October 23, 1978

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International Air Transport Issue

Analog to Digital Systems Switch Seen

Surging market for derivative and new aircraft models needed to meet the airlines’ growth and replacement equipment requirements is providing a firm underpinning for the introduction of a broad range of new avionics systems within a relatively short time frame.

By Benjamin M. Elson13 min

138

International Air Transport Issue

Demand for Pilots to Outstrip Supply

Washington—Continued airline traffic growth and route expansion, combined with a high rate of pilot retirements, are contributing to an increased demand for qualified pilots by the airlines. At present, the pilot demand is being met by what industry officials term as “more than adequate numbers of highly qualified pilots.”

By David M. North13 min

International Air Transport Issue

Traffic Increase Impacts Transport Industry

U. S. airframe manufacturers are scrambling to grab the short-term benefits of the current traffic surge, but they are not yet predicting a boom that would cause them to alter drastically long-range planning. The traffic spurt comes at a time when long-term business potential already looks so promising that new product development is under way at a feverish pace unequalled in the past decade.

By Richard G. O’Lone12 min

132

International Air Transport Issue

Interiors Aim at Higher Density Seating

Need to accommodate the spiraling demand for air travel is shifting the focus of interior design marketing from in-flight amenities to high-density seating concepts, in which shorter pitch and lower weight are being emphasized, if possible without detracting from customer comfort.

International Air Transport Issue

Manufacturers Broaden Engine Families

Evendale, Ohio—General Electric Aircraft Engine Group is launching a multipronged attack in the commercial transport high-bypass-ratio turbofan market, aimed at broadening and improving its CF6 family and upgrading the CF6s now flying.

International Air Transport Issue

Europeans Fearful of U. S. Dominance

London—Continuing European fears of U. S. dominance of the civil air transport manufacturing field are raising obstacles to viable links between U. S. and European manufacturers and are sowing seeds of doubt among the Europeans themselves.

By David A. Brown8 min

162

Passenger Handling Snags Clog Airports

Airline route expansion and increased discount fares have drawn many new air travelers into the current air traffic boom, further complicating problems at congested terminal facilities that already are handling passenger levels previously forecast for the 1980s.

October 161978

October 301978

October 23, 1978

October 23, 1978

Equipment Financing Outlook Brighter

By Warren C. Wetmore14 min