Aviation Sector

1000th test flight completed by LCA

1000th test flight completed by LCA On Thursday, India's Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Tejas completed the 1000th sortie. This feat is being described as a landmark in the country's aeronautical sector's history by Aeronautical Development Agency.

It was revealed by the ADA sources that the sortie lasted about 30 minutes. Tejas was being flown by the chief test pilot of the National Flight Test Centre, Capt J A Maolankar.

The Tejas program has come a long way since the first flight by the Technology demonstrator-1 on January 4, 2001, which lasted 18 minutes.

British Airways plans to offer in-flight mobile phone services

British Airways plans to offer in-flight mobile phone servicesLondon, January 24 : British Airways is set to launch mobile phone technology on its flights between London City Airport and New York JFK for its business-class travellers.

Passengers will be able to send and receive text messages and access the Internet on planes from autumn this year.

"The service is aimed at people in the Square Mile. We believe the route and the new technology will offer an appealing package to business travellers," the Telegraph quoted a spokesman for BA as saying.

Cabin crew walkout hits Lufthansa flights

Cabin crew walkout hits Lufthansa flightsFrankfurt  - German airline Lufthansa cancelled 40 flights on Friday because of a walkout by cabin crew at Frankfurt airport, an airline spokesman said.

The Independant Organization of Flight Attendants said it called the three-hour stoppage to press demands for higher pay and improved working conditions.

Lufthansa said the cancellations affected short-haul and medium- range flights.

The stoppage by 400 flight attendants began at 6:15 am and was due to end at 9:15 am.

Singapore and Iceland concludes open skies pact

Singapore and Iceland concludes open skies pactSi

"Single feather" found in US Airways engine, evidence of bird theory

"Single feather" found in US Airways engine, evidence of bird theoryNew York  - Investigators have found a "single feather" attached to the flap structure on the wing of the downed US Airways plane, a spokesman for the investigative agency said Thursday.

The evidence, along with organic matter found in the right engine, the wings and the fuselage, lends support to the theory that a flock of birds caused the accident.

Austrian Airlines passenger numbers declined by 1 per cent in 2008

Austrian AirlinesVienna - Passenger numbers at troubled carrier Austrian Airlines declined by 1.1 per cent in 2008, as business caved in amid the global economic crisis in the third quarter, the company said Thursday.

Lufthansa is set to take over the Austrian flag carrier, pending approval from the European Commission.

The airline's long-distance flights were hit the hardest, with passenger numbers dropping 9.4 per cent year-on-year. In December, numbers fell by 13.1 per cent from the same month in 2007.

Bucking the trend, 6.2 per cent more seats were filled on flights to Eastern Europe and the Middle East.

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