Northrop Grumman Corp. is withdrawing from a contest to provide the U.S. Air Force with a new fleet of tankers, leaving Boeing Co. primed to land the initial $35-billion contract that military officials hope to award by this fall.

With Monday's announcement, California-based Northrop made good on previous threats that it would pull out of the competition unless the Pentagon revised elaborate rules that appeared to favor Boeing's smaller, 767-based tanker over the larger Airbus A330 that Northrop planned to bid.
"We continue to believe that Northrop Grumman's tanker represents the best value for the military and taxpayer -- a belief supported by the selection of the A330 tanker design over the Boeing design in the last five consecutive tanker competitions around the globe," said Wes Bush, Northrop's CEO and president. "Regrettably, this means that the U.S. Air Force will be operating a less capable tanker than many of our Allies in this vital mission area."

The tanker saga, which has played out for nearly a decade, is one of the longest and strangest contests overseen by the Pentagon and involves one of the largest jackpots in military history.

The latest twist positions Chicago-based Boeing to replace all 415 Eisenhower-era jets that serve as aerial gas stations for the Air Force, a series of contracts expected to total more than $100 billion, analysts said.

Airbus, meanwhile, won't move forward with plans to build a large factory in Mobile, Ala., to assemble tankers and A330 freighters, said Guy Hicks, vice president for communications with EADS North America, Northrop's partner in the bid and the corporate parent to Airbus.

Boeing won the first iteration of the contest only to be stripped of its victory amid an ethics scandal, a result of inquiries led by Sen. John McCain that resulted in jail terms for two Boeing executives.

Northrop scored an upset victory in 2008, but those results were annulled after Boeing mounted an unprecedented challenge and the Government Accountability Office later determined the Air Force's evaluation of the bids had been marred by "significant errors."

The latest rules, unveiled by the Obama administration in September and finalized in February, evaluated the proposals based on price as well as 372 mandatory requirements that bidders must meet.

Scores would also take into account the life-time expenses of operating the aircraft, as well as the cost to retrofit Air Force runways and hangars to accommodate the new tankers, potentially penalizing Northrop since the larger A330 would burn more fuel and wouldn't fit into current parking spaces.

Northrop felt the Air Force's new scoring methodology did not give its jet credit for being able to haul more fuel and cargo, Bush said, "precluding us from any competitive opportunity."

Chicago Tribune

FAA pilots who have a paper pilot's license will need to change the license to the plastic license by March 31, 2010. Pilots having a paper license will not be able exercise the privileges of pilot after March 31st.

Back on September 8, 2009, the FAA released a notice of change. FAR 61.19(h) reads, Duration of pilot certificates, except for a temporary certificate issued under §61.17 or a student pilot certificate issued under paragraph (b) of this section, the holder of a paper pilot certificate issued under this part may not exercise the privileges of that certificate after March 31, 2010.

There are two ways to replace an airmen certificate. You can request a replacement certificate at the FAA website online. Or you can mail an Application for Replacement of Lost, Destroyed, or Paper Airman Certificate. You will need to provide your name date and place of birth, social security number and/or certificate number and the reason you need a replacement. You must include a check or money order for $2 (U.S. funds), made payable to FAA, for each certificate you request.

Full Story - AvStop.com

Frankfurt: Lufthansa pilots, who went on strike yesterday in support of their demands, have now agreed to suspend the action for two weeks. The strike grounded about 900 flights on Monday.

At a court hearing late Monday, pilots' union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) agreed to suspend industrial action till 8 March so that both sides could resume talks.

Welcoming the decision, Lufthansa cautioned passengers that it would take a few days for flight operations to normalize again.

In a related development, rival British Airways' cabin crew has now voted to strike to protest harsh cost cutting measures adopted by the management.

Some 4,000 Lufthansa pilots had walked out on their jobs on Monday in a action that was meant to spread out over four days. The pilots are concerned that the company could try to cut staff costs by shifting jobs to foreign units. Cash-rich Lufthansa has been on an acquisition spree that has seen it pick up a number of struggling airlines around Europe.

Full Story - Domain-B

Fearing potential staff cuts, Lufthansa's highly-paid pilots took to the picket lines Monday, plunging the airline into its longest ever strike and forcing the carrier to cancel hundreds of flights.

Passengers left stranded by the strike that started at midnight local time are being rebooked on other airlines or have to take trains for domestic travel, after last-ditch attempts to reach a compromise failed over the weekend.

Lufthansa expects the strike will cost it about EUR€100 million euros (USD$135 million) in cash, in addition to lost ticket sales and possible damage to its reputation now that it will ground about 800 flights per day over a four-day period.

European travelers could face additional headaches, as Monday is also the final day of a cabin crew strike ballot at rival British Airways that could cast travel in Europe's second-biggest economy into turmoil as well.

Some 4,000 German pilots voted for the strike at Lufthansa on concerns the company could try to cut staff costs by shifting jobs to foreign subsidiaries such as Austrian Airlines or Lufthansa Italia, where wages are lower.

The starting salary for a first officer in a Lufthansa cockpit is EUR€62,000, for a captain EUR€115,000, according to the company's recruiting website. Media reports put the top end of pilots' salaries at about EUR€325,000.

Full Story - AIRwise

The National Transportation Safety Board today held an annual review of its "most wanted" list of transportation safety improvements. Newly added to the aviation list was a call for better oversight of Part 121 pilot proficiency, to which the board assigned the status of "urgent or currently unacceptable response.

Highlighting the issue was the Colgan Air accident in Buffalo, N.Y., last year in which the carrier was unaware of previous check rides the captain had failed. Among the items still deemed "unacceptable" or "requiring urgent attention" was flight into known-icing and aviation fatigue, while a call for cockpit image recorders was downgraded from acceptable to unacceptable.

The NTSB did note progress in the areas of runway safety and crew resource management, moving both from unacceptable to "slowly progressing. The board applauded new rules mandating that all legs of EMS helicopter flights be conducted under Part 135, but it found unacceptable the FAA's progress on adopting EMS flight and duty time rules, flight-risk evaluation protocols, formalized flight following and dispatch, and a TAWS mandate. - * - AINonline> - * -

NTSP Most Wanted List

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) gave its tentative approval to grant antitrust immunity to American Airlines and four oneworld partners to form a global alliance.

"If the decision is made final, American and its "oneworld" alliance partners British Airways, Iberia Airlines, Finnair and Royal Jordanian Airlines would be able to more closely coordinate international operations in transatlantic markets," it said in a press release on Saturday.

It said the benefits of the oneworld alliance would be lower fares on more routes, increased services, better schedules and reduced travel and connection times.

However, it said the alliance could harm competition on select routes between the United States and London's Heathrow Airport due to limited landing and takeoff slots. It has requested that the alliance make four pairs of slots available to competitors for new service U.S.-Heathrow service.

BA, Iberia and American Airlines have also offered to modify their plans to share more of their lucrative trans-Atlantic routes in an effort to settle a competition dispute with the European Union.

British Airways said on Sunday that it and its co-applicants "will review the DOT's tentative order and respond according to the timeframe established for comments."

Interested parties have 45 days to object and answers to objections will take a further 15 days.

"American and its oneworld partners are looking forward to competing for business over the Atlantic on a level playing field," said American Airlines.

The DOT previously granted immunity to oneworld's rivals Star Alliance and the SkyTeam alliance

Reuters

Boeing flew for the first time its twice-delayed 747-8 Freighter, a significant milestone in the history of the 747 family and a step that could bolster the credibility of the world's second-largest plane maker.

The takeoff Monday started what was scheduled to be a three- to four-hour test flight near Boeing's factories around Seattle, Washington. Boeing twice delayed the first flight of the 747-8 last year, most recently moving a planned fourth-quarter flight to early 2010 and first delivery to the fourth quarter of 2010.

The 747-8 Freighter, about 18 feet longer than the 747-400, had been launched in November 2005 and was originally scheduled to start delivering in the fourth-quarter of 2009.

The company took a USD$1 billion charge related to the 747-8 in the third quarter of 2009 because of high production costs and tough market conditions.

Boeing, which has 108 orders for 747-8s -- 76 for its freighter model and 32 for the passenger model -- on its books at list prices between USD$293 million and USD$308 million, gets paid by customers at delivery. The 747 family has been in the air since 1969 and is Boeing's biggest and most recognizable commercial plane.

The 747-8 uses new engine and wing designs, boasts greater fuel efficiency and lower operating costs than the Airbus A380, its closest rival, Boeing says. The Freighter model can carry 16 percent more cargo than the previous 747 model, while the Intercontinental can carry 51 more passengers.

The freighter's test flight comes on the heels of a successful test flight of the 787 Dreamliner in December.

Though not nearly as innovative or fuel-efficient as the revolutionary carbon-composite 787, the 747-8 shares technology with the higher-profile plane.

Boeing's reputation has been bruised by two years of 787 delays. That plane finally flew for the first time in December.

Reuters

Japan Airlines said it would keep its partnership with American Airlines in the Oneworld alliance, ending Delta Air Lines' attempt to entice the bankrupt carrier to its rival SkyTeam group.

JAL, Asia's largest carrier by revenues, said it would apply with American Airlines for regulatory approval for closer cooperation on trans-Pacific routes under a recently signed "open skies" treaty between the United States and Japan.

The decision is a major blow to Delta, which had been courting the Japanese carrier with an offer of USD$1 billion in financial aid, eager to gain access to its vast network in Asia and benefit from the expansion at Tokyo's Haneda Airport.

Full Story - AIRwise

Lynx Aviation, the regional turboprop carrier that feeds Frontier Airlines' Denver hub, will cease to exist by mid-September, throwing 400 jobs into jeopardy.

Lynx employees were told Thursday about parent company Republic Airways' plans to continue the air service with small Republic jets instead of the Bombardier Q400 turboprops operated by Lynx.

"Everybody knew it was coming. Now we know what the dates are," said one employee who asked not to be identified out of concern for his employment. "Now we're just another Colorado name that's gone. The name is still there, but the heart is removed."

Republic officials said the transition will improve the company's ability to operate in highly contested markets. The move is part of the Indianapolis-based holding company's program to "simplify and optimize its fleet resources across its entire network, improving aircraft utilization and cost efficiencies companywide."

Service will continue to nine of the 11 current Lynx destinations. Operations to Fargo, N.D., and Tulsa, Okla., will stop April 5. Furloughs will begin in early April for about 175 employees, including pilots, flight attendants and personnel in operations, customer service and support.

Lynx has about 400 employees. Of its 120 pilots and 110 flight attendants, 40 in each group will be retained until September, when remaining Lynx employees will be furloughed. Company spokesman Peter Kowalchuk said Lynx employees will be given the opportunity to continue with Republic or Frontier and will receive priority hiring. Those who don't stay on will be given severance.

The Republic-owned jets -- 70-seat Embraer 170s and 98-seat Embraer 190s -- will be flown by Republic pilots. Three of Lynx's 11 turboprops will be replaced by jets April 6, and three more will be replaced April 19. They will be sold. The remaining five will remain in service through Labor Day, with four flying and one used as a spare.

Lynx employees have done an outstanding job, said Republic chief operating officer Wayne Heller.

Converting to jet service "allows us to better utilize our existing aircraft resources and lower our cost of operating and maintaining multiple fleet types, while providing our customers with outstanding jet service," Heller said.

Lynx began flying in December 2007 as a subsidiary of Frontier and became a subsidiary of Republic when Frontier was acquired out of bankruptcy Oct. 1.

Denver Post

Turkish Airlines, which aims to carry 20 percent more passengers in 2010, said Thursday it would buy 20 planes from Boeing as it expands its fleet.

The airline said it would purchase 10 B737-800s and 10 B737-900 ERs for delivery between 2011 and 2014, with an option to take 15 more of the same models for delivery between 2013 and 2015.

Turkish Airlines flew 25.1 million people in 2009, an increase of 11 percent, making it Europe's fourth-biggest airline by passenger numbers, as it boosted its lucrative transit business.

The airline has ambitions to become Europe's number three and fly 30 million passengers in 2010.

The airline flies to destinations across Europe, but also Asia and across the Middle East. Last month it ordered 20 planes from Airbus for delivery between 2011 and 2012, with an option for a further 10 in 2013.

Reuters