AVIATION NEWS BRIEFS

*HAWAIIAN AIRLINES inaugural flight from Seoul's Incheon International Airport to Honolulu was delayed more than 8 hours yesterday by mechanical problems with the Boeing 767-300ER. This was the return flight of Hawaiian's inaugural flight from Honolulu to South Korea, which left on Wednesday. Among those onboard the flight from Seoul was the President and CEO of Hawaiian. The carrier has scheduled 4 weekly flights in each direction with a Boeing 767. Hawaiian will transistion to A330 service on the route as new aircraft arrive.

*DELTA AIRLINES has canceled plans to launch a new route from Atlanta to Luanda, Angola next week, due to weak customer demand. A Delta spokesman said the Airline is contacting customers to rebook them on connecting service through Paris on joint venture partner AIR FRANCE. The spokesman added: "We hope to begin Luanda service in the future when demand for this route improves". Delta first announced its plans to fly to Luanda in 2008, but had been waiting for government approvals until last year. The new route was to go from Atlanta to Dakar, Senegal, then onto Luanda 3 times a week with 243-seat Airbus 330-200 aircraft.

*CARGOITALIA has announced that it will begin service to Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport as a new international all-cargo carrier. According to Airport officials, the addition of Cargoitalia service will expand Atlanta's global reach. A specific start date for service has not yet been announced.

*The Calgary Airport Authority wants answers after an 82 year old woman complained of a nightmarish security check at the Calgary International Airport. The woman, who lost a breast to cancer, said she was asked by security last week if she was carrying any banned liquids, but didn’t think she had to reveal she’d had a mastectomy. When an Airport scanner detected her gel prosthesis, she said security staff felt she’d misled them and they subjected her to a patdown where she was touched “everywhere," and then made to remove the gel prosthesis. The woman said the worst part was being accused of lying to security. She called the experience humiliating and said she plans to seek an apology. The director of communications with the Calgary Airport Authority said the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority will investigate.

*Colombian start-up LA NUEVA AEROLINA (LNA)expects to select an aircraft type within the next few weeks at is works towards launching services in October. LNA, headed by an ex-AVIANCA chief executive, secured an initial batch of domestic traffic rights from Colombian authorities last August. The company has since been working on the early phases of the certification process, finalising a business plan and securing capital from additional private investors. LNA is now reviewing proposals from leasing companies for various members of the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 families, including 737 Classic and NG models. LNA plans to launch with 3 aircraft operating on 6 domestic trunk routes connecting its Bogota hub with Barranquilla, Bucaramanga, Cali, Cartagena, Medellin and Santa Marta

*AIR GREENLAND will resume service today after being grounded for the past week to labor issues. The carrier reached new agreements yesterday with its Pilots and Flight Attendants. The new contracts still need to ratified by January 21 however approval is expected from all involved parties.

*THAI AIRWAYS has decided to buy 37 new aircraft to replace 46 ageing aircraft and expand routes as part of its strategic plans for 2011-2017. The news was announced yesterday along with the carrier's decision to award employees at 7% pay raise. After the planned purchase is complete, the carrier will have a fleet of 105 aircraft. Thai executives are now mapping out details of the specifications they require for the new aircraft. The entire process is expected to be completed next month. According to media reports, both Airbus and Boeing gave proposals to Thai last month.

*AIR CANADA has issued a brief update on the incident onboard a Boeing 767 while overhead the Atlantic, yesterday, January 14. Flight 878, enroute to Zurich, Switzerland, encountered severe turbulence at 35000 feet, about 3 hours prior to its scheduled arrival in Zurich. 10 passengers and 2 Flight Attendants suffered minor injuries in the turbulence. Upon arrival in Zurich, 7 people were sent to hospital for evaluation and 5 others were treated and released on scene. According to Air Canada, the clear air turbulence caused the 767 to deviate from its assigned flight levels by +/-300 feet. The carrier also said that the injuries received were minor and were mostly bruises and small cuts. The incident is under investigation.

*India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has re-classified a November 10, 2009 incident involving a KINGFISHER ATR72 as an accident. The ATR was flying from Bhavnagar to Mumbai with 36 passengers and crew onboard, when it skidded off the runway as it landed in Mumbai. No one onboard was injured, however the ATR suffered substantial damages and had to be written off. According to DGCA an accident is one where “any person suffers death or serious injury” or the “aircraft receives substantial damage”. However, when the report into the event was released this past November 25, it was classified as an incident caused by Pilot Error and a shortened runway. The report was withdrawn by the DGCA the same day on instructions from the director general and re-released this week with the accident classification. Media reports suggest that the initial classification was a simple error According the Kingfisher, they now face a 5 to 10% hike in insurance premiums due to the re-classification. 2009 was also an accident free year for India, until this re-classification was released.

*The German BFU has released its Final Report into an incident involving a SKY AIRLINES Boeing 737 at Stuttgart, Germany, on April 23, 2005. Flight 520 was on Domestic Service on behalf of AIR MEMPHIS from Stuttgart to Dusseldorf, with 89 passengers and 7 crew members onboard. During the initial acceleration down runway 25, the aircraft pitched up and the tail struck the runway, prompting the Captain to reject takeoff at low speed. During deceleration, the aircraft pitched down onto its nose gear and rolled out without incident. A Flight Attendant suffered minor injuries and the 737 suffered substantial damages. The BFU said the cause of the incident was: "The extreme aft position of the Center of Gravity, caused by the remaining passengers and their luggage, to be all located in the rear of the aircraft". The BFU Report notes the 737 had arrived in Stuttgart from Hurghada, Egypt, with 189 passengers. 100 passengers deplaned and 89 were continuing on to Dusseldorf. The remaining passengers were all seated in the rear of the 737 and were not reseated. A F/A noted the unusual seating assignments and asked the Captain for advice. The Captain saw no problem with the seating and the aircraft soon moved to runway 25 for departure. The full Report can be found the BFU website.

*Several crew members onboard an AIR CANADA airliner fell ill after before departure from Calgary, AB, Canada, yesterday, January 14. According to media reports, the crew was preparing the aircraft for departure to Frankfurt, Germany, when fumes from the cockpit made several crew members ill. Emergency Services responded and sent 1 crew member to hospital for evaluation. All other crew members were treated and released on the scene. The aircraft, pictured above, was removed from service for inspection. The incident is under investigation.

*SOUTHWEST AIRLINES Flight 397, a Boeing 737, suffered a bird strike while on its initial climb out of Sacramento, California, on Thursday, January 13. The crew leveled off at 3000 feet and returned to Sacramento, safely landing 10 minutes later. According to the FAA, the aircraft suffered minor damage.

*AMERICAN AIRLINES Flight 954, a Boeing 757, suffered a bird strike on its initial climb out of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on Thursday, January 13. The bird impacted the right wing of the 757 and became embedded in the slats between the wing root and the engine mount, as seen in passenger photo above. The crew decided to continue on to Miami, Florida, where they safely landed with Emergency Services on standby. The aircraft was removed from service for a damage assessment and inspection.

*A stowaway fell to his death from an AIRBLUE aircraft moments after takeoff from Lahore, Pakistan, on Thursday, January 13. According to media reports, the AirBlue aircraft departed Lahore at 9:18pm, bound for Dubai, UAE, when the 22 year old man fell from the airliner that was at estimated 250 feet. Local residents heard a loud bang and found the body on a roof of a residential apartment building. Authorities, who are investigating, believe the man fell from the landing gear storage area as it was being retracted.