A superstitious passenger delayed a flight from Shanghai for several hours Tuesday after throwing coins at the plane’s engine for good luck, Chinese officials said. The elderly woman was detained by police at Shanghai Pudong International Airport following the bizarre incident, forcing nearly 150 passengers to be evacuated from the plane bound for Guangzhou in … Read more
An AirAsia flight to Malaysia was forced back to Australia Sunday due to a technical problem, with one passenger saying the plane was “shaking like a washing machine”. The Airbus A330 from Perth to Kuala Lumpur experienced problems about 90 minutes into the journey. “The pilot identified technical issues, turned around and returned,” an airport … Read more
A China Eastern Airlines plane has had to turn back to Sydney airport after a technical failure which left a hole in an engine casing. Flight MU736 was heading from Sydney, Australia to Shanghai, but the pilot reported problems with the engine about one hour after taking off. Passengers, who had to spend the night … Read more
A China Eastern passenger plane suffered a serious fault that tore a huge hole in one of its engine casings and forced the aircraft to make an emergency landing in Sydney, the carrier said Monday. Terrified passengers described a massive din soon after flight MU736 took off from Sydney Airport at 8.30pm (1030 GMT) on … Read more
Emirates, the Middle East’s largest airline, faced fierce criticism in Taiwan Wednesday after it reportedly banned cabin crew from wearing the island’s flag on their uniforms due to pressure from China. Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had lodged protests with Emirates in both Dubai and Taipei. The airline’s cabin crew traditionally wear the … Read more
Emirates, the Middle East’s largest airline, faced fierce criticism in Taiwan Wednesday after it reportedly banned cabin crew from wearing the island’s flag on their uniforms due to pressure from China. China still sees self-ruling Taiwan as part of its territory to be reunified and tensions between the two rivals have rapidly worsened since Beijing-sceptic … Read more
China and Russia on Monday launched an ambitious project to jointly develop a long-haul jet to challenge Boeing and Airbus, just two weeks after the successful test flight of the first made-in-China large passenger plane. State-run Chinese manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) and Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) said they formally established the … Read more
Boeing has temporarily halted test flights of its new 737 MAX aircraft due to possible issues with the engine. The stoppage came days before the US plane maker was due to make its first delivery of the aircraft to a customer. But Boeing said it was sticking with plans to begin MAX deliveries this month, … Read more
China’s first large domestically made passenger aircraft has completed its maiden flight, mounting a major challenge to Boeing and Airbus. After about 90 minutes in the air the plane landed safely back at Pudong airport in Shanghai. The plane is a key symbol of Beijing’s soaring ambitions to enter the global aviation market. Made by … Read more
The first large made-in-China passenger plane took off on its maiden test flight Friday, marking a key milestone on the country’s ambitious journey to compete with the world’s leading aircraft makers. The narrow-body C919 jet — white with green and blue stripes — soared over Pudong international airport in the commercial hub Shanghai as a … Read more
China Southern Airlines said Tuesday it would sell almost a one-tenth stake to American Airlines in a $200 million tie-up that could see two of the world’s biggest carriers cooperate in a range of areas. American Airlines is the world’s largest carrier by scheduled passengers carried, while China Southern is fourth globally and the biggest … Read more
Management of Africa’s largest airline group, Ethiopian Airlines has announced plans to launch seven new destinations within five months this year. The move will be one of the greatest expansions in Ethiopian’s long and illustrious history. “From February to June, Ethiopian will launch new service to Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe), Antananarivo (Madagascar), Conakry (Guinea), Oslo (Norway), … Read more
Africa’s largest Airline Group, Ethiopian Airlines, has ended yet another year of fast and profitable growth in 2016, highlighted by fleet and network expansion as well as significant investment in customer services in the air and on the ground. Recapping the Airline’s performance in 2016, Group CEO Ethiopian Airlines, Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam, said: “2016 has … Read more