Aviation News

In the last few days, news broke from Vending Times that Delta Air Lines would be partnering with Farmer's Fridge to offer a selection of its chef-curated items as inflight dining options on select flights. Starting today, June 3, Delta flights departing from Los Angeles International Airport will offer the meals for a limited time, according to a press release.

Yesterday, Reuters reported that the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has scheduled a hearing for June 24, which will determine the probable cause of a midair cabin panel and door plug blowout on Alaska Airlines flight 1282. This incident garnered worldwide attention last year, as it resulted in a two-week grounding of all Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft, and severely damaged Boeing's reputation.

Delta Air Lines has announced that it will be resuming its route between Raleigh–Durham International Airport (RDU) and Indianapolis from August 11, 2025. The airline last flew the route five years ago, but it was subsequently cut during the pandemic. Delta's wholly-owned regional subsidiary, Endeavor Air, will operate the daily flights under the Delta Connection brand.

A 35-year-old woman on a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul Airport (IST) to Mexico City International Airport (MEX) suffered a stroke midair over the Atlantic. Thanks to the timely intervention of another passenger onboard, a doctor, and a diversion to Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), the woman's life was saved.

Alaska Airlines has trimmed some of its summer schedules after delaying the delivery of two Embraer jets to avoid additional costs imposed by tariffs. Alaska is among several US airlines whose aircraft deliveries have been affected by the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.

American Airlines has partnered with Brandon Blackwood, one of Hollywood's most sought-after designers, to launch a new line of amenity kits exclusively for premium cabin passengers. The airline will debut three new kits later this month, which will be available through early September. These limited-edition kits, which double as a collectible and reusable accessory, will be offered on select international, transcontinental, and Hawaii flights.

Welcome to my 170th weekly routes article! It includes 10 mini-stories about subjectively exciting services that took off between May 27 and June 3 (unless stated). While dozens of routes worldwide started in the examined period, only a selection of intriguing additions are covered in this article.

Alaska Airlines has announced that it will begin flying from Seattle, Washington, the United States, to Rome, Italy, with flights taking off in May 2026. Bookings will open in fall 2025, according to the airline.

On June 2, Edelweiss, the Swiss leisure airline, inaugurated the first flight ever from Zurich to Seattle. This followed the return of SAS from Copenhagen on May 21, having last flown to Seattle in 2009. Their entry means 12 passenger airlines—US and European—now fly between the Washington State airport and Europe, the most since 2023. Alaska Airlines will join them next year, with its first route to Rome.

United Airlines has officially finalized a deal with the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA) to add five more gates to its operations at Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD). The move comes ahead of a summer that is expected to see record numbers of flights and air travelers passing through O’Hare’s doors.

Bookings systems at American Airlines were down for a considerable portion of Monday. First reports of a systems outage began emerging late in the morning (east coast time), and systems appeared to remain down for approximately four hours. Customers were unable to search for flights or complete bookings on either the website or app. Both were providing an automated message saying "Our system is having trouble", encouraging users to try again in a few minutes.

The Airbus A350-900 is Delta Air Lines' flagship subfleet, at least until its -1000s are delivered. According to ch-aviation.com, it has 37 A350-900s, not all active. They have three very different configurations, with five examples—all ex-LATAM—having 339 seats. For now, at least, no other aircraft in Delta's fleet has that many seats.

Delta Air Lines, Air France-KLM, Virgin Atlantic, and IndiGo will partner to give passengers more extensive travel options and seamless connectivity between North America, Europe, and India. The carriers will look to grow the partnership on a global scale.

A truck has hit a Saudia Boeing 787-9 that was parked in London, the United Kingdom, causing damage to the aircraft’s fuselage near the aft section. The aircraft’s return flight to Saudi Arabia was canceled.

On the first day of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Annual General Meeting (AGM), Air France-KLM, Delta Air Lines, Virgin Atlantic, and IndiGo announced a groundbreaking partnership to connect India with Europe and North America.

The crew of Southwest Airlines decided to divert to Myrtle Beach after a passenger's battery charger overheated and began to emit smoke during flight, according to The Aviation Herald. A Boeing 737-700, registration N7713A, WN-1844 from Baltimore was headed to Tampa, Florida.

Redmond Municipal Airport (RDM) announced on Friday that starting June 5, and lasting through October 6, American Airlines would offer direct seasonal service to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). DFW is the largest hub in American's network, serving 240 global destinations with more than 10,000 connections.

WestJet is heading back to the Netherlands with almost daily service (six times weekly) to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS) via Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ). WestJet will be the first nonstop option available connecting the two cities, according to FlightAware data.

British Airways' widebody fleet consists of 130 aircraft. It has 11 Boeing 787-10s, 12 Airbus A380s, 12 787-8s, 16 777-300ERs, 18 A350-1000s, 18 787-9s, and 43 777-200ERs. No wonder London Heathrow is the world's third-busiest airport for widebody flights.

On Friday, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced that Runway 4L-22R at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) would be reopened two weeks ahead of schedule. The runway has been closed for a planned rehabilitation, regular runway operations are scheduled to resume on Monday, June 2.