Newsgroups: sci.aeronautics.airliners Path: news From: hoyme@src.honeywell.com (Ken Hoyme) Subject: Northwest cancels Airbus X-Submission-Date: Thu, 10 Dec 92 01:32:05 CST References: Message-ID: Approved: kls@ohare.Chicago.COM X-Submission-Message-Id: <9212100732.AA12591@darkstar.src.honeywell.com> Sender: kls@ohare.Chicago.COM Date: 10 Dec 92 02:09:25 PST In article mumble mumble driscoll@src.honeywell.com (Kevin Driscoll) writes: KH>With these cancellations, it is suspected that the bases will not be KH>built, and NWA will fly their planes to Europe for C/D checks. Of KH>course, they already have received and spent the operating loan.... RD> It'll be interesting to see what ramifications this has on the UAL deal: RD>> did United plan on using Airbus/NWA North American facilities? KD> A local (Minneapolis) TV story said that NWA is considering other KD> airlines' use of the facilities in deciding when/if to build. I seem to recall that at the time of the United announcement, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune business section specifically addressed the issue of whether United would use NWA's proposed Airbus bases in Minnesota. I recall a United spokesperson saying that United planned to do their own maintenance. NWA has always held out the possibility of contracting out to other airlines as the economic justification for the security of the state taxpayer's money. America West is one possibility. Airlines in Canada are another. (Heck - they might even think northern Minnesota is warm!! :^|) It was only in the recent announcement that I heard that they also planned to maintain some of their Boeing planes in these new bases. I don't know what this means, since they seem to have adequate facilities at MSP for their existing equipment. Maybe that land has more value as something else (like more gates...). Ken Ken Hoyme Honeywell Systems and Research Center (612)951-7354 3660 Technology Dr., Minneapolis, MN 55418 Internet: hoyme@src.honeywell.com