Airbus gets multi-billion-dollar order from Indonesia

Deutsche Welle, 11 April 2012

European aircraft manufacturer Airbus will build 11 more long-haul passenger jets for Indonesia. The deal, worth almost two billion euros ($2.5 billion), will help the company overcome its current shortage of orders.

Indonesia's flag carrier Garuda will purchase 11 A330 jets for long-distance travel from Europe's leading plane producer, Airbus. The deal seems more than welcome for the multinational company, which has only secured firm orders for 90 planes in the first quarter of 2012, compared with more than 400 for US rival Boeing.

The current order is worth 1.9 billion euros ($2.5 billion) at catalog prices. The new Airbus planes will be driven by UK-supplied Rolls-Royce engines.

"This deal between Airbus and Garuda Indonesia Airlines is great news for the UK aerospace industry," British Prime Minister David Cameron told reporters after arriving in Jakarta for a 24-hour visit.

The 11 long-haul A330s will increase by two thirds the number of passenger jets already delivered to Garuda, which is majority state-owned. Its main domestic rival Lion Air in February signed a record $22-billion deal for planes from Boeing.

Rising number of passengers

Garuda's Chief Executive, Emirsyah Satar, said he planned to use the new Airbus planes to expand in the Asia-Pacific region, including China, South Korea and Australia.

Indonesia has been witnessing a rapidly expanding aviation sector, as a growing middle class and business executives opt to travel by air across an archipelago of 17,000 islands. It's considered a more reliable way to travel, because many islands lack good roads or railways and ship connections are sporadic.

Asia and the Middle East currently offer the best prospects for plane sales by Airbus and other major jet manufacturers like Boeing, Bombardier or Embraer.

hg/gb (Reuters, dapd, AFP)

How to land a plane in an emergency

Our expert's advice: turn on the radio, look for a safe place to land and keep the aircraft steady

The Guardian, by Leo Hickman, 4 April 2012

The emergency-landed Cessna itself, safe on the tarmac.
Photograph: Associated Press/Door County Sheriffs Office

Earlier this week, an 80-year-old woman landed safely at an airport in Milwaukee after taking the controls of her husband's Cessna aircraft when he died of a heart attack. Dave Smith, an instructor with Redhill Aviation in Surrey, explains what to do if you ever find yourself in such a predicament …

1 Locate the radio. Just like in a car, you will find it in the centre of the dashboard. Don't adjust the frequency as it will probably already be set correctly. Locate the PTT (Press To Talk) button. Press it and speak to the control tower, who will "talk you down" just like in the movies. If they don't hear you, switch the frequency to 121.5, which is monitored by the RAF. Failing that, look for the transponder on the dashboard and dial in 7700, which is the "emergency squawk" code. Hopefully, the control tower will then be able to send up a plane to fly alongside and hand signal instructions to you. But if all that fails …

2 Look for a large green field. Start gently – very gently – touching the control column to see what each move achieves. Keep the wings level.

3 Find the throttle. It looks like the top of a cafetiere. Pull the knob very gently towards you to decrease power. Push away to increase power.

4 Keep in a straight line. If you have to turn – say, to circle to a landing spot – don't bank more than 5-10 degrees.

5 Perform a controlled crash. It takes a lot of practice to land on your back wheels first, so it is likely you will land on the front wheel. A Cessna will land at about 60-70mph so be prepared for an abrupt halt. Good luck.

The Dutch flying car

RNW, 3 April 2012 

Photo: Pal-V

Avoiding traffic jams by taking to the skies is a fantasy for many motorists. Their dream is now a step closer to reality with the unveiling of Dutch manufactured PAL-V One.

The new flying car took its first flight a few weeks ago at Gilze-Rijen Airbase. The aircraft circled part of the countryside in the province of Brabant at height of 400 metres.

The test flight was conducted without incident. Completion of the initial test flights is necessary before the green light will be given for a production model to be manufactured. The hope is that the PAL-V One could be available to consumers by the end of 2014.

The PAL-V one is a three-wheeler with a propeller and rotor blade that can fold away.

Related Article:

Flying cars take to the skies (and streets) as companies unveil prototypes

The Transition has two seats, four wheels and wings 

that fold up so it can be driven like a car. Photograph:

Terrafugia Inc/AP