Chris Loh

Unlike Ryanair's much larger 737-800s and 737 MAX 8-200s, the airline’s one 737-700 has only 148 seats and is nearly 19 feet (6 meters) shorter than the 737-800. More importantly, its resume has included pilot training, corporate charters, reserve duties, scheduled passenger flights, and holiday charter operations. So, why does Europe's largest low-cost airline still need such a conspicuous fleet outlier?

A family who recently traveled with American Airlines from Los Angeles to Philadelphia had the shock of their lives when they went to return to the airport and found out that they were going to be charged more than $800 for their two-year-old daughter being forced to pay for an extra seat, when she was permitted to travel on the lap of the parent on the outbound flight.

For the four and a half years that have elapsed since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, an Antonov An-124 cargo jet has been stuck at Toronto Pearson International Airport. The huge aircraft belongs to the Russian charter and airfreight specialist Volga-Dnepr Airlines, and it was stranded upon its arrival in Canada after the nation closed its airspace to Russian aircraft.

As the toll of United States’ Operation Epic Fury continues to exact a high price on the global aviation industry, the latest casualty is the Airbus A380 fleet of Australian carrier Qantas. Qantas originally planned to begin phasing out its ten A380s in 2032. That has been rescheduled for 2028, which follows on the arrival of the first A350-1000s next year.

Tragedy struck at Montreal-Trudeau International Airport on August 24th as a ramp agent was struck by an Airbus A350-900. It’s said that the individual, now deceased, had stumbled during pushback.

Two Airlink Embraer E-Jets performed a risky low-level flyover of Cape Town's DHL Stadium in late-August ahead of a rugby match between South Africa and New Zealand. The maneuver was broadcast live on television and quickly went viral online, with footage appearing to show the lead jet passing barely above the stadium.

A severe lack of durability led to expensive, premature overhauls, and 787s were grounded as the list of engines needing work grew. As a result, the Trent 1000 has lost significant market share to the GEnx, which at one point was seen as the 'other' engine choice for the Dreamliner. However, Rolls-Royce has been working hard to improve the Trent 1000, and it seems Rolls-Royce might be back.

Virgin Atlantic has taken the next step in reducing its Dreamliner fleet, handing over two of its Boeing 787-9s to LOT Polish Airlines. The UK carrier is working to bring its 787 fleet down from 17 to 14 jets. LOT's chief executive, Michał Fijoł, has confirmed that the transfer will be completed in 2027. Naturally, the move will grow LOT's pre-existing Dreamliner fleet, which includes eight 787-8s and seven 787-9s.

On March 22, 2026, an Air Canada Express flight collided with an airport fire truck that had entered the active runway as the aircraft was landing. It's been about five months since the incident and now, a source familiar with the investigation, has disclosed to media that 2 LaGuardia Airport air traffic controllers in the control tower left work early on the night of the tragic accident that took the lives of the two pilots on the CRJ.

Three passengers on an American Airlines flight from Dallas to Newark restrained a fellow traveler with zip ties and duct-taped him to his seat after he bit one of the men trying to hold him down. The 67-year-old man turned violent during a racist and homophobic tirade in the Domestic First Class cabin, assaulting two passengers and shouting slurs at a flight attendant.