Italy Friday extended a bridge loan for airline Alitalia, which is in special administration as state commissioners seek to sell, overhaul or liquidate the carrier. Italy’s cabinet said in a statement it had passed an emergency decree to add a further E300m to the loan of 600 million euros it made to the ailing company in May. It also extended the deadline for the repayment of the loan, which was due in November this year, to Sept. 30, 2018. The cabined headed by Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni also extended the deadline for prospective buyers to present offers to acquire the national carrier to April 30, 2018, from the previous deadline of Oct. 16 this year.<br/>
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US aviation authorities have ordered visual inspections of fan hubs in engines used on some Airbus SE A380 jets after an engine came apart on an Air France flight last month, forcing it to make an emergency landing. The US FAA issued an emergency airworthiness directive requiring owners and operators of Engine Alliance (EA) Model GP7200 series engines to visually inspect the engines and remove the fan hub if defects are found. The FAA directive formalizes advice circulated by the engine company on Thursday. GP7200 engines account for 60% of the global market share of engines that power Airbus A380 superjumbos currently in service. In addition to Air France, the affected airlines include Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways and Korean Air Lines. The FAA said the directive, an interim measure, was prompted by the failure of the fan hub on the affected engine on the Air France aircraft. "An investigation to determine the cause of the failure is on-going and we may consider additional rulemaking if final action is identified," it said.<br/>