Boeing is recommending pilots complete flight simulator training prior to returning to the cockpits of 737 Max – a position reversal for a company that long insisted computer-based training was sufficient. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says it is reviewing Boeing’s recommendation, but has not disclosed what training it will ultimately require when clearing the Max to fly. But should the FAA mandate simulator time, airlines would face the task of running thousands of pilots through a small number of simulators, which observers have said could take many months, slowing carriers’ ability to get their aircraft back in service. Boeing says only 34 simulators are currently in existence, and US airlines have said they have only a handful. “Boeing is recommending 737 Max simulator training in addition to computer-based training for all Max pilots prior to return to service of the 737 Max,” says Boeing in a statement. “This recommendation takes into account our unstinting commitment to the safe return of service as well as changes to the airplane and test results. Final determination will be established by the regulators.” The FAA says it “will consider Boeing’s recommendation for flight crew simulator training during the upcoming Joint Operations Evaluation Board” meeting, says the agency. The Joint Operations Evaluation Board (JOEB) is composed of pilots from US and international 737 Max operators and is tasked with evaluating 737 Max pilot training. “The flight crews will be subjected to rigorous validation testing that will help the FAA and other international regulators evaluate proposed flight training and emergency procedures,” says the FAA. The JOEB will send information and data to the FAA’s Flight Standardisation Board, which will make the FAA’s final training recommendations. “The FAA is following a thorough process, not a set timeline, to ensure that any design modifications to the 737 Max are integrated with appropriate training and procedures,” says the FAA. Industry insiders have speculated the FAA will lift the Max’s grounding early this year.

Source: Cirium

Avianca Holdings has made this announcement regarding its future fleet plans:
As part of the implementation of the “Avianca 2021 Plan”, Avianca management has reached the following agreements to tailor its aircraft commitments to its future requirements: In cooperation with Airbus, the Company has reduced its firm commitments to 88 A320neo aircraft (from 108). Previously scheduled firm A320neo family deliveries in 2020 through 2024 have been deferred or cancelled. The 88 remaining commitments are now scheduled for delivery in 2025 through 2028 (20 per year) with the balance in 2029 (8), These agreements provide comprehensive financial benefits, with significant Capex reduction in the period through the end of 2024. Separately, Avianca has agreed to enter into 12-year operating leases for up to 12 A320neo aircraft with BOC Aviation. Deliveries to occur after 2023, consistent with the Avianca 2021 plan. Finally, Avianca reached a mutually beneficial agreement with Boeing with regards to the outstanding 787-9 deliveries. CFO Adrian Neuhauser said “The completion of these three major aircraft transactions, coupled with the recently completed financial reprofiling and securing of $375 million of new long-term capital financing, places Avianca in a solid position as it moves forward with the Avianca 2021 Plan.”

Source: WorldAirlineNews

Iranian investigators have formally identified a Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 which crashed shortly after take-off from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini airport.

The Civil Aviation Organisation says the twinjet was registered UR-PSR and had been bound for Kiev.

It states that the aircraft took off at 06:12, operating as flight PS752, but lost contact with air traffic control at 06:18, just 6min later.

Take-off was conducted from Imam Khomeini’s runway 29R.

The CAO states that the aircraft came near in a district of Tehran called Saba Shahr. This area lies to the northwest of the airport.

Preliminary indications, it adds, point to no survivors among the 167 passengers and nine crew members.

Meteorological data from Imam Khomeini airport indicate temperatures marginally below freezing but no adverse weather otherwise.

“Investigation and rescue teams have been sent to the accident site,” says the CAO. “The process of data collection and accident investigation has begun.”

Most of the occupants were Iranian nationals, it adds, although citizens from other nations were also on board. Ukraine International Airlines says the aircraft disappeared from radar contact “just minutes after departure” from Tehran. It says it is still working to determine the precise number of passengers on board the jet. The carrier says it is suspending flights to Tehran “indefinitely” in the aftermath of the accident, although it has not indicated whether this relates directly to the crash or the recent US-Iranian political tensions. UIA states that it is “working closely with the aviation authorities”, to “do its best” to find out the causes of the accident. It adds that the aircraft entered its fleet in 2016, directly from the manufacturing facility, and underwent scheduled maintenance on 6 January 2020.

Source: Cirium