Aero Digital Life

Boeing has a better product lineup and is more profitable, but Airbus has more room for improvement.

The rising tide of globalization has boosted growth prospects for the airline industry all over the world, and in particular in emerging markets such as China and India. As air travel has become more accessible to hundreds of millions of people, airplane orders and deliveries have boomed. We examine the evolution of orders and profits at Boeing and Airbus.

Airbus Market Share Strategy

Given the Boeing (BA)/Airbus duopoly and buoyant demand markets, both manufacturers should now be highly profitable — but this is only true of Boeing. Airbus made some strategic decisions in the late 1990s and early 2000s which continue to depress its profitability, namely the development of the super jumbo A380 that is still loss-making, and the sale of planes below cost or at razor-thin margins in the early 2000s in a drive for market share.

If Airbus’s main mission has been to gain market share, one has to recognize that this mission has so far been highly successful. In the year 2000, Airbus delivered 311 planes to airlines and Boeing delivered 489. Eleven years later in 2011, Airbus delivered 534 planes and Boeing 477. As important, the backlog at EADS (EADSF.PK) — European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company, the parent of Airbus — including non-Airbus divisions grew from €132 billion in 2000, the equivalent of five years of 2011 revenues, to €541 billion in 2011, the equivalent of 11 years of revenues. Boeing’s comparable backlog grew from $153 billion in 2000, three years of revenues, to $355 billion in 2011, five years of revenues. Because the Euro has appreciated against the dollar in that decade, these figures actually underestimate the scale of the shift in favor of EADS/Airbus. In dollar terms, EADS’s backlog has grown from $124 billion in 2000 to $700 billion in 2011, a near sixfold increase.

But Boeing has been more profitable. In 2011, its EBIT margin in commercial planes was 9.7% vs. 1.7% at Airbus. This dichotomy between one party’s push for market share gains and the other’s focus on profitable orders has defined the relationship between the two competitors for over a decade.

More:

http://seekingalpha.com/article/592001-boeing-vs-airbus-orders-and-profits?so…

CIUDAD DE MÉXICO, 12 de mayo.- Tras varios tropiezos durante las negociaciones, por fin fue vendida Mexicana de Aviación.

Med Atlántica se convirtió ayer en el dueño de Nuevo Grupo Aeronáutico (NGA), es decir, de la aerolínea y sus filiales, confirmó Felipe Consuelo, juez rector del concurso mercantil.

Sin embargo, no hubo un pago durante la transferencia de acciones de Tenedora K —que poseía 95% de la línea aérea— hacia Med Atlántica. La transacción se realizó bajo un convenio fiduciario. De esa manera, una vez que la aerolínea sea rentable los nuevos dueños comenzarán a cubrir dicho adeudo.

El juez Consuelo también aclaró que, pese a la venta de acciones, Mexicana aún no tiene fecha para volar, pues ahora deberá cerrar un convenio con sus acreedores, principalmente con Banorte y Bancomext, tema en que se trabajará el próximo lunes.

Al respecto, el conciliador de Mexicana, Gerardo Badín, indicó que las deudas de la aerolínea con Banorte son por mil 325 millones de pesos y con Bancomext, por 780 millones.

“Tenemos unos fideicomisos con ellos (los bancos), que si no liquidamos, no podrá salir la empresa adelante”, dijo Badín.

En tanto, el representante internacional de Med Atlántica, Christian Cadena, dijo que aún analizan diferentes posibilidades con los grupos de inversionistas interesados “si queremos ir solos o acompañados con Grupo Fides o con otros con los que estamos negociando”.

Cadena también señaló que calculan recuperar la inversión en cuatro o cinco años, porque Mexicana de Aviación es un proyecto rentable por su marca y las rutas que tiene.

Sobre los nombres de los inversionistas, aclaró que las identidades seguirán en reserva hasta que no se sepa quiénes son los que finalmente acompañarán al grupo.

De las rutas aéreas, el juez aseguró que éstas están protegidas por el concurso mercantil desde agosto de 2010, por lo que serán regresadas a la empresa en cuanto pueda comenzar a volar.

La transferencia de acciones entre Tenedora K y Med Atlántica, sin que todavía pueda volar Mexicana, ocurre en el marco de demandas e investigaciones contra Grupo Posadas, los antiguos dueños de la aerolínea.

Med Atlántica es el nuevo dueño de Mexicana de Aviación

Luego de varios tropiezos durante las negociaciones el día de ayer Med Atlántica se convirtió en el dueño del Nuevo Grupo Aeronáutico (NGA), es decir Mexicana de Aviación y sus filiales, así lo confirmó el juez Felipe Consuelo, rector del concurso mercantil de la aerolínea.

Durante la trasferencia no existió un pago por los títulos accionarios como se había mencionado por 9 millones de dólares debido a que la firma se realizó bajo un convenio fiduciario entre Tenedora K, quien poseía el 95 por ciento de las acciones, y Med Atlántica lo que permitirá que una vez que la aerolínea comience a volar y sea rentable los nuevos dueños comenzarán a pagar, aunque no se detalló cual será el monto final.

Consuelo informó que el traspaso de las acciones fue un avance muy importante, sin embargo, aún falta cerrar el convenio concursal con Banorte y Bancomext por lo que se trabajará en el tema a partir de lunes

he other shoe has dropped on Microsoft’s recent Bing redesign, and it dropped right on Google.

Microsoft is adding a new Sidebar to Bing search that shows your contacts and activity on all your social networks, including Facebook, Twitter, and — yes — Google+.

Google drew a lot of fire earlier this year by integrating information from Google+ into search results.

The big problem with this is that Google doesn’t offer info from other social networks, like Facebook and Twitter, as prominently. And some data from those networks isn’t available through Google at all because Google didn’t sign the business deals it needs to get them.

Microsoft did. And it’s using this access to trump Google in social search.

The Sidebar separates social data from your main search results — unlike what Google does with Google+. It also includes a real-time activity feed, and will suggest contacts who might be able to help you with a particular search query. For instance, if you’re looking for information on traveling to China, Bing might direct you to a set of Facebook photos from one of your friends who recently traveled there.

It can also recommend “experts” on particular topics based on their tweets, public Facebook posts, or public posts on other social networks like Quora.

Bing is also going to add information from other social networking services, including LinkedIn, Foursquare, and Skype, to the Sidebar, this summer.

Bing has also separated core Web results from links to its own services like Bing Maps or reviews — those kinds of links now appear in a third column called the Snapshot. It’s not a major change, but it does make the main search results cleaner.

Granted, Apple and Google aren’t quite the bosom buddies they once were, but how far is Cupertino going to free itself from the Android-maker? Well, Apple’s picked up a number of mapmakers and is now reportedly getting ready to unveil a Google map competitor for iOS. 9to5Mac is reporting that the mapping solution will be in-place for the next major version of the mobile operating system, combining technologies gathered with the acquisition of Placebase, C3 Technologies and Poly9. The star of the show is said to be the 3D mode with graphics nabbed from C3. All Things D has “independently confirmed” the forthcoming app reinvention, with sources adding, (hopefully a bit hyperbolically) that it will “blow your head off.” According to rumors, we’ll be finding out a lot more come WWDC next month.

PARIS, May 10, 2012 — /PRNewswire/ — Boeing’s (NYSE: BA) new 787 Dreamliner has been honored with the Grand Prize during the 2012 Hermes Awards for Innovation. Yves Galland, president of Boeing France, accepted the prize during the 5th National Meeting of Chief Innovation Officers held in Paris.

“We are very proud to receive this prestigious award which recognizes the 787’s amazing technological breakthrough,” said Galland. “We share this prize with the eight French companies providing critical products and systems onboard the Dreamliner as well as the entire international team and our customers around the world.”

The Hermes Awards, given by the European Institute for Creative Strategies and Innovation, honor companies or organizations whose innovative ideas and products help advance society. The jury recognized the exceptional technological breakthrough the 787 is bringing to the market, meeting the demand from airlines and passengers for more efficient and more comfortable airplanes. The jury was particularly impressed by the creative methodology that Boeing followed to develop the airplane via international passenger organizations, university studies and industry experts.

Made from composite materials, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner is the first mid-size airplane capable of flying long-range routes and will allow airlines to open new, non-stop routes preferred by the traveling public. As a result of innovative technologies, the airplane offers unparalleled operating economics, fuel efficiency and passenger comfort.

Contact: Antoine Balas Boeing Communications, France +33 1 70 37 07 07 antoine.balas@boeing.com

Lori Gunter 787 Communications +1 206-931-5919 loretta.m.gunter@boeing.com

SOURCE Boeing

Russian blogger/photographer Sergey Dolya was in Indonesia with the Sukhoi Superjet Road Show when Wednesday’s second demo flight disappeared. Dolya was not on the downed flight, but did onboard an earlier flight from which he shared these photos. It was Dolya who broke the story that the plane was missing via Twitter.

The photos of the previous flight show a jovial and fun atmosphere, as is the case on just about any demo flight, and passengers and crew on the missing flight would have been no different.

12►

(Photos by Sergey Dolya, shared under a Creative Commons license)

Watch the pictues here:

http://www.nycaviation.com/photo-galleries/sukhoi-superjet-demo-flight-crash/

- Updated at 1:1o p.m. ET

A Russian Sukhoi SuperJet with about 46 people onboard has disappeared from radar, The Associated Press reports.

The plane was on a demonstration flight for potential buyers and journalists, according to Bloomberg News and other news outlets.

AP:  Contact lost with Russian-made plane in Indonesia

“The plane disappeared from the radar around the Bogor area. We are still looking for it and we are uncertain whether it crashed,” Gagah Prakoso, spokesman for the national search and rescue agency, says to AFP.

Vice Marshal Daryatmo, head of the Indonesian Search and Rescue Agency chief, tells The Jakarta Post two helicopters had tried to locate the missing aircraft but were forced to return because of bad weather.

“Now we are mobilizing ground teams in coordination with the local police and military units to find the aircraft’s whereabouts,” he tells the Post.

As of 1:10 p.m. ET, there was still no word on locating the flight.

The Sukhoi SuperJet’s last contact came at 2:33 p.m. local time (around 1:33 a.m. ET). The Post adds “it was reported that there was bad weather above Mt. Salak, the last known location of the aircraft.”

The Post says most of the 46 people (some passenger counts varied in other accounts) on the flight were members of the media and other invited guests, according to , Dmitri Solodov Russian Embassy’s press attaché.

Under a headline reading “Superjet: Russia’s great aviation hope,” AFP writes:

The SuperJet only made its first commercial flight last year and if a major accident is confirmed it would be the first disaster to involve the aircraft, which is made by legendary Russian planemakers Sukhoi.

The plane is crucial to Russia’s hopes of becoming a major player in the modern aviation market and improving its image in an industry scarred by frequent crashes of aging Soviet-era jets.

The SuperJet line – which Reuters reports is built to seat up to between 68 and 103 passengers – is a midsize jet that is marketed against similar aircraft made by Canada’s Bombardier and Brazil’s Embraer. Russia’s Aeroflot and Armenia’s Armavia are the only carriers currently flying the jet, though other airlines have placed orders for the jet, according to the Globe.

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As we continue to learn more about Windows 8, some things are becoming increasingly clear.

Not only is this release totally different from any other Operating System that has come before it but because it is so different, it will tremendously affect the way businesses operate.

Typical Microsoft upgrades have forced businesses to make negligible changes in the way they work simply because the Operating System updates have been so similar.

It can be argued that Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 were relatively minor refreshes compared to Windows 8. Minor because for the most part, they looked and worked the same.

Windows 8 is such a major change that businesses will be unable to mindlessly upgrade.

I believe that this is the first OS upgrade from Microsoft that will force businesses to re-evaluate their functional business processes.

No longer will they be able to just give IT permission to roll out the new update, there will need to be real thought and strategy around how Windows 8 is deployed.

Here are 9 major reasons why:
BYOD

The phrase BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) isn’t new but there just haven’t been that many devices that employees could credibly bring to the table.

Now that’s changed.

With iPhones, iPads, Android devices and Windows 8 devices, there are now many choices for employees to create and consume information. Even better, these choices are now becoming credible ways for employees to perform work.

With so many choices available to consumers starting this fall, businesses will have to take a step back and figure out what devices will be managed and what devices will not be acceptable in the workplace.

This conversation will not be optional anymore, it will be necessary.
Tablet Strategy

Tablets are new to the enterprise.

Who should have a tablet and why are some of the core questions that businesses will have to consider. Heck, should a business even give out tablets to employees in the first place?

Tablets will not make sense for everyone and each business will have to go through a process of mapping their business processes and employees to tablets to see if there’s a fit.

More To Read:

http://www.windows8update.com/2012/05/08/the-9-ways-that-windows-8-will-change-businesses-forever/

As Windows 8 comes closer to its release date, there are still several people unsure of whether or not they should upgrade from Windows 7. One of the most frequently asked question regarding Windows 8 is: How is Windows 8 different from Windows 7? Well, here is a list of five new features in Windows 8 that may help you make up your mind.

Metro UI

The most visual change is clearly the new Metro user interface. Microsoft has scrapped the traditional Windows user interface with the start button we have all become so used to. Instead, Microsoft has taken inspiration from its Windows mobile phones to replicate the Metro user interface in a desktop capacity. While the new interface may seem confusing at first, it really doesn’t take long to adjust to it. The new layout is simple; it consists of neatly stacked, live tiles that display information and updates for the application corresponding to each tile. The tiles are fully customizable and can be arranged and resized to the liking of the user.

Despite all the negative feedback the new user interface has received, I feel that the Windows 8 Metro interface will be taken well by Windows users as it provides a good balance between style and simplicity. The interface displays a cleanly organized home screen that will provide a unique and user-friendly desktop experience for both non-tech savvy and experienced users. This should not be a cause for despair for those already accustomed to the Windows 7 desktop layout, as an almost carbon copy of the Windows 7 desktop can be brought up through a single click from the home screen.

New Task Manager

The Windows task manager is one aspect that hasn’t changed much over the years and has been in need of an upgrade. Windows 8 features a redesigned task manager that simplifies the way in which users manage processes and computer performance. The new task manager is designed to provide users with a simple but effective interface that is specifically optimized to deal with common tasks. Through data collected from Windows 7 users, it was found that 85% of users only open up the task manager to kill non-responsive applications and to monitor processes. As such, the new task manager in Windows 8 features a simplified layout that only lists currently running applications. The new task manager doesn’t prompt users to confirm when ending a task and, as such, tasks can be canceled by a single click.

For advanced users, a more in-depth task manager can be opened by clicking on ‘more details.’ This detailed version of the task manager has also been modified to provide a more user-friendly layout; things such as process names and their usage have been simplified to make it easier to monitor the performance of your computer. Over all, the task manager has been nicely improved and been made simpler to use for the not-so tech-savvy users.

The Lock Screen

The Windows 8 lock screenis similar to that of Windows Phone 7 and is optimized for both desktop computers and tablets. The lock screen consists of a few main components including the background picture, battery and network icons, login screen, and a few choice widgets that you can display on the screen to provide real-time updates relevant to the application. The widgets are customizable to only display selective information.

Windows 8 offers a new way of logging in which works by touch gestures; this is known as a picture password login. The picture password is easy to set up through the control panel and allows users to assign any image to the login screen. The next step is to create three gestures on the image and this acts as the password to log in to your computer. Picture passwords are one of the most secure forms of protecting your computer, and Windows 8 has nicely integrated this fine little feature into the lock screen.

New File System

Windows 8 Server will be introducing a new file system known as ReFS (Resilient File System), which replaces the traditional NTFS file system. While this new file system doesn’t currently apply to the main client builds of Windows 8, it is likely that Microsoft will eventually roll out ReFS for all editions of Windows 8. So how is ReFS different from NTFS? Well, it really isn’t all that different from NTFS. In fact, ReFS is built upon NTFS and is developed by utilizing many of its key areas. The primary focus of ReFS is on the resilience of data; this is achieved in part by making the file system simpler. Basically, ReFS is a more reliable and efficient file system that is less prone to crashing and errors. However, when errors do occur, ReFS is designed to detect and repair issues without causing any file corruption. We’ll go into more detail on ReFS and how it works in a separate article.

ARM Support

Windows has always been based on x86 systems and has not had support for ARM-based devices up until now. A lot of work has gone into optimizing Windows 8 for both x86 and ARM processors. Through its support for ARM-based devices, Windows 8 provides a consistent computing experience across devices including tablets, smartphones, and traditional desktop computers.

Will any of these five differences prompt you to make the upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 8 when it finally hits the shelves officially? Or are you content enough with your current operating system to keep it around for a while more? Drop us a line in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

CC licensed Flickr photo shared by Ceo1O17