American Airlines Tuesday sought a court order blocking online travel booking company Expedia from calling a new discount feature “Add On Advantage,” saying consumers would confuse it with the airline’s “AAdvantage” frequent flyer program. American Airlines sued Expedia in US District Court in Fort Worth, Texas, where the airline is based, alleging trademark infringement.<br/>
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American Airlines broke ground on its US$1.6b bet on Los Angeles International airport on 17 October, a renovation project that aims to modernise and merge terminals 4 and 5, and position the West Coast hub as its gateway to Asia. As part of the renovations, planned for completion a decade from now, American will build a unified departure hall, that will combine the entranceway of terminals 4 and 5 and connect via a footbridge to a planned automated people mover at the centre of the airport. The company also plans to reconfigure the ticket counter and check-in areas to reduce wait times before security screening. The unified 300,000 square-foot, 28-gate complex will feature upgraded amenities, such as more power outlets, as well as additional restaurants and retail locations. American said the project marks its largest individual investment at an airport in its 92-year history.<br/>
An in-flight engine shutdown involving a Qantas Airbus A380 on 20 May 2017 has been traced back to cracking caused by corrosion resulting from cleaning chemical residues in one of its Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines. Around two hours after taking off from Los Angeles bound for Melbourne, the crew heard a loud bang and felt vibrations through the aircraft. The first officer noticed that the N1 level of engine four was much lower than the other three, and two electronic centralised aircraft monitoring messages were flashed up in quick succession. As the crew worked through procedures responding to the ECAM messages, they received a message indicating a fire in engine four. In response, they selected the master off switch for the engine and discharged one fire retardant into it, before diverting back to Los Angeles. The aircraft landed safely . Minor damage to the aircraft right flap and flap fairing was observed during an engineering inspection, which was attributed to debris exiting the rear of the engine, but no visible indication of fire. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau states in its final report on the incident that the number four engine failed after corrosion led to fatigue cracking in the low-pressure turbine stage two blades, which separated and caused damage through the engine. The corrosion was caused by chemical residues from the engine’s last service in July 2015, and R-R identified 12 other engines for removal owing to them having undergone a similar cleaning process. R-R subsequently changed its engine cleaning procedures to remove residual cleaning chemicals, and the European Aviation Safety Agency released an airworthiness directive.<br/>