South Africa's finance minister has told the country's parliament that discussions are being held with investors with a view to freeing flag-carrier South African Airways from state support. Tito Mboweni said, in a medium-term budget policy statement on 30 October, that SAA would probably never be self-sufficient as it stands. "[The airline is unlikely to ever generate enough cash flow to sustain operations in its current configuration," he told parliament. "I am pleased to learn that there are conversations involving SAA and potential equity partners, which would liberate the fiscus from this SAA 'sword of Damocles'." Mboweni said that the government, instead of funding "ordinary workers" travelling on old rail services from townships, had "essentially chosen to subsidise the middle-class and wealthy" who could afford to fly. "Which then begs the question," he said. "How long are we going to be on this flightpath? Forever? I think not."

Source: FlightGlobal

Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia is to be rebranded as Sunclass Airlines after the collapsed tour operator Thomas Cook Group's Northern Europe division was acquired by a trio of investors. The investors include Strawberry Group, the fund controlled by businessman Petter Stordalen, as well as Altor Funds and TDR Capital. Strawberry Group and Altor will each hold 40% with TDR taking the remaining 20%. This investment consortium will provide a "strong and long-term" Nordic majority ownership of the leisure company and its 2,300 personnel, says Strawberry Group. Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia has continued operating despite the liquidation of its parent company in September. The collapsed leisure firm's Northern Europe operation is also known as Ving Group, and includes tour operator activities in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland – among them firms such as Spies and Tjareborg. Ving Group says its core business is chartered holiday travel with Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia accounting for 85% of its volume. Group chief executive Magnus Wikner says the investors' "long experience" in the industry combined with financial strength will give the company "long-term stability" and the opportunity to develop. Stordalen says the company has a portfolio of "strong Nordic brands" and amounts to a "crown jewel" among the region's tour operators. "It's a fantastic business that has ended up in a very unfortunate situation," says Altor partner Harald Mix. He says that, through a restructuring scheme, the new owners will secure SKr6 billion ($620 million) in liquidity and guarantees. The various operations are being moved to a new group, with some of the component firms filing for a technical bankruptcy to enable them to be taken over by the newly-established group being set up by the consortium. Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia will be renamed Sunclass Airlines. The carrier currently operates around 14 aircraft, a mix of Airbus A330s and A321s.

Source: FlightGlobal

Italian investigators have disclosed that there were no engine de-pairing requirement in place for the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000s fitted to a Norwegian Boeing 787 before one of its powerplants failed after take-off from Rome. The engines were subject to a modification – under a service bulletin designated 72-H818 – which introduced an intermediate-pressure turbine blade with a different parent material and coating, to protect against corrosion and fatigue due to sulphidation. A separate service bulletin had set out a de-pairing life to protect against the risk of dual engine failure. Italian investigation authority ANSV says Rolls-Royce used statistical models, based on blade sampling and fleet data analysis, to derive a blade life limit for different groups of serial numbers. This enabled a further bulletin to set a blade hard life which was significantly lower than that at which certain in-service engines – those which had yet to receive the newly-developed blades – would have to be de-paired. As a result, says ANSV, Rolls-Royce agreed with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency to remove the de-pairing requirement. But the failure of the left-hand engine on the Norwegian 787-8, on 10 August, occurred 1,210 cycles after the installation of its intermediate-pressure turbine module – failing 200 cycles before its hard life limit of 1,410 cycles. The aircraft's other engine had performed more cycles – a total of 1,337 – and was even closer, just 103 cycles, to its own limit of 1,440. ANSV says this showed the hard life limit was "not sufficient" to avoid a detrimental effect on safety, and left the aircraft vulnerable to dual engine failure, particularly given that a remaining operative engine "undergoes overall higher solicitations". It has recommended that EASA evaluate de-pairing criteria for engines yet to receive new blades, in order to avoid two such engines being installed on the same aircraft. ANSV acknowledges that Rolls-Royce, on 19 September, revised the service bulletin for managing these engines, reducing the blade life limit for specific engine serial numbers. EASA endorsed this revision through an airworthiness directive on 18 October, which takes effect from 1 November. Norwegian's 787 sustained damage not only to the engine exhaust cone but also the left wing, flap fairing, horizontal stabiliser, fuselage and main landing-gear tyres. Debris shed from the powerplant damaged a total of 28 cars and three building awnings.

Source: FlightGlobal