Flight International - 10 April 2018

THIS WEEK

flightglobal.com 10-16 April 2018 | Flight International | 9

Embraer sends

reminder to

Santiago

Show Report P

A

ero Vodochody has secured

its first buyer for the

new-generation L-39NG, with

Senegal to acquire four armed

examples from the Czech Repub-

lic manufacturer.

Confirming its selection on 4

April, Aero Vodochody said: “The

order contains four aircraft in a

light-attack version, maintaining

also the full training capability.”

Its deal with Dakar also covers

the provision of training services

for pilots and maintainers,

plus ground-support equipment,

spare parts and logistics support.

Once fielded, the combat-roled

L-39NGs will complement the

Senegal air force’s on-order trio of

Embraer EMB-314 Super Tucano

armed turboprops. The service

currently lacks a fixed-wing

strike capability, Flight Fleets

Analyzer shows.

Hailing the first order for the

Williams International FJ44-4M-

engined NG, Aero Vodochody

president Giuseppe Giordo says:

“Currently we also have two ad-

ditional contracts in a very ma-

ture state of negotiation.”

Production deliveries are

scheduled to begin in 2020, with

Aero Vodochody having early

this year launched work on a pre-

series batch of four examples:

two flight-test articles, plus static

and fatigue test examples. ■

B

oeing’s 767-based KC-46A

Pegasus aerial tanker pro-

gramme has completed its fuel

on-load testing objective, by suc-

cessfully transferring 66,200kg

(146,000lb) of fuel to another ex-

ample via its centreline boom.

The fuel transfer took place

during a 3h, 40min-long flight on

an undisclosed date, Boeing says.

Both aircraft took off from and

landed at Boeing Field in Seattle,

Washington, and demonstrated a

maximum fuel offload rate of

4,540l (1,200gal) per minute.

The two-ship refuelling objec-

tive was another step toward re-

ceiving a supplemental type cer-

tificate from the US Federal

Aviation Administration, needed

by Boeing to modify the commer-

cial 767-2C into a military tanker.

The KC-46A now has demon-

strated the ability to receive fuel

from three tankers in the US Air

Force fleet, also including the

Boeing KC-135 and McDonnell

Douglas KC-10. To date, the pro-

gramme’s test aircraft have com-

pleted 2,700 flight hours and

made more than 2,500 boom and

hose-and-drogue contacts during

refuelling activities, also support-

ing transports and combat types

including the Boeing AV-8B, F/A-

18 and Lockheed Martin F-16.

Progress towards full FAA

certification comes several weeks

after secretary of the air force

Heather Wilson criticised Boeing

for what she believed will be fur-

ther delivery delays of the aircraft.

The USAF had expected the com-

pany to deliver its first of an initial

18 production examples by the

end of 2017, and Wilson expects it

to miss a revised target during the

second quarter of this year.

Boeing says it has “no greater

priority” than delivering the

KC-135 replacement, but late last

month stopped short of guarantee-

ing a first delivery by mid-year.

The USAF expects to eventually

field 179 of the type. ■

P

ortuguese long-haul wet-lease

specialist Hi Fly is to become

the latest operator of the Airbus

A380, with plans to take delivery

of the type around the middle of

this year.

Hi Fly had previously sig-

nalled that it was holding talks to

introduce a pair of A380s. The

carrier says the first Rolls-Royce

Trent 900-powered aircraft will

arrive in mid-2018, and will be

operated “worldwide”, with a

471-seat configuration.

This includes 399 seats on the

main deck and 60 business- and

12 first-class seats on the upper

deck. This matches the configura-

tion used by Singapore Airlines,

which started withdrawing its

older A380s last year.

Hi Fly has yet to confirm the

serial number of its first example,

but has provided an illustration

of the A380 in the carrier’s livery,

which appears to include a Mal-

tese registration. The company’s

Hi Fly Malta division is based on

the Mediterranean island.

The operator states that it will

employ the A380 with a “truly

luxurious” interior, including a

Panasonic CX2 in-flight enter-

tainment system.

“This acquisition has been part

of our company’s plans for a

while,” says company president

Paulo Mirpuri. “It is a very proud

moment for Hi Fly.”

Flight Fleets Analyzer shows

that Hi Fly currently operates a

long-haul fleet including one

A330 and three A340s. ■

ACQUISITION

DAVID KAMINSKI- MORROW

LONDON

A380 arrivals to

boost Hi Fly fleet

in luxury update

PROGRAMME GARRETT REIM LOS ANGELES

KC-46A tankers prove boom

capacity during crucial tests

Pegasus hits fuel transfer objective in significant step towards full certification for Boeing

“This acquisition has

been part of our

company’s plans for

a while. It is a very

proud moment for us”

Paulo Mirpuri

President, Hi Fly

Offload was achieved between two examples at 4,540l per minute

PROCUREMENT CRAIG HOYLE LONDON

L-39NG orders take off with Senegal

Dakar has ordered four armed aircraft in a light-attack configuration

Boeing

Katsuhiko Tokunaga/Aero Vodochody