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UPDATE 
Week ending March 11, 2001
+++ Moritz Suter steps down as head of SAirLines +++ Shuttle on ISS crew change mission +++ 728JET fuselage assembly begins +++ Ariane 5 launches two satellites +++ Hapag-Lloyd takes delivery of 50th Boeing airplane +++ Boeing to benefit from European Leisure Market consolidation +++ Airlines and manufacturers form Cordiem B2B Exchange +++ News in brief +++

Moritz Suter steps down as head of SAirLines
Personalchaos bei der Swissair

On March 7, Eric Honegger, Chairman and interim CEO of the SAirGroup, has accepted with regret the resignation with immediate effect of Moritz Suter from his position as head of the group's SAirLines division and all its airline holdings. He will propose a successor to the SAirGroup Board of Directors soon. Moritz Suter declared his willingness at the end of January 2001 to assume responsibility at short notice for the SAirGroup's SAirLines division, which includes all the group's airline equity holdings. Explaining the reasons for his resignation, Mr. Suter cited his inability to tackle the task with sufficient likelihood of success under the current SAirLines management structure. Eric Honegger, Chairman of the Board of the SAirGroup, will be proposing a successor to Mr. Suter as head of SAirLines to the SAirGroup Board soon. The corporate restructuring projects currently under way in the group and among its airline holdings will be continued by a project team led by Eric Honegger in parallel to the operational management of the SAirLines division. The prime focus will continue to be on solving the present problems in France and Belgium.
Dr. Honegger will present further details of the SAirGroup's future strategic direction along with its results for 2000 at the group's Annual Results Media Conference on April 2. "I will also be providing the clearest possible picture of all our financial interests in our equity holdings," Honegger adds. "The prime goal of all our present endeavours is to have a profitable, top-quality Swissair."

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Shuttle on ISS crew change mission
Neue Besatzung für die ISS

On 8 March 2001, at 11.42 a.m. UT, the space shuttle Discovery lifted off from Launch Pad 39B of the Kennedy Space Center with a double cargo for the International Space Station. Discovery is carrying the first scheduled relief crew for the ISS. Once the shuttle docks with the station - the rendezvous should take place at about 5.30 am UT on Saturday, 10 March - Commander Yury Usachev and astronauts James Voss and Susan Helms will take over from Bill Shepherd, Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikaler, who have completed their four-month tour of duty as the station's
first inhabitants.
Just as important for ISS development, the shuttle's cargo hold contains the Italian-built multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo. Often described as a "moving van in space", Leonardo is the first of four MPLMs that will carry bulky and often delicate equipment to and from the ISS. Constructed by Alenia Spazio in Turin as part of an agreement between NASA and the Italian space agency ASI, the Leonardo module will dock with the station to allow cargo transfer. This trip, Leonardo is carrying assorted equipment racks, including the station's first scientific payload - a Human Research Facility that will be used to conduct life science experiments. While the module is attached to the station, astronauts will be able to work aboard it in shirt-sleeve comfort: its ECLSS life-support system is an ESA contribution.

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728JET fuselage assembly begins
Montage des 728JET Rumpfs angelaufen

Fairchild Dornier has begun assembly of the first three 728JET fuselages here at the company's primary production facility. The assembly work at the company factory joins production work being done by Fairchild Dornier partners in Europe and the U.S. The first wing is being assembled by EADS-CASA in Spain and the forward fuselage by SABCA in Belgium, while the first tail cone completed by MAN Technologie in Munich has been sent to Honeywell in the U.S. for compatibility testing with the RE 220 auxiliary power unit. The 728JET is the first in a family of new airliners for the under-110 seat market. It is scheduled to make its first flight early next year and enter service in mid-2003.

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Ariane 5 launches two satellites
Eurobird und BSAT mit Ariane 5 gestartet

On March 8, Arianespace successfully launched two commercial satellites: Eurobird for the European Eutelsat telecommunications organization, and BSAT-2a for the Japanese Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation in a turnkey contract with Orbital Sciences Corporation of the U.S. Serving two loyal customers : Eutelsat and B-SAT This latest successful flight confirms the technical and operational maturity of Europe's Ariane 5, which is now widely recognized as the reference heavy-lift launch vehicle in the global space industry. The mission's Eurobird payload was the 14th satellite launched for Eutelsat by Ariane. Arianespace has two more Eutelsat satellites on its orderbook. BSAT-2a was the third satellite to be orbited by Arianespace for the Japanese Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation, following BSAT-1a on Flight 95 and BSAT-1b on Flight 108. It also is the 15th Japanese satellite launched by Ariane. Out of 24 commercial satellite launch contracts open for competitive bid in Japan, Arianespace has won 18. A second satellite, BSAT-2b, is scheduled for launch mid-2001.
Arianespace's next launch, Flight 141, is planned for early June. An Ariane 4 vehicle (Ariane 44L version) will orbit the Intelsat 901 communications satellite for the Intelsat international telecommunications organization. Before the end of the year 3 more Ariane 4s and 4 Ariane 5s are slated for launch. Following the Flight 140 success, Arianespace's backlog now stands at 36 satellites to be launched, plus 9 ATV missions for the International Space Station.

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Hapag-Lloyd takes delivery of 50th Boeing airplane
50. Boeing für Hapag-Lloyd

Hapag-Lloyd, the major German holiday charter airline, took delivery of its 50th new Boeing jetliner, a Boeing Next-Generation 737-800. The airplane was one of three new 737-800s the Hannover-based carrier received that day. This brings the current Hapag-Lloyd fleet to a total of 34 airplanes, including 26 737-800s. All three jetliners departed Seattle within 30 minutes of each other for the Hapag-Lloyd main base in Hannover. Upon arrival, they joined up in a three-airplane formation for a low-level fly-by of the Hannover airport prior to landing. Part of The Preussag Group, the largest travel and tourism company in Europe, Hapag-Lloyd plans to use the new 737-800s on routes from several German cities to holiday destinations in the Mediterranean and the Canary Islands.
A long-time Boeing operator, Hapag-Lloyd was formed in late 1972 and began operations in 1973 with 727-100s. Hapag-Lloyd has been buying new Boeing jetliners since 1978, when it ordered three Boeing 727-200s. Hapag-Lloyd then went on to purchase 737-400s, 737-500s and, in later years, became the launch customer for the Next-Generation 737-800. Hapag-Lloyd was the first airline in the world to order Boeing Next-Generation 737-800s. The carrier's order for 16 737-800s in November 1994 launched the 737-800 program. This was followed by reorders for 11 additional 737-800s, plus additional options. The airline, which operates the largest 737-800 fleet in Europe, was the first carrier in the world to fly the 737-800 equipped with blended winglets when it provided one of its 737-800s as a certification-test airplane for the blended winglet technology. Hapag-Lloyd is scheduled to put its first 737-800 with winglets into service later this spring.

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Boeing to benefit from European Leisure Market consolidation
Europäischer Chartermarkt interessant für Boeing

Boeing estimates the European leisure travel market will grow from 3 to 5 percent annually over the long term despite flat growth in the near term, and expects to benefit from the consolidation of the market that has occurred over the last few years. "As the commercial airplane market leader, we believe the recent consolidation of the European travel industry will be a positive thing for us," said Drew Magill, Boeing Commercial Airplanes regional director of Marketing. Speaking at the ITB Berlin 2001 travel and tourism trade show, Magill said the six big leisure groups will be optimizing fleets to one or two types to take advantage of cost savings associated with using the same flight crews, spares and ground service equipment. "Most of the airlines in the major leisure groups have mixed fleets of airplane types as a result of merged airlines within the groups," he said.
"Currently about 70 percent of the airplanes flown by the major leisure groups are
Boeing models," Magill said. Boeing airplanes carry European charter passengers more than 500 million kilometers (315 million miles) a year. With European charter operators, the Boeing 757 is the most popular airplane of all time. One out of three airplanes flown by the major groups are 757s. Together, Boeing 757s and 767s account for 50 percent of the airplanes used by these groups. The Boeing Next-Generation 737, entered service in November 1997, already has won a share of 13 percent of the major leisure groups' fleets and is still increasing in popularity.

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Airlines and manufacturers form Cordiem B2B Exchange
Neue E-Business-Firme für den Luftverkehrsmarkt

Nine global airlines and three aerospace manufacturers have united to form Cordiem, LLC, the aviation industry's first business-to-business (B2B) exchange and application services provider jointly owned by buyers and sellers. Cordiem builds on the previous efforts of AirNewco, an airline-led B2B initiative, and MyAircraft, a manufacturer-led exchange. AirNewco and MyAircraft said last October they would explore the opportunity to create a jointly owned, independently managed exchange for streamlining the $500 billion industry's supply chain. Based in Washington, D.C., Cordiem's founding aviation members include Air France, American Airlines, BFGoodrich Co., British Airways, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Honeywell International Inc., Iberia Airlines, SAirGroup, United Airlines, United Parcel Service, and United Technologies Corp. Because of its joint buyer-seller ownership, the independent company believes it is uniquely positioned to create a robust collaborative trading platform based on a shared set of standards. The new company's name reflects its mission. Derived from "core," the central or most important part, and "diem," Latin for day, Cordiem plans to sit at the heart of aviation's supply chain, providing a reliable web-based network where aircraft operators, suppliers and repair centers can gather daily to conduct e-business on a level playing field.
With a phased roll-out beginning in the second quarter, Cordiem will offer a comprehensive suite of supply chain management and e-procurement tools designed to help the industry achieve significant time and cost savings in five operational areas: maintenance and engineering, fuel and fuel services, catering and cabin services, airport services and general procurement. The company has partnered with i2 Technologies, Inc. and Ariba, Inc. to deploy its core e-business platform and related solutions. Cordiem selected i2 for its leadership in supply chain planning and catalog management and Ariba for its leadership in B2B e-procurement solutions.

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NEWS IN BRIEF / KURZMELDUNGEN

Gourmet Nova, the SAirRelations airport and rail station restaurant company, is to intensify its collaboration at Zurich Airport with Passaggio Holding, a member of the Autogrill SpA group: the two partners will now operate Flughafen Restaurant AG as a 50:50 joint venture. Each partner previously owned a 48-per-cent equity stake in Flughafen Restaurant AG, the airport restaurant company. The remaining four per cent were held by the Geisser-Glinz family, which had formerly run the restaurants concerned. The family has now disposed of its holding, dividing it equally between the two larger partners.
+++
Despite uncertainty in military procurement circles, the world's aviation turboshaft manufacturers are slated to build nearly $10 billion worth of engines through 2010, with four companies controlling about three quarters of the market. In its annual review of the Market for Aviation Turboshaft Engines, Forecast International/DMS projects that 21 manufacturing firms or consortia will produce some 20,540 aviation turboshaft engines worth $9.87 billion between 2001 and 2010. Four engine manufacturers will control roughly three quarters of the turboshaft engine market in the coming decade: Pratt & Whitney, Snecma (via Turbomeca), General Electric and Rolls-Royce. These four aerospace giants already fight for the lion's share of all aircraft turbine markets, plus or minus another smaller player or two at most. Thanks to small initial sale profit margins and a competitive aftermarket that is very expensive to participate in, companies are spinning off smaller turbine businesses -- and the major turbine engine makers are grabbing them.
+++
Boeing has formed a new organization focused on providing air-refueling tanker aircraft to military customers around the world. The 767 Tanker Programs organization is part of the fast-growing Boeing Military Aerospace Support business, which offers comprehensive support products and services, including aircraft modifications. Boeing is the world leader in tanker design and integration, having delivered more than 1,900 tankers over more than 70 years. The 767 commercial airliner provides an ideal platform to meet military tanker/transport aircraft needs, providing optimum range, payload and fuel-offload performance, along with low operating costs.
+++
BAE Systems has announced that its Aerostructures business is being re-organized to provide increased opportunities for growth and future success. This consolidation of the Aerostructures business brings together activities in the UK and North America. Mike Turner, BAE Systems' Chief Operating Officer said: "The UK and North American aerostructures businesses share many of the same customers, markets, strategies and commercial aspirations. This realignment is a further example of BAE Systems' drive to consolidate activities and deliver performance improvements across its global aerospace, defense and systems business." The Managing Director of the Aerostructures business is Dave Griffiths. Dave is based at the Company's Chadderton site in the United Kingdom. Aerostructures has an order book in excess of $2.03 billion.
+++
Sir C K Chow, Chief Executive of GKN plc, commenting on the results said: "GKN continued to make progress in 2000. Sales were up by 10% and earnings per share before goodwill amortisation and exceptional items were up by 4% to 54.5p. The Board has recommended an increase in the full year dividend of 10% to 19.8p per share. "GKN Westland Helicopters performed well and the AgustaWestland Joint Venture was completed in February 2001. Profit from GKN Aerospace Services was lower than last year though the business is being both restructured and refocused following the acquisition of Boeing's fabrication facility in St. Louis. The Joint Venture of GKN Westland Helicopters and Agusta of Italy was completed in February this year. It is the second largest helicopter company in the world, starting with a strong order book of US$8 billion. GKN Westland Helicopters had a successful year in 2000 with sales slightly exceeding Pound 1 billion and profits up by 10.3% on 1999. During the year 47 new helicopters and kits were delivered, including 9 Apaches to the British Army, 6 EH101s to the Royal Air Force and 5 EH101s to the Royal Navy. A total of 10 new and 3 upgraded Lynx aircraft were delivered to a number of
customers.
+++
At its meeting on March 2, 2001, chaired by Charles Edelstenne, the Board of Directors of Dassault Aviation reviewed the company's financial statements for 2000. Consolidated orders booked totaled 4.13 billion euros, an increase of 21 percent over 1999. This increase was the result of: The sale of 90 Falcon aircraft. Excluding fractional ownership, it represents a record sales figure; two major export military contracts: the sale of 15 Mirage 2000-5 aircraft and the modernization of 10 aircraft in service for Greece, and the sale of 10 Mirage 2000 aircraft to India. Consolidated revenues for 2000 were 3.5 billion euros, up 21 percent over 1999. This increase was driven by the Falcon aircraft, which accounted for 71 percent of revenues. Consolidated operating profit was 379 million euros, 37 percent higher than the 1999 figure on a pro forma basis (comparable accounting methods). This represents 10.9 percent of revenues. Consolidated net profit (group and group share) totaled 237 million euros, an increase of 39 percent compared with 1999 (on a pro forma basis using comparable accounting methods). Net earnings per share came to 23.5 euros.
+++
The Exocet family of anti-ship missiles, in operational service for over thirty years, will continue to constitute the navy's primary anti-ship weapon for the coming years. The Ministry of Defence will proceed, beginning this year; with the re-engining of an initial batch of 50 MM-38 Exocets. The modifications will be carried out, under contract from the Delegation Generale pour l'Armement defense procurement agency, by Aerospatiale Matra Missiles. Similar modifications will be carried out, beginning in 2003, on the other versions of this family of missiles. It is also planned to place an additional order for about 30 additional MM-40 Exocet missiles during the coming decade, while additional improvements will continue to be carried out on missiles already in service.
+++
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company's U-2 Dragon Lady Reconnaissance Avionics Maintainability Program, or RAMP, a cockpit modernization upgrade, has been undergoing testing for more than two months now, after beginning flights three months ahead of schedule. RAMP will upgrade the 1960s-vintage cockpit with newly installed equipment, including three 6-by-8-inch multifunction displays, an up-front control and display unit, and an independent secondary flight display system. The new equipment replaces older systems that are no longer supportable and provides improved pilot situational awareness. The entire fleet of 31 U-2S models and four two-cockpit trainers will be modified before the project is completed in 2007.
+++
Air Berlin, a German airline that provides scheduled tourism service, has ordered two Boeing Next-Generation 737-800 jetliners and announced plans to order two more, The Boeing Company confirmed today. The first two are existing orders that have been accounted for in cumulative totals published by Boeing. Until today, however, the customer for the order was unidentified. The second two orders are new, and have not been announced previously. The four airplanes are scheduled for delivery between October 2002 and March 2003. Air Berlin, with its all-Boeing 737 fleet, flies from cities throughout Germany to sunshine destinations primarily in the Mediterranean, selling seats both through tour operators and on an individual basis. The 737s in Air Berlin's fleet have an average age of less than two years.
+++
Boeing celebrated the roll out of the first 757 Special Freighter (SF) for DHL Worldwide Express. DHL is expected to take delivery of the airplane next week at Boeing Airplane Services' Wichita facility, where Boeing employees modified the airplane from a passenger jetliner to a freighter. Boeing launched the 757SF program on Oct. 5, 1999 with an order for 44 freighters from DHL. The program is an innovative fleet management solution in which Boeing Airplane Services will purchase 44 in-service 757 passenger airplanes, convert them to Special Freighter models, and provide them to DHL under a sale/multi-year lease arrangement.
+++
Boeing has stated that contrary to published reports, it has made no decisions or entered into any agreements regarding the production of the wings, or any other components, of the proposed 747X family of airplanes. Boeing continues to discuss possible involvement in the program with a number of aerospace companies around the world, including Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Fuji Heavy Industries and Kawasaki Heavy Industries. These and other Japanese companies are participants on the 767 and 777 programs, and Japanese industry has been a Boeing supplier and program partner since 1969. These discussions are another step in Boeing's efforts to become more global in our outlook and operations. However, until such time that decisions are made and agreements are entered into, they are only possibilities.
+++
Boeing completed maximum-thrust engine runs in the short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing (STOVL) mode on its Joint Strike Fighter X-32B concept demonstrator, achieving a major milestone in preparation for first flight. Boeing lead STOVL test pilot Dennis O'Donoghue took the Pratt & Whitney F119-614 engine to maximum thrust over the Boeing engine run pit in Palmdale. During the engine runs, the test team, including Pratt & Whitney and Rolls-Royce, repeatedly redirectied engine thrust from the aircraft's cruise nozzle to the lift nozzles and back again. The tests confirmed lift systems operations and verified system integrity.
+++
On March 8 Boeing Business Jets announced the delivery of its first Boeing Business Jet 2 (BBJ 2). Scheduled to deliver on Feb. 28, its undisclosed customer was on board the BBJ 2 just 10 minutes before departure when a 6.8 earthquake hit the Seattle area. The airplane was unaffected, but runway damage to King County International Airport (Boeing Field) prevented it from departing until March 3, when it flew to Georgetown, Del., leaving from only 4,700 feet of useable runway. The second BBJ 2 delivers this week to another undisclosed customer. After installation of auxiliary fuel tanks and winglets at the Decrane Aircraft Systems Integration Group PATS Inc. facility in Georgetown, both airplanes will fly to completion centers.
+++
CIT Aerospace, a division of The CIT Group, a leading global source for financing and leasing, has placed a firm order for 20 Next-Generation 737-700 and five 757-300 airplanes from The Boeing Company, the two companies announced today. In addition, CIT has taken options for five additional 757-300s. The value of the new airplanes on firm order is estimated at more than $1.3 billion at list prices. CIT is the first lessor to offer the newest member of the Boeing 757 family, which has the lowest seat-mile costs of any single-aisle jetliner, making it an extremely cost-effective airplane for airlines to operate. CIT's new 757-300s are expected to be delivered during the spring of 2003 and the spring of 2004, while the 737-700s will be delivered over a three year period beginning in March 2003. CIT retains substitution rights on the 737-700s for other models of the Next-Generation 737 family: the smaller 737-600, the larger 737-800 or 737-900.
+++
Rolls-Royce has certified its BR715 engine with the Russian and Ukrainian aerospace authorities. The documents were handed over in a ceremonie at the Dahlewitz site near Berlin on March 6. This paves the way for the operation of Boeing 717 with Turkmenistan Airlines.
+++
Bombardier Aerospace delivered the milestone 600th production Dash 8 aircraft, a Q300 model, to Air Nippon Co., Ltd. (ANK) of Tokyo, Japan. The aircraft is the first of three 56-seat Q300 aircraft ordered by Air Nippon in October, 1999. Yuzuru Masumoto, president of ANK, accepted the aircraft from Steven A. Ridolfi, president of Bombardier Aerospace, Regional Aircraft, at Bombardier's Dash 8 manufacturing facility. A subsidiary of All Nippon Airways, the largest domestic airline in Japan, ANK will utilize its Q300 aircraft on routes between Tokyo International Airport at Haneda and islands within Tokyo's domain, and for flights within Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost prefecture. The airline's first Q300 will serve the Haneda-Oshima and Haneda-Miyakejima route. Delivery of the 600th Dash 8 to be built came a just few weeks short of the 18th anniversary of the rollout of the first Dash 8 on April 19, 1983.
+++
The drowning of the Russian Mir orbiting station, which has been initially planned for March 13- 18, will happen later, after March 20, ballisticians said at a Tuesday session of the interdepartmental commission for the Mir. The speed of the Mir descent from the orbit depends on the solar activity that influences the atmosphere. It was initially planned to start braking the Mir after its automatic descent to the point of 250 kilometers in order to drown the station in the Pacific Ocean. Now experts are considering a possibility to brake the Mir at a lesser height. That will save fuel, which may be necessary in case of an accident. So far the station is 259.1 kilometers away from the earth surface. It descends 1.5 kilometers each day.
+++
SPACEHAB, Inc. and RSC Energia, leading providers of commercial space services, announced the completion of a baseline design for the Enterprise commercial space station module project and endorsement of the project by the Russian Space Agency, Rosaviakosmos. The partners approved the baseline design following a joint review concluded in late December. SPACEHAB and Energia are already at work on detailed design and procurement of long-lead-time materials and components. Fabrication of some components is ready to begin at Energia's Korolev facilities. The partners plan to launch the commercial Enterprise Module to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2003 on a Russian Proton launch vehicle. In support of this effort, Rosaviakosmos, RSC Energia, and SPACEHAB signed a Joint Resolution Concerning Basic Principles of Implementation of the Multipurpose Module Enterprise as Part of the Russian Segment on the ISS on February 16, 2001. This agreement grants docking and utilization rights to the Enterprise partnership in return for providing functions previously planned for a Russian Docking and Stowage Module (DSM).
+++
BAE Systems has secured an agreement to supply 12 of its regional jets to airline British European. The $600 million preliminary agreement effectively launched a new-technology development of the plane, called RJX. "British European...signed a detailed memorandum of understanding for 12 firm orders and eight options for the 112-seat Avro RJX-100, bringing total commitments for the Avro RJX family to 14 firm orders and 14 options," BAE said in a statement. Such preliminary deals are common in the civil aircraft industry. Definitive order contracts routinely follow a few weeks or months later. Before these orders, the Avro programme's backlog had slipped to 10, barely half a year's production, as BAE had geared up to introduce the new RJX model.
+++
Air Berlin was loosing money in 2000 due to higher fuel prices and the raising Dollar exchange rate. It had 4 million passengers and a turnover of 792 million DM. This year, sales should gro to above 1 billion DM, it was said, and passenger numbers will rise to over 5 million. Main destination for Air Berlin is Palma de Mallorca, which is served from various German airports. 25 aircraft will be used this summer, four of them leased.
+++
Germanys feder cartel office has announced its opposition to the Lufthansa acquisition of a major stake in domestic rival Eurowings, unless there are concessions to improve competition. If the deal goes through, only Deutsche BA is challenging the dominant flag carrier on just seven intra-German routes. A final verdict by the cartel office is planned for March 19.
+++

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Previous updates are still available:
Die News der letzten Wochen sind weiter abrufbar:

*March 4, 2001

*February 25, 2001 *February 18, 2001 *February 4, 2001

*January 28, 2001 *January 21, 2001 *January 14, 2001 *January 7, 2001

*January to December 2000 *January to December 1999 *January to December 1998 *January to December 1997 *September to December 1996

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