AVIATION NEWS BRIEFS

*Greek carrier OLYMPIC AIR's proposed merger with AEGEAN AIRLINES has run into problems with the European Commission, which has expressed doubts that the tie-up meets competition regulations. Initial investigations into the proposal point to "serious competition concerns", said the Commission, particularly on the domestic market but also on several international routes. It has chosen to open a 90-day in-depth inquiry into the agreement in order to assess the effects of the partnership. Olympic Air and Aegean Airlines notified the Commission formally of their merger plan on June 24. While the competition situation on Greek routes is under scrutiny, the Commission says it also has "serious doubts" that the tie-up meets requirements regarding provision of public service obligation routes and ground-handling at Greek Airports. The inquiry is set to conclude by December 7 by which time the Commission will decide whether the merger poses a threat to competition.

*The FAA has determined that Mexico is not in compliance with ICAO safety standards and has downgraded the country's safety rating from category 1 to category 2. The agency through it international aviation safety assessment program ensures civil aviation authorities of countries with carriers operating to or wishing to launch service to the USA meet ICAO standards, not FAA regulations. "With the IASA Category 2 rating, Mexican air carriers cannot establish new service to the United States, although they are allowed to maintain existing service," said the FAA. Countries assigned a category 2 rating either lack laws or regulations necessary to oversee air carriers in accordance with international standards, or that the country's civil aviation authority is deficient in one or more areas including technical expertise, record keeping or inspection procedures. The FAA said that while Mexico has been responsive to its findings, and has made significant improvements in recent months, it is not able to fully comply with international standards. The FAA did state that Mexico continues to make progress, and the agency is committed working with the Mexican government to regain its category 1 rating.

*NORTHWEST AIRLINES has agreed to plead guilty and pay a $38m fine for its role in fixing air-cargo prices, the US Department of Justice has announced. The department said as part of a plea deal Northwest would co-operate with an ongoing anti-trust investigation. NORTHWEST AIRLINES CARGO, which is no longer operating, conspired to fix air-cargo rates from July 2004 to February 2006, the department said. Northwest, which was taken over by DELTA AIRLINES in October 2008, has agreed to plead guilty to a single offence. So far a total of 16 Airlines have pleaded guilty or agreed to do so in an ongoing investigation into price-fixing in air cargo. More than $1.6bn in criminal fines has been paid by the Airlines, and 4 executives have received prison sentences.

*The Australian Transportation Safety Board has released its final report into an incident involving a VIRGIN BLUE Boeing 737 at Melbourne, Australia, on July 25, 2009. On that date, Flight 821 was on Domestic Service from Melbourne to Sydney, when it lost its nose wheel as it turned onto the runway for departure. No one onboard was injured. In their final report, the ATSB said that a fatigue crack had developed within the aircraft's nose gear right axle. An inspection of all other Virgin Blue aircraft found no other aircraft were affected. The nose wheel assembly was replaced in the incident 737 and it returned to service. The full report can be found on the ATSB website.

*A SWISS A340 had to make an emergency diversion, yesterday, July 30. Flight 65 was on International Service from Miami, Florida, to Zurich, Switzerland, with 227 passengers and crew onboard. While inflight over the Atlantic, and about 45 minutes from Shannon, Ireland, the crew reported electrical problems and requested diversion and direct routing to Shannon. The A340 landed without incident in Shannon about 50 minutes later. According to media reports, multiple circuit breakers were repeatedly popping, which affected not only the the cabin lighting and entertainment systems, but all systems on the aircraft. In a statement, Swiss only said that the diversion was a precaution and that only the lighting and entertainment systems were affected. In a brief statement, the Irish AAIU said that they were notified about the incident, but would not say if an investigation would be conducted. The A340 remains on the ground in Shannon.

*A RYANAIR Boeing 737 had to make an emergency diversion due to a bomb threat, yesterday, July 30. Flight 5624 was on International Service from Frankfurt, Germany, to Fuerteventura, CI, Spain, when it was diverted to Malaga, Spain, after the Airport in Fuerteventura received a phone call stating that there was a bomb onboard. The aircraft, passengers, luggage and cargo were all searched in Malaga, and no explosives were found. After 3 hours on the ground, Flight 5624 was allowed to depart for Fuerteventura, where it arrived without incident. Spanish authorities are investigating.

*A PEGASUS AIRLINES Boeing 737 suffered minor damage upon landing, yesterday, July 30. Flight 803 was on International Service from Sabiha Gokcen, Turkey, to Frankfurt, Germany, when it blew a nose gear tire upon landing in Frankfurt. The crew was able to stop the aircraft on the runway, however it became disabled and had to be towed off the runway. The 737 was removed from service for repairs.

*A MALEV HUNGARIAN AIRLINES EMB120 had to make an emergency return, on Thursday, July 29. Flight 868 was on International Service from Budapest, Hungary, to Cluj, Romania, with 22 passengers and crew onboard. Shortly after departure, the crew reported that they needed to shut an engine down for unspecified reasons. The E120 landed back to Budapest without incident, about 45 minutes after their original departure. The aircraft was removed from service for repairs.

*A CONTINENTAL AIRLINES Boeing 767 had to make an emergency landing, on Wednesday, July 28. Flight 2 was on International Service from Guam to Honolulu, Hawaii, and was inflight at 35000 feet about 475 miles W of Honolulu, when the crew reported that they needed to shut the left hand engine down for unspecified reasons. The aircraft descended to 29000 feet and continued on to Honolulu, where they landed without incident about 1 hour later. Post flight inspection revealed metal chips in the engine oil, thus the engine will need to be replaced. The 767 has been removed from service.