AVIATION NEWS BRIEFS

*The Montana Essential Air Service Task Force selected GULFSTREAM INTERNATIONAL AIRLINES of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to serve 7 Eastern Montana cities, rather than renew the contract with GREAT LAKES AIRLINES of Cheyenne, Wyoming. The recommendation now goes to the US DOT, which has always abided by the Task Force decisions, is expected to rule within a week. If approved, beginning on May 1, Gulfstream will fly to Lewistown, Havre, Glendive, Wolf Point, Glasgow, Sidney and Miles City, as Great Lakes did. Gulfstream willl use Billings as a hub, while Great Lakes had been using Denver as its hub. In a statement, Gulfstream said the carrier will have 3 planes to service Montana, plus 1 spare. The federal government heavily subsidizes EAS flights to cities that don’t have enough business to attract commercial air service. BIG SKY AIRLINES, which flew to Eastern Montana for nearly 3 decades, went out of business in March 2008. Commercial air service didn’t resume for nearly a year until Great Lakes started flying the routes in early 2009.

*Brazilian airframer EMBRAER reported yesterday that it delivered 246 jets in 2010, including 92 in the 4th quarter. The full year's deliveries were made up of 100 commercial aircraft, 144 executive jets and 2 defence models. Embraer's firm order backlog at the end of the year was worth US$15.6bn, which is 2% higher than at the end of the 3rd quarter.

*Airbus said they remain confident that Airbus Military's A400M transport will gain certification by the end of the year, despite reports in the German media that the country's parliament may delay a crucial funding decision. The airframer is hoping that the German government will approve the funding, which was agreed to in November, this week. Airbus said that the start of series production "is imminent" and that civil certification will take place before the end of the year.

*Spanish Airports have returned to the control of AENA, the Spanish Airports Authority, after the State of Alarm was lifted this past weekend. It was introduced following the strike action taken by air traffic controllers on December 4, putting the Airports under military control. It was the 1st time the measure had been used in democratic Spain.

*JAPAN AIR LINES, which hopes to complete bankruptcy proceedings by the end of March, has decided to revive its former crane logo to signal a fresh start. The logo depicting a Japanese red-crowned crane in red and white with its wings forming a circular shape will be slightly updated for its reintroduction, with the "JAL" text element to be rendered in a new typeface. JAL first used the logo in 1954, the year after it began flying on international routes, to add a Japanese touch to marketing materials. The company registered the logo as a trademark in 1959 and officially adopted it as the company emblem, branding JAL aircraft with the crane. The carrier dropped the logo, pictured above in Honolulu, in 2008.

*JETSTAR ASIA announced plans to begin Singapore-Hangzhou services in March. The carrier will begin with a 3x weekly service on March 22 and increase that to 4x weekly by March 27. An Airbus A320 will be used on the route. Hangzhou will become Jetstar's 7th destination in the Greater China region. From Singapore's Changi Airport, Jetstar serves Haikou, Shantou and Guilin in mainland China. It also has flights to Hong Kong, Taipei and Macau.

*AMERICAN AIRLINES Flight 930 was searched upon arrival in Miami, Florida, yesterday, January 17, after a "suspicious item" was identified in its cargo hold. According to media reports, after arriving from Sao Paulo, Brazil, at 8:46am, the aircraft parked at the gate, pictured above, and in the process of unloading the cargo, a suspicious item was identified. The bomb squad was dispatched and the item in question was declared safe at 10:37am. The item was later identified as an empty holder for detonators used in construction or oil drilling. The carrier said it would review how and why the item was shipped from Brazil.

*A laser was flashed into the cockpit of a chartered Boeing 767 carrying the Seattle Seahawks football team as it approached Sea-Tac Airport, on Sunday, January 16. The 767, enroute from Chicago, was about 2 miles from the Sea-Tac Airport when the incident occurred. The Pilots reported no vision problems during the incident and the aircraft landed without incident. An investigation has been opened.

*An ALBERTA AIR AMBULANCE Beechcraft B200 Super King Air, being operated on a medivac flight from Slave Lake by CAN-WEST AIR, slid off the runway upon landing in snowfall in Edmonton, AB, Canada, on Sunday, January 16. The 3 passengers and 2 Pilots onboard were taken to the Royal Alexandra Hospital as a precaution, with a report 1 of those onboard suffered minor injuries. The King Air, pictured above, suffered damage to its right propeller and tires. An investigation has been opened.

*A BMI BABY airliner sparked a security alert when it lost contact with air traffic control as it neared Manchester, England, on Sunday, January 16. The aircraft, enroute from Prague, went silent for an unspecified amount of time. RAF Typhoon fighter jets were scrambled, however by the time they arrived at the side of the BMI Baby aircraft, the crew had once again established contact with ATC. The aircraft, type not identified. is undergoing inspection and the incident is under investigation.

*DELTA AIRLINES Flight 173, a Boeing 747, had to make an emergency diversion to Detroit, Michigan, on Saturday, January 15. While inflight at 30000 feet, near Churchill, MB, Canada, the crew reported an engine malfunction and requested diversion to Minneapolis/St Paul, Minnesota. While enroute at 27000 feet to MSP, and near Sioux Lookout, ON, Canada, the crew declared an emergency. The 747 was then diverted to Detroit, where it safely landed and was removed from service for repair.

*AMERICAN AIRLINES Flight 694, a MD83, had to make an emergency return to Calgary, AB, Canada, on Saturday, January 1. The incident was just made public yesterday. The crew declared an emergency on their initial climb, when after retracting the landing gear, they noted the right hand hydraulic pressure and quantity indication drop to zero. In a statement, NAV Canada said a trail of hydraulic fluid was found from the gate the MD83 departed from, to taxiway G and F and then on the takeoff runway. Upon return to Calgary, the aircraft became disabled on the runway and had to be towed. The aircraft underwent major repairs and has returned to service.