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Emirates will be the first operator of the Boeing 777X and expects to take delivery of the first aircraft in early 2020, Emirates president Tim Clark says. The delivery means that Emirates will skip ahead of 777X launch customer Lufthansa and become the widebody’s launch operator. “I believe we will be the first to receive the aircraft in early 2020. It will replace the 777-300ER as they retire,” Clark said. Lufthansa ordered 34 777-9X in September 2013, with deliveries anticipated between 2020 and 2025. At the Dubai Air Show in November 2013, Emirates and the two other major Gulf carriers each announced commitments for large numbers of 777Xs – Emirates for 150 aircraft plus 50 purchase rights, Etihad Airways for 25, and Qatar Airways for 50. <br/>

Pilots at Ryanair got a boost in their bid to unionise from counterparts at Southwest. As the crisis surrounding the cancellation of 20,000 flights continues to swirl, the Southwest Airlines Pilots’ Association are ready to help their Ryanair colleagues, offering to host meetings as well as provide assets and resources, the union’s president said. “I’m preparing a letter to send offering support,” he said. “We’re on standby to help them in any way.” The backing from flight crew at the biggest U.S. discounter follows an offer of legal, organisational and financial assistance from American’s Allied Pilots Association last week. The involvement of Southwest is symbolically significant as Ryanair CE Michael O’Leary used the company’s business model as a template after taking the top job in 1994. <br/>

AirAsia X is looking at swapping an order for 66 Airbus SE A330neo wide-body jets to larger A350s in a bid to boost capacity on its busiest routes. A review of the Kuala Lumpur-based discounter’s fleet requirements is underway and could result in a plan to trade up to the bigger wide-body, CE Tony Fernandes said. He said the Boeing 787 will also be considered. AirAsia X will remain focused on routes within four to eight hours’ flying time and would deploy the A350s on those services just as it had aimed to do with the A330s. “Over the last 10 years we’ve been tweaking the model,” the CEO said. “Now that we kind of know what we want to do, we’re looking at the fleet.” <br/>

Jazeera Airways has delayed a planned expansion into long-haul flights to focus on extending its existing network to serve the Indian subcontinent. Jazeera, which has previously been limited to operations within the Middle East, will start operating to Hyderabad in India and Lahore in Pakistan this month before adding Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai later in Q4, its chairman said. Jazeera said in February it aimed to commence inter-continental services this year once it had secured an alliance with a major airline based in Europe or Asia. While that plan remains “alive,” it won’t happen in 2017 after the carrier reset its priorities in light of surging short-haul demand. “The opportunity for the Indian subcontinent was so overwhelming we had to redirect our resources to that,” the chairman said. <br/>

Pilots at Horizon Air, the Portland, Oregon-based regional subsidiary of Alaska Air Group, have publicly blamed Alaska management for service cuts and aircraft deferrals. In a public letter published as a full-page ad in The Seattle Times, the union representing Horizon’s pilots said the pilot shortage Alaska management has cited for preemptively canceling hundreds of Horizon flights and deferring deliveries of Embraer E175 aircraft is not the “full story.” While acknowledging the reality of the pilot shortage, the letter writers accuse Alaska management of failing to “seriously” prepare for it, imperiling the future of Horizon. The airline has canceled 1,300 flights in September and October combined, citing the pilot shortage. <br/>

Reunion-based Air Austral has finalised its equity joint venture with Air Madagascar, agreeing to take a 49% stake alongside the Madagascan govt which will maintain a controlling 51% shareholding. Air Austral, which is already partnered with Air Madagascar through the Vanilla Alliance, was selected as Air Madagascar’s preferred partner in March after beating a rival short-listed bid from Star Alliance carrier Ethiopian Airlines. Building on this initial selection, the two Indian Ocean carriers signed an agreement to form the partnership in April. The two airlines said the agreement was firmed Oct 9, cementing the terms and conditions for the joint venture. The partnership will be fully finalised at the end of October. <br/>