Airbus is drawing up contingency plans to phase out production of the world’s largest jetliner, the A380 superjumbo, if it fails to win a key order from Dubai’s Emirates, three people familiar with the matter said. The moment of truth for the slow-selling airliner looms after just 10 years in service and leaves one of Europe’s most visible international symbols hanging by a thread, despite a major airline investment in new cabins unveiled this month. “If there is no Emirates deal, Airbus will start the process of ending A380 production,” a person briefed on the plans said. A supplier added such a move was logical due to weak demand. Airbus and Emirates declined to comment. Airbus also declined to say how many people work on the project. Any shutdown is expected to be gradual, allowing Airbus to produce orders it has in hand, mainly from Emirates. It has enough orders to last until early next decade at current production rates, according to a Reuters analysis.<br/>
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Police say a hunter's trip home hit a snag in Las Vegas after security screeners found a dead cougar in his luggage. No crime was committed because the man had a hunting tag. But police Lt. David Gordon told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that Transportation Security Administration agents held the man at McCarran International Airport late Tuesday to confirm the validity of the Utah hunting tag. His name and where he was headed weren't released. Airport spokeswoman Melissa Nunnery says the man ended up shipping the cougar carcass home, not on the airplane. Gordon says it's not a crime to transport legally possessed game on an airline flight. But he says airlines can refuse to transport certain items.<br/>
The Chiang Mai airport is committed to expanding capacity to 13m passengers by 2025 to cope with soaring traffic demand. The future of Chiang Mai airport, long blurred by unclear state policy directives and relative inaction, appears to be getting revived attention. Policymakers, authorities and the state-run Airports of Thailand now appear keener than ever to settle issues regarding incremental airport capacity much needed for the northern city. These issues have come to a head as overcrowding at Chiang Mai airport has become increasingly evident and will only get worse as fast-growing traffic demand chokes the existing facility. Chiang Mai handled 9.97m passengers in the year to Sept 30, up 8.3% year-on-year and surpassing annual capacity of 8m. <br/>
A Vietnamese court on Wednesday sentenced 15 people to multiple years in jail for plotting to bomb the country’s biggest airport in the southern city of Ho Chi Minh, media reported. The 15 were charged with “terrorism opposing the people’s administration,” the Phap Luat (The Law) newspaper reported. Terrorist acts can be punishable by death in Vietnam. Police foiled the plot to bomb Tan Son Nhat airport after passengers spotted boxes that were later found to consist of explosive devices, the newspaper said. Dang Hoang Thien, accused of making petrol bombs, was jailed for 16 years. Other defendants were given jail terms from five to 14 years. Vietnam government’s official news website cited the court indictment as saying the team acted on instructions from an overseas group that used social media to spread propaganda and recruit.<br/>