Four more tunnel boring machines arrive for Doha Metro project

Jets escort Qatar Airways plane into Manchester airport after bomb threat Tue, Aug 05 12:51 PM EDT image 1 of 3 By Andrew Yates MANCHESTER England (Reuters) - Britain scrambled two fighter jets on Tuesday to escort a Qatar Airways plane into Manchester airport after the pilot reported a possible explosive device on board. A passenger was later arrested on suspicion of making a hoax bomb threat. The incident, which prompted the authorities to close the northern England airport for 25 minutes, briefly raised fears of a terrorism attack. Qatar Airways said the Airbus A330-300 plane was flight QR23 from Doha to Manchester with 269 passengers and 13 crew on board. A Reuters photographer saw armed police remove a handcuffed male passenger dressed in baggy trousers and a sports shirt from the plane. “We can confirm that Typhoon aircraft were launched from RAF Coningsby in their quick reaction alert role this afternoon to investigate a civilian aircraft whose pilot had requested assistance," Britain's Ministry of Defence said in a statement. "The aircraft was escorted to Manchester where it landed safely. This incident is now being handled by the civilian authorities.” Greater Manchester Police said on their official Twitter feed that they had detained one man in connection with the incident. "A man who was on board the plane ... has been arrested on suspicion of making a hoax bomb threat," they said. Britain has a standard response to such incidents which always involves scrambling fighter jets and emergency services. In May 2013, fighter jets escorted a Pakistan International Airlines passenger plane to Stansted Airport near London where police went on board and arrested two men on suspicion of endangering an aircraft. (Reporting by Paul Sandle, William James, Kylie MacLellan, Sarah Young, Tess Little and Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Stephen Addison and Andrew Osborn) ============== June 05, 2014 - 6:42:50 am A German-made tunnel boring machine (TBM) being delivered at the Doha Port yesterday. Qatar Railways Company (Qatar Rail) has received four more TBMs for phase one of the Doha Metro project. DOHA: Qatar Railways Company (Qatar Rail) has received four more tunnel boring machines (TBMs) for phase one of the Doha Metro project. The TBMs Al Mayeda, Al Khor, Lehwaila and Al Wakra were manufactured by Germany’s Herrenknecht and will be used for the Red Line North and South Underground projects. TBMs are ideal for Doha; they interfere very little to the vibrant and active city life. Needing only one point of entry, they can tunnel below the city streets, practically unknown to the population above. They are also ideal for longer lengths of uninterrupted tunnelling, as is required for the Doha Metro project, Qatar Rail said yesterday in a press statement. Al Mayeda and Al Khor will be used for the Red Line North Underground. The design and build for the project will be undertaken by a joint venture led by Italy’s Salini Impregilo. Four TBMs (Lebretha, Al Mayeda, Al Khor and Al Bidda) already on site to be assembled) are proposed to bore required tunnels for the Red Line North project. Lehwaila and Al Wakra will be launched for the Red Line South Underground project. The design and build for the project will be undertaken by a joint venture led by the French-Qatari company QDVC Five TBMs (Lehwaila, Al Wakra, Mushaireb, Doha and Al Zubara) will be utilised for the tunnelling on the Red Line South Underground project. Each TBM will travel between 7km and 9km and take about two years to complete their journeys. The TBM average speed will be between 12m/day and 21m/day, depending on ground conditions. Daily excavation quantity will be over 600 cubic metres, with an estimated predicted total excavation quantity of over 5,000,000 cubic metres. Work for Red Line North Underground comprises design and construction of about 13.4km twin-bored tunnel, including seven underground stations, between the proposed Msheireb Underground Station and Doha Golf Course via Doha West Bay. Tunnels will be built at an average depth of about 20 meters below ground. Red Line South Underground extends from Msheireb in the north to Hamad International Airport in the south. Work includes seven underground stations and design and construction of about 14km twin-bored tunnel to be built at an average depth of about 25 meters below ground. Qatar Rail is awaiting the delivery of another 16 TBMs in the coming months, to be utilised between the Red Line North, Red Line South, Green Line and Gold Line Underground projects. The Green Line, a joint venture led by Austria’s PORR Bau, will receive six TBMs, while the Gold Line – recently awarded a design and build contract to a joint venture led by Greece’s Aktor SA – will also receive six TBMs. The Peninsula

UPDATE 1-Qatar Airways delays taking first A380 by several weeks

UPDATE 1-Qatar Airways delays taking first A380 by several weeks Fri, May 30 14:15 PM EDT * Qatar superjumbo delivery delayed by cabin "issues", says CEO * Delay pushes delivery beyond IATA airlines meeting (Adds quotes, Airbus comment, background) DOHA/DUBAI, May 30 (Reuters) - Qatar Airways has delayed taking delivery of its first Airbus A380 by "several weeks" while the planemaker tackles last-minute problems with the cabin, the airline's chief executive told Reuters. The airline has asked Airbus to address requests it made after the usual pre-delivery customer inspection, Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said on Friday. Al Baker was responding to a Reuters query after delegates gathering for the annual meeting of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said the world's largest passenger jet - the first of 10 ordered by Qatar Airways - was widely expected to arrive in time for the meeting in Doha. Qatar Airways is hosting the June 1-3 gathering of more than 200 airlines, which is expected to include lavish celebrations marking 100 years of commercial aviation. "It is customary for the inspection process of delivering a new aircraft to an airline to go through several rounds, and this is not deemed to be an unusual case, though this will lead to a delay of several weeks before its first scheduled commercial route will commence service," Al Baker said in an emailed statement. The delay is because of "issues with the interior of the cabin", he added. Airbus confirmed the delay, with a spokeswoman saying: "Qatar Airways and Airbus have agreed to some fine-tuning elements on the first A380 to be delivered to Qatar ... New dates will be communicated once confirmed." Delays in jetliner deliveries can cause disruption and extra cost for airlines as they reassign aircraft to fill the gap. The A380 was designed with a cabin that can be heavily customised to support a luxury brand, but this requires complex configuration when preparing the first model for a new airline. LOST OPPORTUNITY Delegates in Doha said the inability to deliver the superjumbo in time for the airline industry's biggest annual event would represent a lost marketing opportunity for Airbus, which is trying to boost weak sales of the 525-seat jet. However, in a rare move, Airbus said it would make a plane order announcement on the sidelines of the IATA event on Sunday. Singapore Airlines began long-awaited first A380 services to India with flights to Delhi and Mumbai on Friday. Qatar Airways, which began services to a new $15 billion Doha airport this week, is competing with Gulf rivals that have also bought the A380 as part of efforts to support their own fast-growing hubs: Dubai's Emirates and Abu Dhabi-based Etihad. Al Baker said in Berlin in March that Qatar Airways would take the first three of 10 A380s it has on firm order in June and would first deploy the jet on services to London. It is not the first time Qatar Airways, which is seen as one of the most influential but meticulous buyers of jets, has kept the industry in suspense over the addition of new capacity. In 2011, European cargo carrier Cargolux rejected delivery of a freighter version of Boeing's 747-8 shortly after Qatar Airways took a 35 percent stake in Cargolux, which it subsequently sold. The delay was blamed on a contractual spat over fuel consumption. (Reporting by Tim Hepher and Praveen Menon; Editing by David Goodman)