A fast-moving winter storm bringing up to two feet of snow was expected to hit the northeastern United States, forecasters warned on Monday, prompting airlines to cancel thousands of flights and some mayors to order schools to close on Tuesday. The National Weather Service issued blizzard warnings for parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, with forecasts calling for up to 2 feet of snow by early Wednesday, with temperatures 15 to 30 degrees below normal for this time of year. Some 50m people along the Eastern Seaboard were under storm or blizzard warnings and watches. "When this thing hits, it's going to hit hard and it's going to put a ton of snow on the ground in a hurry," Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker said Monday. He urged people to consider working from home if they could. "It's going to snow hard and fast for a long period of time. It will create whiteout conditions," Baker said. Airlines preemptively cancelled more than 4,000 flights ahead of the storm, according to FlightAware.com. The airports with the most cancellations were Newark International Airport in New Jersey and Boston Logan International Airport. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was due to meet President Donald Trump in Washington on Tuesday, postponed her trip until Friday, the White House said.<br/>
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A year ago, the US government was campaigning for an international ban on shipments of rechargeable batteries on passenger planes because the batteries can self-ignite, creating intense fires capable of destroying an airliner. "The risk is immediate and urgent," Angela Stubblefield, a US aviation official, declared then. Today, that urgency has evaporated as safety regulations stall under President Donald Trump's push to ease what he sees as red tape holding back the economy. The ICAO, a UN agency that sets global aviation safety standards, decided last year to ban bulk shipments of lithium-ion batteries on international passenger flights. On cargo flights, the batteries can be charged to no more than 30 percent, a level that may reduce the likelihood of fires. As a result, countries around the world have been adopting the new international standard for domestic flights as well. The Obama administration also looked to do so, submitting rules for publication that makes them binding. But after Trump took office on Jan. 20, he signed an executive order freezing the publication of new regulations. That means airlines and cargo operators remain free to ignore the standard for domestic flights. The Obama administration had considered the change so urgent that it was fast-tracked in the rulemaking process. Trump's executive order says urgent safety rules can be exempted from the freeze, but the new administration isn't invoking that exemption for battery shipments. "This is part of our ongoing regulatory review," the DoT said. "The safe movement of hazardous materials remains a priority. We will provide updates as soon as decisions are made with regard to these and other issues at hand." No time frame was provided.<br/>
China's CDB Aviation Lease Finance may place further jet orders and make selective acquisitions as it expands globally after going public with an order for 30 Boeing airliners. Confirming a Reuters report, the Dublin-based arm of China Development Bank identified itself as the buyer for 30 Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. It was the first such announcement since leasing veteran Peter Chang became CE in December with a remit to expand. "Our model is very clear: we will become a global leasing platform, which means international, including non-Chinese and Chinese (activities)," Chang said. It comes as Boeing and Airbus face a slowdown in the aerospace business cycle. Several airlines are talking of postponing taking jets due to economic concerns. "To a certain extent it has already started, and it is good for us as a long-term player. It could very well mean that it is an opportunity for us to place another order," Chang said. "We do not want to be aggressively big for the sake of it, but we are aggressive and we are going to grow," he added. "We will be looking at $3 billion to $4 billion a year growth ... not to the point of being too risky, but we will have a basic skyline (sequence of deliveries) from manufacturers and we will have a healthy order book," he said. "And on top of it we will have a small budget for pop-ups, and that is flexible," he added, using a term for aircraft that become available when original buyers retreat.<br/>