Embraer

Air One Feeder Airline, a new start-up carrier based in Bangalore, India, will operate two Embraer [ERJ] 145s. The 50-seat RJs will be leased from Swiss International Airlines and will be placed into service in the second half of the year. The two ERJ 145s are the first to be used in India. Air One employed the consulting services of the National Aerospace Laboratory, also in Bangalore, to evaluate aircraft best suited for the new carrier.

Embraer has selected Naturelink as its authorized Legacy sales representative for the sub-Sahara region of Africa. Currently, Naturelink operates the largest fleet of Embraer turboprop aircraft in Africa. Embraer and Naturelink are currently negotiating for Naturelink to operate the Legacy service center in Africa.

Bombardier

Atlasjet, a low-cost airline in Turkey, is leasing two Bombardier [BBD] CRJ 700s. It will be the first to operate the CRJ 700 in Turkey. The planes are being leased from Maersk and they will be delivered this month and next.

Skyways

Joe Gibbs Racing, a NASCAR team owned by the coach of the Washington Redskins, has obtained a Saab 2000 from Air Vendee Investments in France. Sweden's Skyways Aviation and Northstar Aviation Services, based in Florida, brokered the deal. The aircraft was ferried from Dinard, France, to Taby Air Maintenance in Sweden to be modified to comply with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations. The plane was delivered to the Gibbs headquarters in North Carolina earlier this month, where it will then be painted in the team's colors.

Independence Air

Independence Air [FLYI] is now posting its entire schedule on the Amadeus global distribution system. Since it made the decision use global distribution systems, Independence has subscribed to Galileo/Apollo, Sabre, Worldspan and Travelocity.

Independence has partnered with the Corporate Angel Network to provide free flights to cancer patients. The Corporate Angel Network arranges to fly cancer patients to distant medical centers. Independence is the first commercial airline to participate in the program. Previously, the charitable group relied on corporate jets to transport the patients and family members.

Pan Am

Because of the devastation caused by last year's hurricanes in Florida, Pan Am International Flight Academy is closing its Career Pilot Development training campus in Ft. Pierce. By mid-summer all the training equipment and aircraft in the program will be transferred to the program's other campus in Phoenix. The decision was made because the Ft. Pierce area remains devastated, with major hurdles remaining before the area is rebuilt. The school decided to move because of the likelihood that the area could be struck again. Last year, the school temporarily moved some of the training to Phoenix after the hurricanes, but the school said to do the same thing again would create unacceptable training delays and inconvenience its customers. Pan Am is maintaining its commercial and regional airline training program in Miami and it is maintaining its business aviation training center in Orlando.

Embry-Riddle

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is establishing an extended campus office at British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) in Vancouver as part of a new program to provide counseling and student services for distance-learning students. The program will enable BCIT graduates to seamlessly transfer into Embry-Riddle's technical management or professional aeronautics degree programs.

A.O.G. Air Support

A.O.G. Air Support Inc. completed the initial experimental flight test program on the Cessna 208 Caravan on both wheels and floats. Last year, AOG initiated a design and development program to introduce two new products that will enhance the safety, flight performance and stability of the Caravan. AOG has designed and manufactured a prototype airfoil modification, which consists of new drooped leading edges, wing extensions and winglets.