Airbus Updates No.142

Airbus plans to build £70m Bristol aerospace park

Click to play

The A400M makes its maiden flight to Airbus at Filton, Bristol on Thursday

Airbus has announced plans to build a £70m office facility at its Filton plant near Bristol.

The European company's plan for the aerospace business park will bring together 2,500 Airbus engineering and design employees in one area.

UK teams make the wings of Airbus aircraft, this includes the world's largest passenger plane.
Subject to planning permission being obtained, work on the 12-acre site could start in early 2012.

Mark Barclay, head of centre of excellence wing and pylon at Airbus, said that the plans were a firm commitment to the area, ensuring Filton remains at the centre of excellence for aerospace.

"This will enhance the working environment for our employees, while significantly enhancing
the Filton landscape." he added

A UK team designed and made the wings of the military transport aircraft, the Airbus A400M, which made its maiden flight at Filton on Thursday.

The plane has been ordered by the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain and Turkey.
Business Secretary Vince Cable visited Filton earlier, where he expressed his delight about the announcement about the new £70m facility.

"This is great news for Airbus, the West Country and the UK economy. Aerospace is a UK success that we should be very proud of," he said.

"We are number one in Europe and number two in the world with a 17% global market share."

Airbus Updates No.141

Aegean to replace Olympic's flights

Friday, March 25, 2011

Rob Gill

Aegean Airlines is to increase its UK services with extra flights from Heathrow to Athens from Sunday.

The move comes two weeks after Olympic Air decided to cancel all of its UK services from the same date.

The two airlines had planned to merge but the move has been blocked by the European Union’s Competition Commission, although the companies intend to appeal the decision.

Aegean will launch a daily service from Heathrow to Larnaca in Cyprus. It will also increase its daily flights to Athens from two to four.

The airline, which is part of the Star Alliance, also plans to expand in France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Cyprus and Russia.

The new Heathrow routes will use Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft with 168 and 195 seats.

Both will have business and economy cabins.

Olympic Air is cancelling its UK services to concentrate on south-eastern Europe. It currently flies from Heathrow to Athens and Gatwick to Thessaloniki, but will drop these routes from Sunday.

Olympic is also cutting routes from Vienna, Brussels and Paris but will maintain or expand services to Amsterdam, Belgrade, Bucharest, Cairo, Istanbul, Larnaca, Sofia and Tirana. The airline will also add more domestic routes.

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Airbus Updates No.140

Incident: Wizzair A320 near Gdansk on Mar 24th 2011, unruly passenger

By Simon Hradecky, created Friday, Mar 25th 2011 14:55Z, last updated Friday, Mar 25th 2011 14:55Z A Wizzair Airbus A320-200, registration HA-LWA performing flight W6-671 from Riga (Latvia) to London Luton,EN (UK), was enroute at FL360 about 100nm north of Gdansk (Poland) above the Baltic Sea when the crew decided to divert to Gdansk due to an unruly drunk and aggressive male passenger (31) on board. The airplane landed safely on Gdansk's runway 29 about 20 minutes later. After landing the unruly also attacked arriving Polish border patrol officers, so the officers handcuffed the man and arrested him. The airplane reached Luton with a delay of 100 minutes. Polish Border Patrol reported that the man showed an intoxication level of 2 per mille and was taken to a drying-out cell. The following morning he was released after paying a fine of 500 Zloty (approx 125 Euros), in addition he may face compensation claims by the airline.

Incident: TAM A319 at Rio de Janeiro on Mar 26th 2011, rejected takeoff

By Simon Hradecky, created Saturday, Mar 26th 2011 15:50Z, last updated Saturday, Mar 26th 2011 15:50Z A TAM Linhas Aereas Airbus A319-100, registration PT-TMA performing flight JJ-3269 from Rio de Janeiro Galeao,RJ to Curitiba,PR (Brazil), rejected takeoff from Rio de Janeiro's International Airport at high speed after an engine (V2524) ingested a bird. The airplane slowed safely. The flight was cancelled, the passenger were rebooked on later flights.

Airbus Updates No.139

Airbus Updates No.138

Airbus A319

-112

1706

N706MX

Boullioun Avn Svces

ferried 25mar11 VCV-TLC prior delivery to ?

ex D-AVYQ

Airbus A319	-112	3533		D-AHHA	Hamburg Airways	ferried 26mar11 HAM-SXF to apply new decals	ex D-AHIJ
Airbus A319	-112	3533		D-AHHA	Hamburg Airways	seen re-regd at HAM 22mar11, still in Hamburg Int´l cs	ex D-AHIJ
Airbus A319	-112	3560		D-AHIK	Hamburg Airways	delivery 25mar11 SNN-HAM, Hamburg Int´l anniversary cs	ex D-AVWQ
Airbus A320	-212	187		F-GFKS	Air France	at TLS 24mar11 after paint into SkyTeam cs

Airbus A320	-214	2104		EC-JFH	Vueling	positioned 26mar11 MAD-BCN, leased from Iberia	ex F-WWBE
Airbus A320	-232	2157		EI-ERH	Avia Nova	seen at SNN 24mar11 being painted	ex G-TTOJ
Airbus A320	-214	2685		4K-AZ83	AZAL Azerbaijan Airlines	at DUB 26mar11 in full cs, dual reg, "Julfa", prior delivery	ex D-ABDD

Airbus A320

-214

4634

EI-DVM

Aer Lingus

to be in svc 27mar11 DUB-STR-DUB

ex F-WWDV

Airbus A321	-231	1670		HL7712	Asiana	delivery 26mar11 SNN-ESB	ex M-ABDM
Airbus A321	-231	3525		TC-JRK	Turkish Airlines	at DUS 24mar11 back in standard cs, ex 50 years to Germany cs	ex D-AVZY
Airbus A321	-231	4638		B-6753	China Eastern	delivery 23mar XFW-OVB	ex D-AZAT
Airbus A330	-343	1037		HS-TEQ	Thai International	delivery 25mar11 HAM-BKK after cabin config	ex F-WWYA
Airbus A330	-343	1201		G-VKSS	Virgin Atlantic	ferried 26mar11 ZRH-LGE after pre-in svc fittings	ex F-WWKU

Airbus Updates No.137

Accident: UPS A306 at Albuquerque on Mar 22nd 2011, hard landing

By Simon Hradecky, created Thursday, Mar 24th 2011 15:46Z, last updated Thursday, Mar 24th 2011 15:47Z A UPS United Parcel Service Airbus A300-600, registration N173UP performing flight 5X-797 from El Paso,TX to Albuquerque,NM (USA) with 2 crew, touched down very hard while landing on Albuquerque's runway 26 at 20:24L (02:24Z Mar 23rd). The crew initiated a go-around, tower ordered a go-around, the airplane was vectored for another approach this time to runway 03. The aircraft landed without further incident about 10 minutes later and vacated the runway. No injuries occurred. The FAA reported that post flight inspection revealed substantial damage to the airframe and rated the occurrence an accident. Incident: Air Canada A320 at Los Angeles on Mar 15th 2011, bird strike By Simon Hradecky, created Thursday, Mar 24th 2011 21:05Z, last updated Thursday, Mar 24th 2011 21:06Z An Air Canada Airbus A320-200, registration C-FDST performing flight AC-790 from Los Angeles,CA (USA) to Toronto,ON (Canada) with 146 people on board, was climbing through 400 feet AGL out of Los Angeles' runway 24L in instrument meteorological conditions (low visibility procedures were in effect at LAX) when the left hand engine (CFM56) surged repeatedly in rapid succession accompanied by compressor stalls. The engine rolled back to about 80% N1 with substantial yawing of the aircraft. The engine automatically recovered about 3-5 seconds later with no ECAM warning, an acrid odour developed in the cabin. Due to the weather conditions the crew decided to divert to Ontario,CA (USA), both engines appeared to be operating normally with no unusual vibration. The aircraft landed safely in Ontario about 30 minutes after departure, stopped on the runway and shut both engines down. After inspection by emergency services the right hand engine was started and the aircraft taxied to the apron. The Canadian TSB reported a visual inspection revealed evidence of a bird strike in the #1 engine fan cone and showed damage to the guide vanes aft of the N1 fan. Bird remains were on the engine cowling and several engine components. A borescopic inspection showed damage to the low and high pressure compressors. The engine was replaced. Incident: Delta A333 at Amsterdam on Mar 24th 2011, deflated tyre before landing By Simon Hradecky, created Thursday, Mar 24th 2011 14:23Z, last updated Thursday, Mar 24th 2011 21:25Z A Delta Airlines Airbus A330-300, registration N815NW performing flight DL-264 from Minneapolis,MN (USA) to Amsterdam (Netherlands), was on approach to runway 06 at about 4000 feet at 10:49L (09:49Z) when the crew reported they had indication of a deflated tyre. A massive response by emergency service including the dispatch of helicopters and the medical trauma team was initiated. The airplane continued for a safe landing on runway 06 about 5 minutes later and taxied to the gate. The emergency services were called off. Delta Airlines said, they don't know how the emergency response came together. There was just low pressure in one of the tyres. Public records of the Dutch emergency services show, that at 10:49L the alert was received by the emergency service call center, a message stating "luchtvaart ongeval" (aviation crash) specifying an aircraft with more than 250 people on board was subsequently sent out nationwide which triggered the massive emergency response fearing another accident like the Turkish Airlines, see: Accident: Turkish Airlines B738 at Amsterdam on Feb 25th 2009, landed on a field

Airbus Updates No.136

Airbus Deliveries so far announced for 2011

	Status
	4663		Airbus A319-112	D-ASTA	Germania	Due 13-04-2011	On Order
	052		Airbus A380-861	F-HPJE	Air France	Due 04-2011	On Order
	066		Airbus A380-841	D-AIMF	Lufthansa	Due 04-2011	On Order
	4667		Airbus A319-111	G-EZGH	easyJet	Due 04-2011	On Order
	4673		Airbus A320-214	HB-JLQ	Swiss	Due 04-2011	On Order
	4676		Airbus A320-214	G-EZUF	easyJet	Due 04-2011	On Order
	4680		Airbus A320-214	G-EZUG	easyJet	Due 04-2011	On Order
	4693		Airbus A319-111	G-EZGI	easyJet	Due 04-2011	On Order

	.
	035		Airbus A380-861	HL7611	Korean Air Lines	Due 05-2011	On Order
	071		Airbus A380-841	9V-SKN	Singapore Airlines	Due 05-2011	On Order

	039	Airbus A380-861	HL7612	Korean Air Lines	Due 06-2011	On Order
	064	Airbus A380-861	F-HPJF	Air France	Due 06-2011	On Order
	070	Airbus A380-841	D-AIMH	Lufthansa	Due 06-2011	On Order

Airbus Updates No.135

Airbus A319

-115ACJ

1556

6V-ONE

République du Sénégal

delivery 24mar11 PGF-DKR “Pointe Saréne”

ex F-RBFB

Airbus A320

-211

211

OE-IAB

EADS EFW

ferried 24mar11 DNR-DRS for P2F conversion

ex HB-IJZ

Airbus A320

-214

3006

4K-AZ

Azerbaijan Airlines

seen at SNN 24mar11 being painted

ex HB-IOU

Airbus A320

-214

4634

EI-DVM

Aer Lingus

delivery 24mar11 TLS-DUB in 1970s retro cs

ex F-WWDV

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfqpJbQeO8Y

Airbus A321	-211	815		VQ-BKJ	Ural Airlines	delivery 24mar11 SNN-SVX	ex EI-CPC
Airbus A321	-231	835		TC-OBJ	Onur Air	for delivery 25mar11 SEN-IST	ex N835AG

Airbus A330

-243

1208

N974AV

Avianca

delivery 24mar1 TLS-BOG

ex F-WWYM

Airbus A330

-343

1212

TC-JNM

Turkish Airlines

delivery 24mar11 TLS-IST

ex F-WWYY

Airbus Updates No.134

Incident: Iberia A321 near Dakar on Mar 19th 2011, technical trouble

By Simon Hradecky, created Tuesday, Mar 22nd 2011 20:22Z, last updated Tuesday, Mar 22nd 2011 20:22Z An Iberia Airbus A321-200, registration EC-JLI performing flight IB-3723 from Dakar (Senegal) to Madrid,SP (Spain) with 182 passengers and 7 crew, was enroute about 150nm north of Dakar already above Mauritania when the crew decided to return to Dakar due to some technical problem on board. The airplane landed safely. The airplane was able to depart the following day and reached Madrid as flight IB-3725 with a delay of 27 hours. Incident: Qantas A332 enroute on Mar 23rd 2011, fire in cockpit By Simon Hradecky, created Wednesday, Mar 23rd 2011 09:44Z, last updated Wednesday, Mar 23rd 2011 09:44Z A Qantas Airbus A330-200, registration VH-EBL performing flight QF-20 from Manila (Philippines) to Sydney,NS (Australia) with 147 passengers and 11 crew, was enroute about 4 hours into the flight when the flight crew noticed flames and smoke from the left hand windshield heating. The flight crew used the fire extinguishers to put the fire out. The airplane subsequently diverted to Cairns,QL (Australia) for a safe landing on runway 15 about 6 hours after departure from Manila. The remainder of the flight was cancelled, the passengers cleared customs in Cairns and were rebooked onto domestic flights. Qantas confirmed a windscreen electrical fault occurred causing smoke and small flames (1-2cm/less than one inch) near the left windshield. The flames were extinguished by the crew. There was no need for emergency services after landing.

Airbus Updates No.133

Airbus A300	-622R	729		N3729	GA Telesis	ferried 23mar11 HND-TSE-LDE	ex JA8529
Airbus A300	-622R	730		N4730	GA Telesis	ferried 23mar11 HND-TSE-LDE	ex JA8566

Airbus A320

-211

356

EC-FQY

Iberia

ferried 23mar11 MAD-CHR for paint prior transfer to Vueling

ex EC-886

Airbus A320

-232

2688

TC-OBO

Onur Air

delivery 22mar11 BUD-IST

ex HA-LPH

Airbus A320

-232

4065

SX-OAP

Olympic

ferried 22mar11 NWI-ATH after paint into Aeagean cs

ex D-AVVL

Airbus A320	-232	4637		VT-IEE	IndiGo	delivery 22mar11 TLS-FJR-DEL	ex F-WWIB
Airbus A320	-232	496**		TC-OBP	Onur Air	at MIA 18/22mar11 in full cs, N-reg prior delivery	ex N201LF
Airbus A321	-211	815		VQ-BKJ	Ural Airlines	seen regd at SNN 21mar11 prior delivery	ex EI-CPC
Airbus A321	-231	835		TC-OBJ	Onur Air	for delivery 23mar11 SEN-IST	ex N835AG

Airbus A321

-211

1503

6Y-JMH

Air Jamaica

ferried 21mar11 KIN-YQX-SNN on return to lessor

ex D-AVZU

Airbus A321	-231	4638		B-6753	China Southern	delivery 23mar XFW-OVB	ex D-AZAT
Airbus A330	-301	59		EI-ORD	Aer Lingus	to be ferried 29mar11 BOD-BGR-GWO for part-out and scrap	ex F-GMDD
Airbus A330	-243	1210		ZS-SXY	South African	delivery 23mar11 TLS-JNB	ex F-WWYS

Airbus Updates No.132

Airbus A318	-111	2358		N592EL	Avianca	delivery 06mar11 SJO-BOG, 1st in svc 19mar11	ex XA-UBS
Airbus A318	-111	2367		N593EL	Avianca	delivery 19mar11 SJO-BOG	ex XA-UBT
Airbus A318	-121	3062		CC-CVF	LAN Airlines	ferried 18mar11 SCL-GYE-MEX, for Avianca Brazil as PR-AVK	ex D-AUAM

Airbus A320

-214

2685

D-ABDD

Air Berlin

ferried 20mar11 BUD-DUB, for paint, for AZAL Azerbaijan Airlines

ex F-WWIB

Airbus A321

-231

835

TC-OBJ

Onur Air

for delivery 21mar11 SEN-IST

ex N835AG

Airbus Updates No.131

Airbus A319

-112

3533

D-AHIJ

Hamburg Airways

delivery 18mar11 SNN-HAM, Hamburg Int´l cs

ex D-AVYV

Airbus A320	-231	362		UR-CJF	Khors Air	delivery 18mar11 SAW-KBP	ex N362BV
Airbus A320	-231	443		TC-	Onur Air	at MIA 18mar11 in full cs, N-reg prior delivery	ex N221LF

Airbus A320	-232	1194		TC-SKT	Sky Airlines	in svc 17mar11 AYT-SZG-AYT back in full cs	ex G-MEDE
Airbus A320	-214	3006		HB-IOU	Belair	ferried 19mar11 BUD-SNN for paint prior return to lessor	ex D-ABDM

Airbus A320	-214	4616		N840VA	Virgin America	delivery 19mar11 TLS-KEF-BGR-MIA	ex F-WWBI
Airbus A320	-214	4618		HB-JLP	Swiss International	delivery 18mar11 TLS-ZRH	ex F-WWBP

Airbus A321	-231	835		TC-OBJ	Onur Air	for delivery 21mar11 SEN-IST	ex N835AG
Airbus A321	-211	841		EI-CPD	Ural Airlines	ferried 18mar11 BOD-SNN after cabin refit prior delivery	ex D-AVZA

Airbus Updates No.130

Airbus A320

-214

4616

N840VA

Virgin America

delivery 18mar11 TLS-KEF-BGR-MIA

ex F-WWBI

Airbus A320

-214

4641

N209FR

Frontier

delivery 18mar11 XFW-YQX-MKE

ex D-AVVO

Airbus Updates No.129

Incident: Lufthansa A346 at Munich on Mar 15th 2011, unsafe gear

By Simon Hradecky, created Wednesday, Mar 16th 2011 15:44Z, last updated Wednesday, Mar 16th 2011 15:44Z A Lufthansa Airbus A340-600, registration D-AIHA performing flight LH-453 from Los Angeles,CA (USA) to Munich (Germany), aborted the approach to Munich's runway 08L due to an unsafe indication for the nose gear. The airplane climbed back to 7000 feet and entered a holding for about 25 minutes before the aircraft landed safely on Munich's runway 08L about 33 minutes after aborting the first approach.

Incident: Saudia A320 at Dammam on Mar 12th 2011, rejected takeoff

By Simon Hradecky, created Thursday, Mar 17th 2011 10:40Z, last updated Thursday, Mar 17th 2011 10:43Z A Saudi Arabian Airlines Airbus A320-200, flight SV-1145 from Dammam to Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), rejected takeoff from Dammam's runway 34R at high speed after thick black smoke appeared in the cabin causing commotion amongst the passengers. The airplane stopped safely. There are no reports about the aircraft being evacuated, a passenger video instead reveals the captain trying to calm the passengers via an announcement and the absence of the evacuation signal. Passenger Nofah intended to film the cloud formation during takeoff (see the video below) and published his resulting video 3 days later. Another passenger, who published his video on the day of the occurrence, claims he was forced to remove his video. Other passengers reported thick black smoke appeared in the cabin, however did not mention how they got off the aircraft. A replacement aircraft reached Riyadh. Passenger video (Video: Nofah): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYmO8RjJtGg

Incident: Air Canada A319 over Atlantic on Mar 13th 2011, cracked windshield

By Simon Hradecky, created Thursday, Mar 17th 2011 20:54Z, last updated Thursday, Mar 17th 2011 20:54Z An Air Canada Airbus A319-100, registration C-FYKC performing flight AC-974 from Montreal,QC (Canada) to Bridgetown (Barbados) with 107 people on board, was enroute at FL370 overhead the Atlantic Ocean about 150nm northwest of Bermuda (Bermuda) when the captain's windshield cracked. The crew actioned the according checklists, descended the aircraft to FL230 and decided to divert to Bermuda for a safe landing. A replacement Boeing 767-300 registration C-FMWV was dispatched to Bermuda as flight AC-7050 and reached Bridgetown as flight AC-2074 with a delay of 11 hours, then performed the scheduled and cancelled return flight AC-975 (Mar 13th) to Montreal as flight AC-2175 departing Mar 14th.

Airbus Updates No.128

Report: Air Canada A333 near Montreal on Apr 30th 2008, inflight engine fuel starvation

By Simon Hradecky, created Tuesday, Mar 15th 2011 12:05Z, last updated Tuesday, Mar 15th 2011 12:06Z An Air Canada A330-300, registration C-GFAH performing flight AC-418 from Toronto,ON to Montreal,QC (Canada) with 228 passengers and 10 crew, was enroute when several fuel pump low pressure warning appeared. The crew switched those fuel pumps off according to checklists. During the descent into Montreal low pressure warnings also appeared on the remaining fuel pumps and were switched off too, the engines (Trent 772) continued to run with fuel fed by gravity. When the aircraft levelled off at 11000 feet the left hand engine rolled back below idle causing an engine stall followed by an engine fail message on the ECAM. The crew declared emergency, switched all fuel pumps back on, the left engine recovered shortly thereafter. The crew continued for a safe landing with 4500 kg (9910 lbs) of fuel remaining. The Canadian Transportation Safety Board released their final report releasing the following findings: Findings as to Causes and Contributing Factors 1. The main fuel pump low-pressure warnings were erroneously generated by the possible freezing of fuel pressure switches. The result was that normally operating fuel pumps were switched off as per the displayed electronic centralized aircraft monitor (ECAM) procedure. 2. Standby pump low pressure occurred due to air ingestion into the pump inlet port at fuel quantities slightly above 2500 kg. This may occur with a fuel quantity up to 2750 kg in an inner tank when the main fuel pumps are inoperative. 3. The A330 fuel system design results in air ingestion through the standby fuel pump inlet port during gravity fuel feeding operations with inner tank fuel quantities below 2500 kg. As a consequence, the left engine rollback occurred. Findings as to Risk 1. The position of the fuel low-level sensors below the standby pump inlet port will result in standby pump starvation before ECAM fuel low-level activation when the main fuel pumps are inoperative. Therefore, a crew may be unaware of an imminent engine failure due to air ingestion into the fuel line with fuel quantities below 2750 kg. 2. The current A330 documentation does not alert crews of the fuel system vulnerabilities at low fuel quantities. Therefore, under certain failure conditions, crew actions that initiate gravity fuel feeding operations may result in an engine failure. 3. The company anticipated low fuel ECAM (ALFE) procedure contains items that may be in conflict with Airbus recommended procedures. Therefore, crews may be confused and omit critical items from the Airbus recommended procedures, thereby increasing the risk of fuel starvation. 4. Dispatch under minimum equipment list (MEL) with one main fuel pump inoperative will expose the flight to a risk of fuel starvation when the inner tank fuel quantity falls below 2500 kg and the remaining main fuel pump also becomes inoperative. 5. The fuel tanks had not been water drained as per the company procedure. The aircraft operated for an extended period of time without the draining of the fuel tanks, thereby increasing the risk of water contamination. 6. The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) was not deactivated and preserved following the event, resulting in the cockpit conversations being overwritten. Consequently, CVR information relevant to the occurrence was not available to TSB investigators. Other Finding 1. Following the event, the aircraft was inspected, repaired, refuelled, test flown and returned to service without prior coordination with the TSB. Therefore, much of the evidence related to this incident was handled by several parties before the TSB investigation began. The aircraft had been dispatched under Minimum Equipment List requirements with the right hand integrated drive generator inoperative, requiring the APU to run throughout the flight. Air Canada's flight planning system therefore computed the airplane should carry 9800 kg (21600 lbs) of fuel for departure for the 51 minutes long flight. 3854kg of fuel were uploaded in Toronto bringing the total quantity of fuel to 9900kg with 450kg distributed into the outer left and right hand tank each and 4500 kg of fuel distributed into the inner left and right hand tanks with no fuel in the trim tanks. The captain (ATPL, 15882 hours total, 660 hours on A330 and A340 with 350 hours as captain) was pilot monitoring, the first officer (ATPL, 14370 hours total, 807 hours on A330 and A340) was pilot flying. The initial climb was without event. About 7 minutes into the flight a right hand fuel standby pump low pressure message appeared briefly on the ECAM. When the aircraft climbed through FL250 a right main fuel pump #2 low pressure warning occurred, the stand by pump automatically activated. The crew worked the according checklists and turned right pump #2 off. A minute later a right main fuel pump #1 low pressure warning activated, the pump was also switched off according to checklists. The crew performed a fuel leak check and determined that a fuel leak was not the cause of the low pressure warnings. At that time the left fuel pump fault light began to flicker. The aircraft levelled off at FL350 and the crew turned the right hand fuel pumps back on to see whether they would perform better with a lower nose attitude, the low pressure warnings however continued prompting the crew to turn the pumps back off. About 2 minutes after reaching FL350 the trim tank fuel pump low pressure warning activated confirming the trim tank was empty. Another minute later both left hand fuel main pump low pressure warnings activated. Both left hand main fuel pumps were turned off, fuel was now fed from both tanks via the respective stand by pump remaining. The crew advised dispatch and considered a diversion but rejected a diversion due to the proximity of the destination airport. After reaching the top of descent and initiating the descent towards Montreal the crew attempted again to turn on all fuel pumps to see whether the lower nose attitude would allow the pumps to operate normally, the low pressure warnings however persisted and all main pumps were turned off again. When the airplane descended through FL200 about 8 minutes later the crew performed the gravity fuel feed procedure was carried out as a precaution in case one of the stand by pumps would fail. The TSB could not determine whether the cross feed valve was closed at that time as required by the procedure. 3 minutes later, the aircraft descended through 16,000 feet the low pressure warnings for both stand by pumps activated. The crew carried the according checklists out, opened the cross feed valve and switched the fuel pumps off resulting in gravity fuel feeding to the engines. Another 3 minutes later the airplane levelled off at 11,000 feet on autopilot and autothrust commanded the engines to accelerate to maintain speed. When both engines accelerated through about 65% N1, the left engine's fuel flow suddenly decreased and the N1 reduced to below flight idle resulting in an engine stall warning on the ECAM shortly followed by an engine fail warning. The crew declared emergency, the autopilot was disconnected, both thrust levers brought to the Maximum Continuous Thrust detent (MCT), and all fuel pumps were turned on. The left engine remained below idle for about 30 seconds before the engine accelerated again and reached the same speed as the right hand engine at approx. 85% N1. Although all fuel pumps were switched on and both engines were running the fuel pump indications remained amber on the ECAM continuing to indicate a fault condition. At that point there were about 5000kg of fuel on board. During the approach the crew manually increased thrust to verify the engine response and saw a synchronous acceleration of both engines. The approach was continued for a safe landing with 4500 kg of fuel remaining, which matched predictions of the flight plan. The cockpit voice recorder was not secured, the operator however downloaded the flight data recorder, the TSB later retrieved these data from a secure website of the operator. The aircraft was examined, refuelled, test-flown and returned to service without coordination with the TSB. The TSB reported that the operator performed a water draining procedure at some stage following the event retrieving 4.5 liters of water from each inner tank. Airbus considers this amount normal. Air Canada's procedures require the draining procedure to be conducted at each service check (about every 7 days). The last water draining procedure had been performed 26 days prior to the incident however. Fuel samples were taken from all 6 fuel pressure switch sensing lines and revealed the presence of suspended particles. Free water droplets were also observed in the fuel samples. All fuel pumps were found operating normally, however were replaced as a precaution. Following the replacement and disassembly cavitation marks were found inside the incident fuel pumps. Both left and right hand fuel metering units, fuel control and monitoring computers and engine electronic controls were also replaced as a precaution. All units were sent to the manufacturers for examination and were found free of fault. The fuel pressure switches were found fault free and remained on the aircraft. Following the troubleshooting the aircraft performed a test flight on May 4th and returned to service on May 5th. In June Airbus recommended to replace the non-return valves which was promptly carried out. The aircraft had flown 611 hours in 85 cycles since the incident by then with no further abnormal fuel indications. The TSB analysed that although both left and right hand standby fuel pump low pressure warnings occurred simultaneously, only the left hand engine rolled back. The TSB determined therefore that the fuel quantity in the left hand inner tank was lower than in the right hand inner tank permitting the right hand engine to continue to run. The TSB further analysed that the MEL did not take into account possible air ingestion at fuel quantities below 2750 kg in the inner tanks and identified other system failures like a single bus failure to produce a similiar vulnerability to the fuel system operating under MEL conditions. The documentation did not identify any of these vulnerabilities leading to a possible engine failure. The TSB further analysed that the stand by pump design did not meet expectations as the stand by pumps could become starved with 2750 kg of fuel remaining in the inner tanks while the main fuel pumps were capable of extracting fuel down to 8.3kg remaining in the inner tanks. The stand by fuel pump feed port allowed air ingestion at fuel levels below 2500kg. The investigation in the end determined that the main fuel pump low pressure warnings were most likely erroneous but the stand by fuel pump low pressure warnings were authentic. The investigation also concluded that the roll back of the right hand engine was imminent had the crew not switched all fuel pumps back on. As a result of the investigation Airbus revised documentation in November 2008 advising, that 2000kg of fuel in the affected fuel tank can not be used in gravity fuel feeding. Airbus further changed the Minimum Equipment List requirements in October 2009.

Airbus Updates No.127

Airbus A319

-115LR

2279

VQ-BQW

S7 Airlines

to be ferried 21mar11 TLS-MST for paint

ex F-GRXI

Airbus A320	-214	951		I-BIKA	Alitalia	ferried 17mar11 FCO-NWI for paint into new cs	ex F-WWBT
Airbus A320	-232	1194		TC-SKT	Sky Airlines	in svc 17mar11 AYT-SZG-AYT back in full cs	ex G-MEDE

Airbus A320	-216	3732		EI-DTA	Alitalia	ferried 17mar11 MAN-FCO after paint into standard cs	ex F-WWDM
Airbus A320	-232	4065		SX-OAP	Olympic Air	ferried 17mar11 ATH-NWI for paint into Aegean cs	ex D-AVVL
Airbus A320	-232	4094		SX-OAS	Olympic Air	ferried 17mar11 NWI-ATH after paint into Aegean Airlines cs prior wet-lease ops	ex D-AVVB

Airbus A320

-232

4628

HA-LWI

Wizz

delivery 17mar11 TLS-BUD

ex F-WWDH

Airbus A321

-231

2868

TC-JRB

Turkish Airlines

ferried 16mar11 IST-MST for paint into Star Alliance cs

ex D-AVZI

Airbus Updates No.126

Airbus Wins A320neo Order From Lufthansa, First From Top Carrier

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Airbus SAS won an order for 30 of its new A320neo-series planes from Deutsche Lufthansa AG valued at about $2.8 billion at list price, the fourth commitment for the model and the first from a top global carrier. Source: Airbus SAS via Bloomberg

Airbus SAS won an order for 30 of its new A320neo-series planes from Deutsche Lufthansa AG (LHA) valued at about $2.8 billion at list price, the fourth commitment for the model and the first from a top global carrier.

The contract specifies 25 standard A320neos and five larger A321s, Cologne, Germany-based Lufthansa said today in a statement. The aircraft will be delivered from 2016, it said.

Lufthansa, which also ordered five Boeing Co. (BA) 777 cargo planes worth $1.35 billion, is renewing its fleet to cut costs and replace smaller regional planes with larger models. The neo, a version of Airbus’s existing short-haul jet fitted with new engines, will burn 15 percent less kerosene, the airline said.

“Besides greater fuel efficiency, all the models on order will help lower operating costs as well as noise levels and emissions,” Lufthansa said. “The orders are yet further steps in Lufthansa’s ongoing fleet modernization and expansion policy.”

Airbus’s contract from Lufthansa, Europe’s second-largest airline, comes as Chicago-based Boeing ponders an upgrade of the competing 737 model. Randy Tinseth, director of marketing at the U.S. company’s commercial airplanes group, has said the matter will be decided by the summer.

Success in the single-aisle market is critical because Airbus and Boeing derive the bulk of their earnings from the aircraft. Airbus, the planemaking unit of European Aeronautic, Defence & Space Co., predicted in December that it could sell as many as 4,000 of the modified A320 planes over 15 years.

The Lufthansa order comes after India’s IndiGo pledged in January to buy 150 A3230neos and U.K. billionaire Richard Branson’s Virgin America Inc. said the same month it would buy 30 of the revamped planes and 30 of the current model. Brazil’s Tam SA followed last month, saying it had ordered 22 neos.

A geared turbofan engine built by United Technologies Corp. (UTX)’s Pratt & Whitney unit and the Leap-X from CFM International, the venture of General Electric Co. (GE) and Safran SA (SAF) of France, are the choices for powering the A320neo.

Lufthansa’s statement didn’t specify a choice of engine. The carrier is already a customer for Bombardier Inc.’s CSeries short-haul plane, which will use the Pratt & Whitney powerplant.

Lufthansa’s main-brand airline had 228 narrow-body jets in its fleet as of Sept. 30, according to its quarterly report, including 117 from Airbus’s A320 series. The 777 freighters will be added from 2013, it said today.

Airbus Updates No.125

Airbus Updates No.124

Airbus A318

-121

3001

PR-AVH

Avianca Brasil

in full cs 13mar11 at MEX, CC-reg, prior delivery

ex CC-CVA

Airbus A319

-112

3171

SU-KBB

Koral Blue

seen painted all white at SNN 14mar11

ex EI-EAF

Airbus A319

-111

4635

G-EZGF

easyJet

delivery 16mar11 XFW-MAD

ex D-AVWO

Airbus A320

-232

4621

HA-LWH

Wizz

delivery 16mar11 TLS-BUD

ex F-WWBV

Airbus A330

-202

980

EC-338

EADS CASA

ferried 15mar11 MAD-LEGT, regd as “MRTT 10” after MRTT conversion, for RSAF

ex F-WWYR

Airbus A330	-343	1206		B-18391	China Airlines	delivery 16mar11 TLS-BKK, lsd from Virgin Atlantic	ex F-WWYH
Airbus A380	-841	61		D-AIME	Lufthansa	delivery 16mar11 XFW-FRA „Johannesburg“	ex F-WWAV