The Trump administration is considering a proposal to halt deliveries of jet engines co-produced by General Electric for a new airliner being developed in China, a potential escalation of protective trade measures that could have steep repercussions for the major American manufacturer. The administration may decline to issue a license allowing CFM International to export more of its LEAP 1C jet engines to China, people familiar with the discussions said. The engines are being used in the development of that country’s Comac C919 jetliner, the latest in a planned family of new jets that is years behind schedule. Some within the administration are concerned that the Chinese could reverse-engineer the CFM engines, allowing China to break into the global jet-engine market. <br/>
general
The US FAA is allowing U.S. airlines to resume operations over large areas of the Gulf, saying that a lower military posture by Iran has reduced the threat of miscalculation or misidentification of civilian flights. A notice issued Friday by the FAA rescinded restrictions imposed on US air carriers in early January that prohibited flights over large swaths of the Gulf and the Gulf of Oman as tensions rose between Iran and the US. “Iran has de-escalated its military posture in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman as of early Feb 2020,” said the notice. “Given the de-escalation, the FAA assesses there is sufficient reduced risk of Iranian military miscalculation or misidentification that could affect US civil aviation operations.” The notice applied to the airspaces of Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE and Oman. <br/>
The Office of the US Trade Representative has raised its tariffs on large European aircraft to 15%, up from the 10% levy implemented last October, in an ongoing dispute over subsidies. “The US is increasing the additional duty rate imposed on aircraft imported from the EU to 15% from 10%, effective March 18, 2020, and making certain other minor modifications,” the USTR said Friday. At the centre of the ruling last October were EU subsidies for Airbus, which the arbitrator heavily criticised as being “WTO-inconsistent”, and causing adverse effects to the US. While the USTR was permitted to impose up to 100% tariffs on US$7.5b of goods — including Airbus jets — the office said at the time it would initially impose 10% levies on new commercial aircraft of more than 30t. <br/>
Tens of thousands of passengers at Heathrow have had their flights cancelled or heavily delayed due to an IT failure involving check-in systems. At least 10,000 more have had their flights to or from the busiest airport in Europe cancelled Monday. The failure is affecting all 4 passenger terminals, both landside (before the security check) and airside. Departure gate information is being handwritten on whiteboards. More than 100 flights to and from the airport were cancelled during Sunday, the vast majority of them on British Airways. Some flights are departing with no checked baggage. A Heathrow spokesperson said: “We are continuing to experience technical issues which are currently being resolved. Besides the cancellations, passengers are experiencing long delays. <br/>
Israeli commercial planes have started overflying Sudan, PM Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday, casting the new air corridor as the result of a breakthrough meeting with the African Muslim country's de-facto leader this month. Khartoum said Feb 5 it had given Israeli planes initial approval to fly over its territory, 2 days after Sudan's military head of state, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, met Netanyahu in Uganda. "Now we're discussing rapid normalisation. The first Israeli airplane passed yesterday over the skies of Sudan," Netanyahu said, adding that the route cut some 3 hours off flights from Israel to South America. Sudan, mindful of pro-Palestinian sensitivities, has stopped short of saying it is normalizing ties with Israel. Israel previously considered Sudan a security threat. <br/>