aircraft programme to Longview (whose Viking Aircraft unit manages that programme). Mark Broadbent
IATA downgrades forecast
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has downgraded its forecast for the global air transport industry. Citing what it called a “deteriorated” business environment, with rising fuel prices and a “substantial weakening of world trade”, IATA said a 6.5% rise in revenues will be outpaced by a 7.4% growth in costs. IATA said airlines will still turn a profit this year but the tighter margins have led it to trim its expectations. Mark Broadbent
CFM56 sets record
The CFM International CFM56 turbofan recently set a new record, becoming the first aircraft engine family ever to achieve one billion flight hours in service since the first took flight in 1982. The CFM56 family is used by more than 20 different commercial and military aircraft types and is best known for powering the Boeing 737. Mark Broadbent
Hybrid research
Airbus has signed a memorandum of understanding with SAS Scandinavian Airlines to research infrastructure requirements for hybrid and electric aircraft. The collaboration, which started in June and will continue until the end of 2020, will see the two parties jointly research operational challenges involved with the large-scale introduction of hybrid and full electric aircraft to airlines, specifically the impact of hybrid and electric aircraft on ground infrastructure and charging, resources, time and availability at airports. The agreement is part of a wider portfolio of R&D activity at Airbus, which also has technology demonstrators testing hybrid propulsion systems, subsystems and components, to address long-term effciency goals for building and operating electric aircraft. Mark Broadbent
Electric Embraer
An Embraer EMB203 Ipanema is to become a testbed for a new R&D programme involving the Brazilian manufacturer into electric propulsion technology for aircraft. The first flight of the electric-powered demonstrator is scheduled for 2020. The aircraft will be used for a primary evaluation of electrification technology developed under a recently announced scientific and technological cooperation agreement between Embraer and the Brazilian company WEG to research and jointly develop new electric aircraft technologies.
