US investigators found a loose component in the engine cowling of an Atlas Air Boeing 747-8 that suffered an in-flight engine fire during a 18 January fight from Miami International airport. A preliminary incident report from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), released on 9 February, says that inspection of the GE Aerospace GEnx-2B67 turbofan revealed a borescope port plug that was unsecured from the combustion diffuser nozzle. The borescope plug “was not secured in the case and was found loose in the engine cowling”, the NTSB says, adding that ”the burn-through observed on the thrust-reverser wall was directly above the open” plug port. The 747’s maintenance records show that the borescope plug in question was removed and replaced by a third-party vendor during a 14 January inspection of the combustion diffuser nozzle. The technician was provided instructions on how to properly reinstall borescope plugs “to ensure the locking feature was properly engaged”, the NTSB says. The agency says the work had been signed by the performing technician to indicate it had been completed according to the maintenance manual. No evidence of an uncontained engine failure – which involves internal rotating parts or fragments escaping the engine casing – was visible to inspectors, while engine data showed no evidence of a surge or stall. Bound for San Juan’s Luis Munoz Marin International airport, the Atlas Air 747 took off from Miami around 22:30 local time. While passing an altitude of 3,000ft, the aircraft’s number two engine caught fire, prompting the pilots to declare mayday with air traffic control. <br/>
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Bankrupt Brazilian airline Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA accused its rival Latam Airlines Group SA of taking advantage of its recent financial trouble by trying to poach its pilots and Boeing aircraft. The Sao Paulo-based airline said in court papers filed Thursday that Latam recently sent a letter to Gol’s business partners inquiring about leasing Boeing aircraft and solicited Brazilian pilots experienced in flying such aircraft in an Internet job posting. Latam has historically flown a fleet of Airbus aircraft and the Boeing models its competitor inquired about are a specific type of narrow body aircraft Gol flies, the filing said. The Brazilian airline said Latam inquired about procuring Boeing 737 aircraft the day after Gol filed Chapter 11 on Jan. 25, while its rival “is at its most vulnerable.” Gol asked Judge Martin Glenn, who is overseeing the bankruptcy, for permission to issue a subpoena for documents from Latam as it investigates the scope of the alleged solicitations. “Given the recent events in the industry, we thought you may be interested in learning that LATAM group continues to seek aircraft,” Latam allegedly said in a letter sent to its business partners on Jan. 26. The letter, a copy of which is included in Thursday’s court filing, goes on to say that Latam’s Brazilian affiliate is seeking to increase its flights in the country and region. Gol said it believes Latam is trying to interfere with its business and that its rival may have violated the Brazilian airline’s automatic bankruptcy stay which protects companies in Chapter 11. Latam has denied Gol’s allegations. <br/>
A potential E100m payout to Ryanair Holdings Plc CEO Michael O’Leary raises corporate governance concerns, according to analysts at Barclays Plc. The bank noted that only a portion of the airline’s investors would be able to vote on the payout — triggered if the share price exceeds E21 for a period of 28 consecutive calendar days — after voting rights of UK shareholders were removed following the UK’s 2020 withddrawal from the European Union. Meanwhile, if the board of Dublin-based Ryanair — which includes O’Leary — decides to buy back shares, it could in theory push the stock price to the level required for the CEO to receive the payout. “This would add further corporate governance complexity,” wrote analysts including Andrew Lobbenberg. Ryanair declined to comment. Ryanair shares fell 0.3% to €20.10 as of 2:00 p.m. in Dublin, about 5% below the payout trigger. The stock closed at a record €20.17 on Thursday, adding to gains last week after the airline reported a rise in passenger numbers. Ryanair declared a new ordinary dividend in November, saying then it would look to return spare cash through buybacks as well. The company, which returned E6.74b to shareholders between fiscal 2008 and 2020, largely held back from dividends and buybacks during the Covid-19 pandemic. The shares have risen 32% since the new policy was announced, with O’Leary saying in January that the company would consider buybacks on a case-by-case basis. <br/>
Swedish-based operator West Atlantic has modified the ‘before take-off’ checklist for its Boeing 737s after an incident in which an aircraft departed with an incorrect configuration. The 737-300 freighter had been flying from Aberdeen to East Midlands on 6 March last year. Its first officer, who was flying, had recently converted to 737s having previously flown ATR 72 turboprops. On the ATR, selecting 15° take-off flap involves moving the flap lever a single detent from the flaps-up position. For the 737 departure the captain called for ‘flap 5’ and the first officer confirmed this had been completed. The captain recalled seeing a cockpit indicator light which showed the flap lever was no longer in the zero position. But the flaps had actually been extended to the ‘flap 1’ position, a single detent from flaps-up. “It is possible the [first officer] reverted to the motor memory of selecting one flap detent, which was correct on the ATR 72 he had recently flown,” says the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch. Snowfall during taxiing reduced visibility and the inquiry says the conditions introduced “several distractions” to the cockpit. These included an adverse-weather supplementary procedure which changed the point at which the flaps were set during departure preparations. The incorrect flap setting remained undetected before the aircraft commenced its take-off roll from runway 34. Although the performance calculation for a ‘flap 1’ take-off would have generated speeds similar to those for the intended ‘flap 5’ departure, the inquiry points out that under different circumstances – such as increased weight or reduced runway length – the aircraft could have been exposed to greater risk. Story has details.<br/>
South Sudanese media are reporting that a Boeing MD-82 has been substantially damaged during a landing accident at the country’s northern Malakal airport on 9 February. Images circulating on social media show the MD-82, in the livery of Kenyan operator African Express Airways, came to rest on the runway having suffered a landing-gear collapse. The photographs also indicate tyre marks in the rough ground before the runway, suggesting the aircraft might have landed short. They identify the twinjet as 5Y-AXL, which was originally delivered to Alitalia in 1985. Malakal has a single runway designated 04/22. South Sudanese outlet Eye Radio says the accident occurred at 08:33 and that the aircraft was transporting returnee Upper Nile state passengers, under a government programme. It quotes an acting regional governor as saying that the aircraft was damaged in the “rough landing” but that none of the occupants was injured. Weather conditions at the time appear to have been good, according to the photographs.<br/>
About 100 Russians flew to North Korea on Friday for a private tour, becoming the first foreign group to visit the reclusive state following the COVID-19 pandemic in a landmark trip summed up by the Russian embassy as "Pyongyang opens its door." North Korea shuttered its borders with some of the tightest restrictions during the pandemic, in one incident shooting dead a South Korean who floated unauthorized into its waters. An Air Koryo flight, operated by North Korea with an ageing fleet of mostly Russian-made aircraft, carried the 100 visitors to the Pyongyang international airport, the Russian embassy said in a Facebook post on Friday. The group included people in the tourism business and "travellers from literally all parts of Russia from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok" who will spend four days taking in sights in the North including a major ski resort, it said. "We will look forward to new encounters with tourists from Russia!" it said. The ski resort it mentioned was a high-profile development project spearheaded by North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un after he took power in 2011. South Korea's Yonhap news agency earlier cited Russia's Tass news agency as saying that 97 Russians, including teen ski athletes, departed from Russia's far eastern city of Vladivostok on the first group tour to North Korea since the pandemic.<br/>
ANA Holdings on Friday launched its third airline brand, AirJapan, a medium-haul low-cost carrier targeting the growing number of tourists from other Asian countries including Thailand. The parent of All Nippon Airways said AirJapan would operate six round-trip flights per week between Narita airport near Tokyo and Bangkok using Boeing 787-8 aircraft. The first flight departed on Friday afternoon. The aircraft in an all-economy layout offers the same legroom as full-service carrier flights, according to ANA. “The seats are the brand’s biggest appeal. We hope our customers enjoy comfortable flights to Bangkok,” AirJapan president Hideki Mineguchi said at a ceremony at Narita airport. The new airline is planning to start flights between Narita and Incheon airport near Seoul on Feb 22 and between the Japanese airport and Singapore on April 26. One-way tickets to Bangkok start at ¥15,500 yen (3,725 baht), with tickets to Incheon and Singapore expected to start at around ¥8,000 and ¥17,500, respectively. In-flight meals, available for a fee, include popular Japanese dishes, such as sushi and oyakodon chicken and egg rice bowls.<br/>
Japanese carrier Skymark Airlines has seen strong profit and revenue growth in the first nine months of its 2023 financial year. For the three quarters ended 31 December 2023, Skymark saw operating profits rise 55% year on year to Y5.2b ($34.8m). Revenues were also up, rising 25% year on year to Y78.2b, with net profits nearly tripling to Y4.2b. The carrier indicates that its recovery is largely due to the “normalisation of economic and social activities” following the coronavirus pandemic. During the period, Skymark’s capacity, measured in ASKs, rose 1.9% while revenue passenger kilometres grew 15.5%. The number of passengers carried grew 15.8% to 6m. As of 31 December, Skymark operated 29 Boeing 737-800s, the same number as a year earlier. Looking forward, Skymark warns that the outlook remains uncertain owing to the weakening Japanese Yen, rising energy prices, and a tense global geopolitical environment. Still, it expects travel demand to Japan to remain strong, helped by a weaker currency.<br/>
Bangladeshi carrier US-Bangla Airlines has shown off its first Airbus A330, having disclosed last year that it would be stepping up to widebody operations. The initial twinjet, an A330-300 powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 700 engines, was flown from Guangzhou in China to the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on 9 February. It was originally delivered to Cebu Pacific in 2013 before being transferred to wet-lease specialist Hi Fly’s Maltese division. The aircraft still carries its Maltese registration, 9H-POP, which reflected plans to operate for UK start-up Flypop. Although it was painted in Flypop livery, and received by the airline in 2021, the aircraft has been repainted in US-Bangla colours. The carrier indicates that it will be locally re-registered as S2-ALA, and describes the jet’s arrival as marking a “new era in the aviation history of Bangladesh”. US-Bangla stated last year that it would be leasing two A330s from Irish-based Avolon, for use on routes to cities in Middle Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain. The airline currently uses Boeing 737s and turboprops.<br/>