Aircraft

Lockheed Martin’s LM 100J completed its first test flight

Earlier today, the commercial variant of Lockheed’s popular C-130J “Super Hercules” completed its first test flight, following the same flight path over North Georgia, and Alabama that test pilots usually chart for its military counterpart. Like the Super Hercules, the LM-100J will be capable of operating in rugged terrain unsuitable for other commercial freighters. As […]

HNA Group envisions Xi’an as future “Chinese Memphis”

If you read this headline, and thought “wait a minute, isn’t Shenzhen-based SF Express Airlines already planning a ‘Chinese Memphis’ in Ezhou,” you are not mistaken. Perhaps China has room for two Memphis-like hubs, or at least a Memphis and a “Chinese Louisville”. Either way, last week Hainan Group established a new subsidiary in the […]

YTO launches massive fleet expansion

David Harris
May 22, 2017
Aircraft, Carriers, Conversions, Express

Just a few days ago, we posted news that Shanghai-based YTO Express had launched an international expansion program, the main cost of which, according to company VP Hao Wenning, “will come from buying aircraft to strengthen air freight services.” Our discussion in that post centered on YTO’s likely need for widebody aircraft to support the […]

Overheard at Cargo Facts Asia

SHANGHAI – A record crowd of senior executives from all links in the air cargo supply chain gathered at the Grand Hyatt in Shanghai late last month for Cargo Facts Asia 2017 – the sixth annual presentation of what is now undeniably the region’s premier industry event. After five years in Hong Kong, record attendance […]

It’s back in the sky!

UK-based Hybrid Air Vehicles resumed test flights of its Airlander 10 hybrid airship this week, after a nine-month hiatus. The program suffered a setback last year after the test aircraft took a nosedive while attempting to land. Although nobody was hurt during the crash, and much of the ship remained intact, the test unit sustained […]

Dash 8-100 joins the growing list of turboprop freighters

In 2014, Canada-based Voyageur Airways, took on the development of a passenger-to-package-freighter conversion program for the Dash 8-100. The move was in response to an RFP “from a courier company looking for a regional aircraft solution to transport small package cargo.” Between then and now, Voyageur has undergone significant change, starting with its acquisition by […]

Boeing’s KC-46A tanker achieves another milestone

This week, Boeing announced it had added a sixth aircraft to its KC-46A aerial refueling tanker test program. The newest addition to the test fleet will be used to evaluate the tanker’s resistance to electromagnetic fields. In practice, the KC-46’s electronic systems must prove resilient to potentially disruptive electromagnetic discharges. To check this, the tanker […]

The Comac C919, it flies!

Today, the first narrowbody jet designed and manufactured by Chinese state-owned firm COMAC, the C919, completed its maiden flight with a 90-minute tour in the skies above Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport. Although the flight occurred two years later than expected, and initial deliveries have been pushed forward into 2020, the 158-seat aircraft with a price […]

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