Boeing has suspended 737 MAX flights after being informed by CFM International of a potential issue with the aircraft’s LEAP-1B engine, although Boeing says MAX 8 deliveries will begin this month as planned. “CFM has notified us of a potential manufacturing quality escape with low pressure turbine (LPT) discs in LEAP-1B engines delivered to Boeing,” Boeing said. “We are working with CFM to inspect the discs in question. CFM and its supplier notified us after discovering the issue as a part of their quality inspection process. At no time have we experienced an issue associated with the LPT during our ongoing MAX testing program.” Boeing said the decision to suspend MAX flights was made “out of an abundance of caution.” The suspension comes just as Boeing was preparing to begin delivery of the 737 MAX 8/ <br/>
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AviaAM Leasing has warned that airlines may have to list operating leases on their balance sheet, once new financial reporting standards come into effect in 2019. Under existing rules, only finance leases are shown on the balance sheet. However, AviaAM Leasing said the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) adopted new IFRS 16 accounting standards in 2016, which mean IFRS-compliant companies will have to bring their liabilities, including operating leases, onto their balance sheets. With almost 40% of the world fleet on lease, the new rules could burden airline balance sheets by US$500b or more, compared with an industry-wide profit of just $30b. The lessor said the change may bring more transparency to airline cost structures. <br/>
From a public relations standpoint, the past month has been a disaster for US airlines. But Americans are happier with the industry than they’ve been in years -- at least according to a survey taken before video of a bloodied passenger being hauled off a United Express flight went viral. J.D. Power’s North America Airline Satisfaction Study found the overall ranking by fliers rose for a fifth consecutive year, jumping 30 points to 756 on a 1,000-point scale. That was thanks to lower fares, better on-time performance, fewer lost bags and the slimmest denied-boarding rate in the survey’s 13-year history. “A lot of things are going really well in the airline industry at the moment,” said Michael Taylor, the travel practice lead at J.D. Power. Recent events would seem to suggest otherwise. <br/>
The Trump administration is likely to expand a ban on laptops on commercial aircraft to include some European countries, but is reviewing how to ensure lithium batteries stored in luggage holds do not explode in mid-air, officials briefed on the matter said Wednesday. Any expansion of the ban could impact US carriers. Six US and European officials said they expect the US Department of Homeland Security to make an announcement but declined to say when. DHS officials plan to meet with airline industry officials Thursday to discuss security issues, 2 people briefed on the matter said. Also Thursday, Homeland Security secretary John Kelly will give a classified briefing to senators about domestic threats and airline issues are expected to be discussed, a congressional aide briefed on the matter said. <br/>
Malaysia Airports Holdings plans to sell a minority stake in its Istanbul unit, which operates Turkey’s second-biggest airport, people familiar with the matter said. The Malaysian company is seeking an investor for Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International and plans to maintain control of the company. Malaysia Airports is also talking to banks about a possible advisory role on the deal, they said. Malaysia Airports plans to start a E130m (US$142m) expansion of ISG this year as it nears capacity. The airport will add 8m passengers a year to its current capacity of 33m passengers once a new boarding hall is completed in 2018. Pegasus uses ISG as its main hub, while Pegasus and Turkish Airlines make up more than 90% of all airlines using the airport. <br/>
Asia-Pacific showed the strongest growth in passenger traffic in March compared with all other regions, fuelled by a rise in intra-Asia and Asia-Europe route volumes. Asia-Pacific demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometres, in March jumped 10.7% year-on-year, according to figures from IATA. That growth was above the global average of 6.8% recorded for the month. Latin America was the second best performer with 7.8% growth in March, followed by Europe (6%), Africa (4.9%), the Middle East (4.7%) and North America (3.2%). March's global demand growth represented a moderate slowdown relative to February's performance after adjusting for the distortion in year-to-year comparisons owing to the extra day in Feb 2016, said IATA analysts. <br/>