Turboprops’ future is OK but not great as ATR corners market

Subscription Required Introduction Jan. 5, 2015: Conventional wisdom suggests that turboprops are making a bit of a comeback because these remain far more efficient for routes up to 400 miles than jets, particularly at high fuel prices. Even… Read More

Odds and Ends: AirAsia 8501, PNAA Conference, FWIW

Jan. 2, 2014: AirAsia 8501: Our friend Geoff Thomas has an interesting commentary about the AirAsia 8501 story. Also, an Airbus A330 pilot for a major US airline, offered these observations about QZ8501. A Linkedin profile suggests this… Read More

Looking ahead in 2015 in commercial aviation

Here’s a visualization of events to look for in commercial aviation in 2015.  

Boom times leads to looming cash flow shortfall across OEMs

Subscription Required. Introduction Dec. 16, 2014: There have been record aircraft orders year after year, swelling the backlogs of Airbus and Boeing to seven years on some product lines, Bombardier’s CSeries is sold out through 2016, Embraer has… Read More

The challenges in bringing a new turboprop to market

By Philippe Poutissou Special to Leeham News and Comment Introduction Dec. 15, 2014: The market for turboprop aircraft has been strong for nearly a decade, yet there has been limited new product development in the segment. This has… Read More

New UTC CEO throws cold water on PW GTF growth

The new chief executive officer of United Technologies Corp., Gregory Hayes, threw cold water on hopes and dreams of Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary, that the successful small- and medium-sized Geared Turbo Fan will grow into the wide-body… Read More

Assessment of Lessors in Airbus and Boeing backlogs, narrow- vs wide-body

Subscription Required Introduction Nov. 30, 2014: Airlines now lease about 50% of their aircraft under a variety of mechanisms: operating, finance, leveraged and Islamic leases, just to name a few. There are operating leasing, special purpose and “house”… Read More

MTU investors day: views of its engine programs, future airplane timelines; separately, Embraer COO interview

Nov. 30, 2014: MTU Investors Day: MTU is a major participant in engine development and supplies, participating on the GEnx, GTF and GEnx program. It’s also a member of the joint venture in International Aero Engines and it’s… Read More

Interview: CSeries program update with Bombardier’s program chief Dewar

Subscription required. Now open to all Readers. By Bjorn Fehrm and Scott Hamilton Introduction Nov. 24, 2014: Bombardier CSeries flight testing has now passed 500 flight hours, and with the addition of Flight Test Vehicle 5 to the… Read More

A320 v 737: the sales winner is….

It’s one of the bitterest rivalries in the industrialized world: Airbus vs Boeing. Despite being world-class companies, executives at each often snipe at each other’s airplanes, claiming superiority in economics and passenger appeal. Like lawyers arguing a court… Read More