🇺🇸 19-46112, a Boeing KC-46A Pegasus (767-2C), was delivered to the United States Air Force on May 8.

🇺🇸 22-46113, a Boeing KC-46A Pegasus (767-2C), was delivered to the United States Air Force on May 8.

🇦🇪 A6-ARG, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to Air Arabia (G9) on May 8.

🇨🇳 B-32QW, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to Shenzhen Airlines (ZH) on May 8.

🇪🇸 EC-MVH, an Airbus A320-214, was delivered to Volotea Airlines (V7) on May 6.

🇺🇸 N266BZ, an Airbus A220-300, was delivered to Breeze Airways on May 8.

🇦🇹 OE-IER, an Airbus A320-214, was delivered to Tus Airways (U8) on May 7.

🇳🇱 PH-YHP, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to Transavia (HV) on May 7.

🇵🇱 SP-EXM, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, was delivered to Enter Air (E4) on May 7.

🇮🇳 VT-NOC, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to IndiGo (6E) on May 9.

🇨🇦 C-GITP, an Airbus A319-112 with Air Canada Rouge (RV), was withdrawn from use (wfu) and ferried on May 6 to Greenwood, Miss. (GWO) for part-out and scrap.

🇫🇷 F-OFDF, an Airbus A330-223 with Air Caraibes Atlantique (TX), was wfu and ferried on May 4 to Batangafo, Central African Republic (BTG) for part-out and scrap.

🇺🇦 UR-SQD, a Boeing 737-73V with SkyUp Airlines (PQ), was wfu and ferried on May 6 to Caude, Spain (CDT) for part-out and scrap.

Ryanair has secured a Dublin court judgment awarding more than €15,000 in damages plus legal costs against a passenger whose disruptive behavior forced a Dublin (DUB) to Lanzarote, Spain (ACE) flight to divert to Porto, Portugal (OPO) in April 2024. The diversion disrupted travel for 160 passengers and required an overnight delay, with costs tied to accommodation, passenger care, and airport fees. The airline said the ruling reinforces its zero tolerance policy toward unruly passengers and comes amid a broader push by CEO Michael O’Leary for tighter airport alcohol restrictions, including a proposed two drink limit, as disruptive incidents continue to rise across Europe.

A Polish court has fined a disruptive Ryanair passenger following an incident aboard a London Stansted to Kaunas (KUN) flight that was forced to divert due to unruly behavior. The passenger was ordered to pay approximately PLN 30,000, equivalent to about $7,600 USD, covering fines and compensation tied to the diversion and operational disruption. Ryanair said the ruling supports its ongoing crackdown on disruptive passengers, as the airline continues pushing for stricter alcohol controls and tougher penalties across Europe amid rising inflight misconduct cases.

The U.S. State Department will begin proactively revoking passports for Americans with significant unpaid child support debt, starting with roughly 2,700 passport holders who each owe more than $100,000, before later expanding enforcement to anyone owing more than $2,500 under a little enforced 1996 federal law. Previously, enforcement generally only impacted people applying for passport renewals or consular services, but the new policy allows the government to revoke active passports using delinquency data supplied by the Department of Health and Human Services. Officials say the move has already pushed hundreds of parents to begin resolving arrears, with more than $657 million in unpaid child support collected through the program since 1998. Americans overseas whose passports are revoked will still be eligible for emergency travel documents to return to the United States.

Air traffic across southern Russia was heavily disrupted on Friday after a Ukrainian drone strike damaged an air traffic control and air navigation center in Rostov-on-Don, forcing the temporary suspension of operations at 13 airports including Sochi (AER), Mineralnye Vody (MRV), Makhachkala (MCX), Vladikavkaz (OGZ), and Grozny (GRV). Russian authorities said the strike impacted systems managing airspace across southern Russia, resulting in more than 80 flight delays or cancellations and affecting over 14,000 passengers, while several international services were also disrupted.

The Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) on Wednesday released U.S. airlines’ March 2026 fuel cost and consumption numbers, which indicate total fuel expenditure ($5.06B) of U.S. scheduled service airlines was up over 56 percent from February ($3.23B) and up more than 30 percent from March 2025 ($3.88B). The airlines used 1.615 billion gallons of fuel, 19.5 percent more fuel than in February 2026 (1.352 billion gallons). The $3.13 paid per gallon of fuel in March was up 74 cents (31 percent ) from February ($2.39) and up 72 cents (30 percent) from March 2025 ($2.41).

Swiss (LX) reported a strong financial performance for the first quarter of 2026, achieving an operating profit of approximately $107 million, a significant increase compared to the same period last year. This growth was driven by a robust surge in passenger demand and a record-high seat load factor, resulting in total revenues of nearly $1.35 billion. While the carrier benefited from high yields across its long-haul network, management noted that rising fuel prices and global supply chain constraints remain key challenges for the remainder of the year. Despite these headwinds, the airline continues to focus on fleet modernization and operational stability to maintain its momentum.

Data aggregator Cirium has released its monthly on-time performance results for airlines around the world in April. Let’s have a look at the most on-time airlines globally and in North America. Thursday’s issue will look at Asian and European airlines.

Following Spirit’s collapse, JetBlue and Frontier are aggressively carving up its market share. JetBlue is targeting high-value flyers with a TrueBlue Mosaic status match and 11 new Fort Lauderdale routes, while Frontier is capturing price-sensitive volume via $199 all-you-can-fly passes and 50% "rescue fare" discounts. Both carriers have implemented strategic fare caps to lure stranded travelers, ensuring JetBlue secures premium South Florida traffic while Frontier absorbs Spirit’s broad domestic and Caribbean network.

With the recent collapse of Spirit Airlines, Latrobe, Pa. (LBE) now has no commercial service.

During April 2026, the Norwegian Group transported a total of 2.35 million passengers, representing a thirteen percent increase compared to the same month last year. Breaking down the figures by carrier, Norwegian (DY) carried 2.12 million passengers with a system-wide load factor of 82.5 percent, while Widerøe (WF) served 230,000 passengers with a load factor of 69.4 percent. The group's overall performance was marked by high operational reliability, with Norwegian achieving its highest punctuality level in several years at 91.3 percent of flights departing on time.

Finnair (AY) carried just over 1.03 million passengers in April 2026, up 6.3 percent year over year, as demand strengthened across its European and Asian networks following disruptions from labor actions in April 2025. Capacity increased 1.9 percent, driven by additional flights to Osaka (KIX) and Nagoya (NGO), while North American capacity declined due to reduced Los Angeles and Chicago service, and Middle East operations remained suspended amid regional security concerns. Passenger traffic rose 5.1 percent, pushing load factor up 2.4 points to 78 percent, while unit revenue climbed 14.7 percent and cargo volumes increased 7.6 percent, supported by strong European and Asian demand. Operational reliability also improved, with 87.5 percent of flights arriving on time.

Grupo Aeroméxico, which comprises Aeroméxico (AM) and Aeroméxico Connect (5D), carried 2.06 million passengers in April 2026, a 1.3 percent decrease compared to April 2025, as the carrier continued prioritizing international capacity amid softer domestic demand trends. Despite the slight traffic decline, the airline reported a strong system-wide load factor of 86.1 percent, up 0.2 points year over year, with international demand outperforming domestic markets as RPMs increased 0.4 percent on a 0.2 percent increase in capacity.

Mexico’s two largest ultra low cost carriers, Viva (VB) and Volaris (Y4), reported a combined first quarter 2026 net loss of roughly $145 million as sharply higher fuel costs, peso volatility, Pratt & Whitney engine groundings, and rising maintenance expenses pressured margins despite continued passenger growth. Volaris alone posted a $71 million quarterly loss, citing a 16 percent jump in fuel costs to $3.06 per gallon and an average of 36 grounded aircraft tied to GTF engine inspections, while also facing higher airport, labor, and maintenance expenses. Analysts noted that both carriers still saw relatively strong demand, particularly on U.S. transborder routes, but cost growth significantly outpaced revenue gains during the quarter. The results come as Volaris and Viva continue pursuing regulatory approval for their proposed Mexican Airline Group partnership, which both carriers argue would improve scale, fleet purchasing power, and operational resilience in a higher cost environment.

Volaris reported carrying 2.8 million passengers in April 2026, a 7.1 percent increase compared to April 2025, as international demand continued to offset softer domestic market trends. The Mexican ultra-low-cost carrier posted a system-wide load factor of 85.0 percent for the month, up 3.4 percentage points year over year, while RPMs increased 11.9 percent on a 7.5 percent rise in capacity. International traffic remained the strongest performer, with international RPMs surging 19.9 percent compared to a 5.0 percent increase domestically.

American Airlines has announced a record-breaking summer is planned. From May 21 through September 8, the Fort Worth-based major plans over 750,000 flights for 75 million passengers. Five flights will depart on average every minute, carrying 500 passengers.

Airbus delivered 67 commercial aircraft in April 2026, bringing year to date deliveries to 181 aircraft, down 5.7 percent from the same period in 2025 as ongoing Pratt & Whitney engine shortages and earlier supply chain disruptions continue to pressure production. The manufacturer maintained its full year target of around 870 deliveries despite the slower pace, while April activity included continued handovers to Gulf carriers and resumed deliveries into China following administrative delays. Airbus also continues to see strong demand momentum, with more than 400 net commercial aircraft orders recorded during the first quarter, highlighted by major recent commitments including AirAsia’s order for 150 A220s and Scoot’s additional A320neo family aircraft.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has given Ireland until June 5 to resolve the ongoing dispute over Dublin Airport’s 32 million passenger annual cap or potentially face retaliatory measures that could impact Irish carriers operating transatlantic flights. Airlines for America, representing carriers including American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Alaska Airlines, and JetBlue, argues the cap violates the EU-U.S. Open Skies agreement because it could force airlines to lose valuable slots at Dublin Airport. Ryanair and Aer Lingus (EI) have also opposed the restrictions, while Aer Lingus warned the dispute creates a “serious risk” of U.S. retaliation against Irish airlines. The cap, originally introduced in 2007 for infrastructure and traffic concerns, has become increasingly contentious as Dublin handled roughly 36 million passengers last year, well above the existing limit.

Former China Eastern Airlines chairman Liu Shaoyong has been formally indicted on bribery charges as part of China’s widening anti corruption campaign targeting senior state owned enterprise executives and government officials. Chinese prosecutors allege Liu abused multiple senior positions to secure benefits for others in exchange for money and valuables, including during his tenure leading China Eastern. Liu also previously held leadership roles at China Southern Airlines before becoming chairman of China Eastern in 2009. He was expelled from the Chinese Communist Party in January before the indictment was announced this week. The case comes amid an intensified crackdown under President Xi Jinping that has recently included severe punishments for several high ranking military and financial officials accused of corruption.

For those of you who are interested, the U.S. government has posted a slew of UFO reports and files online. Click here to review.

Qatar Airways Cargo (QR) has announced the resumption of its freighter services to Baghdad (BGW), Iraq, reinforcing its commitment to the Middle Eastern market. Operating once weekly with a Boeing 777 freighter, the service provides more than 100 tonnes of cargo capacity to and from the Iraqi capital. This route facilitates the transport of essential goods, including pharmaceuticals, perishables, and oil and gas equipment, connecting Baghdad to the carrier’s extensive global network through its Doha (DOH) hub.