News
Ryanair gets 1st Boeing 737 Max
Irish budget airline Ryanair (FR/RYR) has taken delivery of its first Boeing 737 Max aircraft, known as the Boeing 737-8200. Ryanair describes the aircraft as a gamechanger and the aircraft is a Boeing 737-Max8 but with a cabin configured to seat 200. The aircraft arrived in Dublin today from Seattle, [read more]
News
Aer Lingus delays Manchester Transatlantic start
Aer Lingus’ UK subsiduary, Aer Lingus UK has delayed the planned start of transatlantic flights from Manchester Airport (MAN/EGCC) as Coronavirus restrictions on both sides of the Atlantic continue to prevent all but essential travel. Aer Lingus UK was due to launch flights to New York and Orlando on 29th [read more]
Air Safety
CAA issues warning about aircraft returning from storage
The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has issued a series of safety notices about aircraft returning to service after being stored for long periods during the Coronavirus pandemic. The most critical one, SN2021/014 relates to blocked pitot tubes and follows at least three occurrences of blocked pitot tubes causing airspeed [read more]
Engineering, Leasing & Finance
Get ready to PLAY as A321neo breaks cover
New Icelandic low-cost carrier PLAY has shown off its colours as its Airbus A321neo gets painted ahead of entry to service. The airline aims to begin flying later this month after obtaining its Air Operators Certificate (AOC) in may. London Stansted is one of the routes that will form part [read more]
News
First & Only female Red Arrow honoured by Queen
The first and only female Red Arrows pilot has been awarded made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) in the Queens birthday honours. Kirsty Murphy, who now flies for The Blades Aerobatic Team, spent 17 years in the Royal Air Force flying fast jets before being appointed to the [read more]
News
Stobart Air collapse leaves passengers stranded
Regional airline Stobart Air, which operates Aer Lingus Regional flights, has collapsed leaving hundreds of passengers stranded around the UK and Ireland. The Dublin based airline announced it had ceased trading this morning and was a appointing a liquidator after flights were cancelled across the Are Lingus Regional network. Stobart [read more]
Engineering, Leasing & Finance
Loganair commits to being Carbon Neutral by 2040
Loganair has become the first UK regional airline to commit to being Carbon Neutral by 2040 after it announced its Green Skies initiative. The first step in the Green Skies initiative is to introduce a carbon offsetting programme which will begin on 1st July and will see a £1 carbon [read more]
Civil Aviation
Wizz Air start flights from Jersey to Mainland UK
Wizz Air UK has announced its first ever domestic flights as it plans fly from the Channels islands to mainland UK for Summer 2021. The flights will connect Jersey with Doncaster & Cardiff, routes that have been previously served by Flybe. The routes will be operated by an Airbus A321 [read more]
Civil Aviation
Loganair set to increase Isle of Man flights by 70%
Leading regional airline Loganair (LM/LOG) is set to increase its flights to and from the Isle of Man by 70% as coronavirus restrictions continue to be lifted across the UK. The airline is expecting to operate 44 flights per week to six different destinations from the Island by the end [read more]
Air Travel
News
Travel industry begins day of action & protest
The travel industry including trade bodies such as ABTA, airports, airlines and unions have begun a day of action and protest to demonstrate how it was one of the hardest hit industries in the pandemic and the way the government has handled international travel. The UK’s largest airport group, Manchester [read more]
News
UK Government plan for vaccinated arrivals to skip quarantine
Health minister Matt Hancock has said that the UK Government is working on plans that will see fully vaccinated people being able to arrive from amber list countries without the need to quarantine. Under current rules, anyone arriving from an amber list country must quarantine for 10 days and take [read more]
News
Ryanair and MAG challenge UK Government over traffic light travel system
Ryanair has joined forces with Manchester Airports Group (MAG) to mount a legal challenge to the UK Governments’s traffic light travel system during the pandemic. The system allows for countries to be graded Red, Amber and Green with green being the only colour that doesn’t require a quarantine on return. [read more]
Engineering & MRO
Air Safety
British Airways 787 nose gear collapses at Heathrow
The nose gear of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner belonging to British Airways (BA/BAW )has collapsed on the stand at London Heathrow Airport (LHR/EGLL). The aircraft, Boeing 787-8 G-ZBJB, had arrived to Heathrow from Moscow operating flight BA881 and was parked when the incident occurred. The aircraft was due to operate [read more]
Air Safety
CAA issues warning about aircraft returning from storage
The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has issued a series of safety notices about aircraft returning to service after being stored for long periods during the Coronavirus pandemic. The most critical one, SN2021/014 relates to blocked pitot tubes and follows at least three occurrences of blocked pitot tubes causing airspeed [read more]
Engineering, Leasing & Finance
Get ready to PLAY as A321neo breaks cover
New Icelandic low-cost carrier PLAY has shown off its colours as its Airbus A321neo gets painted ahead of entry to service. The airline aims to begin flying later this month after obtaining its Air Operators Certificate (AOC) in may. London Stansted is one of the routes that will form part [read more]
Military Aviation
Military
RAF Scampton for sale by ‘end of 2022’
The home of the Royal Air Force Aerobatics Team (RAFAT) The Red Arrows is to be put up for sale by the end of next year the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has announced. It was announced in 2018 that RAF Scampton was one of several air bases to be closed [read more]
Military
Video: F-35s from ’Dambusters’ squadron take part in trilateral exercise
RAF F-35 Lightning jets have been flying in an international exercise alongside French and USAF crews in simulated combat off the South West French coast. Exercise Atlantic Trident is the first major international training mission that the eight aircraft from 617 ‘Dambusters’ Squadron have taken part in since the Carrier [read more]
Military
RAF Typhoons practice intercept of B-52 Bombers as part of NATO air policing mission
Typhoon jets from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland have been conducting various operations and training exercises in Romania as part of NATO’s air policing mission. The four RAF Typhoons arrived in Romania in April to take part in the NATO enhanced Air Policing (eAP) mission this summer. They are based out [read more]
General Aviation
Air Safety
Impact of stress on flight safety downplayed by pilots according to new study
A new study suggests that General Aviation (GA) pilots downplay the impact of stress on flight safety compared to factors such as inclement weather. The research, conducted by the University of Aberdeen, presented 101 pilots with a series of 12 take-off scenarios across four categories – compromised performance (pilot stressed, [read more]
General Aviation
East Anglian Air Ambulance appoints new CEO
East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) has announced that it has appointed a new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to replace Patrick Peal who is retiring from the role. The charities current Director of Operations, Matthew Jones, will head the charity from the end of June 2021. Mr Peal has led the [read more]
General Aviation
Old Sarum owners get apology over comments made by councillor
The owners of Old Sarum airfield have today received a public apology from Wiltshire Councillor Ian McLennan of Laverstock, Ford & Old Sarum ward after he made a number of innacurate comments and statements online about the intentions of the owners. Mr McLennan said “Over the course of last year (2020), [read more]
Air Sports
Air Sports
Wales Airshow cancelled for 2021
Organisers of the Wales Airshow have announced that the 2021 event has been cancelled. The airshow was due to take place in July along Swansea seafront but like many events, has fallen victim to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. Airshow organisers Swansea Council say that the event will now return 2nd [read more]
Air Sports
Red Arrows return to UK & where to see them in 2021
The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team (RAFAT) The Red Arrows returned to their UK home at RAF Scampton earlier this week after gaining their Public Display Authority (PDA) for 2021. The team has been undergoing pre-season training in Greece to perfect their routines and before this years display routines were [read more]
Air Sports
WCAR selects Aurora Media as its broadcast partner for air races
The World Championship Air Race (WCAR) has announced it has selected Aurora Media Worldwide as its Broadcast and Digital Format partner for the upcoming seasons. Already world leaders in live sports productions, Aurora will be responsible for broadcasting the events worldwide on conventional and digital platforms and attracting new audiences. [read more]
Air Safety
Air Safety
British Airways 787 nose gear collapses at Heathrow
The nose gear of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner belonging to British Airways (BA/BAW )has collapsed on the stand at London Heathrow Airport (LHR/EGLL). The aircraft, Boeing 787-8 G-ZBJB, had arrived to Heathrow from Moscow operating flight BA881 and was parked when the incident occurred. The aircraft was due to operate [read more]
Air Safety
CAA issues warning about aircraft returning from storage
The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has issued a series of safety notices about aircraft returning to service after being stored for long periods during the Coronavirus pandemic. The most critical one, SN2021/014 relates to blocked pitot tubes and follows at least three occurrences of blocked pitot tubes causing airspeed [read more]
Air Safety
Impact of stress on flight safety downplayed by pilots according to new study
A new study suggests that General Aviation (GA) pilots downplay the impact of stress on flight safety compared to factors such as inclement weather. The research, conducted by the University of Aberdeen, presented 101 pilots with a series of 12 take-off scenarios across four categories – compromised performance (pilot stressed, [read more]
Space
News
First Human Space Flight – In the Beginning;
Today marks the anniversary of a significant leap in development in the “Space Race”.Sixty years ago today a human left the surface of earth and climbed beyond our atmosphere in an event that would change history and, in doing so, generate a global excitement that set our species on a [read more]
Military
Ex-RAF Lossiemouth Commander to head UK Space Command
Air Commodore Paul Godfrey OBE has been announced as the inaugural commander of the newly formed UK Space Command. [read more]
Features
Interview: Thales Alenia Space Team
The number of off-world projects currently in development is staggering.Earlier this month China’s Chang-E 5 landed on the moon to collect up to 2kg of regolith samples and return them to Earth. This is a short mission – Get up, Get rocks, Get home – but even this takes years [read more]
Wales
Cardiff Airport News
Aer Lingus return to Cardiff Airport with two routes
Aer Lingus Regional, operated by Stobart Air, is returning to Cardiff Airport (CWL/EGFF) for the first time since 2016 reviving two routes to Northern Ireland and Eire. The new route to Belfast City will commence on 28th June and will operate four times per week on Monday, Friday, Saturday, and [read more]
Cardiff Airport News
Welsh First Minister accused of double standards over Spain flights
Wales’ First Minister Mark Drakeford has been accused of double standards after allowing flights between Cardiff Airport and Spain to operate despite Wales still being in full lockdown under his authority. Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies led the calls saying it cannot be right that peoplee can “fly from [read more]
Cardiff Airport News
Your Pictures: The last flight of a British Airways Boeing 747
British Airways Boeing 747-400 G-BYGC left Cardiff Airport today for the short flight to St Athan marking the end of the Boeing 747 in service with British Airways. The aircraft will now be preserved at St Athan by eCube Solutions and is due to be opened to the public in [read more]
Scotland
Military
F-35 jets take part in HMS Queen Elizabeth’s maiden deployment
F-35 fighter jets from RAF Marham have been deployed as part of the Carrier Strike Group 21 (CSG21) which will see them take part in Exercise Strike Warrior in Scotland before deploying on operational duties around the world. They will be based on the Royal Navy’s flagship aircraft carrier HMS [read more]
Civil Aviation
Engine fault forces Loganair’s North Sea flight to turn around
An Aberdeen to Shetland flight was forced to return to Aberdeen International Airport following a potential engine fault Thursday morning. The 06.50 am Loganair flight LM901 (18 February), was travelling to Shetland’s Sumburgh Airport when the crew received an alert of a fault with the right-hand engine. Following the alert, [read more]
Air Safety
Man dies in Scottish gyrocopter crash
Police Scotland has confirmed that the pilot of a gyrocopter has died after his aircraft went down near Avoch at 12:55pm. The pilot was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency services. He was the sole occupant of the gyrocopter. A spokesperson from the Air Accidents Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has [read more]
Northern Ireland
News
Manchester to Belfast City route takes off
The new Manchester (MAN/EGCC) to Belfast City Airport (BHD/EGAC) t route has got underway today when the first of four daily return services took off The Aer Lingus Regional service is operated by Stobart Air using an ATR72-600. Julian Carr, Aviation Director at Manchester Airport, said: “It’s great to see [read more]
Civil Aviation
Loganair increases Belfast City routes
Loganair (LM/LOG) is re-establishing the Belfast City to Glasgow Airport route. The service, which starts on 4th September, will operate twice-daily Monday to Friday and a single flight on a Saturday using an Embraer EMB145 Regional Jet. The routes from Belfast City to Aberdeen and Inverness are due to restart [read more]
Air Safety
Aer Lingus under fire over packed flights
Irish carrier Aer Lingus (EI/EIN) has come under fire after images appeared on social media showing a packed flight from London to Belfast. The images posted on twitter by BBC NI journalist Kelly Bonner show a packed flight with most of the seats taken in breach of social distancing guidelines. [read more]
Channel Islands
Channel Islands
Aurigny Airlines joins the Jerusalema Challenge
Aurigny Airlines is the latest airline to join the Jersulema dance challenge which is sweeping across airlines around the world. You may have seen the video with some of the worlds biggest airlines that we featured recently but now Aurigny has raised the bar for the UK with this brilliant [read more]
Channel Islands
Aurigny to stay grounded until September
Guernsey-based airline Aurigny (GR/AUR) has confirmed its flights will remain grounded until the end of August. The airline says that the disruption to flights is as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and that its grounding until the end of summer is in line with the Coronavirus Exit Strategy produced [read more]
Airshow News
BEA Airbus A319 to fly at Jersey airshow
British Airways has announced that its baby retro jet, the BEA Airbus A319, will fly at the Jersey Airshow this September. The specially painted Airbus A319 G-EUPJ has been painted in the British European Airways (BEA) livery as part of the airlines 100 year anniversary, BA100. BEA was was one [read more]
