Airlines operating flights from East Asia to destinations in Europe are having to reroute their planes away from Pakistan and northern India. The airspace is closed because of escalating tension between the two countries, following the shooting down of 2 Indian military jets. Flights via Pakistan have been cancelled and other flights rerouted. THAI has taken the more drastic step of suspending all its flights destined for Europe. With flight space south of Pakistan becoming crowded, the airline has not been able to establish alternative routes for its flights. "By closing the airspace, every flight from Thailand to Europe has been affected. For flights that are going to depart this evening, we will call an urgent meeting to consider the impact of such events," said THAI president Sumeth Damrongchaitham. <br/>
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Air Canada has confirmed that it is starting an Auckland to Vancouver service from December. The carrier will have 4 flights a week from Dec 12 until March 2020. Although it will go head-to-head with Star Alliance partner Air NZ, Air Canada VP John MacLeod said the two airlines will work closely together. "Air Canada and Air NZ already have a close partnership, having been codeshare and Star Alliance partners for more than 20 years. We look forward to deepening our relationship and optimising our far-reaching trans-Pacific network co-operation, offering our customers a choice of more flights, connections and travel opportunities." The carrier will be using Boeing 787 Dreamliners for the over 13-hour flight. <br/>
TAP Air Portugal is planning to expand operations from Portugal’s second main airport, Porto Francisco Sa Carneiro, to São Paulo Guarulhos (GRU); New York/Newark Liberty International and several European destinations. Starting from June, the carrier will offer 3X-weekly flights from Porto to São Paolo. TAP has also announced increases of frequencies between Porto and New York/Newark from 2 to 6 weekly services, which will be operated by Airbus A321LRs. TAP said its investment in Porto is possible thanks to its fleet reinforcement. The carrier expects delivery of the first 4 A321LRs this year. In total, TAP said it will receive 37 new aircraft by the end of 2019 and 71 by 2025. Reinforcement of TAP’s routes from Porto will allow the airline to operate 288 frequencies per week. <br/>