EoW March 2008

The prospect of the lapse of these provisions this February drove Mr Bush, in October 2007, to yet another ringing assertion that curbs on his power amount to nothing less than complicity with the powers of darkness. Making his meaning clear despite the murky Presidential diction, he said: “The problem is, the threat to America is not going to expire in February. So Congress must make a choice. Will they keep the intelligence gap closed by making this law permanent, or will they limit our ability – collect this intelligence and keep us safe, staying a step ahead of the terrorists who want to attack us?”While Mr Bush, along with the rest of us, awaits his answer, we might consider another question: How much longer will the mere mention of 9/11 suffice to silence not only the dissenter but also the honest seeker of reliable information?

The two companies said that the French-American venture, set to launch in April, will generate an estimated $1.5 billion a year in revenue in its first phase. Under the deal signed in October, this first phase will cover all transatlantic flights among Air France and Delta hubs, as well as all flights operated by both carriers between London-Heathrow and the United States. Boeing Co said on 3 rd January that it had delivered 441 planes in 2007, nearly 10%more than in 2006.Chicago-based Boeing, which had predicted it would deliver 440 to 445 planes in the year, made 112 deliveries in the fourth quarter. Its rival Airbus SAS had projected delivery of 450 to 460 planes in 2007, and as of 30 th November had delivered 410 planes. At the final tally, Airbus is expected to have met its projection. In 2006, Airbus delivered 434 planes; Boeing, 398. Airbus is also expected to come out ahead of Boeing on orders for 2007. Boeing said that, as of 18 th December, it had booked 1,213 orders. Airbus, which was set to release its information for last year in mid-January, reported 1,204 orders as of the end of November. This total beats the Toulouse, France-based company’s own record of 1,111 orders, set in 2005.

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Aerospace

As airlines manoeuver for position under the new Open Skies agreement on airline service between the US and Europe, Air France-KLM and Delta Air Lines Inc have formed a joint venture that will enable them to share profits and eventually up to $8 billion in annual revenue on transatlantic routes. ❈

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EuroWire – March 2008