The debate surrounding the requirement of mandatory pre-flight COVID-19 vaccinations in the near future has now intensified, as the UK approved the first vaccine for distribution. Global airport industry body Airports Council International has joined with a number of airlines in stating that a blanket rule requiring pre-flight vaccination could be as disruptive to the
Virgin Galactic has set a date for its rescheduled flight tests into suborbital space to begin from 11 December, after postponing its previously planned tests due to COVID-19 restrictions. From 11 December, Sir Richard Branson’s space tourism company will conduct the third crewed test flight of its VSS Unity space plane from New Mexico’s Spaceport.
A Bloomberg report has suggested that stood-down and furloughed pilots who are not currently flying regularly could pose a threat to the industry moving forward. On 15 September, a Lion Air flight carrying 307 passengers and 11 crew veered off the runway shortly after landing in Medan, sparking investigation by Indonesia’s transport safety regulator. The
The world’s airlines are on track to lose a total of $157 billion throughout 2020 and 2021 as global COVID cases continue to surge, according to the IATA. The International Air Transport Association has downgraded its industry outlook since June, when it had forecast $100 billion in losses across the two-year period. Now, the association
In more bad news for Boeing, Seattle-based hybrid-electric airplane start-up Zunum, which ran out of cash and collapsed in July 2019, has filed suit against the US planemaker – its former investment partner. The lawsuit filed in King County Superior Court alleges that Boeing “employed a targeted and co-ordinated campaign to gain access to proprietary
Brazilian planemaker Embraer has said it is in “active talks” with potential partners to develop its latest turboprop aircraft, the first it has built in over four decades. It comes after US giant Boeing axed a $4 billion joint-venture deal in April. Embraer had previously aimed to develop its latest turboprop as a part of
