China's aerospace industry is reaching out to Indonesia's state-owned airframer in an effort to further open the Southeast Asian nation to Chinese-made aircraft. This strategic move, if successful, could make it harder for ATR, Bombardier and other Western manufacturers to secure sales in Indonesia.

Trials of end-to-end performance-based navigation (PBN) procedures on a busy Latin American route mark another incremental step in global PBN development. LAN Peru launched the trials Feb. 23 using flights between Lima and major tourism gateway Cusco. General Electric Aviation has installed required navigation performance (RNP) procedures at both airports, which cover the entire flight of almost 1 hr. RNP is an advanced type of PBN that allows aircraft to fly precise—and more efficient—routes using aircraft flight-management systems.

In 2009, Southwest Airlines unveiled an ambitious plan to switch out its original Boeing 737 cabin in favor of a sustainable one called the Green Plane. Two years later, the airline has finished rigorous tests of lighter, recyclable aircraft components and tallied survey results from passengers who commented on the new amenities. The project has culminated in Evolve, an interior design that includes newly engineered seats, carpets and bulkheads.

In The World section in the Feb. 13 issue (p. 14), the name of software developer Ultramain Systems was misspelled in an item about its use with the Boeing Electronic Logbook.

Sandwiched between Malaysia and Indonesia, and a short hop from the Philippines, the city-state of Singapore has built itself into a transportation hub on the strength of its airport, the world's busiest shipping port and its renowned national carrier, Singapore Airlines. But now the island nation is seeing its regional dominance in maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) challenged as first-world wages threaten to price it out of the market.

Interior modification is a hot segment of the maintenance, repair and overhaul market, and MRO and airframe companies are coming up with novel ways of dramatically reducing turnaround times for installation of interior components. At the MRO Middle East conference this month, ICF SH&E Vice President David Stewart said interior upgrades and modification and demand will be responsible for growing heavy maintenance at a compound annual growth rate of 3.3% through 2021, even in the midst of new aircraft platforms and deliveries to airlines.

The partnership between major airlines and regional carriers has long been based on the premise of “seamless service,” although the only thing seamless about it has been a common reservation system and a shared airline International Air Transport Association code. For passengers transferring to a regional airliner from an intercontinental jet, cabin comfort and amenities often defy comparison. But that could be changing, as global carriers vie for the lucrative first and business classes and some coach passengers show a willingness to pay more for greater room in economy.

High-speed hybrid's flight demos to come amid flurry of non-conventional rotorcraft projects.