AVIATION NEWS BRIEFS

*Irish Airline AER LINGUS will slash jobs and loss-making routes after failing to reach an agreement with unions in cost-cutting talks, it said today. The loss-making Airline announced in October that it planned to save 97 million euros a year by 2011, largely by cutting nearly 700 jobs and slashing staff pay. The Chief executive said he had come close to agreement with unions on a "transformation plan" after lengthy talks, but resistance from the Pilots and, to a lesser extent, cabin crews remained. He also said without an agreement "we must now take whatever actions are necessary to stabilise the business," adding that immediate and compulsory redundancies were "very likely." The company will now move to reduce capacity, further eliminating routes which are loss making as a result of our high cost base. Aer Lingus' net losses more than tripled in the first half of 2009. It suffered a net loss of 73.9 million euros in the six months to June, compared with a loss after tax of 21.6 million euros in the same period of 2008.

*In a brief statement, AIR FRANCE has confirmed that AF Flight 445 did issue a MAYDAY call due to severe turbulence while overhead the Atlantic Ocean early on Monday morning. The Airline said that the call was only made as part of normal procedures so that the A330 could descend quickly without ATC clearance. The turbulence was reported to have lasted about 30 minutes. The Airline said that the rest of the journey to Paris was routine. There is still no word on what type of investigation may be conducted. (SK COMMENT: This incident was reported in postings yesterday. It has many characteristics in common in with Air France Flight 447, the A330 that went down over the Atlantic on June 1).

*A TAF LINHAS AEREAS Boeing 727 suffered substantial damages at Sao Paulo, Brazil, early yesterday morning. According to media reports, the TAF 727 was on Cargo Service from Brasilia to Sao Paulo, and had landed at Sao Paulo without incident. While on taxi, the Pilot of the TAF aircraft said that they were directed to an area to park, but his brakes failed and the 727 collided with stairs owned by TAM LINHAS AEREAS. Officials said that the TAF 727 suffered substantial damages and was removed from service for a full damage assessment. A full investigation has been launched by Government officials.

*A TAM LINHAS AEREAS A330 had to make an emergency return to Sao Paulo, Brazil, yesterday, due to a hydraulics failure. Flight 8018 was on International Service to Buenos Aires, Argentina, with 169 passengers and crew onboard, when the incident took place. The crew declared an emergency and requested return due to a hydraulics failure while inflight at 38000 feet. The A330 landed back at Sao Paulo without incident, however it did have to be towed off the runway.

*A SOUTHWEST AIRLINES Boeing 737 was damaged at Salt Lake City, Utah, on Sunday, November 29. The Boeing 737, on Domestic Service to Albuquerque, New Mexico, clipped wings wtih a FED EX cargo aircraft, as it pushed back from the gate. According to media reports, part of the Southwest 737s wing was sheared off. Passengers and crew were evacuated and returned to the terminal. According to one media report, 1 passenger said that he felt a strong "jolt," and saw a piece of the wing lying on the ground when he looked out the window. The Southwest jet has been removed from service. It is not known if the Fed Ex airliner suffered any damage. A full investigation into the incident has begun.

*An IRAN AIR Fokker 100 had to make a flapless landing at Tehran, Iran, on Saturday, November 28. Flight 214 was on Domestic Service from Gheshm to Tehran when the incident took place. According to media reports, the crew abandoned its approach due to an asymmetric flaps indication. The crew entered into a holding pattern to troubleshoot the problem. Unable to fix the problem, the crew performed a flapless landing at a higher than normal speed. The Fokker landed without incident.

*A CENTRAL MOUNTAIN AIR Beech 1900D had to reject takeoff from Rainbow Lake, AB, Canada, on November 20, due to a stall warning. The incident was just reported yesterday by NAV Canada. Flight 774 was on Domestic Service to Edmonton, AB, Canada, with 14 passengers and 2 crew members onboard. The crew rejected takeoff from the snow covered runway, when a stall warning issued at V1. The crew stopped the aircraft about 100 feet past the end of the runway. No one onboard was injured, and the aircraft sustained no damage. According to NAV Canada, the stall warning activated due to moisture on the faceplate and vane. The heater should have removed the moisture from those areas, however there is no mention on whether the heater was on or if it had failed.