Short Takes
October 16th 2020
Hong Kong International Airport has extended its policy of allowing Mainland passengers to transit through the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s (HKSAR) airport. Read More » The transit agreement, which has been in force since August 15 and had a life of two months, was immediately renewed indefinitely from October 15. Airport Authority Hong Kong also has extended the application its reduced fees and charges for airlines and associated airport businesses until year end.
Pratt & Whitney announced this week it was cutting jobs at its facilities in Connecticut in the U.S due to the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Although the company did not disclose how many positions would go, local media reports put the number at about 450 salaried positions. "We have made the extremely difficult but necessary decision to implement an involuntary separation program for our salaried workforce,” the company said in a statement. There were also about 300 positions being cut at Pratt & Whitney Canada facilities in Quebec.
The Society of Japanese Aerospace Companies announced late last week the Japan International Aerospace Exhibition 2021 had been cancelled given the ongoing uncertainty caused by COVID-19 and the restrictions on the international movement of people. Instead, the next event will be held in Tokyo in 2024. "The exhibition executive committee has determined that it is not possible to hold an international exhibition even in 2022, considering the preparation period for the international exhibition," the statement from the Society said. The event had already been postponed once after the rescheduling of the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games to 2021 meant the venue hosting the exhibition became unavailable.
Airbus's A330 program reached two milestones this past week. Firstly, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) certified the A330-900 for a maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of 251 tonnes, which added six tonnes in payload or 650nm more range compared with the 242-tonne MTOW variant. Airbus also announced Delta Air Lines had received the 1,500th A330 family aircraft when it took delivery of an A330-900 in late September. The A330 entered the airline’s fleet in 1994.
Boeing has signed a patent and technology licence with Far UV Technologies to manufacture the ultraviolet wand it designed and developed for disinfecting an aircraft flight deck and cabin. Far UV Technologies will produce and distribute the wand, the partners said in a joint statement this week, with the technology potentially available for airlines by year end. It was the second such agreement Boeing has signed covering the ultraviolet wand, which also is able to disinfect a flight deck in 15 minutes. Its first deal for the wand was with Healthe Inc.
HAECO Xiamen, a division of the HAECO Group, has completed its first A350 C-check for Cathay Pacific Airways, marking another milestone in the development of the Mainland MRO’s capabilities.
