Dennis Muilenburg was ousted as CE of Boeing, a once-unthinkable turning point for a US industrial champion now engulfed in turmoil after 2 deadly crashes of its top-selling 737 Max jetliner. David Calhoun, a GE veteran who had served as chairman since October, will replace Muilenburg as CE and president Jan 13, Boeing said Monday. The move followed a rare public rebuke earlier this month by the US FAA. Just last week, Boeing said it would temporarily halt output of the Max, which has been grounded since March. Boeing’s directors voted unanimously to install Calhoun, as CE during an emergency session Sunday. “A change in leadership was necessary to restore confidence in the company moving forward as it works to repair relationships with regulators, customers, and all other stakeholders,” Boeing’s board said. <br/>
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Throughout a storied career in corporate America, David Calhoun has risen through the ranks. Calhoun who is set to become CE of Boeing in January, will need all of his wiles as he takes the helm at a giant mired in crisis. That crisis led to last week's decision to suspend production of the 737 MAX, which provoked uncertainty in employees and suppliers, as well as hitting US growth forecasts, with no clear indication of when the aircraft will be clear to fly again. In Calhoun, Boeing has found a man who once led GE Infrastructure and who has experience with corporate turnarounds at both Nielsen and Blackstone. But his background is in financial management and corporate strategy rather than engineering and safety policy, leading some analysts to question whether he will turn out to be an interim leader. <br/>
Heathrow Airport has for the first time laid out detailed costings for its contentious third runway expansion, including an option to spend an additional GBP3b over the first 15 years to improve rail links and passenger service. The airport has outlined 2 options as part of its initial business plan which it will submit this week to the CAA. The first plan focuses on savings and would allow the runway to open more quickly in 2028, while the second prioritises service and would require additional investment, delaying the runway opening for a further year. However, regardless of which option is chosen, airport charges are set to rise, an additional burden likely to face strong opposition from Heathrow’s airline customers. Heathrow’s fee per person is already one of the highest in the world. <br/>
Drones near airports are a serious danger for air traffic. Germany has yet to figure out how to tackle the problem. What could a tiny toy drone even do to a big plane? Massive damage. Researchers at the University of Dayton simulated a mid-air collision between a small 2 pound hobby drone and the wing of a commercial aircraft. Instead of breaking into pieces, the drone ripped through the leading edge of the wing and did "substantial damage to the wing," including to the main spar. "So far, we've just been lucky," Torsten Kretschmann from Germany's air traffic control DFS says. Germany's airports registered 158 air traffic disturbances caused by drones in 2018, up from 88 in 2017 and only 15 back in 2015. Frankfurt tops the list. Planes were grounded there 3 times in 2019 due to possible drones. <br/>
Russia’s Ministry for Industry and Trade has confirmed its intent to spend US$239m on a multi-stage effort targeting the creation of a Russianized version of the Sukhoi Superjet 100, dubbed the Superjet-New, with completion expected in 2024. The confirmation came Monday, following leaks to the media of internal govt papers mentioning this new allocation as well as an interim aircraft variant, dubbed Superjet-New-2020. Some money will be spent on alterations of existing aircraft systems to improve reliability and ensure higher comfort and flight safety. Some equipment on the Superjet-New can be of foreign design, but production must take place in Russia. <br/>
IATA’s board of governors is to recommend an extension to Alexandre de Juniac’s term as CE and DG of the airline association. The former Air France-KLM group CE succeeded Tony Tyler at the helm of IATA in 2016. His current term runs until Aug 2020. The announcement was disclosed in a wider release about changes to its strategic leadership team and corporate structure, which it says are designed to focus on its core competencies of standard-setting and adoption, advocacy, and services and products. As part of those changes, its current senior VP for Financial and Distribution services, Aleks Popovich, is to lead a newly formed Customer and Business services division. This unit will manage operations of IATA’s industry settlement systems, central sales and marketing, and its customer service. <br/>