Lufthansa and other airlines cancelled flights on Wednesday after a system failure hit the operator of Frankfurt airport, Germany’s largest hub. Airport operator Fraport said a database system used by airlines to deploy staff went down from around 0100 to 1130 GMT on Wednesday. “The problem is now solved,” the spokesman said. In total 70 flights of a planned 1,560 were cancelled, including 23 cancellations at Frankfurt’s main airline, Lufthansa. In total 70 flights of a planned 1,560 were canceled, including 23 cancellations at Frankfurt’s main airline, Lufthansa. Lufthansa said it had to reduce the number of arrivals at the airport which meant passengers also missed connecting flights and flights were delayed as a result. “All this had to be carried out manually during the failure,” Lufthansa said, adding that it had to ask flight crews to use radios or telephones instead.<br/>
general
Airlines need to speed the inspection of older jet engine fan blades like the one that led to a passenger death after it broke loose last month on a Southwest flight, US regulators said Wednesday. The FAA issued a new directive to operators of the CFM56-7B engine, one of the most popular makes in the world, based on findings in the investigation and a review by the manufacturer, according to a notice set to be published in the Federal Register Thursday. “The FAA is acting to ensure an extra measure of safety,” the agency said. A woman was partially sucked though a window on April 17 when a fan blade on a CFM56-7B engine broke loose, shredding the cover of the front of the engine and spraying metal parts into the aircraft. A buckle on the engine inlet struck and broke the window, causing the cabin to rapidly depressurize, according to the NTSB. A crack on the blade had gradually grown until it fractured, according to preliminary findings in the NTSB investigation. The new order, which replaces one issued earlier this month, requires airlines to inspect the the fan blades with the highest risk of failure by June 30, using guidance from engine-maker CFM International Inc. The company is a joint venture between General Electric Co. and France’s Safran SA. The latest order is designed to make sure the highest priority inspections occur first, according to an emailed statement from CFM.<br/>
Europe's safety authority is cautioning operators that dark liveries can potentially result in parking collisions because visual-docking systems might not be able to recognise the manoeuvring aircraft. The European Aviation Safety Agency has issued a bulletin advising airport operators that advanced docking and guidance systems could fail to identify an arriving aircraft. Its advisory follows a recent probe into a collision in which a parking aircraft's engine struck the passenger airbridge. The carrier involved in the collision – not named by EASA – had encountered similar problems owing the "dark colour" of the aircraft, says the authority, and that such occurrences had happened elsewhere in the world. EASA says these events appear to involve more than one type of visual docking-guidance system. Mitigating operational procedures have been put in place at some locations. "However, there have been cases, where the personnel involved in the docking procedure were not always informed of the already-established mitigating measures," says EASA.<br/>
Regulators are making it easier for US airlines to limit the growing number of dogs and other animals being brought onto flights by passengers saying they are for emotional or psychological support. The DoT Wednesday said it won’t penalize airlines if they refuse to let passengers take aboard more than one support animal, demand assurance that a passenger has a disability or require proof of an animal’s vaccination and training. The agency also will allow airlines to impose “reasonable restrictions” on the movement of emotional-support animals in a plane’s cabin. Service animals including seeing-eye dogs won’t be restricted under the proposed changes. “The department has heard from the transportation industry, as well as individuals with disabilities, that the current regulation could be improved to ensure nondiscriminatory access for individuals with disabilities, while simultaneously preventing instances of fraud and ensuring consistency with other federal regulations,” the agency said. The DOT’s actions come as the three largest US carriers have altered their policies on animals since the start of this year in reaction to soaring numbers of passengers claiming they needed them for provide emotional support. <br/>
UK air traffic management company NATS will trial real-time tracking technology over the busy North Atlantic to give more flexibility in flight routes and to handle rising traffic, it said after taking a stake in tracking technology company Aireon. The Aireon space-based system for real-time tracking of aircraft fills a gap in the industry highlighted by the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which went missing on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in March 2014 and which still hasn’t been found. Instead of sending tracking signals to ground stations - which means that aircraft locations can be lost over oceans or remote areas - Aireon’s system will beam them to satellites providing global coverage. It uses existing data from planes so does not require any modifications to aircraft. NATS has taken a 10% stake in Aireon for $69m, it said on Wednesday, and plans to trial the technology from 2019. Over the North Atlantic, planes currently follow strict flight corridors and separation limits to ensure they remain at a safe distance from each other in an area where aircraft can’t currently be tracked in real time. NATS said that real-time tracking technology would allow them to handle growing flight volumes and offer airlines fuel-saving routes. Fuel is one of the biggest costs for airlines.<br/>
India’s airlines have enjoyed their most successful few years as passenger numbers, revenues and profits have surged in an era of growing prosperity and cheap oil. But as oil prices rise, clouds are gathering. The country’s listed aviation companies lost altitude this month following news that quarterly profits at IndiGo, India’s largest private airline, had slumped 73%. Since that news broke at the start of the month, Interglobe Aviation, IndiGo’s parent, and its two listed rivals Jet and SpiceJet have collectively lost some $1.8b in equity value. Indian carriers have until recently been some of the fastest-growing in the world, with passenger numbers rising 24% in the past year. As a result, they have emerged as key buyers for the likes of Boeing and Airbus, with more than 900 aircraft on order. Boeing forecasts India will account for 5% of its orders until 2036, while Airbus says it plans to sell one aircraft a week to India for the next 10 years. But analysts question whether these airlines, which have benefited as millions of Indians have abandoned trains for air travel, can continue to thrive with the price of oil above $75 a barrel. “It is clear looking at IndiGo’s earnings this quarter that the dent caused by higher oil prices is going to be significant,” said Madhukar Ladha, an analyst at HDFC Securities. Other global aviation companies are also feeling the squeeze of higher oil prices but India’s airlines have always particularly suffered when costs are high because their customers are highly price sensitive. <br/>
A funny thing happened to an older generation of Boeing 747 jumbo jets on their way to dusty oblivion in desert parking lots. Instead of being scrapped, the humpbacked planes are back in demand as workhorses of global shipping. Booming trade is stoking the need for big, long-range jets to haul time-sensitive goods, from iPhones made in China to fresh flowers grown in Latin America. Interest in Boeing’s 747-400 freighter family was already rebounding last year, even as Delta and United Continental hosted nostalgic farewell tours to mark the end of US passenger service on the four-engine behemoth nicknamed the “Queen of the Skies.” With Boeing’s factory-fresh models sold out through 2021, cargo carriers are snapping up jumbo freighters that were built from 1993 to 2009—if they can find them. “It’s tightened up, that’s for sure,” said William Flynn, CEO of Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc., the world’s largest operator of jumbo freighters. The lessor is in the process of adding six 747-400 freighters to its fleet. “There’s just a finite number of aircraft,” he said. Demand is strongest for used 747s originally built as freighters, since they have hinged noses that flip open to load oversize cargo such as oil-drilling equipment. Lease rates have rebounded for the aircraft, while the number of stored models has shrunk to the point where almost every airworthy plane is spoken for, according to George Dimitroff, head of valuations for Flight Ascend Consultancy.<br/>