Air Canada flight makes emergency landing after passenger attempts to open cabin door

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An Air Canada flight from Jamaica to Toronto was forced to make an emergency stop in Florida yesterday because a passenger attacked the crew with coffee pots and tried to open the cabin door midflight, officials said.

Brandon Michael Courneyea had to be tied down to his seat by crew members and other passengers, investigators said. A federal complaint said crew members contacted the FBI at about 7:30 p.m. when a flight attendant said Courneyea yelled at a few passengers for looking at him.

He then talked about how it would only take one guy to take the plane down and that he wanted to take everyone with him, the complaint said. He grabbed another coffee pot before a flight attendant confronted him, authorities said. When confronted, Courneyea lunged for the rear cabin exit door and began to pull the door lever up to open the door, according to the complaint.

He was then was restrained by crew members and fellow passengers on the aircraft.

The flight landed safely.

Nordic airline Primera orders Boeing 737 MAX planes to fly transatlantic  

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Nordic budget airline Primera Air has agreed to buy eight of Boeing’s new 737 MAX aircraft for more than $950 million at list prices, and has an option to buy an additional four planes.

Primera has said that it wants the new planes because it plans to start offering transatlantic flights. Primera will be ‘the latest low-cost European carrier to do so after Norwegian Air, Eurowings and British Airways ‘LEVEL.’

Air France and KLM are expecting to launch their low-cost airline ‘Boost’ this year. 

ANA 787 with engine problem makes emergency landing in Russia

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 An All Nippon Airways 787-9 made an unscheduled landing in Bratsk, Russia, after cockpit instruments warned pilots of an engine problem. The aircraft, powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines, operated as flight NH209. It was en route from Tokyo Narita to Dusseldorf when the aircraft’s left engine shut down. The aircraft landed safely.

Low-cost airlines blaze trail in race over the Atlantic 

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In the Financial Times Online this week they discuss IAG’s new brand, LEVEL, in a piece analysing the low-cost long-haul market. The journalist notes that since Norwegian started offering services across the Atlantic in 2013, legacy airlines have ‘rushed to protect their large market share’.

Lufthansa is expanding its Eurowings subsiduary and Air France-KLM is launching a new airline called Boost.

Analysis by Barclays estimates that Norwegian is currently making a margin of two to three per cent on transatlantic flights, compared to 15 to 20 per cent in the legacy model. However, they predict that the introduction of new generation narrow-body aircraft will be able to significantly reduce the costs, and could make another 60 point–to–point routes viable.

The journalist adds that IAG has signalled interest in the new A321LR, with an additional 500-mile range. The aircraft would be used by Aer Lingus on longer-haul routes. 

easyJet financial results and A321neo orders

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easyJet’s stock has dropped more than five per cent this morning after the airline reported a higher than expected loss for the first six months of last year.

CEO Carolyn McCall said the first half loss was in line with the market, noting the movement of Easter into the second half.

Alex Paterson at Investec noted the results were ‘a bit worse than expected with a headline loss before tax of £212m compared to our forecast of a loss of £167m and consensus loss of £195m’. The revenue for the first half of the year was also ‘slightly lower’ than he expected due to a greater decline in revenue per seat.  

easy jet has announced that they are introducing larger aircraft into its fleet with the conversion of an existing order of A320neo aircraft into A321neo. The larger A321neo will have a configuration of 235 seats in contrast with the A320neos’ 186 seats. The first delivery is expected in Summer 2018.

United’s cockpit door security codes revealed by flight attendant 

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United Airlines sent an alert to pilots after a member of cabin crew mistakenly posted information that included flight deck door access codes on a public website. Flight crew were asked to visually confirm the identity of anyone trying to access the cockpit until the issue was resolved. The codes have now been changed. A spokesperson for the airline said: “The safety of our customers and crews is our top priority. United utilises a number of measures to keep our flight decks secure beyond door-access information.”

Since 9/11 it is a requirement to keep flight deck doors locked just prior to engine start until engines have been shutdown. Most airlines have keypad systems to allow entry into the flight deck if the flight crew become incapacitated, however flight crew will always have the option to deny access.

Spirit Airlines pilot dispute causes cancellations and airport violence 

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Flight cancellations that sparked a brawl in Spirit Airlines’ Florida terminal have their roots in a dispute between the budget airline and its pilot union. Nine flights out of Fort Lauderdale International Airport were cancelled when pilots failed to show up to fly the planes on May 9. Some pilots called in sick, while others declined to pick up extra shifts. The cancellations led to a number of scuffles between airline employees and passengers.

Emirates announces financial results

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Emirates Group has posted its annual report, with profits down 70 per cent to $670 million. The group said that its 29th consecutive year of profit was achieved ‘despite a turbulent year for aviation and travel’. 

Emirates reported a record 56.1 million passengers over the year (up eight per cent) – load factor was 75.1 per cent (down from 76.5 per cent the previous year), although the carrier said that this was ‘relative to the strong 10 per cent increase in seat capacity by Available Seat Kilometres, and also in part due to lingering economic uncertainty and strong competition in many markets’.

The group also said that ‘the relentless rise of the US dollar against currencies in most of Emirates’ key markets had an $572 million impact on airline revenue, and to the airline’s bottom line’. 

Boeing temporarily suspends test flights for 737 Max

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Boeing has suspended flight tests of its new 737 Max jetliner because of engine problems, but it still planned to deliver the first plane to its launch customer this month. The company announced a temporary suspension of flights, just days before the first of the single-aisle jets was due to be flown to Malaysia where it will be operated by a unit of Lion Air, the launch operator. Boeing has secured 3,700 orders for the 737 Max, powered by engines made by the CFM joint venture between General Electric Co. and Safran SA. 

Mike Langley Foundation Launched

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The Kura Aviation board have launched the Mike Langley foundation. It aims to support aspiring pilots who don’t have the financial means to complete their flight training.

“The Mike Langley Foundation is a charitable trust that aims to help those with a dream to become a commercial airline pilot, those with the passion to succeed but without the financial means. Through funding initiatives and scholarships, we aim to widen access to the aviation profession.

The Foundation was launched by Kura Aviation, the industry’s first Community Interest Company, of which Mike was a consultant and Chair of the Advisory Board.

Mike’s dream was to fly, and he achieved it. His ambition was to provide the very best flight training to pilots and airlines across the globe, and he succeeded. He was determined to make to make a difference and through experience and wisdom, he certainly did that. The extraordinary level of respect he gained in doing has resulted in the aviation industry coming together and creating The Mike Langley Foundation.

Mike’s view was that it was never too late to make a difference. So true to those words, let us work together and create a new chapter in aviation training.”

Check out their website: https://mikelangleyfoundation.org/