Industry Briefs

Airline Industry Information, Dec 19, 2000

AIRLINE INDUSTRY INFORMATION-(C)1997-2000 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

LanChile SA, a Chilean carrier, has placed an order with Boeing Co, the US aircraft manufacturer, for two 767-300 freighter aircraft worth about USD365m. Deliveries of the aircraft will commence in 2001.

FlightSafety Boeing Training International has certified two full-flight simulators and recently installed the newly-certified Airbus 320-200 simulator in Gatwick/Burgess Hill, UK and the Boeing 767-400 simulator in Seattle, USA. The Airbus simulator in the UK is being used for pilots of Airtours International, Air 2000 and JMC, while the Seattle-based simulator is being used by pilots of Delta Air Lines.

JetBlue Airways, a New York-based carrier, has launched a post-holiday fare sale for travel to Florida. Passengers can fly from Buffalo and New York City to Tampa or Orlando from USD49 each way and to Fort Lauderdale from USD59 each way. Tickets must be purchased by 16 January 2001 for travel between 3 January and 15 March 2001. Restrictions and other charges apply.

Rolls-Royce Plc, an aero engine manufacturer, has received a USD235m order from South African Airlink to supply engines for 70 Embraer ERJ-135 aircraft, and an USD80m contract from British Regional Air Lines for the repair and overhaul of its fleet of AE 3007-powered Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft.

China's Jianqiao Airport in Hangzhou is to be closed on 29 December and replaced with the new Xiaoshan Airport, located some tens of kilometres to the south. Jianqiao Airport is famous for being the airport to receive Richard Nixon - the first US president to visit China - in 1971, according to Xinhua News Agency.

Pacific Connection, a provider of Internet solutions, has received a contract from Northwest Airlines, a US carrier, for the development and maintenance of all the carrier's web sites in the Asia-Pacific region. The contract includes the development of web sites for Hong Kong, Singapore, the Philippines, Korea, Guam, Saipan, China, Taiwan, Malaysia and Taiwan.

Continental Airlines has been named in FORTUNE magazine's '100 Best Companies to Work For' for the third year in a row. The carrier jumped from ranking No. 23 to No. 18, and is the employer of the most staff of all the companies on the list according to a company statement.

US Airways has formed a new partnership with SideStep, a free Internet search tool, that will allow visitors to the carrier's web site (http://www.usairways.com) to download the tool. Customers can then use SideStep to search more than 80 travel-related web sites for their travel needs and will be connected directly to the site of their choice.

The Shenyang Aircraft Corporation has received a loan of about USD17.5m from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China for the technological upgrade of the company's subcontract production line. Shenyang Aircraft Corporation has recently signed a contract with Airbus Industrie to provide parts for A320 aircraft, Xinhua News Agency reported.

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