Last weeks the big news in Holland was the possible start of the production by Rekkof BV of the new Fokker XF Series a.k.a. the Fokker 70/100 New Generation. Dutch Minister of Economy Maria van der Hoeven is expected to provide 20 Million Euros for the initial development depending on the approval of the European Union.

The new aircraft will be based on the Fokker 70 and 100 design but with new engines, winglets, extended range, fuel efficient, a light aircframe and a cost effective design. The aircraft is said to be almost 20% more fuel-efficient than the Embraer 190 according to Rekkof.  The XF-70 and XF-100 will be powered by Rolls Royce BR-170 engines with ranges varying between 2300 and 3000 NM for the XF-70 and 2100-2400 NM for the XF-100.  Thrust for the XF-70 version will be 14.000 lbs and the XF-100 will be 15.460 lbs.

Will it ever become a (small) success? I don't think so. The world market is already full of aircraft in the range of 70-120 seats. Think of Airbus with their A318/319, Embraer with the EMB170/190, the new Sukhoi Superjet 100, Bombardier CRJ-series, Commercial Aircraft Company of China ARJ-21 (and C-919) and the intentions of Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to enter the RJ market.

Also politics will play a big role which may be a negative influence on the possible sale of the aircraft. E.g. though KLM may have a big interest in the aircraft, Air France may decide otherwise. Key factor though will be a combination of the right aircraft for the right airline at the right time plus the selling price. Maybe Rekkof will pull it off, but it will not be easy. But then again, aviation is full of surprises....

Plans on building the controversial ECO-barrier alongside the Polderbaan at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol have been cancelled. The new barrier was intended to reduce aircraft noise levels. The barrier was a new design, totaly new, never tested and therefor the question remained if it would work. The project would have costed over 25 Million Euros. New research on the new eco-barrier revealed it would not be safe enough and that was the reason Schiphol Airport decided to kill the project. Environmentalists and neighbouring residents were ofcourse not very happy with this decision, but aviation enthousiasts and aircraft photographers were glad the barrier plans were cancelled as it would make spotting and photography almost impossible. Also eco-critics were happy to see the plans have been scrapped as they doubted the noise-reduction effects from the start. Schiphol Airport is now investigating new solutions....

I received this shot of the first Western aircraft for Kuban Airlines, a Boeing 737-3Q8 registered VQ-BHD, and is painted in a great colourful scheme with sunflowers. The airline is based at Krasnodar in Russia and named after the Province of Kuban. The photo was taken by Ian Bowley and is seen here after roll-out at East Midlands and is former BMI Baby aircraft (G-TOYC). Kuban is flying the 737-300 into Frankfurt on a regular basis on mondays and saturdays. Other destinations for Kuban in Europe this summer are Athens (Yak 42), Cologne (737-300), Hannover (737-300). Larnaca (Yak 42), Munich (737-300) and Thessaloniki (Yak 42).

Soon The Big Aviation Slide Sale will start on this site with slides from the Seventies, the Eighties, the Nineties and today. Slides for sale for low prices. Keep a sharp look out. We expect to go live within 2-3 weeks. An example in the Big Aviation Slides Sale Webshop below.