Good day all
It’s that time of year again, when we bid farewell to all the lucky guys and girls that are attending Oshkosh, I will be very dishonest if I say I am not Green with envy, hopefully I will be joining you guys next year.
Last year, EAA AirVenture Oshkosh attracted a record 590,000 people and had a $170 million impact on surrounding counties. The annual fly-in convention of the Experimental Aircraft Association turns Wittman Regional Airport into the busiest airport in the world, with almost 3,000 show planes on the grounds.
This year's AirVenture officially runs Monday, July 23, through Sunday, July 29.
The Farnborough International Airshow is well on its way and reports from the UK indicate that it is one for the books.
To all the unfortunate people that will be staying behind there is still lots for us to do, Krugersdorp Flying Club will be hosting their annual Airfield Festival and Spot landing competition on Saturday 21 July and as in past years it promises to be a great event.
Skytrax's World Airline Awards
Singapore Airlines has been named 2018's World's Best Airline in Skytrax's World Airline Awards. Not only that, but it also snatched the top spot in a couple of other categories such as the World's Best First Class, Best Airline in Asia, and Best First Class Airline Seat, among others.
The awards are based on surveys of more than 20 million travellers, who rated more than 335 airlines between August 2017 and May 2018.
“Singapore Airlines is honoured to be named ‘World’s Best Airline’ in the Skytrax awards, and I dedicate it to the 26,000 Sia group employees who focus every day on delivering the world’s best travel experience to our customers,” said Sia CEO, Goh Choon Phong.
Skytrax CEO Edward Plaisted added: “We congratulate Singapore Airlines on this fabulous achievement, being voted the World's Best Airline by customers for the fourth time in the history of the award. A key 'wow' factor for customers is consistency and this proved to a real asset for Singapore Airlines which scored highly across both product and service. I am sure it will also take great pride in winning the World's Best First Class award, less than one year after it introduced its new first-class suites.”
1 Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines is one of the most respected travel brands around the world. Flying one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world to destinations spanning a network spread over six continents, the Singapore Girl is an internationally-recognisable icon providing the high standards of care and service that customers have come to expect of Singapore Airlines.
2 Qatar Airways
In a relatively short time, Qatar Airways has grown to more than 140 destinations worldwide, offering levels of service excellence that helped the award-winning carrier to become best in the world. Qatar Airways network spans business and leisure destinations across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, North America and South America. Qatar Airways is a member of oneworld global airline alliance.
3 ANA All Nippon Airways
ANA All Nippon Airways is the largest airline in Japan. Founded in 1952, ANA flies to around 80 international routes and over 110 domestic routes. ANA has been a member of Star Alliance since 1999. Its Frequent Flyer Program, ANA Mileage Club, has more than 29 million members. ANA was the launch customer and is the biggest operator of the Boeing 787.
4 Emirates
In 1985, Emirates flew its first routes out of Dubai with just two aircraft, a leased Boeing 737 and an Airbus 300 B4. In the years since taking those first small steps onto the regional travel scene, Emirates have evolved into a globally influential travel and tourism leader known the world over for its commitment to quality. With a fleet of more than 265 aircraft, Emirates currently fly to over 155 destinations in more than 80 countries around the world.
5 EVA Air
EVA Air made its maiden flight on July 1, 1991, and now has a global network that connects Asia and Mainland China to Europe, North America and Oceania and links more than 60 major business and tourist destinations. EVA Air fly to every region of Mainland China and is a Star Alliance member. EVA has kept quality service and continuous improvement as part of daily operations from the start, and launched one of the world’s first premium economy cabins in December 1992.
6 Cathay Pacific Airways
The Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Group offers scheduled passenger and cargo services to over 200 destinations in Asia, North America, Australia, Europe and Africa, using a fleet of close to 200 aircraft. Cathay Pacific is a founder member of the oneworld global alliance and Cathay Dragon is an affiliate member.
7 Lufthansa
Lufthansa is the largest German airline, and when combined with its subsidiaries, it is the largest airline in Europe both in terms of fleet size and passengers carried during 2017. In December 2017, Lufthansa became the first European airline to receive the prestigious Skytrax 5-Star Airline Certification.
8 Hainan Airlines
Hainan Airlines began operations in 1993, and has more than 300 aircraft in operation, composed of Boeing 737’s and 787’s as well as Airbus 330s. It has grown from a small domestic carrier to a global airline, with routes across the world. Hainan Airlines is the fourth largest and biggest independent airline in China. In 2011 Hainan Airlines became the first airline in mainland China to be awarded the prestigious Skytrax 5-Star Airline Certification.
9 Garuda Indonesia
Garuda Indonesia is the flag-carrier of Indonesia and carries more than 25 million passengers annually. Presenting a new level of service excellence in air travel, Garuda Indonesia connects 83 destinations worldwide, including exotic locations in the beautiful archipelago of Indonesia all at once. With more than 600 daily flights and a fleet of 196 aircrafts as at January 2017, Garuda Indonesia proudly serves its passengers with the award-winning distinct service “Garuda Indonesia Experience”, which highlights Indonesia’s warm hospitality and rich diverse culture.
10 Thai Airways
Thai Airways is the flag carrier airline of Thailand, formed in 1988. Thai Airways is a founding member of the Star Alliance. Including its subsidiaries, Thai Airways flies to 84 destinations in 37 countries, using a fleet of over 90 aircraft. The company slogan “Smooth as Silk” is a key brand denominator.
For the full list of winners, go to www.worldairlineawards.com.
UK Government funds Rolls-Royce's all-electric flight research
The UK Government has funded Rolls-Royce to assist with the company's research project known as Accelerating the Electrification of Flight (Accel).
The project, which explores the use of a high power electrical system in a demonstrator aircraft, aims to accelerate the adoption of all-electric propulsion in aviation. Rolls-Royce is working with manufacturing company Yasa and is being supported by Electroflight for the project.
The automobile company is already exploring hybrid-electric propulsion by using a gas turbine engine as a generator to power an electric fan for regional and commercial aircrafts through the E-Fan X demonstrator programme with Airbus and Siemens.
Applications have opened for the Unicef Innovation Fund for Drone Startups, which will provide up to $100,000 in equity-free investment for profit-making tech startups that have potential to benefit humanity through the use of drones...
At the Farnborough International Airshow, Rolls-Royce is also showcasing a hybrid-electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle concept which could be adapted for personal transport, public transport, logistics, and military applications and will take to the skies as soon as the early 2020s.
JetWave makes debut in African skies
According to the Get Connected online service, ExecuJet South Africa has installed Honeywell’s JetWave hardware on Global Express and Challenger 604 aircraft in Johannesburg, delivering access to the Ka-band satellite communications network provided by Inmarsat through its Jet ConneX service.
Honeywell says this gives passengers and flight operators access to reliable, high-speed “Wi-Fi in the sky” that allows easy use of high-bandwidth services such as video streaming, online conferencing, and gaming applications at speeds users are used to achieving at home or in the office.
Warwick Stone, MRO Business Development Manager, ExecuJet South Africa, said: “ExecuJet South Africa is committed to delivering best-in-class aviation services, and we recognise the importance of reliable in-flight connectivity to heighten the passenger experience and modernise flight operations.
“We look forward to continuing to work with Honeywell to provide our customers with the benefits of reliable, global, high-speed, in-flight Wi-Fi.”
ExecuJet South Africa is also among the first to offer “Fly Away” installations of the JetWave hardware on select aircraft platforms.
By offering turnkey installations in fewer than 15 days, aircraft downtime is reduced to install this next-generation connectivity solution and passengers can benefit from increased productivity and seamless in-flight Wi-Fi in the air.
Rudolph Louw, Aerospace Leader – Africa, Honeywell, said: “As Africa’s aviation industry expands, we are welcoming a growing number of business aviation users, and with them comes a greater need for reliable, high-speed in-flight connectivity.
“As an industry leader in Connected Aircraft technologies, our JetWave hardware is designed to significantly upgrade the connectivity onboard these jets, enhancing the experience of passengers, pilots, flight crews and aircraft operators. These installations in South Africa illustrate the truly global nature and reach of our connectivity solution and satellite network.”
Honeywell’s JetWave Satellite Communications terminals provide a seamless, in-flight Ka-band global broadband service that is available worldwide via Inmarsat Jet ConneX.
